Kalbarri to Margaret River

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Day 67 Kalbarri to Geraldton 04/09/06

We awoke to another windy morning around 7.30am, got up and had breakfast. We began to pack up and at 8.45am Leanne took the boys down to the foreshore to see the pelican feeding. I am told that only 5 pelicans turned up for breakfast, but this is a record number of late. Apparently, since the cyclone, their attendance has dropped dramatically, having some mornings where a ‘no show’ was common! Once the feeding was over, Leanne and the boys returned to the trailer and we completed the pack up.

By the time we said goodbyes and checked out the Kalbarri Oceanarium it was 10.25am as we drove out of Kalbarri. We drove around the coast road toward Northampton and visited Red Bluff, Rainbow Valley, Eagle Gorge, Castle Cove, Natural Bridge and Island Rock along the way. We drove past the Pink Lake and into Port Gregory around 12.50pm, where we had lunch sitting at the foreshore picnic tables. On the way out of Port Gregory, we stopped and had a look at the Old Convict Depot ruins and cemetery.

We arrived in Geraldton around 3.00pm and drove to Harry’s place (John’s Dad) so we could try and organise the repairs to the trailer. John had phoned his dad weeks ago and he had organised a local mobile boilermaker to have a look at our trailer’s bike hitch, which broke coming out of Barn Hill. We had a lovely cuppa and a chat with Harry and Rita while waiting for a reply from the welder, Ron. As Ron was not answering his mobile phone, we decided to go and set up the trailer and sort out the repairs later. We drove through Geraldton and set up in the Belair Gardens Caravan Park, right on the coast, next to the Geraldton Light House. It was a quick setup, as the wind was cold and the clouds looked very threatening. Once set up, we drove back into town to buy some groceries and dinner. On the way, Ron from Rapid Welding phoned and we arranged to do the repairs, in the caravan park, tomorrow afternoon. After dinner and a drive around town, we returned to the park, retiring to our trailer for the night. (It was very windy & cold)

Day 68 Geraldton 05/09/06

We woke up around 7.00am and as it was windy and cold, struggled to get out of bed. After breakfast, we dropped the car at Young’s Holden Dealership, for a service and then checked out the latest VE Commodores in the showroom before walking into town. We walked to the museum, which wasn’t open (until 10am) and then to the old Prison and Police Station, which were also closed. From here we went to the Visitors Centre to get some info on local attractions and fill in some time. We returned to the Prison and then the Museum, which were both very interesting. The maritime section of the Museum was very informative and well worth checking out. While we were here I received a call to inform me the car was ready. I walked back with Daniel and grabbed the car, returning to the Museum to complete our tour. While we were having lunch at one of the Bakeries in town, Ron the welder phoned to say he had finished his morning job and was available when it was convenient. We arranged to meet at the park at 1.30pm.

By the time Ron had arrived, I had cleared everything out of the way so the repairs could be carried out. Ron and I decided on the method of repair and he completed them in about an hour. Meanwhile, Leanne took William with her, back into town for her hair appointment. Once the repair were complete and I had tidied up, Daniel and I walked into town. We met Leanne and William at a bike shop where we bought a rear tyre for William’s bike. After buying a leg of lamb at Woolies, we returned to camp where Leanne prepared a roast lamb dinner, while I changed a rear tyre and caught up on this blog. After dinner we drove to Harry and Rita’s for a cuppa and a chat as we are leaving for Cervantes in the morning. We left Harry’s around 9.15 and returned to the park.

Day 69 Geraldton to Cervantes 06/09/06

We awoke around 6.30am and got up around 7.00am. It was cool but not as windy as the previous morning. After breakfast, we packed up and put the bikes on the rack for the first time in two weeks. We drove back into Geraldton and up to the HMAS Sydney Memorial which is very impressive and informative, with great views of the town. From here we drove back up north into the Chapman Valley to the Chapman Valley Winery. We were amazed at how green the pastures were as we traveled through this region. After sampling a few of their wines, we purchased a couple of bottles. The lady in the cellar was not 100% sure but believes this area is named after one of the early politicians, possibly my great, great grandfather! I’ll have to look further into the history of this lovely area. After reloading the car, we drove south back into Geraldton and out to Greenough where we checked out the historical buildings in this National Trust Site. We had lunch at the car before hitting the road again for Cervantes. We refueled at Jurien and continued along the coast road arriving in Cervates at 4.15pm. We booked in and set up at the Pinnacles Caravan Park. As soon as this was done, we jumped back in the car and drove out to the ‘Pinnacles’ in the National Park. This natural wonder is absolutely awesome and we spent some time looking around and then seeing the sun set over them. Once the sun had set, we drove back to the park where we had a BBQ dinner. We caught up with Robert, Faye and Jack in the camp kitchen, where we ate our dinner and watched TV! We were fortunate enough to catch the Channel 9 documentary on Steve Irwin, which was a great tribute. As it was cold, windy and spitting rain, we retired to the trailer for the night.

Day 70 Cervantes to Perth 07/09/06

We awoke around 6.30am to the sound of spitting rain on the roof of the tent. We lay in for a while until we saw glimpses of sunlight on the tent. We got up, had breakfast and packed up. Having spoken with Robert and Faye and checked the tourist directory last night, we had decided to drive to Perth via New Norcia, a Heritage Listed ‘Monastic’ Town. We left Cervantes around 10.00am and drove, via Moora, to New Norcia arriving at 11.54am. We checked out the Museum, where the tours run from, and decided that due to time constraints, we would do our own tour. As it was intermittently spitting rain, we drove around the various buildings checking them out and taking photos. We had lunch at the Roadhouse before hitting the road again for Perth.

We arrived at the Perth International Tourist Park at 4.00pm, booked in for three nights and set up the trailer. This was a pretty quick setup, as it was cold and the clouds were threatening rain. Once the camp was organised, we drove to the local shopping centre to stock up supplies, including something for dinner. As we left the shops it was getting dark and we returned to the park, having dinner in the camp kitchen watching TV. While eating our dinner it started raining and as the night went on it became extremely windy. We retired to the trailer and were blown around by the winds all night.

Day 71 Perth 08/09/06

We were all awake at various times during the night as the winds blew and rocked the tent and the trailer. We got out of bed around 8.00am and got breakfast. Although the winds had been very strong on and off all night, the trailer had stood up well and all I had to do was tighten the guy ropes on the awning. We caught up with Rick and Jan, who were staying in the same park. After breakfast, we drove up to Forrestfield Forum Shopping Centre and got all our clothes and bedding washed and dried at the Laundromat. While this was happening, I got my haircut and we had morning tea at the bakery in the Shopping Centre. After returning the washing to the trailer, we drove in towards Perth and down to Fremantle. We were in luck as the Markets were open, so after looking around through the numerous stalls, we purchased lunch and ate it in the Market. From here we walked down the Shopping Mall to the ‘Round House’. After touring this and the surrounding area, we walked to the Motor Museum. It was here that we heard about Peter Brock’s accident and unfortunate death.

We finished our tour of the Museum and drove back through Fremantle to our caravan park for the weekly sausage sizzle. There were only five or so people at the BBQ as we drove past, but the numbers grew as we had a sausage in a roll and chatted to the other guests. This finished just after 6.00pm and we cooked dinner on the BBQ with Rick, Jan, Chris, Jodie and Jodie’s parents, dashing into the TV room for the Channel 9 News and Current Affair program, which featured Peter Brock’s accident. After dinner we sat and chatted for a couple of hours before gathering the boys and retiring to the trailer for the night. The boys had a great time playing with all the other children. As Rick, Jan and the kids were leaving early in the morning, we said our goodbyes and have made plans to catch up in Taggerty in the near future.

Day 72 Perth 09/09/06

We awoke around 7.30am to the sound of wind and showers. At around 8.00am, before getting out of bed, we phoned Leanne’s dad, Des, and sang him happy birthday! After breakfast, we drove into Perth and did the tour of the Perth Mint. It was very well organised and informative. After seeing an ingot of gold being poured, we had some silver coins engraved as souvenirs of our visit. From here we walked to and along Hay Street Mall, visiting London Court. After buying lunch, we boarded a Blue Cat Bus (a free bus service that circles the city) and traveled down to the Old Port on the Swan River. Once we had looked around the area, we boarded another Blue Cat which took us back to the area the car was parked.

Once back in the car, we drove to Hillary’s Beach, via Kings Park, to see the Aquarium of Western Australia or aqwa. We all enjoyed this aquarium and think it’s even better than Melbourne’s equivalent. By the time we had completed our tour, it was time to head for the caravan park. We called at the Forestfield on our return trip to purchase some meat for dinner. We returned to the park and had dinner at the camp kitchen and later we caught up with Chris, Jodie and their family. The kids played together for a while, before we retired to our trailers for the night.

Day 73 Perth to Margaret River 10/09/06

We were awoken very early by rain showers, but by the time we packed up, the wind had dried the tent. After breakfast, while packing up, our neighbors, holidaying Germans, gave us their remaining groceries, as they were flying home in the afternoon. Once the trailer was hooked up, we drove around to Chris and Jodie’s caravan and said goodbye (we will catch up with them in Ocean Grove). After handing in our gate key and Perth street directory, we headed into Perth and up to Kings Park. As we had only quickly driven through here yesterday, we wanted to stop and have a proper look. We checked out the War Memorial, the gardens and the views, it was fantastic. The place is huge with numerous areas to picnic and walk in. The boys had a great time rolling down the grass hills, much to Leanne’s disgust as they got grass stains all over their jeans!

Once back in the car, we drove out onto the Kiwana Freeway and headed South toward Margaret River. We stopped in Bunbury, where we had lunch at the beach, before driving up to the Observation Tower and then around the town. From here we drove to Busselton where, after walking out to the end of their famous 1841 metre long jetty, we had afternoon tea. It was then a short drive to Taunton Farm Caravan Park, where we booked in and setup just before dark. We cooked and ate dinner in the camp kitchen (barn) watching TV and enjoying an open fire. We watched the Channel 7 special on Peter Brock before retiring to the trailer for the night.

Day 74 Margaret River 11/09/06

We awoke around 7.30 and got up soon after. It had been raining on and off during the night, so William and I started wiping things dry for breakfast. Just as we had almost finished, it started pouring rain again! We had breakfast in under the awning and then jumped in the car and headed to Cape Naturaliste, where we did the Lighthouse tour. From here we drove into Dunsborough and had a look around. We then drove to Sugarloaf Rock and Canal Rocks to check them out. From here we drove south along Caves Road to Lake Cave Caveworks, where we did the tour. It was 310 steps down into the cave, but well worth the walk! The tour takes around an hour and is interesting as well as informative. On return to the surface, we had lunch in the car park before heading back up north to Eagle Heritage Bird Sanctuary. Here we walked around looking at all the various birds of prey. Again we drove north, back to Margaret River where we visited the Fudge Factory and Ye Olde Lolly Shop. I went to the local Internet Café to publish Blog 10 & 11, but was unsuccessful due to some glitch in the system.
Once back in the car, we drove north of our caravan park to The Chocolate Factory where we tasted and purchased some delicious chocolates. On our way back to the park we stopped at Harmans Ridge / Wolf Winery where we tasted and purchased some wine. On return to the park, around 5.10pm, we organised some washing and then dinner. We utilized the camp kitchen and BBQ facilities again, watching a Channel 2 program on Peter Brock, while eating dinner. After the dishes were done and showers had, we retired to the trailer after another great day.

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Photos

Kalbarri
Feeding the Pelicans

Kalbarri 2
Castle Cove

Kalbarri 3
Natural Bridge

Port Gregory
Pink Lake

Port Gregory 2
Port Gregory Jetty

Port Gregory 3
Lynton Convict Depot

Geraldton
The Old Goal

Geraldton 2
Ron Repairing the Trailer Hitch

Geraldton 3
HMAS Sydney Memorial

Cervantes
The Pinacles

New Norcia
Driving into New Norcia

Perth
'The Adults' on Rick & Jans Last Night in Perth

Perth 2
The Perth Mint

Perth 3
Kings Park

Perth 4
Cape Naturaliste Lighthouse

Comments

[Maureen]

Hi all, It sounds like you are having a fantastic time. I look forward to hearing about how you found the tree top walk and gloustester tree. Love Maureen