Kalbarri and Geraldton

Rest Area at Galena Bridge on the Murchison River

From Shark Bay we travelled down the Brand highway towards Kalbarri. This was also a pleasant drive with the countryside looking in great condition. Stayed a night in another beautiful free camp area on the Murchison River. These are great spots and very popular with the grey nomads.

Galena Bridge Rest Area

Most of the rest areas are very well maintained with rubbish bins emptied regularly and toilets kept in good condition. Many of them are in ideal locations, on rivers or with good views and are always easily accessible. Also, the people who stop at these areas are usually very friendly and we exchange a lot of useful information with them.

Murchison River from Hawkes Head Lookout

Kalbarri National Park is a popular spot for WA people, probably due to its proximity to Perth and the southern WA towns. Kalbarri National Park is known for its spectacular scenery and red rock gorges that were cut from the landscape by the Murchison River. You can experience views of the gorges from one of the many lookouts including the famous Nature's Window where the vista is seen through a massive red rock frame. The Loop, Z Bend, Hawkes Head Lookout and Ross Graham Lookout are also popular for views over the sandstone cliffs. Unfortunately, we were there just after some heavy rains and only able to visit the Hawkes Head and Ross Graham lookouts.

Pristine Waters of the Murchison River

The heart of the national park is the Murchison River. This river is the second longest in WA and one of the best fishing spots. In the National Park, there are many spots open to the public in the form of picnic areas and swimming and fishing areas.

Sandstone Cliffs on the Murchison River

The Murchison is carved out of sandstone rock over millions of years creating the magnificent scenery. It was overcast the day we were there but still managed to get some good photos. The water is clear and good temp making it ideal for supporting abundant fish and bird life.

Gantheaume Bay at Kalbarri

Kalbarri is located on Gantheaume Bay on the Indian Ocean. The bay is popular among fishermen and leisure boats to access the ocean, but it's not an easy matter. There's a reef and rocky shelf that has to be negotiated and this can be hectic if there's a heavy surf running. You can just see the break in the background of the photo.

View South from Red Bluff

The coastline around Kalbarri is dominated by red rocks and cliffs. The red colour is from the high concentration of iron in the rock. Red Bluff has a great lookout due to it's height and location out into the bay.In the early days it was used as a landmark by mariners due to it's distinct shape and appearance.

View North from Red Bluff

Even though it was a rainy day, the water was still a beautiful aqua colour. This spot is great for whale watching but we were too late for the northern migration and too early for the southern migration.

Part of Kalbarri NP from Meanarra Hill Lookout

  Unfortunately the wet weather prevented us from going further into the park. We would like to have gone in to see the famous Nature's Window, The Loop and Z Bend, but the dirt roads had become too slippery and deemed too dangerous, even for 4WD vehicles. Will have to see these on the next trip! Nevertheless, what we did see was spectacular.

Geraldton Port from Sunset Beach

Headed down the coastal road to Geraldton which was only 160Km away. The road is very picturesque, following the coast most of the way. Geraldton is a growing city with about 37,000 people. It's a regional hub of the mid west with a pristine coastline and rolling hills to the east and framed by the Chapman and Greenough rivers. The region is an expanding destination for holiday makers from the south. The city has about the same climate as Balina in NSW so pretty good for winter breaks.

St Francis Xaviers Cathedral Geraldton

There are many old and historic buildings in Geraldton but we were particularly impressed with the St Francis Xaviers catherdal. A beautiful old building and school.
The city has all the facilities along with character pubs, modern shopping centres and quaint restaurants, particularly around the waterfront.

Sunset over Sunset Beach - Geraldton

Our caravan park was right on Sunset Beach which is a few Km north of the Geraldton CBD. This would normally be a beautiful beach but unfortunately the wind had blown a lot of seaweed in and partially covered the beach. The beaches here are OK for surfing and swimming but due to the prevailing winds, they are a mecca for windsurfers. Many of them have walkways and promenades and we were able to cycle along Sunset beach one afternoon. The above sunset photo was taken from our caravan park - pretty spectacular eh?
We knew about the WA wildflowers but thought it was too early for them. This was not true so after a few days in Geraldton, we decided to head inland towards Mullewa and seek out the Everlastings Wildflower Trail.