Third Entry From Road Trip - Stromatolites and Kalbarri!

So on our last day at Monkey Mia we spent the morning on the beach before running into a group of our friends from Trinity, who were also on a road trip. They had just come from Kalabarri – where we would be heading. We played Frisbee with them on the beach for a little and then packed up Winston and left for the Stromatolites. At first I was pretty unimpressed, but after walking out to the end of this boardwalk the formations were actually pretty incredible. Kind of resembled a giant jigsaw puzzle framed by gorgeous blue water. 

The drive down to Kalbarri was a hot but interesting one. Really got a feel for the Australian landscape. There are just these vast spaces where you will be driving and it’s just land stretching out as far as you can see. Can be pretty daunting when you can see that far ahead on the road you are driving. With our gas running dangerously low we were pretty relieved to pull into Kalbarri.

 After setting up the tents we cooked the leftover chicken and did Fajitas II the Sequel: This Time it’s Personal … threw in some diced apple on the grill which was a really nice touch (if I do say so myself). After a delicious meal and some hanging out in Winston we called it a night and prepared ourselves for an early morning hike. Colin and I took the wind cover off from our tent so we had a really clear view of the stars – a most excellent way to slip into sleep.

Waking up again before the others, I went for a little walk and found this beach / bay across the street.

Found this little car buried in the sand. Drew a track to represent our road trip!

 By the time I got back the girls were up and we started to pack sandwiches for the day ahead. The plan for the day was to do the Bigurda Trail – starting at Eagle Gorge and finishing up at Island Rock and the Natural Bridge. The whole thing was 16KM (about 9.6 miles!) all along coastal cliffs.

 With blue blue waters and these rich cliffs it was pretty majestic. 

Throw in the waves crashing against them and it was just very epic. 

The only downside were the flies. Man oh man did we get our introduction to Australian flies. 

Australian flies are like no other … they are persistent. If you swat them away, by the time your hand finishes the swatting motion they will have landed on you again. The weird thing is that they don’t bite – they just land and crawl on you. Ears, nose, and eyes were prime targets. I decided to wrap a sweatshirt around my head to deter them as much as possible. Definitely a good move.

 Everyone (myself included) thinks they have the determination to keep swatting them away, but sooner or later you just kind of give up and figure if they are not in your eyes, nose, or ears, then they are not the worth the bother to swat off. Along the way we saw a kangaroo hopping around the cliff! Always enjoyable seeing them bounce around.

 Sitting on a cliff overlooking Island Rock we ate lunch and saw a pod of 20-30 dolphins thanks to excellent spotting by Devon. It was pretty fun watching them swim about. 

Upon finally reaching the end it was time to turn back and hike the remaining 8km. At that point I would have happily hitched a ride to avoid the heat and flies. Kristen and I made up a game of waving and saying “Ride?” in a way that sound like “Hi!” anytime we passed someone. 

It was a good thing we walked back because on the return trip we saw a mama whale (assuming it was the mom) and her calf! Very far away but I was able to utilize the zoom lens!

 Not too long after, we heard a shriek from Kristen for a snake had just shot across the path in front of her. We chased it down to see what kind it was, but it was a quick little guy. The bushes obscured the only picture I got of it so you are safe for now mom. We also this cute little lizard.

 After a full day of hiking we were pretty thrilled to see Winston shimmering in the distance. We are all falling in love with Winston. He has been quite the champ. Our noble steed. Tomorrow the plan is to see one or two lookout points here and then take the scenic coastal drive to Cervantes. That’s all for now, but sure there will be updates soon!