DAY 93 – KALBARRI NATIONAL PARK…

Today we set off to explore more of Kalbarri National Park.  John and Barb went out with Ian and Kathy as we expected to drive over some very rough corrugated road to get to our destination. (We were pleasantly surprised to now find that it is a bitumen road).

 

We headed out to the Loop Z-Bend road to walk to the iconic viewing point called Nature’s Window. Every tourist brochure of Kalbarri contains this one particular shot of the Murchison river viewed through a window in the rock from the top of the gorge. So every tourist, including the six of us traipsed out there in the heat to walk to this viewing point and get the obligatory photo. I have to tell you...it's not an easy walk. Especially if you have dodgy arthritic knees as Barb and I do. Both of us struggled with the climb on steep rocks and the sheer drops,  should you slip were an added fear factor. I'm proud to say we all did it! We have the photos to prove it too.  

 After the climb back up to the picnic shelter at the top we stopped for a well-earned cuppa and bikkie. Then we drove around to another to see the Z-Bend lookout. 

John, Steve, Ian and Kathy went for hike to the lookout. Barb and I decided to sit this one out and let them get the photos of the view. It was a pretty hot day and we were still recovering from the previous hike.

The others headed home, once we left the Z-Bend Lookout road, where Steve and I stopped to take some photos of more of the lovely wildflowers that were so prevalent around this area.   We also wanted to finish our sightseeing along the Coastal Cliffs.  

 

Delighted to see these growing on the side of the road...

 We still had Pot Alley to explore.  Pot Alley is a picturesque ocean gorge in Kalbarri National Park, boasting spectacular ocean scenery amidst the expansive rugged gorges.  You can also access the beach via a track from the car park and we noticed a few locals enjoying a swim at this sheltered swimming beach.  The cliff faces were multiple layers of rock which were quite distinctive and also varied in colours, making it quite stunning.   The car park was also solid rock from the rocks around the base of the cliff faces. 

Pot Alley

 

Next along the coastal cliff drives was Eagle Gorge.  The views from Eagle Gorge Lookout were stunning and you could wander down to a delightful beach in the tranquil depths of the gorge.  The trailhead for the Birgurda Trail also begins at Eagle Gorge.  Avid hikers can take in the entire coastal cliff area on the this 8km trail.

The eight kilometre Bigurda Trail hugs the coastline between Eagle Gorge and Natural Bridge, providing stunning coastal views.  You can walk all or part of this trail as it passes other popular lookout spots at Shellhouse & Grandstand Rock Gorge and Island Rock.  We did not have a spare three or four hours that it would take to walk this trail so we just drove into each of these natural wonders by car.

The walk out to the Shellhouse

Grandstand

Our last drive in led us to three different locations, Island Rock, Natural Bridge and Shell and Grandstand. The first we checked out was Grandstand and Shellhouse.  There are lovely coastal views to see here, accessed via a short walk along a path. This isn't as stunning as some of the other coastal gorges, but to us it was still very pretty, with expansive views from high above the ocean. The formation of the rocks looks like a massive natural grandstand, hence the name.

It was whilst there, we were given a great surprise as apart from admiring the lovely coastal views, what else did we see? Whales! Humpbacks!
The best 'performance' of the whales was near Shell House and Grandstand lookout, where one of them appeared to be having a great frolic in the water, giving a great exhibition of breaching out of the water.

 

 

Looking out to Island Rock

Island Rock

 The Natural Bridge and Island Rock lookouts are accessed by well constructed paths making it an easy site for anyone to visit. Apart from the wonder of the natural arch, the raging seas crashing up against the rugged Kalbarri cliffs is reason enough to spend time there.  The cliffs show their trademark stripes revealing a fascinating geological history. The Island Rock is a striking feature akin to the 12 apostles and hints at the eventual fate of the natural bridge.

 The Natural Bridge and Island Rock lookouts are accessed by well constructed paths making it an easy site for anyone to visit. Apart from the wonder of the natural arch, the raging seas crashing up against the rugged Kalbarri cliffs is reason enough to spend time there.  The cliffs show their trademark stripes revealing a fascinating geological history. The Island Rock is a striking feature akin to the 12 apostles and hints at the eventual fate of the natural bridge

 That night we once again sought the shelter of the camp kitchen to have dinner together and shared the space with other campers. It's always a great camaraderie when this happens. Talking to our fellow campers is something we all enjoy and it's also a way to get useful tips for places to stay and things to see told by people who've just come from the direction we're headed.