Perth to Coral Bay
After heavy rain and wind overnight, we headed north, destination Dongara that night. Our main aim on the way was to visit the Pinnacles Desert in the Nambung National Park, a 57 km diversion from the Brand Highway, via Cervantes. In this area of varying coloured sands, there are thousands of limestone pinnacles, which range in size up to 5 metres tall and 2 metres thick at the base. They were formed thousands of years ago when ancient plant roots formed a weak cementation of calcite within the dunes and have been exposed by wind and shifting sands. Weather had cleared by this time we arrived so we saw it at its best.
Our cabin at Dongara was on a cliff above the ocean, which reflected the fairly strong winds. Dongara and Port Dennison were first settled some 150 years ago and were a popular retirement destination for farmers of the surrounding rural area. Now tourists and holiday makers are discovering the delights of this historic region. Had our first lunch of the rock crayfish, which I have to say, was mouth watering! The winds settled while we were there so we had a relaxing time just visiting some of the nearby beaches.
Kalbarri via Geraldton was our next destination. .Archeological evidence suggests Aboriginal settlement of the Geraldton region extends back at least 40,000 years but it was not until the 17th century that the Dutch started exploring the area. The wrecks of the Batavia (1629) and the Zutydorp (1721), relics of which were in the Fremantle Shipwreck Museum, are testaments to this early exploration, but it was the British Captain, Phillip King who made the first official visit in 1822. Just think, WA could have been settled by the Dutch! Geraldton has recently received a lot of publicity due to the finding of the wreck of the HMAS Sydney some 100 km off shore. With the history of shipwrecks in the area, there must be a real graveyard of wrecks out there.
We arrived for lunch in Northhampton after driving through some incredibly fertile and scenic areas. It is hard to imagine this area was originally mined for lead and copper in the mid- 1800’s. Northhampton is one of the oldest settlement outside Perth, and the first railway in WA (from Geraldton to Northhampton, was laid and completed in 1879.
We pushed on to Kalbarri, which is at the mouth of the Murchison River, arriving late afternoon. There are many scenic areas around Kalbarri, both in the National Park and along the coast. On the first day we decided to go out into the National Park and visited a few of the gorges. The next day we visited the coastal lookouts and gorges.
They are all spectacular and it becomes a bit overwhelming at times. The river area where it meets the sea is also very scenic and a very peaceful place to visit.
We had been told by several people (from Margaret River to Perth) that a visit had to be made to Finlay’s Fish & Grill for a meal. What a fun night. Food is not that marvelous, but it’s very quirky (e.g. no frills!!! – serviettes were rolls of toilet paper!), and we ended up sitting and enjoying a camp fire with many other fellow travellers. This is where you find out about the “special spots” to visit.
We then headed up the coast to the world heritage area of Shark Bay where we had booked accommodation in Denham in a tourist Park which boasts it is “The Most Westerly Caravan Park in Australia”. This is another historical town, originally with a thriving pearling industry but it is now the hub of the tourist and fishing industry in the Bay.
One of the main attractions is Monkey Mia resort where you can visit and take part in the feeding of the dolphins. The resort is 25 km from Denham and we headed off the first day, only to find when we arrived that the dolphins had already been in for their three feeds. We decided to stay there and have lunch and go to some of the lookouts around the coast and go back next morning. We got up early and drove out through a thick fog and blinding sunrise (with eyes pealed for kangaroos) to arrive at Monkey Mia as the first dolphins were in around 7.30 a.m. In the past you could actually swim with the dolphins, but now the rangers only allow you to stand in ankle deep water to watch their antics as they play around waiting to be fed. Several dolphins came in and were only about a metre away from where we were standing. We weren’t lucky enough to be invited to feed a dolphin but it was just magic being so close. We ended up staying for the three feeds as they came in three times in a couple of hours.
Denham is also close to the Francois Peron National Park, to the most western point in Australia, but this was serious 4 WD driving and we didn’t attempt it. Dirk Hartog Island is one of the outer islands in the bay, where Dirk Hartog was the first recorded white man to set foot on Australian soil in 1616. The shallows of the bay also house vast seagrass meadows and Dugongs abound.
We had to leave Denham early as we had another approx. 500 km to get to our next stop in Coral Bay. It may not look that far on the map, but WA is a very vast place and to get to these great areas you have to go off the main highway some 90 – 120 km each way. Went into Carnarvon for lunch and to pick up some spares hoses for the car (just in case we strike some bad conditions when we are out in the Pilbara and Kimberley areas). Carnarvon is the fruit growing region (especially bananas) for much of WA. It also hosts a NASA tracking station and OTC station.
We arrived in Coral Bay mid afternoon to settle into our cabin, over the road from the beach. Coral Bay is part of the Ningaloo Reef which starts south of Exmouth. One company controls all the accommodation and business in this area with two very large caravan parks, a hotel/motel resort, and shopping arcade. It is right on the point and just over the road from the beach. The lawn at the hotel and the foreshore are the ideal places to watch the sunset and people were out every night with cameras, tripods etc. to record the beautiful sunsets in the area. The bay is one huge coral reef which starts less than 100 metres from shore, so snorkeling, coral viewing in glass bottomed boats and boats which take you out to swim with the mantarays on the reef are a big business.
We took the “easy option” and went out in the glass bottomed boat . Coral is mostly limestone so doesn’t have the bright colours of the tropical coral, but it looks like a huge limestone garden under very clear water. You would think it was plant life, but not so, as the coral is formed by millions of tiny “animals”, which create the shapes, many looking like very large cabbages. Some local fish followed the boat all the way, very much like schnappers and an average of 5 kg each. We were hoping to see a mantaray or groper but were not in luck. When we got back to shore the children were able to feed the fish and suddenly these 5kg fish appeared from everywhere, swimming in and out of our legs in ankle deep water. They are protected so no chance of a schnapper for dinner! Of course, fishing is a big part of the holidays up there, as in all other areas of the coast. Also, dune buggies are available for hiring to tackle the many sand dunes to get to some of the remote beaches. We did try to get the Kluger up one of the hills but sand was too soft and steep and we do not have the correct tyr’s on the Car, even though we dropped the tyre pressure.
The rest of the time was spent just relaxing on the beach, a picnic next to one of the remoter beaches and having swims (saw a small stingray on the way out of the water). It is a beautiful, if remote, spot and is very popular with families and small children.
Make sure you have a look at the additional pics once we post them.
After heavy rain and wind overnight, we headed north, destination Dongara that night. Our main aim on the way was to visit the Pinnacles Desert in the Nambung National Park, a 57 km diversion from the Brand Highway, via Cervantes. In this area of varying coloured sands, there are thousands of limestone pinnacles, which range in size up to 5 metres tall and 2 metres thick at the base. They were formed thousands of years ago when ancient plant roots formed a weak cementation of calcite within the dunes and have been exposed by wind and shifting sands. Weather had cleared by this time we arrived so we saw it at its best.
Our cabin at Dongara was on a cliff above the ocean, which reflected the fairly strong winds. Dongara and Port Dennison were first settled some 150 years ago and were a popular retirement destination for farmers of the surrounding rural area. Now tourists and holiday makers are discovering the delights of this historic region. Had our first lunch of the rock crayfish, which I have to say, was mouth watering! The winds settled while we were there so we had a relaxing time just visiting some of the nearby beaches.
Kalbarri via Geraldton was our next destination. .Archeological evidence suggests Aboriginal settlement of the Geraldton region extends back at least 40,000 years but it was not until the 17th century that the Dutch started exploring the area. The wrecks of the Batavia (1629) and the Zutydorp (1721), relics of which were in the Fremantle Shipwreck Museum, are testaments to this early exploration, but it was the British Captain, Phillip King who made the first official visit in 1822. Just think, WA could have been settled by the Dutch! Geraldton has recently received a lot of publicity due to the finding of the wreck of the HMAS Sydney some 100 km off shore. With the history of shipwrecks in the area, there must be a real graveyard of wrecks out there.
We arrived for lunch in Northhampton after driving through some incredibly fertile and scenic areas. It is hard to imagine this area was originally mined for lead and copper in the mid- 1800’s. Northhampton is one of the oldest settlement outside Perth, and the first railway in WA (from Geraldton to Northhampton, was laid and completed in 1879.
We pushed on to Kalbarri, which is at the mouth of the Murchison River, arriving late afternoon. There are many scenic areas around Kalbarri, both in the National Park and along the coast. On the first day we decided to go out into the National Park and visited a few of the gorges. The next day we visited the coastal lookouts and gorges.
They are all spectacular and it becomes a bit overwhelming at times. The river area where it meets the sea is also very scenic and a very peaceful place to visit.
We had been told by several people (from Margaret River to Perth) that a visit had to be made to Finlay’s Fish & Grill for a meal. What a fun night. Food is not that marvelous, but it’s very quirky (e.g. no frills!!! – serviettes were rolls of toilet paper!), and we ended up sitting and enjoying a camp fire with many other fellow travellers. This is where you find out about the “special spots” to visit.
We then headed up the coast to the world heritage area of Shark Bay where we had booked accommodation in Denham in a tourist Park which boasts it is “The Most Westerly Caravan Park in Australia”. This is another historical town, originally with a thriving pearling industry but it is now the hub of the tourist and fishing industry in the Bay.
One of the main attractions is Monkey Mia resort where you can visit and take part in the feeding of the dolphins. The resort is 25 km from Denham and we headed off the first day, only to find when we arrived that the dolphins had already been in for their three feeds. We decided to stay there and have lunch and go to some of the lookouts around the coast and go back next morning. We got up early and drove out through a thick fog and blinding sunrise (with eyes pealed for kangaroos) to arrive at Monkey Mia as the first dolphins were in around 7.30 a.m. In the past you could actually swim with the dolphins, but now the rangers only allow you to stand in ankle deep water to watch their antics as they play around waiting to be fed. Several dolphins came in and were only about a metre away from where we were standing. We weren’t lucky enough to be invited to feed a dolphin but it was just magic being so close. We ended up staying for the three feeds as they came in three times in a couple of hours.
Denham is also close to the Francois Peron National Park, to the most western point in Australia, but this was serious 4 WD driving and we didn’t attempt it. Dirk Hartog Island is one of the outer islands in the bay, where Dirk Hartog was the first recorded white man to set foot on Australian soil in 1616. The shallows of the bay also house vast seagrass meadows and Dugongs abound.
We had to leave Denham early as we had another approx. 500 km to get to our next stop in Coral Bay. It may not look that far on the map, but WA is a very vast place and to get to these great areas you have to go off the main highway some 90 – 120 km each way. Went into Carnarvon for lunch and to pick up some spares hoses for the car (just in case we strike some bad conditions when we are out in the Pilbara and Kimberley areas). Carnarvon is the fruit growing region (especially bananas) for much of WA. It also hosts a NASA tracking station and OTC station.
We arrived in Coral Bay mid afternoon to settle into our cabin, over the road from the beach. Coral Bay is part of the Ningaloo Reef which starts south of Exmouth. One company controls all the accommodation and business in this area with two very large caravan parks, a hotel/motel resort, and shopping arcade. It is right on the point and just over the road from the beach. The lawn at the hotel and the foreshore are the ideal places to watch the sunset and people were out every night with cameras, tripods etc. to record the beautiful sunsets in the area. The bay is one huge coral reef which starts less than 100 metres from shore, so snorkeling, coral viewing in glass bottomed boats and boats which take you out to swim with the mantarays on the reef are a big business.
We took the “easy option” and went out in the glass bottomed boat . Coral is mostly limestone so doesn’t have the bright colours of the tropical coral, but it looks like a huge limestone garden under very clear water. You would think it was plant life, but not so, as the coral is formed by millions of tiny “animals”, which create the shapes, many looking like very large cabbages. Some local fish followed the boat all the way, very much like schnappers and an average of 5 kg each. We were hoping to see a mantaray or groper but were not in luck. When we got back to shore the children were able to feed the fish and suddenly these 5kg fish appeared from everywhere, swimming in and out of our legs in ankle deep water. They are protected so no chance of a schnapper for dinner! Of course, fishing is a big part of the holidays up there, as in all other areas of the coast. Also, dune buggies are available for hiring to tackle the many sand dunes to get to some of the remote beaches. We did try to get the Kluger up one of the hills but sand was too soft and steep and we do not have the correct tyr’s on the Car, even though we dropped the tyre pressure.
The rest of the time was spent just relaxing on the beach, a picnic next to one of the remoter beaches and having swims (saw a small stingray on the way out of the water). It is a beautiful, if remote, spot and is very popular with families and small children.
Make sure you have a look at the additional pics once we post them.
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