WEEK 4 8-14 June

A short drive to Katherine with lots of vans on the road this morning. We have been on lesser roads over the last week and certainly noticed the extra traffic once we hit the Stuart Hwy. Our allocated site was a nice shady spot under a tree at the caravan park and thank goodness it was as it was very hot and humid. We went for a swim at the thermal springs down behind the caravan park. These were great as they seem to be not as well known as those at Mataranka so therefore there weren’t as many people. Found a great little spot where there was a natural spa thing going on with bubbles galour. When we finally dragged ourselves out of this little piece of heaven we decided to try out the park pool. Not such a smart idea as it was freezing. Stephen braved the cold but I decided a better plan of attack was to climb aboard a lounge and read my book. Once again the park was full by the end of the day. A weird night with smoke from the backburning hovering over the camp ground all night.

The following day, Wednesday, we drove to Timber Creek. One thing I haven’t mentioned before is the decorated termite mounds which have been seeing along most of the NT roads we have travelled. These have had undies, t-shirts, dresses anything you can think of, even hi-vis tops have made an appearance. I can’t imagine when you are travelling such big distances that you could be bothered stopping, getting out then ‘dressing’ a termite mound. However there are so many that Stephen amused himself by yelling “undies” everytime he saw one. I’m getting pretty sick of hearing him call “undies”. Once again it was fairly hot on arrival at Timber Creek with very little here to see or do so we settled for a swim in their pool which was still fairly cold but not heart attack cold like Katherine.

Today is the day we cross into WA. We were both a little nervous of what Smirk would throw at us at the border so we pumped up the music and enjoyed some Beatles, Enya, Led Zepplin, Kate Miller-Heike (does anyone know why “Ducks don’t need satellites”?) and of course our fav, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. A very different landscape today with lots of kapok and boab trees and eagles, kites and brolgas (why are brolgas always in groups of three?) and a huge herd of cattle, literally hundreds of them. The Pinkerton Range kept us company on our right for most of the day. With 35 kms to go before we arrived in Kununurra, there it was, Smirk’s line in the sand. With slightly trembling bodies we joined the queue and awaited our turn to be grilled. Strangely there didn’t seem to be any interogation lights glaring at us, instead we were approached by a friendly masked policeman who nicely asked for our G2G passes, scanned them and invited us across the border. OMG, was that it!! As we crossed into WA we high fived and proceeded to Kununurra. We were finally in our beloved Kimberley. After restocking our fruit and veggies we settled into the Lakeside Caravan Park for the next 3 nights. Of course a trip to Kununurra wouldn’t be complete without a trip to Ivanhoe Crossing and a drive through the water to the other end of the Crossing and back. Why, because we can. A visit to the sandalwood display and the Hoochery where we purchased a bottle of Kafir Lime Gin rounded off the afternoon.

Friday we were up early as the sun rises as 5.30am. Smirk doesn’t realise that his state is very large and the northern most part of WA is in a different time zone to Perth hence the early sunrise and very early sunset, 16.54pm. I’ll complain about this in more detail later.

Our last visit to Kununurra we went for a walk in the Mirima NP. We were not more than 15 minutes into the walk when I fell and twisted my ankle resulting in 5 weeks on crutches. Stephen was keen to complete this walk, myself not so keen. This time there were no dramas and we enjoyed a lovely walk into Hidden Valley which is a mini version of the Bungle Bungles. The rock formations were great but the view at the top was less than expected. Who wants to look over the industrial area of Kununurra, not us. Unfortunately nearly all of the NP now have entrance fees and they are not cheap,which is a new thing for us. Back to the car and onto Wyndham. Along the way we called into the Grotto thinking it would be a quick stop. There are 144 steps down to the Grotto where there is a magnificent waterhole where people were swimming. We didn’t know about this little gem so were not prepared to go swimming. We’ll know next time though. So of course there were 144 steps back to the top which required a slow, steady pace. One of the members of the party could have gone at a much faster rate of ascention but the other member of the party wouldn’t let him. The road to Wyndham has been significantly improved and the drive a lot more pleasant. We went to the 5 Rivers Lookout and were surprised at the number of people at this spot. You can’t go anywhere without hordes of tourists. Twelve years ago we had a delicious counter meal of barra and chips at the port in Wyndham. Let’s do that again!! Sorry, the pub has been trashed and I mean absolutely derelict so we had to settle for a pie at the bakery. Not quite the same. Our next stop was Marlgu Billabong and beautiful wetland area. A serene place in the middle of nowhere. Surprise, surprise there was no-one else there so we enjoyed watching the magpie geese, waders and an elegant crane among others. We had a quick stop at Parry’s Lagoon Resort then drove back to Kununurra. We decided on a night out at the Pumphouse for dinner. We had previously been here and had a great night but it was with NBFs we had met and we were in party mode. This time we went alone and it was underwhelming both in atmosphere and culinary offerings. This is when I get back to the time of sunset. Because sunset is around 5pm you find yourself eating dinner at the ridiculous time of 5.30pm. Seriously when are we supposed to have nibbles and drinks??? I’m starting to feel like a pensioner!

Saturday morning Stephen was up bright and early to climb Kelly’s Knob. I chose to be far more sensible and stay in bed with a ‘well done you’ when he returned, while thinking ‘well done me’. At 11.30am we were picked up by Triple J Tours for a day on the Ord. Our guide, Maryna (pronounced Marina), was born in Nome, Alaska. What a personality! She was a demon boat driver and took us on an exciting ride over the next 5 hours. The Ord River irrigation scheme was designed by Kimberley Durack. It started with the diversion dam being built in Kununurra then the Argyle Dam Wall forming the Argyle Dam which holds a large number of Sydney Harbours, like 22 or something (in the dry season)!! This was all very interesting but the part of the tour I liked best were the beautiful birds that inhabit this amazing eco system. You had your ospreys nesting, your rainbow bee eaters racing the boat, purple fly catchers, crimson crested jacanas, whistling kites and a rare black bittern and finally topped off with a number of fresh water crocs. We also had a wanka from South Africa and a bunch of know all poms. The grand finale was the 4.54pm sunset!! Great day.

Sunday started with an agonizing hour of Macca. Thank God the radio reception failed midway through the show and we amused ourselves with our own music, toe tapping Beoga, Afro Celt, America, the Bangles and Baaba Maal. The Cockburn Ranges were on our left for most of the day. Today we hit 6,788 kms for anyone that cares for stats. I have become obsessed with checking out creek beds, most of which are dry but occassionally you get one with water. You can imagine my surprise when we passed one with water and a man fishing in it. The surprising thing about this event was there was not a car in sight, so where had he come from! We also passed the entrance to the Purnululu NP (commonly known as the Bungle Bungles). Loads of caravans had been left in the wayside stop near the entrance and the owners then drive into the Bungles. Not a great road to take a van. Spent the night at Hall’s Creek where some others had stuff stolen.

The drive to Fitzroy Crossing was just another day in the car. We did see the start of the Tanami Track and the Ngumban Cliffs which were quite spectacular. The caravan park at Fitzroy Crossing was lovely and grassy and Stephen again plunged into the ice cold pool. It was 30 degrees after all.

Tuesday we arrived in Broome where we will be in residence for the next 8 weeks. Our site is better than we expected. They have done some work on the park and our site was one that had been extended and upgraded, so we have plenty of room even though we are right at the back of the park. It means we have a very long walk to the beach although the pool is very nice and I can visualise us spending quite a lot of time there. No, I won’t bore you with details of us sitting on the beach everyday but I will write every now and again just to let you know if anything exciting happens while we are here.

So its goodbye from me and its goodbye from him.

ps.  Stephen has finally uploaded some photos and you can see them here:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/nvyab4ZJHEKhG1t49

you may need to copy and paste this link into whatever browser you use.

WEEK 3 1 - 7 June

Monday night we spent at the Burke and Wills Roadhouse at Fourways. Had dinner at the pub, bad move again as the food truck had broken down and they had limited supplies. It was a lovely balmy evening and we were looking forward to a good night’s sleep before heading to Gregory Downs. Huh, the truckie who parked his roadtrain, outside the CP, but right next to our van had other ideas. After running the engine for 30 minutes after he stopped he finally switched it off and all was quiet. But not for long. He then started up his gennie so that he could sleep in his airconditioned cabin while we tried to sleep in our caravan with all the windows open, no 240v here, and his generator going full bore. I calmly said to Stephen: “GO AND TELL HIM TO TURN IT OFF” to which Stephen replied: “HE’S A TRUCKIE!!”. Then we agreed that he might just sleep for a couple of hours then take off again. No, he left just as we got to sleep around 5am.

After a sluggish start to the day we headed along the Wills Development road to Gregory Downs arriving around 10am. We unhooked the van and gathered our supplies for a day at Boodjamulla NP, otherwise known as Lawn Hill, then Adel’s Grove. The road in wasn’t too bad and we made good time arriving around noon ……. with a flat tyre. It must have happened as we drove into the parking area because we hadn’t noticed that anything at all was wrong. Poor Stephen spent the next 30 minutes changing the tyre. After a deep breath we had lunch then hired a canoe to quietly paddle down Lawn Hill Gorge to the small falls at the end. I must say it was very relaxing, apart from the paddling stuff. We had a swim then returned thankfully with the current assisting. We drove to Adel’s Grove and walked around to have a look. It is a lovely place to camp but you probably need to stay a week to really enjoy the walks and the serenity. Unfortunately we were unable to do justice to it on this occasion as it had been a last minute decision to go.

When we got back to Gregory Downs around dusk and we rang the WA covid hotline and found out that we would get into WA after all. We had a quick dinner sitting on the back of the blue lux. Frankly we were too tired to get the chairs out. A very quiet setting with NO ROADTRAINS.

Now that we can go to WA we once again headed for Mt Isa (the Isa) to continue with our original itinerery. A trip to the tyre repair man and some shopping for food completed the day. A strange thing did occur overnight while here, it rained. There was no sign of it when we went to bed so we had left the chairs outside which meant they were nicely soaked the next morning and the dust which we had all around us had turned to mud. Ahhh..... We love caravanning.

With our NT passes on our phones we headed for the boarder. Not a soul in sight when we got there. Where were the anti Victorian police? A pretty boring drive although we did see lots of eagles along the way which of course means lots of road kill. Our destination today, Barkly Homestead. I must say there have been quite a few improvements since 2009 when we last visited. The park was full which is becoming a regular thing as every man and his dog is travelling. Whilst there we made use of the phenomenal Telstra network coverage and spent time on the G2G website lying to get our pass into WA. All because of Smirk McGowan (moniker thanks to Steve via PH). For anyone that doesn’t know, my Stephen worked for Telstra for some years.

Friday we ventured along the Tablelands Highway to Cape Crawford. We travelled this road in 2009 and had the most wonderful day. We only saw one other caravan for the day although we did see a small number of roadtrains in the afternoon. The scenery was constantly changing and there were flocks of birds rising from the grasslands. There were little white wooden bridges where the cows and the birds would gather and provided many a photographic opportunity. 2021 was nothing like that. There were 9 cars, 12 vans and 5 roadtrains exactly because I counted (I even recorded the time of passing). One of those roadtrains covered our car and van in cow shit to add insult to injury. No birds and it was as dry as a dead dingoes donger. The little bridges have all been replaced by modern metal and safe bridges, no fun at all. The grasslands were spectacular but the lack of wildlife was disappointing. All in all a disappointing day and a difficult road to drive. We did enjoy music by King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard and the Hilltop Hoods. However, at the end of the day we did arrive at the Heartbreak Hotel where there was once again grass under our feet, and prickles. Stayed away from the pub food this time and had a lovely meal of crumbed vela instead. In the morning Stephen went to have a shower and ran across a guy on the pub verandah having a quiet beer at 7.30am!!!  We hope he was winding down from night shift.

Another development is that I now have a new name, Alexa. Stephen tried to change the radio at one point while steering the 6 tons of hurtling metal and we all know that men cannot do two things at once. After strong words from me he decided that when changes needed to be made to the temp, audio etc. he would simply announce, “Alexa, 24deg, or Alexa, USB”. God help him if he tries this at home.

From Cape Crawford we drove along the Carpentaria Hwy to Daly Waters. We had to have an early start because we knew we had to arrive early at Daly Waters or we wouldn’t get a spot. This funny little well decorated pub (thongs, bras, coins) is very popular with the travelling folk. Stephen walked to the WW2 airfield just for something to do during the afternoon. We tried to book into a park in Katherine as there are so many vans on the road we were getting concerned we might struggle to find accommodation. The lovely lady asked where we were from and as soon as she heard we were from Melbourne turned into the Covid Nazi. “You can’t come here unless you have a negative Covid test result”. So we were 2 days out of Katherine with no place to have a test unless we waited to have the test when we got there but: Where would we stay in the meantime? Crazy woman!! Stephen hung up and rang another park “sure no problem”. The Daly Waters pub is famous for its Beef and Barra (fillet steak and barramundi) dinners so we made sure we put our order in when we arrived. Finally a pub meal that didn’t disappoint. A great night with some good musicians and some good company.

Sunday took us to Mataranka, the land of the Never Never. We were feeling a little frayed today so chilled out for a while then went for a swim at the thermal pool, along with a bunch of others. There doesn’t seem to be any chance to get away from people on this trip.

Monday morning provided us with a sleep in. Stephen got a chance to wash his cow pooed car and van. During the afternoon a van pulled in next to us. Long story short, it belonged to Jeff Mears who was a teenager living next door to us when we moved into First Avenue. We hadn’t seen Jeff for more than 40 years. There was quite a bit of reminescing and catching up. There is an old pub in the main street of Mataranka that Stephen was keen to have a beer at so we took a walk in the hot sun to the pub only to find it shut. Who ever heard of a pub that was shut at 5pm?? Don’t know what was going on there. Anyway so ended the week again.

What will the next week throw at us??

Week 2 May 25-31

After a great knees up at the opera last night today we headed to Aramac and the start of the Lake Dunn sculpture trail. Milynda Rogers, the sculptor, has created over 40 pieces using mainly barbwire and metal of every shape and size. These are situated along a 200 km trail on both bituman and dirt. We started out as early as we could because it was a 68 km trip to the start of the trail. There are no distances marked between pieces and it became a game trying to spot the sculptures. We found all 40 but it took us 4-5 hours in all. We took our lunch and sat under a tree by the side of the dirt road to eat it. All in all we did 330 kms for the day, and that wasn't a travelling day. Well worth the effort. Unfortunately we were back in time for happy hour again and had to endure Ken and Annie again.

Leaving Barcaldine we headed toward Longreach then Winton where we stopped at the Age of Dinosaurs exhibition. The fly count was off the scales as was the cost of a tour $75 per person. Last time we were there it was a minimal amount and only one other couple and ourselves, this time there were hundreds. We gave it a miss as we had seen it before. From Winton we drove onto our overnight destination, Middleton, population 2. Literally out in the middle of nowhere, there is a pub that was run by an elderly couple for all their married lives. Unfortunately 8 days before we arrived, the man had a heart attack and was airlifted to Longreach and his son and wife and their two children had arrived to run the pub. He was 82 so we'll let him off the hook this time. The population of Middleton had literally doubled overnight. There were probably 6 vans camping across the road from the pub that night. We had dinner there, which was forgettable, and a chat to the other travellers before we sat back to watch the total eclipse of the moon and the resultant red moon in the clearest of skies.

We drove along the Kennedy Developmental Rd to Boulia, the land of the Min Min lights. It was here we saw our first eagles, truly magnificent birds. The way they spread their wings and literally lift off the ground is a sight to see. It was also on this road that I had a 10 minute fight with a fly, yes a pesky little sticky fly that refused to be expelled from the car. It was happy to try and crawl up my nose or sit behind my sunnies but everytime I got it near the window it would lull me into a false sense of security then take off and bother Stephen. Finally man beat the insect and I shoved it out of the car. A nice camping ground at Boulia that became very busy as the day wore on. Spent the afternoon at the Min Min Discovery Centre hearing all about the strange phenomenon where lights appear in the night, from seemingly nowhere, to follow you. There is no science that has been able to define these lights but the guide in the encounter centre guaranteed that she had seen them as a young married woman. Her family had been to a party at the Middleton pub and drove home well after dark. Her story was that as she drove into her property two balls of light followed her and bounced on top of the gate posts. She promised that she was a non drinker???? It was about now that we became aware that Melbourne was going into lockdown.

Great!!!!! As we only left Victoria on 18 May we have only been out of the state for 9 days, not the obligatory 14 days for crossing state lines, so we were pretty worried about what that could mean. Stephen has had his vaccine but I wasn’t able to have mine and was planning on having it in Broome. The lockdown has given me the boost to organise an appointment for the jab in Mt Isa. We arrived in the Isa on Friday around 1pm and I rocked up at the hospital for my 3pm vaccine. Must say we have been very lucky with neither of us having any reaction to the vaccine at all. Mt Isa is, well, a mining town (the home of Bob Katter) so, of course, Stephen went on a 3 hour mine tour. I gave no thought at all to doing such a thing and caught up with my bridge buddy online and played for a couple of hours. We spent the afternoon taking a drive out to Lake Moondarra, a pretty picnic spot frequented by the locals.

So, Mt Isa became decision town ….. what to do?? In order to enter NT we have to have been clear of Victoria for 14 days, which means we can cross the border on 1 June. All good and well for NT, however, no way says Mark McGowan. WA’s border is closed to ALL Victorians and they require 14 days of no new cases before they will change that decision.

After much discussion we have decided to explore northern Queensland more than we intended and then spend some time in NT. We have cancelled our booking in Kununurra and also the 2 days that the kids bought for Stephen’s birthday in Cygnet Bay. Very disappointing but it is no good worrying about what we can’t control, so it is what it is. We are hoping at some stage we might get into WA and, let’s face it, we’re not in a hurry.

After a brief look around Cloncurry, where we had intended to stay for a night, we decided to drive to Four Ways, a roadhouse pub on the way to Normanton in FNWQ.  Had a chat to some Taswegians who were going to Gregory Downs then for a daytrip into Boodjamulla NP aka Lawn Hill.  I have been really wanting to go here and they managed to convince Stephen that we should give it a go. Yay for the Taswegians.  We had another very ordinary dinner at the pub, think we'll be skipping outback pubs for meals in the near future, then home to watch Masterchef and our first really warm night without AC.

That concludes Week 2.  We have now been 14 clear days out of Covid plaqued Victoria without symptoms, so I think we are in the clear.

Melbourne to Broome 2021

 Week 1 18-24 May

After an uneventful departure we managed to get away around 10am. We were well prepared and didn’t really have to do much before leaving. Stopped in Strathmerton for lunch then meandered onto Finley where we stayed in the Finley Lakeside Caravan Park, it’s way to cold to stay anywhere without power for the heater yet. A bonus on booking in at the office when we were handed 4 fresh eggs for our brekkie.  A quick walk around the lake before drinks at the roaring camp fire which was so hot we had to sit back so as not to get fried.  Met a couple from Eltham, nurses, who have been in Qld for 6 weeks.  Warned us about the number of vans on the road which we had already been aware of anyway.  It did however make us consider booking ahead for the next few days to be on the safe side.

A early morning, is 10am early??? visit to the bakery for some bread, pies and the obligatory vanilla slice then we were on our way to Hillston.  We had noticed that our phones weren’t working when we got up but thought it was flaky reception., however the efpos machine at the bakery was not working and we became suspicious that all was not well with Telstra.  With limited cash on board we were a little concerned. Remember cash, that’s the stuff we use to use before Covid.  We rely far to much on our phones these days and that was about to bite us on the bum.  Thanks to the mouse plague in the Riverina those pesky mice had eaten through the telecommunication wires and the whole network was down ...... ALL DAY.  Thank goodness we have sat nav so finding our way was a okay.  The drive was a bit boring with nothing but scrub, scrub, lunch at Griffith, scrub, scrub.  I managed to read a whole book.  We arrived at Hillston at around 3pm and got the ..... last site. OMG 😳. We paid cash, of course, but I did notice that the receptionist’s phone was ringing! She had Optus, who would have ever thought that was a good thing.  I asked her if she could ring ahead to book at Bourke for us and she kindly handed over her phone for me to ring. See, there are nice people out there.  Another lakeside walk then a sit in the ☀️.  It is definitely warming up already, not super warm but no jumper in the car. It cools down as soon as the sun disappears, but hey, there is sun.  Cold nights and mornings but that will probably change in a matter of days. At 7pm our phones jumped to life and we were once again back in ‘touch’ with the world. Naughty mice 🐁 

The drive to Bourke was a little more interesting with changes of scenery throughout the day.  The distance travelled was slightly longer than previous days so we had an extended lunch with a walk around Cobar 🥱.  Arrived around 4pm at the Kidman Camp (no, not Nicole).  We have stayed here before and it’s a lovely grassy park.  Nowhere near as cold overnight and a sleep in as we are staying here for the day. We were disappointed to find that there was no Poets Night around the camp fire anymore.  They no longer have the Outback Show at the Cultural Centre either.  Covid seems to be robbing us of fun on this trip.  We did manage a walk around the township of Bourke and a trip on the paddle boat PV Jandra,  along the Darling River. Caravans started arriving around 2pm so people are definitely leaving early to get to their next destination.  Obviously a 10am start is not going to get us a site so we might have to lift our game. Beautiful day ☀️ and a warmer evening.  Shorts and T-shirts the clothing of choice now.

Left Bourke nice and early (set the alarm) and on the road by 8.30. The drive was very boring and bumpy and I wasn’t able to read.  We arrived in Cunnamulla and went the the Cunnamulla Fella Centre to watch a 25 min movie on the Great Artisan Basin.  Fascinating history and this basin covers 1/3 of the Australian continent.  If Stephen was writing this he’d give you all the facts and figures.  Had lunch then continued on the crappy road until we arrived in Wyandra.  We parked at the park behind the very colourful and interesting Post Office owned by Glen who was also very colourful.  Set up then walked down to the pub for a drink and a chat with the locals.  This place is very small only a handful of locals. Wandered back to the PO for happy hour around the fire pit with Glen, Pete and Wendy (locals) and an obnoxious couple from NSW.  After drinks we were treated to 30 min of black and white  newsreels.  While we were watching this Glen was making our dinner of hamburgers which were delivered to us.  A fun night. 

From Wyandra the drive was a bit more interesting with emus crossing the road and goats and other livestock along the road.  A short stop for lunch at Augathella arriving at Tambo around 2.30pm..  We chose a park a kilometre out of town because they had happy hour and a fire pit. Sat in the sun for a while reading then watched a little bit of the poor old Magpies. Around 4 we walked into town to the pub for a drink and ‘the chook races’.  They auction off the Chooks that do 4 laps around a short circuit following a feed bucket.  The money raised is donated to the Flying Doctors. They raised $650 for the 7 ladies.  It was a hoot or a cluck. Walked home on dusk still in our shorts and T-shirt  . The fire was roaring and I heated up some stew and rice and ate it around the fire.  Had an interesting chat to the owner who has 1000 acres out of town that he plans to turn into a tourist attraction with $5 camping and camel rides.  He is raising goats and camels on the land.  

The drive to Barcaldine was bumpy. We are now travelling along the Matilda Way and it is a very remote landscape.  We passed through Blackall, no stopping and arrived in Barci around noon.  A walk to the bakery for some bread for lunch and to check into the “i” to see what was happenen’, but it was lunchtime so they were shut! Some other campers told us that the Country and Western Opera was on at the Showgrounds tonight so we booked tickets and await with anticipation for the event.  At 4pm our eardrums were assaulted with Ken and Annie singing at the common area at the caravan park happy hour. Unfortunately it was right next to our van and as it was a balmy 26 degrees we couldn’t close the windows to stop the noise.  Two hours of really bad C&W music later they finally stopped.  Thank goodness for alcohol. A quick dinner and off to the Opera and a night of CULTURE.  The performance was by 3 extremely talented young singers from Opera Queensland. They are doing a rural tour, Are You Lonesome Tonight, and we were just lucky enough to arrive for their performance.  A really great night’s entertainment.  We caught up with Julian’s uncle Lionel and Aunty Margie at the opera. Julian’s mum grew up in Barcaldine. 

Our first week comes to an end and has been filled with rich experiences.

Adelaide, Penola, Ballarat, Strathmore 3 – 10 November

Up bright and early as Stephen was busting to see the bus we were parked next to pack up and leave. Not just a bus but a huge luxury motor home which we had seen once before when we were in Katherine many moons ago. He had spent the previous evening talking to the Dutch guy and his wife who owned it but was unable to talk his way into an invitation to actually get inside the thing and check it out. He watched their car, a Mirage, being loaded onto the hydraulic lift and then fitting neatly inside the bus chassis. All very impressive and made our little caravan seem quite small and insignificant.
The weather was not too flash and the rain was quite persistent. The drive from Clare to Adelaide was very pretty and we even saw a tree which had been stuck by lightning not all that long ago. It had been completely split down the middle; you don’t often see stuff like that.

We were finally confronted by lots of traffic as we drove slowly into Adelaide, all a bit much for these country travellers. We set up in Gerard and Lola’s driveway and while we waited for them to come home from work we watched the Melbourne Cup on the TV in the van. It was lovely to see them after such a long time. I don’t think Bruce, the dog, was all that happy as we were invading his territory. We spent our time in Adelaide visiting the Gallery of SA - saw John Brack’s exhibition, checking out the Adelaide market, cruising around the CBD and shopping at Coles in Glenelg, the biggest we have seen on our travels. We spent time with Naomi, Simone and Matthew and listened to all their news. Gerard was working at the races most days because of the ‘Melbourne Cup Carnival’. We didn’t realise that all of Adelaide celebrated this event with such vigour. Lola was a gracious hostess and spent lots of time with us chatting.

Stephen had picked up a newspaper advertising a tool sale at some place in Adelaide on Saturday and was mad keen on picking up a new saw if he could. On Saturday morning we packed up to leave and put our destination, Penola, into the GPS. Stephen also put in the address of the tool sale but we realised it was 30 kms out of our way so he deleted it, or so he thought. I was very surprised by the route we were taking but Sheila has managed to get us all around Australia so why would I doubt her. Suddenly we were in an industrial estate where – you guessed it I’m sure – the tool sale was being held. Someone had not deleted the address it seems, or was it Sheila’s fault who Stephen seemed to be blaming!! “Oh well, we are here so I might as well take a look”. After many strange stares from hardware men at me sitting in the ‘Vic’ car with the caravan on the back, and having to answer comments like “you’ve come a long way for a bargain luv”, and one large saw and a saw horse later firmly tied to the top of the Blue Lux we headed out of Adelaide.

We arrived in Penola late afternoon, probably because we had added 60 kilometres to our trip in the morning, and spent the rest of the very hot day in the very small town having a look at what was on offer which was not much. We had nibbles with a couple from Glen Waverley before retiring to our van for dinner. We had a very slow start to Sunday with a newspaper and a cooked brekkie, both rare treats. Around 11.30 we ventured out into Coonawarra for some serious red wine sport. With the temperature around 35 it was not the best day for tasting red wine but like the troupers that we are we managed to fill the day in and buy a number of good reds to take home. Now these are good, bold red wines from the best area in Australia. Another very warm night followed by a slow start to the day before hooking up the van for the last time. We watched a couple take 2 hours to pack up a camper trailer and were very grateful we had bought a caravan which takes us about 15 – 20 minutes for the same procedure.

The drive to Ballarat was quiet. We were both a bit stunned that we would soon be home and weren’t too sure about how we felt about that. After stepping over the line back into Victoria, we stopped at the Royal Mail in Dunkeld and had a drink at the pub to celebrate. The scenery all started to look familiar as the town names like Casterton, Coleraine and Hamilton flew by. It was not long before we arrived in Ballarat to a wonderful welcome from Chris and Di. Our grassed site was ready and waiting for us and, as we were not going anywhere that night, we left the van on the car. This overnighter was one of our brighter ideas as Chris and Di did a similar trip 4 years ago, so we had lots of experiences to talk about. It was almost like a debriefing session for us. A late night and a few drinks resulted in me not feeling all that flash the next morning but thanks to the healing powers of Berocca I was much improved on the journey home to Strathmore.

We arrived home at 11.30am, unhooked the van and drove straight up to see Cath and the girls. We were a bit dubious about the reception we would get from Frances but our fears were soon put to rest when we were covered in hugs and kisses from both she and Maggie. Cath was also very happy to see us and in only minutes managed to have her diary out and had us booked in for babysitting on a number of occasions over the next few weeks!! We now pay the price for being away for sooooo long. Later in the afternoon we walked around to St Martin’s to pick up Fynn. He didn’t know we were home and his little face, with no front teeth, lit up when he saw us. It was a priceless moment. We had dinner with Pat and Fleur that evening and of course our good friend Aileen who told us we weren’t to go away for that long ever again.

So the journey ends.

In 7 months we have travelled 33,160 kilometres, have used 4,696 litres of diesel at an average price of $1.37 per litre and a total cost of $6,332. Unhooked and re-hooked the caravan 66 times and stayed in 77 different camping grounds, and a horse paddock in Broome, at a cost of $5,402. The most invaluable thing was that we had no trouble with the car or the caravan. Between us we also took 6,468 photos: of which I took, maybe, 68.

We set off to escape suburbia and have an adventure. We’ve achieved those things in bucket loads and, in addition, we’ve discovered much about our country. It’s even more beautiful and vast as those Qantas ads show. I still don’t feel qualified to make any grand pronouncements on the nation and its people. I do, however, feel a new connection to the country. The Red Centre, the Kimberley and the Pilbara are no longer just places on a map. The two great issues facing Australia are the environment and the Aborigines and neither gets the attention they deserve. It will be a crime if the north coast of WA is handed over to the gas companies. The issue of the aborigines will still be with us long after the global financial crisis ends with precious little progress in sight.

One of the best things about the trip has been spending time with each other. We discovered we have lots of fun just being together and even found the time to really talk. Time is a wonderful thing and you certainly need to grab every moment you can as life can sometimes be short. We have met some fabulous people and now have a blog full of yarns. As we return to our ‘normal’ life we again have a kitchen, bedroom and bathroom: a place to pee in peace with thick toilet paper.

Paul Keating once said: ‘If you’re not living in Sydney you’re camping out.’ He obviously didn’t understand the value of camping out.

Thanks to each and every one of you for your emails and best wishes. We hope you enjoyed the journey as much as we did.

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Esperance, Kalgoorlie, Nullarbor 23 October - 2 November

The next few days could only be described as bleak and miserable. Finally we got a site directly across from the ocean and what do we get but gale force winds for days on end. The beaches in Esperance are beautiful and unfortunately we have not seen them at their best, which is in full sun and with no wind. We drove around the Great Ocean Drive and the sun peeked out of the clouds which enabled Stephen to take a few photos. Sunday we drove to Cape Le Grande. The sun had finally come out and the sky was clear, however the wind did not give up. We walked along Cape Le Grande beach and watched some young kids (with wetsuits) boogie boarding in the very impressive surf. We then gave our calves another workout by climbing Frenchman’s Peak. The higher we got the stronger the wind was and there were times when I thought I would be blown off the rock face. The temperature was quite high but wrecked by the wind chill factor. After completing this climb we spent a very pleasant hour or so eating lunch at Hellfire Bay and walking along the pristine white sand. Lucky Bay and Rossiter’s Bay completed the drive and we were treated to a number of emus grazing on the roadside. Stumpy tailed lizards are prolific in the area and we spend all our time trying not to run over them as they love to warm themselves on the bitumen.

Monday, 26th October 2009, exactly one year since 26th October, 2008. That’s right, I am sure you have all guessed that it is Stephen’s anniversary, the day of the dreaded fall, with pike, from the ladder. It has been declared an accident and titanium free day. At no time is he allowed to leave my side and definitely not allowed to climb a ladder. Yeah right, as if that is going to happen!! We spent the morning on a boat cruising around the Recherche Archipelago and having morning tea at Woody Island. We saw lots of seals, sea eagles, pacific gulls, Cape Barron geese and the fin of one dolphin. We also laughed a lot as Stephen constantly pretended to fall over his feet the whole morning. It was a lovely morning with the sun shining and the wind finally still. As we returned to shore the clouds closed in but the humidity was high. As you would expect, Stephen spent the afternoon cleaning the top of the caravan – on the ladder – and washing the car. You can’t keep a good man down – literally. It is great to see him fit, well and very happy.

Tomorrow we are off to Kalgoorlie, to spend a couple of days with Rebecca Sherry (daughter of Jan and John) and her family. Finally little people to play with.

We had a wonderful time with the Thomsons of Kalgoorlie. We spent time reading books and playing at the park as well as lots of time in the 'little house', as the girls – Jasmine, Leah and Chloe - liked to call the caravan. As all good grandparents we had a good stash of lollies to bribe them with. The superpit is something to behold and we took several trips out to see it, one to just gap at the enormity of the hole, another to see a blast and the last time at night to see it under lights. One can’t visit Kalgoorlie without a tour of Langtree’s Brothel, a real working brothel. There were six on the tour, two couples and two ladies who were attending a conference in town. The two guys were somewhat outnumbered but quite okay about it. We asked lots of questions and probably went to a level of enquiry that was way beyond what we needed to know. The most interesting room was the Sport Room which came complete with a boxing ring around the bed, a racing whip with feathers, a round (as in boxing) bell and lots of other sporting props. Veeery interesting!!

After being farewelled by Rebecca, Greg and the girls we turned our attention to the Nullarbor. We decided to head for Cocklebiddy for the night. We took turns driving so as not to go to sleep with boredom. There is absolutely nothing to see on this journey except for k after k of bush scrub with the occasional tree thrown in. We unexpectedly reached Cocklebiddy around 3.30pm and decided to press on as it looked rather ordinary and we still had a couple of good hours driving left in us. We figured we could make the Mundrabilla Roadhouse before the light failed. And we did, only to find that the caravan park was closed. Hmmm. With the next stop 68 kms away we went back 10 kms to an off road camp site we had noticed. No power, but for one night and with it now being dark, we had no choice. One notable fact was we had only passed 19 (yes I counted) ‘freshly dead’ kangas for the day. We had been told to expect a virtual massacre across this road but it just didn’t happen. A quick dinner and straight to bed. A 845 km drive tends to make you very tired.

We woke up with the birds the next morning at 6am. We wanted to get away by 7am as we were keen to get off the Nullarbor and hopefully to Streaky Bay. We got into the car and went to turn on the radio for the 7 o’clock news when we noticed the clock display was 6.03am. We had misread the time when we woke up at apparently 5am. Groan!!! As if all day on the road wasn’t enough for us we were adding to it by an extra hour. The most interesting part of the day was the Madura Pass, a wonderful high view of the Nullarbor, very unexpected. I was driving and Stephen was sleeping when I was surprised by this fabulous site. Of course I woke him up as we had to take a photo. We passed a number of cyclists crossing the Nullarbor. I wonder at what point they asked themselves, “what the hell am I doing and how can I turn back???” We also had the delight of having to turn our clocks back 2½ hours which meant we had less time to cover the k’s. We made a stop at the Great Australian Bight and took some photos but were gazumped at the Head of Bight by a closed gate. We weren’t overly concerned as the whales have all but stopped migrating and the chances of seeing any were minimal. Around 4pm we arrived in Ceduna and handed over the fruit and vegies to the fruit fly Nazis. We then stopped and restocked at the IGA, a most annoying necessity. Onto Streaky Bay in time for a well earned drink and nibbles while we overlooked the water. It was very warm and the forecast for the following day was 35. After 672 kms for the day we felt we deserved a day of rest in this lovely little seaside stop.

Probably the fact that we had lost several hours meant we didn’t wake until 8.30am. By then it was quite hot. After breakfast we walked into town for a look-see and by the time we got back to the caravan park the temperature had climbed quite significantly. Unfortunately about the same time a hot northerly wind started to blow which made for a rather unpleasant afternoon. We put the airco on and were in and out of the van reading or sleeping. The wind blew a gale for most of the night and when we awoke the next morning it was quite chilly and a few drops of rain were falling. Streaky Bay is yet another fishing holiday spot which a lot of people seem to return to on a regular basis. An interesting fact about Streaky Bay is all the houses face the street when they could have a beautiful view of the beach if they faced them the other way????

Back on the road and to somewhere near Adelaide, not sure where. When we left Streaky Bay the temp was about 19 degrees, by the time we reached Poochera it was 28, Kimba it was 35 and as we drove into Portagutta it was 45. Thank goodness for air conditioning in the car. As we were leaving Portagutta Brudda we were confronted with a large dust storm caused by a cool change. The temperature dropped 16 degrees in about 15 minutes. For the past few days we have tried to entertain ourselves by picking on each other, laughing at those less fortunate than ourselves, listening to the radio or reading books. It seems the closer we get to Adelaide the bogan factor seems to kick in, it must be a proximity thing!! We made a decision to head for Clare for the night rather than Port Pirie as it looked very industrial. A sleep over in Clare then off to Adelaide tomorrow.

As this is the penultimate edition of Oztrek I will give you a list of the things I will miss about not being ‘on the road’/trailer trash.

• Looking at a black sky with millions of little sparkling lights while you have a 3am bush pee
• The road lined with beautiful little flowers I once thought were weeds
• Stephen devising his very own traveller’s wave which he used when passing other caravan travellers – this took several weeks to perfect
• Stephen practising his traveller’s wave while he thinks no one is watching
• Sitting quietly in the car while the landscape constantly changes
• The hurricane of a road train as it passes by
• The never ending broken white line
• The delight of meeting NBFs
• The fun with NBFs
• The five minutes it took to do the ‘housework’
• The absolute quiet of the night
• The constant temperature of the north and the sun on your face
• Not worrying about what was for dinner as Stephen would always have that covered
• No where to shop which of course took the strain out of ‘what will I buy’
• Animals that moved freely around
• The different colours of the soil
• Red dust on and in my shoes
• The challenge of climbing in and out of gorges
• The crystal clear water of swimming holes
• The freezing water of swimming holes
• The beautiful turquoise blue of the Indian Ocean
• The jagged rock faces of the mountain ranges
• A face that is not the same colour as mine – although I do have a pretty good suntan
• 5pm nibblies
• 6pm nibblies
• 7pm nibblies
• Speaking to Stephen and he has to listen because there is no escape from the Blue Lux
• Plotting routes and constantly changing them
• Listening to the IPod while we drive along
• Every day being either Saturday or Sunday
• Watching Stephen wash the Lux every other day
• Janet’s laugh – indescribable – we already miss it
• Sheila’s voice on the GPS – at the roundabout take the third exit
• Watching others back their caravans into tight spots – trailer trash sport
• Fresh air with no smog/Nature
• Waking to the sound of the birds
• Rob’s jeans and smalls hanging on the clothes horse everyday

Things I will gladly see the back of:

• Macca on a Sunday Morning
• Thursday with Colin on the ABC (Colin Barnett, King/Premier of WAland)
• Bloated animal carcasses on the side of the road
• Thin toilet paper at every amenities block in Australia
• Eco Toilets/Straight Droppers
• Showers with no water pressure
• The occasional ‘Dick’ we would run across who knew everything there is to know
• Information on the Eagles and the Dockers – who cares???

When next I write we will be home with our family. Here we come!!


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Pemberton, Albany, Stirling Ranges, Hyden 15 – 22 October

Pemberton, what a gem!

We arrived around lunchtime after a picturesque trip through beautiful forests and pasture land. After satisfying our appetite with a Woolworths 4 seed roll we boarded the Pemberton Tram which meanders through towering karris, marri forests, over trestle bridges and across rivers. This was a 1¾ hour trip and the first chance we had to stop and look at the scenery without worrying about where we were driving. Needless to say staying so still we soon found ourselves falling asleep in such peaceful surrounds. Stephen then climbed the Gloucester Tree, 61 metres, while I stayed on terra firma. Late in the afternoon we drove out to Big Brook Dam where we were amazed that some ‘youths’ were swimming in the freezing dam while we watched the sun go down with a drink in our hand.

Friday was a lovely morning and the ‘plan’ was to drive to Beedelup Falls then onto Yeagarup sand dunes for some 4x4 ing. We were surprised to find the falls in a beautiful national park with lots of walking trails. We spent the next couple of hours bushwalking and passed the Karri Valley Resort which was set on a lovely lake, a name to remember. By the time we left the NP it was lunchtime and we found ourselves at the Silkwood Winery enjoying a platter for two and a bottle of very nice Cab Sav. We spent the next 1½ hours as the only guests in the most beautiful setting before a number of people crashed our party. The food was delicious with garlic prawns, dolmades, smoked chicken pate, spring rolls, cheese, biscuits and fresh fruit. It was now obvious that we would not be going to the dunes today and would need at least another day to enjoy the area.

Saturday was hot, back up to 30 degrees, a designated beach day. First call was the Yeagarup sand dunes, a series of vast mobile sand dunes which are steadily moving inland swallowing up forest, lakes and woodlands. The tyres were let down to a very low 12 and we made our foray onto the sands. The first hill is a doozy and we had to have a second go before getting up as the driver was a little tentative and didn’t have enough momentum. Once over the top you are confronted with a huge oasis of sand. We followed the markers over the dunes and through the sandy woodlands for about 12kms that led us to Yeagarup beach which is on the Southern Ocean. The water was bubbling and there was no swimming in this water unless you had a death wish. We had great fun returning, this time with more confidence as we knew what was confronting us. We left just as the yahoos were arriving, complete with stubbies in each hand! On the way back we drove through the Warren NP and climbed the Bicentennial Tree, 75 metres high. Even I had a go this time. We stopped at an avocado farm and bought a box of 35 avocados for $5.00 and a Crownie! We have been giving them away to our NBFs along the way. Twenty percent of Australia’s avos come from this area. Our next stop was Windy Harbour via Northcliffe, an interesting holiday and fishing spot. What started as a fishing cabin village has developed into a holiday town but still with the fishing cabins, some more glam than others. The beach has a sheltered area which is safe for swimming but is surrounded again by the Southern Ocean, a truly wild stretch of water. A kip on the beach and a stop at the Warren Winery where we chatted to the owners for sometime then home for dinner. We sat and had a drink and shared nibbles with our neighbours, Merrill and Norm, and never quite got to the food part; let’s just call it a liquid dinner that night. Merrill and Norm still hadn’t appeared when we left the next morning. Some people just aren’t stayers.

We loved Pemberton, it is what Margaret River used to be like before it became far too commercialised. It is a quaint old town which has retained its character surrounded by some of the most amazing scenery. Michael Butler assures us that it is the home of Bunnings. Stephen was devastated that he was unable to take a tour of the timber yard as they close at 12 noon on Friday and don’t reopen until Monday morning. Not bad hours if you can get them!

Up early and packed up to move to Albany. This day we had lots of stops planned on the way. First stop, Walpole. The chap at the Visitor’s Centre was more than helpful and provided us with maps of the area and stops to make along the way. We drove around a loop which took us past the inlet that Walpole is built on. Next stop, the Valley of the Giants and the Tree Top Walk. A great way to enjoy the red and yellow tingle trees which make up this forest. A few more kilometres down the South Coast Highway and we came to the toffee shop – free samples – where we made a small purchase so that the owners wouldn’t feel bad!! The next port of call, Denmark, the home of the largest barometer in the world, woohoo. Here we experienced the joy of running up and down the 6 flights of stairs watching the water level in the barometer rise and fall on a 6 minute cycle. Some people just don’t know when to stop having fun!! (Stephen: water boils at the top of the barometer at a very low 19.1oC, interesting)?? Denmark is a lovely little seaside town and we probably should have stayed here in hindsight. We eventually reached Albany (not Allbany) around 5.00pm just as the rain started to fall. Albany is a big town and we tend not to like these too much anymore. A big day in the car but a lovely drive and well worth taking the time to stop and see things.

Monday morning we awoke early to a clear sky so took advantage of this and went for a walk along the very nice Middleton Beach and were rewarded with some whales playing off the point and some seashells for Maggie and Frances. Unfortunately the weather closed in and we spent the day on the computer updating photos and blogs although around lunchtime we did take a break and went for a drive to Frenchman Bay. Here we went to Princess Royal Harbour, King George Sound, Stony Hill lookout, the Blowholes which weren’t blowing water but made a huge sound that made me jump about 3 feet and think I was about to be blown off the rocks - much to Stephen’s amusement, the Natural Bridge and the Gap. All of these involved climbing up and down trails and while the sun was out, the wind was blowing a gale. We were treated to our first, then second snake sighting for the trip; however they kindly crawled off the path into the bushes to allow us to pass.

Tuesday morning we set off for the Stirling Ranges which we had been told not to miss. A fabulous but short (90 kms) drive along Chester Pass Road to the Stirling Ranges Retreat, a gen-u-ine nature reserve. The further we got away from the coast the higher the temperature got. An early lunch before climbing Bluff Knoll, a mere 1095 metre stroll up, up, up, up – are you getting the picture – up, up, up. At the halfway point I told Stephen to go ahead as there was no way I was going to make it. He went ahead and I decided to go a little further, then a little further, then a little further. Next thing I knew I was only 10 minutes from the top and no one was more surprised than Stephen when he walked around the corner on the way down and there I was. He walked back up to the top with me and I was very grateful that I had made the effort – my God, it was some effort – as the view from the top was spectacular. There was an ‘older’ chap at the top who took our photo and if Stephen had come down and told me that I hadn’t made it up there and some really old geeza had, I wouldn’t have been too happy. By the way, it was the old geeza’s third attempt at climbing the Bluff, the first 2 attempts failed but he has since stopped smoking. I think there is a message in that for all the puffers of the world. Coming down was no mean feat either. I could hardly believe how bloody steep it was and was amazed that I had actually made it to the top. We arrived back at the van very tired and hanging for a drink. A tour group were gathered around a blazing fire so we sat and chatted for a while before making dinner and hitting the sack.

A beautiful morning, just perfect for a ‘Wildflower Tour’!! Now that you have all picked yourselves up from the ground, I will proceed. The couple who run this retreat are very into their flora and fauna and we had been told their Wildflower Tour was not to be missed. Ayleen (yes Aileen, this is the correct spelling) took us in her little Hi Ace van and we ‘gutter crawled’ – a totally new experience for me although I’m not sure about Stephen – along the road stopping to spot wild orchids. They are obscure little plants but once shown where they are you quickly learn what to look for and believe it or not are soon spotting them for yourself. I could not believe the stuff coming out of Ayleen’s mouth, botanical and common names of every plant we saw. Tony, her husband, took over after morning tea and continued the lessons with the larger plants, symbiotic relationships (???) and some history of the area. Three hours later we were disappointed when the tour finished. Who would have thunk!!!

Back to the van for a quick bite of lunch then we moved to Hyden, the home of Wave Rock. The drive through the ‘food bowl’ of WA was very interesting, acres and acres of wheat, canola, oats, barley and any grain you can think of. The biggest problem we have is that farmers do not provide signage on their properties informing the passing public what crops they are producing. We must ring “Macca” next Sunday and suggest they install electronic boards along the fencing with this information. We arrived at Hyden around 4.30pm and by 6.00pm had completed all the walks around the rocks. Wave Rock was quite impressive but the million dollar question was: Was it worth driving 250 kms out of our way to see it??? The answer is yes, as Chris and Di Ridsdale have seen it and we couldn’t have them seeing something that we haven’t. We were treated to the sight of an Obscure Dragon while here (see photos) along with swarms of mosquitoes. Joy of joys! Back to the desolate caravan park, dinner and a very early night. The most redeeming feature of this place was that the temperature was around 27 degrees.

As we had not even unhooked the van we were away from Hyden around 8.00am the next morning. The drive from here to Ravensthorpe was again through the wheat crops yet this area has many salt lakes and has a serious salinity problem. We have heard a lot about Ravensthorpe and Hopetoun on the ABC on our trip. BHP Billiton were going to ramp up a nickel mine in the area so lots and lots of Government dollars in infrastructure was put into the area then they decided not to go ahead with the project. The city now has 200 new houses, new cafes and shops with no one to buy or run them, so the mining company and the government have given the Shire $10 million as compensation. We stopped for some morning tea at one of the cafes and the owner, a local, told me that 7 of the 4 bedroom, 2 bathroom houses in Hopetoun had been sold (apparently to local farmers for holiday houses: it’s near the beach) for $375,000 each, well below cost. Unfortunately it’s a bit far from home for us to pick up a bargain.

We continued on towards Esperance but were stopped in our tracks by a grass fire. With the road closed we took a gravel road detour, always a worry with the van, however the road was quite good and we only passed about 5 road trains going the other way; uggh, clouds of dust!! As we approached Esperance the temperature once more dipped to around 21 and the wind was hurricane force.

Why is it that as soon as we approach the beach the weather turns sour???

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