08/16/24 - Ningaloo Reef Arrival

We took a small plane from the airport to our hotel. The scenery was green, eroded and cut with channels. We cut across the peninsula and headed north a bit. We could see the reef with its protected waters, paler blue between the reef and the shore. There were rocky stream beds and fascinating vegetation. Our pilot circled a bit to look for whales or whale sharks, but we mainly saw wind sharks, white patches of water raised by the stiff breeze.

We landed on a dirt landing strip near Exmouth. It was a bit outside of town, but our pilot was reassuring. He said that once he got the plane turned around which involved some heavy hauling, he'd wait with us for our ride to the hotel. There didn't seem to be any cell phone coverage. Aside from the runway itself, there was also a windsock, but that was about it.

Our ride came and took us to our tented paradise. We had a big tent at the end of a boardwalk. There was a deck facing the sea and a comfortable bed with the same view, two small LED lamps and two USB plugs. The toilet was outside on a side deck along with the sink and shower. We had 20 liters of water each daily. To put a positive spin on it, the toilet was conveniently no-flush. The sink had a small switch to turn the water on and off. The shower had hot and cold water valves, and one could hear the gas water heater when the hot water was switched on. There was no air conditioning. Cool was provided by the stiff breeze mentioned earlier.

Meals were served at the main lodge in an area nicely sheltered from the wind. The food was excellent.

It was great.