March 2023
On our drive north from Esperance to Kalgoorlie we noticed some beautiful woodlands adjacent to the road and I wondered how significant it might be. Early one morning I went walking in the Kalgoorlie Karlkurla Bushland Park and learnt all about the Great Western Woodlands, another great arc of biodiversity in Australia (yet not well recognised). So I'll get the geek in me out first - The Great Western Woodlands is the largest remaining area of intact Mediterranean climate woodland on Earth! Yep it's in Australia. Now that's cool! Did you also know that Australia has the highest rate of extinctions on earth? We are one of the few mega diverse countries in the world but do not seem to be able to keep it that way. Covering 16 million hectares (the size of England) this band of native vegetation extends across an ancient landscape of broad, flat valleys and ridges that connect Australia's south-west corner to its inland deserts. These woodlands have more than 20% of Australia's native plant species and 20% of our eucalypts. This country always surprises me. I had the most wonderful long walk through this regrowth bushland and really appreciated the stunning beauty of these woodlands.
We spent some 42 degree days exploring Kalgoorlie. Now we have not experience much of a winter for 2 years but this heat smacked us in the face. Now what is a fun way to spend the day in this heat when inland?.....head to the aquatic centre where the water temperature is about 32 degrees! Mali and I spent hours here playing hide and seek in the fantastic indoor pool with loads of water features. We even went outside to the splash park to 'cool down'. After returning to the caravan park we spent most afternoons in the freezing pool along with all the other visitors.
We wandered up and down Hannan street and enjoyed all the old buildings, including the 120 year old Exchange Hotel. It was bizarre walking down the street past abandoned shop fronts falling to pieces sprinkled with fancy brow bars, beauty salons and boutiques. The old and the new are showcased so well. I even went to my first floating yoga class - aerial yoga - which was wonderful.
We visited Hannans North Tourist Mine to learn about the history of mining. It was hot but we dawdled through the different sections - Craig got to sit in the control seat of a giant loader & pretend to poop in an outdoor 'dunny' whilst Mali enjoyed two-up and panning for gems. We visited the Super Pit and all I can say is it is huge! The massive loaders do not even look big driving up and down inside walls. The scale is hard to comprehend. The amount of earth that they have to move to get the gold is also difficult to comprehend. That is enough mining for me.
Our first day on the Nullarbor was a long stretch - 900km and 13 hours in the car! On this western side of the Nullarbor we drove through the Fraser Range (granite hills) surrounded by the world's largest Eucalypt forest (some 20-30m high). We passed Balladonia, where space debris from Skylab landed in 1979.
Soon enough we hit the start of the 'Longest straight road in Australia', (146km). We did not stop for the obligatory photo - besides we were on a 900km mission. No time for touristy photos, said the captain! This is where we came into the Arid Desert Woodland (one of the world's oldest landscapes). It really was stunning driving through these environments. I was so surprised after what so many people had said is 'kilometres of nothing'. Admittedly, much of the Nullarbor's beauty is hidden underground in the vast cave system, much of it unexplored with passages running for kilometres.
We continued on to Eucla and managed to find, what appeared to be, a free camp on the side of a dirt road to the Eucla jetty. In the morning it appeared to be more of a car park as loads of cars stopped, their passengers walking past our van to visit the old telegraph ruins (which were mostly buried in sand anyway). Eucla was the busiest telegraph station in Australia, with 100 residents in the early 1900s, linking WA with the rest of Australia. Now it is literally a roadhouse/service station/motel/caravan park. Living in these remote locations would be tough, but much tougher long ago.
Our campsite at the Bunda Cliffs, The Nullarbor Plain
The next morning we finally crossed a border! It had been 17 months since we rushed into WA (concerned we would be locked out when COVID made its way over). We had mixed feelings about leaving WA. It was a state we loved the most and our time there was so special. To be honest, it was not until we landed in Ceduna (further east) that we really felt like we were in SA and we had no idea what the time was until we got to Ceduna anyway.
Our second night was a unique camp on the edge of Australia at Bunda Cliffs. These cliffs extend for 210 kilometres along the shore of the Great Australian Bight from Head of the Bight (SA) in the east to Eucla (WA). We parked up on one of the many free camps on offer and set-up the campfire. The site was literally metres from the edge of Australia and a sheer drop below. It took Mali a little while to exit the caravan as she did not feel particularly comfortable. We almost got the dingo safety line back out. Craig and I enjoyed a drink on the edge and watched the Gannets feeding below. It was just so beautiful watching the sun set. We went to bed smelling of campfire (which we have missed over the summer) and full of home baked banana bread and marshmallows. I had read so many reviews about the wind here but it was so calm. We had left the wind behind in WA - phew. Sounds idyllic, doesn't it? Well that bubble burst at about midnight! The wind had been brewing and once it arrived the caravan shook all night as the wind howled around us. I thought we might get blown over the cliff back to WA. I almost woke everyone up so we could hook up and drive the hell out of there. That was the worst night I have had in a long time. Mali did not even wake up!
Note: We camped further back. We only parked here for the photos. I am a safety conscious mother after all.
We drove another few hundred kilometres to Cactus Beach, a beach Craig insisted we stop at for 3-4 nights so he could surf. We stopped in at Penong, a small town before the turnoff, and filled the caravan with water from the caravan park for $10. Another reason we moved along the Nullarbor quickly was that water can be scarce. We arrived on another scorching day of 42 degrees. The surf had just bombed out as the wind had picked up so Craig missed his chance and the next few days were average swell. We all sweltered in the caravan under the fans and took a dip down at the jetty to cool off. This is one thing almost every single town in SA has - a Jetty. They are everywhere! Now I love a jetty but after 2 years on the road and dozens of jetties a brochure proclaiming that an inland town is worth seeing because of its 'jetty' was not selling it.
Cactus Beach
We only lasted at Cactus 2 nights and then set off for the Eyre Peninsula via Penong. Here we explored the Windmill Museum, which I thought was pretty cool.
We arrived at the top of the Eyre Peninsula earlier than planned and found most caravan parks booked out. However, the one remaining park with sites charged us $20 a night, with power and water. It was old and run down but this was the 'best value ever!'. As we were a few days ahead of schedule we started trying to book a few nights further south on the Eyre but everywhere was full. This is when we realised how bloody busy it is and how lucky we are that I have booked ahead for a lot of SA (mostly because of Easter and the school hols).
This is also when we realised how hard travelling has become. This life we have chosen to live for the last 2 years has been choice. Exploring magnificent coastlines, surfing and swimming each day, hiking up mountains, meeting new friends to explore with, visiting so many towns and regions is such a fun way to live but after a while it does become....tedious. We pass through some places so quickly that we do not get to know the town or its people. We have seen so many places that some begin to blur. Mali has periods where she is really lonely without other children (and I have no doubt she is sick of us some days). The pack up and set up we could do with our eyes shut but we are tired of having everything packed away in it's own little space because we are on the move in another 2-3 days. I am sitting here right now, writing this at night, and I just had to remind myself where I am. We have decided where we are going to live next and we are excited about stopping there for as long as we are happy to. Mali cannot wait to start school and we all look forward to the stability. We are not finished yet but we are getting closer. Until next time!
Corrine, Mali & Craig
Comentarios