Leaning trees, Lisa and Almost Alone

One thing we haven't been able to avoid is wind.....I'm not talking about flatulence, but rather the sort that blows in off the ocean. Cooktown is known for its constant wind and so, it seems, is this area. Hence the trees take on this wonderful lean.

At Geraldton just the other day we caught up with some wonderful young people. Lisa is a sweet young german girl who became close friends with my Johanna when she first visited Australia as an exchange student 7 years ago. The friendship has continued with each of them crossing the globe for visits. She and her gorgeous man Chris, have been travelling around Oz and just a weekago they were in Brisbane with Johanna and suddenly they were in WA and having drinks with us. I so love being around young people with their optimism and enthusiasm for life. No retirement villages for me! When we get to the South West of WA we'll definitely catch up again with Chris who is studying in Bunbury for a year.

And finally I bid adieu to my love who starts work at the mine tomorrow. He will be doing a 9 day on 5 day off roster and living at the mine site. It will be quite an adjustment for me to be on my own, but I do have Molly the dog and the chickens for company.......

Meet Mustang Sally

So for the past week while we wait for Steve's start date at the mine, we have been housesitting for Erica and Brian. They have 5 acres with 18 chickens, 1 rooster, 1 duck, a fish and Molly the dog. It's been a hoot watching Steve turn into a farmer...of sorts. We both noticed an alarming number of crows hovering about the chicken coup obviously enjoying the scraps and the steady supply of fresh eggs. No amount of yelling and waving wildly kept them away.
Another quick trip to the opshop for a scarecrow outfit and after a bit of creativity in the shed, Mustang Sally was about to emerge. For a few days prior however, Steve thought it prudent to don the clothes....couldn't coerse him into the pants..and parade around to convince the crows that Mustang Sally was capable of movement.
Now that she has been erected there is not a crow in sight. Her body weight seems to have shifted southward, much like mine, giving her colossal legs but she appears to be doing her job....just hope she doesn't scare the chickens and put them off the lay.
We have been checking out the local areas and never tire of the sea here. As there are no rivers flowing out to the ocean the water is remarkably clean and clear....and not a croc in sight!

A day at the races

There is something about a country race day.....On a clear perfect day we meet up with some new friends at the BP and follow them to Minganew, about a three quarter hour drive west of Dongara.
When we were invited to join them I wondered what, amongst my camp clothes I could possibly wear. A quick visit to the local opshop and I purchased a $3.00 dress and also found a good old straw hat to borrow from Erica. Perhaps not as fancy as my gorgeous new girlfriends with their fabulous hats but there weren't any obvious stares or laughter from the crowd.....after a few wines I wouldn't have noticed or cared anyway!
It was a great day. Country folk came out in all their finery and it was a good opportunity to get to know the girls.

End of the road at Ballidu and Dongara

After 30 odd years I, again, meet some very special friends I lived with all that time ago in Ballidu WA. What a reunion it was! The usual reminiscing, laughter and tears. It seems noone has changed, other than a few wrinkles, and they were mostly mine. The hours slipped by as we caught up on marriages, divorces, births, deaths and every other significant event. It will take many more visits yet! Dear Bo, my gorgeous surrogate mother when I was 17, packed us a yummy homemade lunch before we left for Dongara, and our first glimpse of the Indian Ocean.
Driving through the neat country towns we discover a replica Ettamogga pub just like ours in Queensland.
I am loving the variety of eucalypt trees we've seen in the different states, and the banksias here are superb.
Eventually after days of driving we are in Dongara where we have been now about 5 days staying with fabulous friends on their 5 acre block. Dongara is a quaint little town with magnificent 100year old fig trees in the main street, beautiful white beaches with clear blue ocean, and a friendly community. We already love the place! Geraldton is only 64 kilometres north and Perth a 4 hour drive south.
Steve has had his medical for the mine position and will start when all the paperwork etc has been processed.
Currently we are house sitting for Brian and Erica while they are down south visiting friends. It is so relaxing here andwe are grateful for some chillpout time before Steve starts work for Mt Gibson mine.

Western Australia...at last!

Not sure how many kilometres we've covered but we are a day away from Dongara W.A. and have endured some dodgy motels and averaged about 12hours driving daily...Steve that is, not me. I have read 20 books, checked off every 100 kilometres on our map and prodded Steve from time to time to make sure he hasn't dozed off. The landscape has been almost featureless other than stopping at the Great Australian bite to gaze over the crystalline ocean with its awesome cliffs. We passed one truck that had a rollover, a small number of grey nomads, but get this, saw not one live kangaroo and only a few roadkill. Amazing! Though its obvious that it has rained recently and that has probably scattered them.
At the border a very overweight fellow relinquished us of all our fresh fruit, veges and honey. I figured he probably had a good racket trading everything that was quarantined for chocolates and chips at the nearby BP.
After one coffee stop we sped off down the highway when we heard a loud thwack. I had forgotten to load our plastic box with food items and it flew off the trailer and exploded on the bitumen. Tea, coffee, milo, sugar and my favourite dutch biscuits disintegrated on impact, shattering containers and denting our stainles steel coffee mugs and saucepan....(the one that replaced smoking pot.) Other paraphenalia was scattered in all directions. We spent an hour picking up pieces of plastic and glass and I resisted scraping the biscuit crumbs off the road. I cursed myself for being a stupid cow, but, after all it was Friday 13th.....
Tonight we are in a clean friendly park with a gorgeous corella who took a liking to Steve. Just quietly I think Steve is pretty miffed that he can still attract goodlooking birds!

A quick run through South Australia

Now we are doing the serious miles with only a few brief stops....we are on a mission. Thank God Steve loves to drive. Today was about 11 hours , tomorrow more of the same.
The scenery changes constantly but we are beginning to get a taste of what the nullabor will offer, long stretches with few trees and lots of saltbush. But still we find beauty in the early mornings, the suns rays through the clouds, a brief and rare rain storm and the mere fact that we enjoy a different backyard every day.
Oh, and after the big lobster, we see the big galah...I wonder what other "big things" there are down the road????

The Great Ocean Road

Well we are not sorry we have taken the long way into South Australia via the great ocean road.
We left Lorne nice and early on a foggy morning which cleared to give us the most magnificent views. This stretch of road offers every landscape, from steep cliffs atop gorgeous beaches, through rainforest and green hilly farmlands to the sandstone monoliths of the 12 (or 8) apostles. They were awesome!...and there are plenty of places to stop and take in the view. Just when I was thinking of family, Johanna signs popped up everywhere....there was Green, Red and Blue Johanna Roads and a town called Johanna as well....always knew she'd be famous!
Onward through Mount Gambier with the most amazing, pretty blue lake and overnight in Kingston, home of the giant lobster....it looked so real I had nightmares about it roaming the streets at night!

Western Australia...here we come!

Finally get the news that Steve has been accepted for an electrical position in a mine near Geraldton in WA. Our good friends live in a small town there and recommended Steve for the job. Our plans therefore have changed....Tasmania is on hold and we are racing across the miles to get to Geraldton for his medical on Monday 16th.
We weren't going to miss the great ocean road however. So we belt down past Melbourne and stay overnight in Lorne, in a magnificent historic building with exquisite gardens. Lorne is a sweet place at the beginning of the road and we arrive as the mist moves in from the ocean. A good beach walk leads me to the biggest lump of seaweed I have ever seen....it is thick like leather and rubbery to touch.
We share our fish and chips with a thousand greedy, noisy seagulls and 2 very friendly, polite cockatoos.
We are blown away by the extent some people go to with their homes to get the best views of the ocean....obviously not gardeners!