After a great first week of holiday exploring Kalbarri and Shark Bay, we
travelled on to Exmouth. It was a long travel day of 7 hours driving time with
a coffee break stop at the one mile jetty in Carnarvon. The scenery changed a
lot between Denham and Exmouth as did the weather; it was a gorgeous sunny
morning in Denham but raining by the time we arrived in Exmouth. But that did not
put a damper on our spirits!
Located on the tip of the North West Cape of WA, there was not a fixed
human presence in the Cape Range area before World War II when the U.S. Navy
established a temporary submarine base in the area. In 1963 the Australian and
U.S. governments sought to jointly open a very low frequency (VLF)
communications station in the area. Essentially, the town of Exmouth was
established to support the station and both were officially opened in 1967. All
military personnel left the station in 1992, however the VLF towers remain and
are run by civilian contractors. The tallest of the 13 towers is the second
tallest structure in the Southern Hemisphere at 387.6 m high, weighs 800 tonnes
and can withstand winds of up to 500 km/hour. The closing of the station
triggered the rapid re-development of Exmouth and the Ningaloo region into an eco-tourism
destination. Today, Exmouth is the gateway to the Cape Range National Park and
the Ningaloo Reef and tourism is the main industry that supports the town. We
were super excited to be in Exmouth and couldn’t wait to get our walking shoes
and snorkels and flippers on and get exploring!!
The VLF towers in Exmouth
One of the big sights in Exmouth: the giant prawn!
Watch out for Emus and Emu babies!
We only saw 2 Emus in Exmouth but apparently there can be loads of them.
Stretching over 260 km, the World Heritage listed Ningaloo Reef is one
of the most biologically diverse marine environments on earth and is
Australia’s longest fringing coral reef. One of the biggest attractions of the
Ningaloo Reef is the annual migration of whale sharks. Exmouth offers many
whale shark tours and since we didn’t want to miss out, we booked our swim tour
on the very first day of holiday planning!
Whale sharks are the largest living fish species with the largest confirmed
animal of 12 m and unconfirmed sightings of animals up to 20 m! The ones
spotted at Ningaloo are usually young males of 6 to 7 m and the ones we swam
with were about 6.5 m. Whale sharks are a dark blue-grey colour with a creamy
white belly. Their skin is 10 cm thick and covered with creamy white spots and
stripes the pattern of which is unique to each animal. They are filter feeders and
eat zooplankton and although their mouths are 1‑1.5 m wide with 300 rows
of tiny teeth, they are docile and cannot eat humans. No one has seen a whale
shark mate or give birth so how they do this is still largely unknown but a
caught pregnant female provided some clues.
Whale sharks are listed as a species vulnerable to extinction and much
research is under way to determine the best way to protect them and ensure
their survival. Researchers use the distinctive patterning of the spots and
stripes as a tool to identify and track individual sharks. Anyone can aid the
research by submitting a photo of the left fin and gill of a whale shark to the
research group Ecocean. Sophisticated software developed by NASA to track the
movement of stars (or something) is used to identify individual sharks based on
their pattern of spots and stripes. This photo-identification library helps
researchers to monitor population numbers, track their movements and compare if
the same shark has been in the same area before. The crew of our whale shark swim have spotted both
returning and new individuals at Ningaloo, both equally exciting.
Swimming with a whale shark!!!
Our whale shark swim tour was booked for our first day in Exmouth. We
booked it for the first day in case the weather conditions were not conducive
leaving enough time to postpone the tour to another day. It was a cloudy and
partially rainy day but not excessively windy so the tour went ahead as
scheduled. The Ningaloo Whale Shark swim crew collected us from our
accommodation and drove us to the Tantibiddi boat ramp where we were ferried to
the boat. The day started with a snorkel on a deeper part of the reef to check
that all the equipment fitted and was in working order. Bron has an irrational
fear of deep dark water and had a mild panic attack when faced with jumping
into the unknown and unfathomable depths of the dark ocean, even though she had
told herself for months before that this is what she would be doing. She was
the last one to get in but finally managed with much patience and encouragement
from the crew. And a pool noodle. The water was pretty fresh and we were happy
to have loaned shorty wetsuits.
Bron snorkelling with her pool noodle
Cake was served after the snorkel while we waited for the spotter plane
to spot a whale shark. Some days this can be really quick but not that day. We
waited for an hour or more before the crew negotiated with some of the other
tour boats to allow us to share their shark. The end of whale shark season
coincides with the start of humpback whale season and we were treated to
entertainment of the best kind while we waited. There were so many whales and
they put on the best show: swimming, whale tail displaying, and breaching. It
was really special. After one of the swims while waiting for the boat to pick
us up we were close to the whales and enjoyed watching them breach from the
water.
After an hour or more we had our first swim with a whale shark. The
drill is: the spotter and photographer (same person) gets in the water and
starts swimming with the shark, the boat goes round again and drops the
swimmers in front of the shark’s swim path, put your head down and swim with
the shark. There are a few things to think about and remember so we were really
happy to get to do it more than once as we almost missed the shark the first
time! Bron also had another little panic getting back into the much deeper and
darker water but managed to focus on the shark and enjoy the moment. In total
we had 4 swims with 3 different sharks. The second shark was our own one (not
shared with other boats) but it dived down soon into our swim. Sometimes whale
sharks get nervous or unhappy and then swim down into the deeper water. It was
quite amazing to see this huge fish just disappear before your eyes into the
deep dark water, similar to how an elephant can melt into the bush.
Swimming with a whale shark!!!
The third and fourth swims were the best ones. Bron became much more
confident getting into the water each time and we got into the rhythm of the
drill and knew what to do. Those with confidence dove under the water while
waiting for the boat pick up and could hear the whale song. Lunch was served on
the boat after the fourth swim and then whoever wanted to could go for a final
snorkel before heading back to the boat ramp and accommodation. It was a great
day out and a really special and amazing experience to swim with the whale
sharks and we are so glad we got to do it. Bron was happy to overcome her fear
of water even if for just one day, it was totally worth it. We highly recommend
a whale shark swim tour and the crew from Ningaloo Whale Shark Swim, they were
very professional and experienced and everything ran smoothly. Thanks for a
great day guys!
The last snorkel of the day, sans pool noodle
Some of the beautiful coral we saw
Not all the action happens under the water in Exmouth, there is also the
beautiful gorge filled Cape Range National Park to explore. We had planned to
do some hiking and exploring on the eastern side of the cape the day after the
whale shark tour but it rained the whole day. We hoped it would let up in the
afternoon but it didn’t. We drove out to Charles Knife Gorge but didn’t get as
far as the lookout or start of the walk as the sand road had turned to mud and
there were huge puddles everywhere. Rain is always welcome in parched WA so we
couldn’t complain. We decided to go snorkelling in the afternoon since we would
be wet anyway and the fish won’t mind if it’s raining.
There are several good spots to snorkel from right off the beach and we
decided to try Lakeside that afternoon. We were greeted by a family of skittish
kangaroos as we arrived. Even though we saw so many kangaroos this trip we
still love seeing them and so close up. Bron was nervous about the water again
but we made it in. The water was really cold and this part of the reef you have
to go in deeper than other parts so we didn’t stay in long. We saw some
beautiful coral and fish though and it was worth coming out. We loved being the
only ones on the beach and in the water.
Lakeside Beach
Snorkelling at Lakeside
The next two days were sunny and dry and we were determined to pack as
much into them as possible. The first warm dry day started with a walk in the
gorge at Yardie Creek. Yardie Creek is as far as you can go on Yardie Creek
Road on the western side of the cape before it becomes a 4 wheel drive track and
is surrounded by a gorgeous red rock gorge. We had a great walk clambering over
the red rocks with views of the creek and over the ocean. We also spotted the
black-flanked or black-footed wallaby sunning in the gorge. The rocky gorge
provides protection for the wallaby from foxes and feral cats and they thrive
here. They were very relaxed even though there were a few people around. Our new
Swiss friends also spotted flying foxes snoozing in the trees here.
Yardie Creek and Gorge
Yardie Creek flowing out to sea
Black-flanked wallabies!
They were very small and very sweet to watch.
The second walk for the day was at Mandu Mandu Gorge. The walk starts in
the dry river bed before leading up the steep sides of the gorge for beautiful
views over the gorge and coast. It was quite hot by this point and we enjoyed
basking in the sun after 2 days of rain. The walk was quite steep and demanding
at points but definitely worth the effort.
Walking at Mandu Mandu Gorge
After working up a sweat with two hot walks it was time for a cool down
dip and the rest of the afternoon was spent snorkelling, first at Oyster Stacks
and then at Turquoise Bay. Since Oyster stacks is a very shallow reef area, one
can only snorkel there at high tide so we had to time our swims. High tide was in
the early afternoon that week, perfect for us to go walking in the morning and
swimming all afternoon. The Ningaloo Reef is well protected and in good
condition in Exmouth but with the high numbers of tourists there will always be
some damage. Oyster Stacks stays shallow for a long distance before getting deeper
so one can confidently swim to less crowded and undisturbed parts of the coral.
We saw some amazing fish and coral at Oyster Stacks, the variety of
sizes, shapes and colours was just amazing. We saw very small fish of a few
centimetres, quite big fish of about half a metre, and every size inbetween. There
were loads of parrot fish of every colour and pattern and you could hear them munching
as they take bites of the coral or whatever grows on the coral. There were many
different types of coral too and some really big ones. We saw different kinds
of starfish including electric blue ones, urchins, giant clams, sea cucumbers
and Bron saw a small brown skate with blue dots. We saw more or less the same
fishes and coral at all the snorkel spots but just in greater number at Oyster
Stacks. We were hoping to see some reef sharks, dugongs, sting rays and turtles
during the holiday but we didn’t. Insert sad face here. Maybe we weren’t snorkelling
deep enough. Swimming with turtles is one of Bron’s ultimate bucket list items
and remains high on the list.
Some of the beautiful fishes and coral we saw snorkelling at Oyster Stacks.
From Oyster Stacks we headed to Turquoise Bay for a drift snorkel. Snorkelling
at Turquoise Bay is much deeper and one has to take care to get out in time and
not get stuck in the strong current. Bron was a bit nervous of the deeper water
and we didn’t stay that long here. The beach at Turquoise Bay is beautiful
though and we enjoyed a lovely late afternoon walk. On the way back to Exmouth
we stopped at Vlamingh Head Lighthouse to enjoy sunset over the bay.
Vlamingh Head Lighthouse
Sunset from the lighthouse
The next day was another beautiful hot sunny day and our last full day
in Exmouth. We headed back to Charles Knife Gorge on the eastern side of the
cape for a ~6 km walk to the Shothole Canyon lookouts. The national park
with its red rock, canyons and gorges is just beautiful and such a striking
contrast to the full blue ocean that surrounds it.
Shothole Canyon
Views from different points on the Charles Knife Gorge Road
From the eastern side we drove back round to Oyster Stacks, about a
100 km drive! Oyster Stacks was our favourite snorkel spot and we spent
the rest of the afternoon here floating on the high tide. On the drive back
into Exmouth we spotted 2 echidna and 2 wedge-tailed eagles (well actually, Luca and
Nadine spotted them and we were right behind them ;) ). Wow, the eagles are
such majestic and massive birds! So beautiful. We were so privileged to see
them so close up. And we managed to avoid the kangaroos who love to jump across the
road at this time of day around sunset.
A rolled up echidna.
This was apparently a young echidna and had managed to roll up on his back instead of his tummy. A lady who seemed to know what she was doing rolled him back over so that his soft tummy wasn't on display to passing predators.
Echidna!
These are the short nose kind, there is a long snout kind too!
This one didn't rollup, he just stayed still while we were all gawking at him.
Wedge-tailed Eagle, truly magnificent birds.
At our accommodation in Exmouth we met and became friendly with a lovely
Swiss couple, Luca and Nadine. We would chat when we crossed paths in the
kitchen and bumped into each other on the beach and then we enjoyed two lovely
dinners together. It was really funny when we realised we were in Monkey Mia on
the same day earlier in the week and we had photos of them with the dolphins! We
made plans to meet up the following weekend in Perth. More in the next post
coming soon!
And then it was the end of our stay in Exmouth =(
But we still had a few days of holiday left and filled them with
wildflower hunting. More about that in the next post coming soon!
There are loads of these termite mounds on the road into Exmouth.
Passing the latitude line of Tropic of Capricorn on the way into and out of Exmouth
A BIG Happy First
Birthday to our beautiful niece Isla!! Hope you have a super special day and
are spoilt lots. You are such a happy smiley special little girl. We can’t wait
to meet you one day soon. A big hug and lots of love xxx
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