I have journaled EVERY day in my handwritten book and I take the daily notes on the road, all the start and finish odometer readings, the fuel and mileage details and each week I reconcile the expenses; so I promise I haven’t been slacking off! Some times it’s difficult even getting ones fingers to a keyboard with 2 laptops and 6 potential users it’s easier to just go the preparing dinner option.
BROOME Willie Creek Pearl’s Showrooms were obviously the Tiffany’s pearls and everything was beyond my price range, but I know what I want. Who would have thought that given the five virtues of a pearl (Size, Shape, Colour, Complexion and Lustre) which infers a large WHITE ROUND pearl is the most valuable, that I would like a “baroque” (imperfect shaped) yellow pearl and it would be more expensive on it’s yellow gold bangle setting than the equivalent WHITE ROUND pearl bangle; soooo yellow is called GOLD and it’s “rarer than white”. The Willie Creak Pearl Farm tour and their Pearl Luggers tour were fantastic, well worth the time to learn and appreciate how pearls are formed and therefore how and why they are so highly prized and valued.
That's my reflection with my red hat on that you can see in the lustre of this magnificent pearl.
KARAJINI NATIONAL PARK take your mountain goat legs and wear your bathers. Swimming in these waterfall fed pools and gorges is magic but for mine, I prefer Litchfield the accessibility is better (I’m not cut out for 4WD though Rohan did enjoy driving those bumpy dusty roads). Unpowered sites meant we were sometimes in bed before 7pm (dishes before dark, in bed when the sun went to bed).
Swimming at Fern Pool. That's us from left to right in the sun, Emma, Rohan, Colleen a little gap then Sarah.
TOM PRICE well I think the Tom Price Tourist Park should be renamed “Monopoly”, that’s what they have and they charge accordingly. So we hand washed and showered evening and morning and recharged every concieveable piece of technology we have with us. The Rio Tinto Mine tour was interesting, puts a whole new spin on mining for me; if there’s a resource there they just dig it up, forget any mountain range, magnificent gorge or anything else God had made. Dig it up, crush it up, sell it off shore cheaper than anyone pays here. I elaborated heaps in my journal but I wont go on here.
Mt Tom Price BEFORE mining, note the double mounts with 'saddle' between
This photo shows half the right mount gone and a HUGE hole where the left mount was and no saddle.
CORAL BAY aaaah Coral Bay! Snorkelling in turquiose water directly off the white sandy beach,coral, gorgeous colourful fish (Mary Ryan I recall your snorkelling experience and agree) it is just magic. Just walking in the shallows BIG fish come up and swim between your legs almost in greeting. Our whale watching and snorkelling cruise was fantastic, I would do that again in a heartbeat and both the girls thoroughly enjoyed it; the boat had noodles for them and with this Matilda had no problems at all (except when the Captain suggested Rohan get ready with the camera as he threw a handful of fish pellets right beside Matilda, she had a really up close and personal fish experience they were even flapping her mask), Sarah ditched the noodle, the water was so salty anyone could float. Coral Bay was truely relaxing, you may have seen how busy I was even reading my book while sitting in the beautiful water.
Fish feeding on the beach, that's Colleen showing a bit of leg; this particular fish was very friendly with us, even tried to nip a freckle off my calf!
Forgot to mention that I finished the binding and label on Matilda’s quilt in Coral Bay.
Combo Billabong Ballroom, Where Banjo Waltzed Matilda
GERALDTON unfortunately was only a morning tea stop, I would like to return to see more but everything seemed to be booked out and we didn’t stay. It did appear a lovely interesting place and quite large.
CERVANTES – THE PINNACLES great place to visit. The Pinnacles were very interesting and despite all photos we had seen prior to our visit we discovered that they are NOT on the beach, they are well back from the Indian Ocean Drive (coast road). Could easily be just a sight seeing stop on a journey further rather than staying the night at Cervantes. The drive further south to Perth was beautiful, always changing, gorgeous white sand dunes and then rolling green hills of pasture and forests of magnificent Grass Trees.
These grass trees were gorgeous, I must have a thing for trees, loved the boabs in Derby too.
PERTH suburbia and civilization. Karrinyup Waters Caravan Park where Colleen mentioned our keyless ensuites, a very nice CP and good access to navigating to Perth city and Fremantle. I loved the Bell Tower (if you visit, be there for a serious ringing and experience it from every level you have access to of the 6 levels). Kings Park was also beautiful, the wildflowers were abundant particularly the pink everlastings who we saw with their petals all sparkling and then closed up tight against the rain when we retreated to the giftshop (very expensive but beautiful, I’ll have the Jenny Kee silk scarf/pashmina gorgeous red waratahs and white flannel flowers amongst other aussie natives only $425).
Colleen and John across an expanse of wildflowers in Kings Park.
FREMANTLE I could take it or leave it, but for all the nautical buffs it is very interesting.
BUNBURY / BUSSELTON was a mix up that we stayed in Bunbury not Busselton but turned out to be serendipity; Busselton seems to have just a loooong jetty and very few roads in and out of town while Bunbury is a thriving little metropolis even with storm force winds that I prayed through the night would leave us in one piece.
CAPE LEEUWIN / AUGUSTA / MARGARET RIVER The lighthouse at Cape Leeuwin was gorgeous, the best time to see a light house is when it’s being lashed by stormy seas and wind and that’s exactly what we got when we walked buffetted by the wind from the first lighthouse keepers house up to the lighthouse and then back again. The Jewel Cave was very impressive, huge inside and a real maze of different chambers. Our day trip in this area was a modification on plans to move on to Augusta and then Denmark and we managed to do everything we wanted between showers, it was like the rain stopped and started just for us.
Trying to control my scarf while being buffetted by the beginning of the Roaring Forties, appropriately as I begin MY roaring forties!
ALBANY Albany’s ANZAC history (1st ANZACs left from Albany in 1911, this would have been the last sight of Australia for those who died in Gallipoli, France and the Middle East) and the birth of the dawn service here in 1930 and the continuing traditions and preparations for 2014 centenary of the departure of the ANZACs are very moving. More Albany tomorrow.
Last glimpses for ANZACs of Australian shore. In the foreground you can see the top of the Desert Mounted Corp monument.
WALPOLE / DENMARK Today we headed west again to visit the Tingle Trees and Tree Top Walk, with hopes of wildflowers as well. The wildflowers were a bit of a let down (hoping for more when we head inland). Probably due to those storm winds there was maintenance at the Tree Top Walk so it was partially closed so admission was free to the highest part of the structure some 40m up from the ground. It was breezy and difficult to tell if the trees or the spans and platforms were swaying, I think it was both to tell the truth. The trees are wide but not what I would consider tall after having seen gorgeous trees in Tasmania (which I heard are having their tops lopped! sounds like mining to me!). The Hiltop Road is a ?7km dirt road drive which takes you to Hilltop Lookout and the Giant Tingle Tree; the lookout is spectacular, we watched as the ocean slammed into the southern coast line with amazing plumes of spray even at some considerable distance.
View from Hilltop Road Lookout to the Great Southern Ocean.
Visited the girls at “That Patchwork Place” in Albany, lovely shop, even has a wrought iron bed as one of their displays.
FLOODWAY – this is an interesting sign to start with… this sign represents areas of the road which are subject to flooding, which has been a bit weird considering we have travelled through the remote desert-like terrain of outback Australia (think “I love a sunburnt country”) but there are still FLOODWAY signs to be seen. Thankfully, no floods have been spotted at this time of the year.
PARKING/REST AREA – These signs take on a few different designs (Truck Parking, Rest Area, etc.), but essentially they all mean the same thing… somewhere to take a break along the vast distances that people have to travel through the Aussie outback.
DRIVE ON LEFT – You’d be amazed at how many foreign visitors there are criss-crossing the country in their rented campervans and winnebagos – the majority of them come from places where they are used to driving on the ‘other’ side of the road. These signs provide a friendly reminder for our foreign tourist friends.
GRID – The GRID sign represents a cattle grid across the roadway, designed to keep cattle within certain areas of cattle stations, many of which are very large (thousands of square kilometres in size) and have the main highway running through them. This sign was first spotted just a couple of kilometres north of Port Augusta, and just seem to have continued ever since. But the question is, how far apart have they been?!?!?
STRAY ANIMALS – This is a very important sign as it provides a warning for drivers that cattle &/or wildlife may be straying across the highway… a timely reminder when you consider the roadkill that you see as you drive along. You certainly don’t want to come across a stray bullock or roo at 100km/h, no one would win that exchange.