We spent two weeks at Yardie Creek Caravan Park. This is on Yardie Station, about 38 kms from Exmouth. Exmouth is on a peninsula, with Exmouth Gulf on the eastern side and the Indian Ocean stretching as far as you can see on the western side. This is Exmouth Gulf.
There is a lighthouse (can't remember the name of it) on the end of the peninsula.
Yardie isn't right on the beach, but it's very close. The beaches are absolutely breathtaking, long stretches of sand and pristine turquoise water.
The area is surrounded by National Park (including the water) and there are lots of animals. We saw kangaroos, emus and an echidna. There are also lots and lots and lots of birds!
The boat ramp is a couple of kms from the park, and it is where all the boats that take people out to the reef for snorkelling and diving leave from. The big boats go out past the reef and the smaller ones stay inside. Everyone seems to catch fish no matter where they go. It's also a good place to fish from the beach.
The sand tends to build up around the boat ramp and has to be dug out to let the boats come in.
This is a quite large shark that was swimming around at the end of the boat ramp one day when we were down there.
Just a bit further south on the coast, there is a gorgeous beach called Turquoise Bay. When you see it, it's obvious where the name comes from. It's a popular place for snorkelling as the reef is quite close to the beach.
The water is so clear that you can see the fish swimming.
As I said, it is a popular place for snorkelling. This next photo should have been discarded, but I am just showing that I actually did it!
This is the boat that catches the big fish - John and Rhonda's boat, The Mongrel Cat.
And here is some of what they catch. These are called Spangled Emperors.
And the red ones are Ruby Snapper. These are caught in very deep water - about 350 metres.
Arnie caught the biggest one on this outing, it was about 22 kgs.
And Alan's was the second biggest.
Rhonda has a secret bait that gets the big ones!
These are Goldband Snapper.
When the boats come in there is usually quite a gathering at the cleaning table, particularly when word gets around that something large has been brought in. The fish gets shared around everyone as there are quite a few people in the camp who can't get out fishing. Some of them are regulars who have been coming to Yardie for years. The young European travellers who camp there love getting some fresh fish for dinner!
Sorry about all the fish photos for those not interested, but some of our loyal readers enjoy them. To make up for all the fish photos, here are some lovely shots of the boat ramp in the evening when the boats are coming in and the sun is setting.
No post would be complete without a photo of us eating and drinking.
That's probably about it for the exciting posts. We are homeward bound and there won't be a lot happening. But you never know, so you had better keep checking, just in case.
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