Our week from Monday 7th – Sunday 13th June was spent travelling up the coast from Exmouth to Broome, stopping in at some cute coastal towns and staying in bush camps by the sea. Watch the Parrott’s Oz Lap Week 9 video to see more on this week’s adventures!
Monday 7th– Tuesday 8th June: Exploring Exmouth and Cape Range National Park.
Charles Knife Gorge in Cape Range National Park 
The Aquarium at the Ningaloo Discovery Centre
Exmouth town was chaotic and totally overrun by tourists. The town has little to offer except a couple of cool brewery-pubs, loads of caravan parks, petrol stations, dive and surf shops, a scattering of cafes, a shabby town beach and a Discovery Centre-Aquarium. 22km south of the town is the only real attraction on this east coast side along the Exmouth Gulf, where you can get access to the canyons and ranges of Cape Range National Park – as opposed to the west side where Ningaloo reef lies. Three things to tick on a trip to Exmouth are: 1.Charles Knife Gorge drive (paved for 7km then rutted gravel so we parked and walked) 22 km south of Exmouth 2. Whalebone Brewery open air beer garden for great live music and wood-fired pizzas and 3. The Ningaloo Discovery Centre and Aquarium to hear about the early US Base for navy, airforce and communications and see some of the coral and reef creatures up close without getting wet.
Wednesday 9th – Thursday 10th June: Onslow aglow.
Onslow Shell Museum 
Sunrise at the war memorial
After driving back out the Exmouth peninsula we cut across to the North West highway and headed up past Hammersley Gorge and southern entrance to Karijini NP (which we plan to come back to end of June). Large monoliths and russet red ranges dotted the road alongside the ubiquitous termite mounds. We turned off to Onslow and drove 82km to the coast past salt lakes abutting the road that feed the huge salt mine in town. 93% of Australia’s salt comes from Onslow-Karatha area and a fair chunk of petroleum too. Onlsow’s nickname is Cyclone town ( they’ve been hit by 13 cyclones) and we copped a fair bit of wind too. The beach is red mud flats and they have a stairway to the moon to rival Broome as well as a stunning Anzac monument that frames the rising sun and an historical 1.2km boardwalk that tells the tales of early industry and settlement in Onslow. Three things to tick on a trip to Onslow are: 1. The Shell Museum with its colourful collection of superb shells 2. Walk along the Ian Blair Memorial boardwalk to learn about the history of the area and 3. Snap the sunrise through the ANZAC memorial sculpture.
Thursday 10th -Friday 11th June: Ticking off the sites at Dampier – Point Samson – Cossack- Cape Keraudren
Iced coffees at Soak 
Rock art at Murujuga N.P 
Old Cossack town
A wet Thursday morning had us scrambling out of Onslow and up towards Karratha to escape the rain. We pulled in at Dampier to see the Red Dog memorial, take a walk on the waterfront past the picturesque sailing club and gawk at the massive North West Shelf Refinery where they harvest petroleum, gas and salt. We called in to Hearson Cove, a cute, curved beach with massive tides and Murujuga National Park to walk the 750m Ngaajarli trail past a collection of petroglyphs deemed to be the largest collection of aboriginal rock art in the southern hemisphere. Our camp for the night was just up the road past Karratha at Cleaverville, a district campground on a red sand, rocky beach with lovely sunset and sunrise views. The next day we explored the adjoining Point Samson peninsula which has the abandoned pearling town of Cossack, now restored with historical plaques and a cute café, the rural town of Wickham and the cute little fishing beach called Honeymoon Cove. Our camp was another few hours up the road at Cape Keraudren, another local rocky beachside open campground that had killer sunsets but also killer midgies!! Three things to tick on a trip to Dampier and Point Samson peninsulas are 1. Lunch at Soak, a café at the front of the Dampier Seafarer’s Club with great views and delicious iced coffees 2. Walk the Ngaajarli trail and marvel at the 40,000 year old rock art and 3. Explore old Cossack town, with its restored old buildings and shady café.
Saturday 12th – Sunday 13th June Cruising Eighty Mile Beach
Tides in and fishermen are out at 80 mile 
Tide’s out 1km! 
Soaking up the sunset on 80 mile beach!
Saturday and Sunday saw us tackle the last leg of the long stretch up the North Coast Highway to Broome. After being attacked by sandflies at Cape Keraudren Friday night, we scurried off early Saturday morning and drove 90 minutes up the road to Eighty Mile Beach Caravan Park – we rattled down the worst rutted road we’d been on yet for 15 km and checked in at 10am! A fabulous, large park with lots of green grass, big shady sites, a cute café with delicious home-made sausage rolls and scones, even a little market with live music on Saturday afternoons. Sunday we drove the last 400km in the blazing sun, past Sandfire roadhouse, the turnoff to Port Smith Van park, Barn Hill cattle station and Echo Beach Resort and pulled in at Roebuck Van Park 33 km short of Broome (only accommodation we could get). Three things to tick on a trip to Eighty Mile Beach are: 1. Sit, walk or run along the endless beach and watch fishermen pull sharks out of the shallows at high tide 2. Sunset on low tide to admire the setting sun reflected on the tidal flats and 3. Indulge in a Devonshire tea or home-made sausage roll from the café.
