Carnarvon to Geraldton

Slowly winding down on my trip. I’ve driven these roads many times before. After all those days of blue skies, Geraldton is very cloudy, so no more photos except for food! I enjoyed a delicious dinner at Skeetas:

On the menu: crab linguine followed by bread and butter pudding. Naughty but nice!

Onslow to Carnarvon

Delicious laksa last night in Onslow.

On the road again, Nanutarra was buzzing as usual:

At the Gateway Motel in Carnarvon, another buffet was on offer. Tonight it was Sunday Roast, with lashings of lamb, beef and pork including the crackling:

Impossible to resist, especially the crackling!

Point Samson to Onslow

It was another crisp, sunny morning as I left Port Samson:

This is the view across to my chalet, behind the white 4WD:


It was spacious and quiet, except for when the wind got up in the night and a tree branch scraped on the timtin roof.

It was a long straight road south, with yellow spinifex on both sides and the occasional row of hills;

After checking in at Onslow, I had a siesta before going out to explore along the waterfront.

Taking a photo of the Paparazzi Dogs:




Further along is the war memorial, with soldiers hats on a bench:

Onslow was the place where JL and his son developed a solar salt field. There are several others along this coast, but I believe this was the first one:

I could see the mountains of salt in the distance:


Salt is taken along a conveyor belt and a jetty, where it is loaded onto barges.

It was a lovely evening as I walked back, past the busy caravan site, where people were having little get togethers over drinks.

Looking out to sea:

Cossack

Not far from Point Samson is the deserted town of Cossack, where many of the original buildings have been preserved. It was settled as far back as 1863 and was an important port for the region.

Galbraiths were merchants and shipping agents. They also bought and sold pearls:

The courthouse is an impressive building, built in 1895:

I posed for a photo on its verandah:

The place attracts fishermen. I watched someone catch an angel fish, and then threw it back because it was too small:

Pardoo to Point Samson

On the way back home, I’m trying to visit places I missed on the way up. One of these was Whim Creek, where I have fond memories of camping here on my first trip to the Kimberley with Coates Tours. The girl serving at the bar had a pet kangaroo, a joey that had lost its mum. Now it’s sad to see the place all closed up and abandoned:

On the road again, I had quite a strong tail wind like yesterday's which seemed to speed me along to my destination. Very little traffic was going south, with lots of caravans going north.

On the road from Roebourne to Point Samson, I called in at Wickham for a few supplies, including a beetroot salad and a pack of luscious raspberries for a late lunch. I checked into my chalet. Above the bed was this picture by Emma. She gets everywhere:

Her painting of Sturts Desert Peas look more like monsters from another planet with staring eyes.

Sunset was at 5.20 pm, so I walked down to Honeymoon Cove just before then. Here the sun sets over land not over the sea:

There are curious striations in the rocks:


Here is some history of Point Samson. The first settlers had no water supply and relied on boats bringing them their fresh water, which was transported along the jetty in carts:

Pardoo

The wi-fi kept dropping out last night as I tried to post something. Eventually the lovely Filipino lady in the roadhouse came over and sorted it for me, but I had lost the will to live by then!

My car parked behind my cabin:

As I had dinner I was entertained by this game going on in front of me. They were stockmen from the cattle station. The one in the big hat demolished all opposition:

I had a walk round the site to get some exercise after driving all day:

These raptors were sitting on all the fence posts waiting to pounce on some prey:


This is an innovation:


It was a cold night which penetrated the thin walls of my cabin, but better than driving over six hours into Port Hedland. A happy little bird singing outside woke me up at 6.30am. Back to civilisation soon!

(Temporary Backup) Broome to Pardoo

On my way at about 9.15 am. First job to fill up my tank with expensive petrol.

Stopped at Goldwire for coffee and at Sandfire Roadhouse for lunch, where peacocks and exotic hens roamed around:

Poor wi-fi at Pardoo Roadhouse, where I had booked some very basic accommodation.

Zero Day at Bali Hai

On the Camino we always had a zero day once a week: a day wth zero kilometres, to take a rest from walking. I thought it was a good idea to take a zero day from sightseeing, especially as I’m in the congenial surroundings of Bali Hai. So I did a load of washing in the guest laundry and then lazed by the pool.

This is my private courtyard.

Balinese flower arrangement in the foyer.

Later I went for dinner in the restaurant, which is always under new management. I had a light meal after doing nothing all day: a salad nicoise with prawns and smoked salmon, a G&T and a lemon tart with cherry ice cream:

Clever table decoration.

Beaches to Bali Hai

Just across the road from Beaches, a fairly new establishment called Spinifex Brewery was advertising Sunday Roast with all the trimmings for $22 (a bargain in these parts). As I set off, the deafeningly loud “music” put me off and I knew I had to go somewhere else. Why don’t they realise that the average demographic of tourists in Broome just now is an older generation that doesn’t want to be bombarded with this racket when they are eating? So, I went back to the more civilised surroundings of The Wharfe and ordered Chilli Mussels and a glass of Sauvignon Blanc:

In the morning, I packed up at Beaches and had about 4 hours to kill before I could check in at Bali Hai. I wanted to visit two old favourites: Matso’s and the art gallery next door. The gallery has changed hands and is now owned by 3 artists. At present there is a special exhibition:

I really liked the vibrant colours of these paintings, but I’m not in the market for buying artwork as I need my money for travelling.

Next door, Matso’s was just opening up:

After a coffee, I was on my way to Town Beach where a lot of work had been done, extending the carpark and building a jetty:

I didn’t stay long because there was nowhere to park in the shade. I drove to Woolworths for a quick shop and then on to Bali Hai, hoping to check in early. It was my lucky day !

Bali Hai is a haven of peace and tranquillity after the constant comings and goings at Beaches. It costs a bit more, but not a huge amount more and is worth ever penny for two nights of luxury: