Pinnacles & sand boarding on the Coral Coast

30 May 2018

We left Perth bound for the Pinnacles in Nambung National Park, not quite sure what to expect. We found lots of pinnacles! Great big rock structures, rising up sharply out of the ground.

Visitors can leave their vehicle in the carpark and walk out to one of the lookouts, or stay behind the wheel and do the one-way drive.

Tip#1: People who tow trailers or caravans need to unhitch. The drive is for cars only, but is worth the trouble because you will see a lot more by vehicle than on foot.

Although we are normally quick to take up the exercise challenge, this time we elected to drive. We followed the track around the rock structures and snapped pictures from the best vantage points.

The view across the Pinnacles was amazing and we could have been on another planet. It seemed a good spot for a movie set.

Tip #2: There is a great little museum in the visitors' centre which is well worth a look. Don't get excited by the advertised coffee, it's out of an automatic coffee dispensing machine!

A couple of hours or so at the Pinnacles was enough. It wasn't the full day trip I'd been anticipating, so we hooked up the caravan and headed up the coast.

Geraldton didn’t capture our hearts, but it had a good shopping centre to stock up supplies and other necessary items. We also got our phone sorted and put back onto a Telstra plan. We'd had enough of very patchy coverage!

Tip #3: Travellers heading up the coast who don't have Telstra, will probably struggle with phone reception. I'm not endorsing brands here, but the coverage thing is a reality. The staff at the Geraldton Telstra shop were exceedingly helpful.

Tip #4: There is a Bunnings in Geraldton - just saying... I'm not endorsing this brand either!

We kept on driving and ended up spending the night at Sandy Cape just outside of Jurien Bay.

I relaxed while the boys enjoyed sand boarding in the sand dunes. We had a magnificent sunset and could have stayed longer but we were concerned about the threat of rain.

Tip #5: As you drive in, campers who want better facilities should turn left at the surfboard. You can hire the sand boards from the camp hosts here. The park will look full but there are a heap of new sites around past the toilets. They are quite well hidden, so don't be fooled. Campers who want a quieter area should turn right at the surfboard.