Day 117 - Carnarvon to Denham

An overcast morning found us on our way to Denham, 334 km away from Carnarvon, down the North West Coastal Highway.  The road was excellent and there were many miles where the road was as straight as a gun barrel.  

010814 The North West Coastal Highway was undeniably straight

010814 There was rain falling to the west - not much

There were many pink and yellow wildflowers on the roadside.

010814 Wildflowers - yellow and salmon colours

010814 Wildflowers yellow and pink

We travelled mile after mile over flat sandy countryside.  We eventually came across a small hill from which there was a designated photo opportunity.  As we drove up the hill our expectations rose until .... yes, for 360 degrees around us, we were surrounded by flat sandy countryside.  There was an upside.  In the distance the sandy countryside gave way to a thin blue line which was the first sign of Shark Bay.

010814 The flat sandy countryside from the hill on the
North West Coastal Hwy 

010814 The flat sandy countryside from the hill, with
the faint blue line of Shark Bay between land and sky

Back to the main road and in a short while we left the North West Coastal Highway and headed on to the Denham Hamelin Road.  Denham was still 130km away.

We stopped to look at the stromatolites* in the Hamelin Pool Nature Park in the southern part of Shark Bay and then had a enjoyable cruise up the peninsula.  The peninsula splits Shark Bay in two and from time to time we could see the western bay and at other times the eastern bay.  More research on this in coming days.

010814 Stromatolytes at Hamelin Pool Nature Reserve

010814 Shark Bay just off the Denham Hamelin Road looking north

010814 Shark Bay just off the Denham Hamelin Road looking south

Denham is a quiet town and is quite small.  The water to its west looked absolutely beautiful for, by now, the sun had escaped from the clouds.

We have the privilege of staying in the most westerly caravan park in Australia in Denham.

* "Stromatolites are layered bio-chemical accretionary structures formed in shallow water by the trapping, binding and cementation of sedimentary grains by biofilms of microbial mats of microorganisms, especially cyanobacteria. Stromatolites provide the most ancient records of life on Earth by fossil remains which date from more than 3.5 billion years ago." Thanks Wikipedia.