Homeward Bound Well, it was time to leave Perth, hook a left, and head east, on the last leg of our journey. We left Perth on the Sunday morning, planning to top up some fresh produce on the way. We found a Coles supermarket at about 9.30 am, still shut. We asked the local bakery when they would open - 11am. "Well, it is a Sunday." Nothing has really changed in Perth these past few years. What followed were five days of intense driving through very flat and bo...

Friends and Family After a bit of a disappointing morning at the Pinnacles, we headed straight for Perth. Now, as many of you know already, about 8 years ago we drove to Perth in a small rented motorhome with the kids, and covered Perth and the south coast. So this time we were not really keen to see the sights, rather just catch up with friends and family who have moved there. First, our general impressions of Perth, the city. Last time we stopped at Scarborou...

Towards Civilisation As we headed further south, we could see we were getting past the wild outback lands and closer to civilization. No more the arid scrub with sprinklings of wildflowers, we were now driving through manicured fields and paddocks. Even the towns we passed through were more like country towns rather than tourist villages. We passed through Northampton, a tiny little town of one street. At one time it had been the largest town in WA after Perth,...

Kalbarri The Kalbarri National Park is a few hundred kilometers further south, around the town of Kalbarri where the Murchison River opens onto the sea through a narrow outlet. It is wild and untamed here, with some pretty amazing surf. On its way to the sea, it has carved out some deep gorges through the national park. This area is different to the Kimberleys in that there are no rock formations pushed up by the movement of tectonic plates, but rather it is fla...

Shark Bay We moved on, reluctantly, from Coral Bay, passing through Carnarvon. This is the first town we have come to on the west coast located on a river, the Gascoyne River, and therefore has some farming and cultivation around it. We saw mango and banana plantations, as well as various fresh vegetables - a nice change. However when we crossed the bridge across the river, it was completely dry. Apparently the river mostly flows underground, and irrigation happ...