Denham / Monkey Mia

After cycling back up the rather rough 4km dirt road out of the Murchison House Station, I set sail once more to the hot breeze and pushed onwards. The winds were hot and dry, and I had to drink water constantly to keep my mouth moist and my voice working. Once or twice when I was particularly parched a car would slow down to ask me a question or two in return for a dry croak and some wild hand gestures. Most people took the hint and offered me a cup of cold water.
It was a Friday night when I rolled into the Billabong Roadhouse. It was late in the evening when I arrived, and the wind had died to reveal  a perfect relaxing temperature. I wrapped my lips around an enormous hamburger and had a cold VB to wash it down. My chef had made the meal extra large with extra love. As it turned out, this Dutch man and his wife who I later met were travelling around the world by bicycle - some 30,000km's. They were working at the roadhouse to replenish their drying funds. He sat with me for an empathetic drink to tell stories of distant lands where the cycling sounded magic. I listened with keen interest and took mental notes of what may one day become my next adventure...
But for now I had to concentrate on the big distance between me and the town of Denham, lying within the world heritage listed shire of Shark Bay. The endemic wildlife, unique coastal formations and famous dolphin populations draw tourists from far and wide. The ride in from the main highway to the national park of Monkey Mia was to add some 300km's to my tally. And none of this 300km's was flat. But I plugged away at the hills to arrive in Denham in reasonable time. My first stop was the Hamelin Station - not very far up the road - but it was great to see this immense station (well over 1,000,000 acres) in full swing. It was time to shear the sheep, and their screams could be heard late into the night. It was a stunning property and the people were lovely, with happy hour (and a few free beers) at 5pm.
I spent one fairly uneventful night in Denham Caravan Park to relax and work on the blog.
Then off to Monkey Mia to see what all the fuss was about.
Monkey Mia was indeed beautiful with a luxury (and surprisingly cheap) resort where I could pitch my tent.
However, after my tent was erected and I was ready to roll, disaster hit.
I was quietly minding my own business a few metres away from my bike when I was savagely robbed. Out of nowhere a small gang of around four emu's raced up to my bike and began to violently turn my basket of food upside-down. My best efforts to drive them away were ignored. And so it came to pass that I played victim to the theft of a $5.80 loaf of bread and three delicious bananas. Flightless heathens.
The rest of the day was spent taking walks around the stunning landscape - camera in hand to capture some of the beauty.
I met a great Pommy guy named Dean who was travelling solo for the remainder of his time in Aus. We watched turtles swimming about from the jetty as the sun set over the red dunes.
The next morning I was up and ready to be at the waters edge by 7.30 for the dolphin feeding. Monkey Mia is special in it's dolphin feeding as the dolphins are wild and it was fantastic to see them so close by their own free will (the will of their stomach).
My last night in the Shark Bay shire was spent at a free camp site called Goulet Bluff. The majestic rocky coast-line was endless and I had my tent right on the beach. Best of all was that I was the only camper for kilometers. It was a truly special feeling that night watching the sunset over 'my' beach. It was one of the most memorable nights of my trip so far.