Sarıkum was protected because it holds sea, shore, dune, lake, wetland and forest ecosystems together, and for the biological diversity that comes with them. The lake itself is a lagoon: an old bay whose mouth was closed over many years by shore dunes driven by the north-west wind, damming the streams that ran into it.
It still has a channel to the sea, 25 to 30 metres wide, but that connection closes from time to time as the dunes move. For birds the lake is a feeding and wintering ground: in winter the white-headed duck and more than 20,000 water birds stop here. The area covers 489.2 hectares in the central district of Sinop and was protected on 30 July 1987. It has capacity for 2,500 visitors and 250 vehicles.
- Designated
- 30.07.1987
Visiting hours
- Visiting hours
- 08:00 - 20:00
When to go
- Climate
- Across Sinop as a whole, monthly mean temperatures run from 6.8 °C in February to 23.4 °C in August; the mean stays between 15 and 25 °C in May, June, July, August, September and October; rainfall is heaviest in December (92 mm) and lightest in July (34 mm). Long-term means for 1936-2025 from the Turkish State Meteorological Service (MGM).
