Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
Thurs25th,On to our 12th country,Australia!!!our flight was already booked with our round the world ticket so just had to get to Singapore airport for 7am for the 9am Quantas flight to Perth,Western Australia.Arrived about 5 hours later and 3 films later,to be in warm weather instead of being hot and sweaty all the time,found a shuttle bus to take us to our hostel the Withches Hat,so many people on the bus that it took us ages to get there,we were the last drop of course but it was good as we had a guided tour of the city,the hostel is a really big house with lots of different rooms,comfortable and clean.We got ourselfs settled and had a walk into town,we soon discovered that this place was not going to be cheap in fact bloody expensive,later we went to the Euro bar just round from our hostel,they do backpacker nights so there was a live band on and cheap drinks with a barbeque,not a bad first night.
Fri 26th,Did'nt do too much today,went back to town and had a look at a few travel agents to see about hiring a campervan to travel up the West coast to Darwin,we seem to be in the wrong place at the wrong time now and again and this was no exception,we were looking at hiring at the same time as the school holiday's and the Aussie's love thier outdoor life style but we were hopeful as one of the campervan company's was the next road up from our place,we had a look on the way home so we knew where the place was for the morning.The only place we could afford to eat was a small kebab shop that also did some lovely fish and chips,bought a few beers from the liquer store and sat drinking them in the comfy chairs back at base.
Sat 27th,Checked out of the Witches Hat but left our bags there to walk to The Travelers Autobarn campervan hire company,met a nice Dutch bloke who worked there,had a good chat with him about where we wanted to go and see,we sorted out a deal with him $75 a day,still a lot cheaper than booking into different hostels and a lot less hassle,we would have to go to our next port of call Freemantle and come back to pick the van up on the 30th.We picked our bag's up and said goodbye then walked to the train station,a small 20min journey to Freemantle,a nice journey traveling past the coast line,we got off and walked up to our next place to stay,we knocked the door and the bloke stood there and said he had only just returned from Japan and had just read his e-mails about us staying so he made us a cup of coffee while he sorted our room out,it was'nt a hostel as we had thought but the blokes house,we just had a big front room but there was enough space in there and the bed's were comfy apart from Jamie's which was really soft,we had a chat with the owner Glenn,a really nice bloke who play's guitar in a band,we did our normall trick and had a walk around to see what was about,we came across the Railway bar so stopped for a couple of beers and listened to a live rag time band,it was full of oldies but they were all ok and as far as we know none of them wet themselfs,there was some more live bands on later in the night,we decided to head to town about a 20min walk to the Rosie O' Grady pub(bloody irish pubs everywhere)we stayed here all night and listened to a live band playing 80's cover songs,left at chucking out time and walked along to see if we could get into a night club but with shorts and flip flops on they were'nt to impressed so we did an about turn and headed home after a few shandy's worse for wear and stopped off at a petrol station to get a nice meat pie and ice cream.
Sun 28th,Glenn had mentioned to us about an Aussie Rules football game going on today so we arranged our day around that,the game was Freemantle Dockers V Adelaide Crows,we got the train to the stadium,only a 10min ride and bought our tickets at the ticket office,we had plenty of time before KO so had a walk around the stadium,Ian bought a bargain football shirt in the shop,we enjoyed the game,it's faster than what it looks like on tv,the Dockers won 118-86,we thought we would go back into town and celebrate the Dockers win,wrong!!all we could celebrate with was some fish and chips everthing else was closed,well it was very late 10pm,so walked back to Glenn's.
Mon 29th,We were looking at visiting a few places today,so Linda(Glenn's girlfriend/secretary)drove us in her car to the Freemantle prison(an old one I may add)had a guided tour with a miserable old git who had obviously done the job for too long and was bored with it so wanted to get the job done as quick as possible,but it was interesting,they did hang a few people there so the gallows was on full show,we did'nt get to try it out though,from here we went to Cottesloe Beach,laid there for a few hours but could'nt stay too long as Glenn had arranged a barbie for us at 6pm,got back and got some beers and wine from the liquer store and took them back with us,had a good chat with Glenn,Linda and her daughter and Tony,later after a few more wines Glenn got his guitar out and played a few tunes,Ian and Jamie went to bed while I helped Glenn finish off a couple more bottles(im helpful like that)got to bed about 5ish,ok for me but Glenn had to work later even if it was from home.
Tues 30th,After our chats with Glenn we decided instaed of driving from Perth to Darwin we would travel to the South West first then head up North so we would need to add another 5 day's on top to cover the extra distance,Ian stayed at Glenn's to look after the bag's while myself and Jamie went back to Perth to pick the van up,got there about 11ish,checked the van over,the dutch bloke did us a favour and put a tent in the back for us aswell just in case,Jamie had to drive as I was still over the limit,we managed to get ourselfs back to Glenn's,loaded the van up said goodbye and thaks to Glenn and Linda and started our big adventure,left about 3pm and got lost a few times but we were on the main road and kept goint till it got dark at 7pm,pulled over in a layby in a place called Kojonup,really dark and you could see all the stars out.(happy birthday to Jason,Ian's brother).
Wed 31st,After going to bed at 8pm(because there was nothing better to do)we were all up at 7am and raring to go at 7.45 after out bacon butties,our first place to visit was Albany,we arrived there at 9.30,had a look round the town,had a MacDonalds breakfast and did a big shopping trip in Coles $160,drove to Eco Campsite in Walpole $10 per person,Ian had said he did'nt mind doing the cooking so that left myself and Jamie to do the wasing and clearing up,again went to bed early about 9ish,still sorting the sleeping arrangements out,the double bed below was shared by myself and Ian and Jamie had the pull out bed that slid out above us,not very comfortable but we will get used to it.
Thurs 1st,We parked in this caravan park because it was the nearest one to the Valley of giants,a nature park with a walk way bridge just like in im a celebrity get me out of here,but we did'nt get to see the cheeky geordies.We woke up early again,strange sometimes when you wake up and there is loads of space everywhere(apart from in our van)when you park up in the dark it looks quite small,anyway!!it was rainning a bit when we got up,had breakfast and drove round the corner to the park,it's only a small place but it's really nice walking on the bridge looking down and over the trees and plants,although some of the trees were huge,you can walk through the middle of some of them where they are hollow in the middle,we spent a couple of hours there before driving on the scenic route to Augusta,we stopped off at Westbrook Brewery/winery in Pemberton to try a few of thier red wines,mmmm very nice but too expensive for us,back on the road and saw our first kangaroo just bouncing about by the side of the road,tried to get a photo but they are really quick so missed that chance,arrived in the lovely town of Augusta,parked the van up in Coles car park,had a walk to the riverside,saw some dolphins gliding up and down,a stingray under a bridge,and some pelicans(not something you see everyday down the Thames)the locals see this sort of thing everday but for us it was a great sight,lovely weather great scenery and all this wildlife on your doorstep,stayed here for ages then drove around looking for somewhere to park up for the night,if we can find a safe place to stay it will save us about $30 a night,found some woods with a car park so said that will do for us.
Fri 2nd,Had a nice breakfast,bacon,eggs and sausages(Coles own brand,v nice)text Dangerous Dave(our friend we met in Halong Bay)to arrange to meet up,had a walk along the Blackwwod River,again all the wildlife out to say hello,and who shouuld we bump into?yep,Dave,Sue(and Sue's sister & husband)they were staying in Augusta for the bank holiday,this was one of the reasons we decided to come to the South West first so we could meet up with Dave and Sue again(really nice, friendly people)we arranged to meet up later that evening at thier huge riverside mansion for a few drinks and a chat,we parked the van up in the car park by the river so we would'nt have too far to walk after a few drinks,met up at 7pm,had a good night with them all(shame Dave has gone back to the hippy day's and grown his,far too long)Dave made us a cup of tea then kicked us out about 10.30,had a great night and was hoping to meet Dave again back in his home town of Freemantle,got back to the van in darkness and straight to bed.
Sat 3rd,Cooked our breakfast on the barbie(here you can leave things like this out for everone to use without it getting smashed up)drove to Daves riversde pad to fill our water tank up and then back on the road again.We were heading to the famous wine region of Margret River,after speaking with Paul(Sue's brother in law)he said go to the Voyager winery for some tasting,well it would be rude not to so I was forced to try some more wine,ian was driving and Jamie did'nt fancy it,lovely wine and the price was'nt too bad either,they have a massive big Oz flag flying here and really nice grounds,drove to the beach for a couple of hours,some parts of this beach are famous for surfing as the waves are so big(not where we were though)saw a seal messing about though,back in the van and stopped at Bunbury for lunch,another few klms and we were in Mandurah,we had a few beers in the Slug and Hare,Jamie's turn to drive so myself and Ian had a couple more shandy's,left there about 10.30 and was driving around looking for somewhere to park up for the night,it looked like we had found a good place off a side road,a nice layby,but what we did'nt know till it was too late it was soft sand,we soon got stuck at the bottom of a hill axle deep,we started looking for anything we could find to put under the back wheels to give us some grip but it was no good we were'nt moving,then it started to rain a bit lovely just what we needed,Jamie decided to take one of the back wheels off and dig underneath,we had some wooden boards we had in the van that help to make up our bed,but now they were going to be used for our escape route,2 hours later in the dark this was our final chance before we would have had to sleep here and try and flag someone down in a 4x4 in the morning,with Jamie in the hot seat and myself and Ian pushing from the back we gave it our best shot,bloody hell were moving keep going Jamie was the shout,we only got out,high 5's were in order and the relieve was clear to see(we will check the ground in future)we were'nt going to take any more chances especially at 2am and ended up back on the sea front in Freemantle in a nice car park.
Sun 4th.Left Freemantle about 10.30 and drove to a service station in Cataby for a coffee and a bite to eat,saw some ostrich's in a big cage,drove on to Cervantes and arrived about 4ish,went to visitor's center who said we should go and see the rock formation called the Pinnacles at sunset,really strange looking place,thousands of rocks over acres of sand,sunset was'nt great but it was a nice place to visit,we drove into the town center and saw a few caravans and campers parked up in an Aussie rules pitch car park,we thought that will do us,asked someone if it was ok she said yeah no worries $20 a night but the collection lady had aready been round to collect the money so we were on for a freebe,only had time for 1 beer in the Tavern as always it closed at 10pm,so another early night for us.
Mon 5th,We did indeed get a freebe,left the Oval about 9.30 after a nice shower and a bit to eat before the lady came round again for some money,stopped off in Geraldton for lunch about 12pm then drove on to Kalbari arrived here about 4.30 just enough time to have a look around and find a caravan park for the night this one called the Anchorage,had dinner in the van and strangely enough we had an early night.
Tues 6th,Got up at 8am so we could see the pelicans being fed at 8.45,wish someone had of told the pelicans because none of them turned up,but the woman feeder gave us a talk on them which was interesting,said that they are wild and if they could get some better fish somewhere else then they would and thats what they did(not at Joe's cafe)we then went to Kalbari National Park $11 per van,some great scenery here,one famous rock formation called the Window where we had some nice picture's taken,left about 1.30 and stopped off at Bilabong services,was looking forward to having our picture taken with a welcome to Bilabong sign but it was just a service station,drove onto the next town,Denham where we parked up in a quiet back street for the night.
Wed 7th,Up early again and went to Monkey Mia to see the dolphins being fed at 7.45am,luckily the dolphins had read the script and turned up,there are about 14 of them that turn up at different times when they feel like it,was a bit busy at the first feeding with tourists but when a lot of them left the dolphins came back again,Ian got picked out with another lady and her son to give the fish to the dolphin(he thought they were a family)we walked around the lovely beach for a while before leaving about 11.30,stopped off in Carnarvon but not a lot there but a nice place,carried on to a free caravan park in Mililya,had a nice spag bowl.
Thurs 8th,Up nice and early again about 7.30am,after breakfast left the Coral Coast at 10.30,drove for a couple of hours and pulled up at a nice beach so stayed there for 2hours,arrived in Exmouth at 3.30pm and headed straight for the visitors centre(you can always find these easy enough look out for trees with Abbos(indigonous people)underneath them),booked up to do 3 dives for $165,it was either doing 3 dives or pay nearly $400 to snorkel with whale sharks,so we took the dives,by the time we had finished it was time to head to our caravan park,The Lighthouse,when we got there it was dark and 7pm but no tent to sort out so just park up plug in and get the beers out.
Fri 9th,up at 6.30am to meet the boat sailing at 7.45,this boat was completly different from the boat in Thailand,this one was much bigger giving us loads of room to move about and the equipment was much better too,and only 15 divers where they can take about 60,we only dived to about 12m but we saw loads of great and colourful fish and coral,on the 2nd dive we saw a turtle and a form of shark called the Spotted Wobblegong about 5ft long but completely harmless,the 3rd dive was another good dive with different things to see,all in all $165 well spent,later in the evening went into town to the Pot Shot pub where all our instructors go at night,was good as when the pub closes you go next door and there is a night club,after so many places closing at 10pm we took advantage of this offer and stayed out till gone 11pm(might have been later).
Sat 10th,Left caravan park and topped up on our food stock,popped into the dive shop to see if the dives counted to finish off my course but they did'nt so would still need to do 2 more dives with SSI instead of PADI,bought some t shirts and we were on our way,we only stopped twice just to get some fuel,we were panicking at one time as the fuel empty light was on and we were still 50kms away from the next petrol station,looking round there was nothing around for miles and hardly a car going past on top of that it was really hot and there would be no shade anywhere,luckily we just about made it and a big sigh of relief was let out even though it was the most expensive place that we filled up($174),Jamie was called into action as 3 girls in a campervan were having trouble starting the van,he told them the alternator was on it's way out but got them going again with the help of jump leads,behind the garage was a lorry park so we decided that would do us for the night,parked up and had our dinner before getting another early night.The place was called Karratha.
Sun 11th,Up at 7.30 to find the car park full of lorries instaed of the 2 or 3 before we went to bed,had some nice bacon sarnies before leaving at 10.30,it was my turn to drive and after about 4 hours we saw a kangaroo on the hard shoulder so I pulled right over to the other side of the road to avoid him,there was nothing else on the road,miles and miles of nothing yet this kangaroo still decided he wanted to headbut the front grill,none of us looked back so we are hoping he just had a bit of a headache and bounced away again(not likely though),all the time we were saying it would be nice to see one and there we were hitting one(not the one in the picture I might add)we carried on for a few more miles till we came to the Sandfire Roadhouse,which is where we made our camp for the night,wished our kangaroo a speedy recovery and went to bed,the last few night's have been really hot and sticky in the van now as the temp is getting up into the high 30's during the day and the engine is under the seat in the front cab,not a great design,but not to bad as myself and Jamie sleep under the pull out bed that Ian sleeps in so a bit more room for us all.
Mon 12th,Beans on toast for breakfast(outdoors just in case any smells),arrived in Broome at 10am and popped into the visitors center,drove around a few camp sites to get the best deal,we ended up in the Palmgrove Park,while Ian stayed in the pool myself and Jamie went to the world famous Cable beach,22km's of unspoilt white sand and torquise water,there are no car's allowed near the beach nor are there any sellers,just a life guard and a first aid post,the water was lovely and warm just like getting into a bath,went back and had a few beers in the Diver's Tavern,while I was on the phone a drunk indigonus(abbo)started telling me to get of the phone calling me a bloody pom(the cheek of it)I did thank him for his patience when I had finished but unfortunately he left his sence of humour at the bar and said he would take me on,I thanked him for his kind offer and showed him the phone was now free for him to use and made my way back to the pub,had a few more drinks in there till it closed and got back into the sweat box.
Tues 13th,Left the caravan park and visited the Malcolm Douglas Wilderness Crocodile park,there are also snakes,kangaroos,wallabie's and other reptiles to see,but the main thing was to see the crocs,there was over 50 there in different lakes and cages,about 5 sorts are kept there and got fed at 3pm,was great to see them get fed as you can see how quick and vicious they are,left there and arrived in Fitzroy Crossing about 7pm,stayed in the Kimberley Lodge caravan park.
Wed 14th,Went to see if we could do a tour somewhere but nothing available,to hire a 4x4 was far too expensive so we drove to Geike Gorge the only place we could drive in the van as all the other roads were only excessable by 4x4's,we had a drive around the park then met some people waiting to do a 1 hour Fitzroy river cruise so we decided to jump aboard too for a small sum of $30,a lady saw 1 croc enter the water but all we saw were a few wallaby's but it was a nice trip with good scenery,drove away and stopped off at a 24hour camp park,the only facilities these places have is a toilet,well a big hole in the ground,but they are safe enough,had curry for dinner.
Thurs 15th,Left the park about 9ish and arrived in Halls Creek at 11.45,met a nice bloke called Mark who worked in the visitors center,we had wanted to visit the Purnlulu national park to see the world famous Bungle Bungle a fantastic rock formation,but he said you cant even get to them in a 4x4 the only way to see them was by air,after a team meeting we agreed to pay $270 each to go up in a 5 man small plane to fly over the Bungle Bungle,we were so glad we did it as we had a fantastic 1 1/2 hour flight over the Heritage site that was also in the film Australia with Nicole Kidman,our pilot Clint was also really informative,he said we covered about 170 miles,after the flight said we would buy him a beer in the pub all the locals go to the Sports bar,just round the corner from the Abbo's strong hold bar,we paid $40 to stay in the Halls Creek caravan park for the night,went to the pub later but no sign of Clint.
Fri 16th,Drove to a nice lagoon called Caroline Pool,Mark had told us the day before that there were some wild crocs down here so thats what we had wanted to see,from a distance of course,we stayed there for a while chucking stones in the water but nothing appeared so we left dissapointed but in 1 piece,on our way to Wyndham we turned off to see the Grotto,you can walk down these steps by the side of the rocks to a lovely secluded lagoon at the bottom,because it was the wet season the water was'nt as clear as normal so no good for swimming,it also has a lovely waterfall in the wet season but it was dry when we were there,arrived in Wyndham about 4pm,tried to get money out of 3/4 atm but none of them had any money in them,pulled into Wyndham caravan park $35 per night,met up with the friendly people running it,cooked us Flake(shark)and chips,a massive amount for us to share and he also sold us cheap beer,hush hush,really nice food,then watched a bit of Top Gear before getting into the sauna again.
Sat 17th,Woke up to rain,a rare sight for us and headed for the Lookout where 5 rivers meet at Cambridge Gulf,would be impressive if I could name the rivers but sorry no can do,took a couple of rainny pictures then drove to Kunanarra,nothing there and everything closed so carried on to Timber Creek(all of the last places we have stopped are mainly indigenous areas)we were crossing the border now from Western Australia into Northern Territory,we thought we had plenty of time to get a drink and some food in the caravan park(Timber Creek) but we did'nt realise that the clocks go forward an 1 1/2 when you cross the border so when we went to get food it was closed so all we could eat was a pie heated up in a microwave but we did get a couple of pints in because the lads that worked there were English,they had a big list on the wall of about 20 names(mainly from just 4 families)of the people who were barred and the length of there ban(abbo's of course)then back to sleep in the oven.
Sun 18th,Left Timber Creek and arrived in Katherine,saw the hot springs and then drove on to Nitmiluk national park,met a nice lady behind the counter who did us a good deal to stay in the park,a nice place with a pool,had a good swim in the pool till it got dark,ordered a fish dish of Barramundi which was lovely,another hot night.
Mon 19th,Up at 6am to do the 7.45 boat cruise along the Katherine river,we paid $65 and well worth it with a lovely breakfast,again did'nt see any wild life but great scenery along the gorges,sat by the pool for a while then left to go to Edith Falls,drove on to Adelaide River but again nothing there sodrove through to Batchelor,stayed at the Litchfield caravan park and had a nice big roast dinner.
Tues 20th,Went to Litchfield national Park,had thought about going to Kakadu Park but it was a long way from us plus it was flooded,1st stop in the park was a 25 foot magnetic termite mound,you see loads of these by the side of the road but not as big as this one,next stop was Buley rockhole,a really nice formation of rocks with waterfalls flowing through them,we spent a few hours swimming here and chilling before moving on to Florence falls,2 big waterfalls falling into a lovely lagoon where we again swam for a while,got out and drove to the next part,Tolmer Falls,a lovely big waterfall but you cant swim in this one as there are 2 colonies of rare bats called the Orange Horseshoe and the Ghost Bat,last call of the day was Wangi Falls,again 2 big waterfalls this time running really fast,could'nt swim in here as they said there were crocs in there strangely enough we took there word for it and stayed out,stayed in Batchelor for another night this time at the Pandanus caravan park,$28.
Wed 21st,Left Batchelor for the short drive to Darwin out final destination in the campervan,arrived an hour later,sorted our campsite out,the Leprechaun,then drove the 8kms into Darwin center,had a look round to see if we could find a good hostel for the 2 day's in between giving the van back and going to Alice Springs,met up with Ben and the girls again in the campsite,rang STA Travel to change our flight to Alice so we could book a 3 day tour of Ayers Rock and Kings Canyon another $340 but was one of the cheapest.
Thurs 22nd,Flights changed so booked tour,we were leaving a day later than first planned,drove to Fanni Bay and Mindil beach and sat there for a while,later went to Winnelli Hotel for a few beers met up with a drunk Abbo called Alex Longgrass,interesting bloke but drunk.
Fri 23rd,Cleaned the van out,and drove to the Melaleuca on Mitchell hostel where we would be staying for 2 day's to drop our bag's off,then drove to the Travellers Autobarn debot to drop the campervan off,we had driven over 7,500klms which the bloke said was impressive we just knew it was a bloody long way,a shame to give the van back but it served us well,still worked out cheaper than getting busses and using hostels plus we went to places off the beat and track and all under 1 roof,walked back into town and went to the Vic Hotel,had a few good live bands and we had a few scooners,got in about 6am a good way to say goodbye to the campervan.
- comments