Shark Bay

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After a night in Exmouth in an interesting motel, a converted accommodation block from the old US Navy establishment (it brought back memories of Akrotiri), we set off to Cape Range NP and joined the queue for camp sites at the entrance at 7:30. We were thirteenth in the queue and the people at the front had been there since 4:30! Fortunately, there were eighteen camp sites available so we got in. Our camp site was a disappointment, deep soft sand, no shade and very cramped. To make matters worse, the weather looked very stormy. We drove south into the rain to Mandu Mandu Gorge. After the shower we went for a lovely walk through the gorge. The gravel creek bed winded through flowering shrubs with impressive rock walls on each side, the path returning along the gorge rim giving lovely views of the coast and coral reef beyond.

Back at our camp site the rain started and continued in bursts all afternoon. We huddled in our little shelter with rain dripping through the tent fly and wet sandy puddles underfoot. Fortunately, the rain stopped and we were able to cook dinner in comfort and we were rewarded by a lovely sunset over the sea. After a dry windy night the tent and camp site had dried out, but it was not a nice camp site and none of the better ones on the site were available so we packed up and left.

We went on a glass bottomed boat trip to the reef in the morning and were entertained looking at the reef through the glass and later at first hand while snorkelling. A great trip, but we were glad to get back to the car to warm up as the breeze was a little fresh with wet clothes on. In the afternoon we headed back to the old navy motel.

Heading south again the next day, we decided to try a wayside campsite again after our success at House Creek. We headed inland at Carnarvon to Rocky Pool, a waterhole on the Gascoyne River. The Gascoyne River is a classic Australian upside-down river with the water flowing in the sand below the dry riverbed. Occasionally, a depression in the riverbed makes a waterhole, such as Rocky Pool. We found a lovely shady site on the bank and spent two nights there, swimming in the waterhole and walking around it watching the many birds. A couple camping nearby, Tony & Sue, invited us for a drink in the evening which turned into sharing their leg of lamb, beautifully cooked in their camp oven.

Next Stop Shark Bay and the Word Heritage site did not disappoint. Hamelin Pool came first and we camped on a lawn! The camp site was based around the old telegraph station, adding a bit of history, but the real history was the stromatolites still growing off the beach, living fossils surviving to this day because of the high salinity on the waters in the south of Shark Bay. The salinity was also the reason for the amazing white beach made of little white shells at Shell Beach a few kilometres further on.

We headed into Francois Peron NP and found a lovely campsite at Big Lagoon. We camped on the sand with a view of the turquoise water, yellow sand and red cliffs. John went swimming and a walk along the beach revealed a stingray in the shallows and a large spider in the bushes. Thankfully, the sharks and stonefish prevalent in the area didn’t join the party while John was swimming. The wildflowers in the dunes made a delightful scene, with mauve daisies and many pink, yellow and white flowers. But a fresh breeze took the edge of the camp. Even though we were sheltered from it to an extent by the sand dunes, we decided to stay only one night and retreated to a holiday villa in Denham.

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