Shark Bay

Shark Bay is not nearly as scary as its name suggests. Like Ningaloo,  the region is renowned for spectacular beaches and an abundance of marine life.

We based ourselves at Hamelin Station,  a former sheep station,  now owned by Bush Heritage Australia and preserved as a wildlife reserve.

The old station buildings have been restored and repurposed; the shearers quarters are now available as accommodation, while the farmhouse has been turned into a large camp kitchen and dining area with all the amenities. The shearing shed is set up as a museum and was a highlight for the children.  Luka in particular gained a real insight into the hardships of a shearer's life and was overhead educating other guests.

At the front of the property was a  lagoon,  which was home to an enormous variety of birds.

Just a few kilometres from the station is Hamelin Pool,  a World Heritage bay which contains Stromatolites - tiny organisms which form clumps  like large undersea mushrooms.  Completely lacking in visual appeal,  these strange life forms are nonetheless the cause of great interest due to the fact that they have not changed or evolved in over 3 million years,  and are believed to be the original source of oxygen which lead to the atmosphere being the way it is. In essence,  all living things,  plant and animal,  owe their existence to the humble Stromatolites!

Our next stop had amazing visual appeal.  The unimaginatively named Shell Beach is comprised entirely from the shells of tiny cockles,  just a few millimetres across. The hypersalinated water is responsible for the cockles lack of growth.  Despite the water being stunning -  crystal clear up close and turquoise from a distance - it's too salty for most marine life in this bay.

We had a wonderful time paddling in the water and playing with the shells before driving to Eagle Bluff lookout where we saw some small sharks from a safe distance.

The highlight of our stay at Hamelin Station was the people we met. The caretakers went above and beyond their duties to assist us and were fantastic with the children.  They loaned us powerful binoculars to watch the birds,  provided art and craft materials  for the kids to use and engaged them in animated discussions.

Our fellow guests included a family we had met previously,  who have a 5yo daughter,  so she and Freya had a lovely time playing together.

On our last evening,  a new arrival who was well known to the staff introduced herself as an artist, and offered to take all the children for a walk the next morning to collect natural materials and create a collage.

Luka and Freya spent nearly two hours with Sandy,  working on their collages and discussing patterns and texture and had a fantastic time.

It's wasn't until the next day (and next town) that I took up Sandy’s suggestion to have a look at her Facebook page,  only to discover that she's a nationally acclaimed artist of some renown! Although that has no impact on the children's experience,  it makes us realise what a remarkable opportunity we had.