Weekend road trip to the Pinnacles, Western Australia

As we have settled in Perth for a few months now we are missing our nomadic lifestyle.  As soon as the first week of spring arrived we packed up Rex (our Subaru) and hit the road for a weekend adventure.  That’s the beauty of Australia, you can jump in the car, drive a couple of hours and discover something new every time.  We didn’t really have a plan when we left on Saturday morning.  We had a vague idea of what was up north but we decided to drive until well … we didn’t fancy driving any more and see what we could find.  This trip took us to the Pinnacles.

Day 1 | Perth to The Pinnacles

Our drive ‘up the road’ took us 210km through city, sand dunes and national parks and we ended up in the Nambung National Park.

Looks like another planet

Looks like another planet

The Pinnacles

As we veered off the highway it’s like you are entering Mars.  The greenery turns into a vast mass of yellow sand with bizarre tombstones protruding from the earth … this is the Pinnacles.

The formation of these limestone karsts is still largely unknown and a hot topic for debate.  The main theories are that they are the remnants after dissolution of much larger limestones, or that they are preserved tree casts.  However they were formed, they are a peculiar sight.

Unfortunately we arrived to overcast skies and bouts of rain but we still managed to walk around and drive along the 4km loop.  Shaun even managed to spot a kangaroo and her small joey feeding in the bushes.

The camping

Now time to find somewhere to camp for the night.  We hit the road back south and pulled in to Lancelin, a small beach town along the Indian Ocean Drive.  We had two choices, the northern campsite or the southern campsite.  After being turned away with my debit card at the northern campsite we got some cash out of the towns only ATM and paid $23 for a night at Lancelin Caravan Park.  As we drove in it looked a bit run down but as soon as we saw our assigned camping spot we were very happy.  We were on the beach bank and literally 20 meters from the water.

We wrestled with our giant tent and once our shelter was up we took a stroll along the gorgeous beach.  It is a great spot for kite surfers.

The giant tent and Rex

The giant tent and Rex

For dinner we used the beach BBQ and cooked up a proper Aussie feast over a few beers and watched the sun set over the ocean.  As the wind picked up and the sun dropped behind the horizon we crawled into our tent and were in bed asleep by 8.30.  Living the dream!

Day 2 | Lancelin, Guilderton, Perth

The following morning we woke up bright and early, packed up our tent and cooked up a mean breakfast on the beach BBQ.  We spent a few hours on the gorgeous white sand before hitting the road for the journey back home.

On route we stopped by Guilderton, another small town where the river meets the ocean.  This is a potential camping spot for another trip.  And we passed by Yanchep National Park where we will also come for a hike one day.  On the way through we passed lots of emus in the fields, even one hanging out on the side of the road, and a group of kangaroos chilling out on the Yanchep golf course!

Guilderton

Guilderton

Have you been to The Pinnacles?  What did you think of this other-worldly place?