The stars of the Milky Way shine down on us like a million sparkling diamonds on a cloth of black velvet. The total silence and stillness of the night air envelopes us in its soft embrace. The Aboriginal people have many stories about the stars and how they came to be there, but for me I am just enjoying the peace I find sitting here in my camp chair gazing up at the universe above.

We are camped in the Karijini National Park in the heart of Western Australia’s Pilbara region, just one of around 164 National Parks and reserves that spread across Western Australia from the Bungle Bungle Range (Purnululu National Park) in the far North East Kimberley to Cape Leeuwin in the South West corner and Eucla National Park on the South Australian border.

The WA Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) manages more than 27 million hectares of national parks, marine and conservation parks, State forests, nature and recreation reserves containing some of the States' most stunning natural treasures and an extensive network of camp sites and walk trails. Their location ensures you can experience coral reefs and pristine beaches, towering forests and tumbling rivers, mountain ranges and savannah, sand dunes and deserts, rugged gorges and wilderness areas and a chance to escape from the stresses of modern urban living. What better way to relax than to go sleep under a canopy of stars and wake up to the sound of birdsong.

WA is one of the most biologically diverse regions in the world. The south-west of WA is the only recognised terrestrial biodiversity hotspot in Australia, one of only 34 in the world. Shark Bay and Purnululu have World Heritage status.