Kings Around Oz: Exmouth to Perth

We were very surprised when we got to Exmouth as to how much there is to see and do. We thought we would just visit for a few days and do some snorkelling and then continue on, but we ended up staying for 8 days! We loved the snorkelling at Turquoise Bay in what they call the Drift Loop. This is where you get in the water at one end of the beach and the current helps you drift along the coral reef to the other end of the beach. At this point you get out and do it all again. We also enjoyed some snorkelling at the Oyster Stacks. We were all amazed at how beautiful the reef was and how many fish we got to see. It was like we were swimming in an aquarium. We saw a turtle on the bottom of the ocean, a bait ball with hundreds of fish, coral in many shapes and forms and fish in every colour of the rainbow! It is also turtle breeding season and we were able to go to the beach where they lay their eggs and see the turtle tracks and nests. We were also lucky enough to see the turtles resting in the water. We also went to the turtle discovery park and learnt more about the breeding and life cycles of turtles.

Something that surprised us was that there was more to Exmouth than just snorkelling and the reef. We went and saw the lighthouse and learnt about the history and the story of the early lighthouse keepers. We also went to look at the shipwreck of the SS Mildura that sank just offshore. This boat also boasts being the most shot at boat by submarines as every sub that went past it during the war shot at it for target practice. Despite this you can still see a fair bit of the wreck. We were also surprised to learn that Exmouth was first built and established so the Americans could set up a naval communications base for their military. It was a joint agreement by the US and Australian governments and the 2 nations lived and worked side by side for many years with the American base being a little patch of USA on Australian soil. They had their own little ‘town’ complete with cinema and shopping centre that imported all their goods from America and operated in US dollars! However, the Australian government stipulated that they had to build their residential living in the town of Exmouth and not at the Base to help establish the town of Exmouth. The communications base has now been handed back to Australia and it is now called Naval Communication Station Harold E Holt. The only evidence of the American community having lived here are the signs to remind you to drive on the left-hand side of the road! We also spent a morning at the Discovery Centre and Aquarium. This was a very informative display that covered everything from cyclones Vance to the local flora and fauna and the sea life as well as stories about locals that helped to either colonise the area or went to war to help protect our country.

The highlight of our time at Exmouth was the day we all became ‘Top Gun Pilots’…. or at least we felt like it. We all went on a TIF (Training Instructional Flight) on a micro light plane, basically a bike with wings and a motor! Haydan and Laura were very nervous about this adventure but were very pleased they did it. We all loved seeing Exmouth from the air and were very lucky to see a large number of turtles resting in the water or on the beach. We were able to fly over the canyons and we all got a turn a flying the microlight! Well sort of…. Glen and Haydan took to it and loved it, Laura got scared and handed to controls back pretty quickly but was assured by the instructor that he never once feared for his life and poor Emmalisa was keen as mustard to have a go but was too short to reach the controls! We really enjoyed our time in Exmouth except for the wind that never stopped!

Once we left Exmouth we head to Coral Bay, on arriving here we were once again greeted by the wind. We had a look around the little town and decided to keep heading along the coast because with the wind it was not much good for snorkelling or beach days. We then headed to the Quobba Blowholes. When we got here it was even windier! We couldn’t even see the blowholes because the waves were crashing into the rocks so hard that it was just a wash with huge white waves crashing. We didn’t feel it was safe enough to get out of the car. We then went to find a place that was protected by the dunes to camp. We set up the camper tailer and then continued to feel the wind howl and the camper was swaying and bending in the pressure of the wind. So, we decided to pack up and headed to Canarvon. We set up camp here and again endured another night of howling winds. However, at Canarvon we spent the hours at the Canarvon Space and Technology Museum. We were fascinated to see all the memorabilia of Australia’s involvement in the Apollo Space Missions and all the famous astronauts that have visited the museum. We learnt so much about how Australia helped in the moon landing mission and the other space missions that followed. We spent a lot of time in the science and technology part of the museum where we tried our hands and minds at different scientific challenges. We all had a go at landing a space shuttle in the simulator with mixed success but its fair to say we could all do with a little to a lot more training! Glen and Haydan were pleased to dominate the leader board on the old school Space Invaders arcade game while Laura and Emmalisa did the challenge quiz “Are you a Scientist?” Unfortunately the highest we got to was Lab Assistant so we may have to study a little more to become a scientist.

After another windy night at Canarvon we went to Wooramel Station. Here we camped by the upside-down river. This is because the river bed is dry and is remains dry for most of the year but the water is actually running 2-3 meters below the surface. There is a tree in the river bed that is called The Wonderful Tree and if you put your ear up to it you can hear the water running below the surface. (the tree is a hollow tree which is why you can hear the water) The main reason we stopped here though was because of the artesian pools. We all enjoyed a hot soak in the pools that are filled by the artesian bore with a temperature of 33°! This was quite a contrast to the cold water we have been swimming.

From Wooramel Station we made our way the Denham. It was here we went to the Fire on the Water Exhibition. This was one of the most powerful exhibitions we have seen on our trip. This is a short 3D film that tells the story of the battle between the HMAS Sydney II and the HSK Kormoran when they met in 1945. We all left the exhibition and were moved by what took place on that fateful night where all the Australians on board the HMAS Sydney II lost their lives. We then went through the discovery centre and once again we were lost for hours in the history of the Western Australian coast line. The stories of survival, colonisation, war and shipwrecks never disappoint and there is always something new we learn. Emmalisa and Laura spent some time also learning about how they are rehabilitating Dirk Hartog Island and how they are reintroducing the native species back to the island. From Denham we went to Monkey Mia which is famous for the dolphins that come close to shore. We were lucky enough to see a pod of dolphins playing in the water and we also got to get close to the pelicans. We then did the Ocean Park Aquarium tour that taught us all about the marine life in the Shark Bay area. The highlight of this tour was Max the Mulloway that spat water all over Emmalisa who went home soaking wet!

We then made our way to Kalbarri and enjoyed some more walks in the National Park. The part we all enjoyed was the Sky Walk, they are 2 platforms that are cantilevered 100m in the air over the gorge. It made quite a spectacular view. Of course a visit to The Kalbarri National park is also not complete without getting a photo at Nature’s Window! We then continued our way down the coast and stopped at Port Gregory to see the Pink Lake and the Lynton Convict Hiring Depot historic site to look at the ruins. We then went to Sandy Bay where the kids just enjoyed playing on the beach and of course Emmalisa went for a swim. It was here that we also got to see our first Sea Lion swimming in the water not far from where the kids were playing. There was also a big sand dune that Glen and the kids enjoyed racing down on the boggie board. This was just the warmup for our next stop, Lancelin.

On our way to Lancelin we stopped at Nambung National Park to look at the Pinnacles Desert. This is a desert made up of thousands of huge limestone pillars that rise up from the yellow sand. It was an incredible site to see and as we walked through the discovery centre we learnt that scientist are not sure how they formed but have 2 theories that they continue to research. I was then on to Lancelin. Lancelin is famous for its sand dunes and sandboarding is one of the activities you can do on the dunes. So, we hired some sandboards and away we went. It proved to be a little harder than we thought and it took us a bit to get going but by the end we were all covered in sand and had made some good runs down the dunes. Unfortunately for Haydan things didn’t end well when he came off his board on the last run and landed quite heavily, headfirst into the sand! We all went back to camp covered in sand, legs burning (from climbing back up the sand dunes) and some of us with a headache!

The last few weeks have been very busy and we have been constantly battling the wind. We head to Perth now to see what the city has to offer…..and hopefully get out of the wind.