March 2015 We’re in Port Augusta, SA and now that the wind has stopped I can appreciate the view across the inlet to the Flinders Ranges. It is a shame that the view is spoilt by a high barbed wire fence. We are locked in a gated park, apparently due to the incidence of burglaries. Even the dump point has a fence around it, although I’m wondering what they could steal, poo perhaps? Continue reading What’s the crime?
We’re camped in an overnight rest area on the Nullarbor Plain. Green parrots chatter on our roof and I’m convinced that they’re tugging at cables. But Woody is engrossed in his book The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo so he just mutters “yeah”. I leap naked about the bathroom banging on the ceiling to no avail. Hmm I wonder what will happen when we’re back in civilisation and looking for TV reception in a few days time? Continue reading Get orf the roof!
In Australia we have a strange passion for building large objects beside highways that we tend to refer to as ‘Big Things’. The Big Banana at Coffs Harbour, that seems to get smaller as I get older. The Big Prawn in Exmouth. The Big Lobster in Kingston and so on. I think you get my drift now. This fellow is the Big Galah at Kimba in South Australia. He’s been guarding the highway for a long time and that pink paint is fading but we still can’t help but say “Ooh, there’s The Big Galah!” Continue reading The Big Galah
Morgan sits high on the banks of the Murray in South Australia and is quite spectacular with views over the wide expanse of river where it turns south towards the sea. This was once a busy river port and as well as historic warehouses there is an old brick morgue perched on the riverbank. Apparently when the town cemetery was being laid out one of the surveyors wondered who would be the first to be buried there. Sadly, next day he drowned in the river. Continue reading Who wants to go first?
Just off South Australia’s Goyder Highway (B64) between historic Morgan on the Murray River and the heritage town of Burra is a road called the World’s End Highway (now there’s a name for you). From the highway it is a short drive through sheep paddocks to the summer dry stony creek that has carved a small gorge. There are large gnarly gums and you’ll find plenty of room to camp. On a warm early autumn evening we sat outside and celebrated our mate’s birthday, perhaps we celebrated a little too hard, but after all we were under a magic carpet … Continue reading Burra Gorge
Driving the Nullarbor forty years apart. 1975 and 2015. Continue reading The Nullarbor
Signs on of life the Stuart Highway Continue reading Still rockin and rollin down the Stuart Highway
Travelling down the Stuart Highway from Katherine to Port Augusta Continue reading Hopping Down the Stuart Highway
The quarantine officer at the SA border was so helpful. He even gave us a quarantine guide booklet listing the do’s and don’ts for each state. After much discussion and cooking of the vegetables that shouldn’t cross the border, we reach the WA border quarantine point. I think we must have read the booklet in reverse because we had all of our fruit and vegetables confiscated except for one measley carrot (the one that somehow missed last night’s stir fry) and an unopened bag of lettuce leaves. Poor Woody is frantically unlocking hatches and Eskies for inspection while choking on … Continue reading Mental Telepathy
About 15kms off the Eyre Highway near the town of Minnipa in South Australia, Pildappa Rock stands high and proud above the wheat fields. The Eyre Peninsula is known for its granite monoliths and nearby Mt. Wudinna is 2nd largest to Uluru. Our mate finds a perfect campsite beside the wave face of the Rock and we constantly marvel at its size and the lichen stripes and patterns. Our other fellow campers are sprightly eighty year old retired Clarence Valley farmers in a camper trailer. We climb the rock and watch the sun set over the wheat fields. Our neighbour … Continue reading Pildappa Rock
