Thursday, 11 June 2026
This morning we picked up Ross and Sharon from their caravan park just down the road and headed off to spend the day on the western side of the peninsula. We had a vague plan of driving down to Yardie Creek to hike into the gorge and then continue to Ningaloo to drive across the neck of the peninsula before driving back up the Minilya-Exmouth Road to Exmouth. HOWEVER, there was a warning on the map ‘Yardie Creek Crossing – can be subject to seasonal and tidal flooding. Check the conditions with Milyering Discovery Centre’. OK, we shall do that when we get there, before we drive down to Yardie Creek.
Before that though, we re-traced our steps of yesterday, driving past the Naval Communications Station again and across the tip of North West Cape. Driving ourselves we were able to stop this morning at Vlamingh Head Lighthouse. We drove up to the top of the hill upon which it perches, to take some photographs of the lighthouse and of the magnificent coastline. Although there was some cloud about – and rain, with possible thunderstorms forecast – the water was still turquoise and the waves breaking on the reef, whiter than white.
When the Vlamingh Head Lighthouse was constructed this coastline was remote and desolate. Construction conditions were dreadful and, in the building of this 12-metre high stone and cement lighthouse, one man died of dysentery. The kerosene lantern was built in Birmingham and beamed its light 35 kilometres out to sea between December 1912 and April 1967. This graceful lighthouse was replaced by an electric beacon on Tower 11 of the VLF communication base. How utilitarian and totally lacking the elegance of a lighthouse. We do love a lighthouse!
There were a number of interpretative boards nearby covering the building of the communications base and Exmouth in the 1960s, the establishment of the UNESCO Ningaloo Coast World Heritage Area in 2011, information about the original inhabitants, the Yinigudura people, and the drilling for oil and gas, which began in the 1950s. Today we could just spy two FPSOs (floating production, storage and offloading vessels) on the north-western horizon.
We drove past the Tantabiddi Boat Ramp. We were surprised to see quite a few busses in the car park, suggesting that whale shark tours had gone out this morning. The company that we travelled with yesterday, Kings, had already cancelled their tour for today yesterday afternoon, due to the forecast. There was a strong wind blowing from the north this morning and Todd told us yesterday that a north wind creates the most unpleasant conditions on the outside of the reef. It certainly would not be as beautiful as we enjoyed yesterday. Maybe a lot more people sitting miserably on the boat(s) with buckets between their knees?? Very happy we did the tour yesterday.
We reached the entrance to the Cape Range National Park and popped our WA Parks Pass onto the dash. About 15 Ks later we arrived at the Milyering Discovery Centre, currently operating out of a couple of containers and some port-a-loos. We assume the discovery centre is still being repaired after being damaged during Cyclone Narelle? On the whole we have been surprised at the recovery Exmouth and surrounds have made in just two months, but there are a few places still undergoing repairs. We went in and asked our question. That would be a hard NO, you cannot cross Yardie Creek at the moment due to flooding. However, the Yardie Creek Gorge Walk is open, but the Mandu Mandu Gorge Walk is not.
OK, armed with this knowledge, we decided to continue down to Yardie Creek Gorge, knowing that we would have to drive back on the same road to Exmouth. We pulled in at Turquoise Bay which is a snorkeller’s paradise. We had no idea that the inside of the reef extends so close to the shore. You can literally just walk into the water here and be snorkelling on the Ningaloo Reef in the Mandu Special Purpose (Benthic Protection) Zone. Whatever that means? The map that we have has so many zones on it all shaded in different colours! If you were planning to stay here, you would have to study the zones carefully to make sure of which activities (snorkelling, bird watching, boating, caravaning, camping, fishing, mud crabbing) applied to which area.
We entered the Osprey Sanctuary Zone, passing Sandy Bay, Osprey Bay and Bungarra, before reaching our destination, Yardie Creek Gorge. There were some very black clouds out to sea, but we hopped out of the car anyway and went first to have a look at the creek. Yup, the creek crossing looked pretty scary in water of unknown depth with a sandy bottom. THAT is not something that Bernie has tackled before and, at the moment, the road is closed and no-one is tackling it.
We started heading out on the gorge walking trail, optimistically thinking that the back clouds were going to be blown further south. On the trail we were heading east and the weather was coming from the west. So, we had our backs to the black clouds. When it started to spit on us we turned around and decided that we should head back to the truck. Too late! We got soaked through before we reached the shelter of the truck. Absolutely, feet squelching in our shoes soaked. My waterproof, Gore-Tex hiking boots filled with water, just like they did at Victoria Falls last year. It’s that damn hole in the top where my foot goes in that creates the weak point in the waterproofness.
So, to deal with our drenching, I took my hiking boots off and replaced them with my sandals. Ross took off his shirt and replaced it with his spray jacket. Sharon stripped off her T-shirt and replaced it with Bernie’s spray jacket. Bernie just … carried on regardless. The shower had passed so it was Yardie Creek Gorge, Take 2. We passed a sign that said seats were still available for today’s boat cruises. Oh, let’s go and see if we can get on the 12.30pm cruise.
We arrived at the jetty and asked the Ranger/Guide and she said – Ooh, I don’t think so, I’m pretty fully booked. You can wait to see if there’s room after everyone who has booked has boarded, but I don’t think it’s going to be possible. OK, but it did beg the question, why was there a board out saying seats are available? With the cruise a no go, we headed off on foot, hoping the weather would hold.
We set off, planning to complete the Grade 2, Nature Walk rather than the Grade 4, Gorge Hike. We had barely started the walk, when some black-flanked rock wallabies were pointed out to us. OK, we don’t need to go another step, we have seen the rock wallabies! We continued though, past more rock wallabies and almost to the end of the nature walk, when go harder boy said – How about we just go up that little bit there on the gorge hiking trail, so that we can see what the view down into the gorge is like from up there. Hmmn, maybe at this point I would be better off in my squelching hiking boots rather than my sandals?
Aargh, we got up that little bit and then went a little bit more AND a then a bit more still, until we finally reached a point where we would have had to scramble down into the gorge to clamber up the other side. Even Bernie decided to pull the pin at that point. As we re-traced our steps we spied AN OSPREY. It was very close to us, so that was very exciting. As we watched, a second osprey appeared and tried to perch with the first first one, before deciding that there was not enough room and flying back across the creek. (Bernie has just shown my his photo as I write this. The second osprey is on the back of the first osprey. What an amazing photo!) With all this wildlife along the trail we were wondering how much of it we would have seen from the cruise? Maybe it was for the best that we were on foot?
With the sky darkening again, we started heading back to the truck. Passing the walk/hike board, we established that we completed 90% of the hike trail, so that was a good effort in sandals and water-logged shoes. Phew, we made it back to the car park before the rain … just. We cobbled together a snack from our fridge: a quarter of a wheel of Camembert (or maybe it was Brie?) each, along with half an apple each and then there were plenty of fun size chocolates to finish with. A complete lunch, ha, ha!
The heavens opened at this point, so we decided it was high time to head back to Exmouth. It is supposed to be Dry Season, why are we having this unseasonal rain? The further north we drove, the more the weather eased. By the time we reached Tulki Beach, the road was dry, there was patchy blue sky and sunshine. But, looking back to the south, it remained black and gloomy. With the weather here so much drier, we ventured in to Tulki Beach, because Sharon was keen to do some reconnaissance for a possible future trip with their van. We also checked out Neds Camp and Mesa Camp. All of them were very accessible with a caravan and the sites were generously sized and well defined. The biggest problem for Ross and Sharon will be booking a site, as these spots are very popular and regularly book out almost as soon as bookings open.
We arrived back in Exmouth where it looked like it had been dry during our absence. It seems that the weather varies greatly between the east and west coasts of the peninsula. If I’m remembering my high school geography correctly, it’s probably to do with the Cape Range running down the middle of the peninsula creating a rain shadow on the other side of the range from where the weather is coming from?
We popped into the bakery to see if there were any sausage rolls left, thinking that a small, savoury pastry would finish off our lunch nicely. Nope, way too late in the day, the pie warmer was bare. Turning our minds to our next meal instead, we headed into the IGA to buy some ingredients to cook up a batch of chow mein for four for dinner.
Back at the cabin we washed our wet clothes and sandy socks and microfibre towels to freshen them up. We have a washing machine and a clothes airer so best to make the most of them and have nearly all of our clothes clean going forward.
The chow mein was cooked in the electric frypan and some three minute noodles were cooked in a pan on the single hotplate. This cabin has multiple saucepans, but only one hotplate. That’s ridiculous. The other thing that is frustrating is that we have a small freezer and a small fridge/freezer. That’s quite a lot of freezer space and barely any fridge space. Half our food has had to stay out in the car fridge! Besides which, the fridge froze half our food yesterday before Bernie realised and turned the temperature up.
The biggest hassle though? I went to take the lid off the electric frypan to stir the chow mein and the handle came off in my hand and the lid stayed right where it was. Aargh, after some juggling with a tea towel we got the lid off and Bernie used a bit of random plastic bag to tighten up the screw in the handle. Crisis averted! We ate bowls of chow mein and noodles while we watched Adelaide demolish the Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium.
Steps: 9,937 (6.27kms)
