FriendlyBrooks

One magnificent sunset after another.

Lance Brooks, loving the West Coast, May 2026

We arrived at Sandy Cape just before sunset. This is a popular bush campground with over 100 sites which were fully booked.  We set up in our allocated spot next to a Perth couple who originally hailed from South Africa. Since we were planning on staying for 3 nights we wanted to put up all our awnings which resulted in encroaching on their land. They were very pleasant about it and it was no problem for them. We had a nice chat with them. Once set up we went onto the beach for sunset drinks and nibbles. The night turned cold and we put on all our warm clothes for bed. My lambskin coat is proving to be a very worthwhile item on this trip.

Lance woke in the dark and went out onto the point to do yoga. It was only 8 degrees (feels like 5) so he was pretty chilly. It was a full moon and he managed to capture some pretty amazing photos. Meanwhile I stayed in our warm cozy bed. Once he was back we breakfasted and chatted with the neighbours and then went for a walk and swim on the beach. There was a lot of seaweed on the beach, which our neighbours said was not usual.

It was approaching lunchtime so we decided to head to the Lobster Shack in Cervantes. This business is huge! The restaurant seats 850 people, but luckily it was not crowded. We got a table overlooking the beach (with more seaweed) and over ordered. We had oysters, a huge bucket of prawns, mussels, Lance had lobster and I had fish and chips (Spanish Mackerel). All washed down with a bottle of prosecco.

Stuffed full we drove around Cervantes, where all the streets are named after Spanish towns. On the way out we stopped at Lake Thetis to view the stromolites, which are rocky structures created by the growth of cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) that trap sediment. They are one of the oldest living creatures on earth.

Next stop was to see more amazing rock features in the area The Pinnacles in Nambung National Park. We had seen photos but the experience outdid our expectations.   The formations are quite unusual, made more interesting by the fact that no one really knows for sure how they were made.  The most plausible to me is that it’s the remnants of a coral reef as the formations are made of limestone. You can take a 1.5km walk or drive a 4.5km loop. We did both taking in the cloud covered sunset and some emus for good measure.

The next day was a relaxing day at Sandy Cape. Lance did his morning yoga session whilst I slept in. We had a late breakfast and then walked to the point for a swim and a chilly  sunbake at the lookout. After lunch we went for a drive on the four wheel drive tracks. We discovered the northern 4×4 camp site which was on yet another beautiful beach which contained some interesting limestone features right on the edge of the sand!  We chatted to a family who were taking three terms off school. Walking back we met an English couple who turned out to be camping in the spot next to us. They were on a short trip to visit their 2 children who live in Australia, one in Sydney and one in Perth. We related well with them as they have almost as great a distance to see their kids as we do!!

It was time to leave this part of the world and continue north. We only had a 2 and a half hour drive so we thought we would easily get to the next campsite before dark. Well of course that was not the case! It was Sunday so we went to Mass after we had packed up the van. Mass was at the convenient time of 10.30 and we expected to be in Geraldton by about 1, have a look around and drive on another  30 minutes or so. So easy!  But Mass was followed by the now obligatory morning tea with the local parishioners and by the time we left Jurien Bay it was after 1. We stopped in Geraldton to buy groceries and didn’t leave until 4.30pm.  We pulled into Coronation Beach, a windsurfing and kite surfing capital, just after 5pm. We set up quickly and ran onto the beach to just watch the sun go down. Coronation Beach was a small campground with about 6 other groups of people there and about 600 mice. We spent the evening making sure that the mice didn’t get in the van. We were successful and put it down to the stategy of spraying eucalyptus oil everywhere, something we had learnt to do to keep the possums at bay in Tasmania.

On Monday we decided to head to Kalbarri, just an hour and a half away, and I booked 4 nights at the Red Bluff Tourist Park that was very highly rated although more expensive than what we are used to paying. Each site has a grassed area full power and water and sump drain and most importantly its own ensuite cubicle with a hot shower, toilet and sink with cupboard storage. Also there was a laundry which we were badly in need of.

Since there was no need to rush out we decided to do some work for a few hours. It had been meant to be a quick overnight stop so we hadn’t even unhooked the van from the car. We both worked using Starlink and our power to its maximum capacity. By about 12 we set off. About 30km up the road we stopped at a lovely little town called Northampton. We looked in the Op Shop and also bought delicious pies and sausage rolls for lunch. The town also had a huge old monastery which Lance was rather taken with.

Onwards we went and pulled in at the beachside town of Horrocks. More than one person had recommended a stop here and we could see why. The beach was lovely. We had a swim here but when we got back in the car we hit a problem. The battery was dead again! This was the third time. We had thought it was the reversing camera that was the problem but we hadn’t used this in weeks. We had the car and van recently serviced so we thought everything should be okay. Admittedly my friend Vic, expert on all things towing and also all things Toyota, had told me to visit an auto electrician. Should have listened!! As always in WA several people immediately came to our aid and whilst we called the RAC to come out, someone had already jump started us. We nervously continued on to Kalbarri in the fading light. The battery was not charging very well but we kept going and about 15 km from town everything suddenly sprung to life. At last we could enjoy the drive in the sunset. We rolled into the caravan park in the dark, unbelievable! We set up and decided to go for a drive around Kalbarri.

As it was already 8pm we decided to have dinner out. But since it was already 8pm this was no easy feat. We’re talking rural WA. 8pm is closing time. Lance is nothing if not persistent and he kept asking in every establishment. Third time lucky we found the Edge Resort and a chef willing to prepare a meal after 8pm. What a find this turned out to be. The chef was an Italian woman who works with her French partner, also a chef. They produce interesting high quality fishes using perfect local produce. If this was any indication Kalbarri was going to be a good place for us Kalbarri

On our first morning in Kalbarri after the usual yoga/sleeping in routine and a leisurely breakfast we explored the town in the light. We also found the highly recommended auto electrician and paid him a visit. He was a friendly chap and also seemed to know what he was talking about as he looked straight at the Anderson plug and found that the earth had blown. Yes he could fix it (and the trailer plug). We had to take the car back the next day. After seeing him we went for a snorkel at Blue Holes and had lunch at Finlay’s which is quite a trendy restaurant. Then I went for a much needed pedicure and leg wax. Lance went for a swim in the river and called his Mum. 

After the pampering we drove back 50km so we could see the Pink Lake. When we had driven past it the night before it was nearly dark and it didn’t look very impressive or pink. In daylight it was magnificent and well worth the trip back.

On the way back to town we stopped at most of the Kalbarri cliff lookouts. We had to miss a couple because they were doing bushfire back burning and closed a couple of roads. Each cliff was named for its feature and we particularly liked Pot Alley.

We got to Red Bluff, which was just above our caravan park, in time for sunset, along with most of the other tourists in town. We could understand why so many people were there – the sunset was beautiful.  After sunset we went back for dinner – roast pork cooked by Lance.

The next morning we both awoke before 6am and drove out to the Skywalk at Kalbarri National Park for the sunrise. The Skywalk juts out over the magnificent Murchison Gorge and the structure itself is almost as amazing as the natural features.  The sunrise light on the rocks was stunning.

After doing the Skywalks (there are 2) we drove  to Nature’s Window about a kilometre away. Here you walk out over a ridgeline to a rock feature that looks like – yes you guessed it, a window. We took the obligatory pictures of us sitting in the window and walked along the start of the 9km Loop track. We decided we might come back the next day and do that, however they suggest you start early to avoid the heat and we had a lobster tour booked for the next morning. We would have to switch things around a bit.

There’s one more feature in the park to visit, Z bend. It was 5km which we drove to but found out it was more than a 1km walk and we were running out of time as we had to get the car to the auto electrician by 9 am. So instead we drove back to town. Lance dropped me at a coffee shop while he dropped the car off and then did some work meetings. I sat in the coffee shop for an hour or so then wandered around the shops. Then I went down to the river fot a swim. By the time Lance was finished it was time to get the car back.

We went back to the caravan park for a while before going on our sunset cliffs boat tour. This tour was great value as we could bring our own drinks and snacks., which  kept the price down, whilst still including the most important thing, the views. The boat left the wharf and went up the rivet to the mouth where we had an exciting exit through the bar in the river mouth over the waves . Once out in the  sea we travelled up the coast past the beautiful features that we had seen the day before. We sat in this setting sun looking at the red cliffs drinking our champagne and eating our snacks. It was a wonderful cruise.

We found out that the same people were running the lobster tour in the morning and they weren’t keen to change our booking. So decision made- we wouldn’t walk the 9km Loop track but we would go back and do the Z bend track in the morning after the lobster tour. When we got off the boat we walked along the river in the fading light – magic. Dinner was chicken curry, cooked by me, using the butter chicken paste bought at the Easter Show.

The next morning we got up early again to be at the wharf for a 7am departure. The tour involved visiting 12 different pots in the ocean and at each stop they pulled in the pots to see what was caught.  At each pot we also got a bit of a lesson about lobstering and the history of the area. It was extremely interesting and we managed to pull in quite a lot of lobsters. As part of the tour guests were served a lobster roll each and two small lobster tails with different butters on them. Unfortunately as I am allergic I didn’t get to partake in any of this but Lance said they were all delicious. At the end of the tour we also all got to keep one of the lobsters that was pulled in so Lance managed to score two lobsters as part of his tour as well as the meal and we both had a great couple of hours out on the water.

After the fantastic lobster tour, we went back out to Kalbarri National Park and went straight to the Skywalk again, took a few more photos and had a delicious Devonshire tea for breakfast/morning tea and Lance also chatted to one of the Aboriginal owners of the area who runs the store.  There was some beautiful artwork in the store, unfortunately not for sale.

After this we went to Z bend where we walked to the lookout and looked at the interesting area where the river takes a zigzag through the gorge. We then walk down the trail to the  river’s edge that is described as challenging.  The trail goes down through some steep rocky channels and also involves walking down several ladders. Whilst a little challenging it was definitely worth it and we had a swim in the river at the bottom,  also worth it. As there were quite a lot of people there I swam in my clothes rather than changing in front of everyone and I was glad of this for the walk back up in the heat as they only dried off when I got to the top..

We needed to be back at the caravan park by 1:30 p.m. so that the auto electrician could look at our van plug. We just had enough time to have a quick swim at our beach that is Red Bluff Beach before we went back. The auto electrician Mick Craig was a lovely fellow and he managed to fix everything, at least we hope he did. Everybody who lived here in Kalbarri seemed to really love the place whether they had been here for just a couple of years like the chef or their whole lives like the boat owner Vaughn or for about 20 years like Mick. The town is particularly livable and has everything – the ocean, the beauty of  the red cliffs and the incredible gorges in The National Park. Oh and did I mention it also has world class surf?  Of course the surf wasn’t breaking what we were there still another bonus for the town.

We spent our final evening on Red Bluff Beach while that’s trying to fish and I sat on the beach and red and swam. Lance actually caught three fish but two of them were tiny puffer fish and one was on the edge of being too small so we also threw that back. But once again the time spent there made for some beautiful sunset photos. Dinner for Lance that night was barbecue lobster. I had pork chops.

Although we had booked an extra night in Kalbarri just in case we couldn’t fix the car in time we also had two nights booked at monkey mia so on the Friday morning we decided it was time to pack up and go. Since we had paid for another night we didn’t necessarily have to rush so we only left at about midday. We really loved our time in Kalbarri everybody in the town is lovely and they all seem so happy and it’s with good reason it’s a fantastic town for both tourists and residents alike.