Broome isn't famous for brooms -Australia.

The weekend markets in Broome are spoken of throughout Australia. So we made that our first port of call as we drove into Broome. Having become so used to not having many people around it was quite a shock to the system to have to drive around for about ten minutes in order to find a car park. The markets were the place to be as we wandered the stalls and listened to the musicians. Many of the travellers we had spent time with along the road all happened to be at the Broome markets that morning. We spent a few hours at the market before finding a caravan park to stay in. We got a spot at the Cable Beach Caravan Park and although it was more expensive than the others it was a better location to Cable Beach. The caravan park also had a good pool and although we had only a small site it was enough.
Broome is a great spot but I think those people who fly straight to Broome are missing out on a lot that Western Australia has to offer. By the end of the week we spent there we had visited all the tourist spots and watched the sunset over Cable Beach about five times. Campbell and I spent most of the week with a couple of French , Fanny and Caroline, who had spotted us at a few of the campsites on the way to Broome but had not spoked to them. It was good because although Campbell and I were getting along well you get a bit sick of each other when its just the two of us.
The Divers Tavern became our hangout and we spent almost every night there having a couple of beers. Fanny and Caroline left to fly back to France and so we felt it was time to continue on and see what else Western Australia had to offer.

Rocks and mines and beaches - Australia

To get around Western Australia you have to be prepared for long hours of driving. Leaving Exmouth it was a full days drive to reach Tom Price our next stop. Before leaving Exmouth though Campbell drove the ridge of a canyon along a fairly step and dodgy road but it was worth it for Grand Canyon style views. We were not able to spend long on though as we needed to make a move.
It rained a lot of the day. I spent most of the drive asleep as we made it to a rest stop about twenty kilometres short of Tom Price. When at the free camp we were told of a early morning tour of the Rio Tinto mine site and decided to try get a spot. When we arrived in the town the following morning the tour was booked out but luckily a couple did not show so we got their seats.
The bus tour lasted an hour and a half and we did see some trucks in action but there was still not a great deal of action in one of the largest mine sites in Australia. We were told of the money involved both staff wages and the amount spent on trucks. Although I left not really learning a lot about the whole process.
Tom Price is the closest town to Karijni National Park and not really knowing how long we would be there we stocked up enough food for weeks before heading into the park.
Karijini is full of gorges and the gorges are largely made of giant pieces of slate rock. The first gorge we visited was the Hancock Gorge. It was also the best gorge and to access the best parts you have to wade waist deep through water. It wasn't too much of an issue though as the temperature was probably close to 40 degrees in the sun. Camp that night wasn't all that comfortable as I slept on rock and in that part of Western Australia the sun sets at about 6pm so there isn't a lot to do after you have had dinner.
We spent another full day checking out all the tracks in Karijini and made camp again inside the park before leaving the following morning to head north to Port Headland and back to the coast. Many people had told us there is not a lot to do in Port Hedland and we discovered it for ourselves having seen the whole town in about half an hour. We did though chance upon getting to Port Hedland on the final night of the 'Staircase to the Moon.' When the full moon rises in certain months of the year the reflection leaves a staircase in the shallows. "It wasn't as good as last night," I overheard people saying. I actually did not find it all that fascinating but at least we got to see it.
Port Hedland also has a reputation of being expensive as it is a mining town and they did not let down charging $38 for a non-powered site at the caravan park for a site only just large enough for the mothership and a small tent.
Its possible to get from Port Hedland to Broome in a day although I had heard about a couple of good camp spots on the way so the following night we stopped at Cape Keraudren to the North of Broome I was told was special by some of the drivers I had spoken to on the journey. They were right it was a special spot. It was also a much better spot to spot than 80 mile beach which is just up the road.
The following night we stopped a night at Bark Hut at the other end of the 80 mile beach after stopping at 80 mile beach for a quick lunch spot. To get to Bark Hut you must pass through a number of gates through paddocks which make it seem like you are the only person around till you reach the end of the road and the campsite with hundreds of people.

Swimming with Whalesharks - Australia

‘Are whalesharks a whale or a shark?' our guide asked the passengers of the boat. I answered whale, which is incorrect. They are a shark and the biggest fish in the ocean, they get the name from their shape and size. It showed how little I knew about whalesharks. The Ningaloo Reef off Exmouth is one of the few places in the world where you are allowed to swim with whale sharks and there are a number of different companies which offer pretty much the same trip so Campbell spent a few hours visiting each to get the best offer. I wasn't real keen as I had been told it cost $400 but when Campbell found a trip for just $160 we both reserved a spot.
The advertise swims with the whale sharks from April till July and we arrived in August thinking they would be gone. We paid our money without a guarantee to see one but a strong likelihood. The boat was full at twenty people and we spent a bit of time snorkeling to get comfortable in the water which was a warm 26 degrees before getting back on board the boat after having word a whaleshark had been spotted. We raced toward the whaleshark while getting the run down on not to swim above, below or in front of the sharks. Then 'go, go, go' and the first lot of ten people were in the water. The rest of us had to wait and hope they had not scared it away.
When it was our chance we all dived in and swam up beside the six metre spotted creature which looked almost too perfect to be real. Not a scratch or scar on it. Whale will often just swim slowly about a metre below the surface never going up for air and it did exactly that. For almost an hour we followed it rotating between being in the water and in the boat. Many of the other swimmers climbed back on the boat once they had swam enough. Campbell and I though stayed in the water as we followed two other whale sharks lasting almost an hour and a half in the water. By the end I was all by myself on one side of the whale shark and it felt like it was just me and it in the water. It was an incredible experience and not the only excitement for the day.
Once everyone was back on the boat the driver spotted some humpback whales and put the boat at full power to catch up to them. For the next couple of hours we watched humpback whales swimming along, jumping out of the water and putting on quite a show.
We made our way back into the inner part of the reef ate some lunch and were given one last chance to snorkel. Returning to camp a sunburnt back, a few photos and some great memories were what I had taken out of the day. Well worth the $160.

Snorkeling the Ningaloo Reef - Australia

The Ningaloo Reef is only meters from the shore at Coral Bay and very easily accessible. For three days Campbell and I spent the days snorkeling and lazing in the sun and the nights drinking beers with a couple of English girls who were hitch hiking their way around Australia. The Coral is not all that colourful but the fish are bright and varied. The campsite at Coral Bay was packed and we were lucky to get a spot. The beach though was fairly vacant for much of the day giving you plenty of space. Coral Bay is a relatively new beachside town with only two caravan parks and a hotel. Boats trips to the outer part of the reef are offered although Campbell and I decided to wait till Exmouth to go on a boat.
Coral Bay was another great spot but as we were on a road trip we wanted to see what the next stop had to offer. Exmouth became our next stop and we stayed at a campsite by the lighthouse about twelve kilometers out of town. The campsite was good enough and a better location in terms of getting to the beach than the campsites in town. It made for an interesting drive one night though as we left the pub after watching the footy. Kangaroos, Wallabies and Emus were walking all over the road and we were very lucky to get back without causing any damage to the car.
The lighthouse where we stayed is the entrance point to the Cape Range National Park so Campbell and I spent the day driving through the park, completing a couple of the walks and then snorkeling the Ningaloo Reef again at Torquise Bay. The fish were more plentiful there than at Coral Bay and I even spotted a large turtle.
The highlight of our time in Exmouth and one of the highlights of my time in Western Australia was our swim with the whale sharks.

Dolphins and fishing - Australia

The Overland Roadhouse is on the main road at the turn off to Shark Bay and it was where Campbell had to change a tyre as one went flat for no apparent reason. Campbell knew what he was doing and it was not long before we were making tracks into the World Heritage area. The Stromatalites was one of our first stops and the rock formations in the water are some of the oldest forms of life on Earth although neither Campbell or I found it all that exciting so we stopped for a quick look before continuing on.
While in Shark Bay we stayed at the Monkey Mia resort and caravan park which was the best choice. Monkey Mia is where people hand feed dolphins and it is touristy and there are lots of people. Its touristy though for good reason because it’s a really good spot. Every morning dolphin feeders go into the water and let people hand feed a fish to the dolphins which swim right up into the shallows. They feed three times a morning and its pot lock if you get picked to feed on the first morning neither Campbell nor I got picked we did though hear the same speech three times and learnt quite a bit about dolphins.
That evening when the crowds were not around the dolphins made their way into the shallows to collect food and they put on their own show for about one and a half hours. It was extremely cool as they were just going about their natural routine not bothered we were standing in the water. We got as close as we could without getting in their road.
The following morning we followed the crowds again to the dolphin feed. On the second feed Campbell got picked. We had almost memorise the interaction speech by that stage and so it was time to continue on.
It was windy and not real warm in Shark Bay so instead on camping on one of the beaches on the road out we decided to stop briefly in Denham then push on to Carnarvon where my friend Hayley works as a primary school teacher. While in Carnarvon we attended Hayley's school and spent a couple of hours with the students during sport. We also went out to the pub and where shown the sights of the town.
Carnarvon gets a bad rap from the people of Western Australia but I felt the town had a bit to offer. It has a large amount of plantations but there was not a lot growing as they were still recovering from some large floods late last year. Hayley also drove us out to the blowholes an impressive display of the power of the ocean. Just as we were about to leave Hayley spotted a whale and we spent the next ten minutes trying to spot it again.
Carnarvon is also a famous fishing spot in Western Australia so Hayley, her friend Jess, Campbell and I tried our luck off one of the bridges. Jess caught a small fish unexpectedly as we were using bread as bait.
Carnarvon is set between Shark Bay and Coral Bay. Two of the best tourist destinations in Australia and Coral Bay became our next destination.

Leaving Australia (only for ten minutes)- Australia

Campbell had worked on the Abrohols Islands off Geraldton on a pearl farm and he had also spent a bit of time landscape gardening there and so he was familiar with the town and had a lot of friends at the hostel we stayed at. It became our weekend stop after leaving the farm and driving via the Pinnacles. We had all sorts of weather throughout the weekend. Strong winds, lots of rain and some sunshine. Campbell had wanted to make it to Geraldton to see a musician he liked Carus Thompson play at one of the pubs. It was the only CD we were allowed to in the car on the three days we had spent in the car since leaving Perth and so when he played I knew almost every word. Campbell did know every word and was absolutely in his element. Campbell even got a shout out mid concert for a song he had requested.
In three days we had seen all Geraldton had to offer and so it was time to move on. Everything north of Geraldton was unfamiliar territory to Campbell and I. Our next destination became Campbell but on the way there we detoured to exit Australia and enter the Hutt River Province. We had been told they stamp your passports when you enter Hutt River but neither of us had our passports on us so we were unsure if we would be allowed in. We were and it was a little creepy as we were the only people there. The post office was open and I am fairly sure we met the Prince's wife Princess Her Royal Highness Princess Shirley of Hutt. The Principality became its own land on the 21 April 1970 after Prince Leonard was unhappy with the restrictions on wheat farming at the time.
The dirt road to Hutt River took us over about fifty kilometers of corrugations. It was something we had to get used to in Western Australia as many of the attractions are only accessible via dirt road. The car, or 'Mothership' as Campbell calls it was more red than green. The cliffs and surf beaches are one of the main highlights of Kalbarri and so we stopped many times on the drive in to check for waves, not finding a lot though. The sheer cliff drops were quite a sight though.
The other highlight of the town is the National Park and disappointingly a lot of rain had caused the closure of the road to the Z Bend and Loop Walk making it inaccessible for us. Deciding not to hang around to long we stayed only the one night checked out a couple of lookouts in the park which were still open before continuing on to Shark Bay.