Broome to 80 Miles Beach

Today was going to involve a lot of driving again. And indeed it was. 

All I can say was that it was long and boring. We had an occasional stop at a rest area to stretch our legs our prepare some food and that was about it. In the late afternoon we fueled up at Sand Fire Roadhouse where the air was full of smoke from a fire about 40 km inland.

From there it was about half an hour drive to 80 Miles Beach Caravan Park. We were happily surprised when we arrived there as the park looked very nice and well taken care off with grassy sites. Which is definitely something you learn to appreciate after spending a lot of time in the dusty outback.

At 5 pm Sander and I signed up for volunteers work which involved monitoring turtles nesting. It included a information session where a ranger told us about the program and the tasks involved. Afterward dinner was provided and at 6.30 pm it was time to get involved. 

We were split up in two groups and each group had to walk 3 km along the beach. After arriving at the 3km mark we had to walk back and as soon as we saw fresh turtle tracks we had to find the turtle and watch her digging a hole (which could take up to an hour). As soon as she started laying eggs (an average of 50 biljart ball sized eggs) we had to mark the nest and move on to the next turtle. 

It was very interesting. I mean, how often do you get the change to watch this from up close. But also it was boring in times as it took the turtles forever to dig that hole!

All in all it felt special to be part of the research and to see these massive flat-back turtles from nearby. At 9.30 pm we were back at the campsite and we were neckered. It was bed time for us for sure!