Western Australia Trip - the Coral Coast Part 1 (Exmouth and the Ningaloo Coast)

As we left Onslow in my last post ...we also left behind the Pilbara region and began our Coral Coast stage of the journey. In other words it was time to dust off the snorkels and get ready to plunge in that beautiful ocean.

Our first stop was Exmouth... and we soon learned that our timing was as terrible as we guessed it might be. We arrived there not only during school holidays but also during the biggest influx of tourists for the season. We managed to get 2 nights in the overflow park, 3 nights out at Bullara station, 1 night in the Cape Range NP and 4 nights in the Termite Mound parking bay 70kms out of Exmouth. (making it a 140+ km round trip each day) - however despite our poor accommodation planning we did have a wonderful and memorable time.

One absolute highlight was that we managed to score a spot on a whale shark dive tour - it was surreal to be alongside these huge creatures in the ocean. 

Cape Range National Park on the Ningaloo Coast has some beautiful spots to snorkel - we enjoyed Turquoise Bay and the Oyster Stacks and went back quite a few days.... we also enjoyed the walks at both Mandu Mandu Gorge and Yardie Creek.

We broke up our Exmouth stay with a little diversion out to Bullara Station for 3 nights - it is such an awesome place... highly recommended for so many reasons. I loved the quirky amenities... the cafe was top notch .. we had a meal at their restaurant one night... joined in with damper John for damper and yarns... and enjoyed all three of the walks around the station.

We couldn't leave the Ningaloo coast without once more visit... I know I raved mostly about the snorkeling and coast... but we also were totally gobsmacked by the size of Charles Knife Canyon on the way into Exmouth, and found the Harold Holt Naval Communication Base with its 13 enormous 'Very Low Frequency' towers to be really interesting.

Finally ... and maybe because we were tired of existing at the termite mounds parking bay (haha) we decided it was time to farewell Exmouth and move on down. We stopped in briefly to Coral Bay which was packed with tourists for the school holidays and spent a few nights hoping along free camps until we arrived in Carnarvon.  to be continued ....

The most expensive fuel?

• $2.20 at Exmouth

Caravan Park Stays - 5

Low Cost / Off Grid / Rest Stops - 8