I don’t know what the marketing committee was thinking, but Shark Bay still attracts a lot of visitors, mainly drawn to Monkey Mia…… but more of that later. We had spent a couple of days at a caravan park in Carnarvon , tidying up for the next leg. The Jeep even got a wash this time. We figured that our dusty days were behind us for a while as we continued south towards Perth. The caravan still looks like a Mad Max movie extra, but finding a car wash that has the sweeping exits to navigate a large van are thin on the ground.
Our destination was Denham, a small seaside town, two thirds up the Peron Peninsula, in the Shark Bay World Heritage Area. Again, another 300klm diversion of the highway, but with the legendary Monkey Mia beckoning, we thought it would be worth it…..but more of that later. It was a 350klm haul from Carnarvon, so with the sun starting to dip, we went looking for a free camp. First look was at Gladstone Scenic Lookout. The view was amazing. Now, I normally treat the No Camping signs as advisory only, but this spot also had a indigenous living memorial to locals who had died. This made Tamika a little culturally nervous, so we decided to push on.
Now , here’s the tip. Local Councils ALWAYS have roadside areas for warehousing gravel etc for road repairs. Most of them are discreet from the road with entrances and exits at about forty five degrees and there’s plenty of room. So, it’s just a matter of keeping your eyes peeled for the clues, which we did. It wasn’t long before we had found one about 30klm from the highway on Shark Bay Road.
The next morning we continued our journey along the Peron Peninsula. The peninsula flexes in and out. Sometimes the bay was visible from the road, sometimes only the hills. It was kind of funny after spending months driving on dead flat terrain to find ourselves on a slow moving roller coaster. The paddle shift got it’s first real work out for ages as we alternated between free wheeling in 8th gear and hard revving in 5th. We’d been on the road for about 40 minutes when we saw a turnoff to Shell Beach. It’s noteworthy, because of the extreme salinity of the water and the fact that a unique species of shellfish that has evolved photosynthesis as it’s source of food. We took the opportunity for a cuppa and moved on.
Our first call when we reached Denham was the Visitors Centre, part of a cute seaside precinct with views across to Dirk Hartog Island. We had noticed some turnoffs on the way in with exotic names like Whalebone and Fowlers Bay ( Aarrrgh! there be treasure John boy aarrrgh!). Turns out they’re all in the national park, so we picked the closest one Eagles Bluff, paid our nominal fee and headed 15klm back to the turnoff. Off course, the Socceroos were playing that night and of course we lost internet on the drive in to what was essentially a bare patch of ground.
We weren’t going to miss the game, so as the sunset, we drove up the hill with van to the turnoff and parked on the side of the road. Not that there was any traffic, but we were taking up half the available lane. Two hours later, with a win over Tunisia, we headed back down in the dark and assumed the position.
When there’s not much to do, you walk. And so, with camera on shoulder, I explored a bit of the coastline. Kite surfing, seems a goto recreation for people who don’t fish – which seems obvious now, seeing how prevailing the winds are on the coast. I could see the kites swooping in the sky and the windsurfers screaming across the ankle deep water. There wouldn’t be a soft landing if they fell off!
On they way back, I bumped into three young French girls looking for a place out of the wind to set up their little tent. Unfortunately, all I could offer them was advice. Oh well, c’est la vie.
We’d been advised to be at Monkey Mia by 8:30am in time for the first feeding. Everyone has seen the pics of tourists standing knee deep, patting dolphins, up-close and personal etc. That was our expectation. You are correct to anticipate disappointment. Sure, it was educational and everyone took pics, but with a “possible” susceptibility by dolphins to Covid, the only thing missing was a glass screen. You would get more enjoyment watching one in a museum. We trudged off the beach, muttering under our breath, the only consolation being that our entrance fee got us into the resort swimming pool and by sunset we felt we had got our money’s worth.
We left late afternoon and spent the night at another Council depot site on the road. Our Socceroos won again and even Tamika was caught up in the excitement. Back in Denham, emus walk freely around the outskirts of town. We saw a Mum with half a dozen, half grown chicks strolling leisurely across the main road, too amazed to grab a camera this time, but made up for it a little later. Another night, another free camp, then back to the highway, turn right and heading for Geraldton.
The Coconut & Faux-Tan Man