Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
THE PILBARA
TOP OF CHAPTER
Dampier to Roebourne
Most travellers skip this mining-services section of the coast as there's not much to see, un-
less you like huge industrial facilities. Accommodation is ludicrously overpriced and al-
most impossible to find thanks to the resources boom and the flood of FIFO (fly-in, fly-out)
workers. House prices and rents are among the highest in the country, and huge suburbs of
donga (small, transportable buildings) are springing up on town outskirts to handle the
overflow. However, the area has good transport, well-stocked supermarkets and useful re-
pair shops.
z
Festivals
Red Earth Arts Festival
(
www.reaf.com.au
;
Sep)
An annual celebration of music, theatre and visual arts spread across
the towns of the Pilbara coast.
ARTS
Dampier
Dampier is the region's main port. Spread around King Bay, it overlooks the 42 pristine is-
lands of the
Dampier Archipelago
, and supports a wealth of marine life in its coral waters, but
heavy industry has blighted Dampier's shores. The nearby
Burrup Peninsula
contains possibly
the greatest number of rock-art petroglyphs on the planet but is under threat from continued
industrial expansion (see
www.burrup.org.au
). The most accessible are at Deep Gorge near
Hearson Cove, where you can also view the Staircase to the Moon (see boxed text,
Click
here
); you'll need a 4WD for the rest of the peninsula.
4
Sleeping
Dampier Transit Caravan Park
CARAVAN PARK
$
