People often say the beaches in Jervis Bay are like no other, we heard it time and time again. It wasn’t until we visited Jervis Bay that we discovered that yes whilst they are beautiful, Esperance and Cape Le Grand are in a league of their own.
The beaches in Esperance are like heaven, the kind of view you’d expect to only see in movies. With pristine white sands stretching as far as the eye can see and the most turquoise waters imaginable. I feel even this write up won’t even do it justice. You have to see it to believe it.
Esperance is a sleepy little coastal town in Australia’s great southern. Located 700km south east of Perth, the West Australian state capital. As it’s only a 7.5 drive from Perth, Esperance is a firm favourite for city dwellers to head for the Christmas break.
The town is located on large easterly facing bay. With the goldfields to the north and Cape Le Grand to the east.
The Town Beaches
First off, let’s talk a about the beaches in Esperance itself before we even begin to ogle over Cape Le Grand. There is a great tourist drive available, heading west out of town. The loop will guide you along the tops of twilight beach road, with lots of photo opportunities along the way. From town, you’ll pass West Beach and Butty Harbour before looping back in past the pink lake. Yep Esperance even has a pink lake.
The western beaches have more elevation. The coastal road sits high above the beach with a blend of exposed granite rock faces and native fauna. As you get closer to butty harbour the fauna becomes more dense. At one of the lookouts, the fauna literally comes all the way down the dune to oceans edge.
East of Esperance, in the area known as Castletown is probably one of our favourite beach spots for many reasons. Mainly because it’s dog friendly so Tilly lapped up her daily walks along here. It also has towering Norfolk Pines which line the beach.
This end of town is flatter, but it doesn’t deter from the stunning scenery.
We actually stayed this end of Esperance at Bathers Paradise caravan park, just 2 streets back from that beautiful beach and doggo friendly. For more information on this caravan park please visit https://batherscpark.com.au/
Cape Le Grand
Only 56km from Esperance, it’s an easy day trip from town. Or you can stay in the National Park at either Le Grand Beach or Lucky Bay. Both have camping facilities, including bbqs, picnic tables, toilets and water. This is a little piece of paradise so bookings are essential.
As Cape Le Grand is a National Park those with dogs can’t visit with their best mate by their side. Dogs can’t enter any National Park in Australia so sometimes it means you either have to check your dog in to doggy day care or miss out on something. However you can still visit the stunning coastline with a little hidden gem we found out about.
For more information on how we travel with Tilly head over to our post we did Travelling Australia with your dog
Duke of Orleans
Whilst staying at the caravan park in Esperance we met a guy who told us about a beach called Duke of Orleans Bay. It is literally on the border of cape Le grand. He said the scenery is as spectacular if not better and there’s no one there, as all the tourists are doing Lucky Bay.
We bundled Tilly into the car and headed to our tip off to Duke of Orleans Bay. Staying on Fisheries Road and sneaking round the back of the mighty Cape Le Grand, we hung a right at Condingup, on to Orleans Bay Road. The road is sealed for probably the first 8km but the following 14km is unsealed. The road is still drivable all the way down to the beach even in a 2WD, however we wouldn’t recommend driving on the beach in a normal car.
As the sand was super firm the day we visited, we didn’t need to deflate our tyres which was a bonus.
Paradise Found
Once on the beach, it was like that moment where Leonardo DiCaprio discovers Ko Phi Phi Le Beach in Thailand in the film The Beach. There was literally not another soul in sight, just us and Tilly. The beach is like nowhere else we’d ever seen. Crisp white glistening sand, which stretched as far as the eye can see. Then the ocean. As the great southern ebbed and flowed on to the beach, the most majestic shades of turquoise greeted us. Then the turquoise turned to the deepest blues as the beach disappeared beneath the surface.
We probably spent a good 3 hours here, Chris was fishing whilst Tilly and I sat and watched and took in the epic views.
Duke of Orleans Bay is probably the best tip off we’ve ever received. Western Australia has the most stunning coastline. From the iron drenched lands of the north to the rugged unforgiving coast to the south.
For those that have never had chance to visit Esperance and Cape Le Grand, plus the great southern and south west, put it on your must do list. Yeah we all know the nomadic oldies love that east coast track up to Cairns. I bet it has groove in the road up and down the A1. However the west has so much to offer and the trip across the treeless plains of the Nullarbor will be worth every single of those 1162kms….. we promise