Eyre Peninsula

18/3/2018. Sunday.  Well, it definitely was! The night was extremely windy which made the camper rock but, more than that, the canvas flapped heavily much of the night. Disturbed, R & R woke about 2:00am and went to the toilet. Then they slept, and slept in, to about 7:30am as they were in no hurry. That morning RL heard some fellow campers commenting on the unusual strength of the wind which had broken a yacht from its moorings. R & R packed down, showered and were away by 9:45 heading for Wirrilla, away from Ceduna and its smells of sea and fishing. Out here, originally the country would have been mallee but now, mostly cleared, it seemed much like the mallee country at Kendenup which RA’s family had cleared in the 60s and 70s. Wirrilla, as with all of the townships in this area, has many large round concrete grain silos. Talking round and concrete, in SA some of the toilet and shower blocks and many of the rubbish bins are round and concrete and large.  Concrete must last longer here as the telephone poles are large concrete structures. R & R stopped and took photos of the free camping space in Wirrilla. Today, at 21*C, it was a far cry from the time they had stopped there mid-afternoon in the January of 2013 when the temperature was 40*C and exhausting.  Wirrilla had created its own jetty, as it was jested that the only difference between a coastal town and one inland, is a jetty. Wool and grain was shipped from jetties in this area until the 1950s. Back on the Eyre Hwy, the rail and pipeline run parallel with the road much like they do near Salmon Gums and the woodlands are similar with the exception of a conifer which grows in pockets. Just before Minnipa, one sign read Welcome to Granite Country, shortly followed by another which read “Be our guest Take a rest”. R & R ate lunch and chatted with a local for about an hour between noon and 1:00pm. Pildappa Rock was only 15 kms out. The rock is a wave formation, covered with many large deep holes and little ravines which would have looked awesome in the wet. The Hum drove on to the Gawler Ranges hoping to look at the formation called the Organ Pipes and sleep over in one of the designated areas.  There was no opportunity to pay the park fees as the brochure had indicated, so they just drove through the Old Paney Scenic Drive, more than a little anxious that they were there without a pass.  It was very similar to driving Red Gum Pass at the Stirlings. They did see a couple of emus, a few kangaroos and some ring necked parrots which are smaller and emerald green in colour.  RL drove up to the ranger station and the ranger was able to smooth them over and use RL’s credit card to pay online for them. They chatted a while about his work there before driving off to Wudinna. The road out was much better than the one going in, made unique by about 8 kilometres where there were so many crests it was like being on a roller coaster.  Soon R & R were back in farming land with a flock of pink and grey galahs.  On the way RL chose to drive in to Pygery Rocks. It was a short but windy track that became more rutted the further he drove. Suddenly, the Ute was facing the top of the rock and nowhere to go; no way of backing down. Naturally, RA was anxious but RL felt confident to give it a go. He had no choice! The Hum put it in 4WD low and RA acted as spotter while he inched forward over the rock and then backed up over rocks and ruts into a small but open space for the camper, before pulling it round again and out. At 6:00pm they drove through Wudinna which is a really big centre for the wheat farming area and boasts the large statue of the Australian Farmer monument. Not long after, they stopped and set up at Polkdinney Park, a free camp at Kyancutta. RL chatted with his brother, J, before sitting for dinner at 7:15pm ... it certainly had been an interesting day which might have gone horribly wrong.

19/3/2018. Monday.  It was certainly a much cooler night as RL had to get up to put a blanket on but then they slept soundly. Because of the cloud cover it was still quite dark when they got out at 7:00am. An hour and a half later they were on the Tod (unlike Todd, in NT) Highway heading right down the middle of the Peninsula to Port Lincoln driving into the wind. Much of the journey was like that near Salmon Gums with the road running to the right of the rail and pipe line. They had heard somewhere that Port Lincoln waters most of the Peninsula in the same way that Mundaring Weir supplies the goldfields in WA. On both sides there was open farming land, mostly dry with a few places where some green would have been weed growth. Some farms looked more or less more profitable, though the whole way down there are sidings where the concrete Viterra grain silos operate. They saw little stock until much closer to the coast. R & R stopped in Cummins for a most enjoyable half hour popping into the Five Loaves Bakery for information. It was bustling and smelled divinely of roasted coffee with a coffee and cake of the day special. Cummins is the geographically, commercially, socially and artistically the hub/centre of the lower half of the Peninsula and is thriving with big machinery sales yards, railway where trains shunt before your eyes and a double story school which houses the school and community library in one. Naturally, RL and RA took a photo of the Wheat Lumper Statue but the highlight was the mosaic murals on the toilet block in the park. It even had some blue willow china in the mural, as well as a penny and original brass name and quantity tags from cream cans (as dairying was also carried out there). As they headed towards Port Lincoln, the Approach Rd comes into the city, down a long steep descent, from the bottom end. Early on this road there is a Big Swamp to the south and then Little Swamp to the north.  At noon R & R were fortunate to be able to park easily near Main Street and went straight to the information centre for brochures and for an op shop list. They walked to the end of the jetty and noted the statues of Matthew Flinders and Mackybie Diva before scooting around the op shops quickly.  Late lunch was welcome and they refuelled before leaving at 2:30pm. The drive out of Port Lincoln and up the coast is scenic as it follows closely to the coast for a few kilometres before veering away after the airport and opening up into undulating farming country. RA chatted with their daughter, S, on speaker so that RL could hear while driving to Tumby Bay, a delightful seaside town. They walked its jetty and chatted to their other daughter, H, as they sat under Norfolk Island pines viewing Tumby Island and the bright blue sea in the mid afternoon. They had chosen to stay at Yallunda Flat Showgrounds, nestled in trees along the winding Tod River creek line, about 18 kilometres away, back, in the direction of Cummins. About 5kms in, the road rose dramatically and wound through the coastal range rising to an elevation of 300’ above sea level and then down again into Yallunda Flat at 200’. Picturesque. Alarmed to see and smell smoke in the air, they wondered at the wisdom of staying. Fortunately, a young mum was picking her children up from the bus stop and said there was no cause for alarm. She’d tell her husband who is a volunteer fire fighter that R & R were staying at the grounds if an emergency arose. Shortly after 4:30pm, R & R set up the camper and went for a walk all round the sheds and oval. Last October they had 4,500 people attend their Show, the young mum had told RA. They crushed a nut mixture for sprinkling on their breakfast, made dinner and read/wrote a while ... glad, once again, of the kindness shown to them by strangers.

20/3/2018. Tuesday. R & R woke to the sound of light rain on the canvas which gave everything a fresh eucalyptus and pine perfume. Fortunately, most of the dampness had dried by the time they packed up and they were on the road again about 8:30am. RL headed back out the way they had come in, over the hilly farming lands and down towards the coast at Tumby Bay before heading north to Port Neill (39kms) which is surrounded by lovely open undulating farming country. Port Neill is a small town with a really neatly kept foreshore and jetty. R & R walked the jetty and admired the anchor from the Lady Kinnaird which sank in Dutton Bay in 1880. Miraculously, no one drowned. As RL drove the 32 kilometres to Arno Bay they chatted with their son, Z, who was currently working in Brisbane for a few days. Once again Arno Bay is another lovely little seaside town. It too had a jetty for them to walk out on. RL noticed pink granite (unakite) in one of the car parks.  Uniquely, Arno Bay has mud flats and mangrove swamp along the banks of the winding Salt Creek. Over this they have built walkways to the mouth of the creek and around the swamp so that visitors can view the mangroves, samphire grass and the little crabs scuttling down their holes without disturbing the environment. So it was 11:30am before R & R left for Cleve which is only 22kms away over 12 Mile Plain before becoming hilly again. They ducked 5kms east of Cleve on the Birdseye Hwy to take a look at Yeldulknie Weir and were back in Cleve by 12:30pm. They opted for a late lunch after a walk up and down the two main streets. Cleve is another really big, well presented inland hub for servicing the farming operations around it. They did actually buy a couple of things at a pop up op shop raising funds for a hospital where the lady insisted they take some fresh peaches without cost. There are big sheep yards on the edge of the township and the trucking company Quinn (RL had seen so many Quinn trucks in the area) is based here. Five kilometres west out of Cleve on the Birdseye Hwy is a monument about the Goyder Line. He was a surveyor who, in 1865, drew a line on the map indicating where, below the line, he felt that farming was safe. At Ruddall, RL turned onto Darke Peak Road which runs parallels north-south with a railway. Three kilometres out, the Hum took a windy track through a couple of gates up a very steep drive to the top of Federation Hill (270 feet above sea level) and they walked up to the lookout above the tank. Thank goodness there was enough room to turn around but RA would not recommend the drive up for less than 4WD. Darke’s grave rests below Darke Peak at the north western end of the small but attractive Darke Range about 12kms north. At 3:00pm, they stopped there to read how Darke, a surveyor, in 1844, died here after being speared by a previously friendly native. Here was a really tight , albeit flat, spot for the Hum to turn in.  It was only a few kilometres around the top end of the range and back onto bitumen for the 30 ms back up to Eyre Hwy. Waddikkee is about 5kms off this bitumen road but is noteworthy in that it is, like Koonalda, on a section of the Old Eyre Hwy. Along the way, they were surprised by one paddock of green maize/corn and some cattle. The Navigator showed that the Old Eyre Hwy runs about 50 metres south of the current Eyre Hwy with the rail line in between for part of the 16kms into Kimba. R & R set up the camper at 4:00pm at the free camp facility at the Kimba showgrounds ... agreeing that it would be good to stay a second night ... and not even move the car for the day!

21/3/2018. Wednesday. After a calm night R & R got out of bed about 7:00am to a pleasant 12*C. Ideal for their planned Roora Walking Trail jaunt ,through the Roora Nature Reserve and to the summit of White’s Hill where there are a couple of caves and sculptures of Eyre and Wylie. The trail begins just over the road from the camping area. R & R enjoyed the animal sculptures and noted trees like quongdong, the native apricots, rosemary and pines. Along the way they also walked the Bird Trail (though they did not see an echidna except for the sculptured one) and the Axe Tree Trail, a total of 7.8 kilometres in 2 hours, back for coffee and showers ($1 for 2 minutes) by 10:30am with the temperature being up 5*.  They sat and wrote/read for a while before lunching and then having a cat nap. RA set up a gmail account and then they rode the bikes downtown with a map and took in most of the sites listed on it. R & R were gone a couple of hours on a pleasant sunny afternoon, taking photos of the big galah, the Half Way Across Australia signs and the newly completed silo art which took, the artist, Cam Scale, 26 days and 200 litres of paint to create. Awesome. Beautiful. Not sure which of those two descriptive words should be used first, but definitely both. RL looked at the maps with a mind to tomorrow while RA wrote and deleted some photos.  Both agreed that for this trip Tasmania was off the agenda since they had left their run a bit late and joked that it gave them an excuse to come back again. After dinner RL spoke with his sister, K, and then read, while RA tried to get her head around the matter of starting a blog ... in the long run ... too tired to try anymore.

22/3/2018. Thursday. RA had woken with a cold nose during the night so it was no surprise that it was cool and dark when they woke at 7:00am but it was not damp so they were able to breakfast and be packed and leaving by 8:45am heading east for Port Augusta. For much of the way between Kimba and Iron Knob there is a Nature Reserve where the vegetation is mallee and much like that at Yalata and very pretty. Then it opens into farming or station country. Signs indicate that the road is subject to flooding but it is hard to believe at this time of the year when everything looks so dry. As they neared Iron Knob, shortly before 10:00am, pink dust rising from BGC mining operations at Iron Princess could be seen, lit by the still climbing mid-morning sun.  It was an impressive sight against the massive walls of mine tailings in varying colours of reds and browns.  RL drove into Iron Knob and they visited the museum there. It has a wonderful display of information and artefacts and as well as gifts and gems. R & R watched a 6 minute presentation on the history of mining in the area. Before BGC, BHP, the father of the iron ore industry in Australia, ran operations here for 100 years between the turns of the 20th and 21st centuries in conjunction with the production of metal from ore at Whyalla using the rail link between them. They spent an hour there before spotting emus down town on the way out. From Iron Knob to Port Augusta the landscape becomes more undulating. To the north there is farming land but to the south of the road there were restricted signs warning people to keep out - not to be confused with the army training camp that is much closer to Port Augusta.  We crossed a big bridge over Myall Creek. At noon they refuelled at Port Augusta, parking on the foreshore and heading down town to take in some of the notable sights, op shops and pick up some supplies.  R & R enjoyed lunch on the grass under the trees and were away again in just under 2 hours. Port Germein was about an hour’s drive south along the coast where there was a well-kept farm which was irrigating for cattle. Another jetty - what should we do?  We had no choice to walk it, especially considering that it is the longest wooden jetty in the Southern Hemisphere, approximately 1.5 kms long. It took an hour to walk out and photograph on the way back in. They chatted with their son, Z, as it was his birthday and showered in the free showers near the jetty. By 4:30pm R & R had stopped and were setting up for a free camp just 3 kms south of the Port Germein turnoff. They read and wrote for a while before dinner ... the day had just got hotter and it looked like it would be a warm night.

Old Eyre Hwy and Nullarbor

South Australia Time

                

15/3/2018. Thursday.  Having slept well and deciding that a damp canvas would take half the morning to dry, R & R packed up and left at 7:30am before heading back to Border Village to get to the beginning of the Old Eyre Hwy. With 34 kms on the clock at 8:00am, they set off to see what the day would bring!  It was an equally rough track as the last they had been on, with speeds between 10-20 kms but different in that the rocks were smoother, like driving on cobble stone. Curiously, there were Optus pegs indicating fibre but that was no use to them. They were on the lookout for camels, wombats and kangaroos and any other living things but saw very little other than 1 kangaroo and 4 hawks. They did see a dead snake and RA wondered about the timing of his demise. Out here the trees were fewer and grew smaller again.  About 9 kms in, R & R stopped and took photos of the 16 Mile Tank, stopped again at the microwave tower road 3 kms later and looked for the blowhole of which RL’s mother, R, had spoken.  They walked around several little tracks for about half an hour being mindful of their position, looking, but saw nothing.  At 26 kilometres, they stopped, surprised, when they saw the Buntabie Blowhole, literally, on the side of the road. They saw no evidence of the Buntabie Tank which should have been a couple of kms further.  There was a large dam on the side of the road a few kilometres beyond. The Coopana Tank at 33 kms was, unlike the ancient stone one they had seen earlier, rebuilt in the 60-70s as it was constructed of tin side wall panels fixed with gutter bolts. About the 58 kms out , RL turned south, detouring off the road on a track for 1.7 kms to look for the Koomooloobooka Cave which took a little finding even with the help of the Navigator.  It was well worth it. They spent about 40 minutes driving in, looking, photographing and driving out again. From here it was 20 kms to Koonalda Hsd where they had thought to stop, look around and possibly stay the night. As the day warmed R & R were plagued by stinging flies so they decided to put the air con on to deter them, and about noon, stopped to eat lunch in the ute with the motor running! At 79 kms there was a new installation like a power plant but the track was unused which seemed odd. Four kilometres down, just before an ancient stock grid, there was its track with a warning not to trespass. Here a faster moving land cruiser with the name Boomerang Campers overtook them.   Ten kilometres further, there was a second grid and the road veered left to the north to what used to be Koonalda Homestead and fuelling station on the Hwy when the road actually ran that way before it was rerouted closer to the coast during the 1960s.  It had old vehicles, a pump, an old homestead with a bicycle at the back door and a new building which looked like the camping facility but R & R were not inclined to stop. It was about 2:00pm when they headed south from there to the new Eyre Hwy about 14 kms. The first half was not bad  being of soft red dirt but the second was dreadful; back on to limestone again  About 3 kilometres from Koonalda on this road RL noticed mounds in the soft red dirt. This turned out to be the highlight of his day; wombat burrows and taking photos was a given. RA couldn’t help but take a photo of wombat pooh at the burrow entrance.  Further down there were two sinkholes along the side of the road but the Hum did not stop. So that RA would not miss too many of the features on the new Eyre Hwy, her husband turned west for the 13 km back to arrive, at 3:00pm, at Bunda Cliffs where camping is allowed. Here it is a little windy but the view is so spectacular, it shouldn’t be missed. Later RA worked out they had done about 120 kms in the day over 6 hours with about 1 hour 40 minutes for photo stops, which turns out to be an average drive speed of 12 kms; less than on the track the day before. The evening activities were becoming a routine ... they felt comfortable with pattern the days were taking and the little surprises in each day.

16/3/2018. Friday. R & R were awake early and could hear intermittent patter of droplets on the roof but the wind was warm and fortunately the canvas was dry as they packed down. RL had to pump the tyres from yesterday’s track driving. Despite the cloudy sky they walked back for another look at the Cliffs which rise a massive 70+ feet above sea level. They headed east stopping to take photos of the beware camels, wombats and kangaroos sign 96 kilometres from Nullarbor at the entrance to the Koonalda Stn Road. The next lookout was just as spectacular with the elevation above sea level about 65 feet. R & R stopped at Nullarbor (which means no trees), sometimes referred to as the treeless plain, for about half an hour to take some photos. RL listened to one traveller’s story; he was just needing someone to listen. The lack of trees continued at least another 30 kilometres past Nullarbor where the Head of the Bight sandhills can be seen quite close to the road. From this point the distance from the coast increases, the trees include mallee and are quite wooded, the earth is yellow/orange, the land undulates with the average height of ridges being about 3 metres before becoming hilly and the elevation rising to 160 ft above sea level at Yalata. Shortly after Yalata reserve, R & R stopped for 20 minutes for lunch where fences on both sides of the road indicated farming land. The old red shed and homestead of Colona indicate how grand farming may have been in former days. Here, just before Nundroo, and again often during the afternoon they saw wombat mounds on the drive in to and out of Fowlers Bay. The drive of about 27kms in via Coorabie which has a lovely old stone building is really rough limestone while the drive out toward Penong is better with about half being sealed. Granted it is the end of summer, but here it looked dry and unproductive and they saw no evidence of stock other than some droppings on the road.  There were many properties with For Sale signs. They spent about half an hour walking down the jetty and taking photos. The community of Flowers Bay is very proud of their heritage and presents this little fishing settlement neatly.  RL and RA were both very sad to see a dead wombat on the road towards Penong where they stopped to set up camp for the night at Cohen’s Rest. It took a while to pick a spot, park and go for a walk but they were sitting for coffee by 4:45pm. This evening and night would really go down in camping history as one of their worst ... they were not sure if it was because it had been such a warm grey sweaty day that became breathless ... but the camper was invaded by small flying insects, midgies and, possibly, sandflies.

17/3/2018. Saturday. Well Cohen may have rested here but R & R didn’t. Aware that they had a problem, before bed, they set up the coils to make the insects go away, and put lights and a citronella candle outside to draw the insects out.  It seemed to be working but they were only in bed a couple of minutes before they realised they really had a problem! Beside the insects being annoying some were actually biting and stinging. R & R took their pillows and flask and headed off to sleep in the front of the ute. That not being comfortable, they emptied the back of the ute into the camper with the intention of trying to sleep on the bed that was already made up under the piles of stuff they had just shifted. They thought they might just nod off when the smoke alarm in the camper beeped, then stopped. Many times it did this and they tried to ignore it, assuming that another bug had set it off. Finally, RL had had enough. He got out and dismantled it. A last! They slept. Just as well, with all their comings and goings and the alarm beeping, they had chosen the far end of the rest area away from the other two campers there. Both, glad of morning, they tried to clean away as many bugs as they could, repacked the ute and were not sad to be leaving. Leaving Cohen’s Rest behind at 8:30am, Penong was only 16kms away. They refuelled after taking in the windmill museum display which was unique and intriguing. RL followed instructions to the pink lake which is on the Point Sinclair Rd where gypsum is mined. The pink lake was not pink for them at this time but that did not detract from the drive, which under advice from a local, they took to its end at Port LeHunte. It was a spectacular drive over the last dune and down to the jetty which has a safe netted swimming area.  R & R spent about half an hour before leaving and ate the last orange and two tomatoes so that there was nothing to give over at the border quarantine check at Ceduna. RA declared her bottle of honey and they were not interested in confiscating that for which she was glad as it was still half full. R & R took a bay at the Ceduna Foreshore CP and were surprised that they had lost another half hour meaning that it was already after 1:00pm. They set up the camper as quickly as they could, had lunch and put a wash in while showering. After a walk to the tourist bureau and shopping for fruit and vegetables (not to mention fly and surface sprays) they walked along the foreshore to find out what time Mass would be tomorrow. During the course of the afternoon and evening they managed to speak with all their children except their son, Z. They went to bed a little later than usual since they had been making good use of the phone and internet to catch up ... confident that this night could only be more restful than the last.

Trans Access Road to Border

12/3/2018. Monday. R & R were awake early but in no real hurry as they had a whole list of jobs to do downtown Kalgoorlie before pointing themselves east along the Trans Access Track. As they left the caravan park, they saw children heading for school and RL wondered if they all had exciting stories to tell like the boys at Lake Douglas.  R & R had no luck getting a door latch at the canvas shop which also does some caravan repairs but were told by a helpful lad at the ARB shop that the Thumper might no longer be reaching full charge, citing that as the reason that the fridge was flashing. Down town, they went to Telstra and Optus with their phone and wifi issues and hoped that all would be well.  Quickly, they popped in and out of Coles for some essential groceries and were off to pick up the camper tyre on the way out. At 11:30am RL put a little more fuel in just to be on the safe side. The Hum drove for a couple of hours before stopping for a late lunch at Karonie. They were thrilled to see not one but two Pacific National trains heading into Kalgoorlie, on the track which runs almost parallel to the access road at a distance of about 500 metres.  It was very comforting somehow; yet quite disconcerting when the scrub or bushland hid the track from view. The woodlands and trees out there were just lovely and much like those on the early part of the Eyre Hwy out of Norseman. The bitumen road did not last long but to be honest they were on a wide road most of the day. The surface varied from red deep sand, to soft muddy patches to very rocky where the driving speed dropped dramatically but overall RL was able to drive between 50 and 60 kms all afternoon. His boys would be surprised to hear that The Hum was driving all over the road picking the best line for a comfortable ride. Truth be known, they saw only five vehicles and out here dust in front or behind is a warning of approaching vehicles, so it was quite safe. The only other cars they saw were wrecks on the side of the road and three, in different places, suspended in trees, making RA wonder if a grader may have place them there?  Coonana had an airstrip which looked like it may not have been used in a while and there was a floodway at Panton Creek which had a bitumen surface. R & R stopped at truck bay a few kilometres east of Kitchener at 5:45pm to set up, send a Spot and have late dinner before reading/writing and bed. About 8:30pm they heard another freight train on the track and a car heading east ... and RA wondered where they could be going at this time of the night.

13/3/2018. Tuesday. No sooner had R & R gone to bed than there were another couple of cars going east. That made RA a little restless and then more so when she woke in the middle of the night with four cars going west. They woke again at 3:00am with a train going west. So, RA was glad of morning. By 7:00am they had eaten breakfast and were packed down and ready to go. A road train heading west passed shortly after. The pasture was green and lush which explained why the cattle were in such good condition and the kangaroos, as well.   They saw many birds and several eagles, also in excellent condition.  At 9:00am, 30 kilometres from Rawlinna R & R spotted the first train heading west.  The road was rocky so they stopped for coffee to enjoy it without spilling. Well!  RA dropped the flask onto one of the cups and coffee spilled all over her seat and floor.  Rawlinna actually has a 60 speed sign!  The only activity still happening out there is a big limestone mine for use with gold mining in the Kalgoorlie area. R & R stopped at the men’s living quarters at 10:00am and asked for guidance. The guy who answered the door was not interested in the maps RA was clutching and told them all the roads were bad and would probably wreck their camper. But he was very helpful with the clarity and accuracy of his information. First, R & R would need to drive on to Haig, another 72kms, where the sign Haig to Eyre Hwy would be very clear.  He figured the 116kms track would take a 7+ hours, they would only be travelling about 15kms per hour and the wife would get fed up with opening the 14 gates along the way. He did make them promise to ring him tomorrow by noon to say they had arrived at the Highway and if they didn’t, he’d come looking for them. Maybe they would even see a bush turkey. He was right about it all (except the turkey). The road to Haig took a couple of hours and the road going south began with a gate. The Hum drove for about an hour before stopping for a late lunch. They saw very few cattle, mostly kangaroos, some extremely large and poly where the station owners were putting in water pipes. They were fascinated by the swarms of little black grasshopper hatchlings, which made it look like the earth was moving.  The vermin dingo (Moonera Stn) proof fence they had been looking for was only the second one along but it was about half way to the Eyre Hwy. RL stopped and parked at gate 5 (Infinity Bore) just before 6:00pm having covered 80kms in 5.25 hours (16kms/hr) to send a Spot, turn on the Sat and set up. They were sitting to eat at 7:15pm. The camper rocked as the wind blew strongly from the south east. The track had been so rocky that, at times, they were barely moving but RL picked his line forward and checked his camper backward and all was well. He did wonder how a road, the only one from one point to another, could be like this track. At the same time he marvelled at how fortunate he was to be somewhere so remote ... RA was glad of a safe, albeit remote, place to stop and sleep.

14/3/2018. Wednesday. The wind must have died down for R & R slept soundly, waking early because they had quit early. RL had already set his watch forward by half an hour so it was 6:35am when they began the last 36kms to the Eyre Hwy. It took them 2 hours and 20 minutes working out again as 16km/hr.  Along the way they did see four bush turkeys. RA noted that the number of feet above sea level fell from where they had slept at 120ft to about 100ft above sea level at the Eyre Highway though RL said there is a sense of always going uphill. The hazards faced on this type of track, top, with limestone rocks followed by the dry ruts from previous vehicles traversing in the wet (heaven forbid trying to drive it after rain) and last, kangaroos. Sometimes these big reds bound away; other times, they stand erect, two front paws meeting at their belly, watching with curiosity. The wife did end up opening (and closing) many more gates including another Dingo proof fence and leaving one open as she had found it. Sometimes the trees are so sparse they are like sentinels and R & R noticed that the closer they got to the coast the more grasses there were and smaller fewer shrubby bushes. It appeared that the station may also run sheep out here as a couple scampered away before the vehicle.  Just before 9:00am, R & R stopped at the end of the track to ring their mine worker trip advisor. There was no reception 17 kilometres out of Cocklebiddy on their Optus phone, as there would be none anywhere else that day, so RA used Sat for the first time (1:14 minutes) to say they were safe and to thank him.  RA helped her husband pump up the tyres and empty one of the jerry cans into the tank. It was almost an hour later before they headed for Madura. This is a lovely part of the drive east. The Madura Pass brings all travellers down off the limestone ridge onto the Hampton Tablelands, a drop from 80 feet above sea to approximately 20. For the entire distance from Madura to Eucla (180kms) the highway runs between 1-5kms south of this ridge. It is a treat for the eyes. R & R stopped for a break at Moondi Point about 11:00am where there is a lovely overnight camping spot with toilet before playing a Jim Reeves disc. Up to this point they had not felt the need for music since they had left home days ago. They stopped again, about 20 minutes, for lunch at 1:00pm in the shade of a tree at Mundrabilla Motel. Mundrabilla Stn which has horses grazing in the paddock nearest the road, lies at the base of the ridge and boasts holding yards. Here the trees lean northward pushed by the relentless wind from the south.  Eucla is visible about 10 kilometres out by the sand dunes which indicate how close it is to the sea. Soon after, the road veers north and rises up from the tablelands heralding the beginning of the Bight and the Bunda Cliffs. R & R refuelled at 2:30pm, took a walk and photos before heading through to Border Village, into SA and on to 10k Peg Parking Area at 3:30 pm to set up for the night. They had travelled all day with the 2 way on and picked up a couple of conversations before getting.

“Hey, East Bound Caravan.  Got one at 4m wide.” from a pilot vehicle which was a real buzz. RL read while RA wrote, before walking for half an hour. The wife cooked dinner while the father sent Spot and minded Sat, being mindful that he was no longer on WA time (an hour ahead). Together, they had a quick look at the maps for tomorrow ... never setting plans in stone … leaving their options open.

John Holland Way

6/3/2018. Tuesday. R & R slept better than last night. RL’s ear was still blocked and ringing but they got straight out for breakfast and showered and straight into gear to sort clothing. That was more challenging that doing food and cooking essentials! RL packed the clothes into the camper and filled the water tanks while RA sorted a few photos and did a wash. The Hum dropped the camper at Tim’s and she picked him up as they headed for Albany and coffee at the Dome with their friend, S. A bit of a first for RL; he had never paid for a coffee in his life. His wife had bought one; finding herself under prepared at the swimming pool for a carnival that had turned dismally wet and chilly. Luckily, S was seated as they arrived so he stood to great them and immediately offered to fetch coffee. It was lovely for them all to catch up, chatting at least an hour and a half. S showed his photos of a thorny devil which can be seen in the Forrestania area where he works. R & R took a claim to Medicare, checked in at Optus about unsent emails and got some photos printed at Harvey Norman. It was really late when they sat to lunch at home just after 2:00pm. Their daughter, S, rang and held them up a little but eventually they went to the hospital to drop off the travel claim form, refuel the Hyundai and book in a weigh in for the Ute and camper at Southern Haulage. R & R put a turkey roast on for dinner, sorted more towards packing and getting away. They went for their walk late to benefit from the coolness towards evening. RL copied some more music while R A watched MAFS as well as chatting again to daughter,S.  As it had been a very warm day they showered again before bed. 

7/3/2018. Wednesday. They slept well enough considering there must have been some excitement/in-trepidation about finishing up everything, packing and leaving hopefully by middle of the day. B at Newhaven had requested forms, E, RL’s sister, required payment for works at Marine Tce, S, daughter, needed them to speak with the guys at Alllpest about the ants and there was the final printing of papers and backups of everything on the computer before they left. R & R got through all of these as well as the sorting of toiletry items and final packing of the car. After a late morning cup of coffee and banana, they showered and drove to Southern Haulage to get everything weighed. The Hum had been worried but it came in just under so all should be well. R & R drove out of Barker just on 1:00pm and stopped just off the Cranbrook turnoff for turkey and salad wrap and were on their way again before 2:00pm. Hopefully, the only item forgotten was R L’s nasal spray so it was agreed to take the opportunity to pick some up at the Katanning pharmacy ($20). Chemists in rural towns are few and far between. Fortunately, when they arrived at Nyabing, it was just 4:15pm and the Shire Office was still open. They were able to pay for a camping spot ($18) at the local sporting grounds; there being little choice for alternative sleepover or camping spots. R & R set up under the shed and rode the bikes a couple of kilometres out of town in search of echidnas which are sometimes seen in that direction. Not this time! Preparation of dinner on their first evening out was a little disoriented but unremarkable until RA sprayed a bottle of soy sauce all over everything. After that R & R pawed over maps about the Holland Track and made plans for the next day ... about 9:00pm RA spotted the Saucepan and RL pointed out the Southern Cross in the clear night sky. 

8/3/2018. Thursday. R & R slept well enough; hearing their camping neighbour leave for work at 4:30am but they slept again heavily to 6:30am.  Opting to shower first, they rated the facilities as 5 star. R & R breakfasted, packed down and were on their way by 8:30am. They spent their morning weaving their way along dirt roads and tracks that form the John Holland Way and the early parts of the Holland Track. Never before had they seen so many bob tails in one day. Granted, it was another warm day nearing 40*C. There were also kangaroos and many varieties of birds from the common, to larger hawks and a couple of graders working on the roads. Arriving at Newdegate about 11:30am, they ate lunch in the park and went walking for information. They had been hoping to email the kids and  find out something about the condition of the Holland Track further up. But, apparently, only Telstra works out here and not very well out of town.  A lady from the hairdresser let RA ring the Lake Grace Shire who indicated there had been no closure. After refuelling and the lady there, who was a Christian, had given them each a crucifix, the Hum again followed dirt roads and a real “track’, single track, where ant hills were growing and a sticky patch in a low lying area caused mud to flick up from the tyres for a while. RA sweated it out over the maps but the Hum calmly followed his instincts. For about 20kms, starting at a farm called “Oaklalona”, he drove at about 20 kms/hr before returning to better roads. It must have been somewhere along this track that one of the spots disappeared never to be seen again for it was noticed missing when they stopped for the evening. R & R opted to drive to Hyden in an attempt to phone J about his visit to the doctor but again they were disappointed by the lack of reception. RA left a message on his mobile from a pay phone for 50 cents. Curiosity, drew them into an op shop were an elderly lady gave them a map and directions to get to Forrestania Plots, a free camp about 70kms directly east of Hyden on the other side of the rabbit proof fence. She too had seen a thorny devil only this morning on her way in from their farm which borders the RPF.  Shortly out of Hyden, a little white Hyundai over took the Ute. R & R both believe that it could only have been their friend, S, who was due to drive back to a nickel mine at Forrestania that afternoon.  The Navigator showed them the last bit and they stopped just before 4:00pm.  There was a shed which is dubbed the Forrestania Pub; no cold beer or five star showers here. It was so hot setting up the camper which took about an hour but an intermittent breeze blew so they were grateful to get inside and read/write with a coffee for a while with the idea of using Spot to message the kids. They walked up and down for about 15 minutes to give anyone a chance to ring them on the Sat should they need to before settling to dinner, some quiet time and a well deserved rest ... and about 9:00pm they searched the night sky finding, not one but, two aeroplanes flying the same path and only a minute or so between them.  

9/3/2018. Friday. RL slept well but RA felt restless most of the night so. she was glad to be up and about. They ate breakfast, packed up and let the tyres down all round and were on their way at 7:30am. They had to backtrack a few kilometres to the beginning of the Holland Track which was at Site 3 on the Woodlands Trail. The Track was only wide enough for one vehicle and slow going at under 20 kms/hr. R & R were only 2 kms in and 10 minutes when they encountered a flat tyre on the camper.  Despite the early hour it was already hot and they were eaten alive by bull ants. The ground was as hard as slate and the band new never-used-before camper jack wouldn’t wind. The whole episode was a struggle but fixed by 9am; an hour and a half. Fortunately, there was a spot where the Hum was able to turn around a couple of hundred metres ahead as, by that stage, they had figured that it was not wise to continue with the camper and no spare for it. By 9:30 pm they were back on the East Hyden-Norseman Rd where speeds varied from 30 to 70 kms/hr depending on the condition. There were power poles lining the edge of the road for a couple of kilometres either side of Flying Fox and Lounge Lizard Mines. R & R had been travelling about and hour before RA realised that she had acquired a very large splinter (about 1 inch/2.5 cms and quite thick) while changing the tyre. Her husband stopped to help pull it out while she pushed from behind. She was able to dress it as he drove. They saw very little wild life all day save a dingo who was so thin you could count its ribs and one of those little lizards that stand alert and erect and then makes  a dash for it. Having travelled 140 kilometres and just before the Hyden-Norsemen Rd veers east to Norseman, the Hum turned 1.5kms northward on a track to McDermid Rock and stopped a little early for lunch. It is a free camping area with toilets. They were away again by 12:15pm.  The Victoria Rocks Rd veers north east from the Norseman Rd at this point. The first 30 kilometres were a bit slow but soon after entering the Shire of Coolgardie the conditions improved especially in some sections.  Stopping off, they washed away the morning’s dirt in a large puddle on the side of the road. It was really pleasant. R & R arrived at Victoria Rocks free camp with toilet at 2:30pm, set up and were reading and writing before a walk and using Spot to message. The road had been difficult in patches but they were truly surprised that the latch/lock for the camper door had sheered off. So disappointing!  All day they saw no one; only the lovely forested woodlands, sometimes in full splendour, at others in varying stages of regrowth from fire. The gimlet is particularly spectacular with its strong bronzed trunk displaying deep green foliage that glistens silver in the breeze ... where the only litter on the side and the edge of the road, is, as it should be every where, leaf and bark.

10/3/2018. Saturday. R & R woke about 5:30 and it was not long before they were out of bed. Having packed down, they went for their walk over Victoria Rock. It was lovely. Not only did it have a large gnamma hole but there were many rock pools and shallow areas where the grass was green. They had been told that it had rained about 10 days ago so felt fortunate to see it like that. About 8:00am R & R headed north east on Victoria Rocks Rd for Coolgardie. About 15 kilometres out, just before 9:00am, they came into reception and the phone went mad updating a couple of days worth. The Hum stopped to pump up the tyres while his wife chatted with their daughter H, messaged their son J and sorted out some of the emails. There was absolutely no luck with Jayco; the service manager was not even able to recommend an approved repairer.  RA set the Navigator for Tyrepower and RL headed for Kalgoorlie. As you leave Coolgardie the road is flanked to the north by “the pipeline” and shows mines and tailings on the south before returning to woodlands again. R & R were able to drop the tyre off shortly after 10:00am and headed down town to walk the streets looking for all the op shops (not that they needed anything) and asked at the Tourist Bureau about the condition of the track to Rawlinna (Trans Australian Railway Track). A very bright and cheerful girl was certain that it was well maintained as she regularly gets updates from people passing through. Driving in search of Hammond Park R & R  stumbled upon an arboretum  which looked lovely, had picnic tables under trees, a toilet and a large shady bay to park the Ute and camper. Perfect. They enjoyed late lunch and deleted tons of emails as they had been told via Optus live chat that it was their full email that was causing the sent mails to remain in the Outbox. Another session with live chat and they were no wiser. R & R spoke with their other daughter, S and checked out Mass times before heading back to Coolgardie as fuel was 10c/ltr cheaper there. Using the Top Parks guide and phone, RA tried her luck a pre booking a caravan spot in Kalgoorlie for Sunday night before setting the Navigator for Lake Douglas recreation area. It was quite windy but that did not seem to deter any of the campers there, particularly families on mini and quad bikes and others, catching yabbies, while  R & R went for a walk on the lakes edge. Dinner was a delicious mix of the last of the vegetables, bacon and pasta before reading/writing and bed ... so cloudy was the night sky that nothing could be seen other than the red light of a mine beacon not far to the east. 

11/3/2018. Sunday. It was a windy night but R & R slept well enough; not keen to get up as they were in no hurry. They spent a while reading and writing after breakfast before packing up to leave. They marvelled at how their fellow campers, the parents, that is, were able to keep those boys off the bikes until 8:00am. It was shortly after that they headed for Kalgoorlie. Being a little early for Mass, RL drove back to the Arboretum and they sat quietly to enjoy a cup of coffee. Mass was unremarkable other than it seemed to RA that the larger the building the more difficult it is to keep every one together when singing. The reception staff at Discovery in Boulder were welcoming and R & R set about putting the camper up to have lunch, doing a load of wash, checking out the book exchange, hanging the washing and having a well earned mid afternoon nap. A luxury when you are constantly moving and only setting up later in the day. RL read while RA did her best to get the Telstra wifi USB working, ending up with an email from Telstra saying that there had been a problem with activation. Unsuccessfully, they tried to download a Louis L’Amour book for The Hum onto his iPad using the phone as hotspot. It had worked fine at home but not this time. RA was so over it all by then and, possibly, a bit anxious about the next stage, feeling quite out of her comfort zone heading, off into the unknown ... but knowing how important it was to her husband,  she did not want to spoil it for him.