Heading out the drive we had to get a photo of some of the trees here - don't kid yourself it doesn't get windy here !!
And there are a lot more like this !!
Off down the road , we found our turnoff to Horrocks , onto a gravel road - a pretty good one - and before long we'd arrived . The drive took us through wheat fields , some harvested , some not , they also grow canola here as well , with all of that already harvested .
Horrocks Beach is built between the water and a very high sand dune , there would be at least 50 houses , many I suspect are holiday houses and fishing huts . We drove out to Little Bay , which is north of Horrocks , is a popular camping spot and 4wd & quad bike area - lots of sand dune to play on . Back to Horrocks Beach to find a small jetty and some cray boats and a natural harbour protected by reef , not on the same scale as Port Gregory though .
Reportedly a surfing location , we struggled to see where they would surf here , till we did a bit of further reading and found they surf near the mouth of the Hawes River - further down the coast . So of we went to find it , there were also reported aboriginal art in some caves there as well . Finding the turn , we headed in , driving alongside the river for it's last few hundred metres before it met the ocean .
Reaching the end of the track we found several other tracks leading around the headland , some sandy , some a bit firmer - Lyn was enjoying this - we stopped before it got too soft !!
The surf was getting blown apart , it was a tad windy again today . Heading back out , we thought we'd have a look at the caves - till we got there - the grass & undergrowth was about knee high and it didn't look like anybody had been through there in a long time - after stories of snakes from our neighbours , we thought twice and kept driving .
The road wound it's way around the river , then through many more wheat fields , before reaching Northampton . It has some history about it and has some beautiful old buildings , churches & convent.
A lot of them are built from rock , random sizes and shapes and has been crafted beautifully . We walk dup & down the main road and went into the family store , well it was like stepping back 100 years , with stock stacked into shelves on the walls - similar to the shop in Mackay I wrote about - you can buy clothing , hats , rifle scabbards , toys & quilting supplies , sunglasses & shoes - there was a bit of everything here , the prices weren't from 100 years ago though !!!
We drove around town , having a general look around - not sure whether they were burning off or not, but one large block was burning happily - the fire brigade was there with it .
After lunch in Hampton Park , we headed back to check out where Hutt River meets the ocean - only a few hundred metres from where we are staying . Pulling off the main road , we locked the hubs and engaged 4wd , the track was sandy - Lyn again was enjoying her drive . We stopped beside the river and walked out to the beach , as the track looked like very soft sand - and was , besides the walk will do us good . The river isn't exactly sparkling - a little tannin stained , and only gets to greet the ocean at high tide , but made a nice photo .
We continued on and found another arm of the river that goes around a sand dune and further north up the beach - our walk was now nearly a kilometre , but we also found that there was a section of underlying orange soil , below the sand .
Finding our way out to the beach , we paused and looked , but the wind chill was a bit severe , so we headed back to the ute , and went for a drive back to Pink Lake - 5 mins up the road . It's still PINK , and still there - amazing isn't it !!
Port Gregory Rd runs along the far side and there is the BASF Chemical Plant that removes all the Beta Carotene and fish food from it , we drove up to there and turned back to the RV . Enough excitement for one day , we chilled for the afternoon or what's left of it . Todays map :-https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z1G8gwwxwyYo.kYjwnS3Cu5yY&usp=sharing
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