Rose at 5:30 this morning with Jesse to go boating one last time on gorgeous Lake Kununurra. With Jesse in control of the oars, our course looked more like a bowl of spaghetti than a straight line, which made photography rather difficult.

But I figure that this part of the holiday, the journey home over territory already covered, with the sightseeing behind us, is mostly about relaxation and relationships. There is no apprehension now, no stress. There is time to savour the new memories we have, and time to think about the future.

At our lunch stop at Big Horse Creek a Whistling Kite perched very close and I got some great shots. He also tipped his head back and called, which is the first time I’ve observed that.

We are all sick of “Uno”, so I taught the boys the basics of trick-taking games with regular playing cards, and their joyful laughter and excited shouts as they discovered how fun and easy it is were my third highlight of the day. We’ll move up to Estimation next, then maybe even 500!

We’re camped at Victoria River roadhouse which is about 200km south-west of Katherine. It’s a very scenic spot in a large flat valley surrounded by cliffs, adjacent to Gregory National Park ... the helicopter was busy this afternoon taking tourists up for a look around. But we’ve seen enough rocks and canyons, thanks. Unless the scenery can outdo Purnululu or Windjana (highly unlikely) we’ll just drive right by.

Deb and the boys are keen to get home, but not me. I love it out here, and could happily continue this lifestyle indefinitely. One day, perhaps. A house at Lakes Entrance for November through April, and a 4WD and a tent to drive around the country clockwise from May through October. Decadence.