28. October

What came first – the chicken or the egg?

We have our little own story to this long discussed issue!

We had a look at the Jurabi Turtle Centre just 20km north of Exmouth. This centre is dedicated to educate people about turtles. There are some species which come to these beaches to mate and nest – the green turtle, loggerhead. It was a nice information centre oh actually it was more an information hut – just some signs, pictures and display boxes under sunshade sails. Unfortunately we didn’t see any turtles at that beach nor in the water but there were more beaches to explore. Next we had a look at Jansz Beach and we saw many turtles swimming.  Actually it took us a while to recognise the turtles as they looked like big stones but they were going from one side to the other and sometimes something popped out of the water. K-Leun thought there are other submarines looking  through their periscope. But it was a turtle breathing and orientating. The turtles were really curious, they came really close while we were swimming as well (I guess she came close as one meter).

After our swim we stayed at the beach – it’s calming just to watch them. Sometimes we just saw one, other times three at the same spot and several times two on top of each other. Of course it was mating time. It looked like a real pain and struggle to get onto a turtle and stay on it. But they didn’t give up – after  falling down they tried again and again and again. The water movement dragged them onto the beach and back into  the water. The even tried to climb onto each other in the ocean. We could see the light coloured tummy when they were pushed off each other. As there were so many turtles swimming close to shore trying to get onto the beach we decided to come back in the evening and keep watching.

So we arrived at 6.00pm again, had our dinner at the beach and were  waiting for the night to fall. Unfortunately nothing happened that night or to be precise not on the western end of the beach. We waited and after two or three hours we decided to leave and head back to the caravan park (and to warm up again). But walking back to the car we saw some  sand flowing in the air so of course we had to have a better look and walked to the eastern end of the beach. There was a turtle in the dunes digging a hole or maybe closing it. We don’t know as she was slowly moving back into the water. Maybe she was already done, maybe something was not right (I don’t know if the like full moon, or not). But this meant we would come back another night and fingers crossed might have more luck.

Another night another chance… We arrived early to check if the turtles are still at the beach trying to come ashore and there were plenty around so we got our hopes up. Actually it’s said that the adult turtles live in that area- no wonder we saw so many. That night we were not the only couple to watch, there were two others hiding in the dunes hoping for something special to happen. And after a long waiting time one turtle managed to get ashore and started to dig a hole. As long as she was  digging we kept our distance to not disturb her. After a while she stopped digging and we crawled closed. Unfortunately she didn’t lay eggs she moved out of that hole. Maybe she decided it was too close to the water as she moved further up into the dunes and started to dig again. But she abandoned that hole as well and moved back into the water.

At that time we could come close and take pictures (at least it was written at the information centre). The turtle was big (probably around 120cm) and she looked devastated – really as if it was hard labour and sad that it was not successful. We imagined to actually see some tears in hear eyes. So we decided to check if any other turtle was digging somewhere but we only found some tracks.

Next morning we came back to the beach and had a look at the holes and  tracks. There were three different tracks leading into the dunes but only two had some diggings in between the tracks. One hole was halfway up the beach and we could lay comfortably in it. The other two holes were directly in front of the entrance to the beach where the sand was quite rocky.  We can really appreciate what effort it must be to dig these holes. Just imagine to dig a hole with your flippers! I tried to use my arms as flippers and gave up after 5 minutes but no hole was to be seen.

Now to answer the big question “what came first…” we must say it’s the hatchling (or the chicken)! When we were in Bundaberg we went to the turtle rockery in Mon Repos and saw several hatchling coming out and reaching the sea. But we didn’t see any adult turtle coming ashore. We just had to wait 10 month and travel to the other side of Australia to witness an adult turtle (or two, three, four or even more) on the beach digging a hole.

Happy digging!

Cheers, Tom and Anja

23. – 31. October

Cape Range National Park

We arrived in Exmouth and headed to the tourist information to get further updates on this area and then we headed to the beach for a swim, lunch and of course reading ;-) We decided to camp close to the lighthouse maybe it guides us through the night. Our first excursion took us into the eastern side of the Cape Range NP to the Charles Knife Gorge and the Thomas Carter Lookout as well as to the Shothole Canyon. Unfortunately these areas were not really impressive – the only remarkable thing is how Shothole Canyon got its name; shotholes were left when some companies explored the region hoping to find coal or iron-ore but as there are no mine sites they were not successful.

The next day we discovered the beaches; first stop was Bundegi beach where snorkelling is possible. But we didn’t see much. We drove to one wreck site, the SS Mildura ran aground and sank just 50m offshore. Luckily it’s still possible to see something of the ship but in some years the wooden structure might be completely rotten away. Then it was time to have a look at the northern beaches which offer a break so we were hoping to see a surfer. But no luck so we went on and drove up to the lighthouse. As it was on a hill we had 360degrees views onto the caravan park, the ocean and the inland.

Now we drove to the Cape Range National Park which covers the western side of that peninsula. It is also the place of the Ningaloo Reef which is sometimes just 50m offshore. This meant we could go snorkelling and snorkelling and of course snorkelling. There were so many different beaches to choose from so we had to decide. And the decision was easy; just stay several days so every beach could get its own day!

Yardie Creek was our first stop – this is the furthest camping area in the park. If you want to travel on along the coastline you have to cross the saltwater creek and go for miles through sand and military land before you finally reach Coral Bay. The camp area was just a stone throw from the water – just go over the dunes and start swimming. We also walked  into the Yardie Creek. Actually not into the creek but on top of the cliff with views into the gorge carved by the creek. This area is inhabited by black-footed rock wallabies but we saw one at the Tulki beach area.

 Sandy Bay was on our agenda as well. Actually we really liked that place and returned several times. Sandy Bay is used by several water-sport enthusiast, kite-surfer, swimmer and snorkelers. We watched the kite-surfers for a long time, there were around 10 surfers. It looked like they had a training class or surf lesson on. It was interesting to see them preparing their kite, then surfing and what a hassle it can be to get the kite back to the ground. But we got our snorkelling gear out and went into the water. And it was awesome – we saw so many different fishes (species, colour and size). Our first encounter was with a big sting ray. It was laying on the ground and didn’t move. Ok it started to move when I tried to get a close-up. I think the tail was around 2-3m and the body another 1.5m – it was big and still swam away quickly. Then we saw a lot of other fishes, clam shells and corals. But after 15min we had to get out of the water to warm up again.

On our next trip we saw more and other fishes and once again one you don’t really want to get close to. We saw some white-tipped reef-sharks. But luckily they had their mind on finding a place to sleep and were not hungry. Although they were quite interested in us – they circled around us and came close as 3m. I guess that the one shark was around 3m long and the other 1.5m. One curious thing was that we noticed the shark as all other fishes suddenly swam away. They must have sensed the shark but they returned shortly and found their place to sleep as well.

We snorkelled at Oyster Stacks as well. This area was not as nice as Sandy Bay so we only visited it once. Oyster Stacks is an area where oysters grow really close to the beach. Actually you have to climb over them to reach the water so you have to head the warning “only swim at high tide 1.2m or higher”. Otherwise you risk injuries to yourself as well as you can damage the reef. The oysters have such sharp edges it would really hurt if you cut yourself. And I’ve heard that such a wound would heal slowly and might get infected easily. Although we swam at a tide of over 1.2m it felt there was only 5cm between us and the coral.

At the area Turquoise Bay we had also two opportunities to snorkel – to snorkel in the bay or in the drift snorkel. We opted for the drift snorkel. Should be something different! The current in that area was so strong you really were drifting. The warning here says “only experienced snorkelers should use the area and still be aware of strong currents! also don’t go further than a “special marked” sandbank”. We went in and came out 100m away from our entry point but hardly noticed it while in the water. One of the highlights was that we snorkelled with a turtle. It suddenly appeared underneath us, looked at us and swam away fast. It’s unbelievable how quick they move and how elegant it looks. The parking area was also worth noting. They had nice shade covers and some information about the marine park and the animals.

The last area we snorkelled in was called Lakeside which is close to the visitor centre and has a camp area just some meters away. This is probably a reason why this area is so popular – we couldn’t get any spot at that place. But there was enough space to park the car and then we just walked some meters to the best spot to enter the water. Of course we saw corals and fishes but nothing really spectacular.  

Coral Bay was included in our trip as well which is around 200km south of Exmouth on the other end of the Ningaloo Reef. Coral Bay is famous for its marine life. It’s possible to spot Manta Rays all-year and whale-sharks in season. Unfortunately the whale-sharks season was over (it’s only between April to June, after the coral spawning) and the Manta Rays are not seen (or rarely seen) in the bay. The safest way to see a Manta Ray is by going on a cruise but none was scheduled and they are quite expansive. So we just snorkelled in the bay but we were disappointed. The reef looked damaged – not many colours to see and they just looked dead. The bay is also a shark nursery and at the right time of the day you can see them swimming around. This area is on the other side of the bay and normally they don’t venture into the swimming and snorkelling area.

Time to say goodbye to the Ningaloo Reef, hopefully we find further nice snorkelling place along the coast.

Keep safe,

Cheers, Tom and Anja

PS: I’m sorry that you didn’t hear from us for such a long time but we had friends with us and not time to blog. I hope to be on time soon ;-)

19. – 22. October

Karijini and Millstream Chichester National Park

We left Port Hedland and were stuck in traffic! The road was closed due to wide loads being transported/ relocated to a mine site 300km inland. The mine site received some new structures which were transported by road. All this stuff looked like a mansion on wheels so huge and wide. The  trucks couldn’t move much faster than 30kph. One structures had to be towed by two trucks. Several times it looked it might hit some street signs but they are all still standing.

Karijini NP offers several walks and gorges with ice cold fresh water for a swim. We drove to the Fortescue Falls and decided to walk on the cliff to the Circular Pool and returning via the Dales gorge.  We enjoyed some nice views and the climb into the gorge was quite steep. Then we walked over a nearly dried-out creek and thought there can’t be any water left in the pool. But there was – people were still jumping off the rocks but we decided to wait for our swim a little bit longer. We walked back through the gorge and had to criss-cross  the creek. But this was another creek (fed by the Fortescue Falls) so there was still water in. We even saw several dragon flies (different sizes and colours). Finally we reached the Falls and had a swim as well as in the Fern Pool close by.

Then we visited the Kalamina Falls, the Joffre Falls and the Knox Gorge before driving to the Weano area. At this place 5 gorges join and you could see them all at the same time. The walks are rated from class 2 to class 6 which means abseiling is included and they  are only allowed with an experienced guide. We just walked into the Weano gorge and had a quick dip before the track became to narrow and difficult.

After spending the night at the “Rest in Peace” parking area (not a cemetery just a remembering place) we drove to the Hamersley Gorge and swam in the main pool and the so-called spa pool. It was possible to explore the gorge further but we kept going. Before reaching Karratha we stopped at  the Millstream Chichester NP and did the Snappy Gum  drive. A loop through the National Park. We swam in the Fortescue River which was actually quite wide and really deep in that place. I think they have big plans for the National Park as a lot of roadwork was happening. We also stopped at the Python Pool but that was not so nice as the pool didn’t have much water in anymore. There was even a blue-algae warning.

Karratha’s main industry is salt-export via Dampier, Iron-ore export via Cape Lambert and Gas production. The iron-ore and salt export facilities are on private land and not accessible for visitors. But the North West Shelf Visitor Information provides good information about the gas production and the export. The gas is absorbed on 4 platforms around 300km off shore and then transported to the land for further processing.

Have fun,

Good bye Tom and Anja

16. - 18 October

Ruhrpott at the Sea

Next stop was Port Hedland as the 60,000km service was due. We camped 80km east and heard trains during the night. The railway bridge was just 500m away from our camp spot. During the day we saw further trains and several mine sites. Do you remember me talking about the long trains in Leigh Creek? Forget about them! They are much longer up here. Several trains boost 6 engines (3 in front and 3 in the middle). Apparently BHP (a mining company) attempted a world record for the longest and heaviest railing. The train was 7.353km long, weighted around 99,732.2t (which is a net mass of 89,262t of iron ore). 8 locomotives and 682 ore cars were used. 

Port Hedland is one of the biggest iron-ore exporting ports which operates 24/7. They can handle up to 4 vessels at a time which was a real benefit for us. It made the time fly while we waited for the return of our car. We watched the whole wharf processing (arrival, loading and departure of the vessel – not necessarily in this order). We read that it takes around 30h to fill the 300t  cargo vessels. When we arrived at the lookout we already noticed one vessel with the tug-boats attached but it didn’t move. We asked us why and some minutes later the answer moved along. There was another vessel ready for departure and it left first. After this vessel  passed it was all action and that vessel was out on the sea 20 minutes later. But we didn’t have to wait long for the next action as the tug-boats guided two new vessels into the harbour. During the 4h waiting time we saw two iron-ore vessels departing, two new arriving while another was loaded and a smaller vessel (carrying solar-salt) arriving and leaving. So the salt loading happens much quicker than the iron-ore.

So long and good bye,

Cheers, Tom and Anja

4. – 15. October

Broome and Dampier Peninsula

We arrived with a smile in Broome – you could see the ocean again and it  looked really inviting and had a nice blue colour. We drove to Cable Beach and jumped into the ocean using our boggie-board. Cable Beach is around 22km long and got its name from the phone cable connecting Broome with Java. During the day it’s possible to drive on the beach but it’s closed from October during the night. The turtles are coming to lay their eggs – the nesting season has started. But we didn’t  see any on the beach just swimming close to the jetty.

There are some more activities in Broome but not possible to exercise at  all times. There are the dinosaur footprints, the airplane wrecks and the staircase to the moon which are only accessible/ visible at low tide (less than 1.5m). Unfortunately we didn’t see any – couldn’t time it right. But anyway we watched the cast of the dinosaur footprints and the sunset from there. We even saw some whales in the distance! Broome is also famous for pearls but we didn’t go on a tour. But we had a look at the church which is decorated with lots of pearls and the shells.

North of Broome lies the Dampier Peninsula where you can camp and find  good snorkelling places. Our first stop was at Middle Lagoon probably halfway up. We got the site “Lino’s Camp” just 50m from the ocean (at least at high tide). We went swimming and got used to snorkelling again – luckily the water was calm although there was not much to see….

  We drove to Cape Leveque as well and pitched our tent directly on top of the cliff. We could have watched the sunset from the tent but opted to go down to the beach to have the reflection of the stones included. We went swimming the other day on the eastern side of Cape Leveque. There is even a little reef so we went snorkelling. And this time we were able to see some fishes as well as a reef shark which triggered a quick escape to the beach…

At our next stop we went swimming as well. There was a little secluded bay. We were amazed how quickly the tide is coming in… After our swim we relaxed at the beach and within 30min half of the beach was under water. There was a reef as well but we didn’t dare to go snorkelling there. The current was really strong we could see it from the ground. We even discovered a little horizontal waterfall (we didn’t fly to the big one…). At low tide we walked along the reef and saw some green and blue corals as well as some mussels.

Broome’s northern beaches are a good spot as well especially as there is free camping and just 10m to the beach ;-) we had to go there. We went swimming, boggie-boarding, read a lot, saw some crabs and watched the eagles flying above our head. Of course we watched the sunset and the night sky for stargazing.

Now it’s time to head into the water again!

Bye, bye

Tom and Anja