January 12th-15th, 2012- Jurien Bay Tourist Park (Top Tourist)

Thursday morning saw us pack up and head South towards Jurien Bay. We were both a bit anxious as this was the first time we have towed the caravan since losing the wheel back in late November. The van travelled well with no incident but it was quite a nervous journey. Stopped in Dongara to top up the diesel and check the caravan wheels. Tightened the wheel lugs a bit and temperature of hubs felt warm but OK. We retraced our trip back down along the Indian Ocean drive to Jurien Bay. Arrived just before lunch and setup at the Jurien Bay Tourist Park (Top Tourist). Di & Terry had just arrived before us and were in the process of setting up. Nice and close to the beach and quite busy with young families. Amenities could be cleaner but is probably caused by the park being very busy and lots of kids. We got a smallish but somewhat shaded site near the office after requesting a change from our originally assigned spots. They were larger but had no shade and were brutally hot.

Friday morning saw the four of us take a road trip South to Cervantes and the Pinnacles. We stopped at Molah Lookout where we had a great view of the coast and miles into the interior. Could see both Cervantes and Jurien Bay. Continued on to the Pinnacles in the Namburg National Park South of Cervantes. Took a short walk to a viewpoint before deciding that the driving tour would show us just as much as the walking trail. It was a very hot day, with no shade, and lots of flies; so the decision seemed quite easy. We had a wonderful drive, with lots of stops,  along the 5KM trail through this natural phenomenon! Very interesting formations and incredible contrasts with the surrounding sand dunes and ocean! Lots of interesting photos. We then took a stroll through the information centre and gift shop before heading off to Cervantes.

We took a quick detour into the Stromolites (not as impressive at the Pinnacles) at Cervantes before a quick tour of Cervantes itself. We then returned to Jurien Bay for a late lunch and a swim down at the Jetty. The four of us enjoyed a great seafood dinner with Scallops, Blue Bone fish, and Calamari all cooked at Di's caravan. Beautiful!

Saturday we took an easy day with lots of relaxation at the beach and around the caravans. There is a beautiful new Jetty right at the entrance to the caravan park and a lovely beach. We enjoyed a lovely BBQ dinner before attending Buzzer, the Bush Balladeer, who was entertaining at the park. Well what can I say? Slightly better than our entertainment at the Murchison River Station in Kalbarri but not that great. I snuck off on Di and Sandra between songs and was abused for it later. Lots of laughs again!

Sunday morning Di, Sandra, and I went on a Sea Lion charter to the Essex Islands from Jurien Bay. Another incredible experience! A short 40 minute boat trip took us to the islands where we moored before spending 2+ hours swimming with Australian Sea Lions. They were amazing and so inquisitive and playful. They would swim right up to your mask and study you. If you spun yourself in the water they would spin as well. While you were not supposed to touch them they had no problem touching you or rubbing by you as they swam amongst us. Incredible! Sandra and Di were definitely in their glory. We got a number of great photos ourselves and also paid to get a DVD made by the guides. Hopefully it captures some of our close up contacts with these beautiful creatures. I will add their photos at a later date.

 

After lunch the four of us took a drive North to Green Heads. We stopped first at the Grigson scenic lookout. Could see for miles in all directions, with Salt pans to the East, and sand dunes & Ocean to the West. From there we continued into Green Head where we stopped at Dynamite Bay. Took a short but steep walk up to a lookout then out to a rocky point. Nice location but was very windy and a bit overcast when we were there. We drove home where Sandra and I did some cleanup for our trip back to Geraldton tomorrow. Had an easy tea, did some photo culling, and had an early night.