Whalebone Bay, Western Australia.

Our piece of Whalebone paradise!

The Royal Wedding of Wills and Kate was approaching so I was obviously disappointed not to be in an area with coverage.  Please let's just find some coverage for Friday...Daniel!  However, we did find a truly beautiful place.  We were almost like Adam and Eve...except that we had a caravan they had the Garden of Eden.  Not sure which was going to be better.  We arrived at 8:30am sharp at Whalebone Bay along the Henry Freycinet Harbour, ringing through to Shark Bay Visitors centre to obtain a 24 hour stopping permit for the stay.

Marysia!....quick where's my bucket??

This was paradise! We parked the van at the bottom of the beach literally by water's edge.  Daniel wasted no time in getting out his fishing rod, submerging it into the crystal but shallow waters.  Not long one Flathead pulled in, that would be one for one.  We were for sometime totally alone in this pristine oasis before another party joined us further up the on the hill before coming down to say that they were on their way into Denham and if we could keep an eye on their craft.  No worries, we'd do the same on their return.

Now this is a fish!

The day's catch yielded five good size Flatheads, one Shark, one Coral Trout, one other fish!  Daniel was just throwing in the rod that excited other campers that had arrived luring them to our camp.  Needless to say 'happy hour' was spent teaching two Dutch girls to throw in their lines, another couple sipping on their beverages telling me about the people they'd met on the road, with another two families with their kiddies pleading with their dads to bring out their rods!

Dinner was served with green salad, potatoes and grilled shark fillets aided by a little Emu Bitter!

Finally arriving at Denham caravan park we were able to get coverage for the Royal Wedding, Yes! And where was it said once upon a time......'and let there be light....' I was finally able to retrieve all our emails, use the mobile to send 'Happy Birthday' wishes to Andrew, catch up with all the news on the ABC.  What would one do without communication I wonder!

Oh! how I love my technology!

Very glad too to be able to catch up with the kids even though they both preferred to SMS rather than talk...how could I possibly even entertain the thought that we were missed!!

Eve?? I'm going to cast a line!




Do you think we'll be rescued?

 





Kalbarri, Western Australia.

Do I look good with(out) my hair?

Moving on, we took Heather and Leigh's advice, stopping at Kalbarri.  This is a must stop.  The town is home to about 2000 whereupon holidays can spill to over 10,000 people.  The Murchison Caravan Park was lovely, well set up with lovely landscapes on camp sites.  We took time out to enjoy Chinaman's Beach with some sun, swimming in the sea and fishing.

This was the day that Daniel decided that his hair was too long, badly needing a haircut he pulled out the hairtrimmer, slid on the number 4 blade and told me to cut his hair!  So I did...Shall I say he won't be asking me again........ for sooommme time!   Ha ha!

Bodies regenerated it was time to keep moving North through the Kalbarri National Park, before making a night's stop at the Murchison River Bridge for the evening, which was now Good Friday. A quiet night where we had some dinner, read and practiced the guitars. 

Flies!...no worries I have a Plan!

The next day saw us drive a little way further up the highway to Nerren Nerren, a 24 hour stopover only.  Here the land around was a deep ochre red, dry and dusty.  Nobody else in sight but the flies were everywhere so much so that Daniel pulled the roof top tent on the car down, erected the flyscreen where we sat in 33degree heat all day! and we didn't argue!

The flies, the heat, no water insight thought we should make tracks to our next destination at Hamelin Pool a day or two early if we could get in...and we did.  Easter Sunday was spent here, with no coverage again. Yikes!

This was our Easter 2011...thank you Ania!

Your too kind Daniel!

Hamelin Pool was lovely, so was the beach, which was environmentally protected therefore you couldn't swim in it! The nearest swimming beach was 50 kilometres away but we had to get to water so we headed to Nanga Bay, where there was a caravan park too and by the beach!!
Not always do the books tell you where one should stay.  Oh well! our journey is a learning curve if that. We stayed at Hamelin Pool where we caught up with tidying the van, replenishing, recharging, repowering, reading,practicing and of course sunbaking.



We commemorated Anzac Day with the Dawn Service with 5 girls from Perth who had taken 2 mini camper vans for the weekend parked next to us enjoying their stories for another night.




Shell Brick....Daniel couldn't bend down 'cause he pulled his back!

Hamelin Pool.....this is the water clarity to the bottom!

Into the distance along the foreshore of Hamelin Bay

The sands here are just crushed tiny shells!

Geraldton, Western Australia.

Pt Dennison

Wow! well we've certainly had some down time now, but we're back!! After leaving Geraldton basically we didn't have any coverage for the laptop or mobile for the past 10 days!
So for that reason it's been pretty difficult...that is to say, not having the ability to talk to anyone else except of course Daniel!...and he's just such a born talker!! Okay let's just get down to it.

Heather and Daniel

On leaving Sandy Cape Beach we headed north to Geraldton.  We were very fortunate to have made contact with friends that we made while in Perth who lived just outside Geraldton.  They invited us to stay with them and we did. Heather and Leigh were sensational hosts showing us their beautiful home, lifestyle and where they live.  It was a pleasure to be in such great warm company. 

Daniel and I drove into Geraldton and wondered around town and taking care of some matters for friends back home.  The city foreshore lovely.  A lot of planning had gone into the city's construction for leisure including stunning beach, marina and restaurant facilities for all ages.
With crystal clear blue sea waters and stunning gold sands it was a beautiful city, not very big.  The only real noise that I noticed was from the Cockatoos flying directly over the city destroying that whatever was edible!

Bless their Souls!

Back at the 'Ranch' Heather and Leigh prepared for another evening's entertainment.  A swim, some drinks a great dinner with great conversation enjoyed before lights out.  Our last day took us once again into town to do a little shopping for the journey ahead and sharing a light lunch at Skeeters with Heather. 



My very own Yellow Submarine....based in Geraldton of course!

 Our final evenining we shared a lovely dinner and we were both overwhelmed when Heather and Leigh gave us some parting gifts...a delightful fresh watermelon salad, scrumptious homemade Nutloaf, a lotto ticket for Thursday's draw(and no Heather we won't be upgrading the van!)a crossword scratchy, a goodluck travellers charm and wouldn't you guess....our own dog which we have finally named 'Hayleigh' (stuffed one that is, on the dashboard).  He is so real like it's amazing! Thank you for sharing your piece of home, serenity and Australia with us.

Sandy Cape, Western Australia.

Sandy Cape Regional Park Board Walk

 With Camp set up at Sanctuary Beach, about 12k's north of Jurien Bay in amongst the wilderness Daniel got up early in the morning about 6:00 heading straight for the beach which was just over behind our site.  I needed to go for a run taking my 2kilo weights with me.  I took the pebbled track along the foreshore returning the same way.  I picked up the new skipping rope we bought before leaving Perth and started at 30...before leaving home I was doing 500 skips.  Oh! well one has to start at some point!  After that I got down on the caravan matting outside and did some stretching exercises. 

View from the summit of Sandy Cape Beach

Daniel returned with his catch of fresh Herring.  The rest of the day we really spent leisurely with no time frame to be anywhere now or soon or tomorrow.  The weather was beautiful with 26C.  A walk along the top of the ridge of the boardwalk with breathtaking views of the sand dunes beneath us on one side and the grand Indian Ocean on the other. Back at base I read the last of my Millenium Trilogy while Daniel strummed away on the guitar.  A coffee with Tiramisu and a Coffee Cream chocolates saw us gain the energy (Ha!) to head over the other side to the beach.  Of course the obligatory rod in hand, beach chairs, towell, suncream, Aeroguard(you should have seen what the Sand flies did to me...I have battle scars!)where we basked under blades of sun as the seabreeze brought gentle waves to the shore. 

On top o f the world!

That evening 'happy hour' was enjoyed with Neville and Cheryl, residents of Perth and WA all their lives where we talked about kids, grandkids, pets, animals where to stop as we moved further North over chilled Rose (Hi Leigh!) and great Western Red.

After next morning's fishing Daniel heartily declared that we were going to stay another day in this Paradise.   We said farewell to our friends before settling into our routine of guitar lessons after breakfast.

Now from some surf fishing

Now to play on the Dunes!

All in a day's work!

Time for Okocim Beer and Polish Pickle!

 

Jurien Bay, Western Australia.

We had to collect a package sent from Ania and Andrzej. Surprise, Surprise a box filled of goodies. Shall I list them? why not...short noodles, spicy mayonnaise, mustard, horseraddish, mushroom sauce, potato pancakes, cucumbers in brine, Sweet pickled cucumbers, Birds Milk (marshmallow in chocolate...lemon flavoured..yum!), yummy Polish chcolates,finally.......sardines? How much fish can a person eat Ania??  Oh! and real Polish Beer, OKOCIM(Daniel had to buy ice to put into the car fridge so by our destination it would be cold) and a bottle of DEBOWA vodka. Thank you guys.  Can we stay away longer??

Finally we managed to get on to our plan of destination having turned off the Tomtom which kept taking us back to Zdzichu and Halinka's place.  (Maybe it didn't want to leave home, after all it knew Chef! or Daniel just didn't set it correctly.....yet!)

TomTom decided to take the fastest route....but we wanted the other 'route' (no....you rude people) the road! Indian Ocean Highway.  The drive so easy on the driver along this major road. Stopping at a free campsite to have a bite of lunch, coffee we were immediately approached by Rod who gave us some more places to stay when in the Northern Territory and into Queensland. Wow! who you meet to be happy to share their information is kindly amazing.

About 40 kilometres outside of Cervantes you can't help but notice the low but grassy shrubs with yellow tips carpeting your left with pillows of soft white lime sands that devour your eyes to the right rising from almost nowhere.

Arriving at Sandy Cape Park, setting up, sharing a glass of white wine, catching up with the Ranger, dipping the fishing rods into the gentle bubbles of evening surf I had to ask myself what else did I have to do today!  Hopefully Daniel would serve fish for breakfast!  mmmmm!....just a thought!

Perth, Western Australia 3.

Bell Tower by the Ferries

Now my turn!

Murray Mall Shopping

London Court Mall

A really big beautiful Fig tree

In the middle of the road in front of Bell Tower

Perth, Western Australia 2.

Western Australian Steamship Exchange

We were making our way into the City Ferry Dock to catch the Ferry to take us to Fremantle but somehow we missed the turnoff and ended up on the Freeway driving down to Fremantle instead.  Doesn't matter I said. Got on our bikes heading off to take in what the city had to offer including the Port of Fremantle where we had some lunch, before heading out to the Whaler's Cove, the Marina along the Esplanade.  Once at the car we decided to post to our kids and their partners some wine that we'd purchased at Margaret River in time for Easter....of course we didn't forget the Easter eggs either.

Whalers Cove

Perth had had hot weather for about 3 months with no rain. Rain was expected arriving but not enough as expected. Good for us but not for them.  We made arrangements to catch up with the other friends, Zdzichu and Halinka at their place.  With the weather still in top form we headed out the next day to Cottesloe beach taking our time as we headed along the West Coast Highway to soak in the absolute wonder of not only the Indian oceans vastness but also the beauty in the landscape and how homes blended in along the coast line.  A few stops along the way at some of the beaches, Scarborough, Brighton, Sorrento and Hilliary's Harbour were worth the trip.

Fremantle Marina

That evening we enjoyed our hosts' hospitality who had gone out of their way to prepare a spectacular meal, worthy of any Master Cooking class with Salmon that Daniel didn't catch! Again a night of wonderful conversation filled with journies experienced and shared but the night had to come to an end as some had to go to work the next day, no not us!  Again what could we say it was a very wonderful memorable evening privileged to spend in the best of company. 

Monument to Vasco De Gama

Perth, Western Australia 1.

C'mon get on your bike!

Fed, dressed, refreshed the next morning saw us take off into Perth's town centre with our first stop at the Visitors Information Centre to collect our pamphlets.  Parking was not an easy find but were recommended to head off to Kings Park to leave the car there.  Helmets, gloves on we hopped on the bikes and rode around through Kings Park, the Botanical Gardens before heading down to Swan River with our starting point around the Bell Tower.  The city skyline was a treat for the eye against the Swan River.  With a few photos along the way we came across the Catamarans promising to come back as our carpark was limited to 2 hours. 

King's Park Dve:earliest plantation 1929

We viewed some magnificent homes overlooking the Swan over across to the City.  Heading back through the city took us along a few of the major intersections to enjoy the bustle of downtown.  Not hard to notice was the building that was going on everywhere along the streets and buildings. A stop at the City Port we bought a light refreshment before heading back up hill to Kings Park.

Catching a tram ride.....all the way from Melbourne

The day coming to an end we both caught up with some work, Daniel on the guitar and myself with some updating of the blog and the usual laundry, cleaning.  Happy hour attended with more laughs before lights out for the night.

M & M

We got a call from Ania the next day catching up with news at home.  They had some friends who lived in WA and gave us their contact numbers should we want to catch up with them during our stay.  We'd met both couples in Melbourne on a couple of occassions going back about 3 or 4 years ago.  We'd arranged to meet Marysia (not me!) at a Polish Restaurant to grab a bite to eat. We made our way across town without any difficulty taking in the buildings, homes.  With a little time on our hands we walked around before catching up with Marysia.  The afternoon drifted into evening before she suggested that we should take a view of the nightscape from the revolving restaurant on the 33rd floor in the City.  The sites were amazing with a couple of drinks to relax by.  It was an absolute pleasure as she had gone out of her way to make us welcome, show us her town telling us how she'd settled in Western Australia after moving there from Melbourne about seven years ago. Lovely as always, a delight to be in her company and a very memorable experience for us.

At 33 in the revolving restaurant...thank you!

Mandurah, Western Australia.

Dolphin Quay Marina

We looked forward to coming into Mandurah choosing a Caravan Park that was in the city precinct so we could spend the time here on our bikes which we did.  The waterfronts, the seaside apartments, boardwalks, shopping malls were all idyllic.  The City centre possessed a holiday charm that we at once recognised that this town must surely be a holiday destination.  We also noted that there were a lot of new housing estates being built in both southerly and inland directions.  Mandurah had rail connection into Perth which took about an hour with a drive in the car of up to 45 minutes. 

Marina Market Central

In the late afternoon we headed to the Bypass bridge for some fishing and crabbing off the jetty but the current was too strong for crabbing. After about ninety minutes we headed back into town locating ourselves under the orignal bridge and old jetty.  A few people there we chatted with for the couple of hours that we were there but unfortunately we didn't catch any crabs.  The fish that Daniel caught he obligedly fed to the pelicans that paid him attention. 

Susnet at Mandurah

Back to camp too late to cook so we decided on a bottle of red with some cheese, olives, artichokes, crackers and kabana.  What a busy day, how could one even think of work with so much to do!

Time to prepare dinner

Up early at 6.30 I thought that I just had to get a run in along the town centre walkway along the water's edge.  I wasn't disappointed so much so that I went back woke Daniel and told him that he had to join me to experience the thrill of being up so early along this path before heading off for a coffee to one of the local coffee shops on the board walk.  What a beautiful beginning to the day.  Packed in no time with destination Perth on the radar.

We have a guest.....

Arriving late afternoon we were asked to come join the locals at 'happy hour'.  Needless to say that after a few glasses everyone participated in friendly exchange of information.  What can one say but again fortune fell upon us that we had met yet again so many friendly people.  A curious thing in one way, but funny in another is that since travelling many people have their own 'business' card.  Not a work business card but their own personal one freely exchanged with others so as to keep in touch or a kind of rememberance of where we'd met.  Something we'll have to look into I think.  As it is said 'when in Rome, do as the Romans do"..of course..whatelse!

He's bought his partner too!

Margaret River, Western Australia.

The drive from outside Denmark was beautiful with tall forest gums, lush green forests by seas edge.  An early start found us at Augusta's tip by 2:00pm. Unfortunately the Visitors Information Centre really wasn't very informative.   Camp set up we had to make the most of this area.  Taking a 4 wheel drive route we at one point thought we were lost until we met another keen photographer who said that we were "heading in the right direction....."

Our tour of duty took a sharp direction north as we headed to the Margaret River region. I don't believe that I have seen anything of this size in Victoria. There were so many vineyards, wineries each had amazing entrances, cellar doors and beautiful landscapes. The fact was also that there was a lot of Western Australian money that had gone into this industry.

Beach weather still beautiful took us for a drive along this road North to Yellingup, where we walked the beach and managed to find a dog, actually two, who also had a photo with me. "Cheeky devil" he was.  We headed off to Dunsborough, before heading off to the Northern tip of Cape Naturaliste.

Back at our camp we caught up with John and Candy...we may be catching up with them at a later date in Carnarvon for a laugh or two at happy hour.  We had a little bit of an incident here at the Caravan Park the night before leaving.  I went to the kiosk to see if I could get a tin of beans leaving Daniel behind trying to ignite the gas barbecue. I heard him pushing the ignite button and then I heard a bang! I thought that the barbecue had fallen off the table but when I got back I learned the truth.  He's struck the ignition key and then the barbecue plate flew off the barby hitting him in the head, but not before singeing his hair, eyebrow and melting his eyelashes together.  Well I couldn't keep a straight face any longer and just burst into laughter.  The bang was loud enough that Candy came out and asked if Daniel was allright.  But then because I was laughing she started laughing.  Next morning I looked at Candy and John and all started laughing again.
 



 The day came to an end before we set off early next morning to stop at Mandurah for some crabbing and fishing.




Now this is a beach!

Marysia...get on that rock over there.......

Gosh!...where did that doggy come from?

Daniel.....let me know when there's a wave!!!!!!

Surf's up