Kivak bodden-chain

Fed by the Iilak and Qanak rivers, the Kivak bodden-chain runs across the south-west coast of the Theolisian peninsula, about 160 kilometres west of Ikorsuk and is bounded by Nusaqia Bar on the west and the Ileqian lowlands in the east. A series of shallow lagoons, the bodden-chain has an average depth of two metres and is haven for wading birds, especially cranes and herons. The reeds of the boddens are breeding ground for dozens of migratory waterfowl, and the shallow tidal waters supply the nearby towns and villages with a steady income, either from fishing or from transporting cargo via the use of a wherrie - a wide-hulled, flat-bottomed sailboat.
The boddens are expanding as the shoreline succumbs to winter stormfloods. Cliff erosion and sediment repositioning have caused major economic damage, including silting up the harbour of the town of Oqaat - once a major fishing port, now landlocked - and flooding the village of Sisoq, forcing its relocation further inland. Flood barriers and efforts to forestall erosion have only been of moderate success due to the rapid tidal changes and fluctuating salinity.
Protected from the ocean storms by Nusaqia Bar and with the lack of major predators across the Ileqian lowlands, the Kivak boddens are becoming more popular with tourists. Boating, hunting, and sport fishing are common, but - since being featured in the novel The Vastness of the Sea, by Aeskhrion Kallias - the villages along the bodden-chain have gained a reputation among artists, who come for the long summer days, moody skies, and the peculiar quality of the sunlight that makes colours appear more intense. The painter Siaruk of Ikorsuk-Manŭw has had a summer home constructed on Nusaqia Bar, and hosts up to a dozen artists - winners of the Ikorsuk Grande - each year.

Type

Bodden

Location under

Theolisian peninsula