We’d had a lovely week at Point Samson but it was time to move on, and next we spent a couple of days in Dampier. It might not seem an obvious place for tourists with its huge oil and gas plant, salt works and 24/7 port operations but it had some hidden treasures. The town overlooks the islands of the Dampier Archipelago and is particularly popular with boaties and fishermen. Humpback whales can also be seen off the coast as they migrate north between June and September (haven’t seen any yet though).
Everywhere is dog friendly: the caravan park, the beachside markets, and the Mermaid Tavern even allows dogs on its courtesy bus. All the beaches are dog friendly, including the beautiful Hearson’s Cove where the beach is made entirely of sea shells and will eventually form limestone (see I do listen to geology facts Jonathan).
Dampier’s most famous resident was Red Dog, a kelpie/cattle cross who travelled round the Pilbara region during the 1970s. His story has been made into a film (have plenty of tissues handy if you watch it).
Just outside of Dampier, is Deep Gorge which is recognised as one of the most prolific Aboriginal rock art sites in Australia with over 10,000 images. The images are called petroglyphs which are those made by removing the outer surface of the rock.
