Where the range meets the reef!

A week at Exmouth has been relaxing and refreshing.

No traffic lights, just a few traffic hazards as we drive through Cape Range NP on our way to some of the snorkeling spots on Ningaloo Reef. Emus were more a problem on our way to the Exmouth township, but kangaroos that don't move off the road, plus an echidna and perentie that caused a minor stir on the road (three or four cars stopped as people got out to take photos) added to our driving experience. The perentie just kept moving slowly, but the echidna applied its defence mechanism and simply curled up into a ball as people approached. It eventually got across the road.

Photos were taken of these natives, but no pictures are available of the underwater scenes at the snorkeling spots - Lakeside, Oyster Stacks and Turquoise Bay. It is amazing to swim just 10 meters offshore and be on the edge of a coral reef - and it is quite magnificent. Ningaloo Reef is well worth a visit if you like the water. Goggles and a snorkel make a bit of a difference too!

Add the Lighthouse and spots for whale watching - its not a bad place to visit.

Just down the road we have an Australian Navy Communications base. There they can probably get in touch with ships (including submarines) all around the world.

Here, at the caravan park below the lighthouse, we cannot even get Telstra reception.... amazing that technology can be so advanced, and yet so incomplete. Still we came here for the reef, not mobile phone reception.