November 2021 - July 2022
Nestled at the mouth of the Murchison River, Kalbarri has the best of many worlds - there are rugged inland gorges and dramatic coastal cliffs, amazing (and uncrowded) local beaches and the calm and serene Murchison River.
Summer in Kalbarri, so far, has been a mixture of delights and adversities. In mid-November we began at Big River Ranch – a picturesque horse ranch, 3km north of Kalbarri, providing one of the most stunning trail rides in Australia. The ranch has a great kid’s playground, pool, peacocks, chooks and pony rides for the little kids. The evening sunsets were wonderful here, accompanied by the view of the banks and hills running alongside the Murchison River below. However, the frequent strong winds that delivered dust into my eyes, nostrils, ears and every surface in the caravan tested our resolve. One night we were dining out and received a phone call indicating our awning had broken in the strong winds (up to 70 kmph gusts). Given the 40C+ temperatures we were experiencing it was quite a blow to not have some shade outside the caravan so we started spending more time indoors. The wind was often so strong that if you popped your rubbish bag outside the door to dispose of a little later it would inevitably disappear. By the way my rubbish bin isn’t as light as a feather as regular readers might assume. It has grown in size since stopping here – recycling is absent in remote WA towns apart from bottles with a 10c return price. As an avid recycler and waste free advocate I’m very uncomfortable with the current size and frequency of my rubbish bags.
Mali started school within 3 days of arriving. The Coopers and the Bradleys all met with the Assistant Principle and she was assuming we were all enrolling our children next year. She was a little surprised when we said we would like them to start tomorrow! So, after completing paperwork and a visit to the uniform shop they were ready for school the next day. It was an exciting start for Mali, Laura (10) and Dylan (9) and they all skipped off together. On day 2 school pick-up a lovely woman tapped me on the shoulder and said ‘I’m not sure you remember but……”, and before she could finish I said ‘Of course I remember you Anna and Lucy!’. Craig, Mali and I met Anna, Ross and Lucy (5) three years ago near Eden whilst they were on their lap of Australia. We spent a few days with them and remembered they lived in Kalbarri. Mali has spent a lot of time with Lucy over the summer and Craig and I have enjoyed getting to know Anna and Ross.
Our 'dustbowl' and the 'barn' Craig helped build at Big River Ranch.
Craig was working with a builder, Pete, who was rebuilding much of the ranch after Cyclone Seroja wreaked havoc back in April 2021. There are still many buildings in town with tarpaulin and/or plastic rooves or completely flattened. The town struggles to house its own residents let alone tradesman. It has been a slow process rebuilding the town. The impacts of COVID19 has also resulted in a desperate need for staff in the town. The backpackers who would normally take up many of these roles are not passing through town anymore. Cafés and restaurants are often shut without notice – open and closing times are so unpredictable.
I was working at the post office 2 days a week up until the end of January. My position involved working in the post office sorting mail and attending to customers as well as supporting the Containers for Change initiative (a WA not-for-profit coordinating the recycling of 10c containers), which is run by the post office in Kalbarri. Working in the post office has been a wonderful way to start out in a small town. I have met so many locals worked with a wonderful team of people. Many suburbs in WA do not have letterboxes so all the mail is processed through the post office - this is the case in Kalbarri so it is a busy place.
I have started using my meditation teacher training by starting a local meditation circle and have some regulars who are doing really well with their meditation practice. It is so wonderful to be able to do this with others and develop my teaching practice with them. Word is getting around and the class is now starting to grow.
A few weeks after the awning collapse we decided to move down to the Kalbarri Tudor Holiday Park as Craig was offered some general maintenance work there (which included free rent!). The Coopers also moved with us and earned their rent for the week by doing the evening amenities check. So, we all hooked up and rolled down into town within 2 days. Bye bye gale force winds and dust bowl!!
We had such a wonderful summer holiday here. We spent most days walking or cycling down to the jetty by the river and jumping off repeatedly or floating on the inflatable ring. We enjoyed the Monday morning markets, breakfast and coffee at the Red Bluff Bakery (the best café in town), snorkelling at Blue Holes, boat fishing trips on our boat (yet to be named) and hours swimming in the pool and playing on the jumping pillow. Mali, Laura and Dylan formed a great friendship.
Mali has also bonded with the resident Long-Billed Corella ‘Fred’. She now literally cuddles her every morning. She also spent 2 weeks of her holidays doing swimming lessons in the river and is now Level 4. She is very pleased with herself, as the photo demonstrates. She is now doing 2 weeks of swimming lessons at school - they walk the kids down to the river everyday for their lesson.
We spent a few nights in a hotel in Geraldton (1.75hrs south) and went to see Sing 2 (thanks Asha!!), the leaning tree in Greenough, the museum and I found a great 12km mountain biking track loop (Chapman River Loop). I’m pretty happy about this as there are no trails in Kalbarri.
Craig has been getting the boat out as often as possible. Sometimes he comes back empty handed but they days he does return with fish he certainly makes up for it - 2 large estuary cod, 4 bream and a large Dhufish. Surfing, on the other hand has not been as successful as there are very few breaks here and they are either crowded or not surfable very often.
One of the most enjoyable parts of my summer has been my early morning walks, jogs, swims, SUPS and meditations. Several days a week I wake at 5:20, stretch my ol’ aching back and head down to the water for my exercise and then sit on the beach to meditate. Many mornings I walk/jog with Jody and I have enjoyed our deep and thoughtful conversations. Sometimes I meet another friend and we do laps between the two jetties as the sun comes up. I even tried SUP Yoga this morning and almost fell asleep during Shavasana whilst the board bobbed gentle to and fro. I have never been an early morning exerciser but I absolutely love starting my day like this and the landscape in the early morning is spectacular here! It took a while but now I spring out of bed and head off with a bounce in my step greeting the grazing kangaroos and squawking galahs (OMG I have never seen so many Galahs!).
We weren’t at all expecting the next turn of events but before we knew it we were offered the Assistant Managers role here at the park. The factor that sold it to me was a free house! Yep, we now live in a small house at the back of the caravan park and it has a little vegetable garden! I am in heaven!!! After some negotiating we decided we would start full-time once Mali returned to school and would commit to 6 months. This meant I had to leave the post office (which I loved) and our plans to live and work in Exmouth for 6 months would have to change. It also meant Mali would have 2 more terms in school here rather than moving schools again. Craig is really enjoying working his role managing the grounds and housekeeping and I am adjusting to the long hours that I share with the manager in reception (8am – 6pm 7 days a week). Luckily Craig starts early so he can pick Mali up from school and spend the afternoon with her. I, on the other hand, start at 10am some mornings but finish at 6pm 4 days a week and do 10-hour days on Thursday and Friday. I am exhausted by the end of the week but I will get used to it. I’ve been working on the hazardous substances register so 15 years as a Technical Officer at UOW is paying off. Who would have thought!
After 8 months on the road, travelling as waste free as possible, we have come across very few caravan parks with a strong commitment to waste reduction and sustainable practices. Now that I am working for the industry I see this as an opportunity to start working on an idea I have to change the way caravan parks manage their waste and energy consumption. I am also working on offering some meditation classes here at the caravan park during the busy periods. So, life is busy.
The last week or so we have fare welled the Coopers who have hit the road again. We also welcomed some new families to the park, 2 of which are settling in town for a few months to work. Mali now has 8 new friends to play with and one is in her class at school. She is, no doubt, rapt!! However, she has been so busy adjusting to school and playing with her friends in the mornings and afternoons, she is absolutely wrecked.
Living in a remote town has been interesting, to say the least. The local IGA is the only supermarket, and their fresh food is average (and expensive). We buy fruit and vegetable boxes from a local organisation that gathers farm produce from growers between here and Perth. We also traipse into Geraldton every few weeks to stock up on pantry items and anything else we cannot buy in town. Ordering what you need online seems the norm here and we have done plenty of that.
So I hope you enjoyed this latest update. There is still a lot we have been doing which I couldn't squeeze into this post. My next post will be like a glossy tourism brochure showing you the amazing place that Kalbarri is and convincing some of you to come and visit when the bloody Premier opens the border. It has been rather interesting watching the whole town gearing up for COVID19. I feel like I am travelling through time 2 years ago - WA has been so well protected from the virus only now are they expecting it to move through the state.
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