KARRATHA, WESTERN AUSTRALIA

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A sister town to Dampier, it operates as the administrative and commercial centre of the region and the massive North West Shelf Project, situated on nearby Burrup Peninsula. This project has been supplying gas to domestic and industrial users in WA since August 1984 and in 1989 it began exporting liquefied natural gas to Japan.
Location: 1,550 km north of Perth.
Origin of name: an Aboriginal word meaning 'good country', it was originally the name of a property owned by Dr. Bayton and Harry Whittal Venn.
Brief history: established in 1866, the Karratha homestead and pastoral station was resumed in 1968 for a townsite. Karratha came into existence because of the Hamersley Iron Project and the lack of suitable land for expansion at the port of Dampier. It has become a base for visitors to explore Dampier, Roebourne, Wickham, Cossack and Point Samson.
Points of Interest: King Bay; Dampier Archipelago; Miaree Pool; Staircase to the Moon; Hearsons Cove; Burrup Peninsula; Pilbara Railway Historical Society; Jaburara Heritage Trail