After a delayed pack up we headed for Exmouth and Turquoise Bay. When we got to Exmouth we went for a grocery trip and stocked up for the remainder of the trip. After the shop we drove toward Cape Range National Park and made some random stops to look for Dugongs (didn't see any though) and the lighthouse. We stopped by the caravan park where we would be staying and dropped off our stuff - the best part? A giant Perentie (biggest lizard in Australia - up to 2.5 meters) was hanging out in the grounds! I felt bad for her though, she was really irritated and people wouldn't give her space. We went for a hike up Yardi creek, which is freshwater creek that occasionally gets flooded by the ocean. We saw some Wallaroos (cross between a Wallaby and Kangaroo) aka Euros but unfortunately we were unable to go for a swim at the end of the hike because the area was closed to human disturbance. We headed off to Turquoise Bay for some snorkeling instead. I spotted an octopus but we couldn't get him to come out of the hole he was hiding in. After a couple of drifts I headed back to the beach for a snack and some netball - but then I spotted a turtle, but of course no one wanted to come out with me to look at - Jarrod and Andy saved the day - and I got my picture with a cute Green. We then returned to the beach and played cricket until dark. We had another barbie and I had my first taste of Kangaroo meat. After dinner we headed to a turtle sanctuary to see if we could spot females laying but the tide was wrong - bummer. We sat on the beach awhile looking at the stars and watching the oil rigs burn off excess into the night. After we got back poor Steph got really sick, suspected food poisoning from a dodgey chicken sandwich. Poor girl.
Baby Emus are striped
A shipwreck - don't know anything about it though
Washed up coral - I couldn't take any samples because it was a park
Mulla Mulla - iconic flower
The lighthouse
Sturt's Desert Pea - symbol for Southern Australia - normally they have dark black centers
Perentie
Jarrod suspected she may have been pregnant - she's pretty heavy in the gut region, it would explain the irritation too - she actually lunged at a few people who got too close
Yardi Creek
Young Wallaroo or Wallaby (I'm not sure how to tell the difference)
Some unidentified lizard - if I ever get time I'll key it out
Yes that's me and the turtle
A cool fish that I will also eventually ID
This is the turtle I saw at Coral Bay on the outer reef, missing a flipper. I think it looks like a diff. Species...?
This is just an awesome picture, that would be Jarrod diving after the cricket ball
Sunset on the west coast
1 comment:
How cool is that, you and a SEA TURTLE!? Awesome. I love that lizard too, she's a beast.
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