Friday 19th October – Perth (Scarborough) 0km No lead

A much needed sleep in. Woke at 8:30, down the lift, wandered through the building complex and found a café for a relaxed breakfast. We ambled down to the beach, seeing half dozen blunt tailed lizards in the park along on the way then took a stroll along the beach front before returning via the busy, noisy road to our rooms for an appreciated respite - Kath & Russell in the spa, Wendy for pedicure & manicure and me at the computer in our room with views over the coast. Bliss - fast, free internet in the lobby!

Thursday 18th October: Lancelin – Perth 187km Russell lead

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday to you.

Happy birthday dear Kath

Happy birthday to you

Kath’s birthday – “Oh my” what a day!

On our way through to Perth we called in at the Gravity Discovery Centre; a working observatory combined with a large interactive learning centre on gravity and cosmology. Fascinating, but it did my head in – sound waves, light waves, black holes, gravity - all heady stuff. The climb up the leaning tower to drop water bombs was cool – 180 tonnes of steel, 222 steps, 45 meters high, 15 degrees of inclination – and the 360 degree view from the top was pretty spectacular too. On to Perth, hired a car then proceeded to drop the campervans back off 2 blocks away. Do we blame the Navman or the Navigator? The map shows 167km from Lancelin to Perth plus a little bit to the Discovery Centre but we ended up doing 187km for the day. Now, I ask you, do you really think it takes 1 ½ hours to drive 2 blocks? The short answer is yes, it can do! Finally after much stress, one lead vehicle and two following vehicles, through traffic lights, intersections, motorways, side streets all without losing one another we made it – late, but we made it. A grand total of 7,252km. We drove across Perth to the northern suburb of Scarborough to The Rendezvous Hotel on the waterfront. A palatial place, in the middle of renovations, where we were lucky enough to get a renovated room with views north up the coast and its own private little balcony. Across the street, we found a lovely restaurant for the double celebration of Kath’s birthday, where Russ presented her with a gorgeous pearl necklace inspirationally designed on the Staircase to the Moon theme, and the successful completion of the 4 wheeling part of our holiday. After dinner, it was back to our exquisitely comfortable rooms for a blissful night’s sleep.

Wednesday 17th October: Geraldton – Lancelin 336km Wendy lead

Rain! During the night, for the first time in 3 weeks, we heard rain for about 10 minutes. While Jan cooked us bacon, eggs, beans and toast I commandeered her computer and while watching “Red Dog” (a 1970’s Pilbara icon – more tissues Kath?) managed to finally get the blog up-to-date for the first time. Finally left Geraldton and heading down the coast we got caught behind one of the widest loads we had seen at 7.5 meters. It literally took up both lanes of the road and even road trains had to park up well off the road for it to pass. The massive trailer carrying the load looked like a toy. We turned off onto Indian Ocean Drive stopping at the seaside town of Leeman for morning tea, complete with flies and wind, continuing on to Cervates for lunch with, you guessed it, the inevitable flies and wind. Had a good look around at the “Pinnacles” which we found quite fascinating; limestone columns up to 3 meters high protruding from desert sands. “Rising mysteriously from the dune sands are thousands of limestone pillars, a landscape in eerie contrast to the surrounding heath.” Well worth the visit. We ended the day in Lancelin, yet another seaside town with flies and wind, in a run-down campground having now clocked up 7,000km.

 

Tuesday 16th October: Geraldton 66km Kath lead

Geraldton – Mid West Wheat Belt so the radio station keeps proclaiming but what it doesn’t mention is, since dropping below the Tropic of Capricorn, the flies, the constant westerly wind and the cooler evenings and nights. Jan & Andrew offered for us to stay the night on their back lawn and Jan clinched the deal with a promise of a pork roast for dinner so we spent a quiet day around Geraldton. We started with a walk through of the old goal now used as a craft market with most of the old cells used as craft stalls. Next it was on to McDonald’s for coffee with the intention of using their wi-fi to update this blog. The place was cold, the wi-fi slow and kept dropping off. Kath & Russell left as us to it and wandered around town and after a couple of hours Wendy & I gave up as well. Met up with Russell & Kath again and had a crappy lunch in a run-down mall. Russell led us on a drive by tour of the town before separating and having a meander around Geradton on our own. Found a few places of interest; the port, beaches and the sight of the first light house and the keeper’s house. There have been 11 shipwrecks off Geraldton starting in 1629 with the Batavia (quite a gruesome story relating to the survivors) through to 1936. Due to the dangerous reef crossing, quite an ingenious way to assist ships navigate their way through the reef into harbour was used. One lighthouse was built on the shore line and another on the hill behind. The ships captain’s would position their ships so the two lights were in alignment and sail directly towards them through the opening in the reef. Caught up again with Russell & Kath and arrived at Jan & Andrew’s for a chin wag and our promised roast. Thank you Jan for a truly magnificent meal and to you both for your generous hospitality.

 

 

Monday 15th October: Kalbarri – Geraldon 216km Warwick lead

On leaving Kalbarri we headed down the coast stopping in at many of the lookouts along the bluffs. All very spectacular with their red layered rock formations and at one of them we could even watch whales swimming by in the distance. Leaving sight of the coast line we continued on south where the road took us along the banks of the Hutt Lagoon at the bottom end of which we turned back up the coast to the little seaside resort of Gregory. The lagoon had a pink tinge to it and later on we found out that this caused by an algae bloom and in season the entire lagoon is a very bright pink. Heading back inland to once again connect up to the North West Coastal Highway at the very old historic farming town of Northampton where we had our lunch stop. From Northampton it was just a short hop down to Geraldton on the coast. Geralton is about the same size as Whangarei, full of historic buildings with still a thriving port and railway. After booking in at camp we took a leisurely drive around the town before the inevitable grocery shop. Wendy phoned friends, Andrew and Jan from Kerikeri, now living over here and they came over to visit us at camp. A delightful couple and being jeep owners they were immediate friends of Russell & Kath.

 

Sunday 14th October: Hamelin Pool – Kalbarri 342km Russell lead

After breakfast we went for a walk up the hill behind the camp/telegraph station, to the shell quarry onto the Stromatolites and back to camp. Drove back to the Overlander Roadhouse on the North West Coastal Highway to refuel and air up before continuing along on a straight we started a couple of days ago before turning off to Steep Point. The straight – 102.8km in total! Towards the turn off to Kalbarri we started noticing trees along the side of the road rather than shrubs and a while later saw cultivated farm land with fields of wheat. Turning off to Kalbarri we meandered through the Kalbarri National Park calling in at several lookouts all offering spectacular views over the Murchison River. We arrived in Kalibarri a modern and picturesque town situated on the coast at the mouth of the Murchison River.

 

Saturday 13th October: Monkey Mia – Hamelin Pool 424km Wendy lead

We were woken before dawn with vehicles leaving very early, possibly to go fishing. Got up at dawn and wandered down to the beach. Not a breath of wind, water as smooth as glass and within 50 meters of shore we watched 4 dolphins feeding and a stingray glide by within a meter of shore. After breakfast we broke camp and waited for the dolphin interaction display the resort puts on each morning, although it’s up to the dolphins if they decide to turn up or not. While waiting, a turtle swam past close to shore. With a big day ahead of us we couldn’t wait for the dolphins to appear and as we had already seen them feeding for themselves we left Monkey Mia at 8:30. Back down the Peron Peninsula 100km, hung a right for 40km, then another right.heading north west. The road changing from sealed to wide dirt, to narrow & corrugated and finally single lane and sandy. We came to a hill that was all soft sand, without knowing how long, steep or how many more to follow we aired down and made a run for it. Clawed our way to the top and down the other side. Finally made it to Steep Point – westernmost point of mainland Australia. The return trip wasn’t quite as bad but very thankful that we hadn’t met another vehicle on the track. We made it back fairly late to Hamelin Pool at the base of the Peron Peninsula and stayed at a camp ground the complete opposite to the previous night. Small with few other campers and a very friendly & knowledgeable staff it was a real gem. On arriving we were given a tour of the old telegraph exchange and told a little of the history of the place. The telegraph was established in the 1800’s as a repeater station. Back in those days, before the advent of the telephone, messages were sent by morse code but the power could only transmit a signal 100miles so repeater stations were set up all along the coast. There is an old disused quarry just back from the shoreline for mining shell blocks. Unlike Shell Beach we visited previously where the shells are loose; these shells are cemented together by rain leeching the calcium from the shells and being compacted down under pressure. The deposits are up to 8 meters deep and are cut out using hand saws into blocks which were used for building. Hamelin Bay itself is unique. At its entrance there is a natural sand bank so the tidal movement is restricted to about 300mm. With the pool only about 1,200mm deep, high temperatures and little rain resulting in high evaporation the salinity of the water is 2 ½ times that of the ocean which keeps the sea slugs and snails out – the natural predators of Stromatolites. Now, what are Stromatolites I hear you ask. Quite simply, without them you may not be here. They are, literally, living rocks. Formed in colonies by single-celled microbes growing at only .3mm per year. They’ve been around for 3.5 billion years when there was only 1% oxygen in the atmosphere and as they release oxygen, they were the main contributor of raising the oxygen level to 21% helping create the environment for all other living organisms. It took another billion years for two types of bacteria to merge to form a more complex single-celled organism establishing the building block for the later evolution of higher life forms. Come to think of it, I know a few humans that are very closely related to Stromatolites.

 

 

 

 

Friday 12th October: Carnarvon – Monkey Mia 365km Kath lead

Bacon and eggs for breakfast – a treat! We travelled south for an hour from Carnarvon stopping at White Bluff Lookout with 360 degree panoramic views before crossing the 26^th Parallel. We turned off at Overlander Roadhouse to head up the Peron Peninsula. With the cooler climate, wildflowers were again on display. We stopped in at Shell Beach made up of billions of tiny cockle shells. Although unusual it was still very picturesque especially with the turquoise water lapping the shore. Continuing on we called in at Goulet Bluff Lookout followed by Eagle Bluff Lookout. Magnificent bluffs, overlooking the bay where the water was so clear we could see a ray gliding along the sea floor while further out we could see the dark blue water where the seagrass was growing. Continuing north we crossed the 26^th Parallel again and a little further on stopped at Denham for our latest lunch yet. Crossed over to the eastern side of the peninsula and arrived at our destination of Monkey Mia (Eastern Bluff) to a full campsite so ended up setting up in the campground carpark. Monkey Mia is a tourist resort and charge accordingly. Situated ½ way up the peninsula facing east towards the mainland about 30km away and north up Shark Bay into the Indian Ocean.

 

Thursday 11th October: Coral Bay – Carnarvon 372km Warwick lead

We awoke this morning to dew covering everything! Leaving Coral Bay we headed slightly inland and crossed the Tropic of Capricorn at, unbelievably, exactly 5,0000km since starting our trip. 80km after leaving Coral Bay we met up with the North West Coastal Highway and continued on until we were 25km north of Carnarvon where we turned back north along the coast passing Lake McLeod and the Dampier fear Salt Mine. Covering 2,072 sq km it is only separated from the sea by sand dunes. There is no of drowning in this lake as it was totally dry. Even in the wet it would barely be ½ meter deep. A little further on we drove up to a lighthouse where we had expansive views of the surrounding countryside, coast line and blowholes. Drove down to the blowholes and they were quite something; the noise sounded like a train coming through and they reached quite a height. The spray drift caused small pockets of sea water to collect in the surrounding rocks and with so much sun and so little rain the water evaporated leaving behind salt crystals around the edges. A little further north we stopped for lunch at the HMAS Sydney II memorial. On 19^th November 1941 the HMAS Sydney II intercepted the German Raider Kormoran. In the ensuring battle both ships were sunk with the Kormoran suffering 80 fatalities while all 645 on board the Sydney were lost. This was Australia’s worst maritime loss of the Second World War. Turning around we got into Carnarvon mid-afternoon, booked into the camp and while Wendy & I visited the Gascoyne Aboriginal Heritage and Cultural Centre Russell & Kath toured the town. After the Heritage Centre we drove down to the historic One Mile Jetty and Heritage Precinct. Walking out to the end of the jetty “Coffee Pot” the little locomotive that runs down the jetty was coming towards us and who should it be carrying but Russell & Kath. Getting back off the jetty we climbed the old water tower offering expansive views of the jetty, the old railway yards, the mouth of the Gascoyne River and Carnarvon itself. Carnarvon is situated at the only point of the coastline where the central desert reaches to the sea. It also produces 70% of WA’s winter vegetable requirements, (obviously they don’t eat a lot of winter veges in WA) and 30,000 tonnes of fruit and vegetables every year from its plantations. We meet back at camp at 5:00 for the inevitable supermarket shopping. With enough supplies for 4 days we headed back to camp for nibbles and dinner. The climate is certainly changing and with the evening temperate dropping to only 22 degrees we had to don sweat shirts. L

 

Wednesday 10th October: Exmouth – Coral Bay 202km Russell lead

Leaving Exmouth we retraced yesterday’s sightseeing trip past the lighthouse and continued on down the western coastline through the Cape Range National Park, an airforce defence area and pastoral stations (although what the sheep & goats ate, I have no idea) all overlooking the Ningaloo Reef. Ranges to the left of us, reef to the right of us. The ranges are still quite barren and very dry, the reef, on the other hand, beautiful turquoise and brilliant white sand. Today promised to be our first real day of 4 wheeling starting with a creek crossing at the south end of the park at Yardie Creek. We checked at the information centre and there wasn’t going to be a problem with the tide – “no worries, the tide doesn’t affect the creek”. Got there, had a look and……… disappointment. The darn creek hadn’t seen any water for months! We saw a 4x4 airing up after having crossed from the opposite side but decided we’d try without airing down. 45lb pressure and a heavy wallowing brick and we still made it across with ease. Not so for a guy towing a caravan, who had even aired down, going the opposite way, chugging along only making it ¾ of the way across before burying himself - momentum is your friend. Luckily for him someone over the other side winched him through. The track after that was very narrow and varied from corrugated, rough to loose sand. Great stuff and I was driving! Although we did get up to a maximum of 60kph, we generally cruised at 45-50 as both our bodies and the trucks couldn’t stand any more. Thankfully we don’t own the trucks. Talk about shake, rattle and roll. 150km latter, we made it into Coral Bay, a very small, picturesque, popular (school holidays) seaside town. We found all sorts of things on the floor and R&K lost all the screws from one side of their step which was left hanging. Still, not the 1^st time we have had to undertake some running repairs. We set up camp and had a bit of a look around, settling down to a hand of cards before going down the road for pizza, wine and cheesecake and an early night.

 

Tuesday 9th October: Exmouth 58km Wendy lead

A sleep in! After a very leisurely start to the day we drove a short distance north passing by the Harold E Holt Naval Communication Station and on up to Bundegi Beach for a swim. Although it was only mid-morning the temperature was 38 degrees in the shade. The beach and the swim was lovely and refreshing. We drove over to the western side for a look at Vlamingh Lighthouse. This lighthouse was built in 1912 after the SS Mildura founded on the North West Cape. All supplies to build the lighthouse had to come up from Fremantle. The lighthouse keeper’s wife recorded that it was 2 years before she saw another white woman and the supply ships could be as much as twelve months apart. Heading back we drove up the North West Cape and could view the wreck of the SS Mildura just off shore. In 1960, at the peak of the cold war, the US needed to be able to communicate with their submarines so with the approval and co-operation of the Australian Government established the US Naval Communication Station (now Harold E Holt Naval Communication Station). There are 13 towers at the station, the highest of which is the 3^rd tallest structure in the Southern Hemisphere. It was realised at the time of building the station that the personnel manning the station would need support services and accommodation so Exmouth was built and both the station and Exmouth were opened in 1963 – a good year according to Wendy. We were picked up at camp at 4:30 and taken to the marina where we boarded a vessel for the Sunset Whale Watching Tour. We were fortunate to see and photograph all the classic moves; blowing, leaping, breaching and diving so their tail fins is above the water. We got back to camp around 7:30 for yet another lovely dinner before retiring early.

 

Monday 8th October: Nanutarra Roadhouse – Exmouth 300km Kath lead

The flat flood plains have now given away to some low hills which helps break the monotony. 70km south of Nanutarra we turned off and headed up to Exmouth on the eastern side of the peninsula calling in at various places along the way. A couple of WW2 memorial sites; Potshot Memorial and Krait Memorial which I remember reading the story of eons ago. We turned inland up the Shothole Canyan Road for a look before getting into Exmouth, booking into the camp and having lunch – a very early day. We went into the town centre where Wendy & I found an internet site while Russell & Kath found the local beach and had a swim. Back at camp, Wendy & I had a swim in the pool before having dinner and catching an outdoor movie in the camp. Another few rounds of Crib, which Wendy has become quite adapt at and it was into bed.

 

Sunday 7th October: Port Samson – Nanutarra Roadhouse 394km Warwick lead

Leaving Port Samson we drove alongside a small bush fire the short distance to Karratha to refuel and restock the larder. Then it was on out to Dampier where we had lunch on the waterfront before continuing on up the Burrup Peninsula for a quick look. Saw a large gas plant stuck on top of a desolate hill and tried to find some aboriginal cave drawings with no luck. Leaving the area we decided to put in a few miles and bypass Onslow ending up in Nanutarra Roadhouse for the night.

 

Saturday 6th October: Millstream NP – Point Samson 183km Kath lead

It’s my birthday and what a wonderful start to the day waking to a beautiful dawn, sun filtering through the trees and cool enough to make it very pleasant. No wind on the water so the reflection from the trees on the opposite bank was magnificent. After breakfast we backtracked 35km through the park before taking the road leading to the east of Karratha. In the space of an hour we saw 5 or 6 trains, some heading north fully laden and others south back into the interior empty.  Then a little further along we saw another heading south with one passing over the top of it heading west. Turning east off the road 20km south of the junction with the North West Coastal Highway onto a little used road we re-joined the highway at Roebourne, an old historical town with many of its stone building restored. We had a quick look around and a drive up to a lookout before continuing on to Cossak on the coast. Cossak had been a port town but was finally abandoned in favour of Point Sanson in 1950 due to problems of continual silting of the harbour. The old stone buildings have been preserved as part of the national heritage. We had lunch on the old wharf while watching several people fish. After lunch we continued up the peninsular to the small and very pretty township of Sanson. Nearby, Cape Lambert has a huge port facility for shipping out the iron ore; we managed to count 7 ships out at sea waiting to come in with another 3 docked at the wharf. We set up camp then crossed the road onto the beach and had a very enjoyably refreshing swim in the warm Indian Ocean. Had a nice glass of sparkly in celebration of my birthday before dinner.

 

Friday 5th October: Port Hedland – Millstream National Park 322km Wendy lead

As Greg starts work at 7:00 we had an early start to the day. A bit more of a look around Port Hedland; harbour, sea front, BHP loading plant, railway marshalling yards and salt works before parking up on the Beach front for breakfast. Leaving Port Hedland along the Great Northern Highway we soon moved onto the North West Coastal Highway before finally turning off to Millstream National Park for a late morning tea stop. Thankfully hills and escarpments now added some depth to the scenery. Meandering through the park we stopped at Python Pool for lunch where a sudden gust of wind caught our awnings, bending one of our polls and breaking a lug off one of Russell & Kath’s supporting arms. – Buggar! Continuing to the south side we came across the area where the bush fires had been and could even see smoke still rising. This is the fire we could see from Mt Sheila a week before. We were lucky as the park had just reopened the day before. The bush fires would have covered thousands of square hectares and its pattern was interesting. One side of the road burnt, the other not. Even a meter wide path was enough to stop its progress. We found a lovely shaded spot next to a river bank to set up camp for the night. Meet up with a young Frenchman touring on his own. His father was French/American and his mother a Kiwi. He had started off with his girlfriend and a mate, but the girlfriend had returned to France and his mate had meet up with an Aussie girl so he had been left on his own.