CERVANTES 5 - STROMATOLITES AND A CERVANTES POTPOURRI (14 - 17 APRL 2014)

Stromatolites. The second of nature's wonders which can be seen close to Cervantes. They are no where near as visually spectacular as the pinnacles, but these are real quiet achievers. What an impact they have had on our world. 

Western Australia has more locations than anywhere else in the world in which marine stromatolites live. Hamlin Pool near Shark Bay is the largest and most recognised, but the Lake Thetis (named after an early local survey ship 'Thetis') community is significant. 

Lake Thetis became the isolated body of water it now is about 4,800 years ago when the local sea levels dropped and coastal dunes developed around the lake basin. This highly saline lake, with its circumference of 1.2 kms and a depth of about 2 metres, is a mere 3 kms south-east of Cervantes and can be seen in the low coastal scrub from the nearby Hansen Bay lookout.  And here stromatolites, dated to about 3,370 years old, are thriving.

Stromatolites are believed to be first 'living' organisms to inhabit the earth. The microbes which built the rock like stromatolites to be seen at Lake Thetis are a species of cyanobacteria and are similar to those found in rocks 3,500 billion, yes billion, years old.  In a process not entirely unlike the growth of coral, stromatolite communities grow as the thin layer of bacteria on their surface of the mounds. They release a slime of calcium which cements sediment into the bulbous structures we can see. The individual organisms in these communities are microscopically tiny...it is probably just as well they are numerous....some 3 billion individuals per square metre. 

So what is all the fuss about?  It is strongly believed that the process of photosynthesis, by which these microbes produce their sustenance, is responsible for the world's first supply of oxygen, the element so critical to the development of all life on earth. And with the incalculable numbers of them they pumped a lot of gas into the atmosphere. Without them it is highly likely I would not be tapping away on the keyboard and you would not be reading this!

We pulled into the lake car park, read the first informative sign,

and headed off along the pathway to the lake's southern shore. The solid cement path soon gave way

to an open latticed platform over the seepage area of the lake edge. We were nearly there.

And here they are....the 'homes' of the modern relatives of the oldest known living things on earth.

I am truly glad I had read quite extensively about these structures before we stood looking at them. Notwithstanding the incredible impact these 'living fossils' have had, as you can see, they are anything but visually imposing. 

As I stood looking at this extraordinary three and a half thousand year old 'blob', to which we owe our existence, I could only think "all hail little microbes!". 

From the viewing platform we continued our walk around the lake, firstly on the southern side over the seepage flats,

and further on along the limestone pathway through the low coastal heath which is so common to this area.

From the eastern side of the lake we could see across its waters to the sand hills of the coast at Hansen Bay, a spot we have already visited.

It was a real experience to visit Lake Thetis, but now it was back to camp. Our wonderful stay in Cervantes was almost at an end. We had to move out over Easter. The park was completely booked out. In fact, we have discovered that Western Australians have an almost total disdain for distance where holidays are concerned....Perth was about to descend on Cervantes.

A few snippets before we leave.  Firstly, most of what I have provided pictorially would indicate that this stay was completed in wonderful sunshine. Not entirely. We awoke one morning to a real pea-souper.   

The clammy shroud enveloping our van was even thicker on the adjoining roadway

and along the seafront where this scene stands in such complete contrast 

to this, taken from exactly the same place. As the song title says, 'What a difference a day makes!'

And as to the caravan site, ditto. The lady of leisure rarely missed an opportunity to bask in the morning sun.

Apart from all else we had on our Cervantes agenda, we had a dinner date.  Warren, the chef at the town's Pinnacles Motel, is the nephew of our good Queensland friends Lyn and Stephen Eleftheriou. His lobster tortellini is renown. And for good reason.

We began our feast with Warren's delectable tasting plate which really set the scene before moving on to the tortellini. This is indeed a triumph.  I was very pleased Liz couldn't get through it all   

and that I was able to savour the remnants after munching my way through the lobster mornay I could not resist ordering.

Thanks to the 'Elephs' for the tip and to Warren for his expertise and his company for a really good post dinner yarn at the bar.

And finally, what does happen in Cervantes over Easter? Did we really have to leave? Believe it or not, we were told that the town's normal population of about 500 increases, for these four days, to over 5,000. Surely not.....yes it does.






This is what our street in the park looked like during the majority of our stay

and here it is on the morning we left.

The camping ground section was similar, where the open spaces of the Thursday morning morphed within the day 

to an organised chaos of camper trailers, tents and assorted camping paraphernalia of all descriptions.

And even the open roadways past the semi- permanent sites became choked with vehicles overnight.









We left Cervantes on Easter Friday convinced that there was indeed 'no room at the Inn'. In fact parks along the entire west coast as far north as Geraldton were booked out completely. As most experienced grey nomads know, during time of school or other major holidays, there is only one thing to do....head inland.  We chose Moora, approximately 100 kms from Cervantes. It proved to be a very good decision.