Dolphins, dugongs, and stunning beaches in northern WA

We are currently driving around Western Australia (WA) as part of our tour of Australia’s southern, central and western states. After leaving Coral Bay and the Ningaloo Reef in far north WA, we drove south along the coastal road, seeing beautiful beaches and great marine life such as bottlenose dolphins.

 

Bottle-nose dolphin, Shark Bay (UNESCO), WA

The dolphins were mostly in a place called Monkey Mia. But before we arrived in Monkey Mia, we drove through Carnarvon, a small coastal town (pop 4,800). The town is known for its fruit plantations, space technology, and long jetty.

 

One mile jetty, Carnarvon, WA

We thought Carnarvon was lovely. It is right on the coast and the city wraps around an attractive tidal inlet. We spotted many historic buildings and fruit plantations there, especially banana. We also saw a space tracking station and satellite, and admired it’s impressive One Mile Jetty.

 

Stromatolites at Hamelin Pool, WA

After a look around Carnarvon we headed for Hamelin Pool, a UNESCO World Heritage site known to have the largest and oldest living fossils on earth, called stromatolites. These are microbial life forms that work together to create stunted tree-like structures in the water. They are amazing, and the ones in Hamelin Pool are 3.7 billion years old and known as the best example of stromatolites in the world.

 

Shell Beach, Peron Peninsular (UNESCO), WA

Leaving Hamelin Pool, we drove along the Peron Peninsular toward Shark Bay, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site because it has the largest sea-grass beds in the world (4,800 sq km), which supports a diversity of marine life. Along the way, we stopped at Shell Beach, home to a 15 km long stretch of coast that is made up of trillions of white shells belonging to the Fragum cockle. It’s one of only two such beaches in the world. 

Top L to R: Fragum cockles; Old Pearler. Below: Emus and Eagle Bluff.

Walking over the tiny cockle shells was interesting. In places they have compacted so much that they can be cut into blocks for building, and the Old Pearler restaurant in the nearby town of Denham, is the only restaurant in the world to be built almost entirely of these compacted shells. Driving on, we dodged an emu crossing the road, stopped briefly at Eagle Bluff lookout, then arrived in Denham.

The beach at Denham, Peron Peninsular (UNESCO), WA

We stayed in Denham, which is a lovely wee town (pop 723). Beginning as a fishing village, it is now a simple but major tourist destination and the gateway town to the UNESCO Shark Bay. While there, we admired its beautiful beach, bought some freshly caught fish for dinner, and stocked up on supplies, fuel, and gas before driving across the peninsular to Monkey Mia.

One of the beautiful beaches at Monkey Mia, Shark Bay (UNESCO), WA

Monkey Mia is a WA conservation park on the eastern shore of the Peron Peninsula, right on Shark Bay. Because it’s a reserve, we had to get a permit to be there, and book ahead for a camping spot. It is famous for its wild dolphins, dugongs, and a plethora of other marine life that visit or live in Shark Bay. It also has stunning beaches.

Park ranger feeding dolphins, Monkey Mia, Shark Bay (UNESCO), WA

The first morning that we arrived in this idyllic but busy place we headed to the beach at 7:45 am to watch the dolphins being fed by a park ranger. The dolphins are wild, but one or more shows up every morning to receive a fish from the park rangers. They seemed quite timid and swam away once they had a fish.

 

Green turtle at Monkey Mia, Shark Bay (UNESCO), WA

While it all seemed a little artificial to us, the actual amount they are fed is far less than what they usually eat in a day so supposedly, they don’t become dependent on humans for food. But it was fabulous seeing dolphins close up. Walking out onto the nearby jetty, we also spotted a few turtles in the very clear water. Green and Loggerhead turtles live in the sea-grass here.

Our boat for the dugong cruise, Monkey Mia, Shark Bay (UNESCO), WA

Later that day, we got out onto the water on a sailing boat to try and spot dugongs. The boat was a catamaran, the weather was warm, and the water crystal clear. The captain was a woman who skilfully drove the boat with her feet! Interesting to watch, but more interesting to hear as she was so knowledgeable about Shark Bay.

Dolphin mother and calf, Shark Bay (UNESCO), WA

While we were out, we saw heaps of dolphins. In fact, we saw so many that we decided that we didn’t need to do any more dolphin cruises while in WA! There were several pods, and many had calves. It was such a delight watching them swim around, flip onto their back, feed, and cavort.

Dugong, Shark Bay (UNESCO), WA

Then, after quite a bit of time on the water, we finally spotted some dugongs. These waters have the largest population of dugongs in the world. They are shy and hard to spot because they feed on the sea floor. They are a threatened species, and have elephants as their closest relative. We were not allowed to get too close in the boat, but it was great seeing them in the water, even from a distance. 

Leigh, Marg, Simone and Peter, Monkey Mia, WA

While on the boat, we met a couple from Germany who were travelling clockwise along the same route as us but from Perth, whereas we are travelling anti-clockwise from Adelaide. We began a conversation on the boat and continued it over dinner that night, sharing the places we’d been and were yet to visit. It was great to meet them and we continue to stay in touch.

 

Resident camp emu, Monkey Mia Resort, WA

Meanwhile, back at the camp we were regularly entertained by four emus. We saw signs throughout the camp asking people not to leave food or water for them. But the emus don’t know this, and they wandered through the camp two or three times a day, poking their heads into tents and campervans to see what they could forage. They were followed by paparazzi on every tour and were quite funny.

The driving rain in Kalbarri National Park, WA

After a fabulous few days in Monkey Mia, we drove south to Kalbarri National Park. Unfortunately, after the 35-degree heat in Monkey Mia, it was a shock to find that it was much colder and absolutely pouring with rain in Kalbarri. We were there to see the wildflowers so the rain was initially a great disappointment.

Roadside wildflowers in Kalbarri NP, WA

However, after a slow drive in dangerous conditions, the sun broke through the clouds and revealed a cloak of colour along the roadside. There were so many wildflowers and the colours, textures and perfumes were amazing. It far exceeded our expectations because we were there after the wildflower season had ‘officially’ closed and so didn’t think we’d see so many. How lucky!

Marg at the tip of the Kalbarri Skywalk, Kalbarri NP, WA

While in Kalbarri, we took a couple of side trips to see more of this interesting national park. One trip was to the Kalbarri Skywalk, a stunningly executed feat of engineering that allowed you to walk out over a beautiful gorge showing red and orange soils, wildflowers, and a glistening ribbon of river. This landscape goes back 4 million years.

Leigh at Natures Window, Kalbarri NP, WA

We also climbed up some amazing rocks to get to Natures Window, a hole in the orange shale-like rocks that provided a beautiful vista over the river. It was a great walk and climb, with no handrails or sculptured paths, just the natural rock. We loved it.

The inlet at Kilbarri, WA

Leaving the national park, we arrived in Kalbarri township where we admired the wild and beautiful inlet and beach area. We hadn’t originally planned to be in this area and didn’t know much about Kalbarri NP or the town, so it was a surprise and a real joy to be there. We stayed that night in a small beachfront campsite in Kilbarri township.

Pelicans, Kalbarri township, WA

While at the campsite, we heard that there were some pelicans that the locals feed every day. So early the next morning, we wandered across the road to watch. We believe it is not a good thing to have wild creatures become dependent upon humans for their food. But it appears that they are not given enough food to meet their daily requirements and still have to forage, and we were comfortable with that. Actually, it was informative and fun.

Hutt Pink Lagoon, Port Gregory, WA

Driving south from Kalbarri, we discovered an amazing sight near Port Gregory. It was the Hutt Pink Lagoon, a 70 sq km pink salt lake. It seems that the lake is full of dunaliella salina algae which, when exposed to sunlight, produces beta-carotene which is the red colour found in carrots and other vegies. The weather was overcast while we were there and we could only imagine how stunning it would look in full sun. 

Top L to R: Northampton church; Geraldton marina and (below) apartments and beach 

Still driving south, we passed through the town of Northampton and enjoyed seeing many historic buildings. Soon after, we arrived in the vibrant coastal city of Geraldton. We free-camped at a city carpark then met up with Phyllis, who we’d met while in Paraguay a few years ago. After a lovely catch up, we did some sightseeing around Geraldton, admiring its architecture and beautiful coastline.

Jurien Bay beach, WA

The next morning, we drove through the historic town of Greenough and some other small country towns, heading to Cervantes. This small fishing town is known for, among other things, its lobsters. After buying a lobster and a bucket of prawns for tea, we drove to the local campsite to book in. However, it was full.

Our free camp in Cervantes WA

But the day was getting late and we needed to get off the road for the night. Then quite by accident, we discovered a free-camp in a small clearing among other campers. We settled there for the night and it was so very peaceful that we slept late. The next morning, we were on the road again, heading for Lake Thetis.

Ancient thrombolites in Lake Thetis, Cervantes, WA

Thetis is a salt lake that is home to ancient marine fossils called thrombolites. Like the stromatolites we’d seen in the Hamelin Pool at Shark Bay, these pancake-like structures dwell on the edge of the lake. They are made of micro-organisms that resemble the earliest life forms on earth and while they were fascinating, the heat and flies drove us quickly back into Ixi.

Field of grass trees near Cervantes, WA

Along the route to our next stop, we saw hundreds of spikes sticking up in a field, and realised they were grass trees. We’d seen one or two of these on Australia’s eastern shores, but here, there were whole paddocks of them. They are endemic to Australia and are amazing-looking with short thick trunks, long spiky leaves, and tall white-flowered spikes that can grow up to about one metre. 

The Pinnacles Desert, Nambung National Park, WA

Our next stop was the very yellow Pinnacles Desert in Nambung National Park. We walked through the park and marvelled at the thousands of limestone pillars there. It’s thought that wind and water erosion over millennia has washed away the soft sandstone, leaving a harder limestone which gives the ‘pinnacle’ appearance. Many of them towered over us at three to four metres high.

The white powdery sand dunes in Lancelin, WA

Next, we stopped in the town of Lancelin to check out their famous sand dunes. The sand is very white and light, and as the day was windy, you could see the top of the sand dunes being blown away. There were heaps of people sandboarding down the dunes and having a great time, wind notwithstanding.

The beautiful beach at Lancelin, WA

We decided to stay overnight in Lancelin, but as our first choice of camp was full, we stayed in a smaller camp that backed onto the beach. We had to climb over a sand dune to see the beach but it was worth it as it was so lovely. The next day we were on the road again, heading to Perth, the capital of WA, and that’s in the next blog.

This post is the tenth in a series about our travels through Australia’s south, centre and west. The first post was about Adelaide and can be found here.