Surf and wineries…..

Today, we sampled  some of the fine gourmet foods that Western Australia has to offer.

We headed out to Busselton Pier to have a look at that.  The pier is the longest in Australia at 1.8klm long.  They also charge you to walk the full length.  So after a couple of days up and down the stairs from the caves, we opted out.

Chris had scallops for lunch and I had a chicken and bacon terrine.  Both of which were very nice.

We finished that with an ice cream cone.

 

We decided to head back to the Margaret River area and see a winery. 

We were told that the Voyager Estate had a nice garden, so we decided to see that one.  And being the wine connoisseur that I am, I opted for grape juice.  But Chris loves his Merlot, so he chose a nice one.

And the gardens were fabulous.  I love roses and they had them in abundance.  So you’ll see a few flowers and sections of different gardens.

 

 

So we had an early day today.  Col and Margaret headed back into town and we headed back to the van.  Tomorrow is “veg” day.  We’re not planning on “doing” anything.  I think it’s time for that rest day.

Another cave day along the coast of WA

There are over 300 hundred limestone caves along this coastline in Western Australia. (WA)   And thank goodness we only went in to four of them.  Each of the four we went in to, was unique to itself.

Yesterday, we went into Mammoth Cave, so called because of the huge caverns in many sections.  This cave was unique in that it had prehistoric bones found amongst the rubble when the sinkhole or doline, fell in.

As we climbed out of the sinkhole, we could see across the hole, what we THOUGHT was a couple of tree roots that had been sheared off.  But it turned out to be beehives on the wall of the cave.

This particular one was elongated, but the other one (on the slideshow) looked like a root shorn off.  To my surprise, it wasn’t a tree root at all, but a hive.

 

We stopped here for morning tea.  The bees were swarming above us and the birds!,….well, there was so many of them singing.  But you couldn’t see them because the trees were so tall.

We stopped at Gracetown for lunch and it seems that we were in time to witness some dolphins on feeding frenzy for their lunch too.

The last cave for the day was Ngilgi Cave.  This one was the most rustic one as the steps went straight down.  And some of the steps were actual stone carved from what was there.

This part of the cave was noted for great acoustics in the large cavern.  We climbed down further into the cave bending twisting with the large limestone and granite walls.

 

This one known as the “Sheik’s tent” was a very fine display of the ribbon formation or shawl, as it’s called.

 

 

And once we got back out into the fresh air, we made our way back and came across one of the few blooms left for the season.  These banksias, were on display along the pathway.  One of the guides told us that this whole are is an explosion of colour during the month of October and that there’s a 135k walk down the coastline taking in all the wildflowers.  (Maybe another trip…)

Today, I woke up with my muscles aching, but it’s a pleasant ache.  And once they get warmed up again, I’ll be ready to take on the pier at Bussellton.  It’s said to be 1.8klm long,.. straight into Geographe Bay.

Cape n Cave day today…..whew!

Today was a BIG day.

  Our first spot was Cape Leeuwin where the most south western point is, in Australia.  It’s just outside Augusta on the point.  It’s also where the Southern Ocean meets the Indian Ocean.

There are approximately 175 steps UP to the top of the lighthouse. Built in 1895, it is the tallest lighthouse in Australia.  And once we had a good look around, we then headed out to Jewel Cave.

 

 

 

 

But first we stopped at the waterwheel that’s been corroded by the elements, but it’s STILL working!

 

We headed into Jewel Cave which is very comparable to the Carlsbad Caverns in Texas.  We walked down 225 (approx) steps into the cavern.  Stalactites and stalagmites greeted us at every corner.

As you can see here, a taproot from a Karri tree wound it’s way down in to the cave.  Karri trees here can grow up to 90 metres tall.  this taproot is roughly the size of my fist.  There was another taproot down here that was double that thickness.

 

 

 

This picture almost looks like there’s water on the floor of the cave, but it’s an illusion.  There WAS once water here, but it’s all gone now.  Once we made it back up the steps, we raced off to the Lakes Cave before they closed.

THIS cave had 330 steps(approx)down.  It was at this point that I realized that my legs were weakening and that the extra weight  that I was carrying, was not my friend.

 

The Lakes Cave is called that for obvious reasons.  The beauty of this cave is unsurpassed as the reflection of light draws your eyes to some of the most fantastic scenes I’ve yet to witness.

 

These pillars of stalactites and stalagmites are actually SUSPENDED above the water by 12 inches or there-abouts.  The water table has dropped over the years creating these suspended pillars.

 

A colour show from the back of the cave was a lovely touch as the lights came on and off at various spots highlighting different sections of the cave.

 

After stopping five times, and after much ribbing, poking, and prodding by certain people,  I made it up the stairs!!   No more stairs until tomorrow. 

We finalized our day by working out plans for our next day.  We missed Mammoth Cave, so that’s our first port-o-call and then we head north up the coast to Cape Naturaliste.  Until then, I’m off to bed to rest my legs, my back, my hips, my shoulders,……..

Quick trip around Walpole and we’re OFF!

We landed in Walpole late yesterday afternoon.  So we headed in to town to have a look around.  Once again, we’ve found a spot that is awesome in it’s beauty.  There were a couple of inlets created in this area.  The water coming down from the Frankland River meeting up with the Southern Ocean.

There were a few people out and about.  We also had a look at the houses in the area.  Not for us, but for Col and Margaret, whom Chris is trying to get them to buy a place that we can come and visit!  They don’t seem to be responsive to this idea. (hahaha)

And this morning we were up at 5:30am and out the door at 7:45ram.  We covered the WHOLE Walpole area today,

from Conspicuous Cliffs, where there didn’t seem to BE any cliffs

 

 

 

to the Tree Top Walk, which was awesome because of the height of the trees.  Red Tingle trees grow up to 61mtrs.

 

 

 

The Bird park, which for some reason had some fake Dinosaurs and some reptiles.  But it was the birds held our fascination.  Here was Eddie, who LOVED having his head scratched and pulling shoelaces open,

We narrowly missed getting hit by a truck for this shot.  We stopped real quick in the middle of, what we THOUGHT was nowhere, in the middle of the road.  The on-coming truck driver was none too happy with us, as we smiled and he waved the one finger salute.  I guess it wasn’t his day.

  Fernhorn Falls.  Not a lot of water coming down, but it was a nice spot to stop.  And the second truck to come by was MUCH friendlier.

 

 

And we made it to Mandalay Beach late in the afternoon.  Named after a ship that was wrecked off the coast….called…”The Mandalay”

 

We got home at 5:30pm and we’re bushed!!  And tomorrow we head out early to Margaret River area.  And hopefully take a Wine Tour.  But it will be another big day of travelling again.

Leaving Albany, but not the cold weather.

Good Morning!!  We’re leaving Albany today.  Chris’s birthday was a success.  He was woken up by Jen, Scott, and Camille singing “Happy Birthday” on the phone.  Birthday greetings were sent by emails and Facebook and the SECOND chocolate cake was a success after I burnt the first one.  We did a little sight seeing and ended the day with a steak and rib dinner.  What more could a man want for his birthday?

it’s a crisp autumn morning, but the skies are blue.  It was a pretty good trek we took yesterday.  Out to Two People’s National Reserve.  The day had been clear and the water and sky, pristine.

We’re off to Walpole today.  It’s not far.  There, we will see the Valley of the Giants and the large Karri Trees.  Similar in sizes to the Giant Redwoods in northern California, from what I hear.

After our lengthy stay here, we have the hot water system fixed, but the Scout is still making funny noises.  I think the next move is to fix the diff, not the gear box. 

 

And I’ve figured out that the caravan is NOT suited to heavy rains, so we’ll just have to make sure we have sunny climate for the rest of the trip!  (haha, sure Kathy, sure)  All in all, it’s been a nice place.  This IS a spot that I could live, but there are certain QUEENSLANDERS  around here, who are biased.  So living anywhere outside that state, is out of the question.

And who says an old dog can’t learn new tricks.  I’ve learned how to ‘stitch’ photos to make panoramic shots.

Sometimes a panoramic shot is the only way to get see the whole picture.  As you can see, the waters are pristine.  And while this photo looks very tropical and warm, I can indeed tell you,  that we were rugged up in our coats and beanies as the cold breezes kept the skies clear.

Well, the wagon master has called me.  It’s to move. 

Cold and wet in Albany…..

The bad weather finally got here.  The rains poured down and the winds howled.  And poor Col and Chris worked diligently on the Scout all day on one of the COLDEST days we’ve had ( 9 deg. C).  Well, the Scout has been put back together.  It still has a rattle in it, but not as bad as before.  So I guess we’ll wait and see what happens there.  And frozen to the bones,  Chris had finished helping out, he came in and peeled off his work clothes and jacket.  I promptly washed those and then hung them in the caravan.  The place looked like a laundry house last night.

And the plumber man didn’t arrive so I still have a leak in the bathroom.  And with the heavy rains last night, we found a leak in the roof….just above the bed.  This was coming from a vent that was supposedly sealed.  Not too much, mind you, but just enough where if the drip hits you while you’re sleeping, you’d know about it.  And there was a little bit of rain blowing in from one of the roof vents.  Ah, such is caravan life. 

We donned our hats and coats today and braved the cold Antarctic winds to do some sight-seeing.  We stopped in at the Whaling Museum for some lunch…fish and chips of course!  And then we finished our day out with hot cup of Milo in the caravan.

Tomorrow is Chris’s birthday, so I’ve baked a chocolate cake.  Did I say “baked”..I meant “burnt”.  I’ll just have to smother it in chocolate frosting and he’ll never know.  How do you NOT make a decent cake with a cake MIX for goodness sake?!!  My excuse?.. I’m still getting the knack of using this oven.  At least he’ll have lots of presents and hopefully the cake won’t be too dry.

Winter is here!!!

Welcome Winter!!!  We woke up this morning to 4 deg. Celcius this morning.  The rains are here, but still not much wind.  I love these seasonal rains.  It happens in the Spring too, but instead of going colder, it gets warmer.  I, for one, though, LOVE winter.  The sharp crispness in the air, the clarity of the sky, and all the brown leaves on the ground.  No snow, but sure feels like there SHOULD be.

And it seems to have effected Chris too.  After a long night’s sleep, he woke up with Christmas thoughts, jumping on the bed, yelling “Wake Up!!  Santa’s been here!!!”  The cold morning must have brought back some childhood memories.

Today, we hope to receive the long awaited part for Col’s Scout.  And hopefully, that will fix the problem.  Col says he’s not sure if it’s the transfer case or the gear box. (huh?!) I guess we’ll find out.  In the meantime, Mr. Plumber has one more job to do.  There’s some water leaking from the tap in the bathroom.  So Chris will don his “Plumber’s” hat and see if he can fix that.  And, we also have the dining room table to fix.  It’s a bit wobbly.  Of course, because BOTH of us lean on it to get up, it’s no wonder it’s wobbly.

So, while the boys are fixing up the Scout and van,…I might be able to sneak away with Margaret to do some long awaited “girl” shopping.  She hasn’t had her turn to do that yet, and I certainly don’t mind going again!  Might even find a couple of winter bargains.

Repairs in Albany…

We landed into Albany a couple of days ago.  And while we’ve been here, we’ve been trying to organize repairs.  Funny, how things just fall apart like that.  Our hot water system took a dive.  It was leaking water and the heater wasn’t working.  Chris has now fixed that and we’ll have HOT showers this morning. Yeah!

Col’s Scout too, has a problem.  He’s pulled his transfer case apart and is waiting on a part to be sent.  So the poor ol’ Scout is up on the blocks, waiting.  And yesterday while Margaret was working out how to transfer her photos across to her external hard drive, it too, wouldn’t work.  So that will have to have a computer “guru’s” touch.

And we’ve stocked up, washed up, and  now we’re waiting.  No sight seeing for the moment.  So rest is the requirement for the last couple of days.

And I laugh because we were expecting torrential rains and winds, and so far, we’ve had a spit of rain and no winds.  Especially since Brisbane and the Gold Coast are getting deluges and flooding, by the reports in the news.  We’ve been very fortunate with the weather during our trip. (knock on wood!!!)

In the meantime, we’ll potsy around here for a little while longer.  I could not think of a better place to land.  Albany is beautiful.  For me, it’s got everything.  A cool climate, trees that turn colour in the Fall, and it’s right on the ocean! 

Anyway, once we start sight-seeing again, the pictures will start coming.  I might even throw a fishing line in while we wait.

Ready to give up?

Someone asked me if we were getting homesick and tired of travelling.  The answer is no.  Not yet.  Yes, we ARE getting tired, but not from too much sight seeing or travelling.

There is a point where there’s just so much to look at, that you become numb to it.  At that point, you need to stop and refresh.  You just need to do something domestic, like read a book, do some shopping, just be by yourself for a few minutes and not ‘DO’ anything.

I HAVE been at that point, many times.  And by the next day, I’m ready to travel again.  As time goes by, it gets less and less too.  Mostly it’s because, I can now see the end of our trip coming up.  We have 5 months left.

I think the hardest part of travelling extensively like this is being so closely together.  Chris and I both are very independent people.  We both like to do our own thing.  So when we’re thrown together so tightly, it can become a little claustrophobic.  And when we start sniping at each other, it’s time for a little separation.  He goes one way and I go the other, just so we can have that time to ourselves.  Usually, having a whole day to ourselves, works wonders.  But for the most part, we do enjoy each other’s company very much.

Travelling does wear a body out, so you just need to make sure you have plenty of rest and eat right.  I’ve figured that out the hard way.

The best part about travelling is seeing everything with the one you love.   The freedom of movement, of doing, of seeing all that Australia IS.  The beauty of the land in all of it’s harshness.  The knowledge of the hardships that our ancestors had to bear.  The sheer size of this place and the remoteness of it all.  And we have the pictures of all the things we’ve seen, so we can look back at it again and remember.   This is a once in a lifetime trip and it’s been wonderful.

Today, we ventured out into Fitzgerald Ranges.  All the best pictures are on the slideshow.  The flora here is fabulous and it’s only Autumn.  Spring here, would be a festival of colour. 

And we also came across some dolphins having a feast on fish or squid in a very remote inlet called Quoin Beach.  We watched them for a few minutes riding the waves and circling around the little bay.

It’s been a very pleasant day cruising through the National Park and along the coast.  Tomorrow we’re headed up north to Hyden where there’s a monolith called Wave Rock.  We’ll stay there overnight and head back down into Western Australia’s wine country.

Am I getting tired of travelling?  No.  Am I getting homesick? A little.  Mostly, I miss my children, my grandchild, and my dogs.  But the caravan is our home for a few more months and I’m sure the house will seem like a castle to us, when we eventually get there.

In the meantime, we’ve got five more months of travelling left, so let’s enjoy it while we can.

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First day in Esperance…..

Our first day in Esperance, and we just lounged around for several hours in the morning, making it feel like a Sunday morn.  We finally decided that it was best to make a move and have a look around the town and it’s environs.

The overcast day doesn’t make it very eventful, but even the beauty of the Southern Ocean and Twilight Bay couldn’t be disguised by the shadows of the clouds.

As we headed out to the lookout to see the islands in the bay, everybody fell in love with Esperance yesterday.  Tall Norfolk pine trees lined the streets of the town.  Towering over the small one storey structures.

We took the Tourist Loop out to the bays and beaches and the sun peaked through the clouds giving us more of an idea of how idyllic this place is. 

And even though there are wonderful beaches and bays, we hear tales of massive sharks off the coast of Western Australia, who are aggressively attacking boats.  These surfers though, don’t seem to worry about such stuff.  We watched them catch the rip tide out to the waves, and then surf back in to shore.  It was amazing to watch them catching those rip tides.

The sun peaked out just enough to show the true colours of the granite and the colour of the water.

 

 

 

Out to Observatory Point, you can see islands throughout the bays.

 

 

 

We watched the sun set over Pink Lake.  It’s a salt water lake that has a pink hue to it due to the algae growing in it.

 

 

And we finished off our day at the local pub for a Birthday celebration meal for Col.  And today….well, we’re off to climb mountains….well, namely ONE in particular.  Frenchman’s Peak.  We could see it from the lookout on this side of the bay.  Now,… we’re heading to OTHER side of the bay.

Leaving Kalgoorlie behind…

We’re leaving Kalgoorlie tomorrow.  This has been an interesting town.  Gold was originally founded by Paddy Hannan and from there a town was born.  Similar to the Californian Gold Rush, the miners came in and then the town formed up around the tents and tin huts.  Pubs, hotels, and brothels being the first buildings built in the area.

Unknown to many, the early president Herbert Hoover, hired by a mining company as a geologist scoured Western Australia for various spots to mine.  He advised buying up mining leases and hired on cheap migrant labour that were not part of the union to mine the gold, and it ended up surpassing their highest expectations of finding gold.

And because water was such a rare resource.  One of the government officials took it upon himself to bring water in from Perth via a duct.  So Kalgoorlie, is the only gold mine field that actually has water as a resource for the town itself.  And the water reservoir was finished in 1903.  No small feat for that period.

And today, we have the “Super Pit”.  It’s 1.2 kilometres wide and 3.6 kilometres long.  It’s expected to reach 500 metres deep.  The average truck load bringing up roughly 400 to 500 grams of gold.  The pictures I took, cannot begin to explain the depth and breadth of the hole left in the ground from mining.  The trucks run 24/7.  And they’re by no means small as you can see.

We’ve had a very relaxing time here in Kalgoorlie.  Col’s Scout had a problem with the starter key and cylinder.  And much to his chagrin, Chris has been chiding him about the Scout falling apart.  After Chris copped so much flak about the Toyota at the Scout Meeting, it’s now Col’s turn. 

We’ve met some very colourful characters here in Kalgoorlie.  And if you’re ever in Boulder, stop in at the candy shop.  That charming couple are part time prospectors themselves, but they’re looking to make it fulltime when they can sell up.

We also caught up with the New Zealand couple and their bus “Hobohome”.  Chris has been following their blog for the past three years.  They were just getting ready to tour the local brothel.  Also, as we had travelled through the Nullabour, one gent told Chris to “stay away” from Hay St. and then when he got to Norseman, another old gent (in his 80’s) told Chris to stop in at the Red House and see Stella.  And to tell her “Vic sent him”.  Stella (apparently) will show him a really good time!  Me on the other hand, well, I could buy a cup of coffee, cause he wasn’t going to be long.

But all in all, it’s definitely worth a stopover to have a look at the historical aspects.

We made the last leg of the Nullabour.

We landed in Norseman late this afternoon.  Margaret and I both scrambled to find the best spot for reception so we could get our emails and to do uploads and downloads from the computers.  We nearly ended up standing on the overloaded garbage bins looking very much like the old days with the “rabbit ears” antennae.  (“THERE!,..just stop there, hold it,..you MOVED!” as one hand is in the air and the other holding the computer.)   But we found that if we stood at the back of the van, we could get reception, weak as it was. 

We made it.  Yesterday, we left with the intention of getting here to Norseman, but we took a “ side” trip to an old telegraph station, which has now been converted to a Bird Observatory.  That SHOULD have only been a short jaunt, but 4 hours later, we were bouncing along the rocky and rutted road with vans in tow.  So,  then we  had to stop in for petrol and air, and we ended up stopping for the night a bit early.

And after 20,000 klms, Chris decided that it must be my turn to drive.  Funny that it just happened to be the LONGEST straight road in Australia. 146.6 klms to be exact.  No bends, no hills, no petrol stations, just go….and go….and go.  And Col says I should drive more often because we got such GOOD mileage!!  So that was my introduction to pulling a caravan.

This morning we’re off to Kalgoorlie, home to a large contingent of gold miners.  Similar to the famous Californian Gold Rush days, the town is famous not only for it’s gold, but  for it’s saloons and bordellos.  And I’ve now been informed that we’ll restock there.

Please enjoy the pictures from the Nullabour which is now on SLIDESHOW on the right hand side.

Crossing the Nullabour

We’ve crossed the Nullabour Plains in the last two days.  There’s miles and miles of scrub with the occasional lookout to the Great Southern Ocean.  The vastness is overwhelming, with straight stretches of road that seemingly run as far as the eye can see.  And there’s the  180' degree views of the Great Southern Ocean and the rocky cliffs.

And Aussies, known for their sense of humour, we found the “bottle” tree, the “kettle” tree, the “hat” tree, the “knickers” tree, the “bra” tree, the “shoe” tree, and a new one started, …the “flag” tree. 

We came across carrion, that the crows and eagles were fighting over.  yes,…it’s pretty bad when the carrion is the ONLY thing that’s different to see.  And there were many many trucks, and almost as many caravans making their own way across the Nullabour, just like ourselves. 

And the  good news is….  we’ve crossed in to Western Australia….FINALLY!  We’re finally here.  And after dumping our fresh food at the border of South Australia, it’s only another 700 klms to go before you come to a town.  There’s a few petrol stops along the way, but not a full township.

Our stopover tonight is at Madura.  It overlooks the plains.  (The wind is whistling in through the window as I write this.)  It’s also the halfway point to the next town.  Norseman. (another 350 klms)  There, we’ll fuel up and restock the fridge.  We’re out of reception here until we hit the next town, so there will probably be two blog postings.

As we drove across the Nullabour, it makes you appreciate having a car to drive, as you contemplate how those early colonists survived these harsh environments.  Travelling for DAYS, even months to get to the nearest town.  And water so scarce. 

We stopped into Eucla, which is just on the border.  Noted for the telegraph station that was situated down along the beach front.  Sand is now banked up to the roof, which is no longer there.  Remnants of a pier that has now become a roosting stop for the local sea birds,  shows how those who worked for the telegraph office received their supplies.  So remote, like the many spots that dot this rugged coastline all along the Southern Ocean and Bass Strait.

And we also dropped back 2 hours.  So while my stomach is telling me it’s dinner time, the clock is telling me it’s afternoon tea time.  It might be early to bed tonight.