10 August 2019

After a calm night, a good night’s sleep, and a morning walk along the beach, we left Quobba Station.

First stop was the blowholes 10 km down the road. They were amazing! Completely exceeded my expectations. The force of the air trapped under rocks caused the water to shoot high into the air through holes, accompanied by very loud whooshing. The landscape around here is incredible. Extremely stark, but stunning.

We drove on to Carnarvon, checked out the town centre and made a trip to Woolies. And we found potato cakes! Only a 3 out of 5 though. I’ve got a good feeling that the #huntforaustraliasbestpotatocake might be back on as we move further south. These northern WA-ers don’t seem to know what a potato cake is.

The area around Carnarvon grows 70% of the state’s fresh produce. We went for a drive around the area and stopped at a roadside stall to grab a few items. The majority of the farms looked very run down, and the advertised ‘fruit loop drive’ was so disappointing that we only completed half of it.

Next it was off to the Carnarvon Space Museum. We had low expectations, and were very pleasantly surprised. There was so much information and interactive displays. The space station at Carnarvon has played a significant role in the tracking of space going vessels (not quite sure what they’re called. Space ships doesn’t seem quite right) and although the majority of equipment is now redundant, there was still some pretty mean looking electrified barbed wire fence surrounding some comm’s equipment.

We left there mid arvo and made a beeline for Hamelin Station where we are camping for two nights. It is a great ex-station stay, with the station purchased by Bush Heritage in 2015. The campsites are all made of crushed shells that almost glow in the moonlight. A lovely change from red dust and sand!

Cliffs near the Point Quobba blowholes.

The blowholes in action.

Point Quobba lighthouse

3/5 potato cake from Carnarvon

One of the redundant satellite dishes at the Carnarvon space museum.

9 August 2019

A pretty big travel day today with around 500 km to cover to get to Quobba Station. Thanks goodness the wind didn’t get up too much during the evening and we all had a reasonable nights sleep. First stop was Exmouth for necessities (coffee, bakery and the actual necessities of water and fuel) and then we made a beeline for Coral Bay. It was a lovely day, sunny and no wind and I think as a result, we saw Coral Bay at its best. We had a lovely picnic lunch there overlooking the ocean and the white sandy beach. It was busy though. The town is basically two huge caravan parks, and they pack those caravans in there tight! Hardly room for the awnings. We almost went for a swim, but then thought that we’d hold off until we got down to Quobba, and a location there called The Aquarium. So, with lunch finished, we were back on the road. By the time we got to Quobba it was a bit late, and the conditions had deteriorated, so no snorkelling unfortunately. We made our way up the coast line, made up of high cliffs and pounding surf and checked in at the station. It is another working station – Damara sheep. The amenities were lovely however salt water showers which was interesting – although at least they were hot.

We walked down along the beach and across some cliffs and the waves were smashing in. It was incredible. My favourite way to experience the ocean. Rock fishing is very popular up here, although also very dangerous. There are warning signs around, and the government run a free lifejacket loan program to try and save the lives of those that get washed off the rocks. Although, after seeing just a small part of that coastline, I don’t know that a lifejacket is going to increase the chances of survival all that much.

It was a calm evening which is lucky, as the wind could really howl through this campground.

Coral Bay beach

Most things belong to Bill in Coral Bay

A warning sign to rock fisherman on the way to Quobba.

8 August 2019

Big day today! Today was the day that Dad and I headed out to try and find a whale shark to swim with. Both Mum and Bill had elected to stay on land, and given the conditions of the morning, I’m sure they gave themselves a pat on the back for making that decision. The wind had been up all night, meaning another poor nights sleep and it was a windy and cool morning.

Bill drove us the 30 or so km to the boat ramp, and then continued on into Exmouth to have a look around and get a good coffee (or a few coffees given the rough nights sleep).

Dad and I boarded the tender, and then onto the larger vessel that we were to spend the day on. I headed straight to the coffee stand and made us a couple of Nescafes. They got us organised with our snorkelling gear and then some safety and instructional talks on what to do and not do when swimming with the mega fauna. The spotter planes were up in the air scouring the reef for a whale shark. Normally the day would start with a snorkel in the lagoon – the body of water between the beach and the outer reef, however because it was so choppy, they took us out behind the reef where conditions were a bit better. The snorkelling was disappointing as the reef was quite deep, and so it was difficult to make out much. They say that the first snorkel is for us to try out the gear, however I suspect it is actually about the guides watching us in the water to see if we are capable. First snorkel over and it was bloody cold in wet gear back on the boat. We dried off a bit, and them they saw a couple of humpbacks that were suitable to swim with! It was amazing. Absolutely incredible. We were in the water looking down and then suddenly these two huge whales swam underneath us. An absolute guess is that they were maybe 6 metres below us. It was incredible. They were gone in a flash though and time to jump back on the boat. Then as soon as we were back on, they told us that a whale shark had been sighted and we were off. It was the only one spotted so far for the day, so all the tour boats had converged around it. Turns out it was the first one to be spotted in 6 days, so we were extremely lucky. Dad and I were in the first group from our boat in the water. It was a bit confusing with the guide telling us to go right, then left, then look down and bam – the whale shark swam toward us! We were to stay 3 metres from it however we couldn’t back away quickly enough and it swam within about a metre of us. It was quite small and it turns out, a juvenile. However it was still pretty cool. It was all over so quickly though. We only got the one chance to swim with it, although I am extremely grateful for that.

Due to the poor conditions, the skipper decided to call a close to the day early. We headed back in to the lagoon where we moored and had a delicious lunch, and then we went on a cruise through the lagoon which was very pleasant. The wind died down, the sun was out and they brought out cake. Winning.

We were back on land by just after 2 pm. Bill picked us up from the boat ramp and we headed back to camp briefly, and then with the day being so lovely, back to Turquoise Bay for another snorkel. Bill had enjoyed the few hours he had to himself in Exmouth (his first solo time in almost 8 weeks!)

A humpback whale

The whaleshark

Check out the colour of that water! That is really what it look like too. No filter.

View from the lighthouse near Exmouth.

7 August 2019

The wind got up at about midnight and none of us got too much sleep last night.

Bill and I took our coffees to the top of the sand dune and ended up chatting to a lovely couple up there for over an hour. We had to rush away in the end as I wanted to bake scones for morning tea, and Bill was baking a loaf of his delicious cheese and bacon bread for lunch. After morning tea, Dad and I headed back down to the beach to see if there were any fish around. After an hour or so of nothing, Bill and I jumped in with our snorkelling gear on to see if there were even any fish out there! Nope. None. Not a single fish. It was a nice swim though. After that, the fishing rods were packed up and it was time for fresh baked bread for lunch. My goodness he does a wonderful job of it. The whole loaf was eaten in less than 20 minutes.

We all lobbed in to the Ranger in the arvo and drove down to Yardie Creek and did a short walk along the cliff top of the gorge. Then it was up to Turquoise Bay for snorkelling. There is a moderate current at Turquoise Bay and the conditions were good for drift snorkelling. We got in the water and let the current take us over the reef for 100 m or at which point we climbed out, and I walked back up the beach and did it again. There wasn’t quite as many fish as at the Oyster Stacks, however still amazing. I saw an enormous cod (?) hidden in a bit of an overhang. It was huge! Dad dove down to get a better look at it at the same time that it opened it’s mouth. He said that he thinks his head would have fit in it’s mouth.

The wind died down and it was a lovely afternoon. Showers, beers and chips followed by tea and triominos. Our usual evening routine.

Bill kneading the dough for cheese and bacon bread.

Yardie Creek

Another WA sunset

6 August 2019

After a calm night, the wind picked up a bit and it wasn’t an overly fast paced morning. Dad and I headed down to the beach fishing mid morning, and gave up by lunch. We got a couple of small bites, and fed a few fish some bait. After lunch, it was high tide so Dad, Bill and I drove down to the Oyster Stacks to go snorkelling. It was pretty choppy and windy, but we had limited time and I was determined to snorkel this location. Because the reef is so shallow there, the tide has to be above 1.2 m, and today was our only day that the tide was going to be high enough. We soon forgot about the conditions when we got in the water. Just knee deep in water and there was the most amazing diversity of fish. It was extradionary to see them so close to the beach. We ventured out a bit further and I don’t know what 99% of the fish were, but there were big ones, little ones and some of them so colourful. There were schools of silver fish, yellow fish and black fish and none of them could care less that we were snorkelling above them. It was really amazing. After completing the precarious job of hauling ourselves back out of the water over the rocky shore, we headed back to camp for showers (thank goodness for Dad’s excellent camp shower. I hate the feel of dried salt on my skin), beers and chips. The wind calmed down a bit in the arvo, and we could watch the sunset from the top of the adjacent sand dune.

The coastline next to our camp.

5 August 2019

Another exciting day for me today as it was time to head to the Ningaloo Reef. I have wanted to come here for as long as I can remember.

It was a short drive from Bullara to Exmouth so we didn’t have to rush to leave camp. We aren’t staying in Exmouth as back in March I booked a campsite in the Cape Range National Park that runs down most of the peninsula which the Ningaloo reef runs alongside. The campsites are so popular that you have to book at least a couple of months in advance.

We arrived in Exmouth, fuelled up and headed for the bakery. Priorities! Bill and I found the only car wash in town to get the salty mud off the car (a result of yesterday’s adventures). Then we all went to the discovery centre and went through the museum and small aquarium. It was very interesting to learn that Exmouth started out because there was a US army base here. They constructed VLF towers a few km’s from town so they could get messages to their submarines. For many decades, Exmouth was a unique town in that half the population was Australian and the other half American.

We headed out of town and up to the lighthouse lookout which offered a superb view of the ocean. Then we made our way to the campsite which was still about another 40 km down the peninsula. It was a very windy afternoon – but then the WA coast is notorious for strong winds.

Bill and the Exmouth Big Prawn.

4 August 2019

Bit of a slower start this morning, combined with laundry day took us to morning tea time. We trotted up to the homestead where they serve coffee and scones with jam and cream in the mornings. Bill was in luck, as they also had carrot cake as the one and only cake for the day. He didn’t want to choose, so decided on a scone, and cake. Solid option.

It was a beautiful setting, with the lawn and gardens kept in lovely condition, and tables and chairs dotted around the garden and along the expansive verandah. We snagged a verandah table, out of the sun. The coffee and scones were really lovely, absolutely spot on in fact and none of us needed lunch that day.

Late morning we packed the fishing rods and drove 20 ish km’s across the station property to Exmouth Gulf. We explored a bit and then Dad flicked some lures whilst the rest of us enjoyed a lazy hour or so reading under the awning. The flies had been a bit bothersome at the campground, however not so at the gulf, so it was a very pleasant way to spend the afternoon. Although no fish unfortunately.

It was mid arvo by the time we got back to camp so we went for a short walk, and then time for a beer. We could hear some jazz music and thought that someone was playing it from their caravan. However, on further inspection, we found a very talented man up at the communal fire area playing his trumpet and singing with the accompanying music coming from a speaker. It was so rare finding someone playing a trumpet in a campground! Well, rare for us, however I get the impression that these sorts of things are not unusual for Bullara, and part of what makes it a pretty special place. We sat and listened and applauded until it was time to go light the fire to cook baked spuds in the camp oven for tea.

Another wonderful northern WA day.

Fishing and relaxing at Exmouth Gulf

The Bullara bottle tree.

The unique Bullara dump point. For those non campers/caravaners reading this blog, a dump point is the legitimate name for the location that one empties the contents of the cassettes from portable and caravan toilets. Although, they are usually a bit more discrete than this one!

3 August 2019

Bill and I were awake early, and headed off to get a coffee. Even on a Saturday, coffee shops are open at 5am here to cater to the port workers. Winning.

Packed up camp and headed off for our biggest day of driving in the last few weeks. 470 km to cover.

We had a couple of stops along what was a fairly uninteresting drive and arrived at Bullara Station mid afternoon. We set up camp and went for an explore. What an interesting place! It is still a working station, however also now houses quite a large campsite. The infrastructure is fantastic! Everything looks to have been made out of old pieces of farm equipment etc that they’ve had lying around. Towel hooks have been made from bent horse shoes. Toilet cubicles made from what appear to be old tanks of some kind. They have donkey heater showers that get fired up a couple of times a day, and the wool shed (complete with shearing gear and wool tables) now houses a table tennis table and tv.

Happy hour was at 5 pm at the communal fire pit near the camp kitchen. They cook up damper for all the guests 5 nights a week, and everyone has a bit of a chat to the people sitting near them. The damper was really very good too. Damper John (ol’ mate that cooks the damper) gives a bit of a talk on the history of the station and how he ended up there. It was pretty great.

Bill and I headed off to enjoy a donkey shower. I fed the donkey (stoked the fire) and we hung our towels and toiletries bags on the gum tree that was growing through the cubicle. It was all very novel. Although I recognise that back in the day when these sorts of showers were the only way to have hot water, the people using them would have thought the constant hot water that we are used to these days was extraordinary. But now we want a hot shower that we have to work for! How ridiculous are we!

Steak and vegies cooked over the open fire and a glass of red wine for dinner, and then we all enjoyed sitting around the fire until time for bed.

Inside the shower cubicle fuelled by the donkey heater. The bucket up the top has holes puched in the bottom and is the shower head.

The donkey heater setup.

The lava-trees. The signs here are all made of old windmill blades.

Bill feeding Maggie, the resident kangaroo. She is a huge fan of walnuts.

2 August 2019

Not the best nights sleep last night with the noises of industry going all night. Oh well. We did expect that.

We started the day heading a bit further along the Burrup Peninsula to the impressive North-west Shelf visitor centre. The infrastructure for this project is immense, and that is just the onshore component. The visitors centre was very informative, although, similar to our tours of the iron ore mining and shipping sites, it left me concerned and sad at the rate we are consuming resources that have taken thousands of millions of years to form. The offshore oil and gas industry is evidence that there are no boundaries that cannot be overcome in our pursuit for resources.

We had packed the fishing rods, so we headed an hour up the road to Point Samson. I had researched the time and place where the fish were supposed to be biting. We didn’t get a bite though. Perhaps we were using the wrong gear. Regardless, it was a bit of fun flicking lures around the mangroves.

We had a quick look around Point Samson, and then headed to Cossack – an old ghost tour in which a number of the buildings have been beautifully restored. There was an art exhibition on also which we all enjoyed.

Back to Karratha to stock up for the next week as we head down the coast. Then it was back to camp for the evening.

A Sturt Desert Pea – they grow prolifically up here. I was pretty excited when I saw my first plant.

One of the restored buildings in Cossack.

1 August 2019

Bit of a sleep in this morning followed by pack up, and then a walk around the original Millstream homestead, built when the area was a pastoral property. They have some nice wetlands, all fed by springs however a fire had gone through in the last year or so (planned?) and it had burnt too hot so the walk was ruined somewhat by that.

We headed out of the park via a cliff top viewing point, and then drove about 50 km to Python Pool where we had a swim and lunch.

We were in Karratha by mid afternoon where we stopped for some supplies and then out to Dampier where we were camping for two nights. Dampier is a small town, about 20 mins from Karratha. Rio Tinto ship some of their iron ore from there, and it is also home to the onshore activities of the North-west Shelf Project, a joint oil and gas project between BHP, Chevron, Woodside and many others.

The caravan park is right across from the water with a view to iron ore loading activities. It is tiny with about 20 sites and some great hot showers that we all took advantage off. It was so nice to feel really clean again!

Python Pool

The photo doesn’t do the beautiful scenery on the drive to Python Pool justice