31st August. Exmouth

We have been having an enjoyable few days. A real variety of experiences.

Monday dawned fine & sunny & has remained so since then.

We left our details and the $20 requested in the box provided, filled up with water, used the 'Grey & Black' dump (unusual o have grey dump!)

This tower was opposite our sight and at night it was lit with multi coloured lights, very impressed.

Driving out of Port Headland we drive past the salt piles (blurred because we couldn't stop)

2 hours along the way we stopped for a coffee in Roebourne, outside a nursery & appreciated the flowers.

We stop and have our dinner about 1pm, Brian has a short snooze & then drive on until about 4pm. We hadn't found a camp site when Brian spotted a caravan off to the side. We did a U turn, asked if they were staying the night & ended up joining them in this roadworks gravel storage area. Nice & clean & level. They had a campfire & asked us to join them. This was our fist true non designated camping, & proved to be perfect. It was10k from Nanudurra.

Tuesday was about 378k to Exmouth, great road, very barren due to this area being one of the driest places in Australia. We parked at the Tourist Information Centre and cooked our dinner there! Having dinner at midday is something we have started, & it's working quite well. Brian has a short nap while I clean up then on to our next spot.

We are at The Lighthouse Caravan Park 17k north of Exmouth. It's big, and good. One draw back is that the tap water is not drinkable & should not be put into our van tanks. Lucky we were fully loaded with water and can use the camp showers. They do have drinking water in huge decelinated tanks. 

We are top left , second row. This was taken from the lighthouse which was built about 1912 after the SS Mildura ran aground. It was carrying cattle around the coast, no human loss of life but the cattle didn't fare so well.

The wreck is still very visible.

The managers house here, was the lighthouse keepers house, so they are very proud of it.

Yesterday was the first time we have seen sheep for months, there have been cattle but very sparse. The properties are huge, don't even see homesteads they are so far in from any roads. There are some which advertise that they will allow camping, some promote it, and others you must seek permission to go on their land. 

Today Brian climbed up to the Lighthouse while I prepared dinner & did a small hand wash, at least I could use my washing machine to spin it out. I will use the camp machine before we leave on Sunday morning. (Jan, $3) We drove up to the Lighthouse and it was most interesting. The Ningaloo Reef is Heritage Listed, out beyond the reef are oil rigs and also the whales are now heading south with their young. There was quite a bit of WW11 history, American & Australian forces here in small number as it was a lookout for the a Japanese invasion. One Americian said " Look for a town in the furtherest place you can go, where there is nothing, for hundreds of miles, and send us there....to say nothing of the heat and cyclones!" He was VERY impressed.

There is also a tower that is the second highest man made tower in the Southern Hemisphere There are 5 towers that make up the VLF Towers (Very Low Frequency Towers) built in 1963 for American Nuclear Submarines.

They are so 'thin' they don't show up in the photo.

Back to the van for a beautiful pork chop dinner with salad, coleslaw & mashed potatoes. Golly life is tuff.

We plan to go up again to watch to sun set.

The Town of Exmouth was to have been built around the lighthouse, but because there was no water the Town had to be built 17k away. Water used to be hauled up here by a Clydesdale on a little rail track that is now the roadway. 

28th August. Port Headland. ☔️☔️☔️☔️☔️

Well,well,well, it's rained and our caravan didn't melt! It's the first time it's been rained upon.

We are at the Racecourse camping ground. $10 per night for up to 3 nights. Water and dump site, that's all. The Racecourse is grass but the camping area is red dust

Our van shows the result of dusty roads.

The 578k drive was easy, not really anything to see unless you took off and went to the coast with its 80 mile beach (that's for another year). We stopped at a roadhouse and had our Dinner in the van, Brian had a 15 min sleep and off we went again.

Driving into the Port we were stopped due to an accident, one vehicle looked as if it had rolled & the other we saw towed away with right front crumpled, horrible. Just hope nobody was hurt. There are great areas of salt and mountains of salt. It is Rio Tinto Salt. On then to BHP Iron with thousands of rail wagons . We had a quiet night, about 20+ caravans on site.

This morning as we were having breakfast there was a strange sound 💦💦💦💦 yes rain drops, the first we have seen. Golly did it rain. Brian had a Dr appointment for some skin sun damage on his cheeks & I needed more scripts. A very nice Dr, bulk billing & 500 metres away from our van! All is well, a script for some cream and see Dr when we get home.

We drove around the wharf area where they were loading Salt and Iron Ore (not in the same boats) the salt trucks were busy on the road and crossing the weigh stations. It's the highest tonnage port in Australia servicing the mines of WA.

We couldn't really appreciate the esplanade due to the rain, it's very much a port with a moving population. 14,000 including the satellite town of South Headland 18k south. We went there just to see it & it was nicer because it was a town rather than a port. Still it rained.

I had hoped it would clean the van, but it's done a poor job of it

Tomorrow is forecast sun with some cloud & we are heading south west taking 2 days to get to 'Lighthouse Caravan Park, Exmouth' were we have booked for 5 nights.

Trip planning is quite something!!!!

25th August. Quondong Point/Roebuck Plains Roadhouse

Well, at last it has come to pass that the Lantzs have at last picked up their roots and moved on.

We have loved Quondong Point especially as we have had lovely company and met some very interesting people, had a perfect ocean side site with Whales heading north every day. I kept my Fathers binoculars all these years( he died 1962!) we have hardly every used them until this trip. Being able to watch the whales doing their gymnastics is so amazing. 

We have enjoyed playing Rummikub over the last 2 weeks every evening , 4.30 to 6.30 with our neighbours from Phillip Is. Something new for us and we have loved it. One night we had a visitor, a moth about 3 inches long.

Yesterday we said farewell and have both started on the trek home.

The turn off from Quondong/Cape Leveque road onto the main highway, is very interesting.

And a point for everyone to dump their garbage. A great service.

We only came about 45k so we could recharge batteries, wash the salt off the car, and catch up with washing.  We are at the Roadhouse Caravan park on the corner that leads us to Port Headland. We leave here Saturday for the 550k drive there. Today was a trip into Broom to restock the Van, hair cut, and pharmacy supplies. I have made a big spaghetti bolognese & am packing it into meal lots & taking it to the Roadhouse where they will fast freeze it for me. How's that?

We hardly recognise our car, it's back to Fjord Blue instead of Australian Red Dust! It was a rewarding job, cleaning it with hose, cloth a polish cloth as well as Lantz elbow grease!

Having running water is a luxury we are enjoying for these 3 days and then it's back to severe water restrictions as we again go Free camping.

19th August. Broom & Quondong Point

Our trip to "The BigSmoke" yesterday had a couple of extra highlights:

1. Most of the road had been graded and the corrugations flattened, wow, we were able to drive at 90k & enjoy it.

2. Not everyone enjoyed it.....as we got to the T junction of Quondong & Cape Leveque Roads, there was a CombieVan on the far bank. It had been rolled and all the doors were open and contents scattered around. There was a grey haired man sitting on a chair beside it. We wound down our window and said "This is a sorry site". His reply " it's not mine, I have lent the guy my car so he could go to where he could get phone reception!" We hope he treats that car better than his own. It was supposed that he didn't realise that it was a T intersection, hit the brakes and spun in the sand. Sorry , I don't have a sequel.......everything had gone when we came home at 2.30. What a generous, trusting man that was. May he be rewarded for his kindnesses.

These are the roads we travel:

Where we had just come from.

Where were going, Home is at the end and through the sand dunes.

 

And this is one of the 'runoffs'

In some places the places, the side of the road can be 2 metres high, most are only 1 metre. In the wet season, these roads must be rivers, what a mess. It's like driving in a U shape.

Last night a young couple parked by us, they had a 4WD with a tent attached to the top. It was fine over night but this morning we had a VERY STRONG WIND. Brian offered to help, for which they were grateful but declined & said they would ask for help if they needed it. Wow, it was amazing to watch how it folded down to such a neat package. It's only for the young, slim, very fit people. They had to climb on the tail gate, hang on for dear life as the wind fought them, climb & tie everything down. They came and said thanks for the offer & admitted that today had really tested them. Good to watch from within our luxury Van.

This morning Brian saw a 1 metre sea snake that had been washed up on the sand, a guy was trying to get it back into the sea but had to give up!

Please enjoy this, I have written all this twice, because there was not Internet connection this morning , I lost it all 😠😪😠😪😠😪😠

Now I will try again a hope to 😃😃😃😃😃

16th August. Quondong Point, still!

Hi there world, no we haven't been swallowed by a whale, drowned in this beautiful tourquise ocean, buried under red dust or lost in the sand dunes. We have just been enjoying this very lay back life of sun, breeze, ocean & whale watching & reading.

The Olympics are on every night as that's the only time we turn on the TV (oh, sorry.......it was on all weekend for the football, AFL NATURALLY.)

Our next door neighbors have a Rummy King game and they have taught us, so every afternoon about 4.30 we gather around their table and play until dark, sometimes after dark. We are really enjoying it and the company. We get quite excited at times!!!

Some of the 'long termers' have left for home which tells us it is coming to the end of the season up here. We have noted that particularly the evenings have become quite humid. The nights have been great for sleeping........no problem in that area.

One more week here, then we start our over 5000k trip home. 

10th August. North of Broome

Brian was walking on the beach this morning and contemplating life......

Over lunch we shared these statistics-:

Brian,

Lived in England 2 & 1/2 years

Canada 26 & 1/2 years

Germany 7 & 1/2 years

Egypt 1/2 year

Australia 37 years

Rosemary,

New Zealand 32 years

England 1 & 1/2 years

Norway 4 months

Germany 3 years

Canada 4 & 1/2 years

Australia 37 years

Midday meal has become the thing while we are stationery, today's pork chops on the weber, with sparkling potatoes, salad & coleslaw......have I said before that life is good?

To day Brian became "A knight in shining armour", a young couple drove in and then drove down onto the beach.....the first we knew was this young man at at van asking for 'HELP' 

We had borrowed Jamie's 'Snatch Rope' so it was put to use because they were bogged. Fred had 4WD Shackles, so between them they dug then towed them out. THEY HAD TO CATCH A FLIGHT TO PERTH AT 6pm!!!

Tomorrow we will buy Shackes for ourselves, This was the first time Fred's had been used!

I was on the phone to Beryl so missed it all but Minika kindly took photos so I can share the drama.

This is Brian in the green singlet & our car having to tow backwards.

Quite exciting.

Tomorrow is our weekly trip to Broome, getting to know our way around it by now.

We had Census papers hand delivered yesterday so we won't have to pay any fines! Also we had phoned the 1300 number and reported we were 5,000k away from Unit 44.......they had no record of it!!! However it is recorded that we have connected them. Now we have dealt with the 2016 Census twice!

8th August. Quondong Point

Oh dear, tomorrow is Census Day. Can't get through to the 1300 number, surprise,surprise! We will keep trying as it's the only way. Funny that we can vote in the Federal Election anywhere in the country but to fill in a Census form.....oh no, let's make it very difficult or nearly impossible.

I forgot to show my lovely Mango Smoothie 

Yesterday we said farewell to our neighbours (originally from NZ) & it was as if a message went out.....There is space!, 1 van was here waiting for their spot & 4 more came in. 2 families from Victoria each with 2 children. One of the Mum's is a Teacher on long service so she is still 'working'.

We have had no change for 2 weeks and now we are a regular caravan park.

That's us on the left & there is another one to our left that I couldn't get in The picture.

I had my back to the ocean to take that then turned to my right and took this

You can actually drive down to that beach but must be prepared to use aids to get back. The parked vehicles are regulars, they are camped here and go fishing in their tiniest every day.

Today I had 'Bass' cooked in tinfoil on the weber, it was beautiful. That's the 3rd lot we have been given. I like it cooked that way but Brian only wants his in batter, so he misses out. I'm not doing that in the caravan.

This morning was cloudy & high of 29, same tomorrow then back to full sunshine! Golly it's hard to take. I made cards this morning. Nice to do on a Monday along with my Melbourne girlfriends. Now I can go back to my book "Kimberley Sun" by Di Morrissey. Nearly finished it, good to read while in the actual setting of the story.

6th August, sky still blue, ocean turquoise, happiness.

I have just been watching a whale which appeared to be playing on a trampoline, right out of the ocean, a flip, then an almighty splash, it put on a true Olympic display. The local fishermen have just returned and gave us some fish.....no don't ask what sort, I don't know. Fred next door was given some also and he knows how to fillet them, so......I watched! My knife is not sharp enough. The last ones we were given I cooked in tinfoil with seasoning, butter a round of sliced orange ( didn't have any lemon!). It was cooked on the campfire. I enjoyed it but Brian says not again. He likes his in batter with chips. I now have one in the freezer for myself another day.

The new moon has come out of the ocean the last 2 nights in the shape of a 'U' , it's holding the water, so we don't expect rain this month. (So I've been told)

Our trip to the 'big smoke' was Thursday this week, laundromat, Bunnings for water, with others water containers we ended up carrying 160lt water as well as half a dozen bottles of Tonic Water. We collected our 2 horsepower air compressor for our tyres, that Brian ordered from Sydney, so we don't have to borrow from the neighbors as we travel between sand & highways. The Postal system is working very well for parcels. The Broome PO has a whole big seperate department to handle Mail & Parcel pickup. It shows what the tourist trade does for the PO up here.

No stop at the RSL, because I had requested a 'Mango Smoothie ' for my lunch, it was stunning. When the waitress came to clear our table, I said that there had been a problem with my smoothie! 'There was a hole in the bottom of the class'!........She picked up the glass and looked in it......then she woke up.........'You are kidding me?' Poor girl, I shouldn't tease.

A visit to the Telstra shop sorted out a query for me, Coles provided a new fitted sheet as Target didn't have ANY FITTED DOUBLE AT ALL!.. Coles was cheaper anyway! mind you I got what I paid for.

On the 45 minute  dusty drive home, I said to Brian, Why didn't we bring our water bottles, I'm thirsty? ......at least one of us has a brain! Brian stopped the car, got a 1.25lt bottle out of the boot/trunk & we just 'downed' it.

The Weber is working beautifully, a lovely roast of pork yesterday & the spuds were wonderful.

Fred has just thrown the fish scraps out on the sand....wow.....did the seagulls go wild, great excitement on the shoreline.

As you may have guessed, life is much the same, chatting, reading, campfire, TV at night & FOOTBALL whenever it's on!!! No boredom, life is wonderful.