Dampier and the Burrup Peninsula are just a stones throw from Karratha and yet they couldn't be more different. Certainly the vegetation surrounding the two areas is the same with lots of red rocky outcrops but Dampier and the Burrup Peninsula are the industrial hubs whereas Karratha is the residential and business area.
Rio Tinto has a major stake in the area and has built all the infrastructure to bring Iron Ore in from its operation at Mount Tom Price. Construction began in 1965 and in 1966 it sent its first shipment of 52,000 tonnes of iron ore to Japan.
In 1984 the Woodside owned Karratha Gas Plant commenced its operation of supplying gas into the domestic market. The company shipped it's first consignment of LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) to the Asian Market in 1989. It also produces LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) to be sold worldwide into the international energy markets. There is a terrific, award winning, visitors centre here at Burrup that overlooks the whole operation but as I suspected the gate is locked and there is a sign saying it is not opening for 2022. That was disappointing but not unexpected.
The other big player in the area is Rio Tinto's Salt operation. It is massive and the ponds cover an area of 10,014 hectares or almost 25,000 acres. They harvest 4.2 million tonnes per year and it takes 67 tonnes of seawater to yield 1 tonne of salt. They are hard figures to get your head around! Sixty percent of the salt is used in chemical industries and just twenty percent is used for human consumption.
We particularly enjoyed walking along the esplanade at Dampier that is is green and inviting. There were lots of families setting up for a picnic lunch and some were even braving the cold water. There is a great caravan park perfectly situated at the end of the esplanade and overlooking the harbour (transit only with maximum 3 night stay) and we stopped to see if we could have a night there but it is fully booked until the end of July. **sigh***
We found the road to the Dampier Lookout where there was yet another "red dog" memorial. He certainly was a popular and renowned dog. This is about the tenth memorial we have seen over the past week 😂. Philip was excited to show me the red flower that he spotted at Point Samson (and couldn't find again to show me). It is the Sturt Desert Pea. A most beautiful flower indeed. Good spotting hubby!
The day was warming up as it was nearing midday so we didn't get to Murujuga National Park where there is some ancient rock art but we will return to the area on Tuesday. There is so much more to see and do at Karratha than we expected and I'm very pleased we allowed the extra nights. Tomorrow morning we have the Toyota booked in for a 7am service so we probably won't do much more than a small grocery shop and perhaps a walk around the city centre. After 76 days on the road we are well and truly sick of the small amount of clothes that we brought with us so maybe it's time to visit St. Vinnys and K-Mart 😜
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