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Pilbara - Western Australia
Fern Pool waterfalls, Karijini National Park © Tourism Western Australia
Scroll down for details of Pilbara Intro, Pilbara Coast, Inland Pilbara

Pilbara Region - Introduction

The Pilbara region in the north west of Western Australia runs from Onslow on the coast northwards to Broome. The main towns along the Pilbara Coast are Dampier, Karratha and Port Headland.
Inland Pilbara is a sparsely populated area which is a mixture of national parks, including Millstream-Chichester National Park and Karijini National Park, wonderful scenery and mining and industrial activity.

Pilbarra Coast
Sunset at Dampier, Pilbara coast © Tourism Western AustraliaThe Pilbara Coast is the name given to the stretch of coast between Onslow and Broome. The area is around 1500 km from Perth and there is a domestic airport on the outskirts of Dampier-Karratha.
This stretch of coast is sparsely populated and after Onslow the next area of settlement is the central Pilbara coast which takes in the towns of Karratha, Dampier (pictured), Roebourne, Wickham, Cossack, Point Samson and Whim Creek and offers some lovely stretches of coastline and national parks juxtaposed with heavy industry.
Hearsons Cove, Burrup Peninsula, Pilbarra coast © Tourism Western AustraliaDAMPIER, named after the English explorer William Dampier who came here in 1688, is a small town close to the Burrup Peninsula, site of the main gas processing plant for the offshore gas and oil fields and deepwater port for the export of iron ore. Adjacent to the gas plant is one of the biggest Aboriginal engraving art sites in Australia.
Hearsons Cove on the Burrup Peninsula (pictured) is a good swimming spot and vantage point for the Stairway to the Moon. (This curious phenomenon can be seen from various points on the NW coast, including Roebuck Bay in Broome, when the moon is full between May and October).

KARATHA is a modern town only a few kilometres from Dampier. It was developed in the late 1960s and is growing fast as the regional centre for the gas and iron ore industries. The town is situated on King Bay looking out to the Dampier Archipelago. As well as the Dampier Archipelago, you can also access Inland Pilbara including the Karijini (Hammersley) National Park and the Millstream-Chichester National Park from Karatha.
The town has a three and a half kilometre heritage trail showing both the area’s natural history and its cultural heritage from its traditional inhabitants, the Jaburara Tribe, including the effects upon them of white settlement and the recent resources boom.
View over Cossack, Pilbara coast © Tourism Western Australia The mouth of the Clearville River is 26 km north of Karatha and Clearville Beach is a popular place, good for day trips and for camping.
About 30 km on up the highway from Karatha towards Broome is the town of Roebourne which is one of the oldest settlements on this coast and once the capital of the NW region. Nearby is Cossack (pictured), once the port for the region. Surviving parts of the old port have been restored and it makes an interesting excursion.

Port Headland town view © Tourism Western AustraliaPORT HEADLAND (pictured) is 600 km from Broome. It is another iron ore exporting port which has grown rapidly since the 1960s and which also produces and exports salt. The Staircase to the Moon can also be viewed from here and the favourite spot is the Cooke Point Caravan Park.
The road to Broome is rather monotonous and between Port Hedland and Broome there are several road houses but no more towns. Access to the beach is limited to the Eighty Mile Beach which has a caravan site.

Inland Pilbara
Fortesque River, Millstream-Chichester National Park, Pilbara region © Tourism Western Australia Inland from Karratha, Dampier and Wickham on the Pilbara coast is the Millstream-Chichester National Park www.naturebase.net(Millstream-Chichester), pictured.
Further into the interior is the beautiful Karijini National Park, formerly the Hammersley Range National Park, www.naturebase.net(Karijini), particularly lovely in the late winter and spring when wild flowers and native trees bloom. The park is accessed from three camping and caravan sites at Fortescue, Joffre and Weano.
Contrasting with the national parks are the nearby mining areas of Tom Price, Paraburdoo, Pannawonica and Newman which produce millions of tones of iron ore annually. In the 1940s blue asbestos was mined here, centred on the now almost abandoned town of Wittenoom to the north and asbestos tailings can still be seen in the gorges in the north of the park and should be given a wide berth.
 
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Truly Australia have attempted to give an honest and objective description of the topics covered on this page and have deliberately avoided regurgitating tourist office media releases. The information shown has been compiled from a variety of reputable sources and our own experiences. We check and review this information from time to time, but we assume no responsibility for the absolute accuracy of the details given.