Greetings from the emus

After we arrived in Monkey Mia late in the evening and went straight to sleep after dinner, we slept in the next morning. At 5.30 am I was woken up by three emus in front of our tent. They picked around in our garbage and tried to get our leftovers. It took a while to get rid of the emus because they are very stubborn and not afraid of people.

Then I went back into the tent to get some sleep. At 8 am I finally got up. In daylight we could then look at the campground. This was very modern. The kitchen and the bathroom were very clean and also modernly furnished. We could already see the sea from our tents. We felt super comfortable there.

After a long shower we went straight to the beach. Although it was quite windy and partly cloudy, we were still impressed by the turquoise water. Monkey Mia consists only of the beach and the campground. But because there are also resorts, restaurants and a pool on the campground, the campground already feels like a small village.

Meeting all kinds of animals

We walked a little along the beach and were able to watch pelicans there. We also looked at the souvenir shops. After that we went back to the camp kitchen and had breakfast there. After a round of Skipo we went to the beach again.

This time we could also observe a starfish in the water. We then spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing on the beach and at the campground. In the evening, just before the sun went down, we went to the beach again. We were then able to observe sea turtles at the jetty.

There were even several turtles that weren’t even that small. Again and again the turtles appeared and then disappeared again. It was fun to look out for the turtles for a while to photograph them. Not only were the turtles incredibly interesting, also the sunset over Monkey Mia was very beautiful.

We then went back to the campground and started preparing our dinner in the camp kitchen. Since the pasta and the pesto were completely sold out in Carnarvon, we will soon be making spaghetti with tomato sauce. After dinner we stayed in the kitchen for a while before we went to sleep later.

The animal pic of the day

We spent the next morning in the kitchen at the campground. To keep boredom at bay, we played a game in the afternoon: Who took the best animal photo by 8 pm? Since there were a lot of animals in the wild here in Monkey Mia, the game wasn’t that difficult. The only challenge was to take a good photo.

At around 1 pm we went our separate ways for a few hours to take the perfect animal photo. When I left the campground and went to the beach, I could directly see dolphins in the water. I watched them for a while and took countless photos. Unfortunately, the dolphins didn’t actually show up, but they did come very close to the beach once.

When I finally walked further along the beach, I could also see a tiger shark in the water. However, this was gone faster than I could grab my camera. I then shot a few photos before I went back to the campground. After a short break there I went to the beach again. The dolphins had disappeared in the meantime, but there were a few turtles on the beach again that I was able to take some good photos of. I was also able to take some photos of a pelican.

A chilled afternoon

As soon as I was back in the camp kitchen, Mathis came back from his tour. We then talked about our afternoon and showed each other our animal photos. However, we have not chosen a winner.

Towards evening we went to the beach together again. There we wanted to watch turtles again. A few turtles came to the beach again, but they were gone quickly.

So we walked back to the campsite along the beach and cooked in the kitchen there. Preparing food in a kitchen is a lot more relaxed than cooking on a gas stove at the campsite.

Minigolf at Monkey Mia

We spent our fourth morning in Monkey Mia relaxed at the campsite. After breakfast we decided to play a round of mini golf, as there is a small mini golf course on the campground. I didn’t win after a total of four rounds, but it was still a lot of fun.

In the afternoon I went for a walk alone on the beach. We then spent most of the afternoon in the kitchen again, playing cards and chatting.

In the evening Mathis and I went to the beach again. Monkey Mia is absolutely gorgeous, especially when the sun goes down in the evening. As every evening in Australia, the sunset is always very impressive. Finally we went back to the camp kitchen and had dinner there.

Exploring the little lagoon

The next morning we packed up our car and drove towards Denham. The first time we drove this way in daylight. So we could finally enjoy the fantastic view of the water.

Before we drove into Denham, we first stopped at a small lagoon. The water there was fantastically beautiful. We also drove a bit along the beach with our car. When we finally entered the road to Denham we stopped again at a small river that connects the sea with the lagoon.

From there we drove to Denham. I really liked the waterfront promenade, but the rest of the place wasn’t really spectacular. We then considered whether we wanted to stay one night in Denham. However, we quickly agreed that we wanted to go back to Monkey Mia. We just like the beach and the campground there so much that we can’t get away from there.

Visiting the famous Shell Beach

But since we only had early noon, we didn’t want to go straight back to Monkey Mia but first to Shell Beach. We didn’t stay there too long though. We thought the beach was nice, but we had higher expectations.

From Shell Beach we drove back to Denham to shop there. Unfortunately, in Denham are only overpriced supermarkets, but we wanted to cook something good for dinner. If we have a kitchen with a stove, microwave and oven, we must take advantage of it. After a long search in the small supermarket, we finally decided to make a bolognese sauce ourselves and cook spaghetti in the evening.

After our shopping we drove back to Monkey Mia as it was already late in the afternoon.

Arrived in Money Mia, we first set up our tents and then went to the kitchen to cook there. After dinner we went to bed pretty quickly because we were pretty exhausted.

Another chilled day in Monkey Mia

fter breakfast the next morning, we packed up the roof tent and made our way back to Denham. Since we had already extended another night, we wanted to buy something to eat again for the evening. We still had a lot of pasta in the car, but we wanted to take advantage of the kitchen with all sorts of utensils.

So we drove to Denham, ran some errands there and bought potatoes for dinner. After that we made our way back to Monkey Mia because we wanted to spend more time on the beach there.

In the afternoon each of us did our own thing. While Mathis was swimming in the sea, I went for a walk on the beach. I walked a bit further away from the campground down the coast. Unfortunately I couldn’t see any special animals on my discovery tour. In the afternoon we both returned to the campground.

In the evening we started cooking. We made potato wedges ourselves from the potatoes we bought at Denham.

After dinner it was already dark. Since we come further south, it gets a little colder at night as soon as the sun goes down. So we put on our thick jackets and went to the beach again to watch the starry sky there. In the end we went back at 9 pm because I was getting tired.

Loosing the Mini Golf game again

The next morning we extended our stay in Monkey Mia again. We just couldn’t get away from this beautiful place.

After breakfast and a round of Skipo we decided to play mini golf again. We played five rounds in total, but I kept losing.

In the meantime it was early afternoon and we went back to the camp kitchen. Because we have so much time, it sometimes happens that we spend our time just sitting on the campground. Then when we’re not playing card games or talking, we’re engaged in other ways. While I use this time to edit as many of my pictures as possible and to write blog posts, Mathis started to learn Spanish.

But that afternoon we also decided that it was about time to travel further down the coast.

Our last sunset in Monkey Mia

So after spending our afternoon in the camping kitchen, we went to the beach one last time just before sunset. There we walked along the same path that I walked down the coast the day before. During our little walk we could then watch how the sun slowly went down over the dunes.

After our walk we started to cook our dinner. After dinner we sat together in the kitchen, talked and played cards together again.

My first drone shots

The next morning, after getting up, we packed our tents together. Before we left, I went to the beach and finally let my drone fly, which I had already bought in Sydney. It was the first drone footage I took of this trip. Of course, we were both super excited about the recordings and I have to admit that recording with the drone is a lot more fun than I expected at the beginning.

Around 11 am we packed our last things together and finally left Monkey Mia. Before we made our way to Kalbarri National Park, we stopped again at the river at the small lagoon in Denham. There I let the drone fly again and was able to take really nice pictures.

We then wanted to let the drone fly again at the lagoon itself, but it was not allowed there. On our way to Kalbarri Nationalpark we stopped again at Hamelin Pool. We didn’t find this really spectacular, which is why we drove on very quickly.

On the way south we could see how the landscape has changed completely compared to the Northern Territory of Australia. At the roadside grew a lot of green trees, including conifers. We liked the road so much that we would have preferred never to have reached our destination. Especially with the slowly setting sun, the path looked particularly beautiful.

If you would like to know what we experienced during our time in Kalbarri Nationalpark, please read my next blogpost Camping days in Kalbarri Nationalpark – Australia Travel Diary.