The hostel with a view (11/4/14)

I was up and packed at a reasonable hour this morning. After breakfast I shot down the road to get some fuel and on my return loaded my rucksack onto the bike. As I finished strapping it on I got a phone call from an unknown number. I answered and was surprised to hear it was the woman from the hostel I'd phoned last night. She'd had a cancellation and wanted to know if I still needed a room. This was perfect. I said yes and that I'd be leaving Kalbarri shortly and would be there today. That's not a service I expected but was pleased she'd phoned. I retrieved my food leftovers from the fridge and I also got my hydration pack out the freezer. I'd risked putting it in there last night to see if it would survive and it had. This meant ice cold water for my journey which was just perfect as it was an incredibly hot day already. I put my food in the rear sack bag got my biker gear on and handed my key in at reception thanking them at the same time. I'd thoroughly enjoyed my time here, the rooms were basic but perfectly adequate, the staff were friendly and the facilities were good. I'd definitely come back here if ever I had the chance. I said goodbye to all the Frenchies I'd met and the Italian couple and got on the road. As you enter the area of the national park there are numerous signs warning you that there is no water out there and to make sure you have a plentiful supply. This was worrying and it was the first time I wondered if what I was doing was a good idea. On the way out of town I visited a couple of the inland gorges which had a sealed road going right up to the lookout so were no problem on the bike. I took a few photos and enjoyed the view for a while but wanted to get on the road as I had quite a bit of journeying to do today. I stopped at the first service station called Billabong Roadhouse for a fuel fill up and to have something to eat as it was nearly lunchtime. I was so hot I had to take my biker gear off to try and cool down and sat in the shade for a while. This didn't really make much difference so I decided it was better to carry on as I at least had the wind in my face while I was riding. I reached the turn off to Denham which lies on one of the little outcrops of land that appear every now and then up the WA coast. The whole of this area is called 'Shark Bay'. There is only one road there and one road back so I would return to this point in a couple of days time. A little way up this road there was a sign pointing down a smaller road to Hamelin Pool where things called stromatalites could be seen in the sea. I decided to visit them now as I wasn't sure what time I'd have on the way back. Stromatalites are basically living fossils and they have helped scientists unravel some of the history of life on earth. This next description I have taken from the "Nature of Shark Bay" website for ease and accuracy of the description of stromatalites.

Stromatolites are rock-like structures built by microbes (single-celled cyanobacteria, also known as blue-green algae). Shark Bay’s stromatolites are only 2,000 to 3,000 years old, but they are similar to life forms found on Earth up to 3.5 billion years ago! They provide a unique insight into what the world was like at the dawn of time. Until about 500 million years ago, stromatolites were the only macroscopic evidence of life on the planet. The microbes that built the stromatolites were an essential building block for the evolution of more complex life forms. One kind of microbe found in Shark Bay is thought to have descended from an organism that lived 1.9 billion years ago – one of the longest continuing biological lineages known. Hamelin Pool is one of only three places on Earth where you can see living marine stromatolites. (The other two places are in the Bahamas.) Stromatolites are found in Hamelin Pool because its water is twice as salty as normal seawater. Few predators and competitors can survive these conditions, allowing the microbes to flourish and form stromatolites much as they did billions of years ago.

I didn't expect that much from seeing them as they are ultimately rocks but there was something oddly picturesque and different about them. I'm sure the late afternoon light on the water played a part but the unique shape of them was...well...interesting. I was the only one there and it was really quite peaceful too with the shallow waters lapping on the shore. It's hard to explain but trust me it's well worth a visit. I spent a bit of time there but as I was so close to my destination I was soon back on the bike looking forward to a swim in the sea at Denham. I finally arrived in Denham about 4pm and phoned the hostel to find out where they were. There is only really one long strip along the seafront upon which all the businesses dwell and it's not a big place. It is so picturesque though. Palm's line the seafront road, boats bob on the water just offshore and the distance to the sea is nice and short so you don't have to walk far to have a swim. I found the hostel and thought it would be tucked out the way but it was right on the seafront. The view from the front was picture perfect. I met the woman, Caroline, I'd been conversing with this morning in the reception and payed for my two nights there. She asked me if there were any trips I wanted to book while I was here but I was sure I could do most things myself so didn't need to. I'd pretty much decided before I started this road trip that I wanted to do a whale shark dive as the timing seemed too good an oportunity to miss. I would be in the exact part of the world where whale sharks feed on the plankton and coral-spawn just off the coast of Exmouth at exactly the right time and so I asked Caroline her opinion as to whether she thought I should do the dive at a small place further up the coast called Coral Bay or whether I should do it in Exmouth. She said Exmouth would probably be better as there were more companies operating there and my chance of getting on a trip would be greater, She warned me, however, that as it was going to be Easter soon it would book up pretty quickly and she'd had a small bus load of people through recently that had tried to ring ahead to book a trip but were unsuccessful. I thanked her for her advice, now a little worried I had left it too late, and went to see my room. The style of accommodation here is more like an apartment. Each separate room has one main lounge with sofa, TV and table, a kitchen, and three bedrooms. Each having about three or four beds in. All the apartments faced onto a central swimming pool. It was a really nice set up and everything was in really good condition. In my room was a girl from Holland, called Nina, and as far as I could tell no one was in the other rooms. I unpacked my stuff while chatting to Nina and once that was done I dug out the phone number for a whale shark dive company that was recommended by lonely planet. It's a company called 'King's Ningaloo Reef Tours' and they have apparently been running the tours for quite a few years. I was told by the young girl that answered that as it was just me they could slot me in on most days next week which was a massive relief to hear. Having looked at dates I worked out I'd be arriving in Exmouth late afternoon on Monday so Tuesday would be the best day giving me the rest of the week to try and arrange another dive should we be unsuccessful at sighting one. She also advised me that on my journey up from Denham I shouldn't bother stopping at Carnarvon as there wasn't anything there and to push on through to Coral Bay for the night. I took on board her honest advice, thanked her, and hung up the phone feeling somewhat excited by the thought of the dive I had just booked. I then walked to the beach, with my snorkelling gear, which took all of fifteen seconds. The waters were quite shallow and beautifully warm and I managed to see quite a few fish and a small stingray. The whole vibe about Denham is one which you would expect to find in the Caribbean with its tropical feel and not one I expected to come across. It is different in a very good way. After my swim I went back to the apartment and found that three French people, two guys and a girl, were now in one of the other rooms. I chatted with them briefly and then jumped in the shower to freshen up. Once I was ready I strolled out to the front of the hostel in time for the sunset to get some photos. Back in the room I got chatting to Nina again and we discussed our travels and our plans for while we were in Denham. I found out she was going to Monkey Mia tomorrow which was my plan too and so we arranged to meet there as I was going on my bike and she was getting a shuttle bus there. We were chatting for so long that it was soon 7pm and I still needed to get food for dinner. I walked round to the shops just in time to see them turn off the lights and lock up. Damn it. I decided to find a restaurant for dinner and picked the first one I saw. The menu was quite expensive and so I picked the fried seafood selection as it seemed the best value for money. When I went to the bar to order it the barman seemed quite offended that I hadn't chosen the fresh fish option. He himself had caught it that morning and he said it was a much better option. I accepted his judgement and chose a fish called Blue Bone to be grilled. It arrived not long after and my first bite was simply heaven. It was cooked to perfection and it honestly tasted soooooooo fresh. And the seasoning on it was really tasty. I finished every last bit on my plate and was really glad the barman had persuaded me to choose it even though it was more expensive. I left the restaurant shortly after and took a slow stroll along the seafront back to the hostel listening to the sound of the lapping waves and enjoying the warm evening breeze. It was at that point it struck me. I wished I was enjoying this whole experience with someone else there too. Maybe my family from home, maybe my family here, but most probably with Jade. I realised I missed people, I missed company and I had no-one to share this with, but at the same time I realised I was in another country doing things I would never have dreamt I'd be doing a few months ago, totally outside my comfort zone. I got back to the hostel with mixed feelings and spent the rest of the evening chin wagging with Nina about her thoughts on travelling as she was also doing it alone. After a couple of beers and wondering whether I was really cut out for this travelling malarkey I went to bed knowing I'd have to be up very early to see the dolphin feeding at Monkey Mia the next morning.