Thurs, 30th June - Mary Poole

Rick got up really early and went back down to the wharf to see if he could get a few more mud crabs.  He only managed to get one that was legal size. 

We got away from Derby at 10am and drove about 200kms to Fitzroy Crossing where we stopped for lunch.  There didn't appear to be a whole lot to look at in Fitzroy Crossing so we continued on for about another 200kms to a free camping area called Mary Pool on the Margaret River, arriving at around 4:30pm.  The scenery is just beautiful in this part of the country.  There were around 50-60 travellers already camped at Mary Pool and according to another camper, it was even busier the night before.  We didn't have internet, TV or mobile phone there, so we had an early night.

Beautiful scenery

Magnificent rock formations showing termite mounds in the foreground

Mary Pool

River crossing at Mary Pool looking back to our van

Tues, 28th to Wed, 29th June - Derby

We had now ticked over 16,000kms of our trip and been away for 130 days.  On the way out of Broome we called in to see Darryn but he wasn't back from work on the island, so we rang and left a message and kept going.  We continued on for about 220kms to Derby.  Derby is a small town with wide streets lined with boab trees.  It has the highest tide variations in Australia, reaching over 12metres at times.

We pulled into a very busy caravan park and were told we could have a drive-through site next to 'Graham'.  Graham turned out to be a travelling guitarist and singer and was due to perform from 4-6 in the afternoon for a gold coin donation.  After settling in we went for a bit of a drive to the wharf which is circular and can be driven on.  We drove about 1/2 way around until we saw some people with nets trying to catch some mud crabs.  The wharf is extremely high to allow for the huge tides and as the tide was running out, the ropes on the crab nets had to be really long.  The water was running really fast and extremely muddy ... definitely not a swimming area!  One fellow pulled his net up with a crab in it.  As he was trying to get the crab out, it latched a claw onto his finger making him yelp in pain.  Eventually he managed to get the crab to let go and it had cut him quite badly even through a tough glove.  Rick was keen to find out more and have a go for himself.

We were woken early again the next day ... caravanners like to get packed up and moving early and don't show much consideration toward others who might still be asleep.  Rick spoke to some locals and found out that the time to get crabs would be at low tide, at around 8pm and that meat was the best bait to use.  We drove down to the wharf again, just in time to see a barge being loaded and unloaded.  It was fascinating to see huge a huge mining dump truck being driven off the barge and then a huge dozer and several 4x4s being loaded back on.  There is only a small window of time when the tide is right for this type of operation, so as soon as the last piece of equipment was loaded, the barge was on the move out to deeper water.  The equipment belongs to a mining operation located on an island just off the north coast.  We then stayed and watched as the unloaded dump truck was driven on to a low loader ready to head to Perth. The bed of the low loader could be widened and narrowed hydraulically according to what was being loaded but couldn't be made any wider than the roads would handle.  The wheels of the dump truck hung over the sides of the low loader's bed as it had to negotiate several narrow bridges on its journey south ... there would only be 20cms clearance each side when crossing these bridges.

We then drove out to the Boab Prison Tree which is believed to be about 1500 years old.  It was used as a staging point for prisoners being walked into Derby in the early days.  On the way we looked at 'Frosty's Pool' which is just a small concrete pool that was built in 1944 as a bathing area for troops stationed in the area during the Second World War.  It was construction by the 3rd General Trtansport Co and was nicknamed Frosty's Pool after a platoon member, Charles L.V. Frost.  Nearby is a cattle trough that is 120 metres long, able to handle 500 bullocks at one time and that was built around 1917.  Closer into town is the remains of the old Derby Gaol.  Prisoners (mainly Aboriginals) were kept in appalling conditions in this small building with walls on one side only, bars on three sides and a concrete floor. 

The local butcher was really interested in our Navara (as were many people on our journey) as he had recently ordered one for himself.  After showing him ours he was kind enough to give Rick some Barramundi heads for bait for the crab net ... the butcher said that fish was far better bait than meat.  We went down to the wharf that night and Rick managed to pull up two crabs that were big enough to keep, and had to throw back many small ones.  At least he had a taste!

Boabs down the main stree of Derby

Fingers still in tact at this point ... little did he know ...

Swirling, muddy water ... but still not yet low tide

Vehicles are able to drive on to the wharf

Dump truck unloaded and dozer being backed on

Dozer scoop was lifted to load other items underneath

Prime mover loading a trailer and containers

As soon as the prime mover was clear the ramp was lifted and the barge left

The dump truck with its wheels overhanging the truck bed

Boab Prison Tree

Fri, 24th to Mon, 27th June - Broome

On Friday morning we packed up and drove about 130kms to the Roebuck Roadhouse and Caravan Park 33kms out of Broome.  Linda and Steve were staying there as it is the only park near Broome that will accept dogs, so we stopped and had a catch up.  We also met another couple, Fran and Kev from Albury.  We decided we would try to get into a park in Broome rather than stay at Roebuck and drive the 66kms return journey each time we wanted to do something.  We were able to get into the very busy Roebuck Caravan Park (almost an identical name) in the centre of Broome.  We ended up being parked in an area normally reserved for tour buses, and very close to the tent and campervan section.  We drove around and had a look at Broome before booking into the Black Pearl restaurant for dinner that night.  The meal was just OK, but the restaurant was within walking distance of the park which was very handy.

On Saturday, another site became available but when we looked at it we decided it would have been too small for us.  We drove in to the markets which are held every Saturday and caught up with Linda and Steve again for coffee.  We spent a bit of time walking around the shops in Chinatown and visited the Sun Picture Theate which is an open air theatre still operating in the middle of town.  We also looked at the two restored pearl luggers in dry dock and inspected one of the many pearl shops.  There was one huge pearl on display there valued at $100,000 - a bit more than the credit card would handle.  Rick went to the speedway in the evening but was home very early as it was a disappointing meeting, with very few competitors.  The weather has been beautiful since we have been here ... this is the weather we have been looking forward to!  Steve and Linda recommended a restaurant for Sunday evening seafood smorgasbord, so we made a booking for the next night.

After a very noisy night in the park we walked to the City Beach Cafe for Sunday brunch.  The cafe overlooked one of the mudflat areas where people launch their boats.  The water was so far out and so shallow that the vehicles were driven across the wet mud and right into the water to enable the boats to be launched.  Not really an ideal way to treat vehicles.  We enjoyed a really nice brunch and then headed to Gantheaume Point where there are dinosaur footprints.  The footprints can only be seen at very low tides and by very athletic climbers as they are at the base of high cliffs.  There is a cast of the footprints located above the cliffs for when the real ones aren't accessible.  The rock formations here are beautiful.  From there we drove to the famous Cable Beach for a coffee and a beer overlooking the water.  Cable Beach was a bit of a disappointment ... not the white sand and waves that I had imagined.  

We headed back to the van to freshen up and then went to the Mangrove Resort for our seafood smorgasbord.  The service was non-existent, the food a bit tired looking and not much left (7pm) and was not worth $45 per head!  On arrival we were told we would have to leave our credit card at the desk to cover any drinks we might have had, in case we decided to do a runner without paying.  After our meal (but before I had a chance to have dessert) Rick asked to see the manager. We wanted to let her know that we weren't happy with the food and that she would need to train her staff a bit better (all nicely of course).  She explained that most of the hospitality staff in Broome were foreigners and only stayed in the area for a short time, but agreed that obviously her training was not good enough and that she would refund our money.  We said that wasn't why we spoke to her ... only that she needed to know what was happening, but she insisted.  We were pleasantly surprised to find that she refunded the cost of our bottle of wine and beer as well.

On Monday I finally had my hair done while Rick filled gas bottles and washed the car.  We went for a drive to Cable Beach again and decided to book in for dinner at the Sunset Bar and Grill which is a nice restaurant overlooking the beach.  On the way back to the van we called in to see Caitlyn and the kids.  Darryn was still working on the island, so we would try to catch up with him on Tuesday.  The meal this time cost $54 a head for a buffet of prawns and various salads while you had your choice of steak, chicken or fish cooked for you, followed by an enormous selection of desserts.  What a difference compared to the meal we had the night before!  The service was great and the food fantastic and the sunset was a perfect backdrop for the camels returning from the beach tour.  The dessert included a chocolate fountain alongside a huge bowl of marshmallows on toothpicks ... made up for what I missed out on the night before.  We had decided to lash out on restaurants while in Broome as it would be the last chance until we hit Darwin.

Roadtrain passing us on the way to Broome

Our campsite in the Roebuck Caravan Park

The Sun open air picture theatre in the heart of Broome

Rock formations at Gantheaume Point

The famous but under-whelming Cable Beach

The view from our dinner table at the Sunset Bar and Grill

Camels returning from their tour on the beach (thanks Linda for the use of your photo)

Wed, 22nd to Thurs, 23rd June - Barn Hill Station

We left 80m Mile Beach Park at around 8:30am just as the wind was coming up again.  It isn't pleasant towing a large van in the wind and fuel consumption sky-rockets unless you are lucky enough to strike a tail-wind.  We followed a cattle truck and another van on the corrugated dirt road back out to the highway, so we had to keep our distance or we would have been smothered in red dirt. We breathed a sigh of relief at arriving back at the highway again and settled into the 250km drive to our next stop, Barn Hill Station.  Barn Hill Station is located at the end of another shocker of 13kms of dirt road and with 3 gates thrown in for good measure.  We finally arrived at the park office (if you could call it an office) and found 3 caravans already in front of us wanting a site.  These isolated parks are so popular that you run the risk of them being booked out, so this wasn't looking too good for us.  But, better than we thought ... all that was available was unpowered sites for $20 per night, but we would have water, phone and internet so we checked in for two nights.  The sites were on a cliff top overlooking the ocean and the ground was red dirt and Bindiis, but the scenery along the beach was spectacular.

On Thursday we had a lazy day ... in the afternoon Rick went swimming and I walked the beach, taking photos of the rock formations in the cliffs.  Several people were fishing on the beach but not catching anything.

Incredible rock formations on the beach

The sunset from our cliff top camp site

Mon, 20th to Tues, 21st June - 80 Mile Beach

Another sunny and extremely windy day driving 100kms to a caravan park at Eighty Mile Beach.  Once again this was an oasis in the middle of nowhere, but right on the beach.  For $35 per night we had a grassy site with bore water and power but no internet or mobile phone.  The bore water leaves white spots all over everything if it is not dried straight away.  Even our skin was white after showering in it.

After setting up and catching up on the washing (yes, again!) we walked the short distance over the dune to have a look at the beach.  Wow ... we have never seen so many people fishing.  As far as we could see there were people and cars, and believe me, we could see for a long way in both directions.  No-one was swimming, we think that was because the shallow water had a lot of sand stirred up in it making it impossible to see the bottom.  They do also catch the odd shark there.  The wind dropped out early afternoon and it became a pleasantly warm day, so Rick spent quite a bit of time cleaning some of the red dirt off the Navara.

Tuesday was another lovely day once the wind died down mid-morning.  We went for a walk along the beach talking to quite a few of the fisher people.  No-one seemed to be catching anything, but then we spotted a guy pulling in a large threadfin salmon.  Apparently he had only just purchased his new rod at the caravan shop that day and was trying it out - it obviously worked for him.  His mate was a bit of a novice too and tried to help bring the fish in by wading out into the waves to meet it with a gaff... not a good idea, as the fish changed direction wrapping the line around his legs and knocking him over!  They eventually managed to get it to shore and get it unhooked.  While we were still there, he cast out again and within minutes had another fish.  This one took quite a few minutes to bring in and turned out to be half the size again of his first one.

After all the fishing excitement, we headed up to the shop to have a look at a photo display of the damage caused to the park in 1999 by tropical cyclone Vance.  The park was almost flattened beyond recognition and many of the trees and palms still bear the scars.

Looking towards our site at the 80 Mile Beach Caravan Park

All the fisher people on the beach

2 Nice Threadfin Salmon and two happy fisher guys

Sun, 19th June - De Grey's River

We said our goodbyes to our neighbours at Cleaverville and headed back out along the dirt road to the highway.  Rick's eyes were a little better due to our neighbour Fran giving him a couple of Zirtek tablets to take.  We were hoping there would be a chemist open in Port Hedland even though it was a Sunday, where we could purchase some antihistamines for him.

At around midday we stopped at the Whim Creek Hotel.  We had heard that the food there was great.  Our meal was OK, but there was enough food on our plates to feed four hungry miners!  We took a 'doggy bag' of chips for our dinner that night.  While we were sitting outside eating our lunch, about 15 miners came in for theirs (including one young girl about 18 years old).  The mine is right next door to the pub and that's all there is ... a mine and a pub with some accommodation and a swimming pool for the miners. 

When we first arrived at the pub, I needed to visit the ladies room which meant walking down the side to a demountable toilet block.  As I started walking, I heard 'Hello' in a strange voice.  I spun around to come face to face with a big white cocky and his mate in a huge cage.  It turned out his name is Harry and without fail he says hello to everyone who walks past him.

Driving through this part of WA you find that every second vehicle on the road has fleuro stripes down the side, a huge aerial topped with an orange flag and is driven by a miner with a fleuro vest on.  Every other vehicle is either a car towing a caravan or a road train.  The road trains up here haul four trailers usually and are immense.  It is a bit of novelty to see a sedan.  The countryside is really interesting and the scenery changes all the time.  Sometimes there is nothing on the horizon and then suddenly you will come across a range or some fascinating rock formations.

We drove into Port Hedland and the closer we got to the harbour area the dirtier the place looked.  We couldn't get over how much red dust covered people's roofs, cars, gardens and footpaths.  We decided that we wouldn't try to stay anywhere near here.  We drove further out of town where it was a bit cleaner, to a shopping centre and found that the chemist used to open on Sundays but recently decided to close.  Just not our luck ... we ended up getting some natural type hayfever tablets at Woolworths in the hope that Rick might get some relief.  We also stocked up on groceries and drinking water and kept heading north to a free camp at De Grey's River for the night.  We were quite late getting here and found that there were probably around 40 odd assorted caravans, campers, motorhomes, etc. already set up for the night.  The truckies think its great fun to blow their horns as they drive past these overnight stops, no matter what the time of day or night.  The traffic didn't bother us much during the night here ... we figured the road trains avoid travelling during the night as there are no fences and lots of cattle wander the sides of the roads.  You  occasionally see a dead one of the side of the road.

Some of the interesting scenery

Our campsite for the night at De Grey's River

Wed, 15th Sat, 18th June - Cleaverville

We called in to have a look at the very interesting North West Shelf Gas plant visitors' centre on our way out of Karratha.  By mid-morning we were heading on our way 40 kms north-east to a place called Cleaverville Beach, clocking up 14,000kms of our trip on the way.

We had to negotiate 13kms of dirt road before arriving at a pretty beach camping area.  Once again, it was very busy and we were lucky enough to find a spot overlooking a rocky beach.  It was a sunny day of around 24 degrees and we had TV, internet and mobile phone!!  What more could we want for $7 per night!  The tide was very low so we walked out on the rocks and chipped a few oysters.  They weren't very good however and we got bitten by Midges (Sandflies) for our efforts.  We met our neighbours Chris and Fran who were going to be staying for another week.

On Thursday morning we had two brothers squeeze in near us in their motorhome.  I spent some time catching up on the blog before having lunch.  Then, after lunch we drove about 20kms to the Visitors' Centre at Roebourne.  Here we filled several water containers for our neighbours and had a look through the old gaol building.  Water was available here for a gold coin donation.  We left Robourne and headed about another 20kms further out to Samson Point.  It was low tide and the tides here have huge variances - 5.5m high expected during the time we were in the area, but known to be anywhere up to a high of 8m.  We had a look around the marina and boat ramp area where Rick ended up speaking to a fellow who was originally from Kiama.

We then drove back inland a few kilometres to a place called Wickham, where we went up to the Tank Lookout.  Down below we could see the outdoor theatre.  These towns are really just places for the miners to live in while working.

We then drove out to Cossack.  Cossack is a historical town that used to be a centre for pearling activities but is now really only a ghost town.  We were out there to see the famous 'Staircase to the Moon'.  Between March and October each year, when conditions are just right, visitors to the North West region of WA are treated to a natural spectacle - the Staircase to the Moon. This natural phenomenon occurs only when the full moon rises over the exposed mudflats at times of extremely low tides, creating the optical illusion of a staircase reaching for the moon. The staircase occurs three nights each month from March to October.

Friday and Saturday were quiet days catching up with the blog and walking the beach.  Once again it was windy on both days only calming down at about 3 in the afternoon. Rick's eyes have been sore and itchy for a couple of days.  He appears to be suffering an allergic reaction to all the dust and the grass pollens that are being blown around.  At least he could watch the V8s qualifying on telly on Saturday afternoon

The North West Shelf Gas plant

Our campsite at Cleaverville Beach

The view looking back towards Karratha

Boat at Point Samson high and dry due to the low tide

The wharfs are built to cope with the large tide height variances

Outdoor Theatre at Wickham

Staircase to the Moon (not my photo unfortunately)

Sunset over the mudflats while waiting for the moon to rise

Mon, 13th to Tues, 14th June - 40 Mile Beach

Monday was another windy, windy day - not nice for towing a caravan.  We drove about 150kms to a place called 40 Mile Beach that had been recommended to us.  Another busy place, but we managed to find a spot a little bit sheltered in the scrub.  We stayed in the van until about 4:30pm as it was too windy to do anything else.  Luckily, we had some games to play and reading to do.  When we eventually ventured out to have a look around, we were a bit disappointed as it is very swampy with a very rocky beach area.  We decided to only stay the one night and move on to somewhere nicer (hopefully).

On Tuesday we left 40 Mile Beach before the wind had a chance to come up again and drove 70kms into Karratha.  We filled with water at the Visitors' Centre ($4 donation) and asked where we could find a laundromat.  By the way, how can it be a donation if you are asked for a set amount?  Anyway, it turned out we had to drive into Dampier to go to a laundromat, about 26kms away as Karratha doesn't have one.  Eventually we found the laudromat which was actually just a couple of washing machines inside the Dampier Transit Caravan Park (the Visitors' Centre lady didn't tell us that).  We decided to set up camp in the park and make use of the facilities and then Rick went to speak to the caretaker to pay the $24 for the night.  She told him she was booked out, but after smiling nicely at her, she allowed us to stay where we we had already set up.  We still didn't have mobile phone reception or internet without our external aerial, and we couldn't connect to water or run our shower water into a sullage pit (we had to collect it in a bucket), but we did have power and access to a couple of washing machines.  There isn't much in Karratha and it is a bit swampy with no real beaches to speak of.  Dampier was a much nicer spot with access to the ocean across the road. 

In the evening it was still very windy, so we walked a couple of hundred metres up the road to an accommodation place set up mainly for miners, rather than try to barbecue. We went into the huge mess hall where it cost $25 per head for all you could eat of four courses. No alcohol could be consumed at all, but plenty of juice and cordials and/or tea and coffee were provided. The food was excellent and it was all well presented.

From the front of the Caravan Park we had an excellent view of the North West Shelf Gas plant and the ships waiting to be loaded.  In the evening the lights made it look like a small city and there was continual noise throughout the night.

Our camp in the scrub at 40 Mile Beach

40 Mile Beach at low tide with its rocks and red sand

Looking towards the ocean from our site in the Dampier Transit Park

Sun, 12th June - Robe River

We headed into Exmouth to fuel up, dump the toilet and fill up with water before hitting the road again.  We called into Kailis Seafood again on the way out and managed to get 2 kilos of the $15 local Exmouth prawns this time (very nice too, I might add).

We drove on to a free camp at Robe River, about 400kms north of Exmouth and on the side of the highway.  It was a popular spot and by nightfall there were approximately 30 caravans, motorhomes and fifth wheelers there. One couple have been on the road in their fifth wheeler for 11 years, and had to stay at Robe River for three weeks while waiting for a part for their Chevvy to be sent to Karratha from America.

Some of the interesting scenery along the way

Some of the vans stopped at Robe River for the night

Wed, 8th to Sat, 11th June - Cape Range

Wednesday was Rick's birthday!  He left the van at around 3:30am to drive out to the Cape Range National Park Ranger's Station to await his arrival in the hope of securing a camp site.  Rick was the second vehicle in the queue and by 8am when the Ranger arrived there were 13 vehicles waiting.  He managed to have a bit of sleep while waiting.  Not exactly the usual way to spend one's birthday!  He managed to secure us a site for two nights at Mesa Camp which was near the beach and had 15 sites.  There are about ten camp areas in the National Park and some of them only have room for 3 small tents and some are accessible by 4x4 only.  Across all the camps in the Park, there are only 90 sites.

After settling in we drove to the beautiful Turquoise Bay where Rick went in for a snorkel with the fish.  There were hundreds of silver fish called Common Darts ... very beautiful, sleek fish with three dark dots along their sides.  There were also large bream just poking their noses into the sand looking for food.  He managed to get really close to them all ... Turquoise Bay is a sanctuary zone and the fish probably realise they are safe there.

On Thursday we booked our seats to go on a glass-bottom boat on Friday morning and we extended our stay at Mesa camp for another two nights.  We then drove to Mandu Mandu Gorge to do the 3km walk and climb.  I didn't learn until after we had been through it, that the gorge climbs here are rated 1-6 according to difficulty and Mandu Mandu was rated as a 4.  The walking was fine although we had to be careful as the ground is covered in river rocks ... very easy to twist an ankle.  Then started climbing, and climbing, and climbing ... not for everyone!  And, what goes up ... must come down.  The trail at times was really scarey and very tiring.  Never again!  After lunch we drove to the very southern camp in the Park called Yardie Creek.  Yardie Creek can be crossed by four wheel drive if the weather and tides are just right.  We then returned to Turquoise Bay where we both snorkelled with the fish until about 4:30pm.  On the drive back to our van we had a very close encounter with a kangaroo ... being a National Park they are everywhere!

Very early on Friday morning we received a call to say that it was too windy to take the glass bottom boat out and would we like to join the cruise on the following morning.  We said yes thanks, and couldn't understand how come we actually received that phone call ... the weather conditions must have been 'just right' for mobile.  As it was early and we were up and dressed I decided to bake some bread by hand for lunch.  The dashboard of the truck was the perfect place to 'prove' the dough.  While I was busy with the bread 'The Wrecker' fixed the footrest on his chair that he broke the night before. The bread turned out to be really nice even though I almost set fire to the van by using 'bake paper' in our gas oven.   In the afternoon we  drove half way back to Exmouth to get our emails and make some calls and then Rick went swimming while I tried fishing.  No luck with the fishing and Rick said he couldn't even see any fish this time.

Saturday turned out to be another windy day, so we drove to Charles Knife Gorge.  The scenery here was beautiful and I was glad we didn't have to do any climbing.  We had been told earlier to go to the Kailis Seafood place on the way back as they had prawns there for $15 per kilo.  We called in but could only get $29 kilo tiger prawns as they didn't have any of the local ones.  We did some shopping in Exmouth on the way back and bought a snorkelling set for me as I had been borrowing Rick's.

Looking back towards our site and the beach

Turquoise Bay

River rocks at the base of the Mandu Gorge

Yours truly ... not happy!

Yardie Creek mouth

Charles Knife Gorge

Charles Knife Gorge and the river bed at the base