Kununurra WA

29-8-09 Happy Birthday Warwick. On the road again, the girls are getting to know the signs that we are packing up, they wait patiently at the door till we are ready to put them in the car & then they trot out & wait to be lifted in, they are not getting left behind. We are awake early again, this time change is a pain. Off to Kununurra, only 80 km’s today, a piece of cake. We arrive about 9.30am & have to go into the Showground Park $27 a night expensive for what it is. But they take dogs & we don’t know what the other parks charge. We got settled & had to go shopping as we have no fruit & vegs, we did that awful chore & had to get a double hose fitting as there is 3 vans trying to get water out of 2 fittings, apparently the first caravan in the line used the wrong fitting so us being the 20th & the last to arrive had no water, but we fixed that. We got Gas, 99.9 cents & $1.56 for petrol, then went to get some grog. Den got some beer & I got scotch & we were going to get a cask of wine but they don’t sell them anymore & we wont get one till further down the coast. We came home , its hot again today & we left the girls in the air con, I unpacked the groceries & Den went up & put 2 loads of washing on ( free machines ) we took the girls for a walk & had an easy afternoon. Had meat & Vegs for tea , it was nice, as had not had vegies for a while. Watched TV & went to bed early . Woke up at 10.30pm & I am still awake at 3,30am, well I will catch up soon on some sleep.

30-8-09 Today was catch up & clean the van, funny it still needs doing , we both got into it & it did not take long, it was only 10am, this time change is doing my head in. We then went to the tourist info centre to get some brochures on the area so we can decide what we want to see ( & leave till next time around Ha! Ha! ). I sent a text to Brett & Kara as they were in Singapore for the weekend attending the opening of the skate park that he worked on & we had been out of phone range to see if they were enjoying themselves. Well no, poor Brett had a fall & has broken his Femur Bone near his hip & had to have a plate & 4 screws inserted in it, he will be out of action for a while. His boss Simon was with him & has looked after Brett & Kara well. As Kara said , thank God for travel insurance. They hope to fly him home to Aus on Wed, I don’t envy the trip home though, they will be two tired puppy‘s when they get home. He has to fly to Sydney, then domestic to Brisbane then to Proserpine , then by car to Bowen where he was doing another park. Mike & Rob are out from Canada visiting so it has been hard for them as they are in Bowen visiting them & are due to leave soon. I wish we were there to help when Mike & Rob go home , but that is not possible. We are sending them good vibes though, it might help. We made a few calls & had tea, see if I can sleep tonight. Another hot day 37 deg & humid. Air con going 24/7.

31-8-09 Off to the hospital today , as Kununurra has only one private Dr , & everyone said to go to the Hospital to see a Dr there. We had to see about some tests we had, especially Den with his high Iron level in his blood. They were very good, we explained things & they sent for copies of his tests from Darwin , they were not in by the time we were seen so the Dr said she would ring us when she got them. We did some shopping for a couple of things we needed to set up the satellite dish & came back to the van. Den had a fiddle & made some calls & got nowhere & went & saw a guy a few vans down, to see if he could help with the set up of the dish. He was very helpful, & after a while they got it going & Den has got the idea now. He has worked it out. The DR rang & Dens iron level is still high, not too bad but will have to see a specialist in Broome or Perth, so will make arrangements for that soon. Still hot & sticky today, I am suffering ( along with Den & the girls with the heat ) but we are managing. If I could sleep it would help ( I am doing this blog at 1am, hope to sleep soon, I think I need a hammer ) . Rang Mike & Rob & said Brett was doing well, so rang Kara & talked to her, he had been up & had a shower & seemed to be coping. Made a few calls & then had happy hour with the people next door & then got tea & tried to have an early night, but woke at 11.30pm , so hence the writing of the diary, Oh well when I go to sleep at the table with my head in my tea I might have a good sleep. We hope to do some sight seeing tomorrow & maybe take the girls for a swim , we just have to watch for crocs.

1-9-09 Rose to another hot day 37 deg predicted in Kununurra today & the humidity is 70% , not pleasant, it is 33 deg at 9am in the van. Den just has to fiddle with the outside aerial plug for the satellite dish, as it is not working, after testing it with the multimeter & tracing the fault it was in the splitter box inside, so he bypassed it & all is good. Then we went into town for a couple of things & decided to have a look around Kununurra. We started out & it was like being back in Goondiwindi as there is irrigated crops everywhere, they grow a lot of vegies up here. First visit was to the Ivanhoe Crossing which is a causeway across the Ord River , we saw a 4 wheel drive crossing it & no way we would have done it. It was a great sight & Den said it was a pity to see all that water going down the river & being wasted. We went to The Salad Bowl next, they sell fresh fruit & vegies, smoothes & ice cream . Den had a mango smoothes & I had a mango ice cream ( yummy , we have to go back there before we go & it was 99% fat free ) . We then went to the Hoochery Distillery which was interesting, they distil mainly whiskey, rum & liquors .We headed back to town & went up to Kelly’s Knob Lookout which overlooked Kununurra. We found a great café & got some fish & chips & then went out to the Swim Beach just before Diversion Dam. After eating our lunch & sharing it with the girl , Annie could not contain herself she had to go in for a swim along with Jessie. We both followed them & cooled off, after an hour the girls were shivering but we still had to drag the m out. We headed for the van & the air con. I got tea & rang Mike & Rob to see how Brett was going. He is doing well & the insurance company is going to fly them home on Wednesday first class & is looking after them well. We watched the TV & went to bed.

2-9-09 Up early today & ready to go to Wyndham 100 km away, we took the girls with us, as predicted 37 deg today again, before we left Den went to hang out some washing & I was washing up when the air con was making a funny noise, next thing I knew the air con was spitting out ice, I nearly shat myself. It was so hot & the humidity was so high the condenser froze over & this was 8am in the morning. We got some Gas & picked up Dens blood results from the hospital & then went to the Information Centre & booked a flight over the Bungle Bungles, Lake Argyle & the Diamond mine tomorrow 3-9-09 , as well as our trip to the Horizontal Falls from Derby on the 22-9-09. We got on the road & drove the 100 km’s to Wyndham with more great scenery on the way. We went sight seeing to the Port & the Cambridge Gulf was so wide it was great, 5 rivers flow into one. There are big mud flats by the side of the road & the scenery is very different. The town itself is very old & has a lot of history, we went to the old cemetery , then called in to see the Big Croc & then went up to the 5 way lookout. What a view !!! From the Gulf to the mud flats to the red rocks of the mountains. The girls had a walk up at the lookout & then we headed for home. On the way back we saw a sign Parry’s Farm & Café so we diverted along a dirt road about 8 km's & found a great Farm where you could take the van & have a relaxing stay & is pet friendly. We ordered lunch & sat outside with the girls under the shade & I sipped a wine & Den had a ginger beer (still very hot) , we turned around & there was a Brolga Bird behind us , well the girls went crazy & we did not know what to do . It was a bird that was put on the farm that was orphaned, it is getting fed by people & is getting a bit demanding & starting to peck people. The bird was not afraid of the dogs , so we had to try to shoo it away. In the end the owner got a spray bottle of water & coaxed it away. We had a great lunch & went back to the van & had a rest , did some washing & got tea, I did the diary & photos & watched TV. We are moving to another park tomorrow , Lakeside Tourist Park, it is the same cost but has a pool etc & grass, if we are going to pay $27 a night we might as well be comfy. Then we go on our Bungle Bungle Flight. Off to bed soon , see ya, & miss everyone

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