A somewhat sad departure from Broome this morning but we know that we may very well return in the future. It is such a captivating place with an aura that is totally inexplainable. It will be interesting to see if the remainder of our travels introduces us to anywhere that truly captures our hearts and senses like this area of Australia has.
We had a long drive ahead but after a relaxing week in Broome we were all up for it. Ray and I kept the boys entertained by singing Lionel Ritchie love songs as we gazed into each others eyes. There was a certain satisfaction knowing that we were annoying them as much as they sometimes annoy us from the backseat.
We arrived at the 80 mile beach caravan park. We were a bit disappointed because the beach was overcome with stinging jellyfish and there was no swimming pool. We soon found out that after dark we were in for a treat.
This stretch of beach is known for the Giant Flat Back turtles nesting between October and April. We walked down to the beach and were lucky enough to see 5 of these wondrous creatures creating their nests. The turtles do this by walking up onto the soft sand at the back of the beach. They continuously move their flippers back and forth over the top of the sand, skimming it into place. Once they have a large hole, they will lay their eggs and then cover them in sand doing the same thing. Once finished, and clearly exhausted, they make the 100 meters or more walk back to the water. The ones we watched were out of the water for more than an hour. We were not allowed to take photos (in the fear that tourists will get too close to the animals for the perfect shot and disturb them in their nesting rituals) so you will need to come and see this natural wonder for yourselves! It is well worth the trip.