Shark Bay

First stop as we headed for Shark Bay was Shell Beach. Here shells are mined from a beach 120kl long and up to 10 metres deep.

 

 

What looks like sand is actually millions of very small coquina shells. They were once cut into blocks and  used in buildings. The shell is now used in  the poultry industry.

 

This is the Old Pearlers Restaurant in the main street of Denham made from the shell blocks.

 

 

 

In October 1616, Dirk Hartog, a Dutchman, was the first European to land on Australian soil in the area that is now Shark Bay.  This is a plaque in Denham commemorating Hartog’s landing.

Denham is the main town servicing this area. It is also the most westerly town in Australia. Originally pastoralists and pearling were the main industries which have been relaced by tourism and fishing.

 

One of the main attractions is Monkey Mia where the wild bottlenose dolphins come in each day to interact with people and be fed fish under the supervision of the Marine Rangers.

 

This is Nicky – named because of the nick in her fin – who comes in each morning and brings her calf. These dolphins have been visiting Monkey Mia since the early 1960’s.

 

Nicky is quite a show-off. This is the dolphin which features in the travel brochures.

 

 

 

And where there is a free feed, there will be the pelicans. This one was quite happy to parade around the foreshore.

 

 

The Peron Peninsular in Shark Bay is a popular sailing area. There was a Tall Ship out in the bay the day we were there.

 

 

Francois Peron National Park is a former pastoralist lease with viewing platforms at Skipjack Point where mantra rays up to 9 metres across were swimming past.

 

The contrasts between the red sandstone, the white beach sand and the blue water were unbelievable – just like the tourist brochures.

 

 

One of the problems with driving on sand is that if you don’t engage 4WD, you get bogged. Fortunately Chris was there with his trusty shovel to help out.

 

The tracks looked so much like the Simpson  Desert – just more scrub.

 

 

 

This is sunset over Little Lagoon just north of Denham.