After spending the night in Denham, we got up early the next morning and drove to Monkey Mia. Every day, a crowd gathers on the shore to wait for a pod of dolphins who have been fed there, every day, for years.

LR and RJ try to spot them from the jetty.

The water was incredibly still and calm... Dad had the rare chance to get some early morning photography done while waiting.

LR stands knee deep in water as the pod arrives.

One of the park rangers hands over some of the delicious booty.

The kids spent some time snorkelling and exploring the shallow waters of the bay.

LR and RJ discovered hermit crabs near the shore... There were hundreds of them!

LR heads off to collect another handful of crabs!

Mom booked us onto a boat cruise. It was a great way to get out into the bay and see some sharks, turtles, dolphins and perhaps even a dugong.

RJ and Dad rode in the net, trying to spot sharks as we cruised the reefs.

The boat stopped by a pearl oyster farm where we learned the ins and outs of farming pearls. As we watched the presentation, RJ suddenly darted forward between the speaker's legs to save this tiny crab from being stepped on.

RJ had an audience as he practiced his surf moves!

On the ride back, LR and Dad made up their own jokes to entertain themselves.

One of the wild dolphins had great fun riding the bow wave from the boat.

Once we left the reef area and returned to deeper water, the captain loaded the net behind the boat with passengers and took off -- the ultimate ocean cold-tub.

The next morning, we were off again, heading north past Carnarvon and on to Gnaraloo Station. We stopped along the way to watch the blowholes, as whales happily flopped about just off the coast. Despite the best efforts from the blowholes, with deafening roars and tremendous columns of water blasting from the rock, the kids were still way more interested in the tidal pools.

LR did her very best to break her ankle by leaping maniacally from rock to rock across the puddles, but failed miserably.

At this point, we had 80 km (50 miles) of this kind of track ahead of us. Every few hundred metres, we would encounter another massive bog which would require getting out and inspecting. We very seriously considered turning around and not continuing on.

We arrived, triumphant, but utterly nervewracked and exhausted. We took our place amongst the four wheel drives and tried to pretend it had been great fun.

At the base of the cliff in front of camp, there's a famous surfing spot. It was pretty spectactular, with great waves rolling in continuously, all day long.

Dog digging competition!!! On your mark, get set, go!

What's that, Mom? The water's a bit cold?

RJ really enjoyed snorkelling too. He spotted all kinds of fish, and thought he had made friends with two, but discovered they were just damselfish trying to scare him away from their algae farm!

At every opportunity, LR hunted for the most precious shells on the sea floor.

At low tide, we could explore the safer sections of the cliff face. There were lots of little caves and rock pools along the way.

We hiked lots of trails around Gnaraloo, climbing cliffs and exploring. It was a terrific place to watch whales happily flop and splash about, with a few showing up every ten minutes or so.

Some awful, terrible, bad parents set an awful, terrible, unsafe example for their children by jumping down into this sea cave to pick up some pretty rocks, and then frantically scrambling out before the waves came crashing into it.

RJ and his new favorite pet... A 'cuddle' fish.

Big news!!! We discovered RJ's first wiggly tooth!

These super cute bearded dragons were everywhere. They were incredibly curious and had absolutely no fear of people, but at the speeds they dart around, they have no reason to be.

Gnaraloo Bay is absolutely stunning -- some of the most spectacular coral and aquatic wildlife in the world, just a metre below the surface of a huge expanse of crystal blue water gently lapping against perfect, white, fine-grained sand, and aside from this amazingly great family that showed up, almost completely deserted.

RJ and LR gathered shells and rocks built an enormous city that spanned the beach.

These huge sand dunes were just a short hike from the campsite.

It took a while to climb to the top; they were bigger than they looked and we were weighed down by an impressive number of dead crabs.

We finally made it to the top, where we watched more whales springing about.

LR and Dad wandered off with their cameras to get some pictures of the surfers. They had to be pretty brave to attempt the entry from the reef into the crashing waves.

The kids made friends with the boys at the neighbouring camp. Ledgy, their dad, even set up a totem tennis set for them, which our kids promptly dominated.

Oh no! Camping hair!!! (and she still looks gorgeous.)

Being wintertime, we were allowed to have a campfire. RJ worked on his marshmallow chargrilling technique.

LR, to Mom's delight, worked on a careful, slow-roasting technique, producing a series of perfectly toasted marshmallows.

There are these great bubble tubes right near the entrance to the Baltimore Aquarium.

RJ checks out some of the amazing fish.

LR tries to catch a big one!

Bl. points out some of the bright coloured anemonies to his little sister.

Look! A turtle! It's a turtle! There's a turtle! Look! See the turtle! A turtle! Turtle! See? There's a turtle right there! Can you see the turtle?

RJ, Mum and LR stop by the BIG tank for a moment.

At the special jellyfish exhibit, LR watches them drift slowly by.

Bl. takes a closer look at some of the REALLY weird jellyfish.

Hey Bl! Where'd you get that totally awesome shirt? Looking good buddy!

Time for some exploring on the Appalachian Trail with the cousins and Grandpa Jeff!

Grandpa Jeff found the location of a couple of geocaches and brought his GPS along. The kids brought small toys to exchange with whatever treasures they found inside. We were all super excited when Mum found the first one!

LR and RJ show off their new discoveries.

Grandpa Jeff shows RJ which berries are good to eat. He claims these ones are called 'Pokeberries'. RJ isn't sure if he's being serious or not...

Poke berries... Poke berries... Well they taste good, who cares what they're called.

LR found all sorts of flowers, mushrooms and other weird growing things that we don't have back home.

Br. has a chance to sit down and catch up on a little light reading. Those others were so slow.

Bl stops to retie his shoelaces. He, LR and Grandpa Jeff were usually waaaay off ahead of the rest of us.

RJ and his new best friend, 'Sluggy'! He also managed to discover LOTS of other strange bugs that he hadn't seen before.

Auntie Grace, RJ and Mum bring up the rear... but still had the chance to spot a young deer bounding through the woods.

Outside the cave was this beautiful little stream, full of crawdads and other wildlife (even a snake!)

RJ was pretty good at finding crawdads under the rocks.

Group photo op! The kids had fun, even though they got really cold in there.

RJ follows everyone else as they head for the surface.

RJ enjoys the view at Denver airport. We're almost there!

The only way to travel... Headphones on, videos playing... Life is good.

A (very) brief stop-over in LA. Exploring all the different areas of our hotels was an unexpected adventure.

"I love not being in an airplane!" LR takes a break in our hotel room.

To the gates! LR was amazingly helpful, volunteering to take her bag as well as a heavy carry-on.

RJ enjoys a treat while enduring the inevitable wait for boarding at the gate.

Welcome to Cody, Wyoming! Every morning we were greeted with this amazingly beautiful view.

It was hard to be grumpy with the photographer when surrounded with scenery like this.

RJ was often the first awake, so some early morning exploring was usually in order.

After which, he'd need to enjoy his second breakfast.

Dad and the kids would go exploring the countryside every morning and night.

We were surrounded by great hills and low grassland. Everything was very different from back in Australia.

We discovered a deep respect for cacti and prickly pears and their affinity for poking into shoes and socks.

The irrigation channels and sluice gates were an endless source of entertainment.

LR poses in front of a man-made stream. We were amazed seeing the amount of water just running around the place.

Some handsome bloke shows off an interesting sample. Is it a fossil?

We've found some tracks! What kind of animal made these??? Definitely a bear!!!

LR spotted a tiny, tiny bunny on the side of the trail.

We spotted this trio of llamas at the edge of the field!

LR decides whether or not to take this trail home.

We took the high-road instead... fewer injuns and bears this way.

After every long hike, the kids had a bath to clean up. No water restrictions around here!

Dad couldn't help taking some beautiful pictures while we were there.

The sunsets were spectacular.

And the scenery was just stunning too.

We made it to the top!

Everyone gets a chance to climb, but some have to catch up.

RJ scales the cliff face.

We made it to the top!

We made it to the other side. Time to search for shells.

LR and Mum search for interesting things in the rock pool.

Some cool guy with a camera.

RJ dips his egg in the dye.

LR explains the finer points of dyeing eggs to I.

RJ and I show off their colourful hands.

We safely put all our eggs in one basket.

The hunt begins! Eggs and clues are at each location.

LR reads the next clue.

Yes, there were even eggs hiding under the rug.

Even mum had a clue to read out.

The end reward... Bunnies!

RJ found his bunny... Totally worth it.

Following a long-standing family tradition, the ears MUST go first.

RJ heads into the karri forest. Does the wumpus live in the forest?

After leading the way and finding their own track, the kids change their minds and head back towards an existing path.

Mum takes a moment to point out the different plants and animals living on the underside of a giant log.

The kids followed up by acting like animals on top of the log.

A break for lunch on a log on the side of a very steep hill, and then back to the car.

We met the friendliest, lickiest horse in Australia. The kids were each slobbered in turn.

As always, LR had her chance to go riding.

She put on a brave face and had a good time, despite the rain that fell during the lesson.