Still on The Nulorbor on the WA side
Still seeing some brilliant scenery and stayed at a camp where parts of Skylab fell in 1979 (Most of it apparently between Perth and Norseman.Norseman is a sad looking place and looking rather derelict with shored up shops and petrol station It must have been a huge shock for locals when the Cinema closed down The towns past history is of a horse named Norseman who accidently hoofed up a lump of gold (that has now all gone) Still on the Nulobor we crossed a stretch of road Ninety Mile Straight and as the name suggests NOT a bend or kink to be seen over that distance.We stopped of at a Sheep Station to play a hole that is listed on the great Golf course and what a beautiful place,The scenery was knockout BUT because of our time schedule we didn’t have time for a stop over Kambalda was going to be our next stop BUT its not very appealing and mainly a mining town so we headed for overnight at Kalgoorlie.I was informed that the father of one my charges i worked for on Perth had relocated to Kalgoorlie and we called in to say hello and a couple of beers.That event turned out to be hilarious and we couldn’t stop laughing.His low care maintenance home was very good and I almost booked a place for myself down the track !!
The Nullabor Golf Course and bits more
We have had the best time doing this course and altho we didn’t quite make par it was great fun from getting sun burnt to getting drenched,the experience is a one off and we have Course certificates to prove it! Well worth the $70
Still on the mighty Nullarbor
We have reached the Nullarbor Road house which is still in SA. We played the hole that is part of our 18 hole Nullarbor game and using the top of a plastic bottle is great for driving off.We stayed overnight and fuelled up at $2.05 a litre! We spotted a few dingoes but they kept their distance and feeding them is a definite NO NO. They will be slaughtered if caught being fed by humans because IF it happens they become dependent on being fed and are known to be quite vicious approaching people for food. We set off and stopped off at a few viewing points to inspect the Great Australian Bight cliffs and they are Magnificent and a sight anyone visiting Australia should witness. Passing thru the SA/WA border we had to surrender all our fruit n veggies and they were very specific about Garlic? Maybe they want to keep Vampires alive?.We gained 1&1/2 hours back going into WA and the day has been very busy SO we have pulled into a freebie camp site for the night. Another kindly traveller noticed the stop lights were on our parked car and after a bit of fiddling got them turned off (would have been a bugga in the morning when we found the battery flat !! Thank you kind stranger )Daughter informs me the baby is due 20 March so that gives us a bit of play time after Kalgoorlie ( I have to stop there to collect my books printed by good pals) Traudi and Keith
Ceduna to Nullabor
Arrived at Ceduna and bought our $70 18 hole golf course tickets for a course that is spread over 1370 KMs!! Camp site was very basic but comfortable.We played the first 2 holes of the mighty course here in Ceduna and met a group of aboriginals (very friendly) and instead of using a buggy to get round they opted to use their own car !! We met up with another couple from Melbourne who are also doing the Nullabor Golf Challenge.The courses will not allow a conventional tee as the T,s are very hard to place in rock ! Organizers told us to cu the top of a coke (or similar) plastic bottle and use the neck to support the bal !! We also found out on the 4th T we can use the ready made T for every shot (wish we had been informed at the start !) Very hot conditions and Ive never seen so many bloody flies !! I even swallowed one !! We stopped off at the Start of the great Bight and the views were fantastic ,as usual a fee is entailed (towards Aboriginal Life styles?),We are staying overnight at Nulabor where fuel costs $2.05 a litre !! NO water is supplied at the camp but can be bought and $1 will afford me a shower (5 mins max)
Port Augusta SA
We arrived here and drove to the RV park and realized we had been here before !! (Memories dimming hence the need for a Blog !)We decided to stay here for a few days whilst we waited for our bus to be serviced ($600!!) Not much here and to see Aboriginees wandering around the ever so small shopping centre was a sad sight All sorted and off we go heading for Ceduna where the famous 1365 KM 18 hole golf course starts and we paid up for the event ($70 each!) On the way to Ceduna we called into a ghost town by the name of Iron Knob (really) ,although inhabited we didn’t see too many people !!After a short photo shoot we carried on to our destination >The roads were very straight and we pulled into Kimba the home of Black Jade and took a pic of the iconic Giant Galah.A Giant Ants (Nothomyrmecia Macrops) nest of a prehistoric nature are at Poochera discovered in 1931. BUT only a statue to be seen as they are a protected species Once again we met up with nice people and they are from Kingsley where we are heading in Perth !
Farewell Silverton on towards Burra
The roads are fast and desolate.Every stop produced lots of flies and crossing the NSW border into South Australia we were searched for fruit (has to be destroyed OR huge fines will apply)We traveled around 350 kms and the idea was to stay in Burra and head the 150 kms next day to visit Annies brother Mark,wouldnt you know it? he is working out of town and we do not have the time to wait cos of our busy schedule.We stopped at a few very low populated towns basically to fill up (Too hot for local exploration) We are now heading toward Port Augusta that will lead to our epic crossing of the Nullabor My Galaxy Tab has gone on the blink and will hopefully sort it out.We have previusly visited Burra and written a review at that time
Cobar via Wilcannia Broken Hill and Silverton 2
We are staying over an extra night simply because we like the isolation of this place. On day 2 we ventured the 50km return trip into Broken Hill using the Car only WOW !! Next we did a tour of a mining and dolls museum (unusual mix) having lots of artifacts and things to do with dolls on display Next we visited the Mad Max 2 exhibition ( The movie was filmed in this area and this exhibition was organized by a bloke from Bradford whom I chatted with) Razorback, Priscilla the Queen of the Desert and Town Like Alice are among quite a few movies made in this very place We then had lunch in a very quaint, clean cafe that also had artifacts from a bygone era on display PLUS the food was quite nice After our food fill we visited the old original Gaol that is jam packed with things and stories from when Silver ton had a population of 3000 (now 70) run by volunteers and very reasonably priced entry fee ,We are now back at bus base relaxing from our very strenuous day
Helping Hand for Sheryll
While waiting for Annie to do the food shop I got chatting to a lovely lady (Sheryll) who is promoting her massage business (No not that kind) She sounds a very positive person and I’m sure she will do very well. Originally from New Zealand’s North Island she has been in Australia around 7 years IF you are in this area (Broken Hill ) give her a call I know I will if we return.
Cobar via Wilcannia Broken Hil and Silverton Part 1
We left early with intentions of staying at Wilcannia BUT the campsite had recently been flooded so we opted to travel on to Broken Hill. Annie wanted to visit Silverton an ex silver mining town boasting originally a population of 3000 now reduced to 70 since the mines closed and Broken Hill (25 kms away ) is the main town Silverton because of its remoteness was the scene for movies like Mad Max 2,Razorback and a Town like Alice the Australian series ,We decided to Unhitch the car for the first time and BUGGA the bloody battery was flat and we are in a campsite with contact to the outside via computer or phone due to lack of reception !! PANIC set in very quickly! And wouldn’t you know it? Scott the campsite owner is a qualified mechanic!! Problem sorted and we really must get to learn more about hitching and unhitching bus/car!! We took the car for a drive to recharge the batteries and met a retired couple from Vancouver who are travelling in a car and at the same spot a retired Yorkshire man from Bradford (originally) travelling in a HUGE Winnebago and also pulling a car, We headed for the one and only pub (used to 8 pubs here and 3 breweries!!) The Silverton where we viewed photos of a bygone era (Mad Max etc) and a very nice informative land lady.On our pub departure we were greeted by a Donkey that apparently has freedom of the now defunct town All in All a very tiring day with frustrating motor problems and travelling almost 500 kms in the day
Goodbye Enngonia on towards Cobar NSW
We had a night in the “Oasis” the lone pub in Enngonia,the meal was lovely ,very cheap and very Pommie !! Sausage,Egg n Chips,luvli !! The Landlord and lady were very friendly and spent most of the night chatting to us.Next morning we set of towards Cobar passing thru Bourke ( Fred Hollows, the famous eye surgeon, was buried in Bourke after his death in 1993.).Stopping at Bourke Info office they advised of a few places to visit and we opted to go and see the local Aborignee Radio Station 2CUZ 106.5.It turned into a very interesting day being shown around the station and BOB is very talented in the making of Aboriginal artifacts including a demonstration of a bush Woomera (attached to a length of cord ,using arm circular movement it makes a sound that can be heard miles away (different lengths of wood make different sounds) This action was depicted in the first Crocodile Dundee movie.After filling up we found the brake connection from Bus to Car had been destroyed BUT after visiting the local RAC and a very helpful Engineer and $50 (which we considered very cheap) we went merrily on our way to our overnight destination of Cobar .The name Cobar is derived from the Aboriginal Ngiyampaa word Kuparr, Gubarr or Cuburra, meaning ‘red earth’ or ‘burnt earth’, the ochre used in making body paint for Corroborees.[3] [4] It has also been suggested, but it is less likely, that the name may represent an Aboriginal attempt to pronounce the word ‘copper Once again we are fortunate to meet lovely fellow travellors and coincidentally 2 ladies in a bus similar to our from Hervey Bay going to Perth as we are !! Pleasant night and now on to Willcannia
Because of the slow uploads pictures may not be available for the time being
Watch me play Didgeridoo
Geoffs Life After Work ! 