Ningaloo - What to do?
Submitted: Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009 at 16:53
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Charlie & Helen
Hello ExplorOz,
My wife and I are planning a short camping trip to
Ningaloo mid April and as we've never camped anywhere in Oz before we've a whole heap of questions...
We'd like to stay on the beach at one of the stations but as we aren't able to leave
Perth until
Easter Sunday I assume it'll be pretty busy - Is it possible to reserve a site & if not will we always be able to 'squeeze in' somewhere or is it better to book ahead at one of the paysites? Does anyone have any recommendations for both kinds, on or as close to the beach as poss. - Just the 2 of us, mainly into snorkelling, fishing, relaxing and getting away from it all. We're not that
well set up but can borrow a chem-loo from a friend and will hire a gas compatible fridge/freezer and already have the other basic gear. We'll only be there for a week (plus 2 days travel either way) and will be driving a Nissan X-trail.
Thanks for any help, hopefully this'll be a success and we'll get better kitted out and sort a longer trip next time.
Cheers
Charlie.
Reply By: wendys - Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009 at 18:34
Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009 at 18:34
Do some research into the National Park campgrounds in
Cape Range NP, around from
Exmouth. Will be quieter than somewhere like
Coral Bay area. There are several small
camp areas, some only take a few campers, some take more like 20. We spent a couple of weeks at the Mesa
campground - it allows generators, but not all do. They have pit
toilets. We fished, walked on beach. Some are good for snorkellers I think.
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Reply By: MEMBER - Darian (SA) - Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009 at 19:58
Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009 at 19:58
Coral Bay is a tourism mecca and as such ....
well....... we moved on pretty quickly. While there are other
places to access that fabulous reef, we chose
Cape Range Nat Pk and were not disappointed. At
the entrance to the park, we wasted about 4 minutes trying to get a site inside the park and then scooted back up the road to Yardie
Homestead. Tons of camping room there for unpowered setups. From there, we made our daily trips into the park for a swim with those beautiful fish. The visitor info / interpretation centre is great too.....and from the main road there, you can even see some prehistoric beach lines in the nearby range's foothills. The reef in that area seems closest to the land around South Mandu beach.
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Reply By: The Rambler( W.A.) - Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009 at 20:21
Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009 at 20:21
As Wendys said , a good place would be
Cape Range Nat. park where there are quite a few camping spots very close to the beach.They would be fully taken over
easter but since you are leaving
Perth on
Easter sunday you probably would overnight on the way and be there Monday when a lot of campers would have left.It is a very nice spot and snorkeling at
turquoise bay (no camping) is highly rccomended as the reef comes in very close and the water is crystal clear. I would avoid
Coral Bay as it would be fully booked at that time and not what you need if you want to relax on your own.
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Reply By: Bushed-Tracker - Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009 at 20:31
Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009 at 20:31
Cape Range has a few fairly small but great sites - highly recommended. Also
Ningaloo Station - lot more room. I dont think you can reserve sites at either place. Great Place and excellent snorkelling.
We drove in and out of
coral Bay as soon as we had shopped and fuelled - very touristy.
Cheers B-T
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Reply By: The Yeti - Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009 at 20:51
Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009 at 20:51
Ningaloo Station is bloody brilliant, should still only be about $40.00 per week . Plenty of spots right on the beach, must have porta loo, bit rough sometimes getting in, and usually soft sand over the dunes to the beach but
well worth the effort, one of the best spots we have been to, and now thankfully rescued from DEC takeovers. You dont have to worry about booking but can ring the station if you want, probably still be a bit windy up that way then though.
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Reply By: fisho64 - Wednesday, Feb 25, 2009 at 01:34
Wednesday, Feb 25, 2009 at 01:34
Waroora station or
Ningaloo station
Warrora is less than an hour from
Coral Bay.
Skip
Exmouth and anything around from there-is anyone here trying to say that
Exmouth and surrounds are not touristy?
If so they are living in fairy land.
Coral Bay is touristy but at least its on the beach, and you dont need to start your car while you are there if you dont want to.
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