I always thought Monkey Mia was a town - it's not. Monkey Mia is a resort built some 25km away from the nearest town - Denham. The peninsula on which Denham and Monkey Mia is on is part of the Shark Bay - a world heritage listed marine area; not because of the dolphins but due to the sea grasses supporting populations of dugong, turtles and tiger sharks. Still the tourists (us included) come to see the dolphins being fed.
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| Monkey Mia locals |
We based ourselves at Hamelin Station and got a warm welcome from the managers John and Wendy. The station has 80km of highway frontage and 30km of beach frontage and lets tourists camp when the shearers aren't there. To get to Monkey Mia was a early start on a freezing windy morning.
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| Hamelin Station campsite |
The first feeding had around 200 people; but we stayed for the second feeding where the crown had thinned to only 20 people. Madonna, John, David and Luke were all chosen to feed the dolphins which was a huge high for all of them.
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| John feeding Nicky, Monkey Mia |
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| Up close and personal |
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| Luke feeding the dolphin |
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| Madonna and John feeding the dolphins, Monkey Mia |
Afterward a swim in the warm artesian pools of Francois Peron NP was great. This national park is a cape with a narrow neck ideal for setting up an electric fence across the breadth to keep feral animals out and protect the native population. They have also added a few signs to help prevent the local population ending as road kill. There is further attempts to eradicate Toyota Landcruisers from the national park by making the entrance road a true 4WD track. Given the arid country side it is hard to believe that Francois Peron NP used to be a sheep property.
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| Francois Peron NP |
At the southern end of the peninsula is the stromatolites (essentially living rock, somewhat like coral). These only occur in a couple of places worldwide and rely on a perfect storm of salinity and tidal patterns. They grow 1cm every 30 years. Johnny is aiming to come back when he is 69 years old to see if they have grown 2cm.
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| Stromatolites, Hamelin Bay |
Congratulations guys! Monkey Mia is still one of my all time favourite memories (from 24 years ago now!) Not that many Brisbanites that make it that distance... Travel safe, Liam (Joanne's BIL)
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