Day 96 Minilya Free Camp, WA

After yesterdays epic day, today was very laid back and easy.  We left Exmouth around 9.30 am and drove the short distance of just two hundred kilometres to our free camp here at Minilya.  The last two weeks on the Exmouth Peninsular and Ningaloo Reef National Park have been one of the most memorable times of our journey.  I ticked off a longterm bucket list item of swimming with the whale sharks, but in order to do that I also had to overcome my fear of swimming and snorkelling in the open ocean.  The snorkelling that we did at the reefs of both Coral Bay and Exmouth were magic and I now I can't wait to snorkel the Great Barrier Reef in our own backyard.  Something we have yet to do.  Here is a little more Whale Shark spam courtesy of the onboard photographer yesterday.

Our drive today was actually a little boring but once we turned back onto the North West Coastal Highway we began to see wildflowers.  Everywhere we have been we have asked people about the wildflowers and when and where we should go to view them and everyone has said that they will begin flowering in August.  But due to the heavy rain event that the west coast received in June, the wildflowers are blossoming  early so I won't be surprised if we start seeing more of them in areas on our journey south.  Once we reach Geraldton there should be a beautiful abundance of wildflowers.

Our free camp here at Minilya is packed to overflowing with caravans, camper vans and everything in between.  I'm not surprised as all the free camps we pass are packed to the brim.  The prices they are charging at caravan parks is getting ridiculous and a lot of people can ill afford those prices.  I feel sorry for families with the mistaken belief that caravanning is a cheap holiday. 

That's a wrap from me for today.  We will arrive at Carnarvon tomorrow and remain there for four nights.  We have an auto Electrican booked for Monday to install the wiring for the solar blanket that Philip is very excited about.  I have been doing a bit of research into things to see and do in Carnarvon and the list is quite long so I am sure we will enjoy it.