Lesueur National Park is a globally recognised biodiversity hotspot. Spring is the best time to visit it when you can see many of the 900 plant species blooming. But you can still see something flowering at any time of the year. We visited Lesueur National Park in the middle of autumn (April) and found endangered pine banksia flowering quite fascinating.
There is 18km one-way loop scenic drive throughout the park with numerous stopping points and information boards along the way. Interestingly, while the road to the park is a dirt road, the scenic drive inside the Lesueur Park is a sealed road. There are two picnic areas inside the park. Numerous trails of various length and difficulty start from those areas.
Mt Lesueur Trail in Lesueur National Park
We choose Mt Lesueur Trail, which is 3,5km return walk. It starts as an easy walk on rather flat surfaces and then changes into a moderate difficulty trail as it climbs up the slope.
The top of Mt Lesueur is flat but the views are quite spectacular.
With not many of the wildflowers blooming in April, Grass Trees, Kingia Australis and Pine Banksia were the spotlights for us.
Apart from endangered Pine Banksia, there are also other types of bankias in the park. Firewood bankisa and Bankisa Prionotes are especially spectacular.
How to get there and where to stay
Lesueur Natonal Park is 15 minutes’ drive from Jurien Bay and is easily accessible. There is a standard entry fee per vehicle and no dogs are allowed in the park. The nearest campground (this is where we stayed) is Karda campground.
The Pinnacles (part of the Nambung National Park) near Cervantes do not need introduction. It is one of the most visited places in Western Australia. Located only 2,5-hour drive from Perth along the Indian Ocean Drive, it can be just a day trip or you can take a few days to explore the area. There is a 4,5km driving trail through the desert with many parking bays to stop and enjoy the marvellous creations.
What are exactly the Pinnacles and how were they formed?
The Pinnacles are natural limestone structures formed thousands of years ago. They are of different shapes and sizes, some as high as 3 meters. Up to date scientists are still puzzled as to how the Pinnacles were formed. There are a few theories which contradict each other and little evidence to support each. The Pinnacles Desert Discovery Centre within the Nambung National Park has some posters explaining different theories. One thing is clear – the Pinnacles are nature’s creations! Interestingly, the Nambung National Park near Cervantes is not the only place in Australia where the Pinnacles are found. But here there is a greatest concentration of them.
Pinnacles are photographer’s delight
Not only the Pinnacles is a very popular attraction but also one of the most photographed iconic places during the day, sunset or night. While there are some amazing pictures by professional photographers out there, here is what we’ve seen.
Pinnacles during the day
During the daytime, the light can be very harsh, unless there are some clouds which make the landscape interesting. In the absence of clouds, you will get better results when shooting closer to the end of the day, when the light is a bit softer. Irrespective of the lighting conditions, the Pinnacles, without doubt, do not fail to impress.
Pinnacles at dusk
Twilight is a magical time to take pictures. It is the time when the sky is lit with myriad of colours that change by seconds.
Pinnacles at night
This is the most ifficult time to take pictures. But it can be quite rewarding. Just starring at the sky full of stars is already very fulfilling, when a sense of peace and quietness pervades. These pictures were taken a bit early in the evening (between 7 and 9pm). For best results, it would be better to take them around 10-11pm. Apparently, at that time you can see the Milky Way in a shape of an emu. But our kids were too tired and wanted to go back to campground, so these are the shots I managed.
Lake Thetis
Part of Nambung National Park is Lake Thetis. It is a small saline lake and is one of only a few places in Western Australia where stromatolites are found. Stromatolites and their cousins thrombolites are the oldest living lifeforms on the planet. Although the stromatolites in Hamlin Pool at Shark Bay are more impressive, Lake Thetis is still worth a visit on your way to the Pinnacles.
There is a nice but short walk around the lake and you can see many birds resting on stromatolites. People are not allowed to touch or walk on stromatolites but this rule doesn’t apply to birds. 😊
Where can you stay nearby?
There are plenty of accomodation in Cervantes and Jurien Bay, which includes caravan parks, as well as hotels. But if you are after something more simple and nature based, we recommend Karda campground. Although it is a bit further away from Cervantes but it is close to Lesueur National Park, which is worth exploring.
Good to know
There is entry fee of $15 per vehicle (as of April 2023) to Nambung National Park and no dogs are allowed.
While you are at the Pinnacles Desert, watch out for a family of emus.
Karda campground is a great nature-based campground, 20km east from Jurien Bay and next to Lesueur National Park. If you are looking for a budget accommodation in that area, Karda campground is an ideal choice. Firstly, it is within the short driving distance from both the Lesueur National Park and the coastal town of Jurien Bay. Secondly, the campground is not too big and not too small. There are 31 sites, located in two loops, and can accommodate all sorts of vehicles and vans, including tents, caravans and trailers. Thirdly, the sites themselves are really huge, which is always very nice. Lastly, each site comes with its own picnic table and firepit. Not to mention that there are two clean and new drop toilets in each loop.
The sites are $11 per adult and $3 per child per night. You would need to book online via Parkstay. We visited Karda campground over the Anzac Day holiday, end of April and there were plenty of spaces available. However, we would recommend booking in advance, as the internet can be quite patchy there.
Unfortunately, no dogs are allowed. There are also no rubbish bins, which keeps the cost a bit lower.
Karda campground is a great place to stay during cooler months of the year. It can be quite hot in summer there. In fact, it is closed from December to February. There are plently of things to do and see around. Biodiversity hot spot Lesueur National Park is just around the corner. Jurien Bay has a lot on offer too. And of course, the famous Pinnalces Desert is only about an hour’s drive away.
Below: view from our swags in the morning. Nice life 🙂
Knobby Head (South) used to be a free camp ground (back in 2021 when we visited it), 3.5 hours drive north of Perth. It is half way between Leeman and Dongara. There are two entrances 20 to 40 meters apart running in parallel from Indian Ocean Drive. If you are travelling from Perth, use the first entrance, if you tow a small caravan. Second entrance has soft sand and not levelled (towing and driving could bog the vehicles). Both tracks are short and very soon you find yourself in front of the ocean! There are only 3 or so spots there, 80 to 100 meters apart, so there is a lot of privacy and the spots are quite big. We had our friends in a Land Cruiser Sahara and a huge tent staying with us for the first night.
Knobby Head South campground
There is also Knobby Head north campground, a short drive further up north, which has more spaces.
We tried fishing… although didn’t catch anything.
However, we were lucky to be gifted with a freshly caught lobster (after our friends left) by a friendly neighbour whom we saw every morning passing by and launching a boat to go out in the sea.
A gift of freshly caught lobster from a friendly neighbour
There are no facilities in this campground, so please take rubbish with you. It is a nice stop over for a night or 2, or a place to get away for a weekend.
Update: Things have changed a lot since we camped at this place in 2021. The shire has put up basic facilities and is charging now $20 per site per night. As we have not been there since 2021, we can’t provide any more updates.
Milligan Island Camping Node is a coastal eco-campsite, 3 hours drive north of Perth. It is located between towns of Green Head and Leeman along Turquoise Coast. Milligan Island is also half an hour drive from Knobby Head where we spent 2 nights with our friends before heading to Milligan Island.
Road to Milligan Island Camping Node (last 1.5km)
For $15 per vehicle per night you can get a large camping bay protected from the wind by the dunes (most bays are big enough for two cars and two tents/caravans), large, clean long drop toilets (no smell!) and undercover picnic tables with bbq.
Update: The above was true in 2021 when we first visited Milligan Island camp. Now, you need to book it via the shire website. The cost is $20 per site, per 2 people (in 2024).
Milligan Island camping bays
Nature’s entertainment at Milligan Island camp
We entertained ourselves by walking on the beach and looking for crabs that were very quick running into their holes in the sand.
Crab on the beachMilligan Island beach
Have you seen these creatures? They look like jelly fish but they are actually colonial organisms consisting of four different types of polyps with different shapes and functions. Known as Bluebottles, they are sometimes confused with Portuguese Man-O-War which are larger and have more tentacles. Bluebottles have elongated blue float bubble, not more than 10cm wide, and a long dark blue tentacle up to 3 meters long which has stinging cells. We found lots of these stinging bluebottles on the beaches of the Turquoise coast.
Bluebottle
Children found great pleasure playing in the sand dunes, running down the slopes and falling into the soft white sand!
Water is very precious. After 2 days of free camping at Knobby Head we used 120 litters of water. (We had a friends’ family with us whom we shared water with.) Now with only 25 liters we had to ration our water to be able to last another day and night.
However, these bees found their bath in our basin where we washed vegetables and fruits! We were told that bees lost their homes due to recent bush fires and were now looking for a source of water. Sure enough they found it at the campground near taps or just in buckets or cups. Luckily, the bees were not aggressive. All this reminds me how precious life and resources, like food and water, is.
When a friendly campground host came later in the afternoon to collect our fees, she told us about the rocks with the hole, just off the shore. At the right time one can see the sun during sunset.
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