Dolphins and flowers

The last few days have not been as exciting as my whaleshark swimming day. Pleasant enough but not as awe inspiring. First stop after Exmouth was Coral Bay, a bit further south, still inside Ningaloo Reef. I spent a relaxing and very pleasant day in this very pretty bay.

I walked along the white sandy beach, hung out at a busy cafe while waiting to wade out to this glass bottomed boat for a coral viewing tour.

I do have some photos but the view does not really compare with snorkelling over the coral. We did see lots of fish. Some fish pellets were thrown over the side at one point which created a bit of fishy excitement. Then I went for another longer walk along the almost deserted beach. Most of the people staying in the packed caravan parks seemed to be staying close to their vans. I did not stay in Coral Bay which seems to consist of fully booked parks, a couple of apartment complexes and not much more. I stayed out near the main road in another free camp.

Then I drove to Monkey Mia, stopping at Carnavon on the way. I walked along the oddly tropical-looking palm-lined Gascoyne River at the centre of town where there is a memorial for the hundreds of men who died on the HMAS Sydney which was sunk off shore after a battle with a German ship in WII.

I also visited the old lighthouse keepers cottage at the One Mile Jetty which was Carnavon's connection with the world until the 1980s when the highway was built. I had an interesting conversation with the guide who was born and grew up in the cottage as her father was the lighthouse keeper. Mangroves have taken over the waters around the jetty which they are hoping to restore when they raise enough money.

The afternoon involved another long boring drive, listening to music, punctuated by wildflower stops.

I tried to see the Hamelin Pool stromatolites, living fossil lifeforms, not sure if they are plant or animal, 3.5 billion years old and very rare, but the board walk had been damaged by a cyclone and is closed until repairs are done next year. The stromatolites are the dark rounded rock-like things in the water.

I stayed for one night in a packed but neat and pleasant caravan park in the small seaside town of Denham. In the morning I drove for 30 minutes to see the famous Monkey Mia dolphin feeding where there is now a flash RAC caravan park, and the feeding is strictly managed by the national park rangers. Pre-covid, people where invited to feed the dolphins, but now only staff do that because dolphins are mammals and none knows if they can catch covid. Also the amount of feeding is strictly limited to ensure these female dolphins continue to suckle their calves and teach them to find their own food. In the early days of the feedings, there was a 95% mortality rate among calves as the mothers spent too much time waiting to be fed. Eight beautiful girls where cruising in and out of the feeding area during the morning, so I watched them twice.

Then I went to the Ocean Park Aquarium to see the many different fish, sharks and rays and a sea snake, that also live in Shark Bay, and had a lazy lunch on their deck.

Back on the road again to another free camp.