Seven decades ago when one of the pioneers of WA's surf scene started exploring breaks in the South West, locals thought Kevin Merifield was crazy jumping into "shark-infested" waters for sport.

Now, after helping shape the region into the state's premier surf destination , the 87-year-old is hanging up his board for good.

It was Australia Day 1955 when Mr Merifield and his surfing companions first made a five-hour road trip from Perth to check out the surf.

"They were great days," he said.

"Back then there was only about a dozen of us surfers in the whole of Western Australia, so if you saw a car driving down the street with a surfboard on it, you certainly knew who it was.

"All the fishermen and locals reckoned we were crazy going out in what they regarded as shark-infested waters

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