“It doesn’t get better than Exmouth” – Western Australian locals.
Since crossing into WA and sharing our travel plans around the camp fire or over a beer at the pub, we’ve heard time-and-time-again that Exmouth is one of Australia’s best places to holiday and that we’re in for a treat.
We eagerly smashed out over 750 kms to get there from Kalbarri National Park, expecting an abundance of palm trees standing tall on lush green fields of grass in front rows of old hotels and on-trend cafe’s.
Dry, desolate land covered in small scrub where trees are scarce with a major lack of running water is what greeted us. Dripping in sweat, hunting for shade, we didn’t even realise we had arrived in a town until we checked our GPS a couple of times. Welcome to Exmouth – Australia’s finest!
Without a shadow insight, we decided to hit the beach to get some relief and escape the full exposure to the sun, & this is when things started making sense.
Exmouth is on the inner side of a cape, sandy beaches with turquoise coloured water split between rock pools and sandstone that glows in the sun go right up the Exmouth Gulf, around the top of the headland and back down the coast to Cape Le Grand National Park, looking out to the Ningaloo Reef.
Looking out to sea, Whales can be seen breaching in the distance, Dolphins in the foreground and Turtles just off the shore. We had arrived at a marine life haven and although there’s little to see on the land, throwing some googles on and peaking beneath the waters surface, you’ll notice a thriving eco system just waiting to be observed.
We spent the first 5 days or so camped at the main caravan park in Exmouth, RAC. A few sections of the caravan park were under the shade of trees with a grass area by the pool, giving the feeling of an oasis in a desert.
Each day began slow, mainly with-in the vicinity of our van, then as the weather heated up, we’d visit the closest beach where the water was barely above our ankles, even when walking out 50-100 metres from the shore.
Chasing slow is the theme of our trip, & it looks like we might be catching it!
Read more about RAC Exmouth Cape Caravan Park.
The longer we stayed, the further we drove each time we left the comfort of the caravan park. We ventured up to the top of the headland and around the other side of the cape, then we felt like we couldn’t return.
Over around this side of the coastline is where more sea life can easily be found, although the main drawing card for us was Wobiri Beach, a stunning small patch of the coastline that perfect for surfers of our level: shit house.
Other than a lighthouse, there was nothing along the land, but our MO was to explore the coastline, so we visited each track leading to the ocean, one by one. Walking along the sand and rocks, swimming, snorkelling and surfing where we could.
As we headed south from lighthouse, there was a large group of trees in the distance, not too far back from the shoreline. It turned out to be the only natural spring in the vast area and where an old station once was, now used as a campground and caravan park called Yardie Homestead. This is exactly where we wanted be, so we drove straight into the office and booked a campsite for 11 nights, beginning when it was time to checkout out at RAC, back in town.
Read more about Yardie Station.
Just before we left Geelong and started our trip around the country, it was Eva’s birthday and mine passed while we were in Margaret River. Eva’s parents gifted us two tickets on a tour to explore the Cape Range National Park (just to the south of Yardie) by kayak and snorkel at the world heritage Ningaloo Reef (WA’s version of Great Barrier Reef).
This was the highlight of our trip so far! We paddled along the coastline, right above Turtles, Sting Rays and even a Shark. Then we pulled into a beach, had some lunch and snorkelled above the coral – an incredible, unforgettable experience!
The rest of our time spent in Exmouth was much the same everyday – relaxing. Just like when we were in town, we took it easy in the morning, then being so close to the beach, we’d spend most afternoons surfing or snorkelling.
If you’ve been to Exmouth, let us know what you thought in the comments section below, likewise if you’re planning on heading there soon and have any questions. Also be sure to take a look out this brief guide to Exmouth & Cape Grand National Park if you want some further details about the place without having to reach out to us :p
From Exmouth, we’re heading inland to go see some huge gorges at Karijini National Park.
