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!