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| Denham Monkey Mia Area Western Australia Tourism |
Western Australia |
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Denham is located 833km north of Perth on the Peron Peninsula and is the main settlement of the Shark Bay area on Australias Coral Coast. Australias most westerly town sits opposite Dirk Hartog Island and is the first place that Europeans visited on the mainland. Following the arrival of the Dutch in 1616, English explorer William Dampier sailed into Shark Bay in 1699 on his second voyage to Australia, naming the area after the abundance of sharks he saw.
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The French came next but due to the lack of water, the area was not settled until English Captain H.M. Denham arrived in 1858. Sheep farming began during the 1860s and then a brief pearling industry sprung up until Broome in the north see Kimberley took over as the pearling capital of the world. Pearling has again returned to the Shark Bay World Heritage Region and tours of the pearl farm can be taken.
Denham town is compact with a population of around 1500 people. Denham is the Gateway to the Dolphins and so the town is often underrated for its own amenities. Denham has a small and lovely beach with gin-clear waters and snow-white sands. There is also a small jetty from which good fish can be caught and boats can be launched. The town is pretty; take a close look at few of the buildings, including the Old Pearlers Restaurant on the waterfront and St Andrews Church. Both are original buildings, constructed by early settlers using blocks made from compacted tiny coquina bivalve shells found on nearby Shell Beach.
On the other side of the Peron Peninsula is Useless Loop. A rare sign of industry in Shark Bay, only the most persistent of visitors with 4WD vehicles can see the saltpans and settlement that is 250km away by road.
Eighteen kilometres from Denham on Hamelin Road lies Eagle Bluff, an area for viewing marine life. From the top of the Bluff, on a clear day whales, dolphins and other wildlife abundant in this area may be seen splashing on the surface.
The worlds most stable and largest population of dugongs live here. They can be seen during summer when they come in close to shore to feed on the massive sea grass meadows in the Shark Bay area. Eagles Bluff also marks the spot where Captain H.M. Denham carved the inscription on a rock in 1858 from which the town derives its name. The rock is now placed in Pioneer Park in the township of Denham because it was fragile and breaking away from the Bluff.
Denham Monkey Mia North West WA - Western Australia
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Western Australia - Map of Monkey Mia Australia
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