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We left Exmouth and drive to Coral Bay, a couple of hours away on the opposite side of the peninsula. We had thought to stay a couple of days at a nearby low cost beach camp or one of the farm stations, but with recent rain, a lot of the dirt roads out here are in bad shape at the moment and we don't want to get stuck.
So, we decided to spend a full day at Coral Bay and spend the night at a rest area heading south.
Coral Bay has a very different feel to Exmouth - much more holiday village and far cuter. Here it's all about the reef and snorkeling, which you can do straight off the beach. We parked the caravan in a large parking bay in front of the resort, had a quick walk to check out the beach, returned to eat lunch and then headed out around the rocks to a dog friendly beach. Gadi piled up the kayak with our stuff and paddled around, while Cadbury and I walked.
What a stunning beach it is - white sand, craggy rocks, crystal clear water and exposed reef jutting out all the way to shore.
We lost no time in getting out there, Cadbury up front in the kayak, Gadi paddling and me hanging on the back to get a ride out to deeper waters. The coral gardens were beautiful, with round flower-like reef as well as finger reef tinged with blue. The further out we went, the denser the coral became. I held on to the kayak with one hand and snorkelled through the water, enjoying the different coral and fish along the way. We stopped for Gadi to snorkel, leaving Cadbury watching over us from the kayak.
Eventually I got too cold in the deep water but was a bit scared to swim back on my own, although Gadi was telling me to go back. So I did, not realizing he didn't know I'd let go and was gone. Meanwhile I swam slowly back, enjoying the warmth of the water as I got closer to shore and eye balling hundreds of fish who were enjoying the warm shallows. Huge fish, tiny schools of electric coloured fish, striped, spotted, flat, round and spiky. Some swam alongside and stared right at me, some appeared to want to nip my feet and some swam by uninterested in human interaction. It was an incredible experience.
Then Gadi made his way in the kayak looking for me telling me he hadn't realised I'd gone and he had been worriedly looking for me - a misunderstanding!
We swam together for a while, looking at the fish and then headed back to shore to dry out in the sun and relax. Even Cadbury enjoyed stretching out and enjoying the warm sun.
We eventfully packed up and left this gorgeous snorkeling paradise, and drove to a nearby boat ramp, where we enjoyed a glass of moscato with a view over the ocean as the sun began to set.
We headed off before it got dark, wary of the dangers of driving on country roads at dusk. We headed south of Coral Bay and continued driving until we reached a roadside rest area just as the light was fading and the horizon was a blaze of gold and red. We parked so we could enjoy the last rays of light sitting outside before heading in for the evening to make dinner and chill out.
Night night xx
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