Adelaide -Melbourne.

So we were driving from Adelaide to Horsham....we'd had a late start to the day, a nice jog along the River Torrens for me and a slow start. Then a touch of shopping and coffee. As we headed into the Adelaide hills, one of the kids Emma I think spotted a sign that said Melbourne was only 723 km. That was a real tempter, after a brief family discussion we all decided we'd drive through and stay at Melbourne the night, this plan involved a night at Crown ( a little treat before we hit reality) and a trip to my hairdresser the next day. three months on the road, two bad hair colours and one bad haircut, I had a hair emergency! The kids all needed shoes , they seemed to have sprouted on this holiday- must be all the fresh air and the good life! the only down side of our plan was that it was already past mid-day!

We hit Melbourne at about 10 o'clock that night!After a very long and draining day and many discussions as to how it probably wasn't such a good plan after all!Lucky for us the door men at Crown were very obliging and let us park the van in the valet parking, it wasn't going to fit in the multideck! They must have been having an oversize night as there was a huge dump truck parked opposite.

It was a huge treat to be sleeping in a room that was about triple the van size, had an ensuite ( and you didn't even have to wear thongs in the shower) and to sleep in a Queen size bed with clean, crisp sheets.I still maintain our bed in the van wasn't much bigger than a King single.

We found this crazy wall in a back lane in Adelaide, it had
thousands of match box cars stuck up it - imagine Harry's delight!

A close up of the cars

Streaky Bay-Cowell-Adelaide

We spent a night in Streaky Bay and wished we had more time there. It was a pretty little town and a great caravan park right on the bay. Had a delicious  lunch at a fantastic cafe, Mocean , felt like we were in the Mornington Peninsula, probably 50 years ago. Pete finally took the kids fishing, unfortunately they had no luck!For some reason I didn't seem to take any photos of streaky Bay, so sorry no pictures!

Then off to Cowell , another nice little seaside town, on the Spencer Gulf where we needed to spend a night so we could take the ferry to Wallaroo the next day. The highlights here were the playground and the hot cinnamon doughnuts we got from the pub!

Ferry from Lucky Bay to Wallaroo

All went well on the ferry until we had to start our cars to drive off of the ferry- to our dismay our car wouldn't start- flat battery, we'd left the fridge connected to the battery and the ferry ride had drained it.You can imagine our feelings of discomfort- we were front row centre there were a lot of cars behind us and next to us- somehow they all seemed to manage to get off without us moving. the ferry guys seemed fairly used to this occurrence, and assured us it happens all the time, maybe thats why their jump start pack was flat....Any way luckily one of the passenger had some jumper leads and was happy to help us out , finally we got the car started and were able to leave the ferry , much to the relief of the passengers trying to get on and us of course!


We than had a one and a half hour drive to Adelaide or what should have been except for the traffic!Only to arrive at the caravan park to discover they didn't have a site large enough for our van. After much heated discussion, the fellow couldn't understand why we didn't want to stay on the road next to the mens toilets with no water, he grudgingly picked up the phone and booked us into a nearby caravan park.This was quite fortunate in the end as we ran into a nice family we'd met earlier in the trip.

Ceduna Oyster Festival

Yes we were lucky enough to be in town for the oyster festival!
After a slow start to the day, washing calling -again. We hit down town Ceduna to check out the festival. It was overall, fairly low key. There were the usual carni rides- but not many, the usual carni food but not enough(forcing us to queue for half an hour for a hot dog and yes that was the healthiest choice available). Except of course for the oysters! They were delicious, large, tasty, fresh and cheap , $8 for 6. Now we have sampled a lot of oysters on this trip and the ones at the Ceduna oyster festival were definitely the best we've had, washed down with a nice glass of sparkling and it made up for all of the other insufficiencies of the "festival".

Pete, very pleased with his 2 dozen oysters-they were just the beginning!

We were treated to a viewing of the Grand Final on the big screen, a screen that had been set up on the grass just outside the beer tent which was convenient. The crowd seemed fairly lukewarm about the footy overall, but I'd say the majority of people there were swan supporters , including the half plastered aboriginal guy leaning on Petes chair for the majority of the game.So we felt just a little self-conscious cheering when the Hawks did something worthy as we didn't want to upset the locals!

Luckily the result was what it was, for the few passionate Swan supporters there.

 The kids had a great day running around and returning to us at frequent intervals to have their money stocks replenished, to get some peace we were obliging, it was a win win situation!While we had a great day in the sunshine, I don't think I need to be rushing back to Ceduna in a hurry. We're off to Streaky Bay tomorrow which I'm looking forward to discovering as I've heard a lot about it.

Harry very pleased with his new rubber band gun

Yes, that's Emma in a big plastic ball..

and Maddy in another one- we did let them out ....at the end of the day!

The Nullarbour

We tried to get up and going but by the time we'd got coffee etc we didn't leave Esperance until about 10...we drove a lot today . The Nullarbour is just kind of lots of the same, scrubby, flat scenery and road disappearing into the distance. Apparently we drove on the longest straight stretch of road in Australia (90 miles) but to be honest it didn't stand out from the rest of the Eyre Highway to me, then again perhaps I was asleep. There are the occasional road houses, they are very disappointing you are lucky to get a coffee. We stayed the first night at Caiguna, about 250km further than where we'd planned to stop because we got to the first stop and it was 3.30 in the afternoon. The caravan park was a gravel paddock, absolutely nothing to do so we drove on. After a hard days driving we set up the van in a another but different gravel paddock and then went and had a beer and a game of pool at the roadhouse bar.

An earlyish start the next day for the 800 km drive ahead of us. The over night stops in the Nullarbour were too depressing to stay another night on so we decided to drive straight through to Ceduna. We had plenty of stops, coffee, chocolate and movies for the kids. We arrived in Ceduna at about 8pm ( really 6.30pm-we'd lost one and a half hours due to time differences). This leg of the Nullarbour was quite pretty at the end once you hit the coast views. It was very windy but beautiful.

Esperance

Albany was a bit of a blur, we arrived late had a fantastic Indian meal and fell into bed then were gone the next morning. The highlight was the bath in the caravan park!Em and Harry enjoyed it!

We arrived in Esperance later that day, in the rain.Not much fun caravanning in rain, luckily it was gone in the morning and we could do some exploring.

Down by a jetty in town we met the local resident sea lion, Sammy. He was just basking in the sun alongside the pier when we checked back on him after our walk down the jetty he'd gone back into the sea.

We then did the Great Ocean Drive and checked out the beautiful beaches in Esperance. They were fantastic, we just felt a little frustrated as it wasn't really beach weather, another place to put on our to come back to list- maybe in Summer next time, thought the locals tell me it's way too busy then.

It was a day for facing fears...

so I did. I'm not sure if I have real phobia of heights now that I am a responsible adult or that fear was born into me along with the birth of my children, my fear is worse when they are on the high place with me.

So on our drive from Margaret river to Albany we cam across a few of these climbing tress, so we decided to partake in the climbing of the Gloucester Tree. It is just out of Pemberton, is 58-62 meters high9 depending on your source of information. They used to be fire lookout trees but now are just there for the general public to climb , in fact there are no real guidelines here , Harry started to climb this tree but with the lack of a safety net,literally, and just steel prongs to get you up to 60 metres, Pete and I decided that it wasn't a good idea for a 5 year old. Haz wasn't happy about this so we fabricated what the sign said just a little...no 5 y.o . up the tree

So it was really scary, you just had these metal prongs coming out of the tree to climb, there was wire on the side of you but if you missed the bar with your foot or slipped you would be hanging 60 metres in the air with nothing between you and the ground. I was doing some serious deep breathing and felt a little light headed at the top, perhaps due to my deep breathing. Coming down was easier maybe because I was climbing with the girls, on the ascent they shot off really fast as son as we stopped Harry from climbing I think they feared we may stop them too.
Once I was back down on firm ground i was quite proud of myself, not something I need to do again in a hurry bit it was worth the efforts as the view from the op was fantastic.
We continued our theme of climbing and headed off to The Valley of The giants and The tree Top walk. It was much more accessible, with a 40 metre high walk way through the tree tops. The walk way was an amazing engineering feat, designed to sway in the breeze or when children ran across it. Any way , Harry could come with us on this one.

We finished the day with a walk through the Ancient kingdom. A great board walk through  a section of forest with ancient Tingle trees, some up to four hundred years old, these trees are quite unique in that often they have hollowed out bases of their trunks, also some of the trunks measure up to 16 metres in circumference!

We arrived in Albany late that night.

Margaret River

What a beautiful part of the country, shame about the weather we've had. On the day we drove from Perth to Margaret River it was pouring with rain, with very strong winds, so strong in fact that there was a severe weather warning. The weather warning was for the strong winds they were expecting, which struck fear into us caravan folk hearts. I was picturing the van being swept off the road in a strong gust of wind and us following, something like Dorothy when she ended up in Kansas.
So I was very relieved when Pete safely pulled the van into Margaret river, actually Cowaramup, a little place just Nort of Margaret river.The caravan park we stayed at was on a farm, we had animals around us which made us feel at home.

Harry had just fallen over, in his excitement to get to the lighthouse- that's why he's not looking too happy

On our first day we went all the way down to the most South Western tip of australia, to Cape Leeuwin light house. We had quite an entertaining tour(the only way to get through).

We visited a couple of wineries, as you do in Margaret River. The first one was Cullens, they are a lesser known winery but do organic and biodynamic wines, I was trying to be healthy, but they weren't very nice, well not the wines we could afford, and really who was I kidding if I want to be healthy just don't drink the wine.........
The next winery we visited was Vasse Felix, it was very pretty and we bought some nice wines.
Then off to the kids eqivalent of a winery, the Chocolate Factory. They loved it , there were free samples and theey just ran around very excited and eating way too many choccies.

The next day we went exploring the caves and started off with Jewel Cave. It was huge inside and very pretty. there was a great boardwalk, with lots of different platforms at different heights you could wander around.

The sun then decided to make a brief appearance so we made the most of it and went and has lunch at a winery. It was very nice sitting outside in the sun, enjoying a yummy meal while the kids played happily nearby- well not too nearby but we could see them. One of those few parenting moments when it all comes together !
After our long lunch more compromise and off to the maze at Yallingup. We spent a good amount of time in that maze (it was only supposed to take half an hour) and had lots of fun.The kids then got more playground time. They had this obstacle type route made of logs ,  horizontal trees and  wooden stepping stones, the challenge being to get around it without standing on the ground, the kids loved it and so did Pete.

On the way back to the van we passed the Cheeky monkey Brewery, because of its amazing playground(thanks Jaine) we decided to have a last play there. Well what else could Pete and I do, but enjoy a beer tasting "paddle".A good way to end a fun day.
We've really enjoyed Margaret River, even in the dodgey weather, another place we've put on our to come back to list.

Perth

It is getting colder, we can no longer be so smug when we see the Melbourne weather forecast, in fact you guys are getting warmer days than us occasionally now- good time for the caravan heater not to work!

I like Perth a lot, despite the traffic which was a rude shock. I love the huge width of the Swan River you feel like you're overlooking a bay but it's only a river.We spent our one afternoon here at Kings Park Botanical Gardens. They were spectacular, the wildflowers are out and beautiful with the varied colours. We also really enjoyed "The Lottery West Walk", shame about the name- it included a section that was elevated into the tops of the huge eucalypts that you walk through. It was constructed of glass and steel and was very impressive. The kids had a great time running around the beautiful gardens..definitely a great way to spend an afternoon in Perth.

The next day as we were preparing to head off to Margaret River, I texted my good friend Jaine for some tips knowing that she'd been in Margaret River in July. What a great surprise for both of us to discover she was actually in Perth visiting her new nephew. So of course we organised a coffee catch up , thanks Jaine for the great catch up it was so nice to see a girl friend, great cafe and we discovered a very cool hip and happening suburb, Highgate or is it Mt Lawley.

The Pinnacles

After Kalbarri we continued South along the coast to Cervantes. From here we went to explore The Pinnacles an interesting place which has thousands of limestone "formations" standing out og the desert floor. It looks quite spectacular, almost like a graveyard full of tombstones. The only downer was that it was raining, s phenomenon we haven't see for the last two months!On the upside there was a loop drive you could do through the Pinnacles so you could "explore" them without getting wet!

Funny how life works.....

Natural Bridge

We are at Kalbarri. It's a very beautiful spot where the Murchison River meets the Indian Ocean. There have been quite a few ship wrecks along this part of the coast due to the wild ocean, strong winds and unforgiving rocks and cliffs that make up the coast.We had a great day exploring the coast and its natural attractions yesterday.

Red Bluff

Mushroom Rock

Then today we went exploring the inland gorges of Kalbarri National Park. The terrain was  rugged , wild and windy in its beauty. We took the kids on a 8 km  loop walk across the cliff tops then down into the sandy creek bed then back up to the cliffs where we began. It was quite hard going especially for Harry's little legs but they all did really well and it's amazing what a packet of loo\llies can do in terms of encouragement. The kids were getting a snake lolly for each km mark they got to after the 4km mark. The walk was very pretty, the wild flowers are well and truly out.It was also quite an interesting walk as the terrain changed quite a lot as we progressed.

We were quite tired after the walk, so Harry and Emma didn't want to get out of the car at the next lookout Z Bend, Maddy and I went and had a look it was also very picturesque.

We finished off the day having a lovely meal at the pub with a family we have "met" here. The little girl actually goes to Harry's kinda in Inverloch but her Mum and I had only ever  said hi in passing .Harry spotted them in the playground on the first day we arrived running over to the van and telling me, "Mummy, Evie from kinda is here"! So I went over and said hi, and we got chatting, they are a really nice family and the kids are having a great time hanging out together too.

 So it's taken being over the other side of the country in Kalbarri to have a proper chat and to get to know this local family- at least we will be able to catch up with them when we get home, unlike the other great people we are meeting who are mostly from other states....funny how life works!

Monkey Mia

We didn't want to leave Monkey Mia. We had the best caravan site ever, right on the beach, we could see the ocean from our van and the dolphins, paradise.

We enjoyed seeing and feeding the dolphins. We've also caught up with our friends from The Gibb River Road which the girls were very excited about.

We then went on a great boat, a giant catamaran tour to find the wild ife in the ocea. We saw dugongs, albeit briefly, dolphins a huge turtle and the highlight a whale and her calf. They were swimming very close to the boat, I was amazed at huge they are. Apparently we were lucky to see one in Shark Bay that close in.

Another place we're definitely coming back to!

Coral Bay

We are well and truly on the move now, unfortunately we are out of time, so stays are limited to two nights max and only one night at places that don't sound so exciting.

Coral Bay isn't one of those places. We've just had a great day on a boat Eco tour (I'm till rocking- so excuse the typos). We were taken to some amazing snorkelling spots, we also went to a turtle sanctuary where we saw a lot of turtles swimming in the ocean and every now and then one would come up for air.

Then the highlight, swimming with the manta rays,. It was superb, there was a spotter plane that would communicate with the boat's skipper and then he would take the boat to the spot the manta rays had been seen then we had to quickly jump into the water and snorkel over and follow the manta rays. They were so elegant in the way that they glide through the water and fast. They were huge, over two more metes wide wing tip to wing tip. 

We then went to another snorkeling spot on the way home. Harry came in with us and had a great time with his noodle and mask and was very excited to see turtles and lots of fish.  

Exmouth

We loved Exmouth, it was a great combination between fantastic snorkeling and spectacular beauty as well as a great little, coastal town- complete with a great sea food restaurant that was so yummy the first night that we had to go back the second night.

The thing to do in Exmouth is snorkel, so we kitted ourselves out and headed to Cape Range National Park, we'd been told Lakeside was a good spot. You can just walk out from the beach and the reef is there 30m out, we saw amazing fish and great coral as well as a turtle.The only downside with Exmouth was that we weren't staying longer, we will definitely be back!

Natures Adventure Playground

Karijini National Park is awesome. We had a fantastic couple of days there in the eco tents(road too rough to get our van in -shame!)

We explored Dales Gorge on the first day which was a beautiful walk, we also found one of the best natural swimming pools we've seen -Fern pool.

The next day we had a great time doing some more adventurous wallks. Hancock gorge involved descending a couple of ladders then wading through knee deep water, scaling sides of rock walls ans at the end straddling canyons(the spider walk) before ending up at a magnificent pool , Kermit's Pool.

we then explored the next adventurous gorge, Weano Gorge to Handrail pool. This one started off with a deeper section of water you could either wade through and get wet to your chest, or wade across part of the way at knee height and then do some scaling along a very narrow rock wall. We all went for the last option except for Harry who had remembered that we still had boogey boards on the car roof and thought it would be a good idea to paddle across.

We then walked a bit furteh on rock scrambling, crossing streams on stepping stones before you come to a tricky narrow chasm you have to climb through and you get to a handrail which you climb down to get to the magnificent swimming pool that awaits you. That wasnt quite enough excitement for the kids so they decided to climb some of the rock walls that were surrounding us.

If you look carefully you can see Emma's head right at the top of the left hand column of rock, Maddy is mid-way, Pete is on his way to help Emma - not that she needed it but she was giving me a heart attack!

We all finished the day with that exhausted feeling of contentment you get after having a physically demanding but fun day.