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Published: January 1st 2011
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...was fortunately no Titanic. In fact, our trip to Leeman, about 30 kms north of Perth (population 620!), was quite uneventful, which was great! I drove while Paul took the opportunity to read to the boys (current book, Louis de Berniere’s Red Dog, a delightful true story about the adventures of a Red Cloud kelpie in the northern part of Western Australia). The four hour trip passed by quickly, though it did raise some concerns about our car’s fuel capacity / consumption (currently at 30l/100km - ouch! Ed.). We arrived at the caravan park, forewarned that campers can spot a newbie from miles away, who then gather around, stubbies in hand, to watch (not assist) the very likely frazzled newbies reverse their caravan and set up camp. Well, there were a couple of guys in one of the permanent camps who heckled a bit, but sadly for them, and fortunately for us, we could drive straight into our ‘bay’, no reversing necessary. What a relief! Setting up camp was also quite straight forward (well, I am assuming it was, as I took the kids to the beach as it was stinking hot, while Paul created our home, which was ready on
our return).
It helped that my sister and her family were camped next door, and by the time my parents arrived we were all set up, dinner was ready, and the wine chilled. Have to say though, thank God for airconditioning in our caravan, it made life much more bearable, and the nights bliss. Our caravan really is quite cosy (and not in a negative sense) and even though the caravan park we are staying in is one of the more basic parks, we are fine. William is struggling a bit in his small space (as the middle child he scored the middle bunk bed which really is quite squishy, but he’ll manage). Also the constant wind has left a layer of dust on everything, which no amount of cleaning seems to disperse
We have had five days here, mainly spent on the beach (no pools here, much to the boys’ disappointment). Not one of WA’s most beautiful beaches - lots of seaweed and very windy - but great exploring for the kids. Paul and the boys saw a massive Manta Ray, which swam right up to them in the shallows - a few feet away. It was
well over a 1.25m in diameter and spotted only after I was brave enough to leap off the jetty into deep water! My mother had already seen it the day before on one of her walks. Plenty of fishing here, as well as crays and crabbing. Neighbours also called us over one morning to look at a baby penguin they found on one of their night fishing trips. It was stranded on the beach. They called the local SPCA and were informed that it could not be a penguin as they weren’t found here. The local vet eventually did come around, confirmed it was in fact a baby penguin, but knew nothing about caring for penguins, so decided to drop it off to the local ‘bird lady’ who herself could not come as she had been up all night nursing a rescued baby galah. The plan was then to, when it was strong enough, drive it down south somewhere where there is a penguin breeding colony. I hope he makes it!
Also plenty of kids; William quickly made two new best friends, River and Bailey, and was threatening to sleep over (first time ever) but when it came to
the crunch, much to his friends’ disappointment, he caved in and decided to sleep in the caravan.
A few day trips included visiting the Pinnacles, quite remarkable ancient rock formations made out of limestone that rise out of the sand. It was my first visit there, though Paul had been there once before (with friends Mark, Helle and Ruth while I stayed back in Perth to buy my wedding dress, more than 10 years ago!!)
Yesterday was New Year’s Eve, and it was one of the more pleasant ones we have had. The owners of the campsite put on a disco for the kids (our boys’ first disco!) and a bbq for the adults, though my parents organised some crayfish and champagne for the adults. It really was quite civilised under the awning of our new home. There was a great convivial atmosphere at the caravan park (a prettier bunch you have never seen, as per the photos! - Ed.), and again, fortunately, our aircon drowned out noises of the late revellers.
We were meant to leave today, but decided to stay on one extra day, as there were some caves we wanted to explore. So, after
bidding farewell to my sister and my parents, we headed off to see the Stockyard Gully Caves, an ancient underground river system which formed part of the old North Stock Route used by stockmen in the 1850s while driving livestock to market from Geraldton to Perth. The caves form a natural ravine where the livestock could be kept overnight. The last 16km were on 4x4 very sandy tracks, and I have to say, I was very impressed with Paul’s driving skills, and with our car’s handling and comfort. Paul’s experience across Africa came in very handy, especially when we had to slightly deflate the tyres to get over the sand - and one of Paul’s gadgets, the compressor, has also now been put to use! The caves were a cool respite to the stifling hot weather outside - at one stage 45 degrees (if any mac users out there could tell me how to write a degrees sign, I will be eternally grateful!) The heat reminded me of a passage Paul had just read to the boys: “It was one of those days when you are physically shocked by the heat if you go outdoors, and the sun feels like
the flat of a hot knife directly onto your face...If you have a bald patch, and you aren’t wearing a hat, it feels as though the skin on the top of your head is made of paper and has just been set alight. It seems as if the heat is going straight through your shirt, so you go as fast as you can from one bit of shade to another, and everything looks white, as if the sun has abolished the whole notion of colour.” And I fear, the heat we felt today, is nothing compared to what is still ahead of us!
Anyway, tomorrow we head off again. We drive up to Geraldton, and we are actually going to visit my former boss, Alex McKinnon, who was the editor of the Mandurah Mail where I did my cadetship. Should be interesting, particularly as he has threatened to haul out some of the old Mandarah Mail editions!
So, that is all from us - apologies about the wait! While things have been relatively smooth, it still takes time to adjust to operating in a confined space, and with my whole family here, things were a bit more chaotic
/ busy than I imagine it will be in the future?
We also would like to wish everybody a healthy, and very happy, 2011. Paul and I are both looking forward to this year, intrigued with what it may bring, and excited at the prospect of great adventures and wonderful bonding as a family!
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Julia
non-member comment
Wow
Sounds like an amazing start to your trip..... travel safe Jx