After the long drive yesterday and some fantastic star gazing last night we slept well so fully rested and after a breakfast that would probably keep us going until next week we set off to explore Esperance. First we drove the Great Ocean Road which probably for the first time this trip actually gave you views of the ocean for at least half of the journey – it is a circular drive and the second half is inland but we didn’t bother with that. The first stop was the Rotary Lookout at Dempster Head, basically the Rotary club of Esperance have built a lookout tower which provides fantastic views along the coast, the colour of the sea and the sand is just stunning just like Whitehaven beach right at the start of this holiday. We carried on the road and went to West Beach and stoped at Chapmans point where they had a sign up saying that there had been shark sightings recently and to take care, to be honest we hadn’t planned on going in the water anyway so it isn’t a problem. The water did look very inviting as we continued the drive calling in at most of the lookout points and beaches. We followed the road to Observatory Point where there is walkway that takes you to the top of the cliff where again you can get a fantastic view out across the bay and the islands that dot the coast, we found out why it was called Esperance it was after the ship that found safe anchorage in the harbour while they were mapping Australia. At this point we turned round and came back along the same road, this did mean that we didn’t see the pink lake but it isn’t pink anymore and hasn’t been for over ten years. The Pink colour comes from the Salt concentration and apparently it may regain its pink colour again in the future if the conditions change. We drove back through town and went in the opposite direction to Cape Le Grand National Park where there are a collection of lovely beaches and it seems to be where most people go. The park has peaks of granite but more importantly is the sand which is almost pure white and actually squeaks as you walk on it. The sand is made from very fine granite as opposed to silica which is why it is so white and fine like caster sugar. It squeaks because the sand grains are actually rough edged, not that you could see or feel, but because of this it makes a noise as you walk or scrape you foot or toes across it. We drove to Cape Le Grand beach and were surprised that there were quite a few cars on the beach, they had driven on and set up their little tents, chairs picnic supplies and looked settled for the day. We had a paddle in the sea which was actually really cold but refreshing although I found it hard to cope with the squeaky sand as it was like walking on cotton wool and the sound it makes is just like fingers on a blackboard! From here we went round to Lucky Bay which is where the Kangaroos live on the beach, strictly speaking they live near the beach and come down to the beach but we didn’t see any as there were so many cars I am not sure they would have been able to make it through. We walked along the shore quite some way and as we turned round to head back someone managed to get their car stuck in the sand so we watched them for a while as they finally managed to free themselves then we continued our walk back to the car. Just as we got close to the entrance to the beach a kangaroo and her young came down onto the beach but they are obviously so used to being fed they just went up to the nearest people and started working their way through the picnic, luckily they had grapes which shouldn’t be too bad for the kangaroos but it would seem that their diet is being changed by humans, yet another example of our inability to live with wildlife! From here we drove round to Thistle Bay where there is a rock called Whistling Rock, I don’t think it whistled but it did reflect the sound of the sea to make it sound like it was coming from behind you, we didn’t walk down to the beach here but we did go round to our final stop which was Wharton Beach where we had a final walk on the beach, paddle in the sea then we drove to the lookout just above the beach where we had a great view across the bay. After this we drove back into town to get something to eat then came back to the B&B about 7.30 to relax and pack up ready to move on tomorrow.
