Damned Downpours and Darling Dolphins

Well dear readers, when last I left you, we were in the middle of a storm.... and what a storm it was - raging all night! I was kind of enjoying it in the early part of the night - lying on the floor of my tent in my swag watching the tent billow and buffet around me. Then it got stronger! And the tent was blowing right down flat onto my face before standing up again. Then I heard a zzzzzzzzzzt and the zip flew open on my tent window and it started flapping wildly in the wind. I got up to zip it up and bang in some more heavy duty sand pegs. Mum and Dad also got up as the awning to the caravan was in danger of being ripped off. We managed to get the awning in (and got VERY wet) and then when I went to get back to bed, I found my tent had finally collapsed. I pulled my bedding out and shoved it on the caravan floor and then went off to the loo. When I came back mum and dad had started to pull my tent down.

Eventually I tramped off to the back of Fred where I curled up with a pillow and sleeping bag and slept for the rest of the night.This morning we woke up and Nic, John and I took off for Monkey Mia to see the dolphins. Mum and Dad followed a little later (we were all needing just a wee bit of space as our moods reflected the poor night's sleep just a little).

We arrived at Monkey Mia to find the dolphins had just come into the beach for their first feed of the morning. We stood on the beach, absolutely entranced as the dolphins swam backwards and forwards right in front of us. Occasionally they stopped and looked up at us - wonderful stuff. Nic and I competed for the "most prolific photographer" award - I thought I had won today - but Nic still managed to outdo me with at least a gazillion photos!

The pelicans weren't half bad either!When the dolphins came back for their second feed, Nic, Uncle John and I all got picked to feed them. It was wonderful to have such a close encounter with these extraordinary creatures.

Mum and Dad turned up for the final feeding of the dolphins for the day and then we mosied over to the restaurant for breakfast. We enjoyed a relaxed meal looking out over the beautiful beach.After this we went and looked at the interpretive display and watched a film. Then, after a short cuppa, Mum and Dad headed back to the campsite whilst Uncle John, Nic and I went out for an afternoon on the Shotover - a beautiful ocean racing catamaran. Nic and I got to be the grinders to help wind out the sail (I am sure there is a more technical term for what we did - but I wouldn't have a clue). Anyway for just a moment I got to pretend I was one of those brave and superfit people who go out on the Sydney to Hobart doing really tough looking things on expensive boats!Paddy thought the whole sailing thing was a bit of a hoot too!We had a wonderful afternoon sailing around over the seagrass meadows and, whilst we didn't sea a lot of wildlife (other than some dolphins and a sea eagle), it was a wonderful afternoon.Finally we headed back to camp at Denham. We managed to catch a gorgeous sunset on the way back. Thanks to Nic for some of the photos on today's blog - the good ones are hers!

Tonight I will sleep in the car again - the swag is damp and it isn't worth putting the tent up for one night and risking the weather again.

Finally, a word on the beautiful word 'beautiful'. Nic tells me she thinks I may have used this beautiful word just a little too often. She even offered to find me a thesaurus list of words to replace beautiful. So from now on I am trying really hard not to use the word 'beautiful' in this blog (even though it is a beautiful word) - so if one does manage to sneak in here and there, please forgive me.... I am doing my best - it's just that everything is so damned..... beautiful!

Kalbarri Gorge and On to Shark Bay Where we have been Washed Away

Hello friendly blogster readers. We are at Denham on the edge of the beautiful Shark Bay.... and we have been almost washed away! More on that later.

I have to go back a day or so as we were out of range last night and I couldn't post anything. We got up and got ready to leave Kalbarri. Dad put his very best travelling clothes and promptly won the Dag of the Doings Award for his shorts, boots and knee-length socks!

We drove out to Kalbarri Gorge for a look. We had to leave the vans and trailer at the gate of the park as the road in is about 27 km of corrugated red and yellow dirt! Mum and Dad jumped into Fred with me and we followed Uncle John and Nic into the park. The plant-life was fantastic - magnificent orange bottle brushes, red and pink grevillias and a heap of other plants I couldn't name. We turned off at the first lookout for our first glimpse of the gorge - utterly brilliant! It was hot (over 34 degrees) and the flies were EVERYWHERE - but the view was worth it. We felt lucky to have our fly-nets on (they look daggy but do the job). Nic wins the award for the most photos taken - she finished off a 2 gigabyte memory card in her camera today.

We drove on from this lookout to the Window to Nature walk. We walked down a trail to the edge of the gorge and took even more photos (of course). The view was stunning and the water down below looked so inviting (but not worth the hot walk back up I think).We finally drove on to the Z Bend for a look. The walk was 1.2 km and we weren't going to do it as we were running out of time. We thought we would just go in a little way - but of course, then met a man walking out who told us it was well worth the effort... so on we went. He was right! The view was brilliant!

The colours in the cliffs, caves and rock features are truly magnificent. There was so much to see... and this is probably the first gorge of many we will see on this trip.

We finally left the gorge, well after 1.00 o'clock and went on our way. After a late and short stop for lunch, we drove on until we found an overnight camp spot about 40 km south of Billabong. We pulled off the road and set up camp - battling the bloody flies the whole time! It was dark before the flies finally packed it in for the day. Mum has become quite the expert at eating and drinking under her fly veil!This morning we woke to a misty, foggy morning with our swags and pillows quite damp! Yewww! We packed up quickly as the flies had woken early and started to annoy us. We drove on through deepening and rather ominous clouds - knowing we were going to hit rain (mum's aching knees told her so!). The cloud over the desert was pretty spectacular!We finally hit a bit of rain coming into Denham - but it didn't dampen the view of this lovely seaside town on Shark Bay. We had just pulled into the caravan park when the rain came down - we really just had to wait until it finished before setting up camp. The ground was certainly awash with water!We set up camp (Nic and I decided on tents because of the weather) and then went for a look at the World Heritage Centre - very interesting and I will write more about it later.

Tonight we had just started cooking tea when the real storm hit. The winds were wild and the rain torrential. All we could do is stand out in the soaking rain, trying to hold down the awning of the caravan so it didn't get ripped away. I don't think I have ever been so wet. As I write this, it is still pouring rain and storming outside. I haven't checked my tent - I assume it's still standing but I think my bedding is probably floating by this stage! Ah well, nothing a few red wines won't fix.

Hello to Danni at home in Bello - so great to hear from you Dan... I hope we can catch up soon! Hi also to Neil and Barb in Victoria - great to hear from you and great to know you are following our travels!

Up to Kalbarri

We were up early and packed and then off to Geraldton to have a look at the museum. The museum is housed in a lovely building on the waterfront and has some terrific exhibits. There were a lot of artifacts and information about the wreck of the Dutch ship, Batavia as well as a brand new exhibit about the HMAS Sydney - very interesting!

After this Mum and I dropped into the supermarket to get some supplies - what a nightmare! What is it about having the shops closed for ONE day (Anzac Day) that makes people flock to the shops the next day to get a fix!

We drove on north after this, heading up the coast. We called in to look at some ruins near Port Gregory. These were ruins of an old convict hiring depot from the 1800s. The convicts were brought here and then hired out to work in the lead mines. It was stinking hot when we were there, I can only imagine how dreadful it would have been for the poor convicts in the middle of summer!

After this we went on to Port Gregory where we had lunch by the sea. We watched some lobster boats come in and unload - amazed at how quickly they loaded the crates into the waiting truck.

We drove on north, stopping at Kalbarri National Park where we stopped off to see the beautiful views.

We set up in a caravan park in Kalbarri and then went out to the rather famous "Findlays BBQ" for dinner. This is a set of sheds set up on an old ice-works site, filled with bizarre bits and pieces. It was set up by a local fishing family during the pilots strike when they couldn't get their fish out to the market. The chef had a microphone and a weird sense of humour and the food was fantastic (but far too much on the plate). Uncle John won the "Old Bastards Club" raffle, so that was a good end to the night!

The Arrival of Nic... and Exploring Geraldton

We awoke to another warm, sunny day. After breakfast we did some washing and tidying up and then set off to find the airport to meet Nic. Uncle John was pretty happy and keen to get there! The airport is reasonably new and is a really lovely building with some interesting models and information inside about the area. Nic's plane was pretty much on time and we all stood outside taking photos of her arrival. I think the locals thought someone famous had arrived, with her own set of paparrazi!

It is great to have Nic with us and we look forward to Bronwyn's arrival in a week.

After a quick cuppa, we set out to explore Geraldton. It is quite a big town and there are a lot of very new, very lavish houses here. We went out to the seafood co-op to pick up some supplies for lunch and dinner and then went on to look at the HMAS Sydney memorial. This beautiful memorial is set on a hill, and has particular interest given the recent discovery of the wreck of the Sydney off the West Australian coast.

The memorial has a beautiful dome with 645 seagulls on it (one for each sailor lost from the Sydney). A local guide told us that there is a mariners tale that seagulls represent sailors who have been lost at sea. When the site for this memorial was first dedicated, a huge flock of seagulls swooped over just as the ceremony began.

The memorial also includes a wall with photographs of the crew and the ship and the names of each of the sailors lost in the tragedy. Behind the dome is a huge replica of the bow of the ship - the guide explained that the bow is not painted as it is a "dead ship" and, as such, should remain just bare metal.

Next to the bow is a poignant statue of a woman looking out to sea and waiting for her loved one to return. This is a very moving statue which has been exquisitely crafted - it really does evoke a feeling of sadness to look at it and then realise how many people waited in vain for the return of their loved ones from the Sydney.

After looking at the memorial, we headed back to the caravan park for lunch. What a wonderful feast we had - 2 kg of fresh king prawns. Delicious!

We sat around after lunch, feeling very full. Then the men went off to town to replenish our drink supplies. Then we packed a bag of cheeses and dry biscuits, along with some champagne and wine and headed down to the beach to toast the sunset. It was a lovely evening and a nice chance to pause and enjoy the beauty of the moment. Nicola also got a chance to dip her toes in the ocean for the first time in the West.We came back to the campsite and tucked into dinner - a delicious fresh-caught and cooked (this morning) lobster each. Gosh I am making it sound like we ate all day..... perhaps we did, but when we are in a town famous for its seafood (particularly lobster)... what else could we do?

After dinner, we drove into town (well actually Nicola drove us into town in Fred as the rest of us felt we might have had one drink too many to drive safely) to look at the memorial by night and the lights of Geraldton. It is a beautiful balmy night with a huge full moon.

Tomorrow we leave Geraldton and head for Kalbarri for a night and then on to Denham and Monkey Mia.

Hi to Danni at home (one of my wonderful students over the last few years) - great to get your email and glad you are reading the blog. I have sent you an email in reply. Hi to any of my other students reading the blog too - I miss you all!

Travelling North

We went to sleep last night to the sound of frogs - and woke to the sound of birds -kookaburras, honey-eaters, sulphur crested cockatoos, galahs and magpies. We had a lovely breakfast in the warm sun - Uncle John demonstrated his skill at making the perfect poached egg (Bronwyn showed him how!).


We packed up and drove into Guilderton - a beautiful little sea-side village. We pottered around and looked at the view (which was pretty spiffy really) and checked out their lovely local parks - complete with pelican sculpture.

We drove on to Lancelin - a little fishing village further up the coast. We went out to the pier and had a look at the fishing fleet (lobster boats) and watched as a group tried to get their boat out of the water and onto their trailer. The 4wd was down in the water and the waves were crashing in. A huge wave washed the boat up over the winch and it looked like it was going to go into the back of the 4wd. Then the 4wd was under water to above the mudguards. It didn't have a snorkel and was gurgling - but they finally did manage to pull the boat onto the trailer and drive up the beach. I wouldn't want to buy that vehicle 2nd hand!

We drove out and in what we thought was the right direction - but 10km or so later turned round and came back. The road was brand new and huge - but ended in a dead end! Bizarre! Once we were on the right track, we continued on. We stopped at a service station in the middle of nowhere and picked up some lunch (it was a really busy place - the food wasn't bad either - they even baked their own bread there). We pulled up at a roadside stop to eat and I found a beautiful Little Eagle which had just been killed by the road. Mum was a bit horrified when I pulled some of its feathers out to take home (well they were beautiful!). I mollified her by putting them in a snap-lock bag.

We drove on after lunch and Paddy asked if he could have a drive. He did really well given that he doesn't even have his licence!

We started searching for a place to stop for the night once we came through Dongera. Unfortunately we didn't have much luck - no decent roadside stops at all. Mum decided we should cut across towards the beach and see if we could find a place there. We followed a little dirt track - with Mum and I in the lead. We told the fellas to wait whilst we went ahead for a look. Unfortunately it turned into a very rough 4wd track. It took me a little while (and putting Fred into 4wd) to back the trailer and get up the very steep hill. Eventually we found the Greenough River Mouth Caravan Park and booked in for a couple of nights. We are only 9 km from Geraldton and will pick up Nicola from the airport there tomorrow morning.

After we had set up, I went down to the beach and photographed the sun setting over the sea - the west coast photo I have driven almost 6000 km to get!

Mum's Pearl of Wisdom

"Oh look, that sign says cooked, live lobsters - that sounds nice and fresh"

Poor lobsters... to be cooked and still alive! And yes, I suppose they would be freshest if they were still alive after being cooked!

I would love to receive comments from anyone reading this blog. If you would like to leave a comment, just click on the word "comment" below and it will open a new page on which you can type a comment. Otherwise, just email me at nerrida.johnson@bigpond.com

Cave photos and travelling

Blogspot has decided to be a little kinder to me tonight - so here are some of the photos from our caveing adventure yesterday. Most of them are pretty self explanatory - lots of interesting stalactites and stalacmites and some of us climbing and crawling through the caves...

We finished our caveing adventure with a walk through the Karri and Grass Tree forest - bliss!

Today we basically just travelled (yawn). We did see some incredibly huge horse studs, some lovely farming land and some ginormous houses.... but when it comes down to it - we just drove!

Tonight we are camped beside a creek near Guilderton (above Perth). We are heading for Geraldton where we will meet Nicola on Friday morning. The frogs are singing and the insects are driving me mad - so I will end here for today!