The wild flowers of Western Australia on the road to Kalbarri

Western Australia is famous for its colourful wildflowers. It’s spring in Australia and they are in full bloom.

Travelling along the highway the road sides were full of colour.

I have arrived in Kalbarri a beautiful little coastal town where the Murchison River meets the sea.

Kalbarri National Park encompasses a coastal section and the area of the Murchison Gorge cut by the river.

I look forward to sharing some adventures in these areas with you but now it is back to the wildflowers of which Kalbarri National Park has many.

All this vibrant colour adds to the pleasure of hiking in the bush.

Then there is the gorge and river but that is for the next post.

Wildlife interaction on Australia’s North West Coast – 2 Shark Bay

It was the May eclipse of the moon that I was on the eastern most point point of Australia and Shark Bay is at the western extreme.

And Denham is the most westerly township in Australia. Steep Point is the the western most point but very difficult to access.

The east and west extremities of Australia are like chalk and cheese. While Cape Byron in the east sits amongst moist rain forest covered mountains but in the west at Shark Bay its where the desert meets the sea.

So desert means lack of water and sparse population.

I wonder if fewer people means more wildlife.

The pelicans,

The turtles,

The old man Emu caring for his chicks.

And the beautiful wild dolphins at Monkey Mia that interact with such trust with visitors to their world.

The beaches in this special place are stunning and unique.

To create this national park now world heritage area. The Western Australian Government bought back a number of farming leases.

Sheep had been grazed on the fragile lands.

At the old Peron Station the remains of the old shearing shed still remain.

It was a bit of a trek to get to the old station along a sandy trail

But made all worthwhile by the the thermal spring hot tub at the old station.

So what else could I do.

Wildlife interaction on Australia’s North West Coast -1 Coral Bay

My last day in Coral Bay was spent in and on the Indian Ocean and the Ningaloo Reef.

This was close interaction in the marine environment.

With:

Eels,

Stingrays;

Turtles;

Reef sharks sleeping in coral caves; and

Myriads of little reef fish.

The coral with its colours and shapes is just beautiful.

But the big interaction with whales.

Interaction with whales is carefully prescribed to protect the whale and the humans.

We were lucky enough to get to swim with these beautiful creatures.

The skill of the skipper was excellent. We motored along side the whales as they swam. Then we told to get ready as the boat sped forward.

Suddenly the boat slowed and we slipped off the back of the boat as this gentle giant of the sea swam past below us.

We also swam with Manta Rays.

Sorry friends no photos of these encounters as the piecemeal adventurer turned part time frogman was too busy manoeuvring himself and remembering to breath while in a state of high excitement to work a camera.

So sorry you will just have to go to Ningaloo Reef and do it.

Coral Bay is like swimming in an aquarium

Going to the beach at Coral Bay is like no other beach experience I’ve encountered. It’s a short shallow wade across the sand which then cuts away sharply.

Goggles on and dive into a wonderland of coral

And fish

For an alternative to swimming there is even a glass bottom kayak to view the reef.

Tomorrow its a day in the water on the outer reef swimming and snorkelling off a boat.

The camera is on charge and I’m hoping I can capture some great images.

Running south across the Wide open spaces of Western Australia

Departing Broome my next major destination was Coral Bay and the beautiful Ningaloo Reef. A distance of nearly 1,400km

Western Australia is a vast State covering around 1/3 of the Australian Continent.

In the north towns and settlements are few and far between and the roads long and straight.

Mining is prevalent in this part of Australia and relics of mining are many.

This part of Australia has had significant land returned to aboriginal control under Native Title which commenced in Australia in 1993.

Native Title aims to give back to Australian Aborigines land where there has been continuous connection since colonisation.

When I rode through Roebourne 43 years ago it was a town one didn’t stop in. It was the wild west rough and dangerous.

History of the Victoria Hotel in Roebourne

The Victoria Hotel was a bloodhouse that you entered at great risk. Now it’s a beautiful art gallery.

That I would recommend any and everyone to stop at.

The importance and connection to country that aboriginal people have can not be underestimated or understood by us from a colonial heritage.

At the Welcome Lookout overlooking there are silhouettes of aboriginal men from the local tribes looking out on country. Emblematic of the connection.