The Nullarbor Plain is, in parts, indeed “treeless”…Null (ie none)…Arbor (trees)! Wow, we hadn’t really known where the word came from until we were crossing this giant limestone plain. We took 3 days to cross, from Esperance in WA at the western end of the Great Australian Bight, to Streaky Bay SA at the eastern end. The nights on the plain were cold, and quiet, except for the sounds through the night of distant road trains, and the haunting calls of the Bronze-wing Pigeons. They sounded like the sound effects out of a science fiction movie, a sort of low, resonating whistle-come-moan that drifted from left to right across the bare plains. We stopped at Head of Bight on the second night, and in the morning watched Southern Right Whales with their calves swimming within metres of the awesome Bunda Cliffs on which we stood. Travelling down the Eyre Peninsula we stopped at Streaky Bay, a sleepy, picturesque fishing town nestled around a small bay. The caravan park was on the shores of the bay, with the water lapping within metres of our campsite. The girls walked to the long jetty for a spot of fishing, and caught sight of a sea lion, frolicking beneath the wooden pier. We had our first “freak accident” when a huge storm erupted in the middle of the night. A massive gust of wind pushed the canvas in, toppling our entire kitchen bench, 20 litres of water spilling out of the jerry can through the tent and to top it all off, the partially set jelly was splattered all over the walls and floor. Nellie was very scared, Maeve hid under her blanket, then comforted her sister whilst Russ and I spent an hour or so mopping up. The lightning, thunder and wind slowly abated and we all fell back to sleep around 4am. On the southern side of the peninsula from Streaky Bay was the Southern Ocean, with more amazing cliffs and the largest colony of sea lions on the mainland at Point Labatt. It was very windy and cold, but we persevered, and Russ managed to capture some photos of the lolling giants and their bubs from above. From Streaky Bay we continued south to Coffin Bay, which is set on a series of lagoons and surrounded by swampy marshes and wetlands. We spent a few nights here amongst the heath and abundant birdlife. Some more great wild and windy Southern Ocean views from places with great names like Cape Avoid (which some ships in the past, and to their peril, didn’t). From Coffin Bay we headed up the other side of the peninsula and around the Spencer Gulf, passing through Port Lincoln, Port Augusta and past Port Pirie. Driving through these industrial towns felt like driving through a large Port Kembla, and for a girl from the Gong, didn’t hold much interest. We camped at Mount Remarkable, which forms the southern tip of the Flinders Ranges. This was another surprise, as we had little information to go on. It was a beautiful campsite, with towering River Red Gums and native Cypress Pines, set along a shallow creek bed, with large shady sites, yummy hot showers and best of all wood fires! We could only spend a night there, but were able to complete a quick 8 km walk up to a lookout and back before heading to Adelaide in the afternoon. It certainly will be on our agenda for our next trip. We have had to make some adjustments to our planned itinerary, due to lack of time. This means we will leave the “red centre” for another time, and go home via the Great Ocean Road and maybe some of the Victorian high country. We have spent too much time enjoying ourselves in the tropics and feel that to do the “Centre” justice, we need more than 3 weeks. (Another Trak Shak venture on the horizon in a year or so, eh. We’d better start planning! Anyone keen to join?)  |
No comments:
Post a Comment