Friday, 2 September 2016

Days 54-58 (26-30 Aug) Of Sharks & Seahorses: Kennedy Range National Park to Monkey Mia

We headed due east from Carnarvon for Kennedy Range National Park, because Dave saw a patch of green on the map with the words “National Park”, and apparently we haven’t seen enough gorges yet. As we’ve moved south, things like fly nets and fly tents have started appearing in shops. A few days ago I saw a guy sitting on a beach wearing a fly net; his demeanor revealed that this was not his idea of beach paradise. Yes, we are now officially in The Fly Zone, safety apparatus required to prevent the little beasties getting up your nose. Fortunately, we have head nets, having endured central Australia a few years ago. The selfie with me looking like I’m wearing a Melbourne Cup hat a-top with netting is actually just my Akubra with the fly net pulled up. I think this could be a Melbourne Cup contender.

A significant event here in Kennedy Range – it RAINED! As in, no blue sky at all, and drizzle/rain for some hours. Our 6 weeks in the sun seems to have come to an end. Why are we heading south where it is cold and wet!?

The sun came out again in Denham, AKA Shark Bay, AKA Monkey Mia, the ultimate dolphin experience location. You can no longer hug or pat a dolphin, but you can have a “sustainable dolphin experience”, wading into the water to see them come close up and get fed a few fish.

We returned to our car to discover it was feeling a little deflated from a deep puncture (front left tyre). Believe it or not, we were more elated than deflated - that we hadn't replaced both front tyres with brand new ones the day before. The previous tyre shop didn't have Dave's preference, so we decided to wait 2 more days (until Geraldton) - thank you Lord!

Our fellow campers (Paul and Lou from Evatt, Canberra) made the mistake of taking their three children to the Ocean Aquarium here. They now refuse to go in the water after finding out about the sharks, blue-ringed octopus, stone fish and sting rays in Shark Bay wanting to harm or kill them. Dave and I, on the other hand, preferring the real life experience, gave the Aquarium a miss. We went blissfully kayaking and wading in Shark Bay instead, watching sharks skylark in the shallows. We paddled from Little Lagoon up an estuary creek to the bay, playing hide-and-seek with the seahorses who live there. They did the hiding and we did the seeking, and their skills were obviously better than ours. 

Talking of all things dangerous in the water, we saw a film title in a shop a few days ago that would have made a good blog name for this trip (see far below…)

PS – we have no idea what the film is about, and therefore are not recommending it. 


Kennedy Range NP (Dave)

Kennedy Range NP (Dave)

Kennedy Range NP (Dave)


Hatched (Dave)

Yes, that's where we are. That big rock on the left (Dave)
Escarpment Trail view (Dave)

Selfie Escarpment Trail View (Dave)



Blog Title?




Shark Bay Stromatolites Wharf (Liz)

Dolphin feeding (Liz)

Dolphin feeding (Dave)

Birds (Dave)
Denham sunset (Dave)

Denham sunset (Dave)

Shell Beach (Dave)

Kayaking Little Lagoon (Dave) 



Feeling Flat at Monkey Mia (Liz)

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