We are in the red, rugged heart of the Pilbara. Seriously heavy industry abounds and everything is massive. The trucks, the rocks on the road, the giant cranes constructing much needed workers accomodation in Karratha town centre. In Port Hedland, which is possibly the ugliest town i have ever seen, the most arresting thing was the size of the salt pile out by the Port. It was 20 kms away from us, but looked about half the size of Coolangatta Mountain. I have ...

We waved goodbye to Derby last weekend and headed for the extremely sunny shores of the Dampier Peninsula. This is the area north of Broome that is home to pearl farms, turtles, red sand cliffs that kiss white sea shell beaches and many, many cowrie shells. Oscar has developed an all consuming passion for cowries. Over the three days at Cape Leveque, Oscar spent at least two hours every day wandering the vast sweep of sand hunting for the perfect Cowrie. Then ...

Ned, leaping in to the depths of Manning Gorge. The jump was at least 5m. Tom is about to go too, on the right.

The stupendously lovely Manning Gorge.

Sometimes I feel like the bridesmaid but never the bride. I have ended up working in the town of Derby which appears to be the fake pearl next to its creamy Paspaley Pearl cousin town Broome. Broome has the dazzling Cable Beach, Derby has miles of mud flats. Broome has the romantic pearling history, Derby has the Boab Prison Tree and the rather more prosaic cattle shipping history. It lacks a town centre and any sort of aesthetic beauty. However, and I can't r...