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 .

28&29/11/15 Weekend

Hi folks , a quiet weekend , with cooking , cleaning and some exercise thrown in . The temperature has been a bit lower , but we did have some humidity yesterday - made golf a bit sticky .
 Lyn did some cooking , getting the all important christmas pudding cooked !!  She also did some shopping then went for a ride and a swim in the afternoon - busy girl !!
 I sacrificed and had a game of golf at Dongarra Golf Club - one of the best country courses I have played on - and they only have one greenskeeper on staff , about 140 members ( and they struggle to get more than about 30 for competition days ???? ) beautiful grassed fairways and greens - it was a pleasure to play on . Pity my score didn't reflect the quality of the course !!! It did reflect my lack of practice and fitness however !!
 Sunday
  Today was a bit breezy , we were busy figuring out what to do for the day , when we had a visit from Sam & Fiona and Lucy ( maltese shitzu cross ) to have a look at the RV - I played golf with him yesterday . Being a golf tragic , Sam was also playing today . They are from Fremantle and are up for a long weekend .
 We finally decided to go for a ride , even though it's a bit breezy - nothing like making life a little difficult . Riding down the foreshore wasn't a problem , we had a great tailwind . Pulling up at the cafe , we ordered our snapper & chips and then went across the road to a covered area overlooking the harbour to eat them .

  After lunch we headed off again , we got about a kilometre before spotting Fiona & Lucy at the next caravan park , so called in to say hello . An hour or so later , we got going again , riding along Ocean Dr beside the beach , before climbing the hill - that was the easy part . We turned back on the main road and hit a brick wall - the wind coming up the road was rather strong !! The road sloped downhill , not too much , but we had to pedal to keep going - normally you'd coast down the hill - not today , we pedalled all the way !!! We stopped down at the foreshore again , to have a drink and get the heart rate back down a bit , before tackling the last section back to the park .
 Back to the RV , we grabbed the washing and got some salsa & a beer , and sat watching the cricket for whats left of the afternoon .

27/11/15 An earlier start

 Hi folks , today we got organised early before the wind picked up . Got the bikes off the ute and loaded the swimmers & drinks and away we went .
 We decided to ride around to the river , walk along the beach and continue along a walking trail back to where we started .
  The first part was easy , just followed the bike track to the boardwalk , then out to the beach - it was only about 1 klm along the beach to the track on the other side . It's interesting to walk along the beach pushing your bike , particularly if it's soft sand !! We made it over to a gazebo used for bird watching and stopped for a drink . Off again onto a boardwalk and then a gravel/ sand track alongside the river , fortunately there was an onshore breeze keeping the temperature down a bit - it was in the upper 20's . Making it to the bridge over the river , we crossed over and headed across a grassed area to the next track section - I looked down at the front tyre and saw 3 headed jacks sticking into it - that would surely mean punctures , so I pulled them out then checked the back tyre - same thing , I removed about 4 from the tyre and thought it would also be going flat ( it still hasn't 4 hours later ).
 We got back around to Granny's beach and went for a swim , cooling off !! After drying off , we headed back up the foreshore and rode up to the fishermans obelisk , before heading back to the RV .
 The afternoon was spent relaxing , watching cricket & cooking .
 Here's some random photos - Numbing Painted Desert ; Bungle Bungles ; Broome Sunset .

 That is it for today , see you !!

26/11/15 A bit of M&R

   After a great sleep in , we got up at 8am & had some breakfast , before deciding on the days activities .
 Cleaning and maintenance was called for as we may have neglected it a little bit !!
We had a warm Easterly wind blowing , heating things up , but we kept on plugging away at it . Finishing at lunch time , we ate and headed down the street , stopping at the foreshore park for a while . The park overlooks the marina and the many crayfish boats and a few private boats . The cray boats come to the dock and unload their catch straight onto a conveyor , that takes it into the factory for processing .
 We drove around to the Priory and Russ Cottage to get a couple of photos . St Dominics Priory is now a hotel - quite a shift in usage !!

 Russ Cottage is a restored building , that was built in 1870 , and contains furniture & artefacts from the era . You get to look in the windows only , as they cannot afford to have staff there all the time .
There was also a hand operated rail trolley from 1884 on the verandah .

  We drove back toward the marina , but went around Ocean Drive , for some views of the coast and The Irwin River Inlet . The wind had picked up from the south again , cooling things down , but also sand blasting nearly everything  . We pulled up at one lookout , looking back at the marina .

  From here we went to the rock wall on the southern side , near where the kite sailors were yesterday.  There is a reef not far from the coastline , that keeps the water relatively flat .

  The water was a good temperature for swimming , but the windchill was a bit much , so we went for a walk along the beach next to the foreshore - at least it was a bit protected from the wind . From here we went to South Beach , and sat in the ute whilst looking at some kite surfers again . The sand was blowing across the carpark quite rapidly , so we headed back to the RV for a beer & salsa .
 Not overly exciting , but another day in our adventure none the less .

25/11/15 Off again

 Today we packed and headed up the road again . Destination for the next week is Port Denison / Dongara . We thought Geraldton was windy , well Port Denison / Dongara is the same . Fortunately for us , we made it by 12 noon , before the wind started to get strong . We found probably the most sheltered park and picked our site & set up .
  Lunch out of the way , we went for a drive around town to orientate ourselves . There are many old buildings in Dongara , the library , courthouse & police station , and old convent - The Priory is now a hotel and accommodation .
 Port Denison is on the south side of the Irwin River and Dongara is on the north side . Port Denison has the boat harbour and crayfish processing factory . The population is approx 4,000 and has high school and primary school .
 The weather for this time of year is normal for here - wind , wind and more wind - it was blowing at about 40 - 45 klm/hr and gusting to 55 !!
 The only photos from today show what the conditions were like - good for some things !!!

 These two guys were having a great time , getting pulled along at great speeds , also getting a lot of air - some of their turns got them nearly 8 metres off the water !!
 Here is a map link:-https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z1G8gwwxwyYo.kxODXRS0wYf4&usp=sharing

24/11/15 Blown Away

 Woken this morning by stronger winds rattling the awning , we got up and got ourselves organised . The wind continued to pick up , so a bike ride was out , a swim was also out ( wind chill factor ), so we decided to go for a drive up the coast .
  We decided to go out to Sandy Cape , there is a camp area out there , so we went for a look . After 7 klms of corrugated orange gravel road , we found the camp area ( it's $15 a night , no power or water) and is situated beside a lovely bay with crystal clear water and white sand , it's also a bit protected by the sand dunes .

 Back out to Indian Ocean Drive and the next stop on our blown away tour was Grigsons Lookout . Should be a great day for lookouts , the wind , if anything , is getting stronger as we go !!

 The lookout gave us a 360 degree view ,from salt lakes that stretch 40 klms from here to the north , out to hills in the distance and past the white sand dunes to the coast . It was an early surveyors point used to work out property boundaries etc . It is now an official surveyors trig point , with a brass disc concreted into the rocks .The old trig point is a stick surrounded by rocks , it's nice that it has been preserved .

  The white sand dunes are getting blown around a lot today , so much so , that there is a white haze caused by the windblown sand . On a few of the tracks , there was sand covering up parts of the road where it had been blown last night and today .
  Next stop was Green Head , a small settlement with about 50 houses , a few shops , and Dynamite Bay . It is one of 3 bays , but by far the most scenic , with green grass picnic areas and covered seating areas . The beach is down several steps , again crystal clear water , limestone headlands either side and a sweep of white sand . Fortunately we were sheltered from the wind , so went for a walk up & down the beach , before having some lunch .

 After lunch we headed up to the lookout - no the wind hadn't dropped at all , but we went anyway - the view over the bay was awesome .

  The view out to the southwest shows how windy it was - white caps everywhere !!

  Continuing on , we went up the road to Leeman , another small village , but bigger than Green Head. We filled the ute , as the price of diesel was 13 cents a litre cheaper than Jurien Bay - it saved us $10.30 on 79 litres , so was well worth it - Puma fuel station Leeman !!! Unfortunately the wind stopped us from checking out much of Leeman - there was more limestone up here so the beach and bays were not as appealing .
 Heading back south , we found a tourist drive that follows the coastline - gravel road again - but it is beside the water & dunes . We came across Billy Goat Bay and Point Louise , again another camping spot , with easy access - again no power & water , but free of charge - a nice spot apart from the wind!!!

  Point Louise is not far north of Dynamite Bay , and is a nicely sheltered bay . Someone had decided to camp down the southern end - not sure that is allowed , but they were there anyway .
 Enough sight seeing for today , we headed back to Jurien Bay to get out of the ute and also the wind .
Time for a beer and some very hot salsa .
Todays map :-https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z1G8gwwxwyYo.kW47MkL9OuJU&usp=sharing

Up the road to the Bay 23/11/15

  Time to go for a drive up the road , we packed up after a good night's sleep . No rush today , we weren't going far , so we took it easy and still left just after 9am .
  We called around and saw Kim , wished him well with his broken foot and headed off . Todays destination is Jurien Bay - a whole 23klms away !!! I did ask Lyn if she wanted to change drivers as it may have been to long a drive , but she declined and toughed it out . We arrived at 9:40am and checked in & set up .
Bikes off , we headed down the street to the chemist , then the visitor information centre , before having lunch .
 Jurien Bay has a population of 2000 , and is spread along about 6 klms of the bay , as well as a little section further in to the hills . The main business is crayfish & tourism , with a lot of parachuting as well . It is smack bang in the middle of Turquoise Coast - aptly named , as that is the colour of the water here . There is parkland beside the beach and a small pier going into the bay , there is seating and a children's playground , as well as a bike track that stretches from the marina at the northern end of town to the end of the newest subdivision 6 klms away , with little offshoots leading to the beach , gazebo's have been installed in various locations for people to sit and contemplate the world .

  There are several islands off shore , some only about 1 klm away , others a bit further out , reputedly some of the best fishing in WA .

  The overriding factor is definitely the colour of the water - just beautiful !!!

 As you can see , driving on beaches in WA is a birth rite - just about everyone drives down the beach at some stage - some days it seems like everyone is driving down the beach ( weekends ).

 Coming back from the end of the bike track , we stopped and sat on the pier for a while , chatting to our new neighbour , who come from Broulee on the south coast of NSW , and they used to live in Bowral , Mittagong and Colo Vale - see , it doesn't matter where you go , you always run into someone from where you used to live !!!!
 Jumping back on the bikes , we rode down to the marina and back , before having a beer & some cheese & bickies .
 Well that's it for today , here's a map :-https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z1G8gwwxwyYo.kpmvdo2gcThg&usp=sharing

The Pinnacles - Nambung NP 22/11/15

 Hi readers , back again , a bit healthier and with the computer back again , happy days !!
Todays blog comes to you from Cervantes , north of Perth , famous for it's crayfish and The Pinnacles.
  We left Perth on Friday , heading back up here for a while to check things out . The drive back through Perth was far less traumatic than the drive in - makes a difference when you go on the correct roads !!
 The temperature forecast for the weekend was very warm , not quite as warm as the east coast , but 37 and 32 degrees , fortunately we came to the coast , and the doctor blew in from the south west and west both days , lowering the temperature around lunchtime both days .
 We headed up to The Pinnacles - about 17 klms away to the south - we have been there before , but now we can see it after seeing the the other side of the park from Nambung Station .
 We went to the interpretation building & shop first , to get some information on the Pinnacles , before walking up to the lookout for an over view of the area .
 There has been a vine we have seen all over the place , that looks quite stunning . The flower/seed is like a feather and is as soft as one .

 After checking the view from the platform lookout , we headed back to the ute to go on the drive through the park . Its a 4.5 klm circuit that takes you through the desert area . There are parking spots to pull off the track in various locations , we missed the first few and stopped at the next . The Pinnacles are anything from ground level up to about 4m at there tallest .

 There were many people here today , with a couple of bus loads of girl guides as well .
 The sand is an orange/ yellow colour and you can see white sand dunes in the distance .

  There was even an emu wandering around as well .

  Back to the ute and off down to another area , more like a stoney desert ( very small stones anyway )   and had the whole area to ourselves .

I climbed a large sand dune to see whether I could see where we viewed the painted desert from - I could see the aerial near it , but not much more - it was about 5klms from where we are here .
 The drive through the rest of the area showed us more pinnacles all in various states of erosion , and different colours - more pink coloured .
 On the way out , there was a Christmas Bush beside the track , with beautiful orange flowers glowing in the sun .

  Time for a late lunch , so we headed back , having a look at Kangaroo Point and Thirsty Point on the way back . There weren't any kangaroos , but we were thirsty !! The sea breeze was blowing in quite well now , cooling things down to the mid 20's . Kite surfers were having a great time at Thirsty Point , zooming in and out , getting some air as they turned and headed back out again .
 Lunch out of the way , we headed down to the beach for a walk & a swim , before coming back for some salsa & a beer .
 As a side note , we ran into someone we had met 2 months ago , a Korean University Professor . He has been  travelling around the gold fields and was about to head off to the Victorian gold fields , till he broke a bone in his foot yesterday - he is now staying in Cervantes for the next 4 - 6 weeks !!
 Here's a bit of a map of where we have been of late :-https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z1G8gwwxwyYo.kgsRG9nN3Bms&usp=sharing

Update time

  Sorry folks , there hasn't been a lot happening - had a bit of a head cold for the last few days . We'll be back !!

Paddling with dolphins 16/11/15

 Today we decided to go for a paddle , we thought why not go down to the Murray River . Murray River , I hear you say , Yep , Murray River - WA of course - it flows into the Indian Ocean at Mandurah !
 Arriving at 9am , we slipped into the water and paddled around to the swimming area . Over the other side of the river were a pod of dolphins - 6 of them !! They were swimming around the short piers beside the esplanade , giving everyone there a good show .

  We floated into the middle and watched for a while before the dolphins headed our way , surfacing 5m from us , they dived again and swam just below us , reappearing a few metres away . The largest one has had a run in with a propeller or something - it's dorsal fin was a bit damaged , there were 4 others and a smaller , younger one also .

  We paddled back across and into the canal system , the dolphins also had decided to go that way . There was a dredge working in the canal , but we kept going into the waterfront estate to see how the other half live . The houses were quite large , being built over every last centimetre of the block of land - they dont have backyards here , just entertaining areas , and a small jetty for the boat / boats . Most looked cheap and nasty - Not !! And most have a rather large motor cruiser parked outside , the odd couple of jet skis , maybe 4 or 5 kayaks or a party boat .

 After manoeuvring our way through several canals , we linked up with another and found our way back into the river , paddling back to the ute .
 What a stunning paddle , dolphins swimming with us , under us , and all around us , as well as checking some great & not so great architecture .
 As it was 27 degrees and we were a bit warm , we headed around to the swimming area for a dip to cool off . While we were swimming the dolphins had reappeared in the river again , we hopped out onto the floating walkway and watched them for a while . One jumped over a rope with lots of buoys , then swam straight toward the swimming enclosure , then into the swimming enclosure chasing fish , before exiting on the other side . There goes our idea that this was a netted swimming enclosure , I now think it is just a boat free area !!!  We swam back in and hopped out , going for a walk up the beach to help dry off .
 Coming back we went out on the pontoon that protects the swimming area from boats , to see another dolphin swim straight to us , before diving below us and reappearing in the enclosure . These dolphins are used to people and boats , not being scared off at all .
 It was lunch time , so we headed around to Halls Head , just south of the entrance to the river , finding a nice park beside the beach to sit and eat .
 Back to the RV after a little bit of shopping , to clean up the kayak & gear . Emma & Pepper arrived not long after , and we sat & chatted to them .
 A bit remiss of me , we had one of the best electrical storms I've seen for many years on Saturday night  , with many lightning strikes & thunder that seemed to just keep on rumbling , not much more than a few millimetres of rain though . The lightning started many fires over here , some of which are still burning today .
 That's your lot for today !!