Contents: Busselton History - Busselton Beaches - Landmarks and Historical Areas - Weather / Climate - Places of Worship in Busselton

Busselton Beaches Guide

Before we highlight a vast array of magnificent Busselton beaches it should be mentioned that Busselton is one of Western Australia's long-time favourite fishing spots.

Long before tourists discovered the pristine Busselton and Dunsborough beaches, pioneering fishing families plied the secluded waters around Cape Naturaliste and Geographe Bay.

Stalwarts of the Busselton commercial fishing industry include Eb and Ken Harris.

In Busselton you can expect to catch any combination of tailor, whiting, herring, King George whiting, snapper, dhufish, mulloway, salmon, flathead, skippy or flounder.  The Busselton jetty is a great place for crab nets and you'll also find squid and cuttlefish,

Do make sure that you possess appropriate fishing licences and that you observe catch (or bag) limits as set down by the Fisheries Department.  Information will be available on signposts at most beaches and at any local bait or tackle supply.

The Fisheries Department are located at 48a Bussell Highway Busselton or you can contact them by mail at PO Box 671 Busselton WA 6280 Australia, by phone 08 9752 2152 or by fax 08 9752 4721 or at their website –

http://www.fish.wa.gov.au/rec/index.html

The Busselton – Dunsborough area is probably best known for its great beaches.  If you are visiting even for a short time you'll need to visit the Busselton Jetty beach at the bottom end of Queen Street, Meelup, Bunkers Bay, Sugar Loaf and Canal Rocks at a bare minimum.

 

In the meantime here's a guide to the Busselton and Cape Naturaliste beaches.

If you begin at Busselton and head east (it may feel like you are heading north, as the ocean will be firmly on your left), you can drive right along the coast until you reach Minninup and Peppermint Grove beaches, west of Capel.

At Wonnerup you can stay on the bitumen and head inland past the historic Wonnerup House or take a gravel road along the coast to Minninup and Peppermint Grove beaches.

Along the way you'll travel next to secluded, white sand beaches and a marina and canals development at Port Geographe.

Despite the abundance of perfect beaches in this direction most people head west from the Busselton townsite towards Dunsborough and Cape Naturaliste.

One thing to remember when you are travelling along the highways in Busselton is that you are almost never more than a few metres from the beach so don't wait for signs telling you of local beaches.  Simply turn off the highway and within seconds you'll be alongside one of the world's best beaches - completely unannounced, and quite likely you'll be the only person on this beach.

The other thing to remember that the Australian sun is unforgiving so please don a hat and apply the sunscreen when heading outdoors for the day.

Right along this coast, until you reach Dunsbough you'll find long white stretches of sand with generally flat water just gently lapping at the shore.  No need to travel to a deserted island, at great expense, to sit quietly on a pristine, deserted beach and let the world go by.

Just past Broadwater Resort there are a series of absolute beachfront church campsites.  Most offer basic dormitory accommodation or caravan facilities from just a few dollars a night, plus of course …. that beach.

The only downside is that you may encounter “stingers” or small jellyfish in the Busselton to Quindalup waters from December to April.  If you do suffer a minor sting try applying a cold compress and the old-fashioned remedy of vinegar will neutralise the undischarged stings.  There are also commercially available preparations that you may want to carry with you.

There are boat ramps at Abbey and Quindalup and crabs are a local delicacy from July onwards each year.

 

Quindalup and Dunsborough

Long, flat white beaches characterise the Quindalup beach area, immediately to the east of Dunn Bay and Dunsborough.

The beachfront was “gouged” by Cyclone Alby in 1978 and since then a lagoon that doubles as a sheltered boat harbour was formed.

Low density housing on wooded blocks and uninterrupted beach access make this one of Western Australia's favourite family beachside retreats.

Only a couple of minutes by car from the Dunsborough shopping area and the highway, the “Old Dunsborough” beach is perhaps a smaller, and less visited version of Meelup beach.

Small, rounded rocks and boulders tumble into the water at either end of the bay, making this an ideal family or vacation beach destination.

Meelup

One of Western Australia's favourite beaches.

A long, white sand beach is enclosed by a low rocky outcrop at either end of a narrow bay.

The beach is very wide with a large Peppermint Tree shaded grass area surrounding the beach.  There's toilet and shower facilities and a rather large carpark.

Typical of beaches on the eastern side of Cape Naturaliste, Meelup is normally very flat and makes for an ideal family beach or the perfect place simply to unwind and recharge the batteries.

The Meelup beach area is quite wide so even over the summer you'll never have that jammed in feeling.  You can walk and swim amongst the rocks at the eastern side of the bay and the water is almost always absolutely, crystal clear.

The ochre rocks, set against shimmering sand and an azure blue ocean make for a spectacular site.

 

Eagle Bay

The next bay to Meelup.  You can drive directly around the coastal strip between Meelup and Eagle Bay.  There's long, pristine sandy beaches, some secluded little coves and some of the south coast's most expensive residential real estate.

Rocky Point

A surf beach close to Eagle Bay, fairly remote, used by surfers when the west coast spots are too rough.  Alongside are the Bone Yards, The Farm and on the other side of Bunkers Bay, The Quarries and the docks – all popular surfing spots.

 

Bunkers Bay

One of the south coasts very famous beaches.  Home to the Bunker Bay Resort, a rocky point looks back over Geographe Bay with a secluded small bay on the western side, surrounded by high cliffs.

Bunkers Bay is one of the few Western Australian beaches that has rough pebbles and broken shells forming the beach rather than the traditional white sand.

A spectacular beach not to be missed.

 

Yallingup

The Yallingup to Margaret River coast is Western Australia's most famous surf area and home to the March Margaret River Masters.

Apart from surf, there's a lovely sheltered beach and lagoon right in front of the main surf break at Yallingup so it is a great place for families of all ages.

There's a small village of highly priced residences perched on the side of the hill leading up from the beach and despite it being WA's favourite surf beach, most of the time Yallingup is a sleepy seaside village and is a great getaway spot.

Along the Yallingup area there are a number of surf beaches and breaks including Three Bears, Supertubes, Injidup Point, Injidup Carpark, Rabbit Hill, Smiths Beach and Windmills, near Sugar Loaf Rock.

Heading further south to the Margaret River area you'll also find Moses, Honeycombs, Gallows, Guillotine, North Point, South Point, Big Rock, Lefthanders, Ellensbrook, The Box, Margaret River, Margarets Main Break, Grunters, Boodjidup, Redgate and Conto's before heading further south to Augusta.

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