Up North
I have returned! After six days out in 'the bush', I'm back to tell the tale. Luckily, I'm staying at a different hostel in Fremantle which has free 24 hour internet. What a treat! Now to fill you in on the past week.
2/8 Perth to Kalbarri
Most of this day was taken up by driving. Well, driving and going to the Pinnacles- one of WA's weird rock formations. It's basically a desert with lots of rocks sticking up out of the sand, due to the fact that the softer rock all around them has eroded away. So, it was good for a picture but not much else. I mostly slept, listened to music, and hung out with Corinne. I also met a couple from Adelaide who unfortunately jumped off the bus in Kalbarri- but I got the girl-Caitlin's contact info, so maybe when I get to Adelaide they'll be willing to show me around a bit. The hostel in Kalbarri wasn't so great because there were 11 girls sharing one bathroom! But thankfully it was only one night.
2/9 Kalbarri to Denham
We got a very early start for the second day of the tour. Our first stop was a lookout called 'nature's window' (you guessed it, another weird rock formation!) where we had breakfast and took pictures. Then we got to stretch our legs a bit with a hike down into Z-Bends Gorge (which I kept thinking of as zee-bends, and being confused when other people were saying zed-bends). I was slightly nervous about the hike, just because I'm always afraid of spraining my ankle, but it all went very well. The way back up was supposed to be more challenging- steeper and more direct- but I found going down to be more difficult. I got to watch some people go abseiling, which is when you get attached to a rope and then run down the face of a cliff. Too scary for me, but it was fun to watch. Once we were down in the gorge we got to go for a swim in the river, which was so nice. It was only 10am but it had already started to get very hot. The weird thing was that I was the only identifying female to go in the water! All the guys did, and I was just lounging in the water wondering... when is everyone going to join me? It tells you a lot about the group on this tour, which was pretty lame and also a lot bigger then the southern tour. After the gorge we drove for a long time until we got to the Shark Bay World Heritage area, where we saw the famous stromatolites. They're not very attractive, but they are the oldest living organisms on the planet, which released lots of oxygen into the atmosphere and made all other life possible, so it was pretty cool to contemplate them for a while. Then we went to Marine Park where a cute blond guy showed us turtles, sea snakes, sharks, and pink snappers that came to the surface of the water and spit at him to beg for food. Finally we got to Denham where I ate dinner with Corinne and we met a strange guy who lives on a ship- like for years at a time, so long that he lost his British citizenship. I think that might be why he was so strange. His job is to go diving for things that accidently get dropped in the ocean- he said that the US military was the worst about accidently dropping things, which I thought was pretty funny. When I went to bed I had to say goodbye to Corinne because she was jumping off the bus and staying in Denham for a few days. It was depressing to have to face being alone again- especially since I might never see her again (I actually did end up seeing her again when I was traveling back south and she was continuing north and our buses passed). But, you never know when I might decide to go to Switzerland I guess.
2/10 Denham to Coral Bay
Another early start for our third day, so that we could get to the resort community Monkey Mia and see the famous dolphins that come in for early morning feedings. I got to see baby dolphins! So cute! Possibly even cooler than the dolphins though were the unexpectedly large pelicans. I never realized how big they were! After Monkey Mia we stopped at a look out where we could see loads of sharks in the distance (we were high up on a cliff, so they looked mostly like lots of moving shadows in the water). Then we went to Shell Beach- a beach with no sand, just little white shells everywhere. I was hoping to go swimming (as usual), but the water was so shallow, you would have to walk out for like 10 minutes before being up to your knees. So instead I just lay down in the water and sunbathed like that for a bit. I think the rest of the group might have thought I was a little weird, but it was nicer than just sitting on the beach staring at the water. After that we left the Shark Bay area, and drove for a long time- over the Tropic of Capricorn, where I got a picture, and on to Coral Bay, a small town within walking distance of the Ningaloo reef. We had a BBQ there at the hostel, and I decided to try the standard topping for burgers here, which is an over-easy egg. It was pretty good with a veggie burger- although I can't imagine what it would be like with a real burger. After dinner we walked out to the beach to watch the sunset and the stars come out. The stars were so amazing! When you get that far away from a city, you can't believe how many stars there are. Most of the group sat out on the beach drinking late into the night, but I walked home with Alice, a drama teacher who does G&S with her classes! Sadly, she was stopping in Coral Bay for a few nights, so we didn't get to spend much time together.
2/11 Coral Bay to Exmouth
The distance between Coral Bay and Exmouth is nothing at all compared to the distances we traveled in previous days- so we got to sleep in for an extra hour or two before getting up to go snorkeling. However, the first snorkeling expedition was aborted when we got to the beach and found it covered with evil blue bottle jelly fish (not deadly, but will cause 2 hours of intense pain). Instead we sat on the beach and saw crazy sand crabs scurrying around (not the tiny ones we have at home, but big ones with eyes that stick straight for half an inch out of their body). That was right in Coral Bay, so we had to wait to snorkel outside of Exmouth. We took a ton of people on the bus at Coral Bay and it took us a long time to get it together and get to Turquoise Bay where the snorkeling was. It was so worth the trip though- definitely the highlight of the entire tour. I had gone snorkeling at Rottnest before, but I didn't have the flippers, and I was alone and therefore scared to go out very far. This time was fantastic! I went out with another guy who had done it before and we went far out over the reef. I saw all kinds of beautiful bright colored fish, plus a manta ray with purple spots, plus a sea turtle! It was so great! That night I went to the pub for dinner with Nathan the driver, and a few other people from the bus. Nathan convinced two of the other people to try raw oysters- which I also agreed to share, and liked a lot more than I remembered from the times I tried them before. We stayed in a little cabin at this campsite, and it was airconditioned, so that was also a nice treat.
2/12 Exmouth to Geraldton
There is really nothing to say about this day except that we drove. A lot. Also I saw Corinne again heading up on another bus to Coral Bay- so we had to say goodbye again! When we got to Geraldton, it really felt like a huge city. Nathan cooked dinner for the 6 remaining people on the bus, and made chicken with garlic and avocado especially for me- it was one of the best meals I've had since I've been here!
2/13 Geraldton to Perth
Ah, today... more driving and a stop at the second highlight of the trip, the Wildlife Park. I fed kangaroos and baby kangaroos, and a camel. I saw emus, but didn't feed them because they peck at your hand too painfully. I also had two pythons around my neck- and fortunately Nathan took a picture. Now I'm back, staying in Fremantle because the OBH was full. I went out to dinner and tried to distract myself from the usual panic by going to see a cheesy movie- Miss Potter. It certainly was cheesy. Now I'm going to go finish my book and tomorrow it is off to Melbourne. It will be so nice to be in a real home for a little while! I can't wait!
Love,
Emma
2/8 Perth to Kalbarri
Most of this day was taken up by driving. Well, driving and going to the Pinnacles- one of WA's weird rock formations. It's basically a desert with lots of rocks sticking up out of the sand, due to the fact that the softer rock all around them has eroded away. So, it was good for a picture but not much else. I mostly slept, listened to music, and hung out with Corinne. I also met a couple from Adelaide who unfortunately jumped off the bus in Kalbarri- but I got the girl-Caitlin's contact info, so maybe when I get to Adelaide they'll be willing to show me around a bit. The hostel in Kalbarri wasn't so great because there were 11 girls sharing one bathroom! But thankfully it was only one night.
2/9 Kalbarri to Denham
We got a very early start for the second day of the tour. Our first stop was a lookout called 'nature's window' (you guessed it, another weird rock formation!) where we had breakfast and took pictures. Then we got to stretch our legs a bit with a hike down into Z-Bends Gorge (which I kept thinking of as zee-bends, and being confused when other people were saying zed-bends). I was slightly nervous about the hike, just because I'm always afraid of spraining my ankle, but it all went very well. The way back up was supposed to be more challenging- steeper and more direct- but I found going down to be more difficult. I got to watch some people go abseiling, which is when you get attached to a rope and then run down the face of a cliff. Too scary for me, but it was fun to watch. Once we were down in the gorge we got to go for a swim in the river, which was so nice. It was only 10am but it had already started to get very hot. The weird thing was that I was the only identifying female to go in the water! All the guys did, and I was just lounging in the water wondering... when is everyone going to join me? It tells you a lot about the group on this tour, which was pretty lame and also a lot bigger then the southern tour. After the gorge we drove for a long time until we got to the Shark Bay World Heritage area, where we saw the famous stromatolites. They're not very attractive, but they are the oldest living organisms on the planet, which released lots of oxygen into the atmosphere and made all other life possible, so it was pretty cool to contemplate them for a while. Then we went to Marine Park where a cute blond guy showed us turtles, sea snakes, sharks, and pink snappers that came to the surface of the water and spit at him to beg for food. Finally we got to Denham where I ate dinner with Corinne and we met a strange guy who lives on a ship- like for years at a time, so long that he lost his British citizenship. I think that might be why he was so strange. His job is to go diving for things that accidently get dropped in the ocean- he said that the US military was the worst about accidently dropping things, which I thought was pretty funny. When I went to bed I had to say goodbye to Corinne because she was jumping off the bus and staying in Denham for a few days. It was depressing to have to face being alone again- especially since I might never see her again (I actually did end up seeing her again when I was traveling back south and she was continuing north and our buses passed). But, you never know when I might decide to go to Switzerland I guess.
2/10 Denham to Coral Bay
Another early start for our third day, so that we could get to the resort community Monkey Mia and see the famous dolphins that come in for early morning feedings. I got to see baby dolphins! So cute! Possibly even cooler than the dolphins though were the unexpectedly large pelicans. I never realized how big they were! After Monkey Mia we stopped at a look out where we could see loads of sharks in the distance (we were high up on a cliff, so they looked mostly like lots of moving shadows in the water). Then we went to Shell Beach- a beach with no sand, just little white shells everywhere. I was hoping to go swimming (as usual), but the water was so shallow, you would have to walk out for like 10 minutes before being up to your knees. So instead I just lay down in the water and sunbathed like that for a bit. I think the rest of the group might have thought I was a little weird, but it was nicer than just sitting on the beach staring at the water. After that we left the Shark Bay area, and drove for a long time- over the Tropic of Capricorn, where I got a picture, and on to Coral Bay, a small town within walking distance of the Ningaloo reef. We had a BBQ there at the hostel, and I decided to try the standard topping for burgers here, which is an over-easy egg. It was pretty good with a veggie burger- although I can't imagine what it would be like with a real burger. After dinner we walked out to the beach to watch the sunset and the stars come out. The stars were so amazing! When you get that far away from a city, you can't believe how many stars there are. Most of the group sat out on the beach drinking late into the night, but I walked home with Alice, a drama teacher who does G&S with her classes! Sadly, she was stopping in Coral Bay for a few nights, so we didn't get to spend much time together.
2/11 Coral Bay to Exmouth
The distance between Coral Bay and Exmouth is nothing at all compared to the distances we traveled in previous days- so we got to sleep in for an extra hour or two before getting up to go snorkeling. However, the first snorkeling expedition was aborted when we got to the beach and found it covered with evil blue bottle jelly fish (not deadly, but will cause 2 hours of intense pain). Instead we sat on the beach and saw crazy sand crabs scurrying around (not the tiny ones we have at home, but big ones with eyes that stick straight for half an inch out of their body). That was right in Coral Bay, so we had to wait to snorkel outside of Exmouth. We took a ton of people on the bus at Coral Bay and it took us a long time to get it together and get to Turquoise Bay where the snorkeling was. It was so worth the trip though- definitely the highlight of the entire tour. I had gone snorkeling at Rottnest before, but I didn't have the flippers, and I was alone and therefore scared to go out very far. This time was fantastic! I went out with another guy who had done it before and we went far out over the reef. I saw all kinds of beautiful bright colored fish, plus a manta ray with purple spots, plus a sea turtle! It was so great! That night I went to the pub for dinner with Nathan the driver, and a few other people from the bus. Nathan convinced two of the other people to try raw oysters- which I also agreed to share, and liked a lot more than I remembered from the times I tried them before. We stayed in a little cabin at this campsite, and it was airconditioned, so that was also a nice treat.
2/12 Exmouth to Geraldton
There is really nothing to say about this day except that we drove. A lot. Also I saw Corinne again heading up on another bus to Coral Bay- so we had to say goodbye again! When we got to Geraldton, it really felt like a huge city. Nathan cooked dinner for the 6 remaining people on the bus, and made chicken with garlic and avocado especially for me- it was one of the best meals I've had since I've been here!
2/13 Geraldton to Perth
Ah, today... more driving and a stop at the second highlight of the trip, the Wildlife Park. I fed kangaroos and baby kangaroos, and a camel. I saw emus, but didn't feed them because they peck at your hand too painfully. I also had two pythons around my neck- and fortunately Nathan took a picture. Now I'm back, staying in Fremantle because the OBH was full. I went out to dinner and tried to distract myself from the usual panic by going to see a cheesy movie- Miss Potter. It certainly was cheesy. Now I'm going to go finish my book and tomorrow it is off to Melbourne. It will be so nice to be in a real home for a little while! I can't wait!
Love,
Emma
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