Hamelin Station (3): Shells, security and sharks!

Our final day at Hamelin station was spent slowly meandering up the coast to Denham. We stopped at a number of places along the way – spending some time at each and searching the crystal-clear waters for any elusive signs of life.

The first stop for the day was Shell Beach (Wulgada). This place was both aptly named and very informative. Wandering slowly down to the beach from the car park, we stopped at each of the information stations that had been dotted along the path to learn about how this fascinating region was formed, as well as a little about the wildlife which calls this place home.

 

Shell Beach (Wulgada) - an amazing hidden gem!

 

 

But, before we went too far, we came across an information station which talked about the feral animal fence that had been erected to cut off this peninsular from the mainland. The fence stretched up high and had been dug deep into the ground. The fence was also electrified, to further deter the most persistent of cats, wild dogs, and foxes from entering the area. The weakest point in the fence was, of course, the gaping hole where the road that we had driven down passes through. Before continuing down to explore Shelly Beach, we decided to take a detour and check out this fence. As we approached the area of the fence that the road ran through, we found to our surprise that this gaping hole was not as unprotected as we had first thought. Wandering back across the cattle grid and over the road between the two halves of the fence, we were startled when a dog suddenly started barking at us – seemingly from nowhere. 

 

Having calmed our nerves, we realised there was in fact no dog, but the sound was coming from speaker at the side of the road. There was an array of sensors attached to the speaker, which triggered a recording of a dog’s bark in the hopes of scaring away would be intruding animals from crossing into the park. “How very clever”, we thought while the boys took great pleasure in setting off the sensor over and over again. And to think, unless one gets out of one’s car and takes a walk over the cattle grid, you would never know this was here. Very cool!

 

Feral animal deterrent - Shell Beach

 

Feral animal deterrents aside, we continued our journey down the path to Shelly Beach. This place got its name from the abundance of tiny cockle shells that were strewn along this stretch of coastline. These little Fragum Cockles are one of the few forms of life that can live in this area. Due to the hydrology of this area, the lagoon in front of Shelly Bay is twice as salty as normal sea water. Because of this, nothing else can comfortably live here. So, these little cockles (the size of the nail on my index finger) were free to grow with abandon. Millions upon millions of their tiny shells lined the beach. According to one informative sign, we learned that in some places they were up to nine metres deep. So, we spent a bit of time combing the beach for shells, and came up with handfuls that were all different shapes and sizes.

 

So many, many beautiful white shells...

 

 

Moving on, we pulled in at Eagle Bluff to wander another boardwalk in the hopes of seeing a dolphin, turtle or shark. Despite a few false starts (there were a several bunches of sea grass floating passed that looked suspiciously like sharks and dugongs), we did eventually spot a couple of sharks cruising along in the waters far below.

 

 Eagle bluff and an elusive Reef Shark...

 

Nope, not a shark, dugong or porpoise... just MORE kelp.

 

Farwell Eagle bluff

 

 

Having spent time gawping at the reef sharks, we continued our journey to Denham, where the boys spent a chunk of the afternoon throwing themselves around an awesome playground in the heart of this small town. Over the next hour or two sandcastles were built, swings were swung, and most of importantly the grand slide in the middle of the park was plummeted down.  

 Denham - what a playground!

 

In the end, we made our way back to the campsite, where we had a third great night in front of the roaring fire. Up early the next day, we braved the early morning chill and huddled around the dying embers of the communal campfire to make ham, egg and cheese toasted sandwiches over the still hot coals. With breakfast done, we packed up and said goodbye to Hamelin station. It was a lot of fun around the station, but the road towards Victoria was starting to call us home. So, let’s make a start.

 

 Marshmallow treats on our last night in Hamelin Station

 

Bye ‘d bye,

Gregg