G’Day Australia ! Hello Perth !

Flight Brussels-London-Singapore-Perth. After the usual after-flight-fag* we took a taxi to the Ibis Hotel. Torsten wanted to get in on the right-hand side, which, of course, is not the right side Down Under . Our chauffeur took it easy. He immigrated from Serbia 23 years ago. Nice bloke, we chatted with him all the way into town, he finished all his sentences with “mate”. We entertained the hotel’s reception staff because we couldn’t remember who had the hotel voucher. Torsten did.

For dinner we had a delicious steak in Bobby Dazzler’s Restaurant. Afterwards we relocated to the restaurant’s pub next door and immediately identified ourselves as foreigners by ordering a pitcher** instead of a jug*** of VB. The following were correctly ordered, delivered and emptied as ‘jugs’. For their already quite extensive wall-collection of bank notes we left a duly signed 200 Belgian Francs bill as proof of life (so to say).

We met some nice blokes : 2 Englishmen and a Scot. One of the English lads was in his mid 50s, and came to Australia 4.5 years ago ; the second one was Down Under on a Working Holiday Visa. Whereas the Scot had already acquired Australian citizenship. As he stated proudly : ”I’m Australian !” Reply of a true blue Aussie next to him “You better lose that accent !” The Scot’s reply was “You better lose that beer, or I’m gonna lose it for you….”». At around 10h30 p.m. jetlag finally took over and we returned to our hotel room.

*fag : Aussie & Brit lingo for cigarette

** US & Canada

***AUS

Winter’s keeping it’s ice-cold, merciless grip on us with 21°C.

We still got up at 7 a.m. and had a full breakfast in the hotel’s breakfast room. In spite of the bitter cold, we picked up our Bushcamper at Britz. Their staff was friendly and helpful as ever, Paul would have even sacrificed himself by giving us his job and driving our Bushcamper to Darwin for us. No way, mate !!!

After filling up our fridge at Woolies, we acquired a Telstra Prepaid Card (AUD 25) for our cell phone. We don’t have any international access, but could receive calls from anywhere in the world. Then again… who needs that on vacation ?? Last shopping stop was a bottle shop that we left with a slab (i.e. 24 cans) of Emu Bitter (after a lively discussion whether to buy VB or MB) and a bottle of W.A. red wine, ‘Hazard Hill’. Quite nice, that one.

For tonight we had booked an ensuite cabin at Perth Holiday Park to enjoy a last touch of “luxury” with a private bathroom and a TV set. We spent the rest of the sunny afternoon on the cabin’s patio. We got a few pics of – still unidentified – parakeets and heard Laughing Kookaburras from a distance. Didn’t even know they were prevalent in this part of Australia.

Today will see us in bed at 10 p.m., as the alarm’s been set to 5 a.m. – our standard wakeup call for Oz vacations.

Due to the harsh winter climate the cabin is equipped with an electric heater, and a heating (electric) blanket. Well, we suppose you couldn’t survive in these parts without them…..(joke !)

So much for the luxury of an ensuite cabin. There was no hot water this morning. On the other hand, there’s nothing better to get you going than a cold shower early in the morning ! At daybreak we were on our way, 700 K  in northerly direction. The first part of the road meandered through beautiful Swan Valley, dotted with gentle rolling green hills and vineyards, coveted in morning mist. Later on the the hills slowly gave way to open, flatter and dryer bushland – red soil, gum trees, patches of dry grass. About 20 kangaroos had lost the previous night’s encounters with cars. Crows and wedge tailed eagles were feasting on them. Three goats were a bit more fortunate, they had well estimated our vehicle’s braking distance (note: we did not run over those roos!). Highway 95 from Perth to the north is well in the hands of the numerous road trains transporting grain and mineral resources – such as gold! – and chemicals.

400 km into the day we had a break at Payne’s Find Roadhouse, where we devoured a delicious bacon & egg burger and scratched our heads about a sign on the terrace which reads as follows:

Um… ?????? Discount accommodation at the local cemetery or what??

Mount Magnet has a population of 1.600, Meekatharra of 1.200 (or was that vice versa ?). In Meekatharra we didn’t get lucky in our search for a gaslight, which we had forgotten to buy in Perth. We could have bought one here for 63 AUD (a price that didn’t include a gold claim after all), but no gas bottle. So we didn’t. Funny detail : when we started inquiring, we asked for a " gas lamp ", getting the reply that they didn’t have “gaslights”. We used the word “gaslight” for our next inquiry, receiving a reply along the lines of “gas lamps”.

Anyway, we were without any outdoor light (lamp ?), but luckily our site was close enough to the laundry and its outdoor lamp/light (your choice), which at least enabled us to eat outside and see if and what we had on our plates.

We had initially planned to ask the campsite’s owner in the morning where to find the road to Mount Augustus. We incidentally spotted it …. it’s right next to the campsite’s office.

This was our first experience on gravel. Road conditions good, 200 km further on slightly corrugated, some dry creek beds. After three hours and 164 km we met the first oncoming traffic  (5 vehicles in total). In the beginning, progress was slow, as we had many photo-stops for landscape and – foremost – wildlife : kangaroos, zebra finches, wedgies and the designated animal of the day : the emu ! Emus galore! At some point, we stopped counting, but we saw about 30-40. One of them seemed to have a suicidal streak, as it crossed the road at high speed (excellent acceleration !) only 5 m in front of our car, but Claudia’s instant reaction frustrated its plan.

Ten to fifteen kangaroos (the big ones) actively supported our film- and photo-project, as well as a large flock of zebra finches and a flock of galahs. At high noon, we stopped for a cut lunch* at a waterhole, where we saw most of today’s emus and zebra finches. We were just about to continue our trip, when a group (flock ? herd ?) of eight or nine emus crossed the road in single file, after the first one (must have been the head-emu) had checked the road and classified us as harmless, as we hadn’t even started the engine yet.

It goes without saying that we also saw lots of sheep and cattle.

The name “tourist resort” for the campsite at Mount Augustus seems a bit over the top for what they have to offer at present, but it’s quite nice, we have a fair share of space on the site, they have powered sites and only few people find their way there.

We still do not have an outdoor light, and on top of that, the lantern at our site is broken. Therefore, we are the only ones on the whole campsite who are sitting inside their campervan in spite of the comfy temperatures. We increasingly have the feeling that nobody wants to see us…..

We’re hoping to find a gaslight/lamp in Tom Price!

Info: Mount Augustus is the world’s largest monolith, about twice the size of Uluru (formerly known as Ayers Rock).

*sandwich

This morning, we had neither a cold, nor a hot shower. We had no shower at all, as at Mount Augustus they turn off the water over night until 7 a.m. So we just brushed our teeth and got on the way.

After driving 10 km in the wrong direction, returning to and inquiring at Mount Augustus Tourist Resort, we left the resort « through the backdoor » for Dooley Downs (on dirt). Between the two gates which you have to open (and close again) when passing through the station, we counted 144 km (equals the distance Brussels-Aachen, for those who care). Road conditions were easy to moderate with some inclines and descents. We then passed over to Pingandy Downs Station, moderate dirt road, very winding, many inclines. After that came Ashburton Downs Road on the terrain of the station of the same name. That road was easy with some patches of sand or bulldust. Today’s designated animal was the kangaroo. We saw so many that it was almost boring. Highlights were the sighting of four scrub turkeys and a dingo. We interrupted the poor dingo’s lunchbreak, and quickly continued on our way so it could eat in peace.

As usual, there were lots of cattle eyeing us curiously. About 30-45 minutes driving time to Ashburton Downs homestead, we were in for a surprise. An unidentified creek sported a puddle of water in its creek bed. Said puddle was about 4x10 m large. We merrily entered the waterhole and – got bogged ! Our merriness subsided quickly as we noticed that we could have driven around the bloody puddle. The water was axle-deep with muddy bottom. Torsten had the idea to put some rocks in front of the hind-wheels. With a determined look on his face, he got back into the car and  drove it out of the bloody mess. Fortunately, the clutch hadn’t taken any water, otherwise we would have had an unscheduled stay at the waterhole. And who in the world would like to spend the night in the middle of nowhere, in the middle of a waterhole, with thirsty cattle milling around ?? Again, we would have been lucky : about 20 minutes after departure (ourselves covered in cold sweat and our boots in mud) we met two vehicles, who could have pulled us out. They were the only oncoming traffic on this road. Definitely not to be recommended for party girls….

We finally reached the beautiful Pilbara region.

After a total of 347 km we reached the highway to Tom Price. Even our vehicle was reluctant to be sitting on the bloody tar again ; Torsten had a slight problem to change transmission from 4WD to 2WD. Repeated back- and forth-driving finally did the trick. 32 km further down the road, we happily changed transmission again ; for, instead of driving to Tom Price via Paraburdoo on tar (yuk), we chose a 69 km long, unsealed, primary road to T. P. Road conditions were excellent, the only difference to a tar road was the gravel surface.

A few km before reaching T.P. we came across Hardey River, with a big puddle in its otherwise dry bed. Ha, we know the name of the game : murky red water, about 40 cm deep, muddy bottom. We could drive around, although the “track “ was just about wide enough for our Landcruiser. The correct speed, first gear low range and exact assessment of the track’s and vehicle’s width did the trick. A couple in a Ford Falcon, who were driving behind us, hesitated first, then decided to give it a go. Their way across was more sliding than driving, and they also hit some large rocks twice, but they did make it. We had waited on the far side until they were across.

In Tom Price we bought an oil lamp, which “died” after about three hours…. tomorrow we’ll finally buy a gaslight !! At least the oil lamp lasted through our steak dinner.

Tom Price Caravan Park is very nice and very quiet.

What a great start we had today ! We enjoyed a hot shower, then took off to buy a gaslight. We found one at Coles at AUD 86 for lamp and gas bottle.

Around 9.30 a.m. we took off to Karijini N.P. (50 km). You have to pay a day fee of AU$ 9/vehicle, to be deposited in a box at the park’s entrance, part of the slip has to be kept and put on the dashboard.

First scenic stop was beautiful Fortescue Falls, very picturesquely settled in a deep gorge : a narrow river lined with reed, turquoise-coloured water, a waterfall nestled between the gorge’s red walls….. You have to climb 500 m down to reach the falls, and – quite logically – back up. But it’s definitely worth it.

We had also stopped at the visitor centre for information and bought some postcards.

Second scenic stop was Weano Gorge with its breathtaking Oxer Lookout, where you can stand right on the rim of the chasm with a look over five different gorges  meeting there. Claudia took a quick look at the depth from a safe distance and decided that the view was magnificent from where she was standing. The scenery is unbelievably beautiful : red rough cliffs, Spinifex, gumtrees and –bushes, and so on…. plus clear, bright blue, sunny skies, 22°C…. (we’re trying not to get carried away here !).

On our way back to Tom Price on the bitumen highway, a wallaby crossed the road well ahead of us.

Have you ever noticed how much light changes the world ? We have, after buying our gaslight : nightfall has finally lost its grip on our outdoor life schedule. For the first time we could spend the whole evening outside, reluctantly going to bed around 9.30 p.m. And, not to be forgotten : dust. It has also become an integral part of our life. It’s everywhere, even in the dishes compartment – bloody bulldust !

Firstly and most importantly, let us say a word regarding the designated animal of the day : there was none. Wildlife performance was very low-key today, with the exception of the odd wedgie feasting on roo steak and the fleeting sight of a dingo. On the other hand, we have a new “of the day” category, namely the “vehicle of the day” : the Toyota Landcruiser in police set-up.

Road conditions were generally good, partly rocky, partly narrow and winding.

After breakfast we took dust road no. 136 to the north. We crossed (or rather : drove around) the puddle in Hardey River with ease and grace (ha !). First scenic stop was Hamersley Gorge. We climbed down the narrow track right into the heart of the gorge, marvelled at the dark-red walls, climbed over boulders, enjoyed the gorge’s beauty and congratulated ourselves for our decision to stop there.

On to Millstream N.P. Yesterday afternoon, we had inquired at the campsite if Fortescue River – which we had to cross – was dry. Reply : yes. In fact, it was so dry that we didn’t even notice crossing it.

The road meandered through the awesome, rugged beauty of the Pilbara. Around Millstream, the landscape flattened out a little, with ranges and small table mountains hovering in the distance.

In Millstream we took our lunch break at beautiful Python Pool at the foot of the Chichester escarpment. Magnificent ! A party of 5 young Aussie tourists, whose brains must have been dried out by the sun, climbed up the rubble-strewn sheer walls – with a child in tow. They hadn’t made it back down when we left, but we sure hope they did, and in one piece !

We finally continued on our way. The landscape became flatter and flatter, with no sights to delight the eyes except some small table mountains and grazing cattle. Thus, we delighted our ears by listening to some Aussie music : TOFOG and "Down Under" by Men at Work.

After a total of 346 km on unsealed roads , and to our greatest regret, we reached the North West Coastal Highway, following it to South Hedland. At Whim Creek Pub we took a short break (as in 1999).

Funny detail : as in 1999, we checked in on South Hedland Caravan Park. And here’s the thing : we’re on the same site as two years ago ! Yep, we’re creatures of habit.

The latest news on our newly bought gaslight are that the mantle did not survive the unsealed road. It’s broken. The spare mantles seem to have vanished, and on top of that, the lamp glass is broken, too. So we’re back to sitting in the dark.

By now, our camper van's interior has an overall, regular, ever so thin layer of bulldust.

Strangely enough, the landscape hasn’t changed since 1999 insofar as it hasn’t become any more interesting. 

You somehow just try to get through without falling asleep. Whatever, knowing this boring 600+ km stretch, we had taken a couple of tapes for entertainment and to fight falling asleep at the wheel. 

Three wedgies, eating roo steak, brought the only “action” to the drive. Apart from them, we saw three cyclists (two heading to Broome, one to South Hedland), who had the guts to defy the elements and the road’s sleeping-pill effect. We salute them, for we would never, ever, want to ride a bike here.

We arrived at Sandfire Roadhouse around 10.30 a.m. and treated ourselves to a Hamburger The Lot (as good as two years ago !). But this time, no peacocks or other birds tried to snatch our snack (see yarn 1999).

A few km before reaching Broome we passed a bushfire. After re-filling our almost empty fridge at Coles we checked into Broome Caravan Park, about 4 km outside Broome (again).

As we had also bought a couple of mantles for our gaslight, we could sit outside again tonight.

Yesterday, we inquired at the Tourist Information about the road conditions for Cape Leveque. They said it was an easy road, although very corrugated. Driving time approx. three hours (it took us 3.5 hours, max. speed 80 km/h. Only locals were faster). As soon as we hit the dirt road, we realized that the locals’ definition of an “easy road” differs slightly from ours. The road is sandy – in places up to 30 cm deep. Sealed, the first kilometres would be a highlight for any skateboarder, as they are in the shape of a half pipe. This road must have been built as a test track by Toyota. One sure comes to hate corrugations !! In parts there was only one lane. There was quite a lot of traffic, locals didn’t drive, but fly (could they all be Qantas pilots?).

Enough about the track : Cape Leveque is a must-see, with a beautiful, almost deserted, endless, white beach on the turquoise-coloured Indian Ocean. The perfect location for sunbaking and winding down. At the Cape, you’ll find a small airstrip, a couple of cabins and beach shelters and a restaurant/shop. Pre-booking for overnight accommodation is obligatory.

Before hitting the road again we feasted on fish burgers, Coke and ice cream. On the way back an airhead overtook us with an estimated space of 10 cm between the two vehicles. Twice, we met oncoming traffic in very narrow parts of the track.

This road is " 4WD recommended " only. If you don’t love your 2WD car or are planning to buy a new one, go ahead. We saw 4WDs only, about 20 of them.

Also, we estimated that the driving time equals the way from Brussels to Paris. Not for the world would we drive to Paris and back in one day. We’d rather be driving on dirt, gravel and bulldust !

Our wakeup call this morning consisted of a symphony of birds’ voices. Because of the warm weather we had breakfast outside. The flies appreciated that very much……

First stop was the post office – we were a bit too early and patiently waited in the sun together with some Aussies. Afterwards, we raided Coles to stock up on food for the Gibb River Road (GRR).

The rest of the morning was spent with beach walking and sunbaking at Cable Beach. We finally ended up in the inofficial nude section in the Eastern part of the beach (although we were not the only dressed specimens there !), where we decided to soak up the sun for a while. About 5 m away from us was a guy who looked like a sausage someone had forgotten on the BBQ. Same guy was equipped with an IQ below that of a lightning bug (firefly), meaning that, entered in a glowing competition with said insects, he wouldn’t even be awarded a consolation prize. After some subdued raving and ranting he threw a fist-size rock in our direction, whereupon we left instead of re-arranging his face (we’re pacifists at heart).

During beach-walking, Torsten hit a submerged rock with his right foot and apparently broke one of his toes. He has thus fulfilled his obligation to break at least one bone in his body while travelling Western Australia (see also 1999 yarn).

At 3 p.m. we once more joined in the feeding tour – figuratively speaking ! – at Malcolm Douglas’ Broome Crocodile Park. Unfortunately, the salties were neither very lively nor very hungry. Our tour guide, Will, explained that their lazy behaviour was due to the cold temperatures…. 31°C and bright sunshine. Yeah… alright, crocs don’t have an inbuilt air-condition to warm up or cool down, so they were just basking in the sun.

After a short detour to Britz to check our fridge, which was making clicking noises when not hooked up, and agreeing with the nice Britz bloke that Toyotas are the most reliable cars – especially the Landcruiser - we returned to the campsite.

We made like vegetables for rhe rest of the day : hang out, broil a steak, eat, hang out, have a cold Emu Bitter and so on.

The drive was uneventful but for a large bushfire in the distance and the crossing of  Fitzroy River via a 1,200 feet (400 m) long, one-lane bitumen bridge. The Fitzroy is very wide there, half of it was gently flowing in subtle shades of green , the other half sporting some quite deep pools and rubble (i.e. large tree trunks).

Six km outside of Derby we visited the Prison Boab Tree (again). The perimeter fence has been closed by now, you can no longer climb in. Reasons (as given on a sign) : respect for the religious beliefs of the local Aboriginal tribe, protection for the tree (otherwise the ground above its roots will become too compact) and possible inhabitants in the shape of snakes.

Boab trees are the second-smallest of their kind (6 species in Africa = baobabs, 3 in Madagascar) ; they don’t have growth rings ; survive droughts (store water) and fires (shed their outer, thin layer of bark) ; discard their leaves in the Dry ; their fruits are rich in Vitamin C ; they were probably washed upon the shores of northern W.A. as fruits from Madagascar ; and  the term " boab " is probably an abbreviation of “baobab”.

Derby is a small, tidy town, but doesn’t have any special features. Kimberley Entrance Caravan Park is actually quite nice, with many trees, but the lots are so small that you couldn’t swing a cat by its tail. The worst part is that our lot is situated opposite the ablution blocks, and is therefore used as direct access by many of our fellow travellers. The campsite’s reception staff was rather unfriendly and anything but motivated.

Today we finally hit the (in)famous Gibb River Road, which is paved for the first km, then turns into an innocent gravel road. We’re glad to be sitting on gravel again, if only for 78 km. We took the turnoff to Windjana Gorge National Park. This road is also a good gravel road with just one rather rough (dry) creek crossing. Claudia bumped her head on the passenger’s door during the crossing, as she was concentrating on filming (that’s commitment ! *he he*). We were stuck behind a sluggish driver for the final kilometres to Windjana, although the corrugated surface of the road was literally screaming for 70-80 km/h to make it bearable. Overtaking was impossible due to the thick banner of dust raised.

Windjana bush camp is beautifully located with a view to the sheer, rugged cliff walls of the gorge, which glow red in the setting sun (very picturesque, I dare say). The camp is equipped with flushing toilets and cold showers. Costs : 9 AU$/person & night.

As we arrived around lunchtime, we took a walk to the gorge. A must to see ! Rough cliff walls (the former reef of an ancient sea), Lennard River (green water in deeper parts, although not very impressive in the Dry) and lots of freshies, sunbaking on the far shore. Although freshies do not pose an imminent threat to humans (they can and will bite you when annoyed, but can’t kill you), swimming is still not recommended by the park rangers.

Funny detail : Aussie lingo for crocodile : " snapping log ".

A group of jackaroos and jillaroos* enjoyed themselves by climbing up a 5 m high rock and jumping into the river.

Payment for the bush camp is to be made to one of the two rangers, who passes around each afternoon to collect the money. There are also campfire-places, but you are not allowed to collect wood yourself, it is also distributed by the rangers. We had just settled down for dinner when the ranger passed by our lot, apologizing for the inconvenience. No worries, mate !

* AUS for cowboys & cowgirls

We’re (kinda) sorry to say that the GRR has been “disarmed” in treacherous places, such as steep inclines and descents, which have been paved.

The scenery is gorgeous, with rolling, rough hills, red earth, eucalypt and boab trees. Four of the six wet creek crossings were on the way to Bell Gorge (29 km from GRR). No problem at all. Silent Grove Bush Camp (GRR +19 km) and the camping lots on the river are beautiful. The road is narrow and rough, although two vehicles can pass each other. To reach Bell Gorge itself, you have to walk about 20 min. from the parking lot. In parts you have to climb over rubble and cross Bell River twice. But it’s worth the (little) effort, the gorge and its waterfall are …. well, gorgeous ! We didn’t climb down to the Lower Pool (where you can swim safely), though.

On our way back, we had a medium-strength scare : in the middle of one of the creeks (water up to the bumper), our car – stopped. A well-measured slap against the low range gear lever solved the problem – it wasn’t properly engaged. We wiped cold sweat off our brows and the windshield and continued on our way.

The GRR is quite rough in parts, mainly due to nasty corrugations, but altogether easy to drive. Creek crossings are mainly dry and paved and therefore not worth mentioning.

At Mount Barnett Roadhouse we checked in for the bush camp (AU$ 5.50 per adult & night ; payment by VISA or MASTERCARD ok). We had to drive another 7 km to get there. The camp’s located on the Manning River, in which you may swim (no salties). One freshie was sunbaking about 100m downriver, while a couple of tourists were enjoying the clear water. At the river, we had a nice chat with two Australian women, one of them had been to Europe some years ago.

After nightfall, we took our torch and went down to the river to do some “croc spotting”. Alas, our torch was not strong enough. We had just about given up, when we met John and Skye who had a very powerful torch, which enabled us to not only spot one croc, but also watch the nightly activities of crayfish, catfish and some other water creatures in the shallows. We finally invited John and Skye to a beer.

The bush camp is equipped with pit-dunnies. No showers, no drinking water.

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