Caravan Capers

Made Carnarvon last night by 6 pm, only 5 min behind Ally & Jeff, as it turned out (despite them having passed us on the road). We did note that they seemed to have left the back and side doors of the van open when we passed them at the side of the road at one point – interesting approach by the poms to Cheapa Campa travel. Staying at the Wintersun Caravan Park where the rels stayed on their way up the coast.

Plan originally was to stay the night and then move on to Denham, howver this was hijacked by (a) Ally & Jeff hearing of a kite surfing location near Carnarvon and (b) a brochure Ally picked up in reception advertising kite surfing lessons. Ideal for those who would surely benefit from the easier lifestyle of a kite surfer, with lighter equipment to lug around and greater ease of set up! We contacted Mick, of KiteMix this morning and he could fit us in for later this afternoon. In the meantime we lazed around (as you do), then wandered into town for some groceries and fresh local snapper at Boat Harbour, followed by great fish and chips (yes this is becoming a bit of a theme, but when the fish is go good, what can you do?) eaten on the beach out at Pelican Point while waiting for our lesson.

Ally and Jeff geared up to have a go while we watched a wiry little guy we assumed was Mick taking another guy for a lesson. Mick displayed a remarkable turn of speed at one point when his kite looked in danger of running up against some rocks and posts at one end of the shallow bay we were in. Our first lesson was with trainer kites (much smaller and twitchier than the real thing apparently) with much zooming around testing the power zone, learning to manoeuvre the kite in the neutral area, crashing onto the beach and into the water and generally trying to get a feel for how it all might work. Finally finished about 5.30 after a slightly after 4 pm start. Next lesson 1.30 pm tomorrow….

Headed back to enjoy a shower and fantastic BBQ snapper and vegies prepared brilliantly by Ally and Jeff. Went down well with a nice glass of riesling.

Finally departed Cape Range and Exmouth Sunday morning (around 11 am and quite hot and bothered by then) and set off for Coral Bay. Ally & Jeff planned to stay one more day but move to Exmouth for the night and then join us in Coral Bay the next day.
Coral Bay strikes you as the quintessential tourist centre. The town consists of two caravan parks, the Ningaloo Reef Resort and several small shopping centres (relatively minimal supermarket supplies). Apart from that there are millions (slight exaggeration) of tour operators, offering everything from glass bottom boat viewing, to quad biking to snorkel spots, kayaking and dive and snorkel cruises to view various types of wildlife, depending on you interest and budget. Weren’t sure what to try after our disappointing snorkel cruise in Exmouth so procrastinated with domestic tasks like laundry and board repair (Chris had acquired some fibreglass and araldyte in Exmouth and was ready to make a mess) until our partners in crime showed up next day. Next afternoon went to view the reef shark nursery up the beach in Skeleton Bay (after booking a half day manta ray tour for the following day) and independently snorkelling off the beach in Paradise Bay late the next afternoon. Although the expectation was that it would be very similar to Exmouth, the coral surprised us. Great gardens of corals of different shapes and sizes – plates, staghorns, cabbage shaped coral – looked a bit like either an English cottage garden, or what I imagine the Hanging Gardens of Babylon might have looked like. Several blue spotted rays, lots of schools of brightly coloured fish and the usual variety of tropical reef life abounded.
Nice to have the civilisation of fresh water showers on tap again but the park was busy and noisy compared to the quiet of Cape Range.
Went out on our manta ray tour with Coral Bay Adventures. Great crew (Stuey, Jud and Lucy) and great day. Snorkelled two great sites and saw lots of fish and fantastic coral. Sting rays, damsel fish, bannerfish, parrot fish, wrasses, butterfly fish and on and on! Reef sharks on our second snorkel and turtles poking their heads up all over the place. Had the privilege of snorkelling with a manta ray. The majestic creature we swam with was barrel rolling to feed and was significantly more graceful in the water than we were.
Got back from our cruise a bit before 3 pm, picked up our CD of photos (4 way share) and set off in the hope of making Carnarvon for the night by a reasonable hour, on the way to Denham. May also get my glasses repaired in Carnarvon before we leave (yes our next minor disaster, can’t go from day to day without something livening things up!).

Too lazy (and no connection to upload) to blog regularly so have lumped all of the Cape Range experience into one entry! Enjoyed 6 nights in Cape Range NP. Very laid back time with lots of snorkelling (Turquoise Bay drift loop, North Mandu and the Oyster Stacks), some windsurfing (at least with my board, as unfortunately Chris’s board had been damaged somewhere between here and Dampier with no clues as to how it happened and no convenient repair facilities).  Ally & Jeff (who joined us on Wednesday afternoon but stayed in Exmouth the first couple of nights) enjoyed kitesurfing at Sandy Bay. Literally a big sandy bay, flat water (inside the fringing Ningaloo Reef) and nice consistent offshore winds for a few days straight. If you like flat water, good consistent wind, the sun beating down on you and no shade for miles, this is the place to go wind and kite surfing! Evidently a lot of people do enjoy this, as the Saturday particularly was looking quite crowded out on the water.The camping is pretty basic with pit loos, no power and no showers and you can’t camp at Sandy Bay itself, but if you like getting out into the wilder places without all the crowds, then this is the place to be.  The snorkelling was quite varied with the Oyster Stacks probably the pick of the three sites (Chris missed this one as went into town to see about board repairs). Oyster Stacks had more scattered coral, larger fish and some quite large schools of fish near the stacks themselves. Turtle and octopus spotted here. The Turquoise Bay drift was a pleasant drift with the current along the inner reef and lots of smaller colourful fish. Having trouble with my snorkel though – too large for my mouth and quite uncomfortable. Found a cheap $10 jobby at the local camping store and this seemed to do the trick! Surprised a turtle at North Mandu, when trying frantically to point it out to Chris.
Signed on for a dive / snorkel cruise out to the Muiron Islands on the Thursday on the recommendation of a German girl we met in Baird Bay but were somewhat disappointed. If you know lots about soft corals you would probably have had a great time, but from the snorkelling perspective it didn’t seem as good as the shore-based snorkelling we had been doing and the fish were pretty similar. We did get bonus humpback whale viewing on the return trip though – doing all the things I’d wanted to see for ever – breaching, spy hopping, tail and pectoral slapping! Managed to get some videos of whales but developed camera confusion and managed to have the video off while apparently filming these wonderful beasties breaching and leaping just off the boat. Oh well, will just have to rely on the rapidly fading memories!
Our camp hosts at Ned’s Beach camp in Cape Range (Ann & Tony) were great. They’d been in the park for 2 months volunteering their time to help out the rangers and the park and were exceedingly helpful and tolerant with our late evening returns (fish and chips in town the day the rels arrived and Italian birthday dinner at Pinocchio’s for Jeff’s birthday the next night after the cruise). Lots of wildlife (not all flat on the side of the road – unless you count the lazing wallaroos under their roadside bushes in the heat of the day). Emus wandering majestically through the Exmouth caravan parks and around the visitor information centre (as well as in the NP), wallaroos lazing under bushes and munching grass in a vaguely suicidal way by the side of the roads in the evenings. Sudden hopping onto road behaviour keeps you on your toes! Big congregation around the only bore water tap in the NP, particularly after use when there is a surrounding puddle of water. Several echidnas spotted by the roadside, one when returning from Exmouth late one night.
Colin managed to maintain enough charge in his battery with our limited solar access (better when the wind blew the branches away from the rooftop panel) to last the time and the fridge surprisingly continued to cool in an appropriate manner. Very civilised pit loo and the solar shower and tent combination kept me sane (cleaned all four of us for two nights running with still plenty of water in the tanks and jerry cans). Occasional trips into town for grocery, water and board repair supplies and more frequent trips out into mobile range to stop Chris going into the DTs.

Days continue to heat up early. Plans for today included a drive up to the Lighthouse lookout (for the view but mainly for mobile coverage) and then on into Cape Range NP to check out the camping, snorkelling and windsurfing options. Interesting contrasts to previous parks – low striated ochre coloured hills separating the park from the eastern side of the peninsula, semi-arid landscape with low scrubby bushes and grasses leading up to whiter dunes and turquoise and aquamarine seas wherewith the reef break of Ningaloo only several hundred metres from shore. Quite a lot of camping spots available but shade definitely at a premium and some not that well protected from the on shore winds (particularly of an afternoon). Lots of good swimming beaches and a few people kite surfing at Sandy Bay (can’t camp there) so will have to go back and try out the windsurfing there. Drove all the way to the south end of the park (Yardie Creek) and then back to Osprey Bay for a picnic lunch with a lone seagull and a glimpse of several turtles (turtle mating season just starting so a few bouncing around offshore). On to Turquoise Bay for a drift snorkel up the reef and first opportunity to try out the new gear. Great variety of tropical fish and different corals, starfish and sea cucumbers abound so imagine an outer reef or island reef trip might be even better. Lots of kangaroos on the side of the road on the trip back out of the park (finally some wildlife). Back to camp by 6 pm and a bit of a pull-together dinner. Chris managed to get the hair right tonight and the hard water / salt water soap much more effective with the bore water.

Plan to move out to the NP to camp for a few days tomorrow after dropping in to Exmouth to top up the water tank, visit the Dometic refrigeration place and acquire some more food supplies. Ally and Jeff have reached Perth and will be on their way up to meet us.

Probably not much to say about today. Long 550 km journey to Exmouth. More red earth, spinifex, road works, big skies…. and not much else. Will probably spend the rest of the weekend in one of the caravan parks in Exmouth itself until the fridge makes a decision to work (or not) and check out where to go windsurfing, etc. On arrival discovered public water point to fill water tanks at Visitor Information Centre (not much drinking water around here) and decided on the Lighthouse Caravan Park ~ 17 km north of Exmouth (significantly cheaper than the 2 parks right in town and not far to come in for fridge stuff, etc). Made it to caravan park by bit after 5 pm and set up. Turned fridge on again after carefully levelling things and inserted thermometer in great trepidation, although will take at least 12 hours to get effect….. Interesting showering with slightly salty bore water. Soap refused to lather and expensive face cleanser even worse. Chris seems to have managed to leave soap in his hair after showering – interesting texture!

Arrived Karratha unseemly hour of 7.30 am to drop off the car then walked the long way round to the local shopping mall, mostly still closed. Breakfast at Jamaica Blue (yes civilization all the way up here) then shopping for me and catching up with work in the cafe for Chris (plus a barber shop stop). Quite successful shopping trip although best place turned out to be the House of Target. Acquired some snorkelling gear at the local camping / diving shop on the way back to pick up the car then headed back to the van for lunch and some general housekeeping. Late afternoon trip into town again for a bit of wood to replace the bit we left behind in Onslow (forgot to pick it up from where it was usefully levelling the van wheels) and a decent level. Level required for fridge, as apparently it needs to be extremely level to maintain its cooling ability (info from useful phone call to dometic dealer in Exmouth). Also need to empty fridge tonight and allow it to equalise with ambient temperature in hopes that bumpy ride to Exmouth will correct problem. Otherwise next step is to remove fridge from housing and turn it upside down and then right way up every 15 minutes for an hour or so! Will also need a little 12V fan to help cool the motor (obtainable from the knowledgeable guy in Exmouth and still need to fix the panelling that fell off the front of the fridge after beiing bumped over the corrugations in Karajini. anyway, that’s for later. Now on to Point Samposn (57 km and set off ~ 3.30 pm). Pretty little town and nice looking caravan park but lots of flies! Had a beer at the tavern (which I promptly knocked all over me – guess my drinking problem isn’t getting any better) then great fish and chips at Moby’s kitchen downstairs (red emperor). Back home to finish packing up ready to move on to Exmouth in the morning (including emptying fridge – thank god for waeco car fridge!).

Slow start to the day (so what’s new!),  but eventually mosied our way to the Dampier information centre where discovered the history of Red Dog, a cattle cross who travelled around the region at will and who had quite fixed ideas as to destination and lifestyle. Also an eccentric local, Sam, who squatted on one of the local islands and built himself a castle over many years and lived there with his cat Tiger until he passed away in 2005. Wind was picking up when we left the info centre so windsurfing looked like an option, at least for Chris. Perhaps I could practice water starts, the wind looking just a bit strong for me? Got all the gear, rigged up and got going. Chris got some good runs in and I actually managed to get up on the board a few times. Turned out to be a very bad idea for those who are generally crocked already – both of us knackered that night and aching in places that hadn’t realised we had! Too tired even to cook dinner so just went to bed.

Set off for Dampier and Karratha, stopping on the way for a photo of the myriad termite mounds littering the landscape all around Onslow. Quite different to those further inland, as the termites out here seem to have a penchant for pointy tops to their mounds. Not so generally amorphous like the Karajini termites. Long day travelling with only a brief stop for lunch near Miaree Pool, about 30-40 km from our destination. Arrived Dampier Transit caravan park (only allowed max 3 night stop and have to have your own drinking water) a bit after 5 pm. Quite a nice spot overlooking the port and Sam’s Island. Nice shady sites and grassy areas. Bit surprised at Dampier itself (although don’t know why I should have been). Was expecting little seaside town as the gateway to the Dampier Archipelago, however although it is a seaside town, it is obviously also a major port for the iron ore trade and the drive in from the main highway passes through a rather desolate area with rail and industrial infrastructure that looks a bit like what the surface of Mars. Drove into Karratha(19 km) to get our bearings, as the car was booked for a service at the local Toyota dealership early Friday morning and wanted to know where the shopping areas were (retail therapy in air conditioned comfort seemed like a brilliant way top spend a few hours!). Picked up a few provisions and enjoyed a nice BBQ’d tuna steak and salad for dinner.

No moving anywhere today. Time for a slow day by the beach (ocean site right on the beach). Rear awning set up with much cursing by himself as tent pegs buckled in the hard ground. Day to catch up on some blogging and lie around doing not very much at all. Perhaps a swim later on? An ad in the laundry suggests a caravan repair and parts place exists in Karratha (further north) and a dometic fridge service centre is located in Exmouth. Eventually went for a swim off the very rocky beach. Also apparently blue ringed octopus) territory , however fortunately didn’t encounter any. Dinner at Nikki’s restaurant just up the road from the van park. Fantastic meal – amazing in some respects, given the small size of this town and our adventure earlier in the local supermarket (out of date bread and other items on sale).

Left the next morning around 9 am after seeing Bertha the bus head off with another tour group. Long day of driving through red earth, low rocky hills, spinifex and stunted shrubs out towards the coast. Stopped for fuel at Paraburdoo and discovered Colin’s back leg had dropped down again (as it scraped over the concrete on entry into the shell station). Tied up as an interim measure for review later. Aiming for Exmouth but the distance was going to defeat us so turned north for a place called Onslow for the night at least. Reached 41 degrees during the afternoon so the sight of the Onslow turnoff sign advertising “the Cooler Coast” provided encouragement to keep going. No initial drop in temperature on the road out but still 70 km inland. Eventually started dropping and had reached a balmy 31 degrees (10 degrees cooler) by the time we hit Onlsow itself just before 5pm. Whoo hoo! More humid but much more pleasant and got to see the “Stairway to the moon” – the just over full moon rising over the water at half tide – accompanied by lots of red and white and the left over curry. Still have red earth but possibly not as pervasive as further inland. The caravan leg has a stripped and dent screw and we found that the front panel of the fridge had shaken itself off as well. Will probably need a caravan repairer and a caravan fridge repairer now!! Night was still a bit hot an humid but survived.