Next day we go exploring in the ute along the miles of sand tracks. First stop: Elles Beach, named after the so-called super-model Elle McPherson (remember kids: walking around in underwear on TV is not a skill) who used to fly out to Coral Bay in her Lear jet & hide out at her private campsite here. We have a quick snorkel but there's still quite a storm swell up & we head off to Maggie's Beach, then back around to the "family beach", which is where the station owners have their houses. All of it is pristine, wild and breathtaking.
At Maggie's beach, we spend hours watching a humpback whale out past the reef line; she's calving, and hangs upside down in the water with her tail sticking straight up in the air. All around her are about a dozen humpbacks, breaching and splashing about, protecting her from tiger sharks. A young family pull up nearby, so I lift their little boy up to look through our binoculars. It's an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime sight.
Each day we go rambling around in the ute, exploring the beaches, snorkelling and fishing, then head back to the cottage to fry up our fish and read on the verandah. We see heaps of big green turtles, parrot fish, whales and tuna. Kangaroos are everywhere, grazing alongside the station goats & sheep. Birds visit the cottage each morning - the two falcons, some galahs, honeyeaters, finches. The sunrises and sunsets are spectacular, and the coastline is turquoise, crystal clear water, protected by the fringing reef. One day it will get mangled into a national park with signs, paved roads and "don't do this" signs everywhere, but for now it is still a quiet, isolated place where you can feel as if you are in the wild.
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| Duncan's Drive In Snorkel Safari |
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| Humpback whale calving |
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| Gypsy the ute dog eating through the canvas |
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| 50 kilometres of this - all to ourselves |
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| Run roo run, Duncan's got a gun |
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