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| July 2005 |
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July 1st |
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Limestone Rest Area 1st July 2005 |
Bush near Rest Area |
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July 2nd
There were two caravans come in last night at around 11pm and one left at 5am this morning; I did not hear either of them come or go I relied on information from others. We had our breakfast, after my usual walk that is, and then the decision had to be made whether we would move on or stay another day, there are several Motorhome's that are staying and the fifth Wheeler indicated their intentions to stay until sunday. As we are only days away from the Western Australian border we need to make sure that our fruit and vegetables are consumed or we will have to pass them in, something that we have no wish to do so we will eat or cook what we have left to overcome this. Later in the afternoon we decided to stop another day as the wind is picking up and would be on our nose, I went over and had a chat to Bill and his wife Margaret in the fifth wheeler and they invited me inside to look at their satellite television which they had purchased, it does not need a card for the set top box has been fixed to hook into the Optus C-1 satellite thus this is the reason for the cheapness of the set up. There was a new crew come into the rest area and the temperature is currently 30 degrees and could even get warmer. We all gathered again for the happy hour and traded information on the various stops we could free camp in the days ahead. Again we stoked the fire up after tea and sat around admiring the stars and it was lovely and cool which was a bonus from the heat of the day. We had a bloke come over who turned out to be a bit of a story teller and indicated that he was under contract to EMI Records and that he was called the Snaffu Band, his musical instrument was a plastic guide post and played with a small cross cut saw. His repertoire consisted of Elvis Presley and singing Wooden Heart in German plus other unknown tunes, he tried to convince us that his dog "Jax" was a chopper pilot in the Afghanistan war plus now he was a professional diver for the Navy. What a character he was half believable and kept us entertained for hours we could not stop laughing or drinking, it consisted of whiskey, beer and was topped off with Port. We went off to bed around 11pm after what could only be described as a "Bloody good night Mate!" |
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| Brahma cattle alongside Highway | Major Mitchell Galah's | Highway Scenery |
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July 3rd On my walk this morning I picked up a plastic tube, a tie down clip, whilst walking I just never know what I am going to discover, back at the camp most everyone was getting ready to leave thus we said our farewells to those we have befriended over the past two days. On the road and the wind was blowing out of the South East which put it on our side which was ok, the bush surrounding the highway was very pretty nestled in amongst the buffalo grass and there was plenty of bird life. We were to note that some of the creeks had some water in pools so that is why there is so much bird life around from finches, parrots, Major Mitchell Galah's and our our old mates the Kite Hawks and Wedge Tailed Eagles. We were to come across some sections of the highway that had cattle stations where Brahma Cattle were prolific, and in some sections Major Mitchell's were collecting grass seeds next to the burnt out areas. It wasn't long before we came across the Gregory National Park and the tremendous scenery that abounds both by the roadside and in the distance. We pulled into the Sullivan Creek Camp Area in the Gregory National Park and thought it was a bit small for our Motorhome and whilst there other people also spoke of the smallness of the area. We decided to push on and found a gravel dump about 10 kilometres up the road where we set up for the night, lo and behold the Caravan and Motorhome from Sullivan Creek camp area spotted us and have set up close beside us. It feels just like a caravan park though there is nothing we can do about it. Liz did a little washing and I started on this update and then I spotted two rangers from Parks & Wildlife who indicated that we would have to move on as we could not camp here, it is obvious that people have camped here before us. |
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| Highway Scenery | Sullivan Creek Camp area | Sullivan Creek Gregory Nat. Park |
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We left before the others
and it wasn't long before they caught and passed us, we pulled into Kuwang
Lookout and thought it not a great area to camp so we pushed on. We passed
them again while they were checking out a Monument site. We were still passing those beautiful mountain ranges and escarpments with their deep chocolate colours and many shades of green, absolutely beautiful; especially with a cloudless blue sky as a backdrop. About five Kilometres further along the Highway we noticed a sign that stated " Racecourse" so we did a U-bolt and drove in through overgrown bushes beside the track. It was obvious that people had camped here by the amount of ash about, I still had my UHF on and I heard "That van towing that little red car has gone into the racecourse" "will we check it out? Yes" So as I was checking out the place they drove in and made a bee line for where we were parked and asked "Are you going to stop here for the night" I just smiled and hopped in our Motorhome and drove over to the cattle muster and rodeo yards and set up. Later I went back and they had set up behind a container near the track. We were to witness the Major Mitchell Galah's and Sulphur Crested Cockatoo's come into the cattle troughs for water, they looked great. I hung up the shower bag off the steelwork and we showered out in the hot afternoon air with just warm water from the cattle yard tanks, could the others see us in the raw? who knows it was great other than the flies. At 6pm it was 28 degrees in the van. Kilometres travelled 234 |
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| Timber Creek home straight | Back Straight of race course | Anthill(termite)holding up barrier |
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July 4th |
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Escarpment opposite Timber Creek Roadhouse |
Grevilleas at Timber Creek Roadhouse |
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We then drove on and pulled off the road
two Kilometres on and had a look at the Victoria River at Policeman's
Point. There had been people camping here going on the amount of ash about,
we were to hear the water rushing in over the rocks for there is only
one tide every twelve hours this makes it understandable why the River
tour is only at 4pm today due to the high tide. |
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| Tide Rising Victoria River | Victoria River near Boat Ramp | Our Camp by Boab Trees |
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July 5th On my morning walk up the highway this morning I was to see numerous wallabies or so I thought, the Parks interpretation board indicates that they are Wallaroos. They are small like our wallaby's though these Wallaroos are a sandy colour and much prettier. The information indicates that you only see them first thing in the morning when they come out to drink and eat and then again on dusk. We decided to stay another night in the campgrounds and after breakfast we shifted the Motorhome to place the fridge away from direct sun light. Last night the fridge was cycling for nearly an hour and the inside of the van was a warm 32 degrees . When we went to bed it was a warm 29 degrees the hottest night yet, we didn't require many bed clothes. We then drove into Timber Creek and bought a newspaper albeit one day old and then drove to the lookout about five Kilometres from the town centre. The views were excellent and there are just to many photo's to post on this diary. |
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| Victoria River from Lookout | From Lookout towards town | Gregory Boab Tree 2nd-July-1856 |
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There are many roads
that lead off to many different viewing points and old Digger did not
like the work out he was getting we bottomed out a couple of times, several
four wheel drives arrived where we were and they could not believe their
eyes when they saw where we had driven Digger. We just did not get sick
of seeing all the different views, as a Ranger said, we could see the
Western Australian border from here the day was so clear. We also checked the tip out though the dozer had been through in recent days so there were no goodies so we came back to camp, we had our lunch and decided to drive out and have a look at the famous Gregory Tree. You go off the highway on 3.5 Kilometres of gravel road, corrugated of course, and when you arrive via the walking track at the old Boab tree you can see the lengths that Parks have gone to protect this bit of history from the yobbo's who would want to deface the Boab. Parks have excellent interpretive boards and narration of the time spent in the area by the famous explorer this National Park is named after; "Augustus Gregory". The Boab tree has very prominent dates carved in it signifying the date of 2nd of July 1856 Gregory set up a rather large camp at this site in his Quest to find an inland sea. It is all very interesting and we spent considerable time there looking at the interpretation boards and listening to the narration, then down to the Victoria River which is only a hundred metres from the camp site. The views up and down the river are spectacular and the tide is incoming having travelled some eighty Kilometres from the sea. Back to camp and the temperature inside the van is currently 33 degrees though outside you get a small breeze come through now and again. The fridge is cycling overtime again and I have started the generator in an endeavour to take some pressure off the batteries, needless to say we are both wearing shorts no shoes. I have only a singlet on to ensure that I don't get to sun burnt luckily there is no humidity or Liz wouldn't be able stand it, as it is she is drinking heaps of water and is very red in the face from heat. I am starting to become concerned that she will not be able to cope going down through the hot arid mining centre's Happy hour we just had on our own and it went for quite awhile until I run out of cold beer and Liz cold wine then it was time to go to bed. It was another star lit night that we can see through our sky light and again due to the heat we didn't require bed linen. |
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| Bird life at Camp site | Ochre Escarpments | Escarpments along Highway |
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July 6th |
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| White Flowering Gum | Our camp at Saddle Creek | Welcome to Kimberley's |
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July 7th |
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| Boab with all its leaves | Lake Argyle | Below Dam Level |
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July 8th Things did not get any better with the fridge, though I have to say it is remaining very cold; so there is not a danger of losing the food in the freezer etc. Whilst I am on power it is not a problem though if requiring to work on battery we would be in deep trouble. After giving a lot of thought I decided to ring the people in Launceston and talk with them about the problem, and this is where I discovered an another fact of life and that is that Message Bank on Telstra soon eats up the pre paid amounts. When I made the call I was informed that only $8.40 remained of the actual $30.00 pre paid, we were able to establish that the fridge was functioning correctly with the exception of the thermostat, when I disconnected the power and went to battery power the fridge did not cycle and following other tests the refrigeration people here in Kununurra decided that I needed a new thermostat. They tested this theory by bridging the thermostat points and the thing started cycling. This gave me an idea for later. Now this shouldn't be a problem Mate! Just get a new one out of stock and fit it, ah hah! forgot about the "Kununurra factor" mate, have to order one in mate, it will be Tuesday of next week before we receive it and fit it. Christ or mighty the Kununurra factor has just enveloped us in a big way. Next problem take the van back to Lisa and Kim's place and set up the bridging on off switch, which worked a treat. In to digger and back to make sure the order has gone in for the new thermostat. Rock up and the question is asked "Did you happen to bring the fridge serial and product number?" Back in Digger and get the numbers and back again "We will ring you if we can get the part and when it will arrive and be fitted. Anyway enough of this dribble, we decided to drive in Digger out to the Argyle Dam and relax for the remainder of the day. It was a pleasant drive of 79 kilometres with all windows down and the fan on flat out to help keep us cool for the Temperature has reached 34 degrees and it is humid again. The scenery only improved as we drove the last thirty-four Kilometres off the highway to the Argyle Dam it really is spectacular and very hard to describe. You may take many photo's though choosing the one's that shows what you are saying becomes a nightmare. We noted that the Boab in this area have all their leaves, which must mean they have plenty of water even though the ground they are growing in is very rocky, the escarpments and mountain ranges of the Kimberley's reflect many colours and change even more as the sun changes its position. When we arrived at around noon we went to one of the lookouts where you could see the dam, which by Tasmanian Hydro standards is small, though the vast tract of water it holds back is enormous and as far as you can see there are mountain ranges sticking up out of the water and the colour blending in with the waters are a sight to see. We decided to go back to the village and buy some lunch, it was like stepping back in time for the facilities were no different than they were when they were first built in the early 60's. We decided to have fish and chips for lunch, and there was a long wait due to them feeding a construction crew. I noted that unleaded and diesel at the pump where the same price; $1.50 per litre. In the meantime we watched an old black and white video of the construction of the dam and Ord River irrigation scheme and opened by Menzies, when we finally received our order we drove down below the dam to a picnic area in the shade of trees. The views were great, though even better was the draught caused by the river and power station water being released, we thought we should have bought swags along and slept the night here. After lunch we visited all of the lookouts and they had wonderful views and brilliant colours, we were just about to take a photo of the water flume when it abruptly stopped and luckily just as we were driving away I heard sirens sounding and I said to Liz they are about to open the gates again. There was a lone pelican searching the water for fish and as the gates opened did it erupt and it nearly drowned it had to fly off to avoid the turbulence caused by the water release. We went and had a look, on the way out, at Double Horse Springs, which was very pretty with two of the largest pelicans we have seen, and then it was back on the road to Kununurra after a very pleasant four hours at the Argyle Dam and other areas. When we arrived back in range of our mobile phone stated there was another message " ring the refrigeration people" and when I did I was told even with express air bag, which would cost us extra, the new thermostat would not arrive until next Wednesday. The Kununurra factor in action again at least we can wait until Monday until making the decision for we do not wish to be a burden on Lisa & Kim. As Kim was doing oil changes and minor maintenance on his four wheel drive I gave him a hand and bought out the tool box which assisted the work it was good to do it in the cool of the evening. It was still reasonably warm and as we had a hot lunch we opted for just sandwiches for tea and no alcohol, went on the net to check e-mail etc and will do the upgrade of the diary this evening. Then we watched the footy on Television with West Coast just beating North Melbourne then we drifted off to bed about 10pm luckily the humidity had gone and even though it was registering 27 degrees it was a lot cooler than the previous evening. |
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| Ord River Hydro Power Station | Ord River below Dam | Double Horse Springs |
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July 9th What can we say it is hot, hot mate! we have been drinking heaps of water for it is humid and even the breeze is warm, the fridge is going alright on my bridging on/off switch and due to the coolness of the night we did not have to worry about the temperature though during the day we had to keep it cycling to maintain the life of our food and beer of course. The house next door has a nice big Mango tree which has the fruit just ripening and wouldn't you know it the bats have found it and make quite noise fighting over the ripe mango's I don't reckon the people will get much fruit of the tree. I gave Kim a hand to change his spark plugs an easy task you would assume, not so with these new fangled V6 motors, you need to virtually dismantle most of the top of the motor to do such a simple task. While we were doing this Liz drove Lisa into her work and then she went onto the Saturday markets and replenished our vegetable and fruit supply for future travels. When the vehicle was finished after lunch we went into the marine place and bought some stainless steel clamps to make Liz a permanent cloths line on the awning, this will save putting up cloths lines on bushes etc. After fitting we watched the Essendon vs Richmond game which Richmond won and then did a bit of cleaning up and just took it easy for the rest of the day. We had tea late due to the heat of the day and they must get it hot here in the summer months though that is the penalty for living in the tropics. It was good to watch the Kite Hawks floating well up on the thermal currents no doubt it is cool at that height. We did no sight seeing so the day has just run away from us with Liz looking forward to the Brisbane vs Collingwood game later today. |
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| Sleeping Buddha Rock | Ivanhoe Crossing | Jim sitting in water on Chair |
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July 10th I haven't walked for a couple of days due to circumstances, though this morning I did it hard walking for quite awhile for we over imbibed last night. I walked the long block and checked out a caravan park on the way; they pay $24 a night and they are that close together that you would hear what your neighbours are talking about plus there was very little shade from the sun and heat of the day. I was to discover later in the day that there are five caravan parks in Kununurra and they are also using the Show grounds as an overflow for $20 per night with few amenities. Not bad for a population of 6000 people, the temperature is around 35 degrees and humid again so we are going down to Ivanhoe Crossing to cool down later and have our lunch as well. Went with Kim into Coles and bought another refill for the mobile phone as message bank had eaten all the last credit we had, Kim was to show me what the locals refer to as the sleeping Buddha Rock and when you have a good close look you can visualise that this is the case. It was very warm when we left for the Crossing and we pulled up so I could take a picture of the sleeping Buddha Rock, whilst there a couple of fellow Tasmanian's noted Diggers number plates and stopped for a chat. We were always aware that this area had a high vegetable, fruit and sugar industry along with a distillery for the production of Rum though did not know where it was located. As we drove down Ivanhoe Road we were to see hundreds of hectares of sugar cane and row upon row of melons of every description and fruit trees. Of course there were canals for irrigation water, everywhere you looked it was all quite pretty with the contrasting hills in the background. When we arrived at the crossing we were to see heaps of four wheel drive vehicles driving across the causeway and you could see the red dirt washing out from underneath, certainly a good way to clean underneath though I wasn't game to take Digger across for fear of being washed away. The kids went fishing and after lunch I put my chair in the water sat down and cooled down and had a couple of cans of four x, then it was just relax and get burnt for the next couple of hours. We left the crossing and then drove back towards Kununurra stopping at the sugar cane harvesting site and watched the cutting, carting and loading onto road trains of sugar cane for the sugar mill We headed towards the rum distillery they call a "Hoochery" which we were not able to find ending up at the sugar mill instead. There was a distinct smell of molasses and heaps of residue from the actual cane stalk put into windrows for use as a fertiliser, it was good to get an insight to the area and the lush growing industry that has sprung up due to the Ord River Scheme. We returned back to the Motorhome and sat outside under the awning and had a couple of more cans and watched the darkness come in at about 5pm, in the Northern Territory it didn't get dark until about 7pm though dawn was at about 7am. Here it is daylight at 5am and it is throwing me completely off sleeping and eating times. We sat out and watched the hundreds and hundreds of bats heading north and there are still a couple that are raiding the mango tree next door. Due to the fullness of our day we are off to bed early tonight it is only 9pm and we think that Digger is pleased to get a spell from all the running around we have done though Liz spent time today washing and cleaning out the interior. |
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| Unloading sugar cane | Cutting & Transporting sugar cane | Sugar Cane Mill |
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July 11th For some reason last night I disconnected the bridging switch to the fridge and straight away I noted that the compressor appeared to going faster, during the night it appeared to me that the fridge was cycling normally so I decided to forgo the walk this morning and rang Launceston at 7am our time 9am Launceston time. I spoke to the bloke who built the fridge and when I outlined what was occurring he indicated that the fridge was ok and always had been, he stated that I did not make allowances for the sudden change in weather, (as in heat) by using the bridging switch I had indeed slowed the compressor thus it was unable to work to capacity. Dickhead! This call saved us in excess of $100 for he informed me if that if I wished for peace of mind I could replace the thermostat for $9, though he thought this was not necessary, he explained what I would have to do and it appears a simple task, though I will leave things be whilst it working. The temperature here dropped to 19 degrees overnight and at the moment the outside temperature is 29 with no humidity the coolest its been for days, we have decided we will move on tomorrow morning so will say our farewells to Kim and Lisa and the boys tonight. I took the opportunity to fill the water tanks and then put the exhaust bandage on Digger and took it for a drive, it appears to have fixed the leak. We then went into town and did our last minute shopping and had a look around the rather large camping gear shop and then onto Coles to buy grog and groceries. The shock was when we went to the Coles Shell service station and had to pay $1.35.9 per litre for unleaded petrol, so for the first time it cost in excess of $30 to top digger up whose tank was just under half full. We had our lunch at 2:30 pm and then settled and relaxed during the heat of the day and then it was time to load Digger for the trip ahead. Lisa has gone off to work and we will have tea at 8pm when she gets home and no doubt have a beer or two and say final farewells, we have certainly enjoyed their hospitality. |
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| New house Kununurra | Hibiscus Plant in flower | Ord River Diversion Dam |
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July 12th I still cant get used to dawn being at 5am and still hop out of bed as I did in the Northern Territory at first light, as there was no movement in the house I went off for a walk and was back in time to say final farewells to Kim as he was leaving for work. I had breakfast and decided to go for another walk and this time have a close look at houses just being built, they are all steel frame work on a concrete slab with colour bond iron for roof and walls. This building method is employed due to white ants. The interesting thing of note is that they have no gutters to collect rain water, the reason being that in the wet the gutters can not hold the sudden downpours that occur so it is channeled from the ground to the street. The houses have a lot of trees and palms to give shade for the temperature today is already 29 degrees at 7.30 am so there are ceiling fans and air conditioning used conjunctly, it is not unusual to see three air conditioners per house. The ground is very sandy and the hibiscus trees with their white flowers and the Bougainvillea with there different colours look great along with the trees and palms. I then drove Digger into town to Coles to pick up a 24 can pack of Pepsi light and paid $5 for a 7 piece salad set then back home. We did our final packing and said our farewells to Lisa and the boys and we were on our way to the Coles shell service station to fuel up, it was hard to believe that we were paying $1.35.9 per litre less four cents; so our cost was near one hundred dollars for the top up. We stopped at the diversion dam across the Ord River and took a few photo's and headed off towards Wyndham, we were starting to climb and the scenery again was spectacular especially when looking back over the farming land of Kununurra. We arrived at the Wyndham turn off at eleven and pulled in with the view of stopping the night. We would then drive Digger into Wyndham and go up to the five rivers lookout, that was the plan which failed for we did not want to leave the Motorhome there without someone keeping an eye on it. So we travelled all the way in dropping in to have a look at the grotto and went down its 139 steps to the bottom and it is like an oasis at the bottom. We were to see two things of interest when we arrived one was the large lizard sunning itself on the rocks oblivious to our intrusion and the other was the shapely young lass who was topless and quite keen to show off her well endowed bust with the briefest of bikini bottomsd; I wont pass comment on what was the best view the lizard or the girl. We went straight to Port Wyndham and had a look at the river as it was really receding at about twenty plus knots, it is amazing to see the tide rushing out and leaving the wharf about ten metres out of the water, the tides are huge. Back into Wyndham town and we left the Motorhome outside the council offices and we then drove up to the Five Rivers Lookout, this has to be the most spectacular lookout in Australia to see five rivers converge into one and then into the Cambridge Gulf. The rivers are the King, Durack, Pentecost, Forrest and Ord. The views are as far as the eyes can see from the salt flats to mud flats and the mountain ranges and the rivers all coming together and the Gulf they all run into. There is no getting away from the fact that this lookout has to be the best we have ever seen bar none as far as spectacular views go anywhere in Australia. We came back down the mountain and decided that we would stop overnight at the caravan parking place. Caravans are forbidden to travel the very steep climb to the top. Now we have set up we intend to go back up the mountain to watch the sun set and then down to watch Television and have a late tea. Kilometres travelled 134 |
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| Grotto before Wyndham | Port Wyndham from the Lookout | Five Rivers Lookout |
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We left the caravan parking area at
about 4.45 pm and climbed the mountain in Digger to see the sunset, we
were somewhat surprised to see the amount of people who were there also
to experience the spectacle, many were perched along the stone wall sipping
wine and others were drinking beer. Watching the sun go down over the mountains was something special, unfortunately it happened to quickly. Watching this only reinforced our view that this was the premier lookout. After the sun had finally set we went down and then moved to an area that some locals had informed us that was free of Mosquitoes and settled in for the night with a couple of Motorhomers from the CMCA. We had a delayed happy hour and had our tea about 7.30 pm the temperature inside the Motorhome is currently 27 degrees. Due to our moving Television is not available so we will read and then off to bed. |
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| Going | Going | Gone |
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July 13th As I have missed another walk I decided to do a long walk this morning from our camp site at 3 Mile camp down to the Aborigine Dream Time Park and then back to the camp site, in all it was 10 Kilometre round trip. Even though the time is only 7am I had to take off my T-Shirt for it was humid and about 28 degrees and we are expecting 34 degrees today. As usual there is not a cloud in the sky, just a fluctuating warm breeze, we sat at the table with Anna and Adrian and worked out the free camps sites between here and Broome, said our farewells and drove down to the Dream Time Park. We saw this site when we were last in Wyndham and it was all overgrown and neglected, it was a pleasant surprise to see the area cleaned up and they come in daily to rake in the dream time art into the gravel surface; a really top job. The main theme is Dream Time Sculptures, the main being the family group depicting the life of the Indigenous People of the Wyndham area, these sculptures were supposed to be placed in Kings Park in Perth though due to the Politics at the time surrounding the Aborigine's that never occurred; so it remained here in Wyndham, as the locals say their loss our gain. They had built a miniature Billabong complete with turtles and barramundi the problem was that despite signs to leave them alone the local aborigine caught and ate them. |
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| Aborigine Dream Time | Bark Hut with Spears | Dream Time Animals |
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We then moved on up to
the outdoor picture theatre complete with long chairs, during the showing
they put canvas in the steel frames. Needless to say the theatre only
operates during the dry season and by all accounts it is very popular
with the locals. We then decided to move on and set up camp at the Cockburn rest area as Liz wished to do a bit of washing, the scenery again is something that you never seem to tire of. Liz pointed out the various sections of the escarpments that appeared to have waterfalls occur during the wet. We arrived at the camp area just before lunch and set up for the rest of the day, Bill & Margaret are here and Anna & Adrian have just pulled in so it should be an interesting happy hour this evening. Kilometres travelled 66 |
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| Outdoor Picture Theatre | Seating in front of Screen | Road to Timber Creek |
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July 14th Our happy hour last night was unusual alright, here we were enjoying ourselves in the company of others when a caravan came into the rest area, nothing unusual about that you might say; except there was oodles of room to park. Now were did they elect to park? right on our doorstep of course and as he drove in we thought he was a bit close to Digger and then the rear of Digger moved and it was obvious to all that the caravan had touched. Luckily his wife alerted him to this and it only pushed the plastic bumper bar in and it popped out again, though we had to lift Digger over sideways for him to proceed to park, he parked further away this time of course he was full of apologies. Unfortunately, we selected the noisiest rest area to stay the night so far on all of our walkabout, as the rest area is at the junction of the Great Northern Highway and Victoria Highway road trains and others have to come to a complete stop to change highways. Thus the high prevalence of air brakes and squeaking trailers etc all night. The first to leave the rest area left at 4.30 am and before leaving had to pump up the compressor for their brakes, it was an old Bedford Bus. This morning was a lot cooler though on my walk I was able to work up a sweat, only walked 6 Kilometres today. Again, we said our farewells to everyone and hit the road at about 8.30am with a wind that was fluctuating all over the place that made driving interesting, again the scenery was magnificent and even though I was able to drive and enjoy it there were caravans whizzing past flat out no doubt to get to the next caravan park. We were to see our first clouds for quite awhile though they did not block out the sun completely they had a cooling effect which made the drive that more pleasant. We were to come across a 40 kilometre section of road that was not much wider than a single lane road this made for interesting driving for there was no room for error and I found it tiring; such is the way when you do not have power steering. We were to encounter plenty of single lane bridges where there is only a 300 mill lip to stop you going over the side obviously they can't have railing due to the floods during the wet season, so it makes for interesting driving. We stopped and had a cuppa then went into Timber Creek whose claim to fame is, you charter planes or helicopters or four wheel drive tours to the Bungle Bungles; also it has a large Aborigine community. We then moved on to Leycesters Rest Area and have found a good level spot and set up, Brett and Helen came over for a chat and happy hour. We had met them both previously as far back as Newcastle Waters in the Northern Territory so we had a lot to talk about. The night is a lot cooler which means a good nights sleep should be assured and maybe we will watch another video. Kilometres travelled 228 |
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| Magnificent Scenery | Single lane bridge | Our Camp at Leycesters |
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July 15th Last night was the coldest night we have experienced in the last a month, this morning I put on trakkies plus a jumper for my morning walk, Brett accompanied me along his dog "Bedford" a cross pekinese-Jack Russell. We walked across the old low crossing and highway and did the loop across the new bridge and new highway back to our camp. Back in camp many had already left and we finalised our packing and said farewell to Brett and Helen and we were on the road at 8am. Back on the highway towards Hall's Creek we seemed to be always climbing and this went on for about 50 Kilometres or so always alongside plateaus and escarpments with their rich ochre and various shades of green, very nice indeed. Once down off the plateau we were again on flat ground and as far as the eye could see were plains covered in stunted gum trees running up to the edge of mountains. The names of the various cattle stations were appearing and each seemed to go for about 100 Kilometres along the highway, though we were to see no sign of cattle. The whole countryside had changed so we believe we were leaving the Kimberley's. We arrived at Hall's Creek (whose population is stated as 1200 inhabitants) at about noon and went over to the information centre, what was noticeable was the number of new government buildings along with others nearing completion all basically for the Aboriginal community. There was also a new Hospital being built so the whole landscape of the town has changed since we were here last. We bought hot chips and had them between bread for lunch washed down with a Pepsi, diet of course. After lunch we went out to the China Wall a naturally occurring rock face that appears to be man made the way the rocks and colours are stacked and matched. |
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| low crossing Leycesters | Hall's Creek Township | China Wall |
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We spent a pleasant hour
or so there admiring the scenery and soaking up the shade under the gum
trees by the little billabong. We then decided to drive along the Tanami
Desert track out to the old Township of Hall's Creek, In Digger of course. As we came over a hill this beautiful vista of plains with gum trees running up to the mountains in the distance looked really great. We arrived at the old township with some of the four wheel drive people looking amused when they saw us rock up in Digger. There is not much remaining of the original settlement and they may have left it a bit late to preserve what remains today, they have placed the old 1919 Post Office behind a fenced enclosure with a tin roof. The method of construction at that time; was they collected up all the ant hills in the vicinity and crushed them and then made mud which they packed up to make the building walls enclosing the wooden beams and joists. When you look at the remains it is obvious that it is made from ant hill material, the old town was established to service the gold mine in the area which still remains today in a smaller operation. Back into Hall's Creek where we took on water, bore water of course, and then on the road to travel the last leg to Mary's Pool Rest Area. When we arrived the temperature drop was noticeable and there must be at least 100 vans of all descriptions camped here for the night, we have of course run into people again that we met some weeks ago and of course we are having a happy hour being a friday night though we don't know if we will get the Collingwood vs Essendon match later this evening. Kilometres travelled 224 |
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| China Wall | Road to Old Halls's Creek Town | Remains 1919 Post Office |
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July 16th What a fine camp area is Mary Pool, with plenty of shade and a slight breeze, this morning campers starting pulling out at 5.45am no doubt to enjoy driving in the coolest part of the day, I walked 6 K's this morning and took photo's of the Rest Area and the Mary River devoid of water. It would appear by the height of the bridge and the width of the banks and overflow that there must be a torrent of water in the wet season. At the 3 K mark I noticed a lot of Ant Hills unlike their counterparts in Northern Territory these were short and stumpy. On the road at 8:15 am and the sun was really getting warm with a slight breeze at our back and not a cloud in the sky, we appeared to once again to be climbing and the whole countryside had changed to flat plains for as far as you could see plus spear grass and stunted gum's. There was a heap of traffic on the highway and as usual they were trying to get there yesterday, I wonder if they see anything of the countryside or do they just see the white line and road. |
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| Mary Pool Rest Area | A dry Mary River from bridge | Typical Ant Hill at Mary River |
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After an hour of the same type of country,
we could see in the distance hills and plateau's which we were heading
for, the road wound itself around these and remained flat. We came across a sign that indicated that we were approaching Ngumpan Cliff's, and what a pretty sight they were and though I should have gone up to the lookout to take photo's I opted to snap a few out of the front window screen and keep going towards Fitzroy Crossing. We had about 50 Kilometres of white bitumen road and it was really glary even though we were wearing sun glasses, As we approached Fitzroy Crossing the landscape changed again to dense bush and spear grass with the added bonus of the pretty yellow flowering of the wattle tree and we were to see many orange bottle brush in flower also. The Boab trees were showing all their leaves and they certainly look different to their cousins down the road, even the grass in the long paddock was green so we suspect that they have had considerable rain in this area recently. |
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| Approaching Ngumpan Cliff | Another view | The Cliffs |
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On our arrival we left the highway and went
into the town centre of Fitzroy Crossing and it is obvious again that
this is basically an aborigine community, and not unlike Hall's Creek
there have been a few new government buildings appear since we were here
last. We thought about going out to the Gieke Gorge and having a look though we didn't go for we thought the day was to hot for walking around gorges. We bought some rolls for lunch and then fueled up or should I say partially for the diesel was $1.40.9 per litre so I only filled one tank and will do a top up of both in Derby where it should be cheaper. The Shell service stations in both Hall's Creek and Fitzroy Crossing are Coles cheap fuel outlets giving you 4 cents off the marked price, there are no Coles Supermarkets in either town. Back on the road and the scenery was very much the same and as we approached the designated rest area we opted to give that a miss and go on another 7 K's and bed down for the night at what they call the lake, which is on private property and has plenty of shade around the lake. The lake itself, as can be imagined, is the watering hole for black parrots, Corella and birds that I do not recognise plus one Pelican. We have pulled the fire pot out of Digger and will cook our tea on that tonight to keep the heat out of the Motorhome which at 5:30 pm Western Australian time is 30 degrees, if it is anything like last night the temperature will drop dramatically on dark. Kilometres travelled 295 |
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| "The Lakes" Rest Area | Our campsite beside the Lake | Our guests for happy hour |
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July 17th Today after returning from my walk we discussed the question of staying another day or going into Derby, we elected to stay another day, the area and the lake with its birdlife convinced us of that. So, today we are having a lay day where we will just potter about and do little, Liz did a bit of washing and I worked on improving the air flow over the back of the fridge to help cool it. We then strolled around the Lake and took in the birdlife it was so peaceful and calm though the five Brolga's were to skittish to photograph. The Corella's were making there usual din as you approached them, tonight we have elected to have jaffles for tea and made a loaf of bread in the camp oven this afternoon. The in between periods we sat in the shade of the gums and read our books determined to do little and enjoy the day that has been very sunny with just a few clouds that have not blocked out the sun. The temperature at 4 pm W. A. time is a warm 34 degrees outside and in the Motorhome it is 32 degrees |
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Sunrise at 5:30 am on the 18th |
Two Pelicans working the lake. |
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July 18th Last night, we went over to a late happy hour around a good fire on the shore of the lake with fellow C.M.C.A. members, we had a good old chin wag and enjoyed the fire up until we went to bed around 10:30 pm. The evening had cooled so it wasn't a problem getting off to sleep, this morning after my walk we farewelled those we met last night and others that we met down the road in earlier times. We are still travelling on our own and this is what we prefer, though we are not opposed to meeting people down the road for a happy hour. The morning was again warm though there were clouds that we haven't seen for awhile, we were to hear planes and for the life of us we could not locate them in the sky, then all of a sudden they appeared just above tree level probably spotting off or rounding up cattle. On the road and there were heaps of caravans passing us, heading where we had no idea and the landscape was basically the same with spear grass, stunted gum trees and the proverbial Boab Tree resplendent with leaves and green grass in the long paddock. We made the turn to Derby and we pulled in to town about 11am and it was very warm, even the slight breeze was warm. We rang Gary and went around to the caravan park he is staying in and he informed us that he will be staying in the area for about two weeks trying to obtain work. We then went and replenished the cupboard at Woollies and checked out the fuel prices, they are at the moment $1.38.9 per litre and no discount petrol at all. Then down to the wharf area and saw the huge tides that occurs in this area, one tide a day only and the river drops up to 11 metres between low and high tide. We have decided to stay in the Caravan Park to clean up do the washing etc etc, and even though on power and under the shade of the trees the temperature was still 34 degrees outside and humid. We had purchased a large chicken which we cooked outside along with baked vegetables with half left for a salad tomorrow night. Gary told us at the happy hour how he went on a Barramundi tour with one of the local operators and caught two very large Barra's and had a good day though his feet are really sun burnt. We had our showers at 8pm and the temperature is still 32 degrees and Liz is sitting outside to keep cool, later we will settle in and watch Television. Kilometres travelled 177 |
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| Ford 600 Motorhome | Rear View of Motorhome | Derby Wharf 11.5 Metre Tides |
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July 19th I walked out to the Derby wharf at 6:30 am and arrived back at the Motorhome at 8am a bit dehydrated for the temperature is currently 28 degrees expected to rise to 34 Degrees during the day. I spotted an old, around 1955 I believe, Ford 600 that had a peculiar body built on the back, I have seen this type of Motorhome in magazines from New Zealand. It was certainly an eye catcher and no doubt quite functional and was attracting much interest. Out at the wharf the tide was flooding in so the photo does not show the full 11.5 metre tidal fall that they experience in this part of the Australia. During the afternoon as the day warmed up and became humid we just relaxed and chewed the fat with Gary who is attempting to obtain work here in Derby. We decided to take Digger out for a run and get a breeze coming into the car, we went out to the sports complex and visited the racecourse where we stopped when last in Derby. Unfortunately the bloke we met who was the caretaker is no longer there and his outbuildings have been removed so we can only assume that he has departed this world or moved on. Back to Woollies and checked out the wine casks and the first thing you notice is that they only sell two litre casks, their four litre special is not available, then into check out the meat again and found that chicken getting close to its use by date had been discounted dramatically. So tomorrow we will have marinated stir fry chicken on a bed of Basmati Rice, cant wait. Back to the Motorhome for happy hour, I have noticed that the local refrigeration company have been around for the last couple of days; I went and had a sticky beak and people complaining of their fridge not working properly do not realise that their problem is that the heat generated by the fridge is unable to get away thus the performance suffers. How do I know? Well it turns out that was all my problem was, the fridge was keeping our goods cold and the freezer was keeping our food frozen. The problem was due to the heat being unable to get away, the fridge cycled a lot longer and really drained the batteries. Solution? fitted another fan that blew the heat towards the roof of the Motorhome problem solved fridge now cycling normally though slightly longer during the hottest part of the day. If I had not rang Launceston and spoke to the person who did the conversion for me we would have been ripped off by $200 plus and the fridge would not have worked any different. So I feel for those who are now going through what we went through. I quickly adapted to the heat and at least I am wearing shorts and starting to brown up though in about two weeks we will be heading down into the cold weather, Liz is coping o.k. though drinking heaps of water. The night was a little cooler with the temperature in the Motorhome being 24 degrees at 9pm and after watching television we went off to bed and read for awhile. |
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| Gary & Boss in Derby W. A. | Original Derby Goal | Channel 7 weather van |
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July 20th Awoke at 5am and looked out the window due to the brightness, what a pleasant surprise to witness the full moon just about to go down over horizon, it was a brilliant orange, out with the camera and bang the batteries went flat and before I could fit the new batteries the moon had disappeared, I will need to check again tomorrow. When watching the Sunrise TV show on television, while having breakfast this morning, I noted that they were at the old Derby Goal, so when I headed off for my walk I went and checked them out. They had finished there programme for they had to do the show for the eastern part of Australia, given that we are two hours behind. I had a look at the old goal and found that they did not have walls just bars to allow circulation of air through the cells for prisoners. It was noted again that all the houses do not have guttering around them, no doubt the rain when it arrives comes down in buckets. There is a lot of Boab Trees around and this week is the start of the Boab Festival where they have Rodeo's, Horse Racing and also they have dug out a section of the salt flats and filled it with water to create mud for a game of Australian Rules football; should be funny. We went out to view the Boab Prison Tree and read up on the history of the of the area, It appears when they apprehended Aboriginals for stealing or what ever offence they kept them here overnight before walking them the final 10 Kilometres to the Derby Goal. A lot of the arrests apparently were false it was a move of the times to rid the pastoral lands of those who did not work the Cattle Station and stop cattle duffing. We were also to see the alleged longest continuous Cattle water trough in the Southern Hemisphere along with the Windmill that pumped the bore water from the Artesian water table. Droving cattle here for the final feeding and watering before the journey to the Derby Cattle Facility located at the Derby Wharf. We went to the Art Show at the Civic Centre that is part of the programme for the Boab Festival, it was excellent with a lot of Aboriginal art and plenty based on the Boab and Kimberley ranges. We now intend to relax then fill up with water and get ready to depart for Broome tomorrow expecting to arrive on Friday for the speedway meeting. Tonight we say our farewells to Gary and Boss and those other people we have befriended or have befriended us over the past three days and given that it a little colder today, it is only expected to get to 29 degrees. At the moment there is a strong wind that is cooling things down, we will just take it easy and make sure that the fridge is full of liquid refreshments. |
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| Boab Prison Tree | Bougainvillea in Large Boab | Longest Trough |
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July 21st Caught the moon going down over the horizon this morning again at 5am though unfortunately even though it was a brilliant orange the camera failed to capture it, the camera used the flash and even though you can see the orange moon there is to much black background, its a pity for it was absolutely beautiful. On my walk this morning I decided to walk out to the Derby Wharf again and see if I could capture the full 11.5 tidal drop. What luck, the tide was still ebbing and had exposed nearly all of the the piles on the wharf; when I went near the edge it looked that far down I withdrew quickly. There were fish feeding along the edge of the water and the mud flat, I don't know what they were though they must have been reasonably big for me to be able to see them. Back to the Motorhome and finished packing and had a shower and then went and bid Gary farewell, he indicated that if he doesn't get work shortly then he will hit the road and probably catch us up. Given the price of fuel we have decided to only top up one tank hoping that the fuel will be cheaper in Broome, we paid $1.37.9 per litre taking on board only 29.67 litre's for the top up. On the road and we were pushing a head wind and the countryside looked good as it showed off its greenery and Boab's with mostly leaves, as we approached the turn off to the Great Northern Highway we pulled up and went and checked out the ground around the seven Boab's for Boab nuts. We were listening to the radio going along and they were talking about how nice the kernel of the Boab nut was when mixed with water, condensed milk and sugar, though we don't think we will try it. As we came back onto the highway proper the wind then came on our rear which I felt straight away and the truck was fairly purring along, we were to see many of the creeks and rivers with water in them for a change which only confirms the storms and rain they have had lately. We have no desire to go into Broome today so we have pulled up in the last rest area before Broome called Nillibubbica Rest Area where we had lunch and sat outside in the sun reading, the temperature has dropped down to 27 degrees which now seems a little cold for us. Norm and Dot Smith and another couple of Tasmanians have come into the rest area and have settled in for the day by the look of it. We have come across another caravaner that has bought a satellite dish from Katherine and is very happy with it, we will not get Television here tonight so will continue to read and listen to the radio. It will be interesting to see what happy hour brings tonight! Kilometres travelled 124 |
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Piles exposed at low tide 11.5 metres |
Main Wharf area |
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July 22nd What a difference two hundred Kilometres make, at Derby I witnessed the moon going down at dawn which was 5 am here in the rest area a hundred Kilometres from Broome and the Moon is still in the sky at 6:30am and that was a marked difference. Last night the overnight temperature was down to 18 degrees and it felt cold though when the sun rose it warmed up immediately, this morning's walk up the highway was only a short one and then we were on the road to Broome at 7:30 am. Norm Smith and co left at 6 am and we would see him later in the town parked up, when we arrived in Broome we went to where we stayed six years ago and the fellow allowed us to stay again and on this occasion gave us power. Where was this? I am not saying though I am sure you will work it out. Broome has never been camper friendly as they have now five caravan parks and two spill over's not bad for a town of 10,000 residents, during the dry or winter period the visitors swell the numbers by as that much again. We went into town when we set up, in Digger, and picked up the mail and then into Coles for bread rolls for lunch and then back to our camp at ?, Then after lunch we went and had a look at Town Beach and admired the beautiful turquoise ocean and the many mangroves that grow out into the sea. Out to the Broome wharf and the wharf beach as it is called and as it is high tide we enjoyed the different colours of blue of the sea in this area. You can no longer access the wharf proper though they have built a walkway on the side of the wharf where the tourist's fish from, we were to observe a large Queen Fish chasing a smaller fish and we thought the smaller fish would have out maneuvered the big Queenie, though this wasn't to be. Immediately every one started casting their lines in to try to catch this big fish to no avail, as we were driving back to the town centre I spotted off a few likely camp spots that you might get away with though we did not do a proper check other than the gravel pit which is only two kilometres from the town centre. We stopped and had a look at the Action Boulevard shopping centre and it was good at least giving some competition to the Coles Complex and then it was home for the Happy Hour with our host. |
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| Mangrove swamp | Looking from Wharf to Town | Broome Wharf |
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July 23rd Out again for my morning walk at 7am and it was noticeable the amount of caravans that leave and arrive in Broome at that time in the Morning. All five Caravan Parks and two overflow areas are full and the three Caravans Parks at Cable Beach are the same, the Shire Council frown upon free camping even if the parks are full and the Ranger will give you a $100 on the spot fine if you are caught, no problem or excuse will suffice. I helped Horst work around the Speedway this morning getting ready for the action tonight, they have a race meeting every two weeks in the winter/dry months. Then after lunch we went into the Broome town centre for a look around, we went first to the Chinese Emporium and what a surprise, everything you can imagine is available from specialty foodstuffs and camping gear or anything you may be looking for, even though there is a Chinese section of the town modern shopping centre's have impinged on the old Chinese Culture. We then went and had a look at the Indoor/Outdoor Picture theatre and noted the canvas chairs in the open air and others under cover with overhead fans whirring away, they encourage you to come in and look at the Memorabilia which includes the original camera's used when the theatre opened in 1916. It would be remiss of us if we didn't go and look at the old Pearling Lugger display and the last of the old time Luggers that have been restored, there is very little deep sea pearling carried out now; it is now all cultured Pearl farms; they only dive now for shell to cultivate pearls on their farms. Then a general look around the shopping centre and the old Broom Goal and then out to the wharf area and then followed the coastline along. |
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| Frog Owl at Speedway | Indoor/Outdoor Picture Theatre | Broome Shopping Centre |
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Poor old Digger the road
was for four wheel drive only so his poor little wheels were getting lost
in the ruts in the track and it wasn't unusual to find ourselves on the
other side of the road due to the roughness, or indeed finding it hard
to get through the fine sand for the the wheel base is not as wide as
others. The trip was worth it for it allowed us to explore the coastline on the sea ward side of Broome, its rugged coastline with eroded sandstone cliffs were a feature and of course it is difficult to show all the photo's that we took. Then onto Gantheaume Point and had a look at the stainless steel lighthouse the exclusive private residence that occupies the point, I would not like to put a dollar price on the property, it has absolutely private views from Riddle Point to Cable Beach. |
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| Town Shopping Centre | Old Pearl Lugger Display | Eroded Sandstone Gantheaume Point |
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We then moved onto Cable
Beach and it doesn't take long to recognise that the whole area is based
on tourism, there were hundreds lounging around on the Beach with just
as many in the water, and all those topless men! goodness gracious me
not a topless woman to be seen. We were to witness the Camel Caravan loaded with tourists moving around the point on their journey up to the nudist part of the beach, and of course with the tide receding the four wheel drives were going onto the beach and along towards the farthest point, I wanted to take Digger down until Liz remonstrated. After ice cream, for the day was pleasant 28 degrees with little wind, it was back to the Motorhome to get the washing in and get ready for Speedway tonight. As usual Digger had been an absolute bonus for us, it has allowed us freedom to scoot all over the place with a minimum of cost for fuel, though Liz tends to want to wash it at every given opportunity given that the Motorhome has not seen a wash since we have been on the road making it quite grubby. I have been asked the question how are we coping with water, is it difficult to get hold of? The simple answer to this is no, though it is not as easy to access as it was some years ago. In the past it was just a case of pulling into the first park or recreational area and top up, now you have to make sure that the shire is not re-cycling waste water, as in sewage, watering parks and reserves. We have been accessing water mainly from service stations (watch race courses and other sporting venues for they tend to use re-cycled water though they have a few drinking water taps, the secret is to enquire first) when we fill up with fuel given that we can take on 270 litre's of water plus we are carrying one twenty litre and one ten litre drum which we keep full for Liz to do her smalls washing and of course we wash our underwear when we are having a shower. Yes, we are mindful of water, in past years we would let our tanks run down, not now we refill as soon as we can has been our motto, the furphy of bore water, sure it reacts with other waters though it hasn't killed anyone yet that relies on bore water to live has it? The smell? hold your nose mate and put your plug in the sink this will cut down the smell of calcium. Just be diligent and remember that most shire councils now recycle water check with them first they will tell where to get drinking water. Hope this helps those that enquired. Also remember all states have different views of what they should offer in way of facilities in their Rest Areas. Some supply toilets no water others supply water no toilets, when water is supplied the rate of discharge is such to discourage the filling of Caravan and Motorhome water tanks, though if you do not know how to overcome this little set back then you are not a seasoned traveller are you? If you want to know the secret send me an e-mail. |
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| Lighthouse & Private Residence Gantheaume Point | Bathers Cable Beach note topless men | Camel Train going around point at Cable Beach |
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July 24th This morning started out no different to others with me doing the usual walk, we then went into town and dropped off our votes for the club's vote on caravan's. Into town and we walked first though the morning market in China Town and then down along the foreshore to look at the old jetty's amongst the Mangroves. We were to see the original Pearl Lugger Jetty that now is under Heritage listing though they can't come to grips with how the old lugger sheds are going to be restored for they are heritage listed, If they don't make their mind up shortly then the old original sheds will fall down for they have deteriorated to the near point of no return. Then it was into Coles for a few groceries and then look at the specialty shops and then home. After lunch we went and then bought the West Australian Sunday Paper for $3.00 which is regarded as being on the dear side. Home for lunch and cleaned up and then back into town to check out what was happening, We went back into Coles and bought a few more groceries and then into Targetts for a look at what they had in stock and what was on offer. Rang Tassie and found that rain was the order of the day, here in Broome it was 34 degrees and quite humid, then we drove into the various bays and nooks along the coast line It is was to be our last happy hour at Broome so we invited our Host Horst over and we continued on well into the night, he was to give us information should we be able use to get us to Barred Creek, it will depend on the condition of the gravel road of course. We watched television for the rest of the night for it was still humid inside the Motorhome. |
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| Original restored Lugger Wharf | Pearl Lugger Restoration | Liz & Horst at Happy Hour's |
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July 25th After a very late happy hour with Horst last night we awakened a little later this morning and after my walk we started packing up for our journey today. We filled the tanks with water and then said our final farewell to Horst and thanked him for his hospitality and then we left Digger behind while we went into the town centre of Broome to buy a loaf of bread and fill both tanks with diesel. We took on board 85.15 litre's of diesel at $1.35.9 cents a litre, combining the last three refills gave us a fuel consumption of 8.28 Kilometres per litre or 11 litre's per hundred Kilometres or 25.3 miles per gallon, marvelous what a tail wind will do for your fuel economy. Back to the Speedway to hook up Digger and then we noticed that Bill and Margaret where pulling into the Caravan Park just up the road, we went and said our hello's and found out what they had been doing since we saw them last well before Kununurra. Then we were on the road to Barred Creek and has anything changed with the road since we were here last? No nothing at all we were in second gear doing between 5,10 or 20 Kilometres per hour and with 30 kilometres of very rough gravel and sandy road it was a slow trip. There were many four wheel drives going past us at about 80 to 100 Kilometres per hour and weren't they rattling as they sped past, we were happy to just drive to the condition of the road. There was a frozen Chicken that exited the freezer three times as the catch that keeps the door secure broke, it was bloody rough mate! We took a detour before Barred Creek to check out a camping spot near the ocean which we did not like and when we went to turn around we nearly bogged in the sand, we had to take Digger off and it was sheer luck that we pulled out of the bog without having to dig out the Motorhome. Back to the main road and the condition of the road just deteriorated even more so we were in first gear just barely moving. At last the turn off to Barred Creek appeared which is fifty Kilometres from Broome and then onto the camping ground by the river, there is five four wheel drive vehicles here with camper trailers connected and a few indicated that when they went past us the Motorhome was jumping up at the back with Digger just moving along with no problems at all. We set up camp and toilet and then started fishing with the tide starting to ebb, I could see fish though they would not take the lure's, we gathered wood and cut it with the chainsaw and then cooked our tea and just relaxed with the flies now at dark leaving us. We can still get television from Broome though we will sit out by the fire and enjoy the stars and chuck another log on the fire now and again. Kilometres travelled 53 |
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| Barred Creek at high tide | Barrid Creek at nearly low tide | Low tide next morning |
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July 26th We awoke during the night to the breaking of waves and surf at the ocean which is only about two Kilometres away from the campsite, it reminded us a bit of home at the Bay, we both found the sound very soothing. On my walk this morning I noted that the tide had not returned for the creek was bone dry so I walked along the dry part of the river and alongside the Mangroves that are well out of the water. Again this morning the Corella's were very noisy to the point their non stop screeching really is abrasive and you wish you had ear plugs, though with the Ibis and the beautiful Sea Eagle that soars above the river the birdlife is prolific and adds character and colour to the area. Today was to be our total relaxation day with all the wood we required cut yesterday, so we started reading around 9am. That was the way it was to be while the tide came rushing back in, when that occurred I tried every lure that I have to no avail; not even one strike. I was to try on the hour for the period the tide that was ebbing, as it comes in with a rush so it does when it recedes, like pulling the plug out of a bath. Only one boat on the river was trolling and he caught a threadfin Salmon it certainly put up a fight before it was landed into the boat, we also had plenty of day visitors from Broome who thought it incredulous that our Motorhome was here. Those that had come out to catch Mud Crabs were disappointed with only one being caught in the traps, so today most campers moved out and there is only two of us camping in the area, we will probably stop until thursday morning. The temperature was to rise to 30 degrees though there was a high wind that cooled things a bit and in the shade and in the breeze it was quite good and that's exactly where we sat to read our books. Around 4:30 we were to witness two Turtles, quite large ones go down river with the tide one was more sunning itself as the tide took it out to the heads and into the ocean and the other was just under the surface swimming out to sea, I was to slow in getting the camera so no photo's were able to be taken. Like last night we will watch Television until 7:30 and then sit out by the fire and under the stars until we are ready to go to bed around 9 or 10 o'clock. |
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| Our Camp at Barred Creek | Flock of noisy Corella's | Jim trying his luck fishing |
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July 27th We must at last be getting used to the time and daylight hours of Western Australia for we are awaking later than over the past two weeks. Off on my walk and I was to overdo it in the morning heat and sun, I covered about ten Kilometres following tracks and heading towards the crashing of the surf on the beach. When I arrived at the beach, after cutting though scrub and strange looking stunted trees, I was glad that I made the journey for the view that unfolded was stunning. To the east was headland and clear beach and off white sand then I spotted shells sticking up out of the sand and on checking I decided to collect a few and take them back to camp, also you could see the barways and entrance to Barred Creek for the tide was low. After collecting shells I headed back following in the steps that I had left finding my way here, I was to witness about twenty Brolga's though I couldn't get close enough to take a photo, the camera without optical zoom lenses is a dead loss. By the time I arrived back at camp I had been away for three hours. We then had our showers and noted that the last of the campers had left and we were now the sole campers in the area. Though I tried to catch fish on the incoming tide it was to no avail, in all I have tried 17 different lures which includes my favourite Barramundi lure that has caught twenty four of that species to date. So we relaxed the rest of the day and read under the shade of the white gum trees, the breeze changed coming out of the west and it cooled down quickly to 26 degrees after getting up to 32 degrees earlier. As usual the flies drove us mad and we have both been hit with Midgees which has us scratching, for tea we mixed a tomato based concoction with Tuna and then placed in our jaffle iron and had them for tea, very nice indeed. We started the generator and watched Television instead of watching the stars by the fire, off to bed to read and then have a nights sleep before heading off tomorrow and for the first time we are turning south for home after taking three months to get where we are today. Weather forecasts still show rain and cold weather down south around Perth and in fact as far up as Newman, we will see what we will do after Port Headland. |
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| Shells on Beach | Sea entrance to Barred Creek | Looking east along the Beach |
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July 28th Last walk along the creek and tracks and back to pack up for the next part of our walkabout, this time we took extra precautions with the fridge doors using 100mph tape to assist in keeping them closed on the trip out to the main road. We cleaned our campsite had a last look at the ebbing tide in the creek and the brolga's who still don't want to be photographed, you cannot get within a bulls roar of them and then hit the road. The track out was rough with a four wheel drive attempting to pass, I've had a enough of these cowboys who just want to drive flat out and don't care how much dust or muck they throw up at you. He was pissed off I could tell for I kept him there for several kilometres before I allowed him past, we were not able to get out of second gear and our top speed was 20KPH, the road was very rough the van just chattered over the ruts and sand blows, digger did not like it all and a couple of times it did silly things in the sandy parts. All in all it took us an hour and a half to travel 20 Kilometres until we reached the rubbish bins and then bitumen, wasn't it lovely to be riding again on relatively smooth roads, this beggars the question was it worth it going across those types of roads to just get to Barred Creek? We reckon the only downside other than the road was the blasted flies other than that it is a beautiful area well worth the trip especially if you have a small boat to go out to fish and get mud crabs. Our first stop was at the Roebuck Plains Roadhouse where we bought a loaf of bread to see us through to Port Headland, $3.70 for a frozen loaf of home brand with a use by date of 7th of June! Take it or leave it mate! boy we love these road houses so much that we drive right past them as a rule. |
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| Extra precautions on fridge doors | Barred Creek Track | Road back to Broome |
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Then we had Kilometres of flat grassy plains
with grey earth and plenty of cattle even the ant hills were grey and
then we came across red dirt again and all the scrubby type of bushes
that went forever, very boring, though there was a nice purple plant,
probably a weed of some description. We had watching the programme 60
Minutes recently, especially the segment of Barn Hill and it looked so
good we thought we would go in and stay a couple of days. Well, the road in from the bitumen was sandy gravel again and not as rough as the roads we were on earlier in the day, we were able to travel at nearly 60 Kilometres an hour for the nine Kilometres. There was a four wheel drive that caught up with us, guess what! I wouldn't let the mongrel past Hee! Hee! We set up and my first impression was that it was a wasted exercise, when we noted no generators we then opted for power. Wrong decision for those on unpowered sites were parked on the headland with views of the beach and headlands and when we were to talk to a couple of them later they indicated that they sat and watched the whales frolic as they were passing yesterday. The powered sites in the main; had shade from plenty of trees and this was ok though it meant that television was weak. So all in all the unpowered is the way to go as long as you do not want shade. As the the day temperature has now dropped to 26 degrees shade now is not an issue, We went for a walk to the beach and how nice it is with people swimming and fishing or just sun baking and all on the Indian Ocean. The sandstone cliffs have eroded over time and looked splendid in their many colours. We took our happy hour down to the beach to watch the sun go down over the horizon though the camera batteries elected to run out at that critical moment. We are having a late tea tonight and as we have only four television station and not wanting to take the risk with night born nasties we will watch television tonight. Kilometres travelled 172 |
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| Caravans Barn Hill Station | Sandstone formations on beach | Entrance to beach from headland |
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July 29th Strolled along the beach this morning whilst the tide was out and picked up many colourful shells and admired the many sandstone formations that go right down to the beach edge. I took a total of 35 photo's and picking the best for the diary is a headache so I have a tendency to say "This will do", on the way back to camp their were 21 four wheel drives parked on the beach with their boat trailers, all out fishing no doubt. The beach sand changes from a yellowish to white as you go along though there is not much birdlife along the beach. |
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| Sandstone break down | Sandstone formation on beach | Southern end of beach |
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There were many people coming in again today
with the area absolutely packed; the only available space is in the bush
for tents and small vans, we noticed Alan & Molly McLaughlin from
St Helens drive in and Liz went along and spoke to Molly indicating that
she had met her son and grandson while we were in Broome. Molly indicated
that they are on their way to Broome to visit the family with others coming
up from Tasmania. Liz did the washing after lunch and then we walked down to the southern end of the beach so I could point out the many eroded sandstone rocks and caves that have such beauty, Liz was impressed and we collected a few more shells and a piece of coral which we hope to get home intact. There was a nice breeze blowing in off the Indian Ocean with the temperature around 28 degrees, beautiful. There are no fish being caught off the surf only the boats seem to be doing alright and they go a long way south for their catches, I haven't even bothered to unpack the rods just laze away doing next to nothing. We have met up with John & Desi again who informed us that they purchased a new Honda generator and are quite happy with its operation, we made arrangements to meet them on the beach head and watch the sun go down over the horizon with a few tinnies of course. The sunset and colours that were visible were not as good as the sunset as those we witnessed at Wyndham earlier in the month. So again we said our farewells and there is no doubt we will not meet them again for we now have to put the metal to the pedal south. Tonight we will watch the footie and then off to bed, there seem to be more happier hours being held around the camp than usual. |
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| Ochre coloured banks | Southern headland | Perforated sandstone |
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July 30th Up at six and walked along the beach at Barn Hill Station for the last time, the tide was ebbing so I was able to walk on reasonably solid sand down to the Southern Headland and return. Back at camp and packed, showered and on our way at 9am, the road out to the main Highway had deteriorated even further since our arrival so we were down to second gear on sections on the 9 Kilometres out. It was another fine day though the wind was on our side and pretty high though it did not affect our travel, the country side was flat with plenty of paper bark trees though they were not very tall, the highway was constructed on white bitumen which gave off a considerable amount of glare even when wearing sunglasses. We were to then go to black bitumen, you noticed the difference in glare straight away. Our first stop was the Stanley Rest Area where we were to meet up with the Tasmanians from Scamander who we thought were some weeks ahead of us, they were surprised to see us for they thought we would be well down the road given our booking on the Ferry. We had a cup of tea with them and back on the road to put another 100 K's behind us, we stopped at the Sandfire Roadhouse for lunch where the cost of diesel was $1.54.9 per litre, thankfully we have enough fuel to get us to Port Headland. Back on the road we have decided to find a bush camp and settle in for the day and about another forty K's on we found a gravel pit about a Kilometre off the road and have set up and listened to the footie where St Kilda beat Melbourne by 88 Points. Of course we will have a two person happy hour. We have gathered wood for our fire tonight and as there is no Television we will look at the stars and enjoy the cool of the evening by the fire. Kilometres Travelled 222 |
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| Sunset over Indian Ocean | Down over Indian Ocean | Jim & Anthill Sandfire Bush Camp |
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July 31st It was a very peaceful night last night, we started our fire and cooked our meal, we had decided to give vegetables a miss and just have chops, eggs and baked beans for tea. When I broke the eggs into the egg rings the yolks busted so we automatically thought the eggs must be off, so we did the water flotation test and the eggs were OK it must have been the road being so rough that the eggs yolks were broken in the shell. Their smell and eating were alright so we just enjoyed. It was peaceful under the stars and went we went to bed we both dropped off pretty quickly, as usual I went up the highway for my walk next morning and then returned to pack and get on our way to the DeGray rest area. There was fair bit of traffic on the road and the scenery was open plains with stunted growth and red soil as far as you could see, we opted to stop for a cuppa at 10am and then we seemed to enter a different part of the coast where we could see sand dunes and signs that later said that it was the eighty mile beach where we have stopped over in the past. We were soon in an area that had plenty of rain recently for the ground was still wet and there was water in the creeks and the grass was very green, then the railway line was visible for the cartage of iron ore from the Hammersley mine to Port Headland. We pulled into the DeGray Rest Area at lunch time and the first people we saw was Bill & Margaret who pulled in yesterday and on setting up we went for a walk to re-a quaint ourselves with the area. On our return we noted that Ray & Leslie from Scamander in Tassie had set up beside us, so we were able to compare notes and we all came to the same conclusion that we are leaving our run to Melbourne a little late and there are doubts as to us being able to go into Perth and do the South West of Western Australia. The calculator tells us that we need to average 188 Kilometres per day to make Melbourne on the 31st of August, that's sad isn't it! We had a wonderful happy hour again and it then back home to enjoy our roast chicken and baked vegetables all done in the camp oven very nice indeed, we then lit the fire and chewed the fat with those around us before retiring for the night. Unfortunately we have found out that tomorrow is a public holiday in Port Headland so our chances of replenishing our money supply looks bleak, though we will wait and see what we can do. So now we are off to enjoy the fire in our shorts and t-shirts of course. Kilometres travelled 218 |
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| Sunrise at Bush Camp | DeGray railway bridge | DeGray Rest Area |
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| August section of Diary |
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