20/12/15 We have resurfaced

 Hi there , we are just entering a busy week , Emma gets the keys to their house tomorrow , so we will be assisting with the move . Sightseeing has taken a back seat for the time being - our apologies !
  Our apologies also go to the people we didn't get to catch up with on our flying trip to Moss Vale .
 The funeral went as well as can be expected , it was good to catch up with family & friends . The changes in town were quite noticeable - even though we'd only been gone for 10 months .
We flew in last Sunday and flew back on Wednesday , even had the tornado in Sydney to delay our flight back by one & a half hours - we haven't seen the airport that busy before - and probably don't want to again .
 We arrived safely back in Perth , and have been helping pack Emma & Mike's things .
This Christmas will be special for us - first one at Emma's , and all of us together in the one place and at the same time .

From our family to yours , please have a Wonderful Christmas and New Year , most of all stay safe and be happy - life is too short - ENJOY !!

 We will resume our travels in the new year briefly before dog sitting in February , and then we are off again !!
 Till then , bye for 2015 !!!

11/12/15 Still here

Hi folks , we are still here , at the moment we are back near Rockingham , having moved today from north of Perth .
 The last few days have been cool to cold with a cool wind blowing in off the ocean .
Lyn dropped me at the Hammersley golf course yesterday for some overdue practice for a couple of hours . They have great practice facilities and a great golf course - very busy though .

 We had lunch south of North Beach , above a secluded little beach in between rock outcrops . The beach is not what you would normally expect , it is mainly limestone reef and would be an excellent snorkelling area . It is in an area 500m long , that has the reef & very little wave action .

 Our lunch spot was a seat beside the bike track , about 20 m above the beach . We were quite cool , it was hard to understand the two girls who were sunbaking topless down below . Lyn picked our lunch spot today !! We went for a short walk , but the wind was getting stronger and cutting right through us , so we pulled the pin on that and headed back to the park - at least we could go for a swim & a spa in warm water !!

  Holiday Alert :-- the blog is going to have a rest for a week or so , but never fear , we will be back !!

Tune back in in a week or so and catch up !!!!

7 & 8/12/15 Swanning around

 Monday 7th , weather not overly nice , showers & windy and cold - only got to 19 degrees - definitely not to our liking !!!
 Time to get away from the RV for a while , so we headed back out to the coast and drove down to North Fremantle via the coast road . There are some very impressive houses all the way down the coast , most have spectacular views of the ocean and out to Rottnest Island - needless to say the price tag would be right up there as well !!
 We stopped and had lunch at City Beach , sitting on a bench in the sun , trying to stay warm !! City Beach would have to be one of the larger beaches , having a wide sand area , large car park and promenade , and a large surf club with cafes & restaurants .
 Continuing on we stopped at Cottesloe Beach - one of Perth's more famous beaches - it also has a large 3 storey surf club , with restaurants etc .

   The weather started to close in again , so we headed for home to get the washing in before it got wet again . The day was a bit damp , so we ended it by having a swim in the heated pools and then a spa .
 Tuesday 8/12/15
  Today we spent a lot of the morning organising airfares etc for our quick trip back east , then we headed into Perth to go for a 13klm ride around the Swan River . We drove into Perth & over the Narrows Bridge and turned off to South Perth . There are large expanses of grassed areas beside the river , with a bike only track and a separate one for pedestrians !! There are of course restaurants beside the water , catamaran hire , playgrounds and exercise areas . One area was being set up for a horse show jumping type event  .
 The city was just across the water , not as grand as Sydney's or Melbourne's skyline , but has it's own character .

 Continuing on , we passed Burswood Crown Casino and the new Super Stadium that's in the process of being built - it will be huge - there are 10 cranes set up to build it .




  Crossing to the city side of the river , we rode on the side and below the main roadway of the bridge keeping us away from the traffic .

  We had some lunch at one of the landscaped areas beside the river , before riding past lots of apartment buildings and a small marina type area , with 4 storey buildings and the city skyline in the background .

 We rode past the WACA , and found a stiff breeze to ride into - the next 2 klms were a bit of a struggle as we rode into the wind . We stopped at Barrack Square near the Bell Tower and the Elizabeth Quays project that was supposed to be finished by January - not sure whether they specified the year though - it's running behind time - quite a bit !! The Bell Tower is beside the Barrack St Jetty where you can get ferries to Fremantle and around the Swan River . There is an interesting structure - an arbour , where the plants will eventually be trained over it , providing shade and a nice cool area . It's a bit bare at the moment , but still interesting .

 Because of all the construction work at the Quay , we had to ride around the Entertainment Centre and Bus Exchange , before we found our way again , and up onto the Narrows Bridge . Kings Park was on our right and the old Swan Brewery with it's red roof was beside the road out toward Fremantle .

  We crossed over the bridge and turned back under it , to find cars parked under the bridge - an interesting car park - you either have to walk into the city or ride your bike if you park here .Arriving back at the ute , we loaded the bikes up and then had a sit down beside the river across from the city .

 While I was down taking a photo with my wife , someone snapped off a couple of photos - wonder who that could have been ???

 Back to the ute and back to the RV - we are about 13klms from the city , and it only took about 15mins to get back there . After a little bit of food shopping , we jumped in for a swim & spa , before having a beer and finishing of the salsa .
 Day done , here's a map :-https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z1G8gwwxwyYo.kdkDV_qd_04w&usp=sharing
 

6/12/15 Sunday drive

 Time to get out and go for a drive . We headed out to the coast - about 4klms away - and head north up the coast .
 The weather was being unpleasant again with full overcast and showers , but was better than being stuck in the one place .
 There is an awful lot of development in the northern suburbs , with hundreds of new houses & several new suburbs springing up out of the sand . There are a few marinas here & there also . Some of the houses are massive and have water access - some missed out on the styling gene completely - they looked terrible .
 We drove up the coast as far as Two Rocks , just past Yanchep , then came back to Yanchep National Park - the only National Park I know that has a 9 hole golf course , function centres , restaurant , caves ,walking tracks & a lake . There are the usual Bbq's and picnic areas and many specimen trees . One we found had a myriad of red flowers and also formed a carpet of flowers on the grass .

  The visitor information centre is an older 2 storey building with limestone pillars and features . There is a pathway that leads down to the lake - all very symmetrical !!

  Deciding to do the 2klm walk around the lake , we found another flowering tree - it had a lot of flowers on it .

 The walk was a good walk , but nothing really jumped out and grabbed us , it was a good walk . It was in the wetland area , but they have had less than average rainfall this year , so water levels are down . There was a lot of paperbark trees that formed a nice canopy over the track .

  Birdlife was plentiful , swans , ducks , waterfowl , galahs & black cockatoos . There were also koalas in a another section - we didn't get down there as it started to rain again , so headed back to the RV .
 That's our lot for today , here is a map :-https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z1G8gwwxwyYo.kM083weV70HQ&usp=sharing

4 & 5/12/15 Back to Perth

 Not a lot to report , we headed back to the northern suburbs of Perth yesterday , and found a spot to stay for a week .
  Took care of some food shopping at Joondalup Shopping Centre - it's HUGE !!!
Saturday - we had some rain overnight and more today with wind as well , top temp of 19.6 degrees !
Today is tinged with sadness , as Lyn's grandmother passed away overnight . I have had the pleasure of knowing Alma for the last 43 years , she was an independent lady who was in control of her domain , and has always been a wonderful lady , and very loved by all her grandkids !!! She will be sadly missed , RIP Alma .
 Needless to say , we didn't do very much of anything today .

2 & 3/12/15 Billy Goat Bay

After a pleasant week at Port Denison , it was time to move , so we headed south to Billy Goat Bay just north of Green Head . There is a free camp there beside the beach - you may remember it from an earlier blog .

 It only took an hour to drive down , we found a spot in what is basically a rectangular carpark surrounded by trees - you could fit a dozen vans here . There were 3 here already with several tents & swags , we were joined later by several backpacker vehicles as well .

 The beach is a 40m stroll , the bay itself is very shallow , I walked almost all the way out to a rocky outcrop that could be called an island - about 250m - and never got any deeper than my waist . We did have a bit of a swim as it was 36 degrees , cooling down nicely .

 The coastline is a mix of stunning white sand beach and honeycombed limestone cliffs that are gradually decaying into the ocean . We walked around to the next beach to the south and along , before turning and coming back along the access track to the RV - an interesting mix of orange gravel green shrubbery and white as white sand dunes .

 We cooled down again later with a walk along the beach in the water . The sun was starting to descend into the ocean and showed some promise of a nice sunset - yes , another one !!!

 Thursday 

 We got up and got organised early before the wind picked up too much . Today it was time for a paddle around the bay and islands . Breakfast complete , we carried the kayak and gear to the water - didn’t need a rest , it wasn’t that far - got to love that !!! Setting off we headed into the wind to the south , down and around the cliffs we walked down yesterday . 

There is a reef system here that shelters the bays and beaches from most of the swell , although the wind was helping whip a up a bit of swell . The water even 200m from the cliffs was still only shallow - some parts no deeper than 300mm up to about 3m . There was plenty of seaweed growing , lots of shellfish , we didn’t see a lot of fish , but I’m sure they were there somewhere . Birds inhabit every available piece of rock that pokes out of the water , there were about 8 little islands ranging in size from 3m long to over 50m long , all made out of sharp honeycombed  limestone .

 We went down wind to the north passing several islands and down to the next headland and secluded beach . we thought it would be prudent at this stage to turn and paddle back into the wind before we went too far and had to fight against the wind !! previous lessons learnt !!! On the way back we found one of the islands is eroding down and there are a couple of archways and windows in it .

  We kept paddling and saw a group getting ready for a paddle up the coast and back , we gave them a wave and kept paddling , they were going to have a good paddle back into the wind on their return trip !! 

 We had a good view of the RV , it gives you an idea where we are parked .

The headland has a pronounced high tide mark on the rocks .

  

 We pulled the kayak out of the water and carried everything back and cleaned it up before lunch . A relaxed afternoon followed , playing a game or 6 of Rummikub before it was time for a beer and some salsa . 

 The campers were coming and going all day ( schoolies ) and we had a new batch of backpackers pull in as well , one caravan left and a motorhome pulled in . 

 Interestingly , Optus has better service here than Telstra , full service with Optus and only one bar for Telstra - Optus has had another win ( that only makes about 2 though !!! ). 

 Another couple of days down , here’s a map link :- https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z1G8gwwxwyYo.kn11ZWGc6Yrg&usp=sharing

1/12/15 Wheat & more wheat

  It was time to fire the ute up and head off for a drive into wildflower country - they are all finished now , but we headed off for a look anyway .
 First stop was a little town called Mingenew ( pronounced min gen ew ) , it's smack bang in the middle of wheat territory , and has a large grain handling facility , with railway connection as well . The scenic lookout is a flat top hill just west of town giving views over town and the wheat fields that stretch to the horizon !!

   After a drive around town - about 5 mins - we headed north toward Coalseam Conservation Park - about 30 klms away . All this area is catchment for the Irwin River that meets the ocean at Dongara , Coalseam Park is also part of that catchment , and Irwin River flows through it - when it flows of course !!
 Many of the fields have been harvested , but there are still many more to be done - we haven't seen them being harvested before , we've seen them before and after , but not the actual harvest , till today!!

  Todays drive was about 180 klms , and all but about 30klms was through wheat fields - that should give you a little bit of an idea of the size of the wheat industry here , and we barely scraped the surface - there is an awful lot more !!!
 We reached Coalseam Park and drove up to the Irwin River Lookout , giving us a view down the river valley - not very deep , but interesting . All the hills here are flat - being the sea floor at some stage - and have a layer of hard laterite stone capping the top - it's an orange / red colour from iron deposits .

 We did see the remains of a large amount of everlasting daisies and other plants that have finished flowering weeks ago , there was one single tiny little flower in a group with 5 or 6 others that were still flowering .

  We looked out over the river and saw the picnic area below , and walked back to the ute  before driving down to another picnic area beside the river bed , it's called Fossil - due to the presence of some fossils and a coalseam .
  There are easily identifiable layers of shale on the bottom , with a layer of sandstone above that , then another layer of a different type of sandstone on that , some coal seam on the far left of photo and also the layer of Laterite on top . The shale dates back 280 million years , the next layer of sandstone 269 million years , the thin coal seam 265million years , the next layer of sandstone about 50 million years , then the laterite about 40 million years - a spring chicken in the scheme of things !!

  After lunch beside the river bed we headed toward Walkaway ( a small village near Geraldton ) , and took a side road that would lead us through many more wheat fields , and over the higher country on the way back to Port Denison . The patterns left in the wheat fields look great !!

 Arriving back at Dongarra , we refuelled and headed to the beach for a swim , it was 36 degrees with an offshore wind . We cooled off nicely , then sat and dripped off , before the onshore breeze came in and started to drop the temperature back down .
 Time for a beer & salsa !!
Todays map :-https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z1G8gwwxwyYo.kShNfXseQFf8&usp=sharing

30/11/15 Another windy day

 The wind didn't let up all night - maybe a little bit less , but not much . Today it continued and increased . We thought a walk would be good , so off we went through the park & out to South Beach where the wind was okay - it wasn't sand blasting us yet - so we thought , yes we'll walk with the wind behind us . We wandered down the beach to find seaweed washed up on shore , not just a little bit , there was mounds of it - I think there was some beach & sand underneath , but it was blanketed with seaweed & sea urchin shells .

  Finding our way up the headland , which is limestone & a bit crumbly , we startled a few birds - we haven't seen any of these before - they are basically black & white with very long crimson legs and a long skinny beak .

  Their legs would nearly be 300mm long - looks rather funny when they are flying - 2 long crimson legs hanging out behind them .
 Continuing on we found our way round to the fishermans monument again , before going down the foreshore .

There are quite a few boats moored in the marina , some a little newer than others . We were a little amused to see a few die hard fisherman arrive at the boat ramp and unload their tinies and head off to go fishing - there were more white caps than water - I hope they caught something !!
  The old jetty posts are still standing - JUST - and make for an interesting photo .

 We made our way back to the park , fighting the headwind all the way . We stopped and looked at a variegated bush that has red brush type flowers about the size of half a golf ball . The owner came out and told us it was a Japanese christmas bush and it flowers now till christmas time !! We chatted to him for a bit and thanked him for the information .
 The rest of the afternoon was spent fiddling about the RV , it was too windy to be doing much outside .
 Then around 6pm , we had someone knock on the door , I got up and met a man who had a letter from Sam ( the guy I played golf with on Saturday ) with his address & email , so we could catch up with them in Fremantle when we are down there . The most surprising thing about this was the man who delivered the message - he is an old Moss Vale resident  - Robert ( Skinny ) Maclean , who we hadn't seen for years , he now lives in Nowra . He got the letter when he was with some people at the other caravan park ( who are from Bundanoon ) , who were parked near Sam & Fiona .
  See , it doesn't matter where you are , there is always someone from where you live , that you run across . You might be thousands of kilometres from where you started , there's always someone else from the same place , and he's parked right beside us !!!
   That's it for a very windy Monday .