9 May 2012

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The feeding times for the dolphins start early at Monkey Mia so we went down to the viewing area just after 7:00. The crowd slowly started building and when it was the appropriate time the guides asked everyone to move down to the shore line. The waiting game started and although this resort is famous for its dolphins there is no guarantee the dolphins will arrive everyday due to various forces of nature. 20 minutes had passed their scheduled arrival and it was not looking promising.

Finally a few dolphins started to appear and before we knew it there were about six patiently swimming in the shallows waiting for their daily feed. The 'handlers' had fish ready to feed the dolphins while the main guide used a microphone to give the crowd a run down on these beautiful creatures and their habits. A few lucky punters had the chance to feed these highly intelligent marine mammals and we were very happy we had the chance to see the dolphins in their natural habitat.

We moved on from Monkey Mia just after breakfast and stopped in at Denham for fuel. On the way back out to the main highway we stopped at a lovely viewing platform on Eagle Bluff and then saw the magnificent stromatolites at Hamelin Pool.

Next stop was Carnarvon and we pushed through and arrived mid-afternoon. The striking landscape suddenly turned tropical on the way in. The vegetation was lush and the fruit tree plantations, palms and banana trees were an inviting entry into town. After a quick look around town we pulled up stumps for the day at one of the local caravan parks and started planning the next leg of the journey.

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