The Crawshaws’ Road Trip To Darwin - Halls Creek

Sunday 05 May - although the next leg of our journey was about a 7 hour drive, there was little to engage our interest in Halls Creek, so we departed Broome at the more leisurely hour of 9am. Goodbyes and many thanks to Terry and Angela for a wonderful stay, with great value for money. We left amid promises to return in the not too distant future, and hit the road, bound for Halls Creek.

The journey was uneventful, with the obligatory cows wandering across the highway in their leisurely fashion. Thus far, we were able to see ahead and slow down when necessary. I would hate us to tangle with one of those impressive sides of beef.

We made a pit stop at Fitzroy Crossing, then arrived in Halls Creek in the late afternoon. We were booked in to the Kimberley Hotel, which, while comfortable, was unable to compete with our previous abodes. It brought us back to basics and reality. 

Michael went off to have a beer and I was to join him later. I’m not sure why I thought this plan would have any chance of working. Possibly I am ever hopeful . We had been to the bar area when checking in, as reception was in the same building. However, this building is tucked away in the middle of the compound. As I left our room, the light was fading fast. I set off. I walked this way and that, not recognising any landmarks that might give me a clue. Of course I should have done the breadcrumb trail because that is the only way I would have found the bar. There were a few people smoking outside their rooms, and I was conscious, yet again, of looking like a lost dill. I walked back, thankfully found our car, and phoned Michael. Basically I said where are you, and where am I? Fed up with my insane lack of direction. He managed to get me through the narrow walkway to reception (very tiny sign!), past the pool and into the aforementioned building. I eventually found reception and while I was there, let them know our aircon remote was not working. Of course, in my haste to find the bar, I forgot to bring it with me. So the manager said he would come back with me and get it. Then he asked me where was our room. I guess the look on my face was enough for him to grab a map of the compound and off we went. Our remote needed new batteries. The manager didn’t have a screwdriver to replace them and the maintenance man had knocked off at 4pm. So he just gave me the remote out of his office. I headed to the bar for a much needed drink.

We ate dinner in the bar, which was tricky due to the amount of flies vying for their share. We went back to our room fairly early, big drive to Kununurra the following day.

                               Fitzroy Crossing 

Kimberley Hotel

The Crawshaws’ Road Trip To Darwin - Broome

Friday 03 May - Out of Point Samson on the dot of 7am, beginning to enjoy our check out precision.  Another long day on the open road, with little or no radio coverage by now. We started listening to podcasts, namely Conversations with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanosky. These half hour shows were engrossing to say the least, informative, tragic, funny, heart rending, uplifting. We gained insights in to people’s lives, some famous, some unknown to us. We heard conversations with William McInnes, Kitty Flanagan and other well known identities. While we had never heard of Beverley Bass, we learned that she was the first female pilot employed by American Airlines. She was en route to the USA from Paris on September 11, 2001, when the Trade Centre was razed to the ground. Her plane was diverted to a little town in Canada called Dander. She and 156 passengers and crew were stranded there for a week, along with many other planes. One of the focal points of her story was that a musical was created about that incident in Dander and Beverley has a starring role, so to speak.  It may not be of interest to many but when you are out of the endlessly open road, it’s riveting stuff!

We arrived in Broome at 3.30pm, and checked in to our accommodation, Cocos Beach Bungalows, at Cable Beach. We were lucky to book the last available bungalow for our preferred dates. This was to be our home for the next two nights and we couldn’t have been happier. The bungalow was huge, airy and very comfortable. It was well equipped, built in laundry, aircons in each room, wide verandah complete with outdoor setting and clothes line. The kitchen was well stocked with everything from dishwasher to coffee maker and all the condiments you could want. (Confession time - I accidentally nicked the salt and pepper grinders, thinking they were ours from the picnic basket. Found ours when we got to Darwin. Sorry Terry and Angela! Will send them back when we return to Darwin). 

Terry and Angela, who are the managers of Cocos Beach,  invited us to join them and their friends for a drink in the Sunset Bar at Cable Beach which we duly did, while watching the sun drip spectacularly into the ocean. We ended up staying there for tea, enjoying tasty pizzas under the star studded sky.

Saturday 04 May - no travel on this day so we slept later than usual. Donning our bathers, we went for a lengthy walk along Cable Beach. While walking, I phoned my baby daughter Alinta, whose 31st birthday it was. We did the skype thing, spoke to the kids, baby Harley who said gwanny, gwanny in his frantic way, then proceeded to call for poppa, poppa, non stop, in a deeper and calmer voice. I think it soothes him somehow. Weird kid, but cute.

Then, for the first time ever for me in Broome, we swam in the ocean. Well, swam might be a slight exaggeration. We bobbed about like the other derring doers, ever mindful of what might be lurking amongst us. No, not crocodiles, although that’s always a possibility. It’s those tiny, transparent, lethal jellyfish that can make life extremely unpleasant, if not down right precarious. Happily, we emerged unscathed, very refreshed and invigorated. 

After a quick shower, we shoved some clothes in the washing machine, and left them to it while we headed into town to meet up with my good friend Shirley for coffee. The Dragonfly Cafe is the place to go apparently and it didn’t disappoint. The coffee was great, especially after extremely ordinary offerings on the trip up.  We made arrangements to meet for dinner, then after fuelling up, grabbing a few things from Coles, we headed back to the bungalow. 

After hanging out our washing, we had a swim in the pool which was as refreshing as the ocean and far less dangerous. It was a lovely lazy afternoon, followed by dinner at a restaurant called Tapt, which was just down the road. Terry and Angela joined us as well as Shirley and the five of us enjoyed a lovely meal, a few wines and good company. A great way to end our Broome interlude.

The Crawshaws’ Road Trip To Darwin - Point Samson

Thursday 02 May - True to our travelling form, we left Coral Bay by 7am and headed for Point Samson, some 570 kms further up the coast. All plain sailing, stopped at a roadhouse (the name escapes me) for refreshment. We fuelled up in Karratha and also went to the Karratha Mall to do a bit of food shopping, having taken to making sandwiches for the next day’s trip. Then we sailed on to Point Samson, about 60 kms north of Karratha. Plenty of cows to keep us alert on the way up. No live kangaroos sighted up to this stage of the trip, only road kill of same. Plenty of bird life, including many hawks and a few eagles, endlessly circling and swooping in search of ground-bound prey.

We checked into Samson Beach Chalets, small but cosy, in an airconditioned kind of way. So far, our beds along the journey have been very comfortable, for which we are grateful. Samson Beach Tavern had been recommended by a couple of friends as the place to go for tea (maybe the only place?). So we dined there and what a treat! Blue bone fish for me, snapper for Michael. We retired to our chalet, tired but replete with manna from the ocean.

The Crawshaws’ Road Trip To Darwin - Coral Bay

Tuesday 30 April - We were on the road again by 7am, getting the hang of packing the car as a team. Off to Coral Bay, yay! Last time I went there was in 1992, a long time between eyeballing the Snapper. It was our first really long drive, approximately 675 kms.
As we were tootling along, a land cruiser appeared to sit on our tail, no attempt made to pass, even though there were long stretches of clear road. We passed a few vehicles, and a couple of trucks and put a fair bit of distance between us and the land cruiser. It must have almost busted a gasket to make up ground, only to sit back each time. By now, my mind was working overtime. I imagined all sorts of macabre scenarios, each with us coming to a grizzly demise.
We reached the Billabong Roadhouse and stopped for food and drink. As did the land cruiser. The driver and I actually crossed paths on the way to the toilet. A short, chubby bloke with a swarthy complexion, sour expression and shifty eyes. I scuttled in to the Ladies and locked the door very smartly. I practically ran back out in to the shop, half expecting him to be lying in wait in the corridor. Of course, I really suspected he was after Michael for some sordid reason but who knew. Maybe I had crossed paths with him once before, and it was me who had caused him some deep seated harm and now he was taking his god given opportunity to exact revenge.
We took off before he had returned to the land cruiser but though we were well on our way, he drove up behind us once again. And stayed there. As I started to fabricate a whole new series of underbelly events, he suddenly swung out and roared past us. Just as another vehicle was coming towards him from the opposite direction. He made it in time and disappeared in the proverbial cloud of dust. Crazy.
Apart from this slightly unsettling occurrence, the rest of the journey was uneventful, except for regular cow sightings. I took a turn behind the wheel and drove us in to Coral Bay. A truly beautiful piece of coastline. We stayed at the People’s Park, in a chalet on a hill at the back of the park. It was very comfy and equipped with all the mod cons. We ran into friends of friends from Busselton in the car park, as you do when on holiday. They were staying for 35 nights, we stayed for 2.
After a bit of shopping for a bbq tea, MC had a few drinks at Bill’s Bar while I browsed in the boutique. After a few attempts, I gave up, clothing I liked either too small or too large. I went to the newsagent and bought a novel. The guy behind the counter informed me he was born in Albany after quizzing me on the story of our journey. The tentacles of home stretch far.
The next morning, we donned our snorkels and masks and horizontally meandered around the bay. The fish are very big and not that timid, obviously used to being ogled by humans. Visibility was reasonable but eventually it became a bit chilly in the water so we went ashore.
The rest of the day was spent fuelling up the car, taking a drive around to the boat ramp, generally lazing around and then a couple of drinks at Bill’s Bar. On the way back to the caravan park, we stopped to watch the people from the charter boats cleaning their catch. What a sight! Forty odd Rankin Cod and about 35 Red Emperor. As they cleaned and filleted, a couple of old salts sang a made up song about fish and Coral Bay. Very entertaining.
We had dinner at Fin’s Cafe, a fine feed of gold band snapper. A thoroughly enjoyable soujourn in Coral Bay.

The Crawshaws’ Road Trip to Darwin - Kalbarri

We headed out of Moora and on the road to Kalbarri Palm Resort, our first night away from family. All plain sailing, stopping in Dongara for a very healthy snack from the bakery, two party pies for Michael and a mini sausage roll for me. Already I suspected that long road trips are lethal to the waistline. Port Denison and Dongara are pretty little seaside villages, they have that holiday air about them.

Then off to Geraldton where we found Target. Back on the road again with a pair of bathers, two pairs of shorts and a tee shirt, we finally arrived in Kalbarri about 4pm. A tad cool, too late for a swim, so after unpacking the car, off to the pub for some refreshment and tea, bangers and mash for MC, chicken Caesar salad for me.

Dongara

Kalbarri

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The Crawshaws’ Road Trip to Darwin - Moora

Monday 29 April -  The next morning, Grace and Sean had to leave at 5.30 am to get to Perth by 6.30am. We planned to leave by 7am and managed to do so with a few minutes to spare, making sure the house was locked securely. We set off in the Prado, leaving the Baleno with the wonky GPS safely in their garage, awaiting my return in June.

Luckily for us the GPS in the Prado takes her job seriously. Before leaving WA civilisation as we know it, we intended to visit my niece Shannon who lives in Moora, in order to meet the newest member of our clan, 6 month old Ethan. So after punching in Shannon’s address, we tootled off in the early morning gloom, cautiously obeying the dulcet tones of Ms GPS.

As we turned off Indian Ocean Drive on to Gingin Brook Rd, miraculously, there was a coffee van. We did a quick u turn and while waiting for our order, the young woman told me, far from being a random stop, and after applying for all manner of permits, she had worked this isolated corner for 4 years, Monday to Friday. Before making our coffees, she popped a cheese and ham sandwich in the toastie maker, and as we were leaving, one of her regulars pulled up in his semi-trailer to claim it.

It was about this point of our journey that I suddenly had a vision of our bathers and a few clothes draped over an airer in a spare room in Two Rocks. Pity I didn’t have this vision while still in Two
Rocks! Bathers are an essential part  of a road trip wardrobe so I had another vision of a looming shopping trip.

About 90 minutes later and with only a very minor disagreement with Ms GPS, we pulled up at the Moora address. It was lovely to see Shannon again, the last time being in Mandurah, not long before Ethan’s birth, hot and bothered, and very fed up. Now she looked radiant, motherhood sits well with her. While we were having a cup of tea, Ethan made his presence known with a wail from the bedroom. After a quick nappy change, he was brought out to meet us. What a delightful little boy. Very vocal and full of smiles. Also very active, up on all fours, almost ready to take off.

After about an hour, we had to hit the road if we were to make our next stop in reasonable time. Ethan gave us both a high five before we were waved off by this beautiful young mother and her gorgeous bub.

The Crawshaws’ Road Trip to Darwin - first stop Perth

Saturday 27 April - 

Out of bed before dawn, so much to do on this day of departure. The last minute frenzy of washing, cleaning out the fridge, stripping the bed linen and towels from the ensuite, hauling out the rubbish and generally making the place presentable for our house sitters Deb and Stewart. Amazingly, we (I) were (was) ready to go by 9am. Deb and Stew arrived, and after a bout of last minute questions and answers, we set off for our final farewells to Alinta, Jasper, Kadence, Harley, Loki the dog and a swag of kitties. There was a bit of wailing from the toddler, but more because he likes to get into the driver’s seat of my car. Although there was no sobbing from the rest of us, it was a wrench for me to leave them for such a long stretch of time. We said our goodbyes amid promises of my return to Albany in 6 weeks time for a period of 3 weeks. Hence driving to Perth in 2 cars, so I would have a car to get to and from Albany in June.

Finally off to McKail’s General Store for coffee and breakfast, then we hit Albany Highway in convoy, meeting up at our usual pitstops, Kojonup public toilets and. Bannister road house. After programming our respective GPS displays with my eldest daughter’s address in Two Rocks (aka South Geraldton), we set off. All went to plan until Armadale. My GPS told me to turn right on to Albany Highway. Thinking this must be a quicker way than continuing along Armadale Road, I obeyed and headed off. I started to get a bit worried when I was directed along the Kenwick link. Michael phoned me a couple of times, the last call when he was about to leave the freeway on to the Burns Beach turnoff. At this point, I was crawling along Adelaide Terrace in Perth city, having given up any hope of catching up to my husband and just kept going where I was told. Eventually though, while driving along Wanneroo Road, I managed to outwit the witless gps and head for the freeway. I do not believe my gps knows about the freeway. I love my Suzuki Baleno but there’s something not quite right there....(no, not me this time).

Eventually I arrived in Two Rocks, something of a wreck. A couple of wines later, all was well again and we enjoyed a very relaxing evening with my two daughters Grace and Jacqui and their husbands Sean and Matt. The next morning  we went to Yanchep Lagoon for a very refreshing swim. After doing a bit of laundry, Grace and I went to the ‘local’ shopping centre, about 25 minutes drive, browsed the shops, had a coffee, the usual. In the evening the four of us went to the Two Rocks Tavern for tea, quite a decent feed.