Lake Lagoona to Geraldton - 178km

The scenery changed from sandhills to flat green pasture with sheep grazing on the drive to Geraldton.  I was woken at 7.30am this morning by the Ranger who had come to collect my $7 camping fee for the night.  I didn't hang around for long after he went because it had been raining heavily over night and the ground was so muddy and covered in large puddles that I couldn't let Oscar out of the van.

I stopped for morning tea at Dongala which is a small seaside town, but with the heavy showers and gusty wind it wasn't much fun there either so I continued on to Geraldton.  I managed to buy a couple of things I had on my shopping list and I dropped into a pet grooming salon to book Oscar in and luckily they had time to clip him while I waited.

I parked on the foreshore and had lunch, but with the wind still blowing and the occasional shower I decided to head for my overnight stop at a place called Fig Tree camping ground which is about 12km East of Geraldton.  It is quite pleasant and not as windy being away from the coast.  It is a 24hr stopover so I will only stay tonight then head back into Geraldton tomorrow to the post office where hopefully there will be some mail for me to pick up.  If not I have to hang around until Tuesday because Monday is a public holiday.

Jurien Bay:

View from lookout just North of Jurien Bay:

Lake Lagoona camp ground:

Lake Lagoona 7.30am this morning:

Oscar's new hairdo!

Cervantes to Lake Lagoona - 109km

I had a leisurely day travelling along Indian Ocean Drive visiting small towns along the way.

My first stop was at Jurien Bay where I parked for a couple of hours at a lovely spot next to the water.  I took Oscar for a walk along the boardwalk and then on to the pier then sat inside the van away from the wind and had a cup of tea while I sat back and watched the world go by.

I left Jurien Bay just before lunch and took a quick detour up a winding road to a lookout then drove through a couple of smaller towns before heading inland for about 20kms to my over night stop at Lake Lagona.   There was no one else here when I arrived, but another couple turned up later in a caravan so I won't be alone tonight.

I spoke to Chris last night and all seems to be well with her van.  She still has some relatives she wants to catch up with in Perth so she wont be leaving until about next Wednesday.  In the meantime I will continue travelling slowly North and she will catch up with me on the road somewhere.

Because of weak phone signal I can't download photos, so will try tomorrow.

 

Guilderton to Cervantes - 159km

By the time night fell at Moores Bridge last night there were eight campers pulled up for the night.  I was chatting to the couple next to me who were from Germany and it was interesting hearing about their adventures.  One thing they noticed in Australia was the amount of oil on the road from parked cars.  They said it is illegal to drip oil on the road in Germany and there are heavy fines if people leave an oil spot on the road when parked.  There are specialist cleaners who drive around in trucks and remove oil spots from the roads and then cover the area with sand.  

I reached Cervantes just after lunch today and decided to book into the caravan park.  Looking at the map it was still a long way before the next free camp and I was feeling tired so decided to stay.  It is a typical seaside town with a general store and a few other businesses, but there are also some very large newish homes overlooking the water - probably wealthy retirees from the city as Cervantes is only about 200km North of Perth.

I took Oscar for a walk along the beach but didn't venture too far.  The weather is mild, but today has been quite varied with the sun out one minute then threatening rain the next.

One of the many sand dunes along the Indian Ocean Highway:

Cervantes:

Oscar asleep in his favourite spot on the back of the lounge after a busy day:

    

Moora to Guilderton - 149km

Today I headed South then West and arrived at the little town of Guilderton at about 1.30pm and had lunch on the headland which overlooks the Indian Ocean.  I particularly wanted to reach the coast so I could head North along Indian Ocean Drive which is the main tourist highway along the coast.

I am now parked for the night at an overnight rest stop called Moores Bridge which about 10km from Guilderton.

As I was driving along this morning I had a close encounter with a wide load which was a bit nerve scary.   In the West it is not uncommon for gigantic mine trucks or huge pieces of machinery to be transported to the mines along the highway.  They are always escorted by several scout cars with flashing lights, and in some cases by the police as well.  Usually I know they are approaching because I can hear the drivers talking on CB radio when they are still a few kilometres away which gives me time to find a spot to pull off the road, but today I didn't know they were approaching until they were about half kilometre away.  I couldn't pull over too far because the edges were soft and there was a steep ditch running along the side of the highway.  Fortunately they were able to inch past me with just centimetres to spare and I could actually put my hand on the side of the low loader as it went past.  I radioed the driver and jokingly thanked him for not pushing me off the road into the ditch and he responded by suggesting he could back up and have another go.

I wouldn't be without my CB radio.  When I see a road train approaching in my rear vision mirror I quite often call the driver and tell him that I will get out of his way when safe to do so.  Most of the time they are very appreciative and back off and wait for me to pull over.

Oscar seems to be better today.  Thankfully he improved by the time I went to bed last night and I didn't have to keep getting out of bed to let him outside.  He slept soundly all night and hadn't moved when I woke up this morning.

Guilderton:

          
Moores Bridge:

Moora

Lovely weather again today.  Bought some groceries, took Oscar for a walk, and had a relaxing day.

I have had a couple of Skype sessions with the family.  My gorgeous granddaughter Kirra turned 16 a couple of days ago and my daughter Sharyn called me on Skype so I could be a part of the celebrations.  She placed the computer on the table and I joined in with everyone and sang happy birthday when Kirra blew out the candles.   I had my curtains shut and forgot that my windows were wide open, so it dawned on me later that all the people parked near me would have heard me singing.  Embarrassing!!

My other daughter Belinda also called me on Skype so I could talk to my two little granddaughters.  It wasn't the best time because the youngest, Hannah, was crying and complaining of a sore tummy and wouldn't talk to me so I only got to chat with Gemma.  She looks really cute at the moment because she is losing her baby teeth and has a big gummy grin.

Oscar is sick again tonight, so I'm not sure what to do.  I have been very careful with his diet and he is still on antibiotics, so it is very frustrating.  I think I will head for Geraldton tomorrow and take him to another vet.  

New Norcia to Moora - 135km

It has been a beautiful day.  23 degrees and gentle warm breeze.  The local council caravan park at Moora is in the middle of the town which makes it convenient place to stay.  I have booked in for a couple of nights and today I cleaned out the van, filled up the water tanks and caught up with my washing. As well as the sheets I washed the doona cover.  Trying to remove the cover then replace it in the confines of a small van was a real challenge.  I try to avoid caravan parks because of the cost, but this park has free washing machines and dryers, so it wasn't too bad at $27 per night.

Tomorrow I will walk across the to the IGA store and stock up on supplies.

Not sure where to from here.  Chris is still at her son's house in Perth, so I will call her tomorrow and find out if she is going to continue on the journey with me.  Her gear box has been playing up and she is concerned about breaking down.   There are long isolated stretches of highway further north and it would be unwise to venture into the outback if her van has a dodgy gearbox.

In the meantime I will take it easy for the next couple of days.  I'm feeling excited and can't wait to travel up through the Pilbara.    

Goomalling to New Norcia - 106km

New Norcia is a fascinating place and Australia's only monastic town.  The town consists of a hotel owned by the monks as well as a general store and roadhouse and several churches and religious buildings as well as a monastery where the monks live and work.

For $7 per night self contained RV's can park in a field next to the monastery.  I spent a couple of hours  exploring before returning to the van and playing a game of fetch the ball with Oscar.  He is back to his old self now which is great.

Monastery Entrance:

 
Chapels and various buildings:

Hotel:

Beacon to Goomalling - 195km

Being so far inland it got down to two degrees last night at Beacon, so I decided to head towards the coast today, but I was feeling a bit off colour and struggling to stay awake, so by the time I got to Goomalling I decided to stop for the day and book into the local council run caravan park.  So cheap - $10 for a powered site.   I spent the afternoon sitting outside in the sun.

I took this cute photo at the entrance of the Beacon caravan park before I left this morning.

Bruce Rock to Beacon - 224km

Another beautiful cloudless day today.  I'm well into wheat and sheep country at the moment and the countryside is very dry.  All the locals are hoping for rain, but it never seems to come.  There has been a lot of rain around the coast of WA, but none has fallen where it is really needed.

I am gradually heading back towards the coast of WA at the moment, and really looking forward to heading North to the warmer weather.

I am parked at a tiny little council run caravan park in the outback town of Beacon tonight.  When the caretaker came around to collect my fee for the night ($16.50) I asked her if the amenity block was unlocked.  She said no one locks doors around here, it's not necessary.  If only that was the case in bigger cities.

On the way here I stopped at a small town called Mukinbudin for lunch and the gum trees were full of beautiful black cockatoos with bright red under their tail feathers.  I tried to take some photos but didn't have much luck.  As soon as I got near them they kept flying to another tree.

Quairading to Bruce Rock - 98km

It has been a lovely day today, and on the way to Bruce Rock I visited Kokerbin rock which is reputed to be the third biggest monolith in Australia.

I sat in the sun and had lunch with a couple I had just met who were also from Victoria, then I tackled the walk around the rock.  I walked about a kilometre before turning back.  The track was a bit rugged underfoot and after nearly tripping over I decided to make my way back to the van.   With the other couple having left and with no phone coverage I didn't want to take any chances of injuring myself.    

I had intended to camp at the rock for the night, but didn't want to camp in such an isolated area by myself so I headed for the town of Bruce Rock.   On the way I stopped at the little town of Shackleton to take a photo of the smallest bank in Australia.

I intend to stay in Bruce Rock for two nights in an area set aside for self contained RV's.  At $5 per night it is very cheap.  It looks to be a nice town with interesting things to look at, so I will take Oscar for a walk tomorrow and have a look around.

Kokerbin Rock:

Bank at Shackleton:

Scarborough to Quairading - 172km

It felt so good yesterday as I left the suburbs of Perth behind and headed for the open road again.  I think Perth is a lovely city, but like all big cities, the traffic is a nightmare.

I was pleasantly surprised when I arrived here yesterday.  Over the part few years I have travelled through hundreds of small towns, and Quairading would have to be one of the prettiest. The town is spotless and the main street is lined with flowerbeds full of roses with colourful flower pots dotted along the footpath.

The small council run caravan park is in town next to a huge sporting complex consisting of football field, tennis courts, bowling club and swimming pool - all beautifully maintained as are all the gardens along the street.  It is obvious that the residents are proud of their town.

It seems odd having such a large sporting complex in a small town, but I assume it would be the main sports centre for a lot of smaller outlying communities as well.

It is all very casual here at the caravan park, and at $17.50 per night for a powered site with the 3rd night free, its well worth staying.  The caretaker has even told me I can let Oscar off the lead, but he is still not well so I don't want him running around.

I discovered this morning that I have been giving Oscar 400mg of antibiotics every day instead of 100mg which was prescribed.  The vet gave me 30 tablets which were enclosed in foil strips containing 10 tablets each.  I finished the first strip last night and opened the second strip this morning, only to discover that the tablet was much smaller.  I read the description on the back and it said 50mg.  I fished the empty strip out of the rubbish bin and it said 200mg.  Unknowingly I have been overdosing poor Oscar all week, so maybe that it why he is still unwell.  As it is Sunday today I can't ring the vet and tell her she made a mistake, but I'm just thankful that it wasn't a more potent medication that could have had dire consequences.

Caravan park:

    
Main street:

Scarborough WA

For the last couple of days I have been parked behind Chris's motorhome in the driveway of Chris's son's house.  We had a day of sightseeing around Perth today, and had an enjoyable afternoon at Kings Park which is situated on the Swan River.  The photos are below.

Like all cities it is extremely busy and I am looking forward to heading out on the open road again.  Chris is staying put in Perth for now and will be catching up with some friends and her son who is in Tasmania at the moment but returning to Perth next week.

Oscar is slowly recovering from his pancreatitis and is much better, so after talking to the vet I have decided to leave tomorrow and head inland.  I intend to do a big loop and return to the coast north of Perth in about two weeks time where I will meet up with Chris again, then we will gradually make our way up the coast.  I'm looking forward to the warmer weather as we head further north.

 

Baldivis to Hazlemere - 65km

After spending the last four nights at a water ski park in Baldivis I drove further North to a caravan park in Hazlemere today which is about 14km from where I have to take my van tomorrow morning for the stove to be repaired.

The ski park was an interesting place to stay with lots of action going on all the time.  The park was huge, and as well as vast expanses of water for water skiing, within the park there was a jet boat racing track and a paintball combat field.

I received sad news from home a couple of days ago, which made me wish I could hop on a plane and fly back home to Melbourne, and then I had to make an urgent trip to the vet with little Oscar, so I was glad to get behind the wheel again today.  Negotiating the traffic through the inner suburbs of Perth was enough to keep my mind well and truly focused on the road.

Blood tests confirmed that Oscar was suffering from acute pancreatitis so the vet gave him an injection for the pain as well as a large dose of antibiotics.  After walking out of the vet clinic with a bag of special low fat dog food, antibiotics to be administered for the next four weeks, and a vet bill for $450, Oscar wasn't the only one feeling pain.  I've blown my budget well and truly this month.

Thankfully the stove is still under warranty, so I don't have to worry about paying for the repairs.  It is going to be an early morning for me tomorrow.  I have to negotiate the peak hour traffic and get to the repairers, which is close to Perth airport, at 8am in the morning.

Wanderer to Pinjarra - 105m

Well, after bunkering down for two days in Wanderer waiting for the wind and rain to abate, we woke up to a lovely sunny morning.  Unfortunately, it only lasted a couple of hours and now, parked at the 24 hour RV park in Pinjarra, it is cold, wet and windy.

The good news is that it is supposed to clear by late tomorrow with lots of fine sunny days ahead.

Chris and I will be heading our separate ways tomorrow and then meet up again in a week or so.  Chris will be driving to her son's house in Scarborough and I will be heading to a caravan park near to the suburb of Belmont where my stove is going to be repaired.  I will then meet up with Chris at her son's house.

I'm looking forward to heading further North in a couple of weeks.
 

Collie to Wanderer - 186km

We left Collie yesterday morning intending to head for a camp near Wanderer, but because of dire weather warnings we decided it would be safer for us to stop in a caravan park.

The local fire brigade is next to the Wanderer caravan park, so as night fell we parked in behind their large shed for the night to get some protection from the predicted Category 2 storm with 125km winds which was expected to hit at about 10pm.  With warnings continually being broadcast on the television we were feeling quite anxious.  This caravan park is council run and quite small with about 8 sites and Chris and I were the only ones here.

It is now 9.30am in the morning and thankfully the night passed without incident.  Although it rained very heavy with strong wind gusts, the centre of the storm cell missed Wanderer and headed for Collie, so we were thankful that we had left Collie in the morning.  I am waiting to see the 11am news on TV to see if there was any damage.

With another severe storm predicted for today we have decided to stay here for another night and sit out the weather.  Depending on the forecast later on today we will either move on tomorrow or stay put until the weather improves.

Stockton Lake - Collie

The lake is such a lovely place we decided to stay longer and tonight will be our 5th night.  Tomorrow night we will be staying at the Collie caravan park so we can top up with water and power and do some washing, etc.

I am very pleased with the power set up on my van.  With two 80 watt solar panels on the roof and a 120amp battery I can camp indefinitely without needing a generator.  The weather has been cloudy for the last four days and at one stage the battery got down to 27% (it cuts out at 20%) so I turned the car engine on and let it idle for about 3/4 hour which bought it up to about 40% which was more than enough for lights, TV etc.   The sun came out for a few hours today and it is now up to about 55%.

Stockton Lake was once a huge open cut coal mine which opened in 1927 and closed in 1950.  Over the years the trees grew and the lake filled and now it is a beautiful spot with lots of birds and wildlife and the locals water ski on the weekends.