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This National Park is made up of 28 separate blocks of land stretched over 120 kilometres of coastline and covers 15,600 Ha in total.
The park lies between Bunker Bay and Augusta along the picturesque coastal strip. There are three camp grounds available for
car access ( Conto,
Point Road which is 4x4 access and Boranup Drive. ) as well as a number of campsites for walkers on the Cape to Cape track.
Fees are payable at the main campsites for overnight camping.
The Cape Naturaliste light house was opened on April 5th 1904.
At just 19 metres high it is much less impressive than it's southern neighbour at Cape Leeuwin.
The teak steps inside the lighthouse are said to be the only ones of their type in Australia.
The light was installed in a bath of mercury that made it very easy to rotate. In the 'bad old days' before people worked out just how toxic mercury was, the
keepers used to handle it without any form of protection. The resulting mercury poisoning led to madness, something obviously not helped by the extreme
isolation many keepers had to put up with.
When both the Cape Naturaliste and the Leeuwin light house were complete, the southern cape area was made much safer for shipping.
For a small fee you can visit the lighthouse precinct and for a little more get a guided tour inside the lighthouse.
The money goes back to maintaining and upgrading this historic site and is money well spent.
There is a small souvenir shop in the entrance building and a café in another of the former lighthouse keeper's residences.
The third house is ear marked for development as a museum.
The lighthouse keeper's quarters are said to be haunted by two ghosts, Mary and Harry.
The Cape Leeuwin lighthouse is on the most south westerly point of Australia. It was constructed in 1895 by John Wishart and
Maurice Davies and was the 11th lighthouse completed in Australia.
It is at this point that the Indian and Southern oceans meet and combined with a rocky coastline it was a dangerous place for early seafarers. The lighthouse
was constructed using stone quarried from a nearby bay (Quarry Bay) and it stands 36 metres high.
In 1982 the light was changed to electricity and became fully automated.
The nearby water wheel once supplied fresh water to the lighthouse keepers residences but the spring dried up and today the water you see is brought in by
pipe in order to stop the lime encrusted wheel and supports from drying out and disintegrating.
This park probably offers more to do and see than any other in the state. Because of its location, it is easily accessible and there are all sorts of interesting
and picturesque attractions to explore.
It was the caves in this region that first attracted tourists. Although many of the caves had been found and explored prior to 1903, it was at this time that they
were first promoted as tourist attractions. Yallingup cave was one of the first to be electrically lit.
Over the years the water table in the area has dropped and lakes that used to adorn some of the caves have started to disappear.
Boranup Scenic Drive is an unsealed and sometimes fairly rough road but it is worth doing as the scenery along the track can only really be appreciated by
driving slowly and stopping from time to time to get out and admire the sights of the forest.
There are lookouts and picnic areas along the drive.
The Cape to Cape walk track leads you along the spectacular coastline and is really only suitable for very fit people. Fortunately it is possible for those of us who
are somewhat less fit, to walk small sections of the track.
Walking to whole track covers some 140 kilometres and needs several days to complete.
At the northern end the Bunker Bay walk trail is around 2.5 kilometres long and there are some strategically located seats for those who need to rest occasionally.
At Cape Naturaliste there is a 3.2 kilometre trail. This is a circular track that takes around an hour and a half to complete.
Canal Rocks to Wyadup trail is one way out and back. It is best to be dropped off at a car park at one end of the trail and to arrange to be picked up at the other
end. This is a 4 kilometre 2 hour walk one way.
The Meekadarabee Falls trail starts and ends at Ellenbrook Homestead. It is 2 kilometres long and takes around 40 minutes to complete. The best time to do
this walk is in late winter or early spring when the falls are in full flow.
Hamelin Bay to Cosy Corner is another section of the cape to Cape walk that is best done by drop off and pick up at either end. This is one of the longer sections
at 6.5 kilometres and takes about half a day to complete.
Water Wheel to Skippy Rock trail is 3 kilometres and takes a bit over an hour to complete. Again drop off and pick up are is the best way to do this walk.
Attractions in the area include, Canal Rocks Boranup Drive, Injidup, Quininup Falls, Meekadarabee Falls, Ellensbrook, Caves, Lighthouses, Diving, Surfing,
Fishing, Walking.
NPW Website for more information
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