West Coast Adventure (10 nights)

Fremantle , Abrolhos Islands, Steep Point, Dirk Hartog Island, The Bluff, Narloo, Yardi Creek, Ningaloo Reef, Exmouth, Muiron Islands, Barrow Island, Monte Bello Islands & Dampier Archipelago

Surf – Dive – Fish

11 days of epic ocean adventures. This itinerary serves to give you an idea of the places and areas we plan to visit during our 10 days up the coast. You will form part of the team that will decide whether to stay in one place a little longer or keep heading north to the next exciting destination! This cruise package includes flights from Dampier back to Perth and is priced at just $3, 800.00 per person twin share for a Horizon View Stateroom. Combined with 5-star gourmet cuisine, luxurious staterooms with real-time television and DVD players, an 8 person spa on deck, and a 5 person crew to ensure you have the best hoiday of your life, what more could one ask for in a Summer holiday adventure?!

Day 1 & 2
Board Great Escape at midday from Rous Head Harbour in Fremantle. You will be greeted with an appetizing lunch as the Captain delivers a welcome and safety briefing. We will cruise all afternoon and through the night to make it to the Southern Group of the Abrolhos Islands by dawn. We will spend the day in this region taking advantage of the beautiful reef to surf, dive, snorkel and fish. There have been a couple of wrecks on this group of Islands – Ben Ledi (1879) & Zeewijk(1629). Weather permitting we will aim to dive at these locations.

We will spend the evening here and enjoy an early morning surf or dive before we head north to the Easter Group, or Rat Group as many people know them.

Day 3 & 4
Once again we will see what activities suit everyone here before heading to the northern most group of the Abrolhos – Wallabies Group, where there are some well known surf and dive locations. It is here that the well known ship Batavia was shipwrecked in 1620. Depending on the swell on the day we can snorkel around the site and still see the remnants of canons, canon balls, and other metal relics. We will spend the night cruising up to South Passage between Steep Point and Dirk Hartog Island.

Day 5
There are awesome surf, dive and fishing options in this area depending on the weather on the day. We will explore all options as we cruise along Dirk Hartog island heading for Dory and Bernier Islands. If anyone is interested we can walk up to Cape Inscription and see where Captain Dirk Hartog landed in 1616! There is a brief history of the area at the end of this itinerary. We will choose a protected bay to anchor for the evening. At dawn we will cruise up to the famous surf spot – The Bluff.

Day 6
Swell permitting we will spend the day surfing, diving and fishing in this area, heading up to Gnaraloo Reef in the afternoon for some more surfing and diving. We will keep our eye on the sounder for any good drop offs or lumps to drop a line on the way as well!

Day 7 & 8
It’s not much further up that we come upon Yardi Creek at the southern end of the Cape Range National Park and Ningaloo Marine Park. There are loads of good surf, dive and snorkel sites along this coast and we will also find a few good fishing spots as well that comply with park regulations.
We will make our way along the coast towards Exmouth marina where we will need to refuel before heading off toward the Muiron Islands.

Day 9 & 10
Wake up at either Barrow Island for an early morning surf or at the Monte Bello Islands, depending on weather and swell conditions on the day. The Monte Bello’s are a magnificent group of over 100 islands and a beautiful reef system that could easily keep us busy for weeks! For any ocean lover there are plenty of activities – surfing, snorkelling, fishing, diving, and there are even a few mangrove clusters where we can hook for mud crabs! There are usually turtles nesting and depending on the moon you may even get the baby turtle experience!
After a couple of days we will head off in the evening toward the Dampier Archipelago where we can fish or dive before you disembark at Dampier.

Day 11
Disembark at Dampier at 2:00pm where a bus or taxi will transfer you to the Karratha Airport for your flight back to Perth. It is only a 10 minute drive from the jetty – located between Karratha and Dampier.

INFORMATION ON AREAS OF INTEREST

Abrohlos Islands: More than 120 unspoiled islands clustered over 100 kilometres of pristine ocean make up the Abrolhos Islands off Western Australia’s mid north coast.
Fishing around these spectacular atolls is rated among the best in the world, while bird watching is another popular drawcard. Large breeding colonies of sea birds exist on the islands with more than 90 different species identified.
Composed of three groups of 40 islands each, The Abrolhos boasts an incredible range of marine life.
Spectacular coral gardens make for excellent diving and snorkelling while sea lions, dolphins and migratory whales are often spotted in the area.
The Abrolhos Islands are also rich in maritime history. The infamous Batavia wreck lies on the ocean floor on Morning Reef at the Wallabi group of islands. The Batavia was wrecked in 1629 on her maiden voyage from Holland – the horrendous tale of mutiny and murder is told in the Maritime Museum in Geraldton.
Dirk Hartog Island: On the 25th of October 1616, Captain Dirk Hartog arrived on the ‘Eendracht’ and announced his arrival by leaving an inscribed plate with his name and date of arrival at Cape Inscription. In 1697, Flemish Captain William de Vlamingh landed at Cape Inscription and found Dirk Hartog’s plate. As the plate was badly weathered, Vlamingh copied the record on to another plate and added his own record. In August 1699, Captain William Dampier anchored and surveyed the northern end of Dirk Hartog Island. In 1772, French Captain Alesne de St Allouran landed on the island and claimed it in the name of the French King. As a proof of his presence he buried a parchment and two French coins nearby which lay undiscovered until 1998. Louis de Freycinet came to Shark Bay in 1818 and removed the plate from Cape Inscription. He returned to Europe where it was presented to the French Academy in Paris. The Vlamingh plate then disappeared until 1940.
Monte Bello Islands: The Montebello Islands are a group of more than 100 Islands off the north-west coast of Western Australia. They achieved international notoriety in 1952 when the British, in an operation code named Hurricane, detonated an atomic weapon in a bay off one of the major Islands Trimouille. Two further atomic tests were carried out in May and June of 1956 on Alpha and Trimouille Islands. The flat limestone islands range in size from Hermite, the largest, at about 1,000 ha, to several small islets and rocks of less than one hectare. They are the remnants of an old coastal landform and have been separated from the mainland for more than 8000 years. The earliest known European use of the islands was in 1622, when one of Australia’s first recorded shipwrecks, that of the TRYAL took place just west of the Montebello’s. The survivors of the wreck spent seven days on the northern islands before setting forth for the East Indies. Only 30 could sail with the captain in the lifeboat, the rest were left to their fate on the wrecked ship. Other early navigators, Baudin in 1801, King in 1818 and Stokes in 1840 had less eventful voyages.