May 2024 - Travel nut

Dirk Hartog Island

Dirk Hartog Island is Western Australia’s largest island. It is located 2km off shore from Steep Point – Australian mainland most westerly point in Shark Bay. The island got its name after a Dutch sea captain Dirk Hartog, who was the first European to step on the island in 1616. Current “Return to 1616” ambitious project aims to restore ecological balance on Dirk Hartog Island to its pristine condition prior to European settlement in 1616. First settlers brought goats and sheep with them which caused damage to native plants and reduction of native fauna. Since the start of the project in 2007 these domestic animals have been removed and are now replaced with native species. Feral goats still occur in large numbers in Edel Land National Park.

How to get there

Dirk Hartog Island is accessible only by boat from Denham, light aircraft or a private barge from Steep Point. Most people, especially the 4WD enthusiasts, choose a barge to get there. Barge transfer is an experience by itself and is quite iconic. 2km long journey across South Passage from Shelter Bay in Edel Land National Park takes about 15 minutes. The barge can accommodate only one vehicle.

Vehicle on the barge travelling to Dirk Hartog Island

What is the condition of the track like

Driving on Dirk Hartog Island is an adventure by itself. At nearly 80km long and 15km wide, travelling on the island is a bit of a challenge due to heavy corrugation. It might take a full day to travel from bottom to the top of the island. Should you be driving fast there? Here are our thoughts.

There are also some rocky sections, slopes and tilts and few sand dunes to cross. You will definitely need a reliable 4WD for this kind of terrain.

Camping at the national park

It is possible to camp on Dirk Hartog Island either in the Homestead or in the national park. There are only 20 sites at the Homestead and 20 at the national park. Bookings are essential through Dirk Hartog Island Homestead site. There are no facilities at the national park and you would need to bring everything with you and take your rubbish when you leave. No dogs and no campfires are allowed at the national park.

We stayed at Notch Point in the national park, which is the closest to the barge arrival site campground on Dirk Hartog Island. It is located on the eastern side of the island, which is protected from strong winds and has clear calm waters. There are only 2 spots allocated for camping either side of a beach, which gives everyone plenty of space and privacy (just as we like it!). You pay premium for such a privilege to camp in this pristine idealistic place. We spent 4 epic days and nights at Notch Point, fully enjoying ourselves, despite millions of flies 😊. They are part of camping, anyway, and we just treat them as such.

Like anywhere on the island, you can enjoy fishing, swimming and snorkeling, or just relaxing by the beach.

The sunsets and sunrises are some of the best we’ve ever seen.

Dirk Hartog Island Homestead

A lot of people choose to stay at Dirk Hartog Island Homestead sites where there are more facilities (including hot showers) and also onsite bar and merchandise shop. It is a great place for those who want a bit more social life in this remote location. When people gather at the bar every afternoon, it feels like a little village with all the buzz going on.

We stayed for 1 night at the Homestead, so we didn’t need to travel far for the barge transfer in the morning.

The best thing about the Homestead for us was free use of paddle boards and kayaks, which we enjoyed very much. We managed to see sea snakes, sting rays, star fishes and tropical fishes.

What to see on the island

Blowholes

The first thing you might like to see as you arrive on the island is blowholes. We found the blowholes in Edel Land National Park more impressive (meaning, louder and bigger). But these are still worth a visit, even if to appreciate the beauty of the landscape. Those massive Zuytdorp Cliffs rising out of mighty ocean are awesome. They are a visual example of fault scarp, which is actually the longest in Australia. Blowholes are on the western side of the island, 3km off the main track, on the way to Dirk Hartog Island Homestead.

Surf Point

Surf Point might need a bit more time than just a quick visit. It is a sanctuary zone in the south of Dirk Hartog Island. It is a 15km drive from Cape Ransonnet (the barge arrival site), on the western side. Surf Point is a great place to go snorkeling (assuming you don’t mind sharing the space with sharks 😊). The sharks, even though being small and relatively harmless, do scare many people away. But honestly, sharks looked more scared of us, then we of them 😊.

We spent a few hours at Surf Point, walking along on the beach and going for short dips. You can find some corals, giant clams and tropical fishes in the rocky pools on the exposed side of Surf Point.

Drone helped us to see a turtle too and many more sharks 😊.

Sharks in shallow waters of Dirk Hartog Island

Sand dunes

There are a few sand dunes on Dirk Hartog Island that you will need to cross if you travel north, past Homestead. They are actually fun to drive. We stopped for a closer look to appreciate the beauty of the landscape, shaped by nature. Kids had lots of fun going up and down the slopes. If you want to take nice pictures, going there in the afternoon, when the sun is a bit lower, is probably best.

Sandy Point

During our last trip we managed to venture only as far north as Sandy Point (having not realized how slow the driving on the island is ☹ but all the more the reason to visit the island again). Sandy Point is roughly in the middle of the island on the eastern side. It is a nice sandy beach, with a sanctuary zone on one side and fishing area somewhere further away. You can camp at Sandy Point or just come for a day visit.

Wildlife on Dirk Hartog Island

There is plenty of marine life to see in the water and on the shore. Apart from dolphins, sharks, seasnakes, sea turtles pictured above, sea stars were also in abundance.

There are many crabs too, which you can see at night and daytime alike.

While it is easy to spot marine life, animals on land are much harder to find. We were lucky to spot Banded hare-wallaby and Rufous hare-wallaby.

Rufous hare-wallaby at Dirk Hartog Island

Banded hare-wallaby at Dirk Hartog Island

But this guy didn’t need looking for. This Monitor Lizard literally occupied our camping spot at the Homestead :).

And here is us, satisfied with the trip (although annoyed with the flies) and eager to return back to explore the rest of the island.

Should you be driving fast on corrugated road?

Driving on corrugated road in Dirk Hartog Island

Please note before continuing reading, that we respect the for and against points of views. So, chill out and enjoy the reading. 🙂

This is one controversial subject, that attracts a lot of discussion, in our experience. Quite often when we post videos of us driving on corrugated tracks, we get lots of comments from people telling us to just drive fast as it is more comfortable. So, we decided to write this post to address the subject and explain why we don’t drive fast.

Two schools of thought

There are two schools of thoughts regarding driving on corrugated roads. The more popular (in our experience) view is that you should drive fast and it is actually good, as you glide over the bumps and this reduces vibration. In this case, you presumably do not feel the bumps and the drive is relatively smooth. Not only that, you save significant amount of time by arriving to your destination sooner. As we are not supporters of this point of view, we can’t share our experience of driving fast. We did try but it didn’t go very well.

The second school of thought considers the risks of fast driving on corrugated road and whether they outweigh the benefits. In our opinion, there are multiple risks. First, the risk of damaging your vehicle is much higher when you drive fast over those bumps and holes. Second, the chances of a collision with another vehicle (assuming it is a single winding track, or the one going up and down hills) are much higher. When you travel at higher speed, it takes longer for the vehicle to stop. And if the track abruptly stops or breaks, there is a risk of flipping the vehicle when one losses control. If this happens in the outback with no services, including ambo services or flying doctors not immediately available, we all know the consequences in the extreme case. Vehicle breakdown with no help or services to fix could potentially cost $$$. This is the best scenario.

Head on collision with another vehicle due to them driving too fast! On Useless Loop Road, Edel Land NP.

What determines your driving on corrugated road

We are not advocating one or the other point of view. Everyone drives according to their own skills level, experience, personal choice and preference, as well as personality and temperament. Some people like high speed and lots of action in their life and this is directly translated into their driving style. While others are more cautious, slow and choose prevention rather than dealing with consequences. We are all different and make different choices in life.

Circumstances will also determine your driving style. For someone who goes off-road with one spare tyre and minimal vehicle repairing experience, it might make a good sense to drive slowly to avoid damages to the vehicle. Consider, on the other hand, someone who is fully equipped with a few spare tyres, all the necessary tools and equipment, plenty of mechanical knowledge and experience and is travelling in a convoy. These are different circumstances and drivers would often weigh the risks according to the backup plan they have.

Other considerations

Ultimately, the speed which you choose for tackling corrugated tracks is not the only consideration. Having the correct tyre pressure, as well as the correct type of tyres for a particular terrain is important. There is no right or wrong when it comes to the correct tyre pressure, as it depends on so many variables, like the condition of the track, the weather, time of the day. Eg. the sandy track under the heat is so much softer. The same track is much harder when the sun goes down on that same hot day. The type of vehicle you drive, its capability, suspension might also make a difference. Engaging in correct 4WD gear is yet another consideration.

There are other things that is good to take into consideration when driving on corrugated tracks, other than worrying about the speed. Stopping every now and again (at least once every hour) is a good practice to check the vehicle conditions. Let others overtake. We love stopping often, as it gives the rest of us (passengers) a chance to stretch the legs, for the kids to run around a bit, and for the photographers to appreciate the beauty of the outback. Most importantly, we love to enjoy a cuppa with a favourite bikkie and admire the rig as part of the family. Or admire the rigs that overtake us. :). We love to observe life and fully experience what is happening for us, rather than rushing through the experience.

Safety should come first

Not last to mention the unwritten law that it is a common road courtesy to slow down when approaching or overtaking a vehicle on corrugated tracks. You wouldn’t want this until it happens to you. Unfortunately, not everyone is aware of that. We were very often enveloped in a cloud of dust by oncoming traffic to the point that we could not see anything at all for a few seconds. Does that sound like this type of driving poses a danger to you? It does, to us. The worse is the rocks and projectile/stones from the oncoming traffic hitting the windscreen. Worst, it hits someone via smashing windscreen. So, if you choose to travel fast on corrugated roads, please be, at least, considerate of other drivers.

Cloud of dust when driving on corrugated track

We travel by ourselves and rely only on ourselves and what we carry with us, including our own experience and knowledge. For us, safety is more important than comfort or quantity of kms covered.

Here is a good article that we find quite educational. It also explains in details how corrugation is formed.

Guide to Handling Corrugations in your 4WD

While we do have substantial experience in 4Wdriving by now, we are by no means, the experts and are simply sharing our experience. There are some things that we might not be aware of – like everyone else, we are constantly learning. If there is something that you think would benefit others (and us), please do share your knowledge and experience by commenting below.

Edel Land and Steep Point

Zuytdorp cliffs at Thunder Bay in Edel Land National Park

Edel Land is a proposed National Park in the Shark Bay region of Western Australia. It is the place where the most westerly point of Australian mainland is located – Steep Point. Useless Loop Road traverses the national park, leading to a number of attractions, which include the salt mine at the entrance, the blowholes on the coast, lookouts and historical sites. The park is also home to impressive 200 meter high Zuytdorp Cliffs. It is a very remote area with no amenities, but quite well visited by 4WD enthusiasts as the corrugation of the track indicates. Camping is allowed at a few places within Edel Land national park. Even though, it is considered “proposed” national park, normal park entry fees apply.

Useless Loop Road

Useless Loop Road is a dirt road (after initial 30 or so km sealed) with an unusual and interesting name! The name Useless Loop was bestowed by a French explorer Louis de Freycinet who couldn’t get to an inviting harbour, believing it was blocked by a sandbar.

Originally a mining road leading to a company town with the same name servicing a salt mine, it is nowadays mostly known as the road to access the most westerly point of Australian mainland. It is quite wide but corrugated track. Stopping every now and again allowed us to appreciate the beauty of this seemingly unattractive track.

Driving further on Useless Loop Road, through Edel Land National Park, we had to stop a few times to access the track conditions. The track goes up and down almost continuously (which at some point caused us a collision with another vehicle that was driving too fast).

And once we nearly drove over the massive drop but luckily stopped just in time. This was at Dicko’s Lookout, which was quite nice.

The last 30km before Steep Point is the most challenging track, as it involves climbing sand dunes up and down. Check our reels about the track if you would like to see how it looks like.

Edel Land National Park attractions

Salt mine

Useless Loop Salt mine is the first attraction in Edel Land National Park and is right at the entrance.

The salt mine looks absolutely amazing from the ground with its surreal colour of the water. It looks even better from above.

Zuytdorp Cliffs

Zuytdorp Cliffs are very spectacular rock formations, rising up to 200 meters and stretching for nearly 200km along the western coast of Australia, between Kalbarri and Steep Point. Their sheer height, as well as almost continuous length is very impressive. The cliffs were named after the Dutch ship, the Zuytdorp, that was wrecked against the base of the cliffs in 18th century.

Coastal Zuytdorp Cliffs at Edel Land National Park

It is possible to drive along the coastal cliffs. Sometimes (on the western side from False Entrance going north) the track is uncomfortably too close to the 200-meter cliff drop and it makes you feel like you are driving into the ocean 😊.

Blowholes

You can find blowholes in two locations in Edel Land National Park – at False Entrance and in Thunder Bay. Blowholes occur when there are holes in the coastal cliffs. When massive waves hit the coast, the force pushes air and sea mist out through those holes. When the force is strong enough, water comes out too a few meters high and sometimes pieces of debris, like stones, seaweed, etc.

Big hole in the coastal cliffs at Edel Land National Park

Blowholes at False Entrance

If the sight of the water and air surging out from the ground was impressive, the sound was deafening and scary for kids. Check our short video of blowholes on Tiktok here.

The sighting of a sea turtle was a bonus 😊.

Blowholes at Thunder Bay were equally impressive.

Camping at Edel Land Natinal Park

Camping at Edel Land National Park is available at 3 locations – False Entrance, Shelter Bay and Steep Point. The sites need to be booked online via ParkstayWA.

False Entrance

False Entrance camp is in the south of Edel Land National Park. It is 50km from Steep Point, the most westerly point of Australian mainland. The place got its name after many early seafarers mistook it for the South Passage, the entrance to Shark Bay, between Dirk Hartog Island and Steep Point. There is a camping area with just 5 spots scattered around at False Entrance. We were on site 1, which was quite far away from all other sites. There are no facilities and you would need to bury human waste and take all other rubbish with you. False Entrance is very beautiful but quite rough and windy. The camp is on the beach, tucked behind the dunes.

Camping at False Entrance in Edel Land National Park

Sand dunes at False Entrance in Edel Land National Park

The beach is very beautiful but with huge waves we couldn’t swim there. Instead, we enjoyed stunning sunsets and sunrises and short walks around, including climbing up and down the dunes.

Steep Point

Steep Point is the most westerly point of Australian mainland and an iconic place. Unfortunately, it was very windy for a drone to fly to take pictures from above when we visited this place. The position of the sun wasn’t helping either in taking a decent selfie. We were there in the afternoon, which is not the best time for photos with that iconic sign, so plan for a morning visit.

Steep Point campground facilities are very basic but there are drop toilets there.

Shelter Bay

A lot of people who go to Dirk Hartog Island, choose to camp at Shelter Bay in Edel Land NP the night before they take the barge, especially if they book the transfer for an early hour. Shelter Bay was beautiful, although, contrary to its name, it was windy. We were at DHI barge site and could see vehicles lining up to catch a barge, even before the sunrise, with the first transfer at 6.30am. Sites at Shelter Bay need to be booked online beforehand. Facilities include a few drop toilets scattered around. It is quite a large campground with plenty of space and right on the beach.

Month: May 2024

Dirk Hartog Island

How to get there

What is the condition of the track like

Camping at the national park

Dirk Hartog Island Homestead