Day 64 Dampier and The North West Project

Today we drove to Dampier to follow the Red Dog Trail. Red Dog was a famous kelpie and cattle dog cross born in Paraburdoo in 1971.

Red Dog was no ordinary pet. He belonged to no single person, yet was embraced by an entire region. During the Pilbara mining boom of the 1970s, when towns like Dampier and Karratha were rapidly growing, Red Dog became a symbol of community and companionship.

His closest companion was John Stazzonelli, a Hamersley Iron bus driver. Red Dog often rode with John, accompanying miners on journeys between the port and iron-ore sites. After John was killed in a motorcycle accident in 1975, Red Dog returned to the road, traveling across the Pilbara and beyond.

Famous for hitchhiking, Red Dog would wait beside highways until drivers stopped, sometimes stepping onto the road to make sure they did. He rode comfortably in passenger seats and seemed to know exactly where he wanted to go.

His popularity became legendary. Red Dog was made an honorary member of the Transport Workers' Union, had a bank account, and even enjoyed an open tab at the local canteen. Locals fed him, cared for him, and treated him as one of their own.

When Red Dog died in 1979 after ingesting poison, the loss was felt across the northwest. Today, a bronze statue at the entrance to Dampier stands as a tribute to the wandering dog who gave the Pilbara a shared story and a sense of home.
We followed the trail through the town along the beachfront and around the port.









These ships seemed extra large, but AI suggested: Ships of this specific category—typically around 290–300 metres long and up to 50 metres wide—are standard visitors to Newcastle. In fact, this vessel size class is globally referred to as a Newcastlemax.

Trade Context: While the photo shows a bulk terminal (like those in major iron ore ports like Dampier or Port Hedland), Newcastle operates similar massive infrastructure at the Carrington and Kooragang Island coal terminals to load vessels of this exact scale.



Next we drove to the North West Shelf (NWS) Gas Project Visitors Centre. The North West Shelf (NWS) Gas Project is Australia’s largest and one of the world's most significant liquefied natural gas (LNG) developments. Operated by Woodside Energy, the complex processes offshore hydrocarbons from the Carnarvon Basin at the onshore Karratha Gas Plant on the Burrup Peninsula (Murujuga) near Karratha. An absolutely huge operation covering about 200 hectares.





We then drove to Hearson's Cove and went back again about 1 hour later and the difference in tide levels was amazing.





Our next stop was Nganjarli - Deep Gorge

The first recreation area to be developed in the national park you are able to view an array of rock engravings, shell middens, grinding stones and other cultural artefacts, with some estimated to be more than 47,000 years old. The engravings show human images, extinct animal species such as megafauna and thylacines (Tasmanian tiger), as well as existing avian, marine and land animals. These engravings have deep meaning for Ngarda-Ngarli, providing a tangible link to stories, customs and knowledge of their land and resources, connecting them to the events and people of the past and their beliefs today.


These piles of rock looked like the land may have been mined. However, they are the work of nature!




Driving back to Karratha, we saw this salt pan. With a different background, it reminded us of snow!

This little guy was as curious about us as we were about him.