Lake Hillier is a pink-coloured lake on Middle Island of Western Australia, The lake is about 600 meters long, and is surrounded by a rim of sand and dense woodland of paper bark and eucalyptus trees. A narrow strip of sand dunes covered by vegetation separates it from the blue Southern Ocean.
No-one fully knows why the lake is pink, although it is speculated that the color could arise from a dye created by the organisms Dunaliella salina and Halobacteria. Another hypothesis is that the pink color is due to red halophilic bacteria in the salt crusts. That the color is not a trick of light can be proved by taking water from the lake in a container – the pink color can be found to be permanent.
Middle Island's pink lake dates back to the journals of explorer Matthew Flinders in 1802. Flinders had climbed Middle Island's highest peak (now known as Flinders Peak) to survey the surrounding waters when he came across the remarkable lake. Middle Island and its pink lake are located in a pristine wilderness. The only way to view this lake is from the air.
Pink Hillier Lake
