We have had lots of rain……..that was not part of the plan!

Hi again,

Today we left Rockingham and tracked west to Armadale and then northerly skirting Perth’s eastern suburbs and airport via the Tonkin and Roe Highways. We then tracked westerly to link up with the Indian Ocean Drive and travelled through Lancelin and Grey before reaching our free camp at Wandoo Reserve near Jurien Bay. We shall probably camp here for a couple of days.

Today we travelled back through Jurien Bay to the Pinnacles which are located about 15 kilometres south of the little seaside township of Cervantes. The Pinnacles are a spectacular landscape with thousands of ancient limestone pillars rising from the sands of the desert.

We did some walking and self-drove the National Park circuit.

Following the visit to the Pinnacles we headed back into Cervantes where we had lunch at the Lobster Shack which is also a processing factory. There are a variety of seafood meals on offer but of course it was crayfish for Chezza. Just south of Cervantes is Lake Thetis which has an ancient colony of stromatolites. I knew nothing of these creatures but found the colonies and lake walk very interesting. I will not go into detail here but can suggest Mr. Google as a good starting point.

 We then travelled back to Jurien Bay where we obtained free wi-fi at the local community centre and uploaded our blog. We then purchased some groceries and fuel before heading back to camp. The next day saw us pull up stumps and move a short distance north of Jurien Bay to Sandy Cape where we shall spend two nights. We are camped behind the sand dunes and quite sheltered from the elements as we expect to get some rain. There were quite a few caravans in the camp ground which is quite spread out but a lot left as the day went on. You must be totally self-sufficient at this coastal camp ground.

Sandy Cape is a gorgeous spot and we have had the 4wd Triton on the beach as well as venturing off road down a long sandy track to check out the ruins of a WW II radar installation. The place is so remote I think I would have gone crazy if I had been stationed there! We got a huge downpour as predicted by the Weather Bureau and I managed to catch and collect 30 litres off the awning & boost our tank supply so we can have another shower…. which is just as well as we think people are beginning to avoid us! (lol)

We bid goodbye to Sandy Cape and travelled north about a hundred kilometres to the small picturesque town of Dongara. We stayed in the local caravan park and we copped a lot of rain. We are now at Geraldton which is a much bigger town some 70-km. north of Dongara and again we have had lots of rain, we are staying here two nights and so far, we have visited the HMAS Sydney Memorial and the Point Moore Lighthouse.  HMAS Sydney was sank on November 19^th, 1941 by the German marauder Kormeran. All 645 crew and officers on the Sydney died without trace and the Kormeran subsequently sank as well.  The wreck of the Sydney was discovered in March 2008 at a depth of 2480 metres and 112 kilometres off the coast.

 Point Moore lighthouse was prefabricated in England and shipped and erected in 1878. At 35 metres, it is the largest steel structure of its kind in Western Australia. Following the near stranding of the Charlotte in 1878 several changes were recommended lone of which was painting the structure red and white.