The story continues....
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The story continues.... |
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ELLISTON - STREAKY BAY - NULLABOR CROSSING - NORSEMAN - KALGOORLIE W.A.
28/05/2006 Day 11.
We left Elliston about 9:00am and headed north to Streaky Bay. On the way we stopped in at Venus Bay to see what all the hype about the place that we had heard was all about. Venus Bay is a small tranquel fishing village that would be ideal for a sea change life or retirement. The waters are calm and full of fish by the sound of it. We drove in and drove out 5 minutes later. Any longer and we would never have left the place it was so inviting....! We continued on to Streaky Bay and arrived about 11am just in time for a coffee and some brunch with fellow travellers that we had met a couple of days before, John and Peg , towing the little Mira behind the Coaster. They had been free camping with another Winnabago couple on the rest areas outside town. We had to top up the tea bags jar so we found a small supermarket in town and bought some.
We bid farewell about midday and continued our journey along the Flinders Highway towards Ceduna. Because it was Sunday, there weren't too many shops open in Ceduna so we thought what the heck ,we'll keep on going towards Nundroo and look for a rest area to free camp for the night. We found one about 10 kms before Nundroo (Cmp3 # 653)and set up the camp. Geraldine prepared the evening meal and I put the Sat TV up. Only took 10 minutes this time. It is now 8:15pm and the gennie has been running since 5pm. Bet you it runs out of petrol just as the good part on TV comes on..... Just after dark another van rolled in to the area and set up for the night. A SA couple on their way back to Adelaide from Mundrabilla in WA where they had been for several weeks fishing andvisiting relatives.
Tomorrow is an important day.......my birthday.... Happy 57th.... As we left Ceduna we got a call from Geraldine's mum on the mobile wishing me a happy birthday for tomorrow. This was followed shortly after by Christine.. our youngest daughter in Darwin.
Tomorrow we will continue on to the SA/WA border and free camp again somewhere.
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29/05/2006 Day 12.
The day began very cold and foggy. I was awake half the night because I kept hearing things like a car driving in after midnight and trucks driving past all night long. We were only about 50m from the highway. Geraldine didn't hear a thing as usual. The car left early in the morning before sunrise.
After a early morning chat with the neighbours we headed to Nundroo to top up with fuel before heading across the Nullabor. By lunch time we had reached the 'Head of the Bight' where you can go and check out the whales that come between June and October. We were a little early seeing it was still May but there were a couple of Southern Right whales close in to the Bunda Cliffs that were frolicking around. We saw a female and her calf and a couple of males doing vertical standing on their heads in the water with tails sticking out. The Bunda Cliffs were very steep and high. They range in height between 40-100m above the water. After lunch we continued on through Nullabor and Yalata until we reached a number of viewing points just off the highway where we stopped to look at the scenery and take photos.
Late in the afternoon, about 4pm we pulled into a rest area 25kms from the Border Village (Cmp3 #669) and set up camp again for the night. This time we parked at least 100m from the highway so the noise should not be that bad. Tomorrow if I get a chance at the village I will send off the emails that are accumulating. Then we will head for Cocklebiddy for the next camp. At this rate we should be in Kalgoorlie by Thursday afternoon.
Happy Birthday.....Alby!
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30/05/2006 Day 13.
When we woke up at about 7:20am it was cloudy and it had started to rain a little. We packed up after breakfast and made our way to the SA/WA border which was only 25kms away. At the border we bought some more bread ($4.50) and then went through the quarantine station. The quarantine inspector checked the boot and the van for fresh fruit and vegetables. As we had either used up the fruit or thrown it out at the bin there were no problems and we were allowed entry into the land of sandgropers.
To give you an idea about the cost of petrol over the Nullabor, we got to Eucla where we fuelled up ($1.53ltr) and then continued through to Mundrabilla $1.53ltr, Madura $1.75ltr, Cocklebiddy $1.75.9ltr and Caiguna $1.73ltr. We had to refuel again at Caiguna so that one was expensive ($103).
The trip today was long and tiring. We drove out of Eucla and through the Eucla Pass off the Hampton Tablelands and then across some more Nullabor Plains, although there were plenty of trees about so I don't know why it is still called the Nullabor (Null=nil arbor= trees). Then as you pass through Madura you climb the Madura Pass on to the tablelands again before crossing a lot of undulating land. Outside Caiguna you enter a stretch of road that is continuously straight for 146.5kms. We managed to get to a rest area (Cmp3 # 16) about half way across before calling it a day and camping out with a group of other vanners who had the same idea. Tomorrow we continue to Balladonia and Norseman. We are running low on water in the tank so if we can last till Norseman I have been told we can fill up outside the Tourist Info park. When we arrived at the campsite an older couple offered us a cup of tea which was a way of introducing themselves to us. We had a pleasant conversation and discussed petrol prices and all the other things pensioners talk about. This was their 25th time across the Nullabor. They are heading towards Cooktown, Qld.
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31/05/2006 Day 14.
Today we left the campsite around 8:45am, a bit earlier then usual probably due to the time difference which has effected our sleep pattern. That should peter out over the next couple of days. We continued along the straightest stretch of the Eyre Highway towards Balladonia(146kms long without a bend). There were signs that indicated that there were road works ahead. We stopped at Balladonia for coffee. We had run out of water in the van last night so we bought a 4ltr bottle of fresh water as well to see us through till we got to Norseman.... (Note* must get jerry can for extra water in Kalgoorlie.)
After Balladonia the scenery changed from the empty plains of the Nullabor to heavier natural bushland. The road works was just outside the Balladonia road house and went for about 20 kms where the speed was limited to 60 kph. We actually saw a WA police highway patrol working along the road pulling over the heavy semis and road trains which were heading east, probably checking driver logs to make sure they were taking their breaks. It's funny what people will do to amuse themselves when they are on those long drives across the country. We came across a tree that had been covered in bottles by successive people who passed it by.
We reached Norseman after lunch and headed straight for the Tourist Information booth and day parking area for caravans. We knew from reports we had got along the trip that we could get fresh water and have hot showers for free. After our first shower in 4 days we were refreshed and ready for another night out in the bush. We fuelled up at the Shell petrol station (reputed to be the cheapest in town @ $1.46.5pltr) and then made our way to the campsite at Lake Cowan Rest Area (Cmp3 # 310) about 15kms from town. We found a nice spot about 200m from the highway protected by natural bushland.
Tomorrow we reach Kalgoorlie and will set up at the daughter's home for 2 weeks. So far the trip has taken us 15 days.
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01-06-2006 Day 15.
We were by ourselves in the rest area all night. No-one else was inclined to join us. The setting was heavy bushland and we were at least 200m from the highway which was good because it reduced the amount of traffic noise, not that there was much about anyway. As usual the daylight at dawn woke us up so we were back on the road by 9am. We only had 166kms to go today to get to Kalgoorlie so we took our time. There was some roadwork again just before the Kambalda turnoff but after that it was smooth driving all the way. We stopped for coffee at the Gidglemooltha roadhouse. Gidglemooltha's claim to fame was the 'Golden Eagle nugget' weighing 1135ozs that was found by some prospectors in 1932. The township has now been abandoned having been overtaken by the bigger gold mining towns of Kalgoorlie and Coolgardie.
We arrived in Kalgoorlie about midday, and because the family were either still working or at school we went into the town centre and did a bit of shopping and looked for an Internet cafe so that I could check email and send some off. We also bought a couple of jerry cans that I will add to the rear bumper bar for extra water and fuel for the generator. We won't run out of water again in a hurry.
Our daughter arrived home about 4.30pm and after greetings we set up the van in their backyard for the next 2 weeks.
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Visitors since 19th Sept. 2006
