The Coral Coast....Nambung to Ningaloo.

Our first destination after Perth was the small crayfishing town of Cervantes, established in 1960’s, and  forming our base for a couple of nights to explore the Pinnacles Desert in the Nambung National Park and a visit to Kangaroo Point and the Stromatolites (more about them later) at Lake Thetis.  The Pinnacles Desert is home to thousands of limestone pillars rising up out of the desert floor and we were able to drive through them and enjoyed it so much returned at sunset to get some more amazing views  of these strange formations.

We then stopped in Geraldton for a night to get supplies and restock on everything before prices increase as we head north.

As the temperature had remained in the low 40’s since Perth our trip to Kalbarri probably saw the thermometer reach nearer 50 degrees in places! We first took a visit to the Parrot breeding centre, the largest in Australia, to get up to speed on our Parrot identification before the next day heading into the Kalbarri National Park to view the stunning Gorges and the famous Natures Window. We left for the national park at 8.45am and by 9.30 the temperature had reached 40 degrees. We parked the car and walked into the Gorge where the temperature can increase by 10 degrees…and it did! As well as the temperature we got our first experience of flies and lots of them but the view was simply stunning and well worth the pain in places. We have now invested in some fly nets to cover our faces!

From Kalbarri we went to Denham on Shark Bay stopping of on the way at the Stromatolites at Hamelin Pool. These Coral like formations are the oldest living thing on the planet existing 3500 million years ago and responsible for putting oxygen into the atmosphere and thus allowing air breathing  creatures to evolve from the ocean onto land . This is one of the few places on earth they still exist and although they don’t look like much without them I’m sure the world might have been very different.  After considering ‘what if’ we stopped at Shell Beach where the bright white compacted shells, 8m deep in places, flowed into a warm shallow sea and we cooled off in the crystal clear waters.

Denham was our base for a trip to Monkey Mia. Although we had heard mixed things from other travellers, mainly the grey nomads, we had an amazing day! We got there at 7.45am and by 8.30 we were paddling in the waters with the Dolphins who visit most mornings. As we all retreated out of the water for the feeding to take place Holly, together with Tom, was selected to feed one of the Dolphins! Amazing morning only got better as we spotted a Dugong in the water and snorkelled with a Turtle. Holly and Daisy also tried snorkelling and got the hang of it straight away. We stopped at little lagoon for lunch (another warm clear sea lagoon) before driving up to Eagle Bluff and walked along an elevated boardwalk above the ocean looking down to spot more Dugongs, Rays and numerous lemon and reef sharks swimming below. Having sighted the marine life we decided to get a little educated as to what lurks in these tropical waters and so visited the Ocean Park to view the many reef and sea fish and to feed the sharks! When we thought we had seen enough wildlife for one day a tiger snake crossed the road in front of us. The day was complete with a great sunset from the caravan which perched on the cliff top above the Indian Ocean…..very windy though.

Heading north again we stopped for one night in Carnarvon for supplies. The area suffered badly from floods last year and this season 820,000ha have been destroyed by bush fires with 60,000ha being destroyed nearby in less than two weeks!  

Coral Bay on the Ningaloo Reef was our next stop for the night and we arrived as the Coral started to spawn, an annual event which brings in the largest fish on planet , the whaleshark. We tried to cool off in the warm water and had a peaceful day on the beach.

Exmouth was our next stop and probably our last few days in one place before we head for Broome, although a cyclone has formed and due to hit south of Broome in the next couple of days so we may yet have to head inland before we head north. The first afternoon we booked on a glass bottom boat reef and snorkel tour and headed up the coast for a fish, catching Bream and Emperor, none of them big enough for eating though. Next day we headed into the national park and stopped at Turquoise Bay for a swim and a snorkel. The Ningaloo reef is the largest fringe reef in the world and in places you can swim out to the coral only a few meters from shore. We spotted shovel nosed rays, parrot fish, all the usual reef fish and a huge barracuda went past Jo. We drove further down the coast stopping at Sandy Bay for lunch before heading back and exploring a few more beaches and the reef on the way.

Exmouth was another town built in the 1960’s by the Americans who built massive low frequency radio masts to communicate with subs. The town was devastated by a cyclone in the 1990’s (recording wind speeds of over 275km/h before the meter broke) and has rebuilt itself as a base to view the reef and for game fishing. We got to our glass bottom boat and enjoyed a great morning snorkelling and learning about the reef, parts of which are over 1000 years old. We saw a huge range of fish, turtles and rays and Jo was lucky enough to swim over a reef shark. Even the girls got in the water for a float round. On the way back we stopped at the turtle centre to learn about how the turtles come to this stretch of coast every year to lay their eggs. Another great trip and Holly and Daisy’s day was completed with a round of mini golf and ice creams!

Our last full day in the area and Tom spent the day swimming with the largest fish in the sea, the whaleshark.  The trip started in the morning with another snorkel where he spotted a white tipped reef shark. He spotted more Dugong, Dolphin and Turtle before the spotter plane located the first of three whalesharks. An amazing experience swimming alongside these huge fish which can grow to 18m in length. So little is known about these fish and swimming alongside them for over an hour was a totally unforgettable experience.  On the way back he stopped at another reef for a snorkel and a Tiger shark swam by!

Back at base the girls had a great day chilling out by the pool with Daisy gaining in confidence and  now swimming under water.

We will be sorry to leave the marine life behind but with the cyclone passed we now head north once again!

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