We Made It!

12th July 2013

After 82 days & 16, 421kms exploring this great country of ours, we made it home at 3pm this afternoon having driven from Albany without incident.

The past 82 days have been everything and more than we could ever have imagined when we first set off on the 20th April. It has been an unbelievable experience and we are all very privileged to have enjoyed this as a family.

For those that may have been on similar adventures, then you'll understand how amazing its been for us and for those who are contemplating an adventure of your own then take my advice and go for it, it really will be the time of your life, as it has been for us.

We are very happy to be home to catch up with family & friends again, although we have already discussed our next adventure!

Who knows where that might take us, until then.....

We Made It!!!!

The Penultimate Day

11th July 2013

We had a later than expected start to the day today and did not leave the caravan park until 10am. Margaret agreed to be our tour guide today, which meant that we all got Chauffeured around for the day to see a couple of sights in Albany, which was very luxurious indeed.

Our first stop was at an Op Shop, where the girls were very keen to finally buy some costumes for the play they had written while travelling on the Oodnadata Track in SA. In the play Chloe plays the king, Maggie plays Bob, Rach plays Frank and I play the princess, but I wouldn't want to give too much away, except that the iMovie should be interesting to say the least!

The girls in the stockade outside Albany Gaol

The  Cells inside Albany Gaol

From here we drove into Albany and visited the Gaol, which was quite fascinating before walking up the hill to see Patrick Taylor Cottage, which is the first house built in WA, which again was very interesting to see.

The girls with Nan outside Patrick Taylor Cottage

After spending some time here, we decided to drive out to Emu Point where we enjoyed a beautiful lunch at the cafe. The girls spent their time divided between eating, running around on the beach and playing in the nearby playground, they had a ball.

On the way back we did some shopping, so I could cook dinner for us all on our last night on the trip. Again we spent a great night catching up at Nan's house and it really was the perfect way to round off our trip.

Maggie sharing some highlights with Nanny Margaret

Tomorrow we make the final journey up to Perth, which the girls in particular are very excited about.

Esperance to Albany

10th July 2013

Today we woke relatively early and got ourselves packed ready to make the drive across to Albany, the last stop before making our way home, on what has been a fantastic adventure for all of us.

We left Esperance at 9.30am and arrived in Albany just after 3pm. The only stop we made along the way was for fuel and lunch at Jerramungup, but other than that there is nothing to report.

We checked in to the Albany Holiday Village and while Rach & I were setting up the girls ran down to Nan's house and let her know that we had arrived safely.

We spent the rest of the night catching up with Margaret, filling her in on all of the trip details before heading back to the van for the night.

Our last campsite of the Adventure

3 Days in Esperance

7th July 2013

Our first day in Esperance was a very relaxing one. We started the day by going to the Animal Farm just out if town where we had a great breakfast with Wal, Mandy, Sian, Ayvon (Sian's Boyfriend) and his daughter Dakota.

After breakfast we wandered around the animal park for about an hour or so watching the kids run from one enclosure to the other, feeding the animals. They even got a chance to bottle feed some baby lambs, which was a bit of a highlight for them.

    

                                                The girls enjoying the Animal Farm

After this we went back to Wal & Mandy's place, where we spent the rest of the afternoon watching the footy and catching up. The girls enjoyed playing with "Wookie", Wal & Mandy's new & very cute Maltese/Shitzu puppy. It was a very enjoyable & relaxing day for all of us.

Maggie with "Wookie"

8th July

We had another relaxing start to the day leaving the house around 9am this morning. After a brief stop for fuel we made our way about 15kms out of town to Esperance Stonehenge.

This full size, purpose built replica of the original Stonehenge in England was very impressive. Apparently out of all of the 66 replicas of Stonehenge around the world, the Esperance version is the most accurate. It really was amazing to see and also great to be able to wander through, for most part we were the only ones there which was a special feeling.

The girls in front of Stonehenge

We were also treated to another violin solo from Chloe. The acoustics from the granite circle was  just fantastic, it was once again a very special moment for us all.

Chloe playing at Esperance Stonehenge

We left Stonehenge around 11am and drove back through town on our way to the Observatory lookout which gave us a 360 degree view of Esperance and the Bay, it really is one of the most beautiful areas in the world.

We spent the rest of the afternoon driving along the tourist loop marvelling at the pristine coastline that Esperance has to offer. We stopped and enjoyed the beach at Twilight Cove, before moving on and having a late lunch at Observatory Beach.

The Girls at Twilight Cove

Me & the girls overlooking Observatory Beach

Once back into town we made our way to Radio West, where our niece Sian works as the Accounts Manager. Sian gave us a tour and took the girls into the broadcasting booth, which they thought was pretty cool.

DJ Chloe at Radio West

After we left here, we had a short walk into town, drove back to the van, grabbed some fishing gear and headed out to Blue Haven Bay, which is again just another magic spot. We spent the rest of the afternoon fishing, not that we caught anything  (must be losing my touch!), playing on the beach and watching the changing colours over the water as the sun set on another fantastic day.

The girls playing at Blue Haven Bay

Sunset over Blue Haven Bay

9th July

Being our last day in Esperance, we decided to make the most of the day and headed off fairly early bound for Cape Le Grand National Park, which is 50kms east of town.

This area of Esperance again is just beautiful. We spent the day exploring the beaches and coves of the area. We drove along Rossiter Beach & played beach cricket at Lucky Bay, which is in the Guiness Book of Records for having the whitest beach sand in the world.

Hellfire Bay (I'm the little dot fishing off the end of the rocks)

Beach Cricket at Lucky Bay

We also enjoyed visiting Thistle Cove before having lunch, playing and fishing at the beautiful Hell Fire Bay. Later in the afternoon we made our way to and climbed the impressive Frenchman's Peak which again afforded amazing views of the bay below. This is a tough walk and we were proud of the girls for making it to the peak.

Thistle Cove

Frenchman's Peak

The girls at the summit of Frenchman's Peak

We arrived back in town late in the afternoon, got ourselves ready and went out to dinner to the Pier Hotel with Wal, Mandy, Sian, Ayvon & Dakota.  We had a really enjoyable evening. It's been fantastic catching up with the Walsh family after such a long time.

Dinner at the Pier Hotel with Wal, Mandy, Sian, Ayvon & Dakota

It has been fantastic coming back to Esperance, although 3 days is definitely not long enough. It is truly one of the most beautiful places in the world and we will definitely not be leaving it another 9yrs before we return.

Kalgoorlie to Esperance

6th July 2013

Well not suprisingly we had a late start this morning, must have been something I ate last night? After breakfast, we packed the car, said our goodbyes to Maca, Kel & the kids and hit the road by 10.45am.

After a couple of hours we stopped off at Norseman to grab some lunch and as we were heading out of town we came across the Tour de Crawf, which is where Shane Crawford is riding from Melbourne to Perth raising money for Breast Cancer. A big effort for a great cause!

Meeting Crawf - a champion

So we stopped and had a chat with Crawf, congratulating him on his efforts and he was a really good bloke to have a chat with. After donating some money and watching an impromptu "Welcome to Country" which was performed by 3 young local aboriginal boys, which was great, we were back on the road again.

We arrived in Esperance at around 3.15pm and made our way to Wal & Mandy's house, where we are staying while in town. The rest of the day was spent catching up with Wal, Mandy, Sian (our niece) and her boyfriend Avon which was really great as it has been about 9yrs  since Rach & I were last here.

 We also got to watch the Eagles win a thriller by 6 points over Adelaide, which was a great effort!

3 Days in Kal

3rd July 2013

We had a pretty cruisy day today. We had a slow start which allowed the girls to do some school work. We then went out with Maca and the kids to the super pit. The viewing area since the last time we came to Kalgoorlie has moved as the pit has grown.  Even though it is a man made hole it is still an impressive site to see!

The Super Pit - Kalgoorlie

Dozer Bucket - Super Pit 

From here we went to Hammond Park where the kids played together.  This park has a lot of bird aviaries, a miniature castle and a fantastic kids playground.  This is even better than I remembered.

The girls bird feeding at Hammond Park

We then spent the rest of the day back at Maca's. It is quite nice to relax and spend time with great friends as a wind down to our trip!

4th July, 2013

Another slow start today.  Kinda feels weird to not be on the go all the time. Once again the girls took advantage of this and did some school work.

The girls outside Kalgoorlie Museum

Late morning we headed out and went down the Main Street of Kal. We had lunch at Dome and then walked the full stretch of the Hannan Street. We bought some second hand books from Kelly's Aunty Pam and checked out the price of gold in the Kalgoorlie Gold Nugget shop.

The girls with Paddy Hannan

Last stop was the museum where we checked out the viewing platform and looked out across Kalgoorlie, learnt about how the early gold miners lived and the local history, and had fun in the Antartica display.

Finished the day having tea and hanging out with Maca, Kobi and Kendra.

Kalgoorlie from Museum Lookout

5th July, 2013

Last day in Kalgoorlie, where we spent the morning relaxing with the girls completing some school work. At about 12.30pm we picked up Kelly from the airport (Johnny Ruffo was on the same flight but the girls were to shy to get his autograph). It was so nice to hang out with Kelly for the afternoon. We finished the day with a meal at their local pub followed by some games and great laughs that went well in to the night.

A night out with the O'Donnell Family

Me pretending to be Wolverine

(I really shouldn't drink with Maca!)

Nullabor to Kalgoorlie

2nd July 2013

Today we managed to get on the road just before 8am and with a big day of driving ahead, it was good that we managed to get away pretty early.

As we continued to cross the remainder of the Nullabor, we saw about 20 Wedge-Tailed Eagles, 14 Camels and plenty of other bird life. The only other point of note throughout the day is that we drove on Australia's longest straight stretch of road, which was 146.5kms long.

Chloe at our overnight camp on the Nullabor

Other than that there really isn't much to report on today. We made it to Kalgoorlie at around 6pm and we were met on the road in by our mate, Maca and were then escorted back to his place in town. Unfortunately his wife, Kelly has had to fly to Perth for a few days at a conference but we are looking forward to catching up with her on Friday when she gets home.

Australia's longest straight road sign - complete with artwork

The night was spent having dinner and catching up with Maca, Kendra & Kobi (their kids), which was great because we hadn't seen each other for quite a while now. Over the next couple of days we'll do some touristy things in Kalgoorlie before hitting the road for Esperance on Saturday, which we are really looking forward to.

Crossing the Nullabor

1st July 2013

Well after another very cold night we woke to find droplets of water hanging over us inside the van over the beds. This was our own fault as we didn't put the flys up last night and we had a really heavy dew which meant that the damp canvas left the droplet come through. What made it quite funny was that every time somebody moved in their beds some droplets would fall on to our faces, making sure we were well and truly awake.

So after breakfast and drying up the canvas a little, we made a later than planned start and on the way out let the girls have one last play on the beach before making our way back out to the Eyre Hwy, ready for another day of driving ahead of us.

Our first real stop for the day was after about 250kms, when we reached the Head of the Australian Bight. We paid our fee and then headed down to the lookouts and were greeted with an amazing sight.

Crossing the Nullabor

Not only is the coastline pristine and would have been worth the entry fee alone, but given the time of year we also saw about 25 mother whales with calves  swimming around the bay. We even got to watch one of the calves breach several times, almost like he was showing off for us, it was another special moment for us all to share.

What an awesome sight - The Great Australian Bight

After some time enjoying the view, we reluctantly got back on the road again and continued to travel westward. We made another stop at a lookout area on the bight about 100kms away, where we had lunch and again checked out the amazing view. We saw a couple more whales here, which was again fantastic and to cap it off Chloe performed another violin piece in front of yet another magnificent Australian backdrop.

Chloe at the Great Australian Bight

From here we made the short 145km drive to the SA / WA Border which, the girls in particular were extremely excited about. We stopped for fuel, photos, souvenir pins and of of course the quarantine checkpoint, where we had to part with all of our remaining fresh fruit, veg and honey, before driving into WA.

At the WA Border

Even though we had gained an hour & a half back on the clock, the sun was getting low on the horizon meaning that after only about 75kms back into WA we had to set up camp for the night. We again found another very spacious bush camp and after setting up enjoyed dinner and marshmallows around the campfire.

Our little Joeys with the Big Roo - WA Border

It is a great feeling being back in WA, we are looking forward to catching up with family and friends as we continue our journey home. Hopefully tomorrow we can make Kalgoorlie, but given it is still over 800kms away we will just have to see how the day pans out!

Bound for WA

30th June 2013

We woke to a very cold & foggy morning this morning and after packing down we continued westward on the Eyre Hwy. Again today really was a travelling day as we need to get some Km's under our belt in order to make it back to WA in a reasonable time frame.

Travelling West - Eyre Hwy

Our first stop for the day was at a little town called Kimba, with its claim to fame being the "Big Galah" and the tag line of being "Halfway Across Australia". So after our stop for the mandatory photo and souvenir pin shopping we once again hit the road.

The Big Galah - Halfway Across Australia

We decided to take a detour from they highway and drive down to the coast and check out Streaky Bay but before we did we had to make another stop in Poochera for a large roadside statue of a Dinosaur Ant. This ant was first discovered here in 1977 and apparently was the most closely related to the ants of the dinosaur era, hence the name.

Me & Chloe in front of Dinosaur Ant Statue

We made it to Streaky Bay around 1pm where we enjoyed lunch on the foreshore area of the town which overlooks the bay and jetty. The girls enjoyed running on the beach for a while after this while Rach and wandered out on the Jetty and got chatting to a local fisherman, who was happy to tell us a few stories of the "ones that got away".

Streaky Bay

We had to stop for fuel on the way out of town and found the replica statue of the largest Great White Shark caught on a rod from the waters of Streaky Bay back in 1990. Amazingly this shark measured in at 5m and took the fisherman over 5hrs to land it. It certainly made for a chilling reminder as to why they had safe swimming cages attached to the main jetty in the town.

The girls with replica of Great White

We then followed the coast on the way to Ceduna, passing through another seaside town called Smoky Bay, which really reminded us of Cervantes just north of Perth. Once we reached Ceduna, we decided to drive on further to the town of Penong, about 70kms away and find a turn off to Cactus Beach where Rach had read was a great place to camp.

We found the turn off and made the 21km trip on unsealed road, which changed from gravel and salt flat surface until we reached the camp spot. We had chatted to another traveller earlier in the day and seemingly the owner of the now camp ground purchased the land, about 550 acres in 1980 for about $4000, given its location and absolute beauty, it certainly was a bargain.

Cactus Beach

The large but very spacious bush camp, was set just behind the dunes to the beach and after setting up we wandered down to the beach which was less than 100m away and enjoyed watching a beautiful sunset over the ocean, something we haven't seen for a couple of months now, which was just magic.

The girls on Cactus Beach

The girls at Sunset - Cactus Beach

Starting the Journey Home

29th June 2013

We woke pretty early this morning and said our goodbyes to Terry, Cindy & Sam before hitting the road at about 8.30am. We grabbed a coffee on the way out of town and headed for the expressway.

We decided that we would leave Adelaide via the Clare Valley, a well known winery region in SA which was about an hour & a half away. It was once again a beautiful drive, through rolling fields and into the wine region.

We made our first stop at Annie's Lane, which is rapidly becoming one of our favourite wines and after some tasting purchased a variety of wines. We then went onto Seven Hills winery, which was one of many wineries recommended by Terry & Cindy.Seven Hills Winery was just beautiful, not only for its wines but it also was within the grounds of a Jesuit Monastery.

Inside Seven Hills Winery

So Rach & I  tasted and purchased some wines while the girls played outside in the grounds of the winery, talk about responsible parenting 101, after which we got on the road again to start the move westward.

               

                                                     The grounds at Seven Hills Winery   

The rest of the day was effectively spent driving. We drove through a small town called Yacka, where we stopped for the girls to have a play in the local playground for about half an hour before once again going through Port Augusta. We quickly grabbed some fuel before pushing onto the Eyre Hwy, where we saw our first signs pointing to WA, which we were all pretty excited about.

The girls playing at Yacka

We went passed the mining town of Iron Knob, gotta love that name, late in the day before pushing on to find a bush camp for the night. We arrived just on sunset and quickly set up before having dinner and spending what turned out to be a very cold night in the van.

Passing Iron Knob (just had to put this on the blog)

Sunset from our overnight camp