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  • Fremantle to Exmouth
    Day 14

    Navy Pier dive

    April 19, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    Today was earmarked as a fantastic dive day - we had a slow start to the day with pancakes with choc-chip before we spent a small fortune in Exmouth. On the way we stopped to check out our old digs - Stalag 20 as we affectionately called it!
    The town is getting busy with the total eclipse happening tomorrow.
    Michael had another day exploring the beaches of the Cape Range NP whilst Claire, Daniel & Helen went for a dive at the Navy Pier - one of the top 10 shore dives in the world.
    We dives here in 2005 and it was magnificent - all the fish we saw diving the reef in one place, much larger and chilled - except for one surgeon fish that went for Daniel.
    The Navy Pier is an active naval base. Formerly a US base it was handed back in 1999 and is used to communicate with submarines and ships in the Indian and Pacific oceans using Very Low Frequency (VLF).
    As an active base everyone diving has to pass a security check. But we hit a snag when security had issue with the Services NSW app driver’s licence, US driver’s licence and someone misspelling their name. After some tense moments and a few phone calls to higher ranked officials, we were given the all clear to enter.
    We had about an hour to dive as it could only be done in the slack tide - the time it takes for water to change direction at the change of tide.
    We chose to guide ourselves as it meant we could take our time and see everything at our own pace.
    To enter the water we do a big safety step of about 5 metres. It is a bit daunting when wearing all your dive gear to just step out!
    We descend down and immediately we see a white tip reef shark and it wasn’t long until we saw the BFG - the Big Friendly Grouper. Definitely big - over 2.5 metres long and estimated to be at least 300kg, the BFG dwarfed Helen and Claire.
    It wasn’t long until we were in the middle of a school of bannerfish, and then another school and another.
    A lot of the larger pelagic fish were being cleaned by the cleaner wrasse. They didn’t care that we were that close.
    We saw a lot of lion fish. They seemed to be everywhere and the moray eels we saw were huge! Fish were everywhere, they were huge and they were chilled.
    We surfaced after 48 minutes and Claire’s first words were “That was amazing”.
    Tonight, across the road from the caravan park was the Dark Sky Festival with food trucks and Boox Kid and The Waifs playing. We went across and nearly stayed the race, but the kids couldn’t keep up and we retired to camp where we could still hear and see The Waifs finish their set.
    Tomorrow is the Eclipse. It will be interesting!    Read more

  • Fremantle to Exmouth
    Day 13

    Turquoise Bay

    April 18, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    The morning started with a trip to Yardie Creek for a boat tour on the water - about 500 metres long stretch of navigable water surrounded on both sides by a gorge with Rock Wallabies and Osprey. The water is salty and comes from the ocean during large tides, bringing in some fish too. The tour was led by Boxy who told us his and his families life story (his parents coming from post-WW2 Germany and eventually ending up working on building the Naval base). After an hour long tour we were off to the beach.
    Seventeen years ago we spent an entire week scuba diving the reefs of Ningaloo, except for one day. On that day we travelled down to Cape Range National Park and snorkeled at Turquoise Beach - it was amazing. Without doubt, the best snorkeling that we have ever done.
    We had talked about it so much with the kids and the McDermotts that we may have over sold it - but it didn't disappoint. It is a magical stretch of water where the waves from the outer reef crash into a somewhat secluded bay where they flow back out to the ocean, creating a rip that is perfect for a drift snorkel.
    Within the waters are a wide range of corals, only centimeters below the water and the water is teaming with aquatic life.
    There was so much fish life that it is hard to list them all, and if Daniel's Macbook was working there would be a video. But some of the highlights were:
    - a giant Potato Cod (Grouper) that was bigger than Michael (who found it first). It eventually emerged from the rock it was trying to hide under whilst being cleaned and Daniel was able to follow and get some great footage.
    - juvenille white tip reef sharks - three or four were found - again, some great footage.
    - massive Unicorn fish.
    - Trumpeter fish.
    - Six-banded Angelfish.
    We snorkeled for nearly two hours and could have kept going for many more hours. It was great to see Michael taking to it so well (except he got cold, despite the water being 26 degrees!).
    We finished off the day with a trip to Vlamingh Head Lighthouse to watch the sunset from such a great vantage point, complete with a glass of white and a few cheeses and dips. It is a rather unique location, as it is one of the few places that you can watch a sunrise and sunset!
    Once the sun set, Daniel waited for the stars to come out to take advantage of the unique photo opportunity. Unfortunately with the solar eclipse later in the week, there are a lot of people who like to watch the Heavenly bodies and there quiet a few people with the same idea.
    Patience was required, but the reward is a rather unique photograph.
    Tomorrow we dive the Navy Pier!    Read more

  • Fremantle to Exmouth
    Day 12

    Exmouth diving

    April 17, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    We (Claire, Daniel & Helen) got back under the water today with two dives with Exmouth Dive Centre whilst Michael stayed back with the McDermotts and was finally able to get an uninterrupted game of Catan in.
    We boarded Shack and headed out past the Navy Pier to Lighthouse Bay where we dropped in to our first dive - Labyrinth. This is one of the sites we dived twice in 2005. Highlights of this dive was two turtles, mantas shrimp and lots of fish life and corals.
    Our second dive was not far away - Blizzard Ridge, which was our first dive in 2005.
    The highlights of this dive was sea snakes, schooling fish, lion fish and lots of large fish.
    We were back at the van at about 2pm for a quiet afternoon with post-dive lethargy!    Read more

  • Fremantle to Exmouth
    Day 11

    Exmouth - Whale Sharks

    April 16, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    Seventeen years ago whilst
    on our honeymoon we spent a week diving in Exmouth.
    It was a very isolated part of the world. We were the only ones on the boat for the majority of the time.
    We missed snorkelling with whale sharks then, but vowed to return once we had kids old enough to appreciate the experience - well that was today.
    This morning we arose at 5:30am to prepare to meet the bus to go to the jetty. On the trip out we heard about the history of Exmouth - it was a farm and fishing area until
    the 1960s when the US Navy established a base to communicate with submarines. The area was a little bit of USA, with left hand drive vehicles and the US dollar being the currency. The US left in the ‘90s and Exmouth’s tourist industry grew.
    Anyway, we went snorkelling with Exmouth Dive - the same company we dived with 17 years ago.
    With a spotter plane also looking for whale sharks, it wasn’t long until we saw our first whale shark.
    In total we got to snorkel with 4 whale sharks - the biggest being around 7 metres long.
    It was an amazing experience and well worth the 17 year wait.
    Returning to the inner reef for lunch we came across two tiger sharks that we just cruising the shallows.
    After the dive we returned to the caravan park - disaster struck - Daniel’s MacBook decided to kick it in. If we can’t get it restarted, there will be limited images for the remainder of the trip.
    For dinner we went to the Whalebone Brewing Co. Macca and Daniel walked - they thought it was 800m. Turned out to be about 2km in the dark!
    Pizzas all round, whilst Daniel had a tasting platter of beers which did the trick for an early night before another day on the water for Claire, Helen and Daniel.    Read more

  • Fremantle to Exmouth
    Day 10

    Wooramel to Exmouth

    April 15, 2023 in Australia ⋅ 🌬 25 °C

    The mature gums along the Wooramel River are a contrast to the scrub plains as we continue on our journey north. We spot a couple of emus on the side of the road as we drive.
    We convoy up to Carnarvon where we plan on stocking up on groceries before the last leg to Exmouth , our base for the next week. We pass flood level indicator signs marked up to 2 m. The surrounding land is so flat, floods here would be like an inland sea. The floodway is little more than bare sand with a few clumps of grey grass.
    As we come into the outskirts of Carnarvon we notice the fire risk indicator sign also has a cyclone risk indicator tacked onto the top. Today’s cyclone risk is listed as ‘all clear’. Good to know!
    On the road into Carnarvon a 30 m satellite dish sits up on a hill. This is the site of the OTC Satellite Earth Station, now the Carnarvon Space and Technology Museum commemorating the OTC Station and nearby Carnarvon Tracking Station. The Tracking Station was commissioned in 1964 to support NASA’s Gemini, Apollo and Skylab programs and operated until 1975. The OTC Station opened in 1966 as part of the global satellite communications system. While the Parkes dish transmitted tv footage of the Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969, the Carnarvon dish transmitted radio communications and played an important role in the success of the mission. The OTC station has been decommissioned for radio communications but still operates as part of a global solar measurement network.
    The museum experience starts with a simulation of the Apollo 11 launch. Michael gleefully climbed into a mock spacesuit, and persuaded the teenager to do the same, before we climbed into a scale replica of the space shuttle, lay on our backs and watched footage of the launch control room while the sound of rockets firing played and ‘flames’ lit up the ‘windows’ and the shuttle rattled and rocked.
    The exhibits on morse code, shuttle handing simulation and space invaders console respectively held the attention of our family for way too long (not to mention Buzz the very contented rescue cat). As a result, our planned quick peek at the museum stretched into a much longer visit than we intended. We hurriedly restocked in Carnarvon town centre before resuming our journey to Exmouth, with Crowded House playing over the roar of the van. Only 300 km or so to go.
    As we travel the landscape becomes more undulating. The soil is vivid red and sandy, and in parts looks like a low heat bushfire has passed through.
    Around 180 km south of Exmouth we speed past a sign announcing the Tropic of Capricorn. Whoops, missed it!
    Around 160 km south of Exmouth we start to see termite mounds, hundreds of them in every direction.
    At 130 km south of Exmouth we pass a guy on a pushbike. He is pulled over in a parking lay by, looking intently at a phone or a map. There is a story there, but we don’t stop. We are pushing ahead, to write our own story!
    A few kilometres further down the road we pass three skip bins. In yet another parking lay by. In the middle of nowhere. There’s another story there!
    The Exmouth isthmus is hillier than much of the coastal plains we have been travelling, and as we top a rise we catch a glimpse of the Indian Ocean and – somewhere out there – Ningaloo Reef.
    Thirty-five km south of Exmouth we pass Learmonth Airport. It has been 17 ½ years since Daniel and Helen touched down here, and took the hilly ride into Exmouth, with the Exmouth Gulf glittering turquoise blue on our right. We are excited to be back, and to share the experience with our children and friends.    Read more

  • Fremantle to Exmouth
    Day 9

    Kalbarri to Wooramel

    April 14, 2023 in Australia ⋅ 🌬 21 °C

    Kalbarri sits at the mouth of the Murchison River. As we leave the caravan park and come over the crest of a hill we are met with a unique view. Brown flood water pours from the mouth of the Murchison into the blue Indian Ocean, roaring into shore pushed by Cyclone Ilsa which made landfall north of Port Hedland.
    The road out of Kalbarri stretches in a straight line ahead of us, 2 lanes of grey framed by red/orange gravel. Either side of the road Mallee scrub stretches to the horizon. Suddenly, an emu paces out of the scrub, nearly runs into the car ahead of us, then turns and runs back into the scrub! Phew!
    By the time we get to the main highway north, we are back to travelling through farmland. As we head north the roadside gravel changes from orange to deep rusty red and the scrub changes to low, scraggly gum trees.
    After travelling close to 100 km of variously sparse, sandy landscape suddenly we are surrounded by low, abrupt hills. We surge up a hill to a lookout and gaze out across the flat expanse all the way to the sea. We have found Woodleigh Impact Crater. This is believed to be the 4th largest impact crater in the world! Most of the impact is underground so the exact size is unknown. The crater is believed to be up to 120 km in diameter, created by a meteor between 6-12 m wide, around 364 million years ago.
    We finally make it to Wooramel Riverside Retreat without hitting any of the goats or sheep wandering along the side of the road, and without losing any wine bottles along the extremely bumpy entrance road.
    Wooramel is a working goat and cattle farm. The river is usually underground, but we are fortunate that our visit coincides with the few times in a year that there has been sufficient rain for the river to flow above ground.
    The riverbed is maybe 100 m wide of soft, red, ripple-patterned sand. In parts, find brownish silt has dried into curls that crackle under foot. Beautiful mature gum trees with white bark and narrow leaves are dotted across the river bed, and flank either side. A flock of galahs fly down to the shallow river to drink, then fly off again, shrieking, as the kids shriek with laughter racing thongs on the river.
    After soaking in the artesian bore pools at a very pleasant 34C, Daniel gets a fire going in the fire pit – an old truck wheel frame – and we cook potatoes, corn cobs and sausages on the open fire for dinner. The kids demolish a giant bag of marshmallows, toasting them over the coals and trying to spot satellites moving through the millions of stars overhead. We see a strange triangular shape moving through the night sky – we find out the next day this was European Space Agency’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer 2nd stage rocket booster fuel plume!
    Daniel and Fiona get creative photographing the Milky Way from the river bed before we all retire for the night ahead of another long day’s driving tomorrow.    Read more

  • Fremantle to Exmouth
    Day 7

    The vastness of Kalbarri

    April 12, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    Travelling along the western coast of Australia it gives a great appreciation for the vastness of the this magnificent country. Coming from the most densely populated cities in the country we have become used to seeing every square metre of land taken up for some sort of use. But here in Western Australia there are areas that you can see 'nothing' for as far as the eye can see, in all directions along a relatively flat 'wasteland' save for a few gorges and small mountains that really just extend further into the distance. The entire Sydney Basin could easily fit in some of these areas. And it isn't just on land, but also out to sea where these is nothing to be seen but rolling waves all the way to the horizon (easier to see from a nice high cliff face like the Red Bluff). This great vastness makes you realise that our place in the world is really just a mere speck.
    Having spent some time in the middle of The Pinnacles Desert during the night, with the Milky Way opening up before us it is clear that our planet is also a mere speck in the Universe - but a damn important one to the only known living things in the Universe. And that mere speck also relates to the fourth dimension of time (for our quantum physicists).
    Today we went to the Kalbarri National Park, which is 1830 square kilometres and has the Murchinson River cutting a gorge through it for 80km until it reaches the Indian Ocean in the township of Kalbarri. The river is currently a milk coffee brown and quickly flowing following flooding (the last major flood was in October 2022). We visited two locations in the National Park - the Skywalk and Nature's Window.
    But before we got to the Skywalk we had to drive around 30km through some malle scrub. We took the opportunity to pull over and stop and appreciate & photograph some of the vegetation in the area - some banksias, sedges and grass trees. Whilst this area may look like there is nothing there, it really is very diverse - in fact, as diverse as some rainforests and it has been called a 'knee high rainforest'. There are over 12,000 native species, representing 10% of the Western Australia The area isn't as densely vegetated as a rainforest, with clear pockets of sand between trees and within these pockets of sand the tracks of kangaroos can be seen. One of the plants, a Banksia, reminds us of the Banksia serata found on the East Coast. Michael found out that the grass trees can bite back, getting 5 splinters from one.
    After about an hour we continued on to the Kalbarri Skywalk - two gantries that extend 30 metres into the air over the Murchinson River, 100 metres below. The river has cut it's way through the Tumblagooda sandstone over the past 400 million years and has helped reveal the ripples of ancient floodplains and the trails of now extinct ancient arthropod's tracks that existed 200 million years ago.
    A short drive away, Nature's Window is a rock formation which aligns with the Murchinson's River in the distance. A short walk takes you over many rocks that clearly show the ripples of the ancient floodplain. Not much that we do today will be around in 200 million year's time - but these little arthropods managed to do something as cool as that.
    A 9 kilometre walk around the ridge of the gorge and down to the banks of the river was closed due to the flooding, but we still managed to find a spot where we could descend and dip our toes into the Murchinson River.
    Afterwards we wanted to go to a renowned snorkelling spot - Blue Holes. But with Tropical Cyclon Ilsa up near Port Headland, the winds have been picking up around here and the snorkelling spot was more like a surf beach. We hope to visit it tomorrow morning in calmer conditions (Isla has now crossed the coastline) before we head to Wooramel Station.
    We finished the day watching the sun set over the Indian Ocean from the Red Bluff lookout - although clouds on the horizon didn't give us the spectacular finish we were hoping but were a warning of the rainy and windy night that lay ahead.    Read more

  • Fremantle to Exmouth
    Day 7

    On the way to Kalbarri

    April 12, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    As we travelled out of Cervantes the landscape slowly changed from the flat, sandy coastal scrub, with huge dunes of fine white sand. By the time we reached the end of the Indian Ocean Hwy outside Dongara the soil could support trees - the highest thing we’d seen in some time outside the caravan park.
    Between Dongara and Geraldton livestock have nibbled the post/harvest stubble almost to bare earth, dotted with bent-backed River Gums. We dutifully stopped for a family photo in front of the ‘leaning tree’, which had sheep resting in its shade.
    We admired the colonial architecture, particularly the cathedral, as we drove through Geraldton, stopping for lunch at a cafe on the foreshore.
    North of Geraldton the countryside undulates through hills. The soil has turned shaley and taken on the characteristic red hue of outback Australia. We pass a farm house built against the side of a hill, it’s front on stilts with a huge balcony gazing out to the ocean.
    At Northampton we leave the highway to head back to the coast road, to take in the ‘pink lake’ at Hutt Lagoon, Yallabatharra, near Gregory.
    We pass through a vast, shallow valley, the sparse, dry, stubbled farmland peppered with patches of low-growing coastal scrub. And then, we are travelling with sand dunes on one side, and a huge, shallow lake stretching out along the road on the other. The vegetation and soil around the lake is palely pink, and at the lookout, viewed from above, parts of the lake are an intense pink colour. On the hard, packed sand lake bed chunks of pink salt crystal are lying around.
    On the side of the highway where we pulled over a number of small white snails are perched in the scrubby bushes, looking like they have grown there like flowers.
    Approaching Kalbarri, a wide plain stretches inland that looks big enough to house the Sydney basin.
    Then we come over the crest of a hill and Gantheaume Bay lies before us. What a beautiful vista!    Read more

  • Fremantle to Exmouth
    1
    Day 6

    The Pinnacles

    April 11, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    The Nambung National Park is the home of The Pinnacles and covers an area of 17,487 hectares. There are over 22,000 pinnacles there.
    The Pinnacles are about half a million year's old, formed during the Ice Ages and covered by the shifting sand dunes and then exposed around 6000 years ago. What are they? It isn't fully known - it's thought to be either an ancient petrified forest or remnants of a root-rich layer.
    Such ancient and amazing structures just had to be photographed.... and sunset was the best time to get the shots... or even better... after sunset. Especially on a night when the moon wasn't going to make an appearance until a bit later!
    Getting stargazing shots takes patience.... we had to wait in the middle of the desert for the sun to go down, then for twilight to disappear and it get dark. We started counting stars... then it became too many to count as the Milky Way opened up above us and our small but significant planet was put into context... interrupted by many satellites shooting from across the night sky.
    As clouds started to block the Milky Way we packed up and then had to find our way back in the starlight, walking through the ancient Pinnacle forest until we came across the path back to the carpark.
    Tomorrow we drive to Kalbarri.    Read more

  • Fremantle to Exmouth
    Day 6

    Sea Lions, Lobster Shack and Lake Thetis

    April 11, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    An action packed day with a video covering it all - https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/816611306

    After yesterday’s rain it was wonderful to wake to a beautiful Tuesday - a day full of adventure.
    Another boat ride to find Sea Lions (not seals - they don’t have ears) and this one o my took 15 minutes on a jet boat.
    We arrived at the island and had a full hour of playing with the Sea Lions who would come out from the island to check what all the commotion was about. Twists and turns, bubbles and frolicking in the shallow waters ensued.
    The Sea Lions all tired out it was time to return to the Lobster Shack and it was again a quick ride back. The vessel, Seal of Approval, is a jet boat and we raced back to the dock, hugging the sandbank, only metres from the shoreline, until we had a few sharp turns thrown in for fun.
    Upon our return to the dock we walked back to the Lobster Shack where we were to have lunch. Helen and Daniel shared a seafood platter (including a full lobster), Claire had a half lobster and Michael declared he didn’t like lobster and had calamari. We also had an abalone each (except Michael who wasn’t game to try). Not sure what all the fuss is about with abalone.
    After a quick dip in the pool at the caravan park we headed back out to Lake Thetis as the stromatolites. The stromatolites are descended from the first living things on earth. These Cyanobacteria (algae) photosynthesised oxygen to create our breathable air which allowed more complex organisms to evolve. The stromatalites are the calcium carbonate deposits that form from the cyanobacteria. Whilst a very intriguing part of our evolutionary history, there wasn't too much else to see. But something else ticked off the bucket list.
    And then onto the big one for the day (yes, bigger than sea lions!). The Pinnacles.... but that will have to be in another post as there are too many photos from The Pinnacles to share!    Read more

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