North West Coastal Highway
Template: Infobox several high-level roads / maintenance / AU -R
States:
Western Australia
The North West Coastal Highway is a highway in the west of the Australian state of Western Australia. It connects the Brand Highway in the fishing port Geraldton with the Great Northern Highway in the iron ore port of Port Hedland. The two-lane road is 1340 km long. 1974 paved and the highway together with the Brand Highway, the coastal link between Perth and Port Hedland.
The highway is the second longest in Western Australia and runs partly in very isolated areas. In economic terms, it is an important link to the Regions Mid West, Gascoyne and Pilbara. The highway promotes agriculture and fishing in the Mid West and Gascoyne Outback Coast that pass in the Pilbara in the mining, pastoral stations and the offshore oil and gas production.
Course
Between Geraldton and Carnarvon Highway passes through lonely and dry semi-deserts. On this 400 km stretch, there is not a single city and Rest Houses are the only settlements in the area. It is travelers advised to take sufficient drinking water, as the Rest Houses not provide this free of charge. On this stretch of road a turnoff leads the Overlander Roadhouse to Shark Bay with the world famous Bay Monkey Mia
Carnarvon, the only town between Geraldton and Karratha, marks a change in climate. Bananas and other subtropical fruits are grown there. Unlike in the subtropical areas on the east coast, the climate is much drier, and Carnarvon is also windiest place known as Western Australia.
Further north, the highway passes desert area and is very flat. Bridges span many rivers. Most of these rivers have dried up; November to April, however, can fill troughs with water cyclones and rain. This in turn can cause dried out rivers in less than a day to ten meters deep.
Near the Minylya Roadhouse is the junction for the North West Cape region, in which, among other tourist destinations in Cape Range National Park, Coral Bay and Exmouth are. Exmouth hosts a communication base of the U.S. Navy.
Further north, the road leads into inland and crosses near the Nanutarra Roadhouse the Ashburton River. Nearby is the access road to the mining towns of Tom Price, Paraburdoo and Wittenoom. After crossing the river Robe River, Fortescue River and Maitland River reaches the Karratha highway. Karratha, along with its sister city Dampier, is home of the North West Shelf oil and gas project. It is also the second largest iron ore exporting port in the Pilbara. A little further east is the gateway to Roebourne Wickham and Point Samson, the third largest iron ore port of the region. The highway ends 32 km southwest of Port Hedland, the largest iron ore port of the region and also the largest city in the northwest of Western Australia, and opens into the Great Northern Highway (N1 / N95 ).
The loneliness of the Northwest can be judged by the number of roadhouses, which are the only settlements on the track. Huge distances separate larger towns like Geraldton, Carnarvon and Port Hedland without any settlement between the cities. The highway itself is not particularly interesting, but it gives the traveler access to the best tourist attractions on the coast of the Indian Ocean.
Swell
- Leigh Edmonds: The vital link: a history of Main Roads Western Australia 1926-1996. University of Western Australia Press. Nedlands WA 1997.
- Steve Parish: Australian Touring Atlas. Steve Parish Publishing. Archerfield QLD 2007 ISBN. 978-1-74193-232-4. S. 84, 86, 87
- Road in Western Australia