Camping in Gladstone Bay

Roadtrip to Exmouth, Winderabandi Point & Kalbarri – Part I

After weeks of carefully planning and preparing, we’re finally on the road. Our destination: Exmouth, 15 hours north of Perth. I’m usually not one for 5 am starts but we really want to make tracks to get to our first stop, Gladstone Bay Camping, 800 km from Perth, before sunset. Liam had already packed the bulkier items into our small aluminium boat which Australians affectionately call a tinny and strapped the latter down the night before, and after a quick coffee stop, we’re finally on our way at 5:45 am.

There is something beautiful and exciting about driving into the sunrise, mist hanging over the now greener meadows. Western Australia finally got a decent amount of rain over the last weeks. After driving a couple of hours, we’re actually surprised to see how green the landscape has become. The drive is long but easy – not much traffic and a straight highway number 1. Most traffic is actually returning from north; many caravans are coming towards us on their way back at this end of school holidays weekend. We’re on cruise control and making steady progress with only a couple of longer stops at the roadhouses (fuel stations often featuring groceries, food / restaurants and sometimes even overnight stay), where we’re filling up on fuel and coffee. Colourful peacocks are hanging around the benches of our first roadhouse stopover, and we’re even spotting a couple of pretty albino peacocks. Other than that, we also see kangaroos, emus, goats and sheep along our ride, as we’re shuffling our downloaded music on my phone and The Blindboy Podcast which my friend Marlene has previously recommended to me. Entertainment matters on such a long drive, and this guy randomly chatting about naked mole rats is a nice change to the music.

At 3 pm, we already get to the turning of Gladstone Campground. Another 6 km down a solid dirt track and we’re here. The campsite is first come first serve and we were a bit worried initially about not getting a spot but there’s lots of space. It’s nice and quiet, featuring flushable toilets as well as an artisan camp shower. We set up camp, our 4-man tent facing the ocean and I go for a wander to the broken pier that is sticking out into the ocean. Liam has rented a fridge, which can be powered by a solar blanked; this is now coming in handy with the sun blazing from a blue sky.

It’s not overly hot though, so we start our fire as soon as the sun sets and enjoy some bangers (sausages), potatoes (which we pre-boiled at home so they bake quicker on the fire) and beans. Stargazing is a treat in itself in this part of the world: With no light pollution, the sky is dazzling with stars and the Milky Way is clearly visible. We spot three shooting stars that night before we turn in.

The cold and wind chill hasn’t subsided when we get up the next morning. While Liam is going for a run, I’m making a tea and we have eggs, bacon and mushroom for breakfast (which is to become the classic on this trip) when he returns. I’m so glad that I can finally just laze around with a book. As far as wildlife spotting goes, we witness my first ever caterpillar parade on the campground, with lots of fluffy caterpillars forming one long line (maybe as a defence mechanism?) to cross the road.

Early afternoon, we decide it’s time to explore the area. The wind shatters our plans to drop the boat into the ocean so we opt for a hike instead. As far as hikes go, this must be the bleakest one I’ve ever done, for all we can see is red sand, some scrappy bushes, the ocean and lots of animal bones. It does feel like we say in German “the arse of the world”.

After around 6 km of silence, aside from a bird that we have been hearing a lot on this site, which sounds like a bit of an electric signal of three notes, we head back and get the car to collect some firewood. Where we’ve not seen any sign of life on our hike, we now encounter an entire herd of goats big and small, roaming around the barren land. We end the day with another barbecue dinner, this time chicken, potatoe and veg, on the hot plate over the fire and some campfire beers and music.

In the morning, we pack up, brave the cold but very invigorating shower with ocean views and say goodbye to Gladstone – a special place worth experiencing for those who just want to relax.