Kalbarri to Cape Range National Park (5 - 10 May)

Packing up at Kalbarri, a small green bird hopped over and tucked itself behind one of the back wheels of the car. Millie and I stopped Justin just in time from reversing over it, but failed to coax it out from the false security of its shelter. I gently picked up the bird and placed it out of harm’s way before hitching-up and heading to Carnarvon for the night. The next morning, we picked up some breakfast in town and noted the number of Asian-run businesses there. We later found out from Maureen and Alan, who used to own a caravan park in Carnarvon, that the Asian community there originated from the settlement of Vietnamese refugees back in the 1970s.

We continued our journey to Exmouth where we filled up with water, fuel and provisions ahead of our 5-night stay in Cape Range National Park. Since our lesson in Maralinga, I have now learnt to pre-cook staple ingredients to minimise power usage when camping off-grid (I’m disinclined to freeze meals as they inevitably don’t get eaten). At Cape Range, we camped at Tulki Beach to explore the Ningaloo coastline where our favourite beaches were Turquoise Bay, Lakeside and Osprey Bay (which boasted camp sites overlooking the spectacular turquoise waters). We also kayaked down Yardie Creek where we saw bats hanging from the mangroves and a couple of rock wallabies perched on the gorge face.

I also utilised our stay in Cape Range to practise snorkelling ahead of our Swimming with the Whale Sharkstour the following week. Initial attempts to view coral included placing my face in the water from the kayak and clinging onto the vessel’s side. This quickly progressed to snorkelling independently with the aid of a life vest and pool noodle. Millie did well with her snorkel and mask until she surfaced one day and screamed, “That was horrible – I just saw a brain!”. Since then, we have had to bribe her to swim anywhere near coral. Most reluctantly, I now owe her four bead bracelets – I hope this will toughen her up.