When I was living in Western Australia I had tried to get my parents to come over to visit me but it never worked out. So I was pleased when they agreed to join me on this trip. I was so glad that I was able to share my love for this part of the country with my parents. While we spent some time in Perth and Fremantle, this book is focused on our time at the Coral Coast and the Pilbara.
Western Australia and vastness go hand in hand, but we managed our travel so we did not spend too much time on the road and were able to explore each location at our leisure. In truth, being on the road added to the magic of the trip.
21 to 25 April – Perth and Fremantle
25 to 26 April – Karratha
26 to 29 April – Tom Price and Karijini
29 April to 3 May – Exmouth
3 to 8 May - Karrath
Smoko
The sun is rising further in the sky and starting to add some heat to the day. We are heading east so the sun is coming through the windshield. The dirt road stretches out in front of us. We have been on the road for a few hours so I turn off at the next creek bed and drive along for a short distance. Out comes the folding chairs, the stove, the billy and the esky – it is smoko time.
Tom Price
Karijini National Park
Karijini is one of my favourite places on the planet. I think for me
the two overwhelming factors are that it is completely unexpected and
the colours. Let me explain. First you need to drive through a vast
landscape that continues with very little change, a landscape which is
essentially a desert. Even when we arrive at the carpark and approach
the gorges on foot there is very little hint of what is coming.
But
when you step onto Oxers Lookout and the earth opens up before you and
you gaze into the intersection of three gorges, the majesty of Karijini
begins to reveal. But that is still yet and glimpse and it is not until
you have walked, climbed, scrambled and swum down to the base of the
gorge that Karijini truly touches you. It is here that the colours
ignite: piercing blue sky, deep red ancient rocks, vibrant greens and
pure whites of the snappy gums and crystal clear waters.
Kalimina Gorge, Karajini
Weano Gorge, Karajini
I am perched on a rock ledge, awestruck by the beauty. It feels as if the beauty, or perhaps it is the essence of this place, radiates and penetrates me, and I feel it just like you can feel the warmth from the sun. So I stay and simply absorb.
Hancock Gorge, Karijini
Exmouth
It was a long drive into Exmouth and I will be the first to admit I was tired and my enthusiasm was not so high. But once we walked into our cabin and looked across the expansive view, to the lighthouse and then onto the deep blue of the Indian Ocean, everything was once again in perspective, I was really happy. To top it off we had bought some local prawns and sitting there on the veranda with Mum and Dad, enjoying the prawns, enjoying the view, enjoying the weather, enjoying the company has given me one of those memories that will always be cherished.
Dad is an early riser and would often go for a walk before Mum and I would wake. After the first morning he came back from his stroll to the lighthouse excited that he had found the perfect photo. He proceeded to explain that from this angle with the sun in that direction and the morning glow and with the lighthouse in the middle of it all it would be an amazing photo, only he hadn’t taken the camera. One could now see he was on a mission to capture that photo. We got regular updates about the possibility of the photo and it was clear that the scene Dad had witnessed on the first morning had enchanted him and he was so eager to share. On the final morning Dad returned from his walk a little disappointed; he had been in the right spot, at the right time but just at the moment of capture a ute pulled up in the frame and it was not even a parking area! In my humble opinion the ute adds to the photo and I believe that Dad has captured the perfect photo and when I look at it, I can feel some of the magic that he would have felt on that first walk.
On the Road to Karratha
The road stretches on and beyond, the landscape unfolds all around. My mind wanders back to a time when there were no roads across this vastness and I think of the people who would step into it.
Aboriginal History
I feel so privileged to have had a chance to see some of the aboriginal history of this area. Wayne knows a few locations of amazing rock art and it is simply extraordinary to scramble over boulders to discover images from thousands and thousands of years ago. We also visited the midden heap shown in the photo which would have been formed over generations. It is by far the largest midden heap I have ever seen. Scattered around were rock tools and it was grounding to think that the last hand to touch them would have been long ago. Standing there gazing across the landscape time peeled away to when the earth was a little younger.
Dampier Archipelago
Outside Karratha
There is something about this ancient landscape that simply calls to me: perhaps it is the memories that would be stored in this place, a place that is too old to have fossils. Perhaps it is the space and silence where my mind can roam free from restrictions. I think it is the sum of many things, things that I simply do not have the words to express, suffice to say: Western Australia is extraordinary.
