With 8 days of annual leave and 16 days away from work, we packed up and headed north in search of great 4WDing, fishing and camping destinations. We purchased a little tinny a few weeks prior to leaving, and I modified the trailer to take a beating off road.
We stayed at Carrarang Station first (about 70km from Steep Point), then Murchison House Station at Kalbarri and finally Horrocks. It was a fantastic trip, and we wish it had of been longer. For now though, here’s some photo’s. Let me know what you think at the bottom of the post!
After a couple of mechanical issues we stopped at Jurien Bay for a quick bite to eatNearly there!Heading out to Carrarang Station. The road was pretty good, but extremely dustyWe were met at Carrarang by the resident horse, who had no issues checking our cars and boat outSome little Mackeral caught trolling not far from camp at CarrarangSome bigger baits caught a couple of nice size sharks, which were releasedA day trip out to the northern most peninsula at Carrarang StationFishing near Useless Loop. Amazing fish and even better sunsetA few of the Mulloway and Pink Snapper caught that eveningA quick visit to False Entrance, not far from Steep PointWe spent a few hours fishing and diving hereNot a bad place to watch the world go byUp early for a day trip to Steep PointLaunching the boat at Shelter Bay. Possibly the most beautiful beach we’ve been to!A nice Coronation trout and cray, along with plenty of other seafoodOur camp site at Carrarang Station. You wouldn’t complain, would you?!Heading out in the boat for one last time, on a glassy eveningLiving the dream at Carrarang StationWhat more do you need?!The life boat wreck at East LandingPlenty of these little lizards running around the placeExploring some dunes at Murchison House Station in KalbarriTrust us to find the softest sand on the station. Suffice to say we had to lower our pressures even further.A spring at the station, used for the goatsDaniel’s poor choice of line cost him a recoveryAmazing little lizardsOne of the rocky steps along the coastRelaxing around a great fireThe view from our camp site, along the Murchison RiverWith no one for miles, you couldn’t ask for a better spotOur camp site at House StationLooking down the Murchison River to Kalbarri from Castle RockSo much scenery to enjoyFishing from the beach north of the Kalbarri River MouthWe spent a day driving inland, along the Murchison RiverWith 350,000 acres to explore, you will never run out of something to doThe change in scenery is nothing short of stunningThere’s hundreds of Kangaroo’s that live on the propertySometimes they stop to have a chat to the goatsAnother brilliant evening spent at House StationYou’ve got to love looking at the stars!Leaving Kalbarri, and onto Horrocks
I’ve seen a few people wanting to drive from Kalbarri to Steep Point. The short of it, is you can’t. It has been done years ago, but these days you need permits to travel through the different private properties, and a vehicle you don’t mind getting the paint removed from as the tracks are tight and scratchy.
The only way to get from Kalbarri to Steep Point is to drive out along the main road.
Watching the sun go down over Little Bay at HorrocksAnother truly beautiful place to spend a few daysNot sure if we have enough fishing gear though…For $15 per vehicle per night, you aren’t going to complain!A nice size cobia we managed to get from near a big sharkOur camp site from on top of the (very) steep dune nearbyLaunching the tinny on the last day
Overall, it was an amazing trip. We had a number of things go wrong (which I will go into in later posts), but I guess that’s to be expected. Steep Point blew us away, and we will most certainly be back. Stay tuned for more information on these spectacular spots!
Aaron Schubert is a 4WD and camping nut, who's a qualified Maintenance Planner and Mechanical Fitter, and has extensive Industrial Maintenance experience.
He's done hundreds of 4WD tracks all over Australia and more than a thousand nights camping with several different 4WD builds and camping setups.
Thanks a lot. The awning on my 80 series is a Powerful 4×4 one. It’s actually broken – I’m not sure if you can see in the photos, but the zip snapped a while back and I haven’t had it repaired. It’s not the best quality awning, but does the job.
The big blue one that we cook under is an Oztrail. Again, not top quality, but it seems to work ok. You just need to be very mindful of the wind!
Aaron
So nice! May I ask, what brand of awning do you used? Greetings from Sabah, Borneo
Hey mate,
Thanks a lot. The awning on my 80 series is a Powerful 4×4 one. It’s actually broken – I’m not sure if you can see in the photos, but the zip snapped a while back and I haven’t had it repaired. It’s not the best quality awning, but does the job.
The big blue one that we cook under is an Oztrail. Again, not top quality, but it seems to work ok. You just need to be very mindful of the wind!
Aaron
So nice! May I ask, what brand of awning do you used? Greetings from Sabah, Borneo