sandy cape
What was a free camp, but now a low-cost campground, made the perfect place to sink our feet back into the sand after staying in the big smoke for a week!
Before we arrived at Sandy Cape, we spent a jam-packed week in Perth after our stay at Busselton. This was a place to catch up on haircuts, car servicing and celebrating a birthday. This included a day exploring Rottness Island to meet the famous, and very cute, little quokkas. Nothing beats a birthday kiss on the cheek by a sweet quokka! We stayed at Karrinyup Waters which was more like a resort. The service was faultless, we were even given a buggy ride to go and pre-select our site on arrival! We did visit Fremantle, locally known as Freo, which was only a 30min drive away. A great place to go out for dinner and check out the Fremantle Markets. The Beach Bus along the way has been dubbed the best acai bowl of the trip so far from our eldest warrior. It felt like our time here was over in the blink of an eye, but an enjoyable time was had.
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Once we did leave Perth and started making our drive up the coast, we stopped at The Pinnacles to explore such an interesting natural phenomenon. Kwong-kan is the traditional name for The Pinnacles and means ‘sandy place’. The Dreaming story explains how young warriors were told not to go to Kwong-kan by the Yued Elders as it was taboo. The young warriors disobeyed the Elders, entered Kwong-kan and then were swallowed up by the sands. The pinnacles are the hands and fingers of these warriors emerging from the sand. It is interesting to read how the pinnacles have scientists challenging different theories of how they were formed. From weathering and erosion to calcium accumulation, from remnants of limestone to preservation of tree casts, it truly is a scientific and geographical mystery. It was pretty exciting to visit here as it was a symbol for us that we were beginning our journey north up the west coast of Western Australia!
It is in Nambung National Park so you do require a pass or pay the entry fee at the gate. The traditional custodians are the Yued people. As you enter the Discovery Centre, there are words written in language by Yued Elders on charred poles to welcome visitors and acknowledge the cultural and environmental role that fire has in the Australian landscape. There is plenty of caravan parking where you can choose to either stay hitched and walk the 1.5km trail or unhitch and drive the 4.5km track. We drove and didn’t regret one bit of unhitching! also be sure to put ‘Pinnacles Desert Discovery Centre’ into Google Maps as it did suggest some pretty creative routes.
You might build up an appetite like we did, so drove another 15mins to Cervantes to visit The Lobster Shack for lunch. Our little seafood lover was living his best life between the buckets of fresh prawns and the lobster tacos! Just keep an eye out for those pesky seagulls! They are quick!
It is in Nambung National Park so you do require a pass or pay the entry fee at the gate. The traditional custodians are the Yued people. As you enter the Discovery Centre, there are words written in language by Yued Elders on charred poles to welcome visitors and acknowledge the cultural and environmental role that fire has in the Australian landscape. There is plenty of caravan parking where you can choose to either stay hitched and walk the 1.5km trail or unhitch and drive the 4.5km track. We drove and didn’t regret one bit of unhitching! also be sure to put ‘Pinnacles Desert Discovery Centre’ into Google Maps as it did suggest some pretty creative routes.
You might build up an appetite like we did, so drove another 15mins to Cervantes to visit The Lobster Shack for lunch. Our little seafood lover was living his best life between the buckets of fresh prawns and the lobster tacos! Just keep an eye out for those pesky seagulls! They are quick!
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Okay, the part you have been waiting to read about. Sandy Cape! Our time was wasted away with beach walks, sand-boarding, swimming, exploring the 4WD tracks and watching the rain fall off the awning. We were introduced to the infamous Western Australian winds, had a patch of rain, and enjoyed calm, sunny mornings. We absolutely activated chill mode.
You do need to book a site at this campground now. The weekend was busy but by midday Sunday, the campground was quiet. It cost us $25 per night and the ranger was regularly doing the rounds. We stayed in the main campground on Site 62. The dune was right behind us and our awning was protected by the south-southeasterly winds. Site 93 had ocean views if you wanted to snag that one and comfortable with reversing on a slight incline. The Sandy Cape North Bush campground looked mint with some sites overlooking the water but these are unallocated sites that are accessible via a 4x4 track. Vans will make it but be aware there are some rocky and sandy parts. Sandy Cape South Bush was narrow and hectic with a scratch-fest of a track. If it was us, we wouldn’t be booking into that campground.
You do need to book a site at this campground now. The weekend was busy but by midday Sunday, the campground was quiet. It cost us $25 per night and the ranger was regularly doing the rounds. We stayed in the main campground on Site 62. The dune was right behind us and our awning was protected by the south-southeasterly winds. Site 93 had ocean views if you wanted to snag that one and comfortable with reversing on a slight incline. The Sandy Cape North Bush campground looked mint with some sites overlooking the water but these are unallocated sites that are accessible via a 4x4 track. Vans will make it but be aware there are some rocky and sandy parts. Sandy Cape South Bush was narrow and hectic with a scratch-fest of a track. If it was us, we wouldn’t be booking into that campground.
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We spent three nights at Sandy Cape before we continued our trip up north to Kalbarri. Froth levels were building as we had been excited to venture up the west coast for so long. Stay tuned!
Peace + love,
Peace + love,