Living at the eighty miles beach

2015 August – North-West Australia

LIVING AT THE EIGHTY MILES BEACH

 

 

Along the 615 kilometre long stretch from Port Hedland to Broome there is a tiny and lonely camp ground. It is located right next to the eighty miles beach. Beside the camp ground there are only three roadhouses on this route. Beach and camp ground are both in many respects very unique. When I went up the dune and took the first glimpse of the beach, I was deeply impressed by the sheer width of the view. It wasn’t limited in any direction. And there was an enormous brightness because of the almost snow-white sand and cloudless sky.

The camp ground is particularly popular with pensioners from the southern parts of Australia. During the winter time they escape from the cold temperatures. They enjoy the hot and pleasant climate of the north either by travelling around or by staying at one spot all winter long. Besides the cooking and washing facilities the camp ground has a little grocery store where you can purchase essential goods – including a small selection of fresh vegetables. But other shops or supermarkets are rather far off. Going shopping elsewhere therefore is not only time consuming but also very expensive considering the involved petrol cost. So you consider carefully if you go elsewhere during your – in many cases month-long – stay at the camp ground.

Consequently most of the life is taking place at the beach or at the camp ground. How do the permanent campers spend their time – in a small and isolated place within such a wide and open environment?

All images below were taken with a Leica M9 and a 50mm Summilux.

 

FISHERMEN AND FOLDING CHAIRS

All day long the beach is lined with fishermen. Some of them drive by 4 WD right next to their fishing spot. The typical line-up is a fishing man and a woman sitting in a folding chair all day long- staring at the sea and enjoying the warmth and the scenery.

Since the water is very shallow, swimming is very restricted. Moreover there are many unpleasant sea creatures in the water – even sharks can be spotted. Therefore swimming is not the prefered leisure activity. Despite these potential harzards some fishermen stood permanently in the water.

Standing in this peaceful spot there is almost nothing to get distracted. All day looking at the cloudless blue sky and at the endless sandy beach.

 

 

 

 

SHELLS AND BATTLESHIPS

 

 

I got up very early in the morming to take some images of the camp ground. When I strolled around figures made of shells directly caught my eye. Almost every camp site was decorated with these figures. I went closer to have a better look at these intricate little works of art.

 

 

I thought that nobody would notice me at that time of day. It was so quiet everywhere. Suddenly a tall man came out of his camper and stood right in front of me. I felt a bit guilty for having gotten so close. But with relief I realized that he welcomed me with a friendly smile and asked me to come inside. He and his wife were from Adelaide (South Australia) and since their retirement they have spent every winter at the Eighty Miles Camp Caravan Park. Their camp site consisted of a camper and a van with a big roofed area in between. Inside he showed me a huge collection of shell figures. More than a hundred I guess. The ground was paved with single clusters of collected shells – waiting for being transformed into artwork. He told me about the passion of his wife. Many others at the camp ground also share this passion.

 

 

While his wife is devoted to collecting shells and creating figures, his passion is to construct huge models of battleships. It sometimes takes him more than a year to build a single battleship. Almost every part of the model he creates out of a big white plastic board. He cuts and shapes the plastic pieces and pastes them together to an 1-2 metre long ship model. I was impressed by the fact that he and his wife both have a leisure activity which involves such an extensive legwork.

 

 

Moreover he told me a variety of stories about the camp ground. About a hurricane which completely devastated the camp ground some years ago and about sharks attacks at the beach. I would have liked to listen to these stories for much longer but I realised it was already 8 am and time to have breakfast with my wife.

 

THE FISH WHISPERER

 

On the way back to the campsite I saw the same old chap still sitting calmly on his plastic chair. Right next to him there was a sign on the fence saying ‘the fish whisperer’. And I just thought what a perfect match.