Wildflowers in Australia’s Coral Coast
DAY ONE
From Perth, travel north along Brand Highway to Bindoon. The drive should take about an hour and there’s an excellent bakery in town that we stopped at for breakfast, Bindoon Bakehaus & Cafe. They serve great coffee, pastries, cakes and other quality goodies.
From there, drive north along Bindoon-Moora Road to Coorow via Moora. The drive should take about two hours, and you should spot plenty of cows and canola fields along the way.
Stop by the Coorow Community Farm, 1km east of town, and either walk or drive the farm’s dedicated wildflower trail. Look out for orchids, everlastings and natives.
Next up, travel from Coorow to Carnamah to visit the Yarra Yarra Lake Lookout, which is less than 1km out of town on the Carnamah-Eneabba Road. Keep your eyes peeled for the endangered Carnamah bell (also known as the harlequin bell), a wildflower only found within a 100km radius of the town.
In Carnamah, make sure to stop at One L of a Good Feed for lunch. This charming eatery, housed in a beautifully restored old church, not only has a clever name but also serves delicious food to keep you fuelled on your wildflower adventure.
Camera IconA delicate dawning. Wildflowers in Australia’s Coral Coast. Credit: Penny Thomas/The West Australian
After lunch, continue on to Mingenew, which is about a 45-minute drive north of Carnamah. Here, pop into the Mingenew Visitor Centre to find out what’s blooming around town.
Recent rainfall in the region caused the roads into Coalseam Conservation Park to close earlier this week, but they are expected to reopen by next week. Unfortunately, we missed the chance to visit Coalseam this time. But I’ve heard it’s a must-visit for wildflower enthusiasts, as it’s one of the most reliable spots to see flowers in bloom.
From Mingenew or Coalseam Conservation Park, travel to Mullewa and stay overnight at either the hotel, motel, caravan park, bed and breakfast, or a nearby farm/station stay.
DAY TWO
Visit the Mullewa Visitor Centre in town and chat to the local wildflower experts working there. They are like the fairy godmothers of the wildflower realm. They know exactly where the wildflowers put on their best show, and will point you in the right direction, ensuring you don’t miss a single bloom.
What’s more, each year during the wildflower season, the amazing team from the visitor centre ventures out to tag trees near the special species they’ve discovered on the Mullewa Bushland Trail. This small yet incredibly thoughtful gesture makes it so much easier for wildflower enthusiasts like myself to find and photograph a stunning variety of wildflower species I’ve never seen in the wild before.
Thanks to their efforts, I managed to see and capture images of dainty spider orchids, delicate donkey orchids, and the otherworldly snail orchids that, in my opinion, look more like aliens than they do snails.
Camera IconOrchids in Australia’s Coral Coast. Credit: Penny Thomas/The West Australian
Located on the outskirts of Mullewa are several other trails dedicated to wildflowers that are worth doing. We did the Northern Loop route, which includes the old Tenindewa settlement and school, plus the nearby Wolya Well.
You can then pass the Bindoo Glacier Beds on your way to the gorgeous Greenough River and Noondamurra Pool, a place of great significance to the local Aboriginal people.
The trail then takes you to the old De Grey-Mullewa Stock Route, before returning to town via the Pioneer Cemetery.
Across all these areas you can expect to see pink and white everlasting daisies, fringe lilies, various species of orchids, and other native wildflowers.
Before you leave Mullewa, visit Helen Ansell Studio Gallery and Cafe for a bite to eat and admire her incredible artworks, most of which are inspired by the region’s wildflowers.
From Mullewa, take the scenic Yuna-Tenindewa Road to Northampton.
While in town, stop for lunch at the local bakery and visit the charming Chiverton House Museum. About 12 years ago, the museum’s owner planted a variety of wildflower seedlings around the property. Today, these flowers bloom annually, creating a stunning display.
Travel to Kalbarri from Northampton and head to the Mushroom Rock Trail in the Kalbarri National Park.
For wildflower enthusiasts, this 3km adventure is a bit like a treasure hunt. Unlike the clearly marked blooms of the Mullewa Bushland Trail, here the flowers play hard to get.
As you wander around the coastal loop, keep your eyes peeled for bursts of colour amid the red rocky outcrop and coastal shrubs.
Although the Kalbarri National Park is regarded as one of WA’s best wildflower touring spots, I found it more of a challenge to spot wildflowers here. Yet when I did stumble upon something, the sense of discovery was oh-so-rewarding.
By the end of the trail, I’d seen a decent collection of wildflowers: milkmaid flowers, bridal rainbow, coastal ray flowers, guinea flower, hairy mirbelia, Murchison magic, myrtle, oldfieldii wattle, a few charming purple flags, and plenty of smoke bush.
And, as if the wildflower hunt wasn’t magical enough, we also caught a glimpse of humpback whales breaching in the ocean — another one of Mother Nature’s spectacular performances.
DAY THREE
Start your morning with a visit to the Kalbarri Skywalk, followed by the Z-Bend Lookout. Here, you can spot a variety of orchids such as the snail, spider and donkey orchids, along with cowslips, milkmaid flowers, bridal rainbow, hairy mirbelia, guinea flower, and other native blooms. Keep an eye out for the unique Kalbarri spider orchid, which is exclusive to the Kalbarri National Park.
Camera IconSkywalk in Kalbarri National Park. Credit: Penny Thomas/The West Australian
Afterwards, drive south to the coastal city of Geraldton, a journey of just under two hours. Spend the night here and rest up for tomorrow’s exploration of Lesueur National Park.
DAY FOUR
On your way back from Geraldton to Perth, make a stop at Lesueur National Park, home to more than 900 species of flora, with around 200 having special conservation significance.
Earlier this year, a bushfire badly burnt a section of the park. Despite some charred landscapes, wildflowers are still, remarkably, in bloom.
Camera IconYellow buttons. Credit: Penny Thomas/The West Australian
The Lesueur Scenic Drive trail takes you through the park’s most picturesque areas, including Mount Lesueur and Cockleshell Gully. For walking enthusiasts, the park offers several trails: the 400m Botanical Path, the 2.5km Gairdner Trail, and the 4km trail to Mount Lesueur at Drummonds.
+ Penny Thomas travelled with Rikki Bremner of Australia’s Coral Coast tourism region. She was a guest of ACC. They have not influenced or read this story before publication.
Camera IconPaperflowers are out. The season under way in Australia’s Coral Coast. Credit: Penny Thomas/The West AustralianCamera IconThe season under way in Australia’s Coral Coast. Credit: Penny Thomas/The West AustralianCamera IconPretty in pink. The wildflowers are coming, in Australia’s Coral Coast. Credit: Penny Thomas/The West AustralianCamera IconIn flower in Australia’s Coral Coast. Credit: Penny Thomas/The West Australian
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