Esperance, WA and the whitest beach in the world
January 9, 2019
Yesterday, January 8, was a sea day with the usual activities. The only notable event was winning some shipboard credit at the Cruise Consultant’s presentation. This will go toward reducing Jan’s Canyon Ranch bill!
We were able to anchor in the harbor at Esperance and tender in for a tour of this beautiful part of Western Australia. Esperance was founded in the late 1800’s to support the mining industry in WA and is in an isolated part of the country. The city of about 20k is off the Australian electric grid. They have a generator at the harbor that ran on diesel for many years before converting to natural gas. 23 years ago they put in a small wind farm that supported part of their needs. It is close to the end of its useful life and will not be replaced.
We visited Australia’s only, and one of four in the world, fish tanning companies. Who knew you could create strong, dyeable leather from fish skin? All the skins used come from fish caught for human food, eliminating the need to throw the skins away. The very enthusiastic owner explained the process and many people, including Jan, purchased items they had for sale.
We drove to an exact replica of Stonehenge a local farmer had constructed next to his house. He gets a little extra income by charging tourists to walk through it. It is on the way to Cape Le GrandNational Park. The park contains some spectacular beaches including Lucky Bay, said to have the whitest sand in the world. We walked on it and it squeaks beneath your feet. The morning was cloudy, but some Aussies were swimming. We had a picnic lunch at another nearby beach (Hellfire Beach), where a few kangaroos were hanging out posing for the tourists.
Even though schools were out for vacation, the beaches were almost deserted. After returning to town and stopping at a lookout point for great views of the coast, we drove to a series of beaches each more beautiful than the next. Clear turquoise water, interesting rock formations, and no crowds. Yet again, we are impressed by how well everything is maintained and cared for. We have not seen any litter anyplace in Australia unlike the US where it is everywhere.
The final stop was at the home and studio of a local artist who works with glass. Our tour guide was a nice local guy who also uses the bus for his day job as school bus driver. His wife and children, ages 5 and 7, helped serve lunch to us at the National Park. Our conveyance for the day was a very comfortable orange school bus with a grill on the front to protect it from kangaroos. It was full day but one of the best stops on the trip.
Yesterday, January 8, was a sea day with the usual activities. The only notable event was winning some shipboard credit at the Cruise Consultant’s presentation. This will go toward reducing Jan’s Canyon Ranch bill!
We were able to anchor in the harbor at Esperance and tender in for a tour of this beautiful part of Western Australia. Esperance was founded in the late 1800’s to support the mining industry in WA and is in an isolated part of the country. The city of about 20k is off the Australian electric grid. They have a generator at the harbor that ran on diesel for many years before converting to natural gas. 23 years ago they put in a small wind farm that supported part of their needs. It is close to the end of its useful life and will not be replaced.
We visited Australia’s only, and one of four in the world, fish tanning companies. Who knew you could create strong, dyeable leather from fish skin? All the skins used come from fish caught for human food, eliminating the need to throw the skins away. The very enthusiastic owner explained the process and many people, including Jan, purchased items they had for sale.
We drove to an exact replica of Stonehenge a local farmer had constructed next to his house. He gets a little extra income by charging tourists to walk through it. It is on the way to Cape Le GrandNational Park. The park contains some spectacular beaches including Lucky Bay, said to have the whitest sand in the world. We walked on it and it squeaks beneath your feet. The morning was cloudy, but some Aussies were swimming. We had a picnic lunch at another nearby beach (Hellfire Beach), where a few kangaroos were hanging out posing for the tourists.
Even though schools were out for vacation, the beaches were almost deserted. After returning to town and stopping at a lookout point for great views of the coast, we drove to a series of beaches each more beautiful than the next. Clear turquoise water, interesting rock formations, and no crowds. Yet again, we are impressed by how well everything is maintained and cared for. We have not seen any litter anyplace in Australia unlike the US where it is everywhere.
The final stop was at the home and studio of a local artist who works with glass. Our tour guide was a nice local guy who also uses the bus for his day job as school bus driver. His wife and children, ages 5 and 7, helped serve lunch to us at the National Park. Our conveyance for the day was a very comfortable orange school bus with a grill on the front to protect it from kangaroos. It was full day but one of the best stops on the trip.
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