Fourth Entry - Kalbarri and Trip Down To Cervantes

Phew! Just finished typing up the last 3 parts – 5 typed pages so far and we are just reaching the halfway mark of our trip! Yikes! In the car driving from Kalbarri to Cervantes now – testing my luck and stomach by typing this up while we drive.

 This morning we woke up at about 6ish and packed up the car to prepare for our departure. We set out to see Hawk’s Head where there were these incredible views of a river snaking through a gorge. 

Kristen led the charge and bravely marched out to the edge of the rock. Seeing her standing there made my feet and hands sweaty, but we all took turns standing there (some closers to the edge than others!)

Examining the edge ...

If you look closely that little dot on the edge of the cliff is Devon.

 After this we ventured over to Nature’s Window where after 25KM down a dusty outback road we hiked up to the “natural window” this hole in a rock structure that overlooks the gorge and valley.

 The river had mostly dried up but it was still a pretty impressive sight. 

Colin and Kristen did their best impression of the couple shot on the cover of all the brochures for the national park. 

We picked up a few odds and ends at the grocery store and finally got on the road back south. Along the way we saw the Pink Lake, which as the name suggests is a lake that is totally pink. Think it was from the sediment or some natural chemical, but it is quite strange to see. You are driving and see blue water and then all of a sudden it just turns this bright bright pink. We tried finding our own path to get out – and halfway through were all like “Ahh what are we doing! Walking in flip flops through Australian bushes is probably not the best idea…” Easily the stupidest thing we’ve done all trip  with a close second being our walk on the clfff edges earlier in the day. Haha whoops! About two minutes further up the road was a drive-able path. Here is the lake in all its glory.

 And that’s that! All up to date … for now! Upcoming places and sites to see are the Pinnacles Desert in Cervantes, possible sand boarding on the dunes in Lancelin, more coastal cliffs at Albany, and the Valley of the Giants tree top walk in Denmark. What a trip this has been so far.

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!