Carnarvon and the Blowholes

It was a bit of a lazy trip down south as we were both nursing head colds. An overnight stop at the Lyndon River (West) Rest Area was a brief social affair, as there were a few caravanners enjoying a sunset drink who invited us to join them.

The scenery is once again monotonous, with the spinifex grass giving way to mulga scrub and wild goats. We joined the usual array of vehicles as we made our way to Carnarvon; road trains, 4WD's towing caravans or camper trailers, campervans and the odd town car. Our first stop as we approached the outskirts of the town was to stock up on fresh vegetables, herbs, bananas and frozen mango from the farm gate along the North River Road, followed by a mango smoothie at the River Gums Café, which, coincidently, is owned by the auntie of our Tom Price friends.

As we didn't wish nor need to pay over $30 a night for a site at one of the seven caravan parks, after purchasing some fresh fish from the marina and filling up with water we headed back out of town for a road side camp.

Crossing salt pans we made our way to Point Quobba the next morning for a look at the blowholes. We ended up hanging out there all day and night, reading books, interspersed with some whale watching. Humpback whales are migrating north to give birth and mate and many of them put on a good show along the way; breaching, lob tailing and fin slapping. No photos unfortunately as they were about 500 metres off shore. Gary was fascinated by the blowholes, as the swell produces a water spout up to 30 metres high and the roar of the water rushing through the limestone holes is terrific. It's mesmerising!

I was feeling energetic enough for a walk up to the lighthouse, followed by a stroll around the camping area on the other side of the point. Many caravans and shacks line the protected beach area, which is a great spot for swimming and snorkelling, and on a calm day launching the fishing boat.

 

After an early morning bike ride out to the Rio Tinto Salt Mine and back, we lazed around some more before making our way back out to the North West Coastal Highway and north.  A rest area beside Lake Macleod provided the only shade I have seen in awhile, but no sign of the lake.

It was then time to cross the Tropic of Capricorn as we headed back to Coral Bay for another week of work. This next Sail Ningaloo trip will have friends on board, who will be travelling all the way from Hong Kong to join us. It will be lovely to see them again and show them around the World Heritage Area of the Ningaloo Marine Park. No doubt we will see plenty of whales!

Tom Price and Karijini National Park

I’m writing this anchored off Maud’s Landing on the turquoise waters of the Ningaloo Reef, which is in sharp contrast to the dusty, red landscape east of here.

It took us two days to drive to Tom Price in the motorhome: 600 kilometres in a day is a bit of a stretch for us so an overnight stop each way was needed. The further east we went the endless plain became dotted with iron ore mesas and outcrops, and wedge tail eagles commanded the sky. As we drove closer to Tom Price we saw our first mountain: Mt Nameless at 1128 metres above sea level towers over the town and is the highest vehicle accessible mountain in WA. It's a short 4WD  (only) to the top for 360 degree views that include the Mount Tom Price mine site, and a perfect place to watch the sunset. You can also walk up from the trail that leads out the back of the caravan park; this takes about 3 hours return.

 

Former guests of Sail Ningaloo, Jocelyn and Gary, live and work in Tom Price for Rio Tinto mining company and were our hosts of the area. They kindly offered the use of their 4WD for greater access as the dirt roads are too rough for Delvy. Before we left for Karijini National Park, Gary (popular name) showed us some aboriginal rock art off the beaten track only known to the locals.

With two vehicles we were allocated a large slot at the Dales Campground at Karijini, conveniently located within walking distance to the Dales Gorge lookout. 

We spent the whole afternoon hiking the gorge loop; walking north above the gorge then descending into the gorge to explore swimming holes (too cold for us) and stunning rock formations.

 

We even came across some asbestos: this area is infamous for it as it used to be mined in the town of Wittenoom in the Hamersley Ranges.

 

After waking up to a very cold morning of two degrees we set off in the 4WD to Weano gorge, bouncing along the corrugated road with two French hitchhikers for another hike. After viewing the 100 metre high cliffs from the top, we were stopped short within the gorge as the water was so cold it was making me physically sick. Gary bravely made one crossing, but without a wetsuit wading through the rest of the gorge was simply unthinkable. The water here never sees the light of day so we'd best come prepared next time. Some people try to hang on to the cliff ledges to avoid getting wet, but this often leads to injury and there are at least a dozen emergency rescues each year.

After a picnic lunch, we headed back to our camp for a relaxing afternoon to prepare ourselves for our planned big hike the next day, and to enjoy the Karijini sunset.

 
Mt Bruce is the second highest peak in WA at 1235 metres, just 14 metres short of the highest peak of Mt Meharry located 66km to the east. It takes about 4-6 hours for the 9km return walk and not only presents impressive views but is also challenging. There are some sections that require using all fours to scale precipices and scramble over rock rubble, at times with a rather large drop over the edge. This is a rewarding walk and well worth the effort. It's also one way to get away from the school holiday crowds at the gorges as we encountered only five other people, including our hitchhikers from the day before!

 

Of course, we were rather tired after all our hiking so we headed back to town for hot showers and a rest. We had booked a mine tour for the following morning that took us into the Mount Tom Price mine pit and all its workings. We moved around the site on a coach, watching the iron ore being transported by immense trucks (haul packs) to the crushing area, then being loaded on the train. The trains fascinated me as they are part of the landscape in the Pilbara, constantly going backwards and forwards from the mine sites to the port of Dampier. As we were climbing Mt Bruce we had a birds eye view of the Marandoo mine site and over a five hour period we saw several trains being loaded. Each train is pulled by three locomotives and usually has 236 wagons, with each wagon carrying 116 tons of iron ore. The Rio Tinto mines, including Mount Tom Price and Marandoo, produce well over 200 million tonnes of iron ore per year, and rising. The scale of operations and equipment used is captivating.

On our way back to Coral Bay we pulled up at the Beasley River Rest Area just in time to see the sunset and the full moon rising.

Coral Bay

I've been on my own for a week now, as Gary has been out on the boat, and it's long enough to get a feel for the village of Coral Bay.

The days are clear, bright and sunny; around 26 degrees Celsius, and the nights around 10-12 degrees. It is usually very still in the early morning and late afternoon, with a breeze during the warmer hours. The weather is the same every day at this time of year (an easy gig for the forecasters I'd imagine), and that's why it attracts so many tourists: perfect, predictable beach holiday weather. Along with the natural beauty of the place, but we'll get to that.

The caravan parks are bursting with campers, motorhomes and caravans all lined up in neat rows directly across from the beach. Grey nomads are firmly ensconced in the front row, and have been for quite some time, and others come and go at steady rate; particularly now that it's school holidays. The drone of the whale shark and manta ray spotter plane is a familiar daily sound as I head off exploring on foot. The airstrip is over the sand dune at the back of the purpose built staff accommodation village, fondly called 'Pleasantville', and walking trails lead off from there, up and over the dunes to the coast at the north of the town.

 

 

The shoreline is a mixture of sand, dotted with pitted limestone or horizontal platforms and a scattering of shells and old coral. The distant roar of the waves breaking over the reef a couple of hundred metres off shore is a constant companion. The crystal-clear aquamarine water is inviting, not only because of its colour, but what lies beneath. As Australia's longest fringing coral reef, Ningaloo, meaning 'deep water', is easily accessible by just walking off the beach. Head to the southern side of Coral Bay Beach and drift snorkel towards the point where you can spend hours exploring the underwater coral jungle. Green or purple tipped antler-like branches of Staghorn; flat and broad Elkhorn; Lettuce coral shaped like turned tomatoes of dinosaur proportions; Brain coral reminiscent of Ayers Rock; twisted and gnarled Clubbed Finger coral; domed shaped Great Star coral; and car bonnet sized Plate coral provide remarkable textures and colours. The fish are plentiful and too numerous to mention, but a few notables are: two foot long yellow or green Trumpetfish; iridescent Parrotfish; hundreds of Blue-Green Damsels; Half-circle Angelfish outlined in fluorescent blue; schools of Convict Surgeonfish; and if you're lucky, Green Sea Turtles. Larger marine creatures, such as manta rays, dugongs and sharks, can be viewed by boat a little further off-shore at a multitude of snorkel and dive sites in this World Heritage Area. Whale sharks and Humpback whales are seen outside of the reef break, which extends about 260 kilometres up to North West Cape at Exmouth.

When the tide is at its lowest, it's possible to walk south along the shoreline to the Coral Bay Marine Facility instead of along the two kilometres of sealed road. In the early morning, the only sounds are the boom of the reef break, the occasional seagull squawk, and the swishing of the three wind turbines; and the only person you'll see is yourself. Boats bob around on their moorings waiting for the next charter, but I feel I am the only one here. It's hard to imagine that some 2000 people are just beyond the sand dunes; such solitude can sometimes be difficult to find in a busy tourist town. 

Coral Bay is how I'd imagine Airlie Beach in the Whitsundays looking and feeling like 30 years ago; an undeveloped and understated idyllic family beach/reef holiday destination with a come as you like attitude. And there are no crocodiles here, or sightings of marine stingers; the only creature that could put a dampener on your day is a tiger shark.

The 200 metre long main street consists of the post office, a bakery, one over priced supermarket and a not as expensive smaller one, a beauty salon, a resident artist, a souvenir shop, dive, snorkelling, kayaking, fishing and coral viewing tour desks, a pub, public toilets, showers and fish cleaning area, a backpackers, a 3 star resort and two caravan parks. That's it; that is Coral Bay. For the foreseeable future anyway. The town is part of Cardabia Station, a 200 000ha cattle grazing property, that was purchased by the Indigenous Land Corporation in 1997 and is now run by the title-holding body, Baiyangu Aboriginal Corporation (BAC). They, along with the Department of Parks and Wildlife, appear to be taking a conservative and unhurried approach to tourism development which will enable them to maintain its sustainability. Here's hoping anyway.

The local permanent population sits at around 190, with a few more in the peak tourist season (now), and consists of some typical characters of remote, north west coastal areas with sun weathered skin and long, disheveled hair, barefoot and a penchant for Emu Export. Though there are a few young families, singles and couples predominate; or, again, typical of the transience of the tourist town, singles that are now couples and vice versa. For evening entertainment, sunset viewing is a popular choice for many, as is a few drinks at the pub with the occasional live music, or a frame or two on the pool table. If that's too much to handle, make sure you have a memory stick so you can swap movies with the neighbours for a night in front of the TV. And if you're feeling really lonely, there is a resident horse; he hangs around Pleasantville and is always up for a chat.

As far as bike riding is concerned, there's really only the road to the turnoff: an undulating 12 kilometres that presents more of a workout the windier it gets. Hence, it's best to pedal out early. There are a few sandy tracks around but near impossible (and downright annoying) on slick tyres. So, unless we venture out on the main road (not ideal really), 24kms is about the stretch of road riding around here. We'll just have to ride it a couple of times to get more time in the saddle! Anyway, it's quite a scenic route as hints of purple are emerging in amongst the straw-green grass as wildflower season gets underway, and wedge-tail eagles can often be seen close to the ground.

Besides biking, walking and snorkelling, what else have I been doing to amuse myself you ask? I have done a couple of airport transfers for Sail Ningaloo. This involves picking up disembarking guests from the jetty and driving them 120kms along a rather monotonous road to Learmonth, 37kms south of Exmouth. I then meet guests disembarking from the plane and retrace my steps back to the Coral Bay jetty. Job done in three hours. Oh, and I've also been doing a fair bit of book reading.

Gary's back home tomorrow, then we will head to Tom Price and Karijini National Park for a week and a change of scenery.