Sanyang Beach
Sanyang beach is known locally as 'Paradise Beach' and after spending a few hours here you'll probably agree with the alias. Getting to Sanyang can take a while as it is situated south of the main tourist areas, in line with Brikama, and some of the roads are a little bumpy; but the beauty of this place is feeling like you're away from all the other tourists who flock to the Kotu and Kololi regions. OK so Sanyang might be just another sandy beach, and there are plenty of those close to the hotels, but at Sanyang there aren't any hotels, just a couple of small lodges, a few beach bars and vast open sands. Some of the beach bars have simple string hammocks on the beach where you can spend the afternoon with cool Julbrews (or soft drinks if you prefer) delivered by the friendly waiters and often there are local drummers and kora players performing on the beach - the atmosphere's definitely laid back.
If you can tear yourself away from the hammock, there's also a fishing village in Sanyang and there's usually brightly painted fishing pirogues on the beach - it's fascinating to watch the fishermen bring in the day's catch to the waiting women and children who sort it for market, and you can usually grab some great pictures, although it's always worth checking that people are happy to be photographed.
It is possible to hire a local or tourist taxi to take you to Sanyang beach and it's frequently a lunchtime stop off on the 4-wheel drive excursion, after which if the tide is out, the driver sometimes takes a short cut back to the hotels along the beach. Driving through the surf with vultures, herons, egrets, pelicans and many other species of bird flying from the path of the truck is a pretty memorable experience.
