Perth to Carnarvon

This is a hoot! For the first time since I've been blogging, the photo's are not visible to me (even though they are there on "preview") so I can't label them for you.....so I'll wing it and give you my best shot!

The group is from left to right: Tyler, Sarah, Chris, if you don't know the next 2 you are on the wrong blog, Brian at Indiana Restaurant.

The sunsets are at Monkey Mia (pronounced "my-a"), "Stress" the dolphin eyeballing us then laughing at us, flowers against the cabins; the 2 km jetty at Busselton; possum at Busselton; Bob on Shell Beach and a closeup of that beach showing all the shells; an animal we can't identify that looks like a cross between a cow and a yaak...so if anyone can find out what it is, please email us....; The Pinnacles; white sand hills.
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Well!!! What an evening we had with our new friends! We met Sarah and Chris in the parking lot of the Cottsloe Beach Pub, got a great table out on the balcony and overlooking the beach. Chris' friend Brian and his associate Tyler joined us a bit later. Brian is originally from London, U.K. and now lives in Sydney with his wife and two daughters. Tyler is originally from Saskatoon and moved to Sydney 6 years ago. They both work for British Telecom. We had a blast gabbing and getting to know everyone, watched the "real" sunset (meaning a true west coast sunset) which Tyler and Brian had never seen before, and getting so wrapped up in the conversation that we didn't realize the great fish and chip restaurants had closed. We were famished and the lovely Sarah kept running up and down the street trying to find a restaurant that stayed open late. Bob and I had seen the Indiana restaurant, overlooking the water. It looked a bit upscale however we thought we'd go for anything at this point....actually prepared to steal a rowboat and catch our own meal...so it was worth a try. Chris got the number, called and they said they'd be happy to take care of us.

This restaurant was built as a beach pavillion in the early 1900's and was opened as a restaurant 12 years ago. It was magnificent!! The view from the open windows was the snow white beach, acres of lawn and palm trees bordering the beach and the ocean itself. It was like looking at the most magnificent photograph you could ever imagine.

A funny incident happened as we entered the restaurant. The host was a very elegant looking gentleman in a crisp suit and you just KNEW that there was a dress code. Chris was dressed the most casual of any of us and was wearing flip flops. He is pretty direct and said to the host (as he lifted his foot) "Sorry about the shoes!" The host peered over his glasses and with a twinkle in his eye and a straight face replied "Sir! You AREN'T wearing shoes!" It was pretty hilarious. Just so you know, the "Lonely Planet Guide" states that many average Aussies consider flip flops to be formal footwear (their words NOT mine!!).

The meal was absolutely fantastic and the service was just as fantastic. It was a dream-like evening and we laughed and told stories until midnight. At one point, Brian and Chris actually stood up and sang "God Save the Queen", followed by the Australian National Anthem ......then it was Bob and my turn (by force I might add) to sing "O Canada". Thank goodness the restaurant was empty by now. Chris commented "Cor, you've got a long anthem don't you???"

We said our goodbye's and drove back to the camp.

Feb 1: We said "goodbye" to another friend; WALUT II. She was the expensive job we had to take for 2 months and we got back to basics with WALUT III; a Backpacker van with yet another layout.

As we drove in to the Maui depot to swap vans we were met with a spectacle that would make anyone's blood run cold.....a van that had obviously been rolled. We asked the staff what happened and they said that tourists had tried to avoid wildlife and rolled it. They were in pretty bad shape but lived to tell the tale. When we rented the first van, they suggested we take the "no worries" insurance which means that no matter what happens to it, you are covered. It is very expensive however we had decided it would be the best thing to do, especially with all the wild animals that leap out in front of us. Certainly worth it when we saw what can happen.

Off we went up the west coastal highway a few hundred km's, stopping near Cervantes at the Pinnacles; 404 hectares of limestone/sandstone formations that jut up out of the sand to heights 5 metres. Very strange and beautiful.

We stayed at Cervantes with a site right on the beach.

Feb 2: We drove to Kalbarri through amazing countryside. Bright green bushes contrasting with the whitest of sand hills. A sign south of Geralton warned that fresh water north of Geralton is scarce so we stocked up with huge jugs of filtered water.

Back on the road the farms and groves turned into scrub brush and red earth that went on forever. The second straightest road we've seen.

Just before Kilbarri we stopped to view gorges, cliffs and a natural bridge along the coastal road. Overwhelming!

Kalbarri is a beautiful town with loads of palm trees, a sheltered harbour with many yachts and more turquoise sea. We had dinner at the Black Rock Cafe overlooking the water...with an enormous seafood platter for two that included oyster, mussels, lobster, scallops, fish, prawns.........etc, etc....delicious!!

Feb 3: Now the scrub and red earth are rolling as we booted it up #1 Hwy to the Billabong Roadhouse. Diesel was now $1.45/l and the water we'd bought in Geralton for $4/10 litres was now $12.50. Pretty much a captive audience since there's nothing else out there!!

Driving the 143 km to Monkey Mia we began to wonder why we were doing this...knowing we'd have to come back. Nothing to see except more of the same....that is until around 65 km up the peninsula when we caught sight of the most magnificent turquoise, green and darker hues of blue that the ocean presented to us. We stopped at Shell Beach where the entire beach is comprised of cockle shells...to a depth of 10 metres in some spots. The ocean is so salty you would never wish to get a mouthful and the shells are harvested for paths and chicken feed. It is a renewable resource since new shells arrive each and every day.

We passed by Denham, the most westerly town in Australia.

Monkey Mia is located at the end of the peninsula and is actually a resort consisting of a motel, hotel, backpacker accomodation and campground. What a location!

Feb 4: Up early to see the bottlenose dolphins at the beach. This was even more spectacular than we'd previously experienced because they come in and lay there, rolling from side to side to eyeball you....then the most personable of the lot gave us a huge grin. There were calfs with their mom's and they frolicked about, flitting like humming birds in the water. The marine biologists who gave us a presentation, said that these dolphins were either beached at one time or were orphaned and injured. They are allowed one feed in the morning then have to fend for themselves the rest of the day. The babies are never hand fed. Some of the dolphins are 29 years old. Their enemy is the tiger shark which is frequently spotted in the bay. As a matter of fact, they said that the locals will never swim in that bay yet many tourist were out there splashing about.

Emu wandered through the camp and we swam....IN THE POOL....and just relaxed for a couple of days. Nice environment.

Today we drove to Carnarvon, another coastal town where we will spend the night before heading on up the coast.