Photo : Eimy Eldeeb — CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
The Delta and the north coast · Kafr el-Sheikh
Lake Burullus
A fishermen's lagoon between the Delta and the sea, with next to nothing laid on for visitors.
Burullus is one of the lagoons of the Delta's northern coast: a sheet of brackish water held off the Mediterranean by a sand bar, joined to it through a single opening over towards Baltim. It is not a lake for strolling but a working lake: flat-bottomed boats, nets, fish pens staked out in the shallows, fishing villages along the shore, reed beds where waterbirds winter. The lagoon is protected and under pressure all the same: drainage water off the fields comes in, infill creeps along its edges, and power lines are part of the picture against the evening light. You don't come here for a postcard, you come to watch the Delta work at the water's edge.
The extra bit
The hour that counts is the last one of the day, when the fleet comes in and the masts stand out against the light. Arrange a short outing with a fisherman over at Borg el-Borollos, settling how long and how much before you step aboard.
Know before you go
Facilities are all but absent: no jetty for visitors, no restaurant outside the villages, and nothing resembling a ticket office on the shores you can reach — the area is protected, and a guard post may ask for something. The boats are working boats, with no life jackets and no shade: ask what is on board before you set off, particularly with children, and have the fisherman tell you whether the trip needs a permit before you pay for it. Mosquitoes come out at dusk, at the very hour that makes the journey worthwhile. Cash only, and a few words of Arabic help a great deal: nothing here is set up for a foreign visitor.
