In which Terry gets bogged, and some local colour

We left Jurien Bay Saturday afternoon and headed for Geraldton, to catch up with Colin. He and Trucky are old mates, hanging out in Broome together many years ago. We spent that night in Moonyoonooka (yeah, I couldn’t pronounce it either!!) before relocating at Colin’s suggestion to Greenough. We had a beautiful spot at the mouth of the river, where we spent the next three nights.

We climbed up and down the sand dunes, slipping and sliding and laughing lots. We took Terry out for a spin as there’s lots of 4WD tracks around, even onto the beach. We had an interesting moment when he got bogged on the shore as the tide was rising. We let the tyres down, and with a passer-by and I pushing, Trucky was able to drive the little car out reasonably easily. Back on harder ground, Trucky pulled out the 12v compressor kept in the boot for such emergencies, pumped back up the tyres, and off we went again. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the drive though! Even Jess has developed a taste for it. Alex can’t wait to learn to drive himself.

We took the boat and jet-ski out in the river, and waded and swam in the shallows right in the river mouth. It was such a beautiful spot – aside from several patches of thick, soft pond weed that felt very squishy underfoot and got caught in the motor of the jet-ski. The kids have nick-named the place “Grogan Pond”. (For those of you unsure about the word ‘grogan’ ask a bogan mate – they can explain…)

Colin spent as much time as he could with us over the few days we were there, even bringing one of his clients out for a trip to the river (he’s a carer for disabled adults). Col’s another very funny guy, and I was entertained with lots of stories of the two of them, back in the day. I’m very pleased I was able to meet him, and I know Trucky loved having the chance to catch up for a few days.

We spent one night 4WDing in the dark out to a fishing spot he knew about. He and Alex in his Range Rover, the rest of us in Terry, took off with several wrong turns and a bit of an issue with high tide, for the secret spot. Poor Tezza got bogged again, and this time we were hauled out by the Range Rover with ease. The fishing spot was pretty scary in the dark, with big waves breaking over the rocks. The two big boys got soaked but I was concerned they’d be swept off into the blackness. The rest of us preferred to make our own art gallery of sand pictures than get anywhere near the water. A few more wrong turns on the way out, but some very proficient driving from Trucky meant we got home without further (towing) embarrassment.

During our stay we also got to know several of the local Greenough characters. Each morning a delightful English chap came down to the river to photograph the abundant bird life. He took masses of photos of the osprey catching fish, as well as the pacific gulls with their bright red lipstick and various other birdlife. Unfortunately we never actually got to know his name, but in return for coffee each morning he’d show us his photos (even letting the kids hold his very expensive camera!) and regale us with tales of local life. He even brought us some home grown tomatoes (very yummy!)

Fishing one afternoon Trucky came across two more locals. John and Richard sat by their beaten up Falcon (complete with an old stick holding the boot open) and drank copious amounts of alcohol while espousing their theories of life, the universe and everything to the luckless fisherman. Later that evening they drove up to the bus, parked outside with Pink Floyd blaring, plied us with alcohol and continued their commentary. We all had a good time with these very funny, colourful blokes.

Collector by the beach and an awesome yacht

Leaving Cervantes we headed up the coast for Jurien Bay, to catch up with Dean from NZ (faithful blog-followers may remember him from Cape Le Grand). He’s staying with a lovely bloke called Les, who building a yacht to sail to England. We were made extremely welcome by both these guys, and John the other boarder. Les took us on a tour over his partially-completed yacht (a 65 footer that’ll be magnificent when it’s finished!), and has offered to take us out to the Abrolhos Islands next year.

Trucky and Dean spent a lot of time fishing, and more time shooting the breeze. They also relocated the toolbox from the draw bar of the trailer to the top of the trailer roof rack (long story as to why). It was quite fun to watch them work together, as there was as much strategizing, smoking, teasing and re-doing as actually achieving anything! They had a lot of fun though.

The town of Jurien Bay is just gorgeous, and the beaches very pretty. The kids call it “Collector, with a beach”. It was just a bit too cool to swim properly, but we had lots of fun collecting shells and even starfish that had washed up on the beach. One afternoon we built a whole township of sandcastles, complete with botanic gardens, a bike track, shopping mall and parliament house. We walked into town, we rode our bikes along the beach and explored the marina.

Another mate of Les’s who we got to know was Hadley, a local real estate agent. He had a friendly dog named Rico, a black bitzer who relished time with the kids. We took him down to the beach for a swim, and Daniel particularly, spent hours sitting on the floor patting him.

We spent nearly four days in Jurien, with everyone feeling we could quite happily relocate there. I think Trucky enjoyed having some mates to hang out with after the stress of being in Perth, and the kids and I enjoyed the peaceful surroundings. It started to feel like a holiday again!

More music and the search for sunshine (aka reducing the wildlife population)

Our final days in Perth were spent getting ready to leave, and catching up with friends. The kids spent a lot of time with Karen and Jake, with whom the boys especially got along well with. Jess enjoyed impromptu private bass guitar lessons from Karen. By the end of the first one, she could already play three single-string songs. Karen’s not only a good teacher, she’s a great guitarist, and it’s a pleasure to listen to her play – especially her steel-string acoustic. She and Trucky had a couple of jam sessions which were also entertaining.

We spent a fun evening with Phil and Mandy too, with the kids watching big-screen tv while the adults enjoyed much wine while catching up. Phil is a very funny guy, and Trucky and he rub along well together, while Mandy is a beautiful, genuine lady with whom it was a pleasure to spend an evening. Continuing the musical theme, Phil’s an accomplished drummer, who has offered to take Alex (who’s desperately keen to learn to play drums) along to a gig when next we’re back in Perth.

The weather improved for the last few days but we’d still had enough of the city. We left Perth late in the afternoon of the 28th, keen to depart for somewhere coastal. We drove late into the evening, arriving at Cervantes after 11pm. Driving so late at night facilitated our first unfortunate encounter with a native. (Bus 1: Skippy 0) Or so we thought. Inspection the next morning revealed that Skippy’s parting shot was to break the bull bar in two places!! On the upside, that morning at Thirsty Point we met a lovely couple of fellow travellers, Glenn and Maggie, who run a holiday house at Safety Beach near Dromana in Vic (I can pass on contact details if anyone’s going to that area and needs an awesome place to stay – very well kitted out and sleeps ten!).

Not all hard work though, and itchy feet

While Trucky and John have been tinkering on the multiple vehicles in the yard here (male bonding), Maria and I have been off seeing the sights. We went to an antique show at the University of WA where the buildings and grounds were spectacular in their own right, took Jess before she left to the art gallery to see a couple of good local artist exhibitions, and generally doing other girl-bonding things – shopping, coffee, shopping…

Trucky and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary at a medieval-themed bed and breakfast in Carmel, in the Perth Hills (see members.westnet.com.au/smithers/carmelot/index.html). It was certainly something different and a bit of fun. And nice to get away from the bus for a while too. We stopped at Lesmurdie Falls on the way back to town - a very pretty spot.

We’ve also spent time with Karen and Jake (my SIL and nephew), and their friends Tracey, Tony and Connor. We've also caught up with some of Trucky's old friends and other relatives including Maria's boys Tony, Joe and Pete.

I’ve been lucky enough to pick up some nursing work through a local agency that supplies locum nurses to operating theatres in Perth. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed seeing some different theatre complexes and how they are run, their standards of practise and the way they operate that’s different from ”over East”.

The kids had an uneventful flight back to Canberra early July, and are enjoying catching up with family and friends back home. They’ll return to us next week (can’t wait) then they can see a bit more of Perth before we head off on the 27th.

I can't wait to hit the road again!

Extreme storms lead to an extreme makeover

We’ve been in Perth now for almost three weeks, camping in John and Maria’s driveway. Trucky had to modify one of the trees in the yard to enable this, but we’re firmly here now.

Unfortunately the massive storms we encountered left a lot of residual damage to the poor old fibreglass roof of the bus, and we suffered badly with water damage inside. The worst affected was the lounge room and Jess’s loft bedroom. We’ve had to dry out all her bedding and replace a few wall and floor panels up there, and get her a new mattress.

The lounge has had an extreme make-over. It’s been fantastic to get rid of the nasty grey couch and hideous carpet, and the horrible chipboard built-in cupboard will not be missed! The whole room looks a lot fresher, bigger and brighter. Maria revamped the couch and it now has new foam and covers on the seats. Trucky and I relined the lounge room walls and recovered the floor with wipe-clean lino which hopefully will be more practical than the dust and mildew filled carpet of old. Thanks to a donation of an old pantry from Karen, we also have a new linen cupboard. The crowning glory is the new built-in cupboard that Trucky and John spent many hours and many swear words on.

Trucky’s also been busy fixing other bits and pieces – amongst other things the passenger door has been re-lined, the solar panel mounts moved and new hinges welded on the maintenance locker together with new floor supports. Oh, and most importantly we’ve both spent many hours on the roof with cans of sealer making sure no more rain can get in. We’ve got all our fingers, toes and everything else crossed to make sure no more water gets in!

No dates?

Those observant ones amongst my loyal followers may have noticed I very rarely put dates on my blog entries. The reason for this is very simple. Readers who know me well will no doubt remember that despite my general meticulousness and attention to detail, even in the real world governed by calenders and structure, I could go through whole days thinking that Wednesday was in fact Thursday, or Friday, or even the following Tuesday! Now that I am in a universe without such restraints as even clocks, I am completely at a loss to know when anything happens.

I see it is 2:45 am, and I gather it is Saturday morning. It must be 27th June. We’ve been away six and a half weeks!?

Apple fun park, a joyful reunion and the concept of reverse bargaining

After an aborted trip to an apple orchard and cider factory outside Donnybrook (closed on Mondays!) we found the local playground. Hailed as the largest free outdoor playground for children in Australia, we had high expectations of Donnybrook’s Apple Fun Park. We were not disappointed. While not geographically very large, every square inch of space was utilised with innovative, interesting, well-maintained play equipment. There was every manner of slide-y, twist-y, turn-y, climb-y apparatus you can imagine. Even a section dedicated to exercise using your own body weight as resistance kept all five of us entertained for ages.

We planned to meet up with John and Maria (Trucky’s dad and step-mum) in Bunbury later that day. We left Donnybrook reluctantly, but loaded up on fresh local fruit and feeling virtuous for all the exercise had, and found them waiting for us at Boyanup. It was very exciting to see them, as the kids had never met them before, and it had been over six months since Trucky and I were last over west.

They had brought their camper down from Perth, so there was much comparing of mobile homes on the roadside of the tiny town of Boyanup. Between us we took up most of the main street! That done, we headed Bunbury for the night, eventually deciding on a place by the river at Australind. The kids were excited at the prospect of getting the boat out again, so despite the cooler weather, they had a good, if somewhat exhausting, time trying to row against the current in the river.

The next morning Maria took the kids and I on a op-shop tour of Bunbury and surrounds. They are a good source of books for the trip, so we donate ones we’ve finished and buy more for the next leg. I have been teaching the children the idea of reverse bargaining, particularly in the tiny op-shops. At the little church op-shop in Australind, the kids found eight paperback novels they wished to purchase. I took them to the counter where the lovely old lady added them all up and said “Eighty cents”. I told her there was no way I could pay 80 cents for those books, and it had to be at least $2. She was a bit confused but took my money, after checking with me over and over again. It’s not a big deal on my part (after all, eight kids’ books in the shops would cost me at least $20) but I think those little charity shops deserve all the support they can. Double the asking price is a fair thing I reckon! (…off my soapbox now…)

From Bunbury we went to Herron Point. It’s probably a really lovely spot, with the campsite right on the lake, and apparently good crabbing but it was blowing a gale and pouring rain! (Is anyone else spotting a theme here?) We stayed inside and tried to stay dry, but the poor bus sprang a few leaks in the roof. The lounge copped the worst of it, particularly the computer desk. Ah well, there was bound to be a few issues along the way!!

Mandurah saw more rain, but dolphins just offshore helped improve our mood. Our bus was still leaking, and John’s camper had some engine issues with all the water (I’m surprised we didn’t get washed away, there was just so much rain everywhere). The men stayed and tinkered with the vehicles while Maria and I took the kids to the playground on the foreshore at Mandurah. They played enthusiastically between the rain showers, using some of their energy from being stifled by the weather.