10-Aug-2005
After spending the weekend in Yardy Homestead we moved down into the Cape Range National Park. All the Park campsites were full so my Navigator got me up at some unearthly hour in the morning to queue up at the gate. We were lucky enough to get a campsite at Kurrajong where we stayed last year. The camp hosts, Jim and Kerry, made us very welcome. We lazed around there for 5 days spending a lot of time on the beach and snorkelling around the coral reef. In the evenings it was up to the top of the dunes for sundowners with the other campers. There were always a few whales to be seen splashing around beyond the reef just before the sun dropped over the horizon. Sundowners at Kurrajong |
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There were always a few creatures to be seen in the area, lots of kangaroos and wallabies, emus, eagles and this Bustard, which wandered across the road in front of us. That's a big bird! Bustard at Cape Range. |
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Having seen the whales from the beach we treated ourselves to a whale-watching trip in the Gulf from Exmouth. Here are a couple of pictures of the humpback whales we saw. Humpback Whale in the Gulf near Exmouth |
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Humpback Whale near the Navy Jetty, Exmouth | ||
After leaving the National Park, we returned to Yardie Homestead for the weekend. The owners of the campsite put on a Roast Dinner each Sunday so we arranged to meet Howard and Glenys, a couple we have bumped into several times previously on our trip. | ||
From Exmouth, we moved about 180kms south to stay at Warroora Station where we camped beside the beach. There are no 'facilities' there and the track in and out is 'interesting'! It's a beautiful unspoiled remote location with the Ningaloo Reef just offshore. The Australian Government have decided that they will be excising this area on 6th Dec 2006 and have decided that there is to be no camping permitted so perhaps we have just visited in time! (Update - Waroora di not surrender the lease so camping will be available up to 2015. See the Waroora website: www.warroora.com) The campsite at Warroora Station (14 mile) |
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It must be getting near springtime here because the swallows were looking to build a nest on the caravan and butterflies were hovering around the spring flowers. |
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I'll expect our friend Graham back in the UK will be able to tell us what sort of butterfly this is. Graham? Butterfly at Warroora |