I've had a long break from this blog due to serious family issues and work on another one
http://www.awesomesrilankanholiday.com/
however I am back now and currently loving a visit to the southern part of Western Australia. So much so that I am motivated to show why I think it is a glorious holiday destination.
We flew from Brisbane, a flight of 5 hours, and picked up a rental SUV at the airport. A SUV is not really needed, however being used to strong cars, that was my choice. Rental cars cannnot be taken off road and that has precluded some sightseeing but HEY ! there's so much to see we haven't had the time anyway.
Time. That's an issue for us on this trip because we are not carrying our bed and kitchen around with us and cannot therefore be flexible with our route, spending a satisfying time at each place or choosing to stop or go on depending on what we like at that point in time. This predetermined route and booked accommodation is very restrictive despite my months of pre travel research to try to work out good bases but, again, HEY ! That's now the only way we can get to see this amazing part of the country. So, here we go!
Thanks to the two hour time difference between Brisbane and Western Australia and despite our late night arrival, we were up early and on the road by 7am for the 600km drive to Kalgoorlie. I had chosen a motel on the Great Eastern Highway simply because it was both near to the airport and also on the route we needed to follow so leaving the city was easy. We were soon driving through the Perth Hills district and then out on the open road.
Once out of the Greater Perth area we noticed that we were following a large pipe line along the long, straight road. Water! This pipeline is Kalgoorlie's lifeline as there's no water in Kalgoorlie where the average rainfall is 260mm annually. For most of the distance the railway track kept the pipeline company.
Our first stop came soon at Northam where we stocked up on essential food and water and looked for a cafe to have a coffee. Oh dear! The cafe wasn't open and a notice on the door informed us that it was a public holiday. So, that's why there wasn't much traffic on the road!
Coffee-less, we carried on looking for a rest area to have a do-it-yourself one. Although packing a flask and mugs into our light travel bag had been tricky, without these we would have had to go without a drink or even snack in this sparsely populated and therefore cafe and shop starved region.
Rest areas. Well, there really aren't any along the road. The rest areas, designated as "Parking" are red dirt patches at the side of the highway and nothing else. So far, after a week in this part of the state we have seen just one with a table. inconveniently, sign posts advising of "Parking" or small settlements or points of interest come a few metres before the turn or place so U turns were often necessary.
One such U turn we made was at Meckering where I spotted a sign saying "Earthquake Memorial". I was immediately interested. What earthquake? When? What happened? Why haven't I heard of this previously? Then came the thought, " I thought I got away from earthquakes when I left New Zealand." How wrong was that thought! The Information board gave all the details and it turned out that when it happened in 1968, I was living far away in a remote part of Sri Lanka where I didn't get ANY news. This earthquake's epicentre was directly below the town, lasted for 40 seconds and was felt in Perth 130km to the west and Esperance and Albany on the South Coast.
I also learned that, although it did the most damage, it was not the biggest earthquake in Australia. That title goes to an earthquake in 1941 [ a couple of years before my birth so no wonder I didn't know that] near Meeberrie, 690km North East of Perth. Furthermore Perth is apparently in an earthquake risk place with a major fault line, the Darling Faultline extending north - south for 980km. My complacence around earthquakes in Australia has evaporated.
This part of the State is an important wheat and cereal growing area so we passed harvested paddocks and large grain silos at places along the train line.
By the time we reached Merredin we were gasping for that elusive coffee and ready to eat! We found a lovely park and rest area just off the highway by the railway station but all the parking spots were taken and there were very many people occupying the picnic tables and sitting on the grass. It was, after all, the first rest stop after Perth 260km away. We decided to take the remaining table opposite the station carpark beside the road. How many police cars does this wheatbelt town need! As we ate, one after another stopped so that officers could run into the bakery - the only shop open - to get some lunch!
We were now half way along our journey. As we sped along, the landscape changed and I was surprised to see some white areas behind the vegetation that lined the road. Salt? Yes. I was to learn that salt water under the ground is a big feature of this part of Western Australia.
These really beautiful eucalyptus trees are found only in this part of Australia. We picked a couple of leaves to enjoy their distinctive aroma and found that they were also quite oily. At times they made a colourful picture lining segments of the highway.
Southern Cross was our last break. From there the roadside vegetation thinned out markedly and there were no marked points of interest to explore.
I was happy to arrive in Kalgoorlie around 3.00pm. Even happier to find that our accommodation was the street behind Kalgoorlie's CBD and that the pub was open for dinner on this Public Holiday!
http://www.awesomesrilankanholiday.com/
however I am back now and currently loving a visit to the southern part of Western Australia. So much so that I am motivated to show why I think it is a glorious holiday destination.
 |
| Great Eastern Highway, Perth to Kalgoorlie - Boulder |
Time. That's an issue for us on this trip because we are not carrying our bed and kitchen around with us and cannot therefore be flexible with our route, spending a satisfying time at each place or choosing to stop or go on depending on what we like at that point in time. This predetermined route and booked accommodation is very restrictive despite my months of pre travel research to try to work out good bases but, again, HEY ! That's now the only way we can get to see this amazing part of the country. So, here we go!
Thanks to the two hour time difference between Brisbane and Western Australia and despite our late night arrival, we were up early and on the road by 7am for the 600km drive to Kalgoorlie. I had chosen a motel on the Great Eastern Highway simply because it was both near to the airport and also on the route we needed to follow so leaving the city was easy. We were soon driving through the Perth Hills district and then out on the open road.
 |
| Following the water pipeline from Perth to Kalgoorlie |
Our first stop came soon at Northam where we stocked up on essential food and water and looked for a cafe to have a coffee. Oh dear! The cafe wasn't open and a notice on the door informed us that it was a public holiday. So, that's why there wasn't much traffic on the road!
Coffee-less, we carried on looking for a rest area to have a do-it-yourself one. Although packing a flask and mugs into our light travel bag had been tricky, without these we would have had to go without a drink or even snack in this sparsely populated and therefore cafe and shop starved region.
Rest areas. Well, there really aren't any along the road. The rest areas, designated as "Parking" are red dirt patches at the side of the highway and nothing else. So far, after a week in this part of the state we have seen just one with a table. inconveniently, sign posts advising of "Parking" or small settlements or points of interest come a few metres before the turn or place so U turns were often necessary.
 |
| Earthquake Memorial at Meckering, Western Australia |
I also learned that, although it did the most damage, it was not the biggest earthquake in Australia. That title goes to an earthquake in 1941 [ a couple of years before my birth so no wonder I didn't know that] near Meeberrie, 690km North East of Perth. Furthermore Perth is apparently in an earthquake risk place with a major fault line, the Darling Faultline extending north - south for 980km. My complacence around earthquakes in Australia has evaporated.
This part of the State is an important wheat and cereal growing area so we passed harvested paddocks and large grain silos at places along the train line.
 |
| Merredin, Western Australia |
 |
| Salt pans, Great Northern Highway, Northern Australia |
 |
| Gimlet trees, eucalyptus |
 |
| Gimlet Eucalyptus trees along the Great Eastern Highway |
I was happy to arrive in Kalgoorlie around 3.00pm. Even happier to find that our accommodation was the street behind Kalgoorlie's CBD and that the pub was open for dinner on this Public Holiday!
 |
| Kalgoorlie Hotel |
