WA's best beaches make a splash
With summer looming, WA beaches have again been put on the map.
The sandy shores and turquoise waters have been celebrated in a new book, 101 Australian Beaches, with WA getting 16 places in the list compiled by marine scientist Andrew Short and conservationist Brad Farmer.
Among the WA beaches listed are Cottesloe, the Basin at Rottnest Island and Cable Beach in Broome.
"WA has some fabulous beaches because you've got such a range of latitudes from the wild south to the tropical north," Professor Short said.
"There's a tremendous variety of coastline."
Professor Short and Mr Farmer looked at Australia's 11,761 beaches to produce a thoroughly researched and scientific compilation of the best sandy spots.
They considered all the factors for an exceptional beach from the views, sand and surf to headlands, geological features and amenities.
"We developed a long list from our knowledge and then we had to narrow it down to a short list," Professor Short said.
"Roughly this time last year we travelled to WA right from Esperance up to Kalbarri just rechecking and finetuning our selections."
The book, launched on Friday at Bondi, took about a year to compile.
Queensland and NSW, where the authors live, have most beaches on the list, with WA not far behind.
