Overnight the wind picked up and things were rattling…. Matt and Sharon’s Wren performed admirably with no issues….

Unfortunately, the flies were out in force from the outset and the temperature was climbing quickly so we decided to head in to Geraldton to explore rather than go to the beach…

Everyone had a few different things to do and so we split up agreeing to meet for lunch at 12.

Rose had been having some issues with her wisdom tooth that had apparently just come through (??late bloomer??) and had planned to go to the chemist to get some bonjela to help with the pain…

Trev and I and Klaus and Beryl started at AJ’s café for a coffee and to have a look at what attractions we may want to check out…

After coffee Trev and I went down to the foreshore to have a look at the Big Marble  – which proved to give some interesting perspectives for photos…

Trev met a brother and sister on the beach who were about to go in for a snorkel – they gave him some interesting local info as to what areas are good for snorkelling – and apparently people can pick up lobsters out on the edge of the shelf in the bay…

The port at Geraldton where grain and ore are exported was a prominent feature in the bay…

We then drove up to the HMAS Sydney II memorial which was built to commemorate the sinking of the HMAS Sydney II off steep point in WWII during a battle with the German ship Kormoran – which also sunk in the battle.

645 Australian seamen perished in the sinking – the dome consists of 645 metal birds… A wall with the names and ranks of all the lost sailors was a solemn sight….

There was a pool of remembrance…

A sculpture of the waiting woman was positioned to be looking directly towards the location of where the wreck of the HMAS Sydney II was located…

The view across Geraldton from the memorial gave a good perspective of the city and harbour.

Everyone then met for lunch at the DOME café – the food was delicious and the ambience on the verandah listening to live music from the café across the road was great..

After lunch we drove up to the famous Point Moore Lighthouse painted red and white stripes…. Trev took advantage of the miniature lighthouse shower…

As the day was hot we were keen for a swim and so went back to the foreshore beach near the Big Marble and jumped in. The water was clear, cool and refreshing…

Trev got the kayak off the roof and went in to catch some small waves… Gordie and Matt also got in on the action….

Driving back to Coronation Beach as the sun set, we stopped to admire the view back towards Geraldton – farms, hills and mesas…. All glowing in the fading sunlight….

The view over Coro Beach was also beautiful in the dusk – our campsite was visible….

Back at camp, Klaus and Beryl had indulged in dessert from the Food Truck which comes to Coro every Saturday and Sunday – the single mum who runs it had not made enough to pay for her petrol today so we went over to buy ice-creams as well… and Gordie bought some sweet potato fries which turned out to be the BEST EVER….

Sunset over Coro produced what looked like flames of fire on the horizon….

We had happy hour outside our van and had a visit from Tracey and Chris the camp hosts – very helpful and friendly – and keen to ensure everyone was having a great experience at Coro Park…

Getting out of the campsites at Milligan Island had to be a coordinated affair as each one had to manoeuvre in order so the next could get out…

Dave jumped the gun and went out hot causing some consternation amongst the others… but there were no taillights cracked this time so Branch had no need to appear…

We drove out through farmland which was very dry – it’s hard to imagine how crops could be grown in this area…

Unfortunately the next section of the Indian Ocean Drive was closed for maintenance and won’t re-open til December 2024 so we had to take a detour via the Brand Highway – thankfully not adding too much length to our journey to Coronation Beach.

Klaus had to make a brief unexpected stop to “check a vent” – was that code for a toilet stop???

Grass trees lined the road again and the cattle and sheep were grazing in very barren paddocks – however they did look in great condition!

The farmhouses were situated well back from the road and sheltered behind the scrub covered sandhills – such a harsh environment to live in but still strikingly picturesque.

We arrived in Geraldton stopping for fuel and some filled up their water tanks…

The township has grown since we were last here and the foreshore has been really well planned and developed. We drove along the foreshore and passed the Big Marble…

Driving out to Coronation Beach which is just north of Geraldton the landscape started to change with mesas and rolling hills appearing on the skyline.

We took the turnoff to Coronation Beach and as we drove down the hill the view was breathtaking over the turquoise sea….

The place we were staying was Coro Park – a relatively new station stay right on Coronation Beach – Tracey the camp host was extremely helpful and welcoming and we all pulled into our sites and set up camp.

The wind was quite strong and unfortunately the flies were out in force, so we all had to put on the flynets pronto….

After setting up in the heat and fly plague, we went down to thew beach for a swim and much to our relief there was a lot less weed than at Green Head. The water was cool and refreshing and a great relief from the heat and flies!!!

Back at camp we all cooked our meals – Matt developing a very strategic approach to barbequing in the fly plague…

As the sun set over Coro Beach we sat outside in the cool of the evening enjoying the now wind and fly free ambience….

It was a warm morning with the temperature rising quickly once the sun came up. We all went down to the front beach for a swim to start the day – the water was beautifully clear and refreshing and we went around the south point through the water to the other beach – marvelling at the eroded limestone cliff face and caves on the point – very rugged!

The plan was then to drive out to Stockyard Gully which was inland to have a look at the Stockyard Gully Caves where drovers used to shelter with their stock inside the large cave.

The last few kms were on a dirt/ sandy track so we stopped to let down the tyres for the 4WD section. Gordie was a bit rusty on the function of the tyre deflater but a quick refresher sorted that out!

The farmland around was very dry and arid with some interesting grass trees… and the air was hot and dry ….

The drive out was great and we arrived at the small carpark where the walk to the caves began.

Underneath the surface is a labyrinth of underground caves and channels that have been created by rain and groundwater eroding intricate channels as they flow through the limestone. Only a small number of caverns have holes opening to the surface. The creek that flows along Stockyard Gully – though dry at the moment, flows though the large Stockyard Tunnel – a 300m long cave with openings at each end.

During the second half of the 18^th century the coastal stock route from Geraldton to Perth was a lifeline. Drovers travelling to the stockyards in Perth camped in the gully which was a cool natural stockyard.

We walked along the dry creek bed which was lined with gums and banskias – limestone outcrops jutted out of the sides of the gully.

The flies were pretty bad and it was hot and dry but as we approached the caves entrance the temperature noticeably dropped. At the entrance were some wild beehives which Matt checked out – no bees seemed to be around…maybe the dryness had caused them to abandon the site..

We stopped briefly at the cave’s entrance to put on head torches and the flies disappeared in the shade, so flynets were no longer necessary.

As we stepped into the cool darkness it was easy to imagine why the drovers used this spot as a camp – such relief from the heat, sun and flies!!!

The cave’s floor was sandy and no water at all was running in the creek bed..

The darkness was palpable – in particular when the head torches were turned out

Trev found a squeeze hole to another cave and climbed up to check it out – but did not go any further (thankfully!)

The roof of the cave was quite jagged with rough limestone projections interspersed with holes. Klaus located a microbat or two… which no one else had the pleasure of seeing as they were very hard to detect!!

After walking though the length of the tunnel we arrived at the opening at the end– which had been created when a section had collapsed in….

We turned back and walked back to the cars – and drove back to camp for an afternoon relaxing and preparing for our departure tomorrow. Some of us when back to Green Head and grabbed a coffee at the café we had been to yesterday….

The flies were still quite bad and so happy hour outdoors was going to be near impossible. We walked down to the next beach where there was a “natural window” taking a drink and a bag of chips to watch the sunset through the window.

It was a beautiful sunset – the Pirate Ship rock in the distance added to the pictures, and the sun through the natural window reflecting on the water was spectacular.

Trev made an attempt at a conversion kick between the posts as Gordie knelt to take “that sunset pic”…

The view from the beach back to the large sandhills also looked amazing in the fading light…

Everyone had a slow start to the day – it was great to have a leisurely cooked brekky….

Trev, Matt and Sharon with our assistance then reorganised the site so Gordie could reverse his van onto our group site as well and we would all use his site opposite as a carpark due to its awkward slope.

Trev put the drone up to check out the local area a bit more… it was an impressive sight with the rugged limestone coastline, azure waters, white sandhills and red dirt….

The sandhills looked like soft serve icecream!!

The campsite looked neat from the air….

We all jumped into the cars to go and explore a bit more… first stop the sandhills… which were spectacular and gave a great view of the coast from the top of them with Milligan’s Island in the distance…

…..and also provided some fun for those who were still children at heart!

 Further along the track was a dirt road leading to the beach in front of Milligan’s Island, so we stopped and took some more pics… there was also a lot of seaweed washed up on the beach which was a shame…

The coastline is ruggedly beautiful here and the swell had certainly picked up as there were breaking waves very visible along the reef which lines this coast…

At Point Louise there was a couple of guys out surfing and someone on a stand-up paddleboard – but they were a long way out….

The limestone cliffs were very crumbly but provided some great photo opportunities…

As there was still a lot of seaweed on the beach there, we drove around to Green Head in the hope of a swim at Dynamite Bay.

Green Head was a lovely little township – and Dynamite Bay would have been perfect for a swim except for the SEAWEED!!!!

While we were there Klaus got talking to an “old mate” who was a wildlife photographer….taking a leaf out of Trev and Gordie’s have-a-chat book…..

We had a call from Gordie while there – they were coming into Milligan Island Eco Camping Node at about 1300 so we grabbed a quick coffee at the local café and then drove back to the campground…

It was great to see Gordie and Kerry… now the entire group are back together and looking forward to this next leg of the journey…

Trev, Gordie and I went for a quick swim at the front beach this afternoon – the water was a great temperature, but it was a bit weedy…. Nevertheless, it was great to get into the sea!

We had decided to cook a communal roast for dinner tonight, so everyone spent the rest of the day preparing food and relaxing around camp….

Henry White Oval at Yanchep was a hive of activity early in the morning – not only human activity getting ready to leave but wildlife- the kangaroos and birds were out in force. Two Australian Ringneck parrots came for a visit – one even landing on Trev’s hand briefly…

Our next campsite was at Milligan Island Eco Camping Node near Green Head, which was only just over 2 hours away, but we were going to visit the Pinnacles Desert in Nambung National Park on the way as Matt, Sharon, Klaus and Beryl had never been there – and it is such a unique landscape that they could not miss seeing it!

On the way as we drove further from the suburban area the scenery was filled with Grass Trees – so many it looked like a farm of them! The banksias were out in flower and looked stunning.

Large white sandhills appeared on the horizon and we stopped at Wedge Island lookout to take in the coastal vista for a moment – it was truly beautiful – gleaming sandhills, turquoise water, small rocky islands and the waves breaking out on the far reef….

We arrived at the Pinnacles and went in to do the Desert Walk through the Pinnacles – whose origin is still up for discussion as to whether they are the remains of an ancient forest or just mineral outcrops formed in the sand dunes…. They do look like petrified trees (or trees saturated and then dries leaving the minerals to harden the dead trunks….)

The flies were fairly relentless for those who had dark clothing on, and some required the use of a flynet… Trev tried to assist as fly-swatter but was not a great success….

The required group shot was taken near some of the largest pinnacles…

Trev checked with one of the rangers and they were happy for us to put up the drone to take some aerial shots…. An amazing perspective of how extensive the Pinnacles Desert is..

We drove on to Jurien Bay and stopped for fuel – a very helpful guy actually pumped the diesel for us – great service at the BP…

The Jurien Bay bakery beckoned so we succumbed and grabbed some lunch there.

The wildflowers were coming out and looked gorgeous…

We arrived at Milligan Island eco camping node after a short unsealed drive – passing more beautiful white sandhills and set up the vans. The sites were great – level and well set out – however the site allocated to Gordie and Kerry who arrive tomorrow was a little slopey – se we had to work out a different alternative for them tomorrow.

After setting up we walked down to the front beach – which was small with white sand but a bit weedy…

There was a rock formation out in the bay that looked like a wrecked pirate ship – as I did not have my big lens on, I could not get a good close up – but will do so sometime over the next couple of days while we are here.

We took a short drive along the dirt track from the camp to Point Louise which is a known surf break – the coastline along here is very rugged with limestone cliffs that are fragile and prone to collapse – but make for great pics with their interesting formations.

Trev spoke to some surfers who had come up from Perth to surf Point Louise – they use a boat the take them out to the reef to avoid the long paddle out….

We watched the sunset from our little front beach, then went back for dinner…

After dinner Trev shared what he had been reading this morning from Luke’s Gospel as we sat around and had coffee…

Trev taught the others how to play Hearts – and we had a lengthy game which ended up with Trev winning (how did that happen????)

The day began early as everyone had differing plans for the day….

The Weiss camp were first cab off the rank leaving at 0630 bound for Rockingham and a van brake check…

Next in line was the Wells who took off in a bit of a hurry and made a sharp turn down the wrong road in the caravan park… causing the van to jackknife and break the precious Pearl’s right taillight….

Branch was left to pick up the pieces…. After gathering them he put them into a cliplock bag hoping to do the repair when we caught up with them in Yanchep this afternoon…

The Wells were on a mission to get to George Day (?Graham/Greg?) Caravans to have the BMPro looked at…

The Hunters took off next on their way to catch up with Kerry’s relatives in Perth where they were staying 2 nights and meeting us at Green Head on Wednesday….

We were the last to leave and drove out on the way to our next campsite in Yanchep – Henry White Oval – just north of Perth where Matt and Sharon would rejoin us,

We stopped at Mandurah for lunch – driving over the beautiful waterways into the town – reminiscent of Noosa waters….

The wharf area had many cafés and eateries but Trev was keen for fish and chips so we went into Cicerello’s – no. 1 for fish and chips….

The fish was very fresh – we ate sitting next to a lovely aquarium with many clown fish (among others) – very cute!

After coffee and icecream we got back on the road hoping to reach Craigie by 1400 as we had booked in to have my camera cleaned after what we think was a sandfly managed to get inside when I changed a lens inside the van…

We booked the camera in to Allcam to get cleaned – Thomas Klose was very helpful over the phone when I called and he was happy for us to drop the camera in today…

Driving over the Swan River into Perth CBD we realised how much smaller Perth is than Sydney but very well laid out.

The freeway took us straight through Perth without a hitch and we arrived at Allcam https://www.allcam.com.au/ just after 1400 – Thomas was great and said he could have the camera ready by 1730 this afternoon – which worked out well…

We left the camera with him and drove on to our campsite in Yanchep National Park.

On the way nearing the national park we could see an ominous sign in the distance – was that a bushfire??? Hopefully not near where we were camping….

Dave and Rose had already arrived after a dream run in Perth…. Violet from BMPro rang at the right time while Steve and George at the caravan place were installing the new link box so they  set it up with Violet/ Damian giving details over the phone… everything now works (as has been working for the last few days) so hopefully this will be the final episode in the “Bluetoothgate” fiasco!!

The Wells had an exceptionally great day despite the bad start as they managed to source a new taillight from a wrecker for half price ($300 instead of $600)… and the wrecker was located only moments away from George Day…. Meaning they got to the campsite at lunchtime!

We arrived next and set up – as Klaus and Beryl followed soon after with also a positive outcome for their brakes – all good – the squeaking is probably just dust as the brakes are OK.

Branch had a very satisfying afternoon – after checking in on the Weiss brake situation, he moved on to the Wells Camp…

Branch brought out his repair kit but it was to no avail – Dave put a lid on it and produced the new taillight… Branch felt quite rejected as he had gone to a lot of effort to pick up the pieces and prepare some repair equipment…

Anyway he had a great time helping Macgyver adjust his Anderson plug… (NOT the Anderson plug??)…

Klaus and Trev sorted out their carry-on luggage together…. Visiting the local “Dumpex” as Rosie would put it!

Matt and Sharon brought up the rear arriving about an hour later…

Trev then drove back to pick up the camera…Klaus went along for the ride.

Those left behind went for a walk to explore. Henry White Oval Campground was a fantastic campsite – big level and private sites with lovely bushland around filled with grass trees, banksias and gums…and lots of kangaroos…

There was a section of the bush where they had some koalas – we saw 2 that were fast asleep but very healthy looking!!

After a barbeque dinner we sat around for a while having coffee and planning the next day’s drive….

Mother’s Day began with a variety of activities (more or less) in each van – some were treated to bacon and eggs, others made their own toast and some did not get a “Happy Mother’s Day” greeting – but individuals shall remain nameless to avoid embarrassment!

The weather had started to deteriorate with clouds rolling in as we drove in to Margaret River to go to Margaret River Baptist Church as today was Sunday.

The church was small but the people were very friendly and we had some interesting conversations over coffee after the service which was straight to the point – that people need Jesus as without Him we face a lost eternity…

After the service, Rose, Dave, Klaus and Beryl drove north to Busselton to look at the famous wharf…

We went for coffee at the Margaret River Bakery – a very eclectic little eatery to say the least….

We drove out to Surfer’s Point to check out the surf. Unlike yesterday, the swell was big – unfortunately I had left the camera with the zoom lens back in camp so no close up shots…

The afternoon went quickly as we sorted out some things at the campsite then went out to Gracetown as Trev and Gordie were hoping for a swim/ surf – unfortunately the weather had turned and the swell had dropped – a storm was closing in fast from the west as we watched a couple of dolphins swim past…

There were a few surfers out there making what they could of the conditions…. The calm before the storm so to speak!

A guy on an aerofoil with a remote tow-in device was having a bit of fun in the gentle waves….

As the storm broke, we went back to camp and caught up with the others who had just returned…

A quiet day for Mother’s Day – but we all had spoken to our kids which was great! The cloud cover tonight was prohibitive – we did take a quick drive out to the point at 2200hrs hoping to see more of the aurora but to no avail….

The sun was shining when we woke to a beautiful day in Gracetown WA.

After breakfast we went out to the beach at Gracetown to check out the surf first before heading out for the day to explore Margaret River.

The surf was not particularly big and Gordie decided he was not going to go in til maybe later today as it was predicted that the swell would pick up.

There was a surf school and a lot of female surfers out in the mid section…

Some of the surfers were catching some good waves on the point.

We went back to the caravan park and picked up the others  – first stop Bettenay Wines and Nougat…

Bettenay Winery had some beautiful sculptures in the grounds…

We all sampled some of the nougats and wines then made a few purchases.. taking advantage of the buy 4 get 1 free for the nougat bars – amazing flavours such as pistachio and rosewater, vanilla bean and almond….

Next stop was Margaret River Providores where we spent some considerable time sampling sauces, jams, syrups and spreads.

In the carpark was a very apt rego number on one of the patrons vehicles….

They had a huge range of produce – something for everyone… so we selected our produce then sat down for coffee in the beautiful gardens…

On to Fishbone Wines where we had planned to have lunch – it looked like a great place to eat with a huge fishtank in the middle of the restaurant area but unfortunately, they could not accommodate the 8 of us for lunch…

We went across the road to the Margaret River Chocolate Company to see if we could get in for lunch there (much to Trev’s disappointment NOT) – we were able to order lunches there – gourmet toasties for most of us – Beryl opted for pulled pork nachos which most of us had not seen on the menu…

After sampling some free chocolate (Trev, Klaus and Gordie had more than their fair share…) and purchasing some “Mother’s Day Gifts” we were back on the road and arrived at The Grove Distillery and Brewery for some gin, port and whisky tasting… but no purchases. The grounds were beautifully landscaped with a great pond and water feature…

Our last stop was Knottinghill Wines where Gordie, Kerry and Dave did a wine tasting and made a purchase or two.

On the way home we stopped so Gordie and Trev could pick up some firewood for tonight’s fire.

Trev and Gordie then had a quick swim at Gracetown Beach….

We had nibblies around the fire instead of dinner as everyone was full after the day’s samplings…

That night it had been predicted that the Aurora Australis would be able to be seen in Southwest WA so I planned with Trev to go out to Cape Leeuwin National Park headland at Gracetown to look south as there would be no ambient light at that area and should provide a good view.

We got to the carpark at 2200hrs and as we got out of the car with the camera we could see a glow beginning towards the south – I took a shot with the camera and was so surprised to see the vivid red/orange glow of the aurora.

I spent the next 35-40 minutes taking pics of this amazing phenomenon…. We were so fortunate to arrive when we did to capture this rare event….

Everything went like clockwork this morning as we raced to pack up before the predicted storm hit.

We were on the road in no time and were traveling through the giant karri forest when the rain began.

First stop – Pemberton and the Crossing’s Bakery which had an extensive array of delicious baked goods – too many to choose from so some of us had to get some takeaway items in addition to our morning tea….

During morning tea Rose called BMPro – the saga continues – yes there is a sequel… and it seems Violet (or was that Dominic?) was emailing though instructions for them to be able to install the new link box if they picked it up from Perth… Rose was still undecided if they should do the switcheroo as the current BMPro seems to be working OK with only an occasional reboot required which Dave was by now expert in…

We left after the rain stopped to take a quick look at the Gloucester Tree – one of the famous fire trees that can be climbed to reach a platform used as a lookout for bushfires. The 53-metre-high tree is enormous – we did climb it last time but this time it was closed for renos.

At the Gloucester tree, Rose’s now best friend Violet (or was it Dominic??) from BMpro rang back – yes it was Damien and he has agreed to send on all the info Rose and Dave will need to set up the new link box… and end in sight we hope!

Matt and Sharon left us at the Gloucester Tree to travel to Perth where they were staying with Matt’s friend from Teen Ranch Scotland days Ben Ockenden. They will meet us at Yanchep in 3 days’ time.

We drove on to Gracetown and managed to get set up without too many hiccups before the rain arrived in earnest…

Rose got a quick sweep in as soon as they unhitched but the wind picked up significantly so the leaf-free surface did not last long.

After washing and grabbing some groceries we all went in to Margaret River for dinner at the Settler’s Tavern – excellent meals!!

Tomorrow hopefully will be better weather as we plan to do some winery and other produce tours – and maybe an afternoon surf….

The plan for today was to do the Coastal Survivors Walk a 2.7 km walk (one-way) which started at Windy Harbour and ended at Point D’Entrecasteaux. The walk traversed along the coast and cliff area through scrub on a well-defined track with information signs along the way describing the various “coastal survivors” that make up the area.

We headed out at about 1000hrs – Klaus was feeling a little under the weather so opted to stay in camp and possibly meet the group at the lighthouse carpark at Point D’Entrecasteaux.

Gordie brought his best teddy satchel and Trev looked the part with his bucket hat…

Cathedral Rock came into view -it reminded some of the rocks in Thailand – jutting out of the turquoise waters which were quite still today – not much swell or wind… The rock itself juts 50m above the ocean. The cliffs were formed by sand grains of old dunes being cemented together with calcium carbonate (lime from shells and bones) as they become wet and dry alternately. At sea level the wave action is constantly undermining Cathedral Rock threatening to crumble it into the water.

Marram grass and native spinifex growing in the dunes can survive the “sandblasting” from the strong salt-laden winds….

Away from the beach the sand is more stable thus allowing larger shrubs and trees to grow. The coastal wattle stabilises the sand and allows fragile seedlings of other plants to grow. Jarrah and Marri trees also grow here – they can grow to a height of 30 m but here they rarely grow higher than 3m due to the salt winds and limestone rocks hindering root growth.

Bronzewing Pigeons and Splendid Fairy Wrens inhabit the area as do Hooded Plovers. Kangaroos, Quokkas and Mardos can also be seen….

Frogs such as the Banjo Frog can be heard at night. The water table is high in this area being only 50-60 cm below the surface and plants shading the small wetland areas reduce evaporation.

The local indigenous tribe are the Noongar people.

We stopped at various lookout points to admire the spectacular coastal scenery.

The erosion in the limestone rocks created some interesting rock formations such as a “natural window”.

The cliff areas were very crumbly and warnings were well signposted…

Gordie had to persuade Beryl he was OK to take her pic…

When we arrived at Point D’Entrecasteaux Klaus was on his way to Salmon Beach…. Realising his error in direction he turned around and arrived shortly at the carpark near the lighthouse.

After taking some more pics Matt, Sharon, Trev, Gordon and I decided to continue on and do the Cliff Top Walk to Tookulup lookout. Dave and Rose went back to camp while Klaus drove Beryl and Kerry to Tookulup carpark to meet us there.

It was well worth the walk as the cliff views were awesome – crumbly limestone cliffs with unique formations – even small outcrops along the path reminiscent of the Bungle Bungle formations in miniature!

The view west from Tookulup was beautifully wild….

 Whales and dolphins can be seen from the cliff tops – Klaus did see a pod of dolphins from the Tookulup lookout but by the time we reached it I did not see them…

We piled into Klaus’s landcruiser and went back to Point D’Entrecasteaux to start the Coastal Survivors return journey – Matt and Sharon opting to walk back the Clifftop Walk as well as the Coastal Survivors…

Arriving back by lunchtime we were all looking forward to some refreshments after walking just over 10km. The walk was not challenging and very enjoyable for all!

The afternoon was spent relaxing around the campsite…. Rose took the opportunity to detail the Pearl much to Dave’s delight!

As the sun went down the sunset was spectacular – Trev put up the drone and captured some last minute shots as the light faded…