John Fogerty of Creedence Clearwater Revival wrote:
Move,
Down the road
I go.
Move,
Down the road
I go.........
A great lyric for this sort of journey where you hit a straight stretch and it extends the length of your vision to the horizon. Mind you, the rest of the song is about escaping his current lousy situation, getting out of town, which is not quite the case for us. We feel we are on the homeward leg now, though it is a long one, and we are heading back to town. Gosh Eric has a great music collection. The only blog-related song title I have had to search on Google for was James Blundell. But we do have a dear friend, and if she had been travelling with us, I am sure I would have been listening to James too.
This morning we had considered driving to Parry Lagoons Nature Reserve. Over 160 species of birds have been recorded at Marlgu Billabong, including migratory birds from the northern hemisphere and its listed as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention. However it is the huge number of finches we are most interested in seeing and they come in for a drink between 6 and 7am. Since it is an hour's drive away we opted instead to sleep in! Another time. We spent a night there the last time we crossed Gibb River Road, that is obviously a better way to do it, but the road in is corrugated. Not to worry, there are plenty of birding (and golfing) opportunities right here in Kununurra.
As it turned out our 3 way fridge is not working on AC. Now this has happened before but only now are we seeing a pattern. I spent the morning researching and I think the problem is the switch. Problem is, there is nothing to indicate it is working once you switch it over from DC, not until it stops being cold which can take overnight. No indicator light for example. And then it takes forever to cool down again if you switch to gas (which does have an indicator).
Meanwhile Eric went shopping and came home with more than I was expecting; a dint in the rear of Ted that happened in the carpark. Nevermind, had to happen sooner or later. Now we have 2 dings to get repaired, first one was a complete mystery that we found before the trip started. Some bugger didn't own up. Oh well, that's what you pay all that insurance for I guess.
In the afternoon we took a drive out to the Hoochery to sample some local rum. This is Australia's oldest legal distillery apparently, and was the inspiration of a local farmer. In the day the Government kept telling sugar cane farmers to diversify, so he did. And guessing by the number of visitors out there today, it was a good decision. We each tried a paddle of samples, mine broken down with ginger beer. I haven't really imbibed in rum since my college days where a Bundy and coke was the drink of the day. Oh, and then there was that one night in Nepal on the way down from Annapurna. Eric then tried an aniseed liqueur, Aguardiente Verde. Hmm, not bad. Think Greek Ouzo or Italian Zambucca. We agreed to get a bottle to see us home as the port is all gone and the muscat is almost done.
Quite close by was the Sandalwood Factory. Here we learnt that each tree needs 4 other host trees to survive. No wonder it is expensive, these trees die in the process so are of no commercial value. The root systems communicate and share the nitrogen that the sandalwood cannot otherwise access. Reminded me of a song by Mama Kim 'If I were a cypress tree' about mycelium, the white, vegetative part of a fungus-like bacterial colony that grows across or under ground which connects roots of plants. You often see this as a gardener, and should try not to disturb it too much. Unlike the rustic brewery, their showroom was schmick.
On the way home we were looking at all the birds on the telegraph poles and lines and next thing you know we are driving down 4wd tracks that led to nowhere and searching out sewerage ponds (only bird lovers would understand that last bit). We finished the afternoon with another walk around Celebrity Tree Park and then settled in by the water's edge with a drink as the sun went down. The Kimberley full-moon was on the rise. Perfect way to end the day and leave this region.
Back at the van and with dinner underway we discovered that Broome had experienced 6.5 tremors from an offshore earthquake. Bottles of wine fell off the pub's shelves and smashed. It was felt up and down the coast but not out here. Solid rock!
Monday 15 July
And then, lying in bed this morning I remembered I swore I would never touch green drinks again. That was about 40 yrs ago when, if my memory serves me well, I tried to drink every coloured drink on the spirit shelf (remember yellow advocaat and blue curacao..... the last one must have been creme de menthe). Thank goodness I am so much more mature now. Actually, I am feeling very chuffed because I think I have solved the fridge issue, the vodka in the freezer is cold anyway. (Note no colour at all in that spirit).
We left town and drove back along the Victoria Hwy. The trip was uneventful and I have already described the majestic beauty of the escarpment country from Timber Creek on. We found a very quiet campsite at Victoria River Roadhouse. This is where that busload of us who crossed the Gibb River Rd together in 2007 stayed on the first night, some sleeping in swags under the stars for the first time. Once the heat of the day had dissipated we ventured down to the old Vic River Crossing which is high and dry at the moment, after such a poor wet season, lying between 2 large but not flowing bodies of water on either side.
Then we did the Nawulbinbin Walk from Joe Creek Picnic Area. This takes you up and along a steep slope crowded with Livistonia Palms to the base of the escarpment wall. From there you can look down on fabulous views of the escarpment and valley below.
We also see a number of Aboriginal rock paintings just at the base of the escarpment, this style is typical 'Mimi spirit' of the area. Unfortunately a lot of the art has been 'enhanced' by visitors which is a shame.
We met another couple on the walk and I later bumped into Lyn again in the Roadhouse amenities block. She and her husband are from the Gold Coast and spend at least 6 months of the year travelling in their van and house sitting with Aussie House Sitters. I am very keen to check this out when we get back on a network. Nothing between Timber Creek and Katherine unless you are on Optus.
Tuesday 16 July
Our first cloudy day.
An easy 200kms to Katherine today and all was going well until we found ourselves behind a seriously oversized vehicle. Must have been mining equipment and doing all of 70kms/hr. Eventually the rear escort driver was able to signal us to overtake but I'm glad it was Eric behind the wheel as I am not sure I would have had the confidence. Later we swapped drivers, as we do each day, and I copped a speeding fine just inside the outer limits of Katherine. Damn! I missed the signs indicating 80 and will now have to pay the fine. My first demerit points since returning from Singapore where I'd managed to wipe the slate clean. We are at Riverview, a 10min walk through the back gate to the hot springs and bike path that takes you to the low level. Oh, and free wifi!
While Eric went to golf I went to the hot springs for a dip. Seems everyone else agreed that a swim was a good idea this afternoon. Turns out we have bumped into the show circuit again and everyone is in town from the surrounding stations. You can pick station kids easily enough, they are all wearing long-sleeved drill cotton shirts while the tourists are in t-shirts.
In the evening we had dinner at the golf Club with Shane and Fran.
Move,
Down the road
I go.
Move,
Down the road
I go.........
A great lyric for this sort of journey where you hit a straight stretch and it extends the length of your vision to the horizon. Mind you, the rest of the song is about escaping his current lousy situation, getting out of town, which is not quite the case for us. We feel we are on the homeward leg now, though it is a long one, and we are heading back to town. Gosh Eric has a great music collection. The only blog-related song title I have had to search on Google for was James Blundell. But we do have a dear friend, and if she had been travelling with us, I am sure I would have been listening to James too.
This morning we had considered driving to Parry Lagoons Nature Reserve. Over 160 species of birds have been recorded at Marlgu Billabong, including migratory birds from the northern hemisphere and its listed as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention. However it is the huge number of finches we are most interested in seeing and they come in for a drink between 6 and 7am. Since it is an hour's drive away we opted instead to sleep in! Another time. We spent a night there the last time we crossed Gibb River Road, that is obviously a better way to do it, but the road in is corrugated. Not to worry, there are plenty of birding (and golfing) opportunities right here in Kununurra.
As it turned out our 3 way fridge is not working on AC. Now this has happened before but only now are we seeing a pattern. I spent the morning researching and I think the problem is the switch. Problem is, there is nothing to indicate it is working once you switch it over from DC, not until it stops being cold which can take overnight. No indicator light for example. And then it takes forever to cool down again if you switch to gas (which does have an indicator).
Meanwhile Eric went shopping and came home with more than I was expecting; a dint in the rear of Ted that happened in the carpark. Nevermind, had to happen sooner or later. Now we have 2 dings to get repaired, first one was a complete mystery that we found before the trip started. Some bugger didn't own up. Oh well, that's what you pay all that insurance for I guess.
In the afternoon we took a drive out to the Hoochery to sample some local rum. This is Australia's oldest legal distillery apparently, and was the inspiration of a local farmer. In the day the Government kept telling sugar cane farmers to diversify, so he did. And guessing by the number of visitors out there today, it was a good decision. We each tried a paddle of samples, mine broken down with ginger beer. I haven't really imbibed in rum since my college days where a Bundy and coke was the drink of the day. Oh, and then there was that one night in Nepal on the way down from Annapurna. Eric then tried an aniseed liqueur, Aguardiente Verde. Hmm, not bad. Think Greek Ouzo or Italian Zambucca. We agreed to get a bottle to see us home as the port is all gone and the muscat is almost done.
Quite close by was the Sandalwood Factory. Here we learnt that each tree needs 4 other host trees to survive. No wonder it is expensive, these trees die in the process so are of no commercial value. The root systems communicate and share the nitrogen that the sandalwood cannot otherwise access. Reminded me of a song by Mama Kim 'If I were a cypress tree' about mycelium, the white, vegetative part of a fungus-like bacterial colony that grows across or under ground which connects roots of plants. You often see this as a gardener, and should try not to disturb it too much. Unlike the rustic brewery, their showroom was schmick.
On the way home we were looking at all the birds on the telegraph poles and lines and next thing you know we are driving down 4wd tracks that led to nowhere and searching out sewerage ponds (only bird lovers would understand that last bit). We finished the afternoon with another walk around Celebrity Tree Park and then settled in by the water's edge with a drink as the sun went down. The Kimberley full-moon was on the rise. Perfect way to end the day and leave this region.
Back at the van and with dinner underway we discovered that Broome had experienced 6.5 tremors from an offshore earthquake. Bottles of wine fell off the pub's shelves and smashed. It was felt up and down the coast but not out here. Solid rock!
Monday 15 July
And then, lying in bed this morning I remembered I swore I would never touch green drinks again. That was about 40 yrs ago when, if my memory serves me well, I tried to drink every coloured drink on the spirit shelf (remember yellow advocaat and blue curacao..... the last one must have been creme de menthe). Thank goodness I am so much more mature now. Actually, I am feeling very chuffed because I think I have solved the fridge issue, the vodka in the freezer is cold anyway. (Note no colour at all in that spirit).
We left town and drove back along the Victoria Hwy. The trip was uneventful and I have already described the majestic beauty of the escarpment country from Timber Creek on. We found a very quiet campsite at Victoria River Roadhouse. This is where that busload of us who crossed the Gibb River Rd together in 2007 stayed on the first night, some sleeping in swags under the stars for the first time. Once the heat of the day had dissipated we ventured down to the old Vic River Crossing which is high and dry at the moment, after such a poor wet season, lying between 2 large but not flowing bodies of water on either side.
Then we did the Nawulbinbin Walk from Joe Creek Picnic Area. This takes you up and along a steep slope crowded with Livistonia Palms to the base of the escarpment wall. From there you can look down on fabulous views of the escarpment and valley below.
We met another couple on the walk and I later bumped into Lyn again in the Roadhouse amenities block. She and her husband are from the Gold Coast and spend at least 6 months of the year travelling in their van and house sitting with Aussie House Sitters. I am very keen to check this out when we get back on a network. Nothing between Timber Creek and Katherine unless you are on Optus.
Tuesday 16 July
Our first cloudy day.
An easy 200kms to Katherine today and all was going well until we found ourselves behind a seriously oversized vehicle. Must have been mining equipment and doing all of 70kms/hr. Eventually the rear escort driver was able to signal us to overtake but I'm glad it was Eric behind the wheel as I am not sure I would have had the confidence. Later we swapped drivers, as we do each day, and I copped a speeding fine just inside the outer limits of Katherine. Damn! I missed the signs indicating 80 and will now have to pay the fine. My first demerit points since returning from Singapore where I'd managed to wipe the slate clean. We are at Riverview, a 10min walk through the back gate to the hot springs and bike path that takes you to the low level. Oh, and free wifi!
While Eric went to golf I went to the hot springs for a dip. Seems everyone else agreed that a swim was a good idea this afternoon. Turns out we have bumped into the show circuit again and everyone is in town from the surrounding stations. You can pick station kids easily enough, they are all wearing long-sleeved drill cotton shirts while the tourists are in t-shirts.
In the evening we had dinner at the golf Club with Shane and Fran.
Ah...well do I remember the rum night in Annapurna...probably better than some.
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