The PiIbara

We had planned to spend some time in Exmouth after our week in Cape Range National Park but the caravan parks wanted $57/night, which was way out of our budget, even with the enticement of a swimming pool and hot shower. So we left the peninsula and stayed at a basic but serviceable working station called Giralia. They had room for travellers in the shearers quarters, shady spots for camping, very rustic bathrooms and power for a few hours each night and morning via a generator. It may not have been glamorous but we were able to charge up the camper and finally (after a week) have a hot shower.

As we drove the few hundred kilometres from Giralia Station to Tom Price the landscape changed dramatically. The soil gradually shifted towards a bright burning red colour that has to be seen to believed and the Hamesley Ranges loomed up around us. It really doesn't feel like you drive up into the Hamesley Ranges more that you are still on the flat plains and the mountains have simply popped up around you.

After driving through burning red landscapes for hours, arriving at Tom Price was a complete surprise. Suddenly there was green everywhere. The sprinklers were going, there were luscious trees and every house had a gleaming manicured lawn. Tom Price is a mining town which was established in the 1960s for the purposes of servicing the Tom Price Mine. Dampier and the rail line that connects Tom Price to the coast at Dampier were also built for this purpose.  There's not much going on in Tom Price but it was a good place to stock up on supplies before heading into the National Parks.

Karajini National Park is about 50km from Tom Price and it is described as the most spectacular national park in WA. And based on what we've seen so far, we would have to agree. As we drove into the park we wound our way through spectacular ranges and occasional grassy plains spotted with dark red termite mounds. In some places the ground was so rich with iron that it looked purple and sometimes even black. The ground at our campsite looked like it was littered with iron filings, which it was it's just that they were naturally occurring. Karajini is most well known for its deep gorges, cliff top outlooks and cool deep waterholes. However, we were not sure how much we were going to see with Jarvis. Most of the gorges require pretty tough walks and sometimes steep climbs. But we managed a couple of gorge walks using the backpack on and off. Jarvis even climbed down into one of the gorges by himself via steep steps and a ladder. He probably walked about 2km of the 4km walk that day, we were very proud of him. It was slow going walking with a three year old, but it was definitely worth the effort. The gorges were surreal; bright red and black rocks, yellow ochres,  green overhanging trees and crystal clear pools. In contrast to the heat up on the ridges it was cool in the bottom of the gorges but we still welcomed a refreshing swim in the waterholes and a splash in the waterfalls.

Due to our limited ability to go on big walks and explore, we decided to only spent two nights in Karajini. So after a couple of night enjoying the coolness of the inland nights we set off for Milstream Chichester National park which took us on another amazing drive through the Hamesley Ranges. On the plains on the other side of the range we spotted small bushes of Sturt Desert Pea. Both Rob and I remembered these flowers from our previous visits to the west and had been keen to spot them again. Up until now we hadn't seen any so we were pretty happy to come across them on the side of the road.

We camped in MIlstream Chichester at Crossing Pool. It is a glorious campsite with lots of shade and next to a deep cool waterhole. A couple of families we had met previously turned up later in the day so we spent a lovely night hanging out with them. The kids fished in the pool for catfish while the adults lazed around in the lovely shade (something most campsites are missing in WA).

Although most guide books and other travellers don't recommend visiting Karatha and Dampier (due to their industrial nature), we were keen to take a look for ourselves. Rob had spent a week in Dampier on his last visit and remembered it as a laid back place and was interested to see how much it had changed. As it turned out, not much. There was additional development in the area and the port operations and gas works had grown but town was pretty much the same; one pub, a small supermarket, a sailing club and a gorgeous view over the bay including the Dampier Archipelago. And most importantly we got to visit the Red Dog memorial (we also visited the library to read local anecdotes and articles about the famous Pilbara traveller). Karatha on the other hand, was pretty horrendous. It was just a big shopping centre and light industrial area to service the area.

The families from Crossing Pool turned up in Dampier so we all went together to see the "Staircase to the Moon". This is basically the reflection of the rising full moon on the tidal flats. The reason it is such a spectacle is because of the huge tides on the north west coast (up to 9m). The moon rises at low tide and due to the huge tides the tidal flats extend for hundreds of metres and the reflection of the moon creates a column of light across them. There are only a few places where this can be witnessed as the tidal flats need to be facing east, which obviously on the west coast is not the norm.

From Dampier to Broom it is about 850km with very little in between. We broke the drive up with a lunch stop at Port Hedland and a couple of nights and both Cape Keraudren and Barn Hill Station. Port Hedland is basically a heavily industrial port with very few facilities or even much that resembles a town centre, especially considering the town has a population of 15,000. So  as you can imagine we didn't hang around long in this town covered in red dust. Cape Keraudren was a great campsite (apart from the lack of shade). We camped on a ridge overlooking the rock pools and the ocean. We watched dolphins and turtles swim by as we ate our breakfast and we spent the day fishing and cooling off in the rock pools. Rob had a great time fishing and caught several fish including queen fish, trevally and even a shark. Barn Hill Station was one of our favourites stops on the west coast. There were big shady trees through the campsite and we were camped right on the coast. There were amazing sunsets, good fishing (Rob scored us a thread fin salmon for dinner) and beaches with no stingers or crocodiles (could be the last one for a while).

Cape Keraudren

Barn Hill Station

We are now in Broome preparing for our trip up the Dampier Peninsula (Cape Leveque). It has been a long drive from Perth, often without much to see or do for hundreds of kilometres. It's not a journey we would take on again lightly but we have enjoyed it immensely. Between the turquoise waters of Ningaloo, the red gorges of Karajini, the puzzling pinnacles and always tasty fish the drive from Perth to Broome is truly is a remarkable journey.