Sunday 8 September 2013

29 August - 6 September 2013 – Yardie Homestead, Ningaloo Reef & Cape Range National Park


The following morning we lazed in the van for a while before the Harveys turned up.  They were packed and heading out of town today so they called in to say goodbye.  We were horrified to hear that when they left us last night, they’d hit another kangaroo – although this time thankfully with the bull bar.  After saying our farewells, the girls did a quick maths test before we all headed into Exmouth to post some schoolwork and have a look around.  First we ran into the McLean’s, followed by the Woods family and not too far behind were our “Harley friends” Mark and Sharon who recently arrived in town – just like a mini reunion!  After spending time catching up, we checked out the shops.  There aren’t a lot of them but with a town of about 2,500 permanent people it is probably plenty.  It was pretty late by the time we drove off so we had a look around the outskirts and new home areas, caught up with a few phone calls and emails and then headed to the Lighthouse for a quick look (just missing sunset) before heading back to the van, keeping an eye out for kangaroos all the way back.
Mark and Sharon rode into our camp this morning to meet with us, we were heading to Mesa to take out boat out again and they were joining us.  Just before we left, Peter and Karen turned up to say farewell.  It was their turn to leave this gorgeous place today and continue their journey south.  After saying goodbye and making arrangements to definitely keep in touch, we finished packing the boat gear up and headed into the N.P. again.  Susan was home with the boys doing a bit of schoolwork and Mick had ducked into the Visitor Centre.  Mark, Sharon and all our gang headed to the beach and the water was looking mighty fine.  It was flat as a tack and crystal clear – there was no hesitation to get out on the water today.  The boat was in and the girls and I hopped in first with Josh.  It was like scooting around in a very large swimming pool, but with coral and fish beneath us.  We didn’t need to go snorkelling today as we could see everything from the boat.  We spotted a couple of turtles, and best of all even saw a dugong.  Once back on shore, we hopped out and Mark and Sharon jumped in for their turn.  While they were gone, Zoe sat playing on the sand while Sami and I swam out for a swim and snorkel.  Back on the beach, Sami and I started to make a sandcastle but then turned it into a 3D turtle (we did pretty good too) and when Sharon returned she made a beautiful mermaid.  We had a few more turns on the boat before the wind started to pick up; it was by now the middle of the afternoon and we decided to pull the boat out of the water and put it away.  Just as we finished packing it away, the Woods turned up, they’d been snorkelling at a few other spots today.  We all sat about on the beach enjoying the sun and company.  Mark and Sharon left as they didn’t want any encounters with kangaroos on their way back to Exmouth, while us Scheffers were invited to stay for dinner with the Woods.  They cooked up a storm and we all sat as one big family to eat together – again the kids (nor us) wanted to leave as we were having a great time.  However, it was getting cold and it was also very late (and dark) so we left, driving slowly and watching out for big hoppers all the way back to the caravan – thankfully, none veered into our path and we made it back safely.
So, it was Saturday, and we were supposed to be packing and leaving today but it is just too pretty to leave – so we are staying at least a few more days.  We planned to meet the Woods this morning to snorkel at the Turquoise Bay drift side today.  It was quite windy and still pretty early in the morning (9.30amish) but we geared up and jumped into the water.  Being a drift with quite a strong current, we took a child each to ensure that we got out of the water at the right point instead of drifting out to sea.  Whilst snorkelling we saw many fish - both big and small and ranging from bright to the more dull.  I would love to list them all but there were far too many to list.  There was a quiet little octopus glued to a rock but he wasn’t fussed to see all our faces peering at him as we floated past.  The coral too was magnificent, one type in particular looking like a large woolly mammoth and hundreds of tiny fish swimming in amongst it.  I was swimming with Sami and she was showing lots of confidence duck-diving under the water to get a closer look at the sea-life.  We made it back to shore safely but the kids weren’t keen to go again, they were happy to play on the sand (where it was probably slightly warmer) with Toby and Lachlan.  Josh and I walked back up the beach hand in hand and entered the water again.  We floated along arm in arm gracefully with hundreds of fish just swimming along paying us no attention, then I heard Susan calling out to me.  I looked up at her and saw her waving us towards her – she’d spotted a turtle!  We swam as fast as possible against the current to where her, Mick and Samuel were and sure enough there was a turtle still there, slowly swimming along.  He didn’t care that we were all so close to him, not even when Josh and I were swimming only about a metre or two above him.  He was so beautiful and had such big eyes.  5-10 minutes went by and we figured he’d probably had enough of us so let him be.  We finished that snorkel and decided that we should do one more loop around – absolutely loving this place!  Our next stop for morning tea was at Sandy Bay.  The big boys actually went for a snorkel while Susan and I sat on the sand watching the kids drifting along in the water – again there was a strong current so we couldn’t let them go too far out.  They had a great time in the current with their flippers on seeing who could swim the fastest.  Back at the car, we opened the door to the smell of boat petrol which had leaked in the back so Josh spent about the next half hour pulling stuff out and cleaning things up as best as possible.  We decided to head back to Mesa again as Josh was itching to put the boat in again.  It was a little windy but still lovely enough to get back out on the water.  We all had a bit of a go out on the water, except for Sami who wasn’t too fussed.  On our way out, Josh, Zoe and I spotted a large ray before moving out and seeing quite a few turtles swimming about, some of which were huge but nonetheless still pretty fast.  We followed them each only for a short while but didn’t want to distress them so moved on.  The Woods all had a go too and they saw much of the same.  After cleaning the boat up for the day, we settled in for a drink on the beach before moving up to their camp.  The kids were running around playing and Susan even managed to send them on a bit of a journey around the beach, over the dunes, etc. before coming back to camp.  However, they didn’t return in a hurry so we went looking for them.  We found them all rolling down a large sand dune, sand flying everywhere – they were having a fantastic time.  On our way back to camp we stopped to check out another group of folk that had been out fishing.  They’d brought back quite a few fish including three Spanish mackerel which they were happy to share.  They offered some to us which we were more than happy to accept, eating it for dinner later that night and it was delicious!  We left before dark tonight and saw stacks of kangaroos again and even a wedge-tailed eagle on our way home.  We were extremely sad to farewell the wonderful Woods family today but we hope to catch up with them all again on our travels somewhere along the track.
The following morning was Father’s Day and the girls were actually first awake.  They jumped into bed with us and gave Josh his father’s day card and a big hug.  It was a very slow morning of relaxation and a bit of washing and cleaning up.  Mid-morning we decided to get out of the van and see more of what was around.  We started by driving back towards Exmouth, stopping not far from where we were staying as there is a bay where lots of turtles swim and come to the beach to lay their eggs.  However, after trekking across the sand hills and avoiding rolling balls of spinifex, we made it to the beach and it was really rough and we didn’t see any turtles.  Not to worry, we moved on.  We pulled in to a few other bays to check out the beach and water before then stopping at Jurabi Turtle Centre.  This is just a non-manned information site and display about turtles in general but it was great as it was simple for the kids to read and understand.  The lighthouse was next just for a quick bypass drive before heading out to the SS Mildura boat wreck (a ship carrying nearly 500 head of cattle which became stranded in 1907 after hitting the reef at the North West Cape).  It was pretty deteriorated but at least you could see, from the land, quite a bit of what actually remained.  We drove past the large towers which make up the Naval Communication Station Harold E. Holt which was originally built around 1974 for the U.S. Navy (unfortunately there wasn’t a whole lot of information around to learn about this place – needed to find it on Wikipedia) and then to a beach where you could see the Naval Pier which is meant to be one of the best dive sites in the world.  It was after lunch by now so we headed into Exmouth for a late lunch and a walk around in order that we could give our Dads a call for Father’s Day.  We then ended up across the road at the kids’ water play area while we used the internet for a while; that kept the kids out of our hair for a while.  There was a bit more driving about Exmouth to pass some time and wait for sunset to near – where we headed back to the lighthouse and met up with Mark and Sharon for a drink – or three!  It was a bit windy and cool and I should have learnt by now to keep some jackets in the car as we don’t often end up back at the caravan before the sun goes down and it gets cool.
We visited back at the Visitor Information Centre this morning and spent lots more time reading the exhibits and learning about the reef.  When we got there, there was a massive osprey sitting atop the telecommunications tower – he was gorgeous and sat there casually overlooking the reef with the best view of us all.  We left there and went to Lakeside for a snorkel as we’d heard a lot about it being another great place.  However, after trekking around the bend to the markers, the wind was blowing a gale.  The four of us hopped into the water with our snorkel gear and tried to swim out towards the marker in the water but we just kept being blown backwards so eventually we gave up and hit the shore again; before trekking back to the car again.  On our way back out of the N.P. we crossed paths with Andrew & Kylie and their gang, now with their car all repaired, so stopped to catch up.  Back at the van we had a quick bite and the kids got to work on making a paper box as it was our neighbours daughter’s birthday.  Elokin turned seven today so her family was having a mini party at the bbq and invited us along with another family.  It was great, lots of party food and an ice-cream cake to top it all off.  The six kids including ours, Elokin and Hendrix and Chloe and Jake went to the playground to play while us adults sat and chatted a while.  Nathan and Mandi came over for a drink a little later and then we got some photos of Zoe, Sami and Elokin in front of our “Classroom on Board” sticker to send back to SDEPS, yes – we’ve finally met someone from the kids school!  We were in before dark tonight, retiring to have dinner and watch a movie with the kids – hopefully a big day of school tomorrow.
Tuesday was just another school work kinda day… got a bit done but still haven’t caught up and finished it all.  Zoe and I got started on her museum display which she is doing on turtles.  Mid-morning we heard Mark and Sharon ride in on their bike – they were staying here for the week.  We got about half way through before they conned us into going for a swim in the lovely caravan park pool.  Josh and I decided that while the kids did more school work this afternoon that we’d have a hit of tennis.  It was pretty warm but lots of fun, especially seeing as though I beat Josh two sets to none.  Tonight while all the kids took off to play, the adults all had a few quiet drinks back at our van.  The kids made the most of their time together even pulling out sparklers to light up the night.
The following day was a matter of doing more school work.  Mid-morning Andrew & Kylie called through to say goodbye – hoping to catch up again in Coral Bay.  The kids got stuck into the school work and got quite a bit done up to early in the afternoon when they got distracted and went to the park to play with all their new friends (Elokin, Hendrix, Chloe, Jake, Samantha and Georgie) – it was like a kids group but at least they were all being amused and not needing too much attention from us.  Mid-afternoon we headed back to the camp kitchen, this time for Hendrix’s 5th birthday party.  We just hung about eating and chatting.  Mandie had made the chocolate birthday cake which the kids were all hanging to dive into.
Thursday we drove into Exmouth, stopping at the old “little America” along the way.  There is an area on the outskirts of Exmouth where the USA navy set up camp many years ago.  This little town had housing facilities, their own dental clinic, a church, a pool, baseball fields, bowling alley, cafes, etc. and apparently they even imported and drove their Cameros and Corvettes.  However, it is now a rundown ghost town with no use.  On our way back out of here, we saw a mother and baby emu crossing the road, they were very cute!  We continued in to Exmouth to some information and pictures on the whale shark as Sami had decided that she was going to do her museum display on this lovely creature.  I gave her some ideas on how to do it and then Josh and I went about helping her to create it.  We decided to use a roll of baking paper to identify how long the whale shark can grow to and then add lots of facts and pictures to make it more interesting.  We found the local library and Josh got to researching the web and printing off lots of information while Sami and I decorated the extremely long paper.  We managed to use what we had and didn’t take up too much room in the caravan so not a bad effort.  In between doing this little project we stopped in town for lunch.  Josh found a seafood shop so we picked up some fresh prawns and rolls – just what we’ve been craving – while the kids headed back to the bakery.  After completing all that needed to be done, including restocking on food and alcohol, we headed back to Yardie Homestead.  Josh and I grabbed our tennis rackets and played another two sets, this time we won a set each.  This evening Mark came over after dinner for a few quiet drinks and he and Josh tried to swap movies on the hard drives.  A couple of bourbons later they called it a night, hoping for a sunny day tomorrow.
We awoke to lovely sunshine this morning and although the wind had died off, there was still a bit of a breeze.  We packed the car and headed to the Oyster Stacks for one final snorkel with Mark and Sharon.  However, after evaluating when we got there, we decided that the swell was too big to get in.  Instead we went back to Turquoise Bay for an easy snorkel.  It was better but the visibility was a little murky.  Zoe chose not to come in, instead she enjoyed the sun back on the beach, but Sami is really enjoying the snorkelling.  Actually, I think she is just loving the duck diving deep down to the coral and then looking like a whale when she gets back to the surface and spurts the water out the snorkel.  We sat on the beach for a while to warm up and dry off before heading back to camp via the biggest sand dune around.  It was a gorgeous view from up here and both the girls enjoyed tumbling down the sand and then racing back to the top.  At camp, Josh and I decided to have a final hit for the championship.  It was bloody hot in the middle of the day and we only got through the one set, Megan winning 7-5!  After a quick shower we were ready for our final evening here at Yardie.  We were having a bbq with all the families that we’d made friends with at this park, 6 families in total including families from Blacktown, Bathurst, Albany, Sunshine Coast and Bunbury.  The ten kids all had a great time together, ages ranging from 2 to 10 years old, and the adults enjoyed the great company.  It was a great night, and again, there are many new friends that we will keep in touch with.







































































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