Day 21 - Fish

• Denham
• 33°c

We got up super early to try out this spot just out of Denham.

After trying for a while they decided that nothing was going to be caught on this beach today, so we packed up and headed back for breakfast.

Decided to try their luck on the jetty

They are both absolutely loving it, as is Steve!

Oscar caught the first fish and believes that it doesn't matter where you are or how many days you go out, Skipper pays $5 to the person who catches the first fish!! Better start saving Skipper!

She's a real fishergirl, eww! Much better for them on the jetty, could just drop their line over the side although they are both practicing casting their lines and are getting really good at it!

Day 20 - Little Lagoon

• Denham
• 33°c

We spied this yesterday on our way to Monkey Mia and thought it would be a good place to lay out a blanket and throw in a line.

Bit cold for Oscar & Mummy, but Ella & Daddy wanted to  fish!

No fish for dinner tonight but we did come across another spot we might try out tomorrow

When we were learning about The Big Bang Oscar told us about the Rainbow Serpent from the Aboriginal Dreamtime, so we read the story and they tried their hand at Dot Painting. They both did awesome painting and had a lot of fun too!

Like the Tooth Fairy said, it was hanging in there by a thread! We needed our Ky to pull it out!

Day 19 - Monkey Mia

• Monkey Mia
• 24°c

So looking forward to going to Monkey Mia, ever since seeing Mimi McPherson advertise it many years ago (yes Niks i'm laughing!) We got there about 10:30am & were a little apprehensive as Steve had been told by our next van neighbour that you have to get there really early like 7am! Well that was never gonna happen and we were relieved when the ranger at the entrance told us that often the first session isn't the best as it's usually packed and the dolphins aren't always in that early.

Now i gotta tell you this post has lots & lots of photos and surprisingly they're not all of dolphins!

I think these are my new favourite animals, they are just amazing!

and they are like the size of a child, they are huge!!

and here they come, what we came to see

We were lucky enough that all five of the dolphins came in to feed, and were given a bit of inside info from a lady staying at the resort to stick close to the pier.  Both Ella & Steve were chosen to feed the dolphins, they both got to feed Nicky the pregnant dolphin.  This meant they had to go out deeper due to her big belly! that was so awesome for both of them. Steve had never done that before so he was chuffed. Occy wasn't keen to do it so he wasn't bothered. But boy oh boy was he bothered by the sea hare that looked like a giant slug! It was about a metre away and i think he spent more time watching that to make sure it didn't come near him than he did watching the dolphins.

This pelican wasn't missing out on a photo opportunity and swam in front of the dolphins to make sure he was seen!

This guy waited for someone to turn the tap on so he could have a drink! So cute. He then stood there looking at it as though he was working out how to turn it on himself.

Poser!  He flapped down the stairs at a woman that was coming towards the tap!

I feel the need to watch Storm Boy!

Choc Milkshake, Iced Choc, 2 Coffees & a muffin = $26!

Daddy taking a nap during recess, Oscar eating as usual and Ella practicing her number facts.
The visitor centre was really great and Ella chose a heap of worksheets for her and Oscar about Monkey Mia that were really interesting.

Day 18 - Ocean Park

• Denham
• 23°c

There are quite a few little inlets heading up to Denham.

Now these were a little different to what we were used to seeing!

Ocean Park Aquarium - love the bird nest

Really interesting and very informative guide.

There were lots of different species of sharks, they weren't very hungry today.

The turtles were brought to them injured and will stay until they are able to return to the ocean.

We learnt that turtles have an internal compass that will always return them to the beach they hatched on to lay their eggs!

Day 17 - Stromatolites

• Geraldton - Denham
•  405 kms
• 24°c

On the road again, this time in the rain!  First time we've really had any serious rain whilst driving, thankfully it didn't last too long.

A couple of the roadside sights today included wild goats, a big lizard and a tandem bicycle! oh and these really cool looking cubby houses of nature -reminded me of the thing that lived above ground in the back yard on Fraggle Rock!

Our schooling for today was based on the Solar System - Solar Walk on the ipad, very cool and worth a look.

A sign for the "Shell Quarry" & "Stromatolites" caught our eye as we were making our way up the very quiet road to Denham.

The Shell Quarry was amazing it looked like a moonscape or part of an archaeological dig, as though they were halfway through unearthing lost cities.  In the olden days large blocks were cut out and used for building as timber was scarce.  They are as hard as concrete and totally amazing, the shells release a type of calcium in the rain which forms a hard glue like substance when it dries.

The Stromatolites were cool, they are giant living rocks only found in three places on earth! They grow here because the water is twice as salty as normal sea water!

On arrival in Denham we found our caravan park and at first glance weren't all that pleased with our site as we were up quite high and not on the beach.

However after setting up and doing a spot of porching we realised we had a really awesome spot;
great view & somewhat sheltered from the West Coast Wind!  The ground is rock hard! No hammering the pegs in here, had to break out the big boys!

Getting a good vibe, think we'll hang around a few days!

Denham Seaside Village Caravan Park, $51.70 a night, awesome views, power, water, beachfront