TripRoundUnder

After making it across the desert and scrub of the Nullarbor, you better believe it was a relief when the scenery changed to the blue water and white sandy beaches of Esperance!

We had booked an Airbnb to treat ourselves after roughing it since leaving Adelaide, but for our first night we decided on a coastal camp at Quaggi Beach, just West of Esperance.

This was an awesome spot, complete with a classic camp local who had been at the site for the last 4 months and was definitely up for a chat! We managed to soak up a bit of sun and marvelled at the special colour of water that only Esperance can provide.

From here we headed back into Esperance to our Airbnb and Lauren couldn’t wait to get at the oven to do some cooking and baking! We also stretched our legs and went for a walk to check out some of Esperance’s famous local beaches. This included watching a tourist ignoring the obvious massive rips at West Beach and almost being swept out into the ocean. Thankfully he managed to struggle back to shore.

We also managed to spend a lovely day body surfing and relaxing on the sand at Twilight Beach, without feeling the need to copy some other swimmers in venturing out to the rock islands in the bay. In hindsight, we’re glad of this, as we have heard other travellers talk about great white sharks circling the island, trapping adventurous swimmers from making it back to land! This feeling of shark danger being a very real threat was a constant in the Esperance region, with shark siting and alarm systems installed at almost every single beach. In saying that, mum and dad, we have not seen sharks while swimming. Touch wood…

After spending a few days in the luxury of civilisation and getting more than a few loads of washing done, it was back to troopy life. We had managed to score ourselves a last minute cancellation booking at the famous Lucky Bay Campground in the Cape Le Grande National Park. This was quite a feat, as it was booked out for the next month and a half! We now had a few days to kill before our booking, so we decided to head East and camp at the surprisingly hard to pronounce Membinup Beach.

Membinup is one of those places that would be absolutely stunning in good weather. However, we had run into a patch of rain and wind and this dampened things, if you pardon the pun. We also had a lightning storm, which gave Lauren some amusement in Steve’s crouched running technique to avoid, in his head, being struck. In saying all of this, our tucked away campsite in the dunes was a great spot to shelter from the elements and we even managed to have a campfire and make pizza!

Membinup also takes the distinction of being one of the most frustrating fishing locations we have been to. Steve put in an absolute truckload of time and energy into fishing what looked like fishy waters, but there really didn’t seem to be much around besides a singular tommie who must have felt sorry for him.

It was now time for Lucky Bay and we were very happy that the stormy weather that had plagued us at Membinup seemed to have passed on. We even had access to “hot” showers and although a busy campground, it gave perfect access to the surrounding area and it’s amazing beaches.

We had a great day of fishing and beach relaxation at Hellfire Beach, one of our favourites so far on this trip and Steve managed to get a decent feed of Tommies for a deserved meal of fish and chips! Again, we marvelled at the picturesque colour of the water!

Lauren also managed to casually fit in a long distance walk into the day and the views from the rocky coastline were magical.

The next day, we ventured to Little Hellfire Bay around the corner from the main beach. We brought our diving/snorkeling gear and had a welcoming pod of dolphins relaxing in the bay, which really gave the day a special feeling.

It was perfect diving conditions, with a protected bay and crystal clear water making it a very special adventure. This was Laurens first real snorkel of the trip and it was very much worth the walk to the bay!

Our time in the Esperance region was now over, but rest assured, we will be back!