Cop an eyeful
Trip Start
Jun 05, 2007
1
101
131
Trip End
Jun 2009
Exmouth,
Western Australia,
Australia
Friday, October 17, 2008
Once in Exmouth we check into a campsite, book a tour out to see the mighty humpback whale for the next day and then spend the rest of the afternoon lazing by the pool, oh it really is a hard life - honest!
The Ningaloo national marine park is of significant marine importance and is the playground for the giant Whale Sharks, which is actually neither one or the other but is a fish, the biggest fish in the world. But unfortunately, this isn't the right time of year to see it, so the Humpback it is!
Our skipper for the trip takes us out on a glass bottom boat, firstly to view the coral which is only a few meters from the beach. But the first patch of coral is a rather depressing collection of dead and broken corals that had been devestated in the cyclone of 1999, encouragingly though, it was regrowing in parts but as the brain coral only grows at a rate of around a milimeter a year, it will be a long time before there is a noticeable change. A bit further out and the coral had managed to survive the beating waves and lashing winds as we viewed impressive hard corals with hues of blue, pink and green and an abundance of colourful tropical fish, alas, no nemo though! As we ventured into deeper water our search for the whales began. In vain, our eyes scanned the horizon for any sights or sounds and just when we were about to give up hope, we saw a jet of water and the unmistakeable sound of a blowhole. We were in awe and humbled by the mighty presence of a mother and her calf in the distance, we set out to get a little nearer when they disappeared. Just as the skipper was about to turn the boat around, Kev and I spotted an eye looking directly at us from under the water, only 2 meters away. We hollored at the captain and he immediately killed the engine, as is the law here. With a tear in our eyes we watched this amazing creature watching us, I guess she was checking out if we were friend or foe and whether she could trust us around her young calf. We were very pleased with her decision as the mother and calf played happily beside the boat, putting on a real show. The skipper said that was the first time he had experienced them so close and as he was not allowed to start the boat with them so near, we all happily sat there watching until they had had enough and moved on. Thrilled with our experience we wondered how anything could beat this.
The next day we hired snorkelling gear and drove around the peninsula to the campsites of Cape Range national park which dotted the coastline. We stopped at several points of interest along the way including a lighthouse with sweeping 360 degree views, a turtle reserve that would have to be visited at dusk to see any of the creatures and a bird hide frequented by pelicans and curlews, as well as the visitors centre to get snorkel guides and a look at nearly every venemous creature in this area pickled in jars - the safest way to view these animals I think.
Our first stop to snorkel was Lakeside, supposedly a gentle introduction to the park for all the family, so said the literature, but when we got there, the wind was up and the waves were high. We tried to swim out but were going nowhere, we also discovered that Kev's snorkel was faulty and he proceeded to inhale a lungfull of saltwater. We had no choice but to drive the 100km roundtrip back to the rental office to get a replacement, the girl working behind the till was infuriatingly blase and did not really grasp the concept of their ineptitude - lesson learnt, always check snorkel eqipment before leaving the distribution point!
Back in the park, we had wasted 2 hours, so decided to head for a campsite and just have a relaxing evening with a glass of goon and a good book, it was a windy night and we parked the van across the wind so we had some respite. The next day was brighter and calmer and so we head for 'The Drift' at Turqoise bay, aptly named for the clear, bright turqoise colour of the ocean, this, coupled with the glistening, fine white sand, made for an idyllic location, but looks can be deceiving, as the rips here can be deadly. You have to enter the water from a specified point, swim out as far as the coral gardens which are only a few metres from the beach and then just let the current take you. Most importantly though, you have to keep one eye on the beach as the current is so strong, if you miss the 'get out' point, you could end up being dragged out to the deep blue through the gap in the outer coral. We had an amazing time and our best view yet whilst snorkelling, the reef was something else and the fish so colourful and only feet below you. For lunch, we headed out to Oyster stacks, long since dead coral that was home to many bright green crabs, also out for their lunch. We walked on the eroding dead coral and could see the conglomerate of pebbles and shells that had been laid to rest here, perhaps for thousands of years, it was also a reminder that the volume of water in the ocean is definately changing. The rest of the day was spent sunbaking and snorkelling back at Turquoise Bay and was thoroughly enjoyable, we really didn't want to leave tomorrow. We were given a fairwell by the other 10 residents at the site at the regular evening 'Happy Hour'. We took some goon and were treated to some freshly caught and cooked fish and some homemade savoury snacks, we were a little merry by the time we made it back to the van and for our dinner we had a delightful concoction of cold tinned spaghetti, bread and butter, Mmmmm.
Next stop, Canarvon, the home of the fresh fruit and veggies, boy do we need some of that!
