Cape Leveque May 2011

Cape Leveque had been on our "bucket list " for some time. Our last trip to this area was about 6 years ago when we did the Gibb River Road  back to back.

On that trip we found Middle Lagoon and had always wanted to go back to this little piece of paradise. We also wanted to go on further and explore the Cape  itself and visit One Arm Point and Lombardina.

Not long after arriving in Broome we started planning our trip. We planned to be away for 4-5 days and instead of putting the van into storage we decided to leave the van on site and connected to power . We had several good friends who offered to keep an eye on it so we felt it would be safe.

 Late afternoon at Middle Lagoon at low tide

We left on Friday morning and headed off to Middle Lagoon  with a morning tea stop at Beagle Bay. We arrived at the campground  about lunch time and found a lovely spot back under the trees but still with lovely views over the second bay. and only a short walk to the beach. Putting up the new tent was a bit of an exercise and we opted not to put the outer covering on  as we had set it up too close to the vehicle. Once we were set up we found that an important item hadn't been packed in the form of pillows so had to do without.



 Our camp : note blue box on roof rack



Sunset

 Once we were set up  I went for a walk around to check out any changes from our last visit but apart from a new amenities block in our area and the sites on the top of the bank overlooking the water being marked so that vans had to back in instead of lining up along the bank the place looked to be basically unchanged. Even the road in had not been upgraded and was still as sandy and corrugated as it was on our first trip. One thing we really appreciated was being able to have a fire and that night we certainly appreciated it as it was quite cool.
  It was great to just relax as we had been on the go quite a lot in Broome. The next day we moved the tent to give us enough room to put it up fully as when the outer cover is on there is another area created at the front which allows for gear to be stored out of the sun or rain.

 On the way in we came across signs that  advertised camping at Whale Song  campground so we decided to check it out on our way out. It meant about a 9klm detour. We were very disappointed when we got there as another sign said it was closed but as the gate was open we decided to check it out for future reference but were very disappointed as when we finally reached the camping area there seemed to be no access to the beach . It was a lovely beach but there was severe erosion at the back of the beach which was why there was no access.

 Erosion at Whale Song camping area

 Continuing north we were glad of the bitumen road that runs from Beagle Bay to One Arm Point. However the road to Beagle Bay is diabolical with lots of corrugations and when we went north there were lots of places where water had been over the road causing washouts.

We reached Cape Leveque about lunchtime and were again disappointed that the last 5 klms were very rough with deep sand corrugations. It might be a Wilderness resort but a half decent road would improve matters.
After some discussion we opted to stay at the resort as it was rather expensive for the facilities available.

 During the afternoon we went for a drive to the beach and then walked along the beach which offered views to Leveque Island which is just offshore from the Cape. There were quite a few tourists in swimming but it was far too cold for us after being used to the warm waters of Darwin.

Cape Leveque and Leveque Island

Looking from the beach to the Lighthouse at Cape Leveque

When we booked in we were advised that a visit to the Trochus Hatchery was worth a visit ,so on Monday morning we made One Arm Point our destination to visit the Hatchery. We were the only visitors at the time so had a good look around until it was time for the guided tour when we were joined by another couple a few minutes into the tour. The tanks contained quite a variety of creatures , including barra and barramundi cod as well as turtles and trochus .  The hatchery has recently received a license to export anemones.

Trochus Hatchery at One arm Point

 As we were about to leave a private tour group arrived in an unusual boat which took the passengers direct from the water to the shore with out leaving the boat. We saw this boat again when we went to the Cygnet Bay pearl farm.

Polishing trochus shell

Barramundi cod

 After visiting the hatchery we drove over to the other side of the peninsular and visited the Pearl Farm at Cygnet Bay. We decided not to do any tours but had a lovely mango smoothie in their outdoor cafe and checked out the Gallery. We also got another look at the all terrain boat which is used at the Farm to transport tourists. We had seen this boat at the hatchery and I was very intrigued by it.

 On our last afternoon at the Cape I went for a walk up the boardwalk running from the campground to the beach. About half way it stops at the Lighthouse, but on the way was an interesting storyboard with the local birds on it which I found useful for identifying some of the birds we had seen.

 On our way back to Broome we took a detour and ended up on the coast at a Lookout but on the way had passed another campground so decided to investigate on our way and came across a lovely place that was like an oasis. The family that owned and ran it were very hospitable and we spent a lovely hour or so chatting and having cuppas.



 Me talking to Veronica ( owner)

 We had planned to spend another night camping but when we stopped at Quandong Point

we found all the good spots were taken so headed back to Broome.