Exmouth is 1365 kms north of Perth, and when Peter and I started organizing the Rally we were expecting about 30 people to attend, so we were very pleased to have 75 register for the event. We had WA members from Albany to Broome and Nev travelled all the way from Warwick in Qld to attend.
The early birds arrived on Thursday and the majority were in Exmouth by Friday night. Peter chose Exmouth Cape Holiday Park and it was the perfect venue, with a large undercover bbq area which joined onto an indoor camp kitchen. The camp kitchen has won the best camp kitchen award in Australia for the last 2 years. The commercial fridges and freezer were perfect for our needs.
We had a casual byo bbq on Friday night with stories of emus, locust plagues and young backpacker girls swimming at the Karajini Gorges being the main topics of conversation.
Next morning it was up early for bacon and egg on a delicious freshly baked roll before heading off to the now deserted US Communications base. Peter was stationed at Exmouth as a Federal Policeman, so was able to give us a detailed description of how the base used to be. It was amazing what facilities the Americans had on their base, with a swimming pool, ten pin bowling alley, café bar & grill and a full sized baseball field. This was in addition to single, married and officer quarters. It is a shame to see them all empty and neglected. It would make a great resort one day.
Next stop on the ride was to look at the huge radio antennas. These are spread out over a few kilometers and the tallest was over 400 m. They are used to communicate with submarines and intercept communications from friends and to spy on the not so friendly. From the radio antennas we rode through Cape Howe National Park to the Visitors Centre and then on to Yardie Creek for a stroll along the beach to where the creek meets the ocean.
On the trip back to town we stopped at the aptly named Turquoise Bay to snorkel on Ningaloo Reef and be amazed by the corals and myriad of brightly colored tropical fish. Some inquisitive turtles joined us in the warm crystal clear water, much to the delight of some of the ladies snorkeling. It was then back to the caravan park for a feast of delicious fresh Exmouth King prawns, (thanks to our sponsors Shannons Insurance) followed by bbq packs and salad finished off with an icy pole. It was good to sit and chat amongst ourselves and with backpackers from all over the world.
The next morning we had planned to visit some canyons in the local mountain range, but with a bit of rain overnight we were worried the dirt road may have been too dangerous. We sent out a 4WD scouting party and they came back with the news that the road was closed. With some drizzle still about, most opted to relax around the park, or take the short ride into town for coffee and cake.
It was another night of prawns and steak, with Peter handing out plates of prawns to everyone, much to the delight of Ulyssians, backpackers and grey nomads alike.
Most people headed off early Monday, with half a dozen or so opting for another lazy day before leaving on Tuesday. We headed off to Quobba and Bush Bay for a few days before going back to the cold weather in Perth
It was a great weekend with excellent food, friends and location.
Looking forward to seeing you all at next year’s rally in Broome.
Chris Glover
#25012