"Western Australia" State of Western Australia by bsfreeloader

Like the neighboring Northern Territory, Western Australia is a massive place of wide open spaces. Covering a full third of the Australian continent (more than twice the size of Texas and nearly the same size as India), WA has a population of less than two million people. And the vast majority of WA’s residents live within 200 kilometers of the state capital, Perth. Perth is just one of several interesting places in WA that are well worth visiting. To the immediate south of Perth is the eclectic town of Fremantle and a short ferry ride from Fremantle is Rottnest Island. Further south are several beach and surf towns, the Margaret River wine region, tall timber country, and the coastal towns of Augusta and Albany. Just a few hours north of Perth is Nambung National Park, which is home to the rather remarkable Pinnacles Desert. A bit further north (by WA standards) is Shark Bay, home to, among other things, Monkey Mia and its famous dolphins and Hamelin Pool and its less familiar stromatolites (sediment-trapping algae believed to be direct descendants of the world’s first life forms). Further up the west coast are Coral Bay and Exmouth, both of which provide easy access to the amazing Ningaloo Reef. Turning east, there isn’t much too see until reaching Broome, a pleasant beach town and gateway to the Kimberly. And last but certainly not least is the Kimberly. Billed as Australia’s Alaska or final frontier, the Kimberly is a largely undeveloped and untamed region of massive cattle stations and scenic gorges the highlight of which is the uniquely beautiful and truly special Bungle Bungles. The diversity of sights and experiences in WA is unequalled in Australia and, because the area is so much less developed than the east coast, it is still relatively unspoiled and unaffected (with a few notable exceptions such as Monkey Mia). But you better hurry, because relatively uncontrolled, large-scale development is rampant all along the coast, bringing about changes in the name of progress that aren’t necessarily changes for the better.