Pinnacles Monkey Mia Coral Bay Exmouth Tour
Monkey Mia Exmouth
Tour Day 1 - Perth to Cervantes
The Pinnacles Desert, Australian Outback Monkey Mia Exmouth Tour Day 2 - Cervantes to Kalbarri From the Pinnacles Desert we head north, along the Indian Ocean Way, in many places literally on the coastline of Western Australia. First stop is Greenough Wildlife Park (entry fee included in cost of tour), where can you wander amongst the kangaroos, and get personal with a python, as the parks owners introduces us to a range of West Australian reptiles. You will also get to see deer, camels, emus, a wide variety of birds, an ostrich and even a crocodile.
Meet the friendly wildlife at Greenough Wildlife Park. Admission included in price of tour. After cruising along the Batavia Coast, and lunch on a beach near Geraldton, we drive down a red dirt road, with our passports (optional) to the Hutt River Province. Here Prince Leonard will greet you, stamp your passports, and take you on the Royal Tour of his Principality. It is a long story, but briefly, this is an independent state within Western Australia, which celebrated its 35th Anniversary, in April, 2005. In 1970, Prince Leonard, a farmer, in protest to unfair export quotas, had no option but to secede from Australia, or go broke, and went to war with Australia, before ceasing hostilities 2 days later, without bloodshed. As the Hutt River Province went to war with Australia and was not defeated, under United Nations rules, the Hutt River now claims independent status. see www.hutt-river-province.com.au. With our exit visas in place we then return to Western Australia. After leaving the dirt road we have a short drive to Kalbarri along the coastal gorges which we will visit. In the winter months, especially August and September it is quite common to see Humpback whales hugging the coastline on their migration back to the Antarctic.
Breakfast at the Hutt River Province*
Monkey Mia Exmouth Tour Day 3
- Kalbarri to Denham
The Murchison River, Kalbarri National Park We drive to the Z-bend gorge, where we get to trek and scramble down to the Murchison River. This is a uniquely quiet retreat and extremely worth the tricky descent and challenging climb back up again. For the more adventurous, on the way down to the river, is the opportunity to have a go at abseiling. (Optional extra, $30 for two descents). If you are going to do it anywhere, this is the place. A moderate level of fitness and agility is needed to trek down the gorge.
Once in the gorge a short walk along the valley takes us to our swimming spot in Murchison River. Leaving Kalbarri, we head out to Shark Bay via the Billabong Roadhouse. On the way to Denham we stop off at Shell Beach. Shell Beach is around 100km long, made up entirely of small shells approximately 8 to 10 metres deep.
Shell Beach, Shark Bay Upon arriving at Denham, you can head down to the beach and relax with a drink, enjoying the late afternoon sun, and a swim in Shark Bay. Monkey Mia ExmouthTour Day 4 - Denham to Coralia Station Though Red Earth Safaris have many unique features, it is Day 4 which really sets us apart from the rest. Tonight you can drag you bed out of the sheerers' quarters and sleep under the stars. However, the day of a lifetime starts with an early meeting with the magical Monkey Mia dolphins.
From the Monkey Mia jetty take a Shark Bay wildlife cruise Make sure you have plenty of space on your camera's memory card, as unique opportunities to take photos of the dolphins, pelicans and other marine animals found at Monkey Mia are many.
Shark Bay water, at Monkey Mia is around 30C in the summer Take the option to jump aboard the Monkey Mia catamaran and cruise among the dolphins and unique dugongs. Shark Bay is home to the world's largest population of dugongs. Very few people have been in close proximity to dugongs so you are very privileged to be guided amongst these placid creatures by local experts. There is also the chance of seeing sharks, turtles, whales, seals sea-snakes and stingrays, but these sightings are less frequent.
Dugongs feed on the world's largest sea grass areas - another reason why Shark Bay is World Heritage Park After the optional Shark Bay cruise take savour the magical environment of Monkey Mia.
Time to relax and enjoy the 'vibe' of Monkey Mia Typically, the dolphins return for three feeds. We are often the only tour bus group still around to experience the late morning feed, which means an even more intimate experience with the magical dolphins of Monkey Mia. However, do remember the dolphins, though extremely reliable, are wild animals and don't time their visits to a clock. The beauty of being flexible is that if the dolphins don't turn up to the first feed we can hang around until they do. A priceless, once in a lifetime, must do experience.
After lunch (sometimes a fresh Shark Bay fish is caught on the cruise, which
are always a delicious treat) it is time
to leave Monkey Mia. First, we return to Australia's most westerly town, Denham.
Ten minutes later and we arrive at Ocean Park to see the turtles and Sharks being
fed. Then its Eagle Bluff. This is a place where you can overlook one of Shark Bay's special wild beaches,
and regularly see sharks and stingrays in the wild. It is quite common to see
Tiger Sharks, which are numerous in Shark Bay. Next stop is to see the
world famous Hamelin Pool Stromatolites. The stromatolites played a key role
in the evolution of the earth, hence their importance, which we will briefly
explain, to truly appreciate how significant the stromatolites are. The World
Heritage status of Shark Bay is largely down to phenomena such as the
stromatolites. Of the many World Heritage sites around the world, Shark Bay is
one of only a few which meets all the criteria.
Hamelin Pool Stromatolites, Shark Bay After our afternoon drive our Red Earth Safari finds us in real outback Australia. Coralia Sheep Station (or ranch or farm) provides a chance to experience authentic Australia off the tourist route. Bring a sweater because the night air can be pretty cool.
Monkey Mia is also home to many pelicans After dinner its time to sit by the campfire and go with the flow as the drivers will have the entertainment organised for what many say is the highlight of the tour.
Try the traditional Damper then toast marshmallows on the fire
Sit or stand, just have a go at sandboarding still to finish the tour for the website, but saturday is often the best day, and will be completed shortly. Well, that's the end of the tour so did you have a good time? If you're anything like our regular tour guests you're sure to answer with a very enthusiastic, positive comment in our guest book. See the Raves section.
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