G’day from Scarborough
It’s that time of the year again – Christmas! We just got back to Perth after a 2.5-week trip to the southern part of Western Australia. The trip was filled with endless adventures, and we’ll be sharing all the details in some upcoming blog posts, so stay tuned! We will spend our Christmas days with our friends Nicolai and Anna in a nice apartment 10 min walk from the Beach in Perth-Scarborough. The temperatures right now are around 30-35 degrees perfect for some beach barbecues during Christmas!
But now back to our great off-road adventure in the Northwest. Enjoy reading our new post and have some great Christmas holidays!
PS If you don’t want to read in English, go to the menu bar and switch to German.
Cheers
Alicia & Marco
Entering the Edel Land National Park – 120 km Offroad Track to Steep Point
On Sunday, November 14th at 11:00 AM, we were ready for the steep point adventure. We had our car fueled up, 10l of backup diesel and groceries and water for at least a week with us. And there it is, the sign from the main road, leading us to steep pint. It’s approximately 140 kilometers until we reach a steep point ahead of us, and we’re not quite sure how long it will take us to get there. According to Google Maps, the trip should take around 2 1/2 hours (yes google maps leads you also through off-road tracks in Australia), but we’ve read online that some people have made it in 2 hours, and even 1 1/2 hours. However, we’re planning to take it slow and steady, as we have between six and seven hours until sunset. As Jamie advised, we’ll just take our time and enjoy the drive. As Jamie said, ‚don‘t rush mate, take your time and enjoy the ride‘.
The 1st 30 kilometers were quite easy, sealed Rd. No problem. 110 km to go. Next part of the track, unsealed Rd. with some crazy corrugations. All right remembering the advise from Jamie we got our tires down to 30 PSI and searched for our best speed to cruise over the corrugations. We found it at around 60-70 km/h. If you get to slow the whole car gets into heavy vibrations, if you are to fast same story. In between the unsealed part, around 2-3 km of sealed road again. The unsealed part was around 70 km in total, when we reached the entry to the Edel Land National Park. 40 km till steep point. To this point you could even drive with a two wheel drive.
We drove into Edel Land National Park with our tires still at 30 PSI. As we continued, we noticed the tracks were becoming sand. From here the real off-road section starts. In the distance, we spotted a large sand dune forming on the horizon. After five kilometers, we reached a 180° curve that led straight into the dune. We knew that this was the spot to lower our tires. With our tires now at 18 PSI, we began climbing up the dune in low 4 gear, on a single line track, The Doors playlist playing in the radio. On or way to the top we stopped at each parking bay, listening for any signs of other cars coming from the front.
Sandy tracks and lonely beaches
In the end dune itself was an 2 kilometers soft sand uphill drive, single track with no real vision for upcoming vehicles. The track was a bit challenging because of some big holes where people before us got stuck. But with our tries on 18 PSI, the luck of no upcoming traffic and our Toyota Hilux in Low 4×4 Drive we made our way slowly but surely.
After climing up the dune our way down began. While rolling down the dune, the ocean was shaping out on the horizon again. What an awesome view and no sign of civilization. We begin to realize why this is the most beautiful spot on earth for Jamie. The road led us to a little beach. So, what else could we do, such as jumping in and having a bath? What a place! 20 km after the dune we passed the Ranger station and the Shelter Bay campgrounds. They looked so nice that we told ourselves to spend one night there while going out.
Mainland Australia’s most westerly point
The last 20 kilometers to Steep Point were easy, good visibility for upcoming vehicles and no soft sand sections. We drove over one last Crest and there it was. 180 degree ocean view, the end of the Australian continent. We made it to Steep Point, we made it to the most westerly point of mainland Australia.
Faultline 1 Campsite
Before entering the no reception zone we booked our campground online (back in Denham). We managed to book a spot named Faultline 1. The campground is up on a Cliff with the best ocean views, with wind protection from a hill in the back.
The fishermen next to us on fault line 2, a small pool where they pumped ocean water every to cool off and have a small bath. They also invited us to hop inside the pool and told us they wouldn’t go swimming around there. There would be a lot of sharks around this area; we later saw it with our own eyes, how a shark bit away a nice snapper from one of the fishermen’s rods.
The days were chilled, and we made a lot of good food: chili, wraps, shoyu Ramen (which gave us a little flashback to Japan) peanut butter jelly sandwiches, and of course, coffee.
Secret Shell Beach
After having a beer on the first night out at Steep Point with the fisherman beside us. They told us about a little beach with lots of beautiful shells; around 50 minutes to our first morning out at Steep Point, it was a bit cloudy, so we took the chance and walked to the beach and were flashed by the amount and color of them. We were in a National Park, so nothing could go with us, only the rubbish we found.
Gone Fishin’
The fishermen beside us also invited us two fish with some free rods standing around. And that’s what we did. Spending time at steep point fishing from the cliffs. On one morning Jim and Dave took up the Crayfish box and surprisingly there was a Wobbegong Shark inside. Strange looking shark, almost like a catfish, we had never heard or seen before.
Fisherman’s stories
In the first night we joined our neighbours with some beer for them to make friends, and after that we sat every evening in their camp listening to their fisherman’s stories. It was a surreal experience out at Steep Point, hundreds of kilometers away from civilization, sitting in a fisherman’s camp with a TV running in the background and four fishermen telling us stories about some fig fish they caught or even hooked at Steep Point, about whales and manta rays passing by and about a legendary fish named Boo Jingles.
Boo Jingels was a huge codfish who lived years ago out in the waters of steep point. He swam around right under the cliffs, catching away the fish, the fisherman were able to hook up. So as a fisherman in lot of cases you managed to hooked a big fish and casted it right down to the big cliff, Boo Jingles came and took it away from you. Now you had Boo Jingles on your rod but he was smart and strong enough to get under the cliffs which resulted in the cut of your line at the cliffs every time. So every time Boo Jingles got away, another fishing line added to his mouth hanging down from it. And because the water at steep point is so clear you could easily see them when he took away your next catch. In the end one unknown angry fisherman took his gun with him to steep point and shot Boo Jingles from the cliffs. It became quiet in the fishermen’s camp and finally one of the four said „you know it’s such a shame he shot Boo Jingles. It was quite a nice game who will get the fish first you or Boo“ Silence again. You could clearly see how they remembered back these days when boo jingles was still around.
Today there is no more Boo Jingles only the sharks, waiting under the cliffs for taking away the fish from your rod just as Boo Jingels did back in his days. And the sharks under the cliffs are also the reason why they wouldn’t recommend going for a swim anywhere near these cliffs.
Surrounding the oven with Jim
One day, Jim wanted to show us the oven. It’s right beside Steve Point, and it got its name because, in the summertime, it often gets boiling out there, reaching temperatures of about 45 to 50. At that time, you want to stand there fishing. He also wanted to go with us because the track is very tricky, and you need to be very careful because of the little steps right beside the Cliff going down 30 meters into the ocean.
Australia’s most westerly nature’s window
During one evening, we decided to go on a hunt for nature’s window near Steep Point. Although we had heard about it, we hadn’t managed to catch a glimpse of it yet. As we reached Steep Point, we came across a family and a friend who were clicking pictures and enjoying their beers. We joined them and were soon offered an Emu beer, which is from Western Australia. We shared our plans with them and mentioned that we were unsure about the location of the window. To our surprise, the mother of the children knew about the window back in their childhood days but had forgotten it was there. Excitedly, we all decided to explore the terrain around Steep Point together, and at last, we found the most westerly nature’s window of Australia – one of the the most stunning spots for a sunset we have ever been to!
Dangers at Steep Point
Although the place is beautiful, it poses a risk of staying away from civilization. Every morning, you can see snake tracks in the sand around your camp, so it’s essential to be cautious everywhere you go.
Another thing you should never understimate is the weather. As described above the temperatures at the oven can get up to 50 degrees in summertime. But rain or a storm is also dangerous. First of all a heavy rain can cause you some serious problems if you want to get out of steep point as the track conditions can change quickly. So even if you want to stay for two nights or so, just make sure you have some additional supplys in case there is any problem. Jim told us from one time he was out at steep point when a heavy storm hit the coastline. He stayed with his brother at Faultline (same camping spot as we had) and the waves got so big they washed over the whole Faultline campground (20 m up from sea level). Their whole camp was destroyed by the huge waves crushing down and they were lucky not being washed away into the wild Indian Ocean.
Additionally, there are cliffs with sharp stones, making it dangerous to fall off even in good weather conditions. Unfortunately, during our stay, an 84-year-old fisherman fell down the cliffs at the oven into the ocean. It was lucky that his grandson was with him and knew how to swim. He saved his grandfather’s life quickly. All the fishermen around came to help, and one person even rode his Motocross to the Rangers station to call for help. They managed to get the two people up again with the help of ropes. Although the boat arrived late, they were already safe. The Ranger sent the injured to the hospital. The area also has signs from people who went fishing for the last time. May they rest in peace.
Time to say goodbye
We booked two nights out at the steep point campground but we ended up staying three nights there with such wonderful people around and this amazing landscape. But finally, it was time to say goodbye. As little gifts, we made some Polaroid pictures of nature’s window and gave them to Jim, Dave, Karl, and Nigel. It was a pleasure meeting you guys; our paths might cross again. See ya!
Shelter Bay Campground
On our way to the Faultline camping area, we remembered a stunning beach and campground right beside it named Shelter Bay. After a 15 to 20 kilometer journey, we arrived at the campground and were pleased to discover that our nearest neighbors were around 1-2 kilometers away in either direction. This meant that we practically had the beach to ourselves, and what a beach it was! The white sand was simply breathtaking, and we were delighted to spot many starfish scattered around. It was truly amazing.
Way out & False Entrance Blowholes
On our fifth day, after four beautiful nights out at the most westerly point of Australia, we had to leave the Adelland National Park behind us. On our way out, we explored some sidetracks and the false entrance blowholes. These are huge Cliffs about 50 to 60 meters above the water. With is cold inside the cliffs, and if you have high tide and big waves, you can see water spilling out of these holes. The time we went there, the waves weren’t big enough, but you had a strange sound coming out of those holes, like sparkling water.
On our way down the big dune, we remembered Jamie’s word: take as much time as possible. He told us will see one of the most wonderful places on earth, and now we’re sure it is defenetly one of the most beautiful places!
Quobba Blowholes & Nyinggulu Coastal Reserve Track
After leaving the Adelaide National Park, we headed for Carnarvon. We fueled up, loaded some water and groceries, and got out of it again. No city plans (town might be the better description for Carnarvon), we wanted to get back into the wilderness as quick as possible.
We went to the Quobba Blowholes a little north of Carnarvon and finally managed to see some blowholes, spitting water. We continued our track north, where the road signs said if you were on four-wheel drive, you could make our way through there. At one point, we reached a gate, and a sign was telling us from here on, only with four-wheel drive. Even after some little off-road experience, these signs remember you to always respect the track and if something happens you are on your own out there.
We had three hours of daylight left, and the sign told us we should plant 1 1/2 to 2 hours for this 30 kilometers. This was another kind of four-wheel track, with no sandtracks, only stones, and holes on the way. We had some steep inclines and declined with some rock steps, which of the pictures look half as scary. We even had a river crossing on this track, and if you watch the picture, it’s looking easy, but driving down there and getting up again was quite a challenge. Finally, we made it after two hours, and we could easily say this was one of the hardest four-wheel drive tracks we had done so far.
Amherst Point
We were rewarded with an amazing campsite, Amherst Point, after a challenging four-wheel drive. The site offered stunning views of a beach nestled in the dunes, with a coral reef about 50 meters from the shore. We enjoyed refreshing swims and snorkeling in the chilly waters, while the sound of the waves crashing in the distance provided a soothing backdrop. We were amused to spot countless yellow crabs scurrying along the beach. To top it all off, we ended our day with a Great Northern beer in the sunset. We decided to extend our stay for two more nights while planning the next leg of our adventure.
Email from Jim
After our steep point adventure, Jim sent us an email sharing his impressive fishing catches during his 14-day stay. He attached some big pictures of Tuna and Spanish Mackerel, where you can even see the sharks taking their bites. Take a look for yourself, they are truly remarkable.
We hope you enjoyed reading! As we are not sure when the third part of our Northwestern Australia adventure will be published, we wish you all the best for the upcoming christmas hoildays and a great start into the new year 2024! See you soon.
And thank you every much for every feedback thats reaches us over WhatsApp, Email or the Blog Post comments down below. Do not hesitate to write us feedback, we love hearing from you 🙂
See you next year
Marco & Alicia
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