Slower day today with sleep in, washing then a look around the Dampier and Karratha.

Red Dog Statue Dampier. Red Dog (c. 1971 – 21 November 1979) was well known for his travels through Western Australia’s vast Pilbara region. Red Dog had a series of owners and lengthy periods travelling on his own, essentially becoming a beloved friend and mascot of the greater Pilbara community.

The Pilbara Wanderer

He was a good boy.

Little corella eating grass seed heads

There are rock piles everywhere in Dampier, like the entire Burrup Peninsula. Kangaroos are residents in the rocky areas.

Dampier Port

Hearson’s Cove is adjacent to the national park

Murujuga National Park on the Burrup Peninsula is home to one of the largest, densest and most diverse collections of rock art (petroglyphs) in the world. These depict 47,000 years of human existence and provide an archaeological record of use of the area over this time. The engravings show human images, extinct animal species such as megafauna and Thylacines (Tasmanian tiger).

Sturts desert pea is common throughout the park on the sandy soils.

Pilbara kurrajong (Brachychiton acuminatus) at Murujuga National Park

The Pilbara Kurrajongs are common on the Burrup Peninsula

The short Ngajarli walking track leads to two platforms to view the petrogylph artwork.

Extinct Fat-tailed kangaroo

The Thylacine has been extinct on the mainland for over 2000 years. Remains of Thylacines have been found in caves in Western Australia at Mundrabilla on the Nullabor, Margaret River and North West Cape.

Emu

Quoll

On the track to the second viewing platform, Crested pigeons were active.

A sailing ship in white – could be from 1688 William Dampier expedition or Philip King’s 1808 exploration.

A Pilbara goanna (Varanus pilbarensis) enjoying the heated rocks in the late afternoon.

Warm spot for the night

The Staircase to the Moon is seen from some east-facing beaches in WA like Hearsons Cove. This is the full moon rising and reflecting off the tidal flats’ ripple marks creating a staircase effect. Several towns promote the viewing. This is only a fraction of the cars present. The people here were crazy for it…or is it just a phase they’re going through?

It was clouded in the east so we went for a night drive on the peninsula. Here is just some of the industry on Burrup Peninsula.

Roadside encounter

After our night drive, the clouds cleared and we joined the throng for the celebrated Staircase to the Moon at Hearson’s Cove. The moon experience can be a bit overrated – it has no atmosphere.

Moon reflection on the tidal ripple marks.

Good night from Karratha