DAY 1
Friday 1st January 2016 - Happy New Year to us as we set off on our next adventure of some 2200kms. There was much excitement as we were up early, pulled in the awning, hooked up the trailer (and I was surprised as I drove the car into the trailer and got out of the car that the sides of the trailer must have shrunk because it was a tad tight clambering out - some surfboards have to go!!!), fuelled up and we were on the road by 10.30am! We expect to be in Perth by Monday.
It was pretty damn hot travelling but we expected this. What we didn't expect was a leak from the water pump which meant we had to stop constantly and fill up the radiator with water and it was slow going. I had recurring thoughts of our last trip from Broome to Perth in 2004 when our old bus broke down and it had to be trucked back to Adelaide!!!! We only made it just past Pardoo a little over 500km by 6.00pm, not good going. Kimbo did some ringing around to see whether we might be able to have some repairs undertaken in Port Hedland. I thought he was mad as it was New Year's Day weekend. However thanks to Mark in Broome who put us in touch with Frank in Port Hedland who was happy to have a look at it tomorrow.
It was a beautiful night outside, and cooler than I expected with no humidity and as a bonus the flies weren't too friendly. Even though we weren't far off the road we were able to switch the air conditioner off (the first time in months) and sleep blissfully with the windows open even though the temperature didn't drop below 26 degrees.
DAY 2
Thanks to the sun streaming through the windows we were up at 5.30am and on the road by 7.00am and into Port Hedland by 8.30am, a little longer than expected to do 100km.
Frank and Ben were amazing, they dropped what they were doing, completed a bit of "bush mechanic" work and we were on our way in about 1/2 hour and they wouldn't take any payment.........not even beer!!! Frank felt that if Kimbo nursed the bus along and kept topping up the radiator we should get to Perth without any further problem albeit slowly. We were on a mission and decided to push on.
As it was so hot, peaking in the high 40s the bus really did struggle and kept overheating, as did Kimbo when he had to get out of the air-conditioning every 100km or so and top up the radiator in the blazing sun. I couldn't count the number of quad trailers that were hauling iron ore and other such stuff from mines between Newman and Port Hedland, they were pretty much all we saw all day.
The good side to travelling slowly (70-75kph), apart from taking in the scenery, which to be honest although stark in its beauty was beginning to wear a bit thin is that we had amazing fuel economy coming in at 3.03km/litre! What should have been a 6-7 hour day ended up being 10! By 5.00pm we'd had enough and found a parking bay just south of Capricorn Roadhouse, which is about 20km south of Newman. When we pulled up Kimbo discovered we had 2 flat tyres on the trailer. I couldn't believe it.
Things were not going to plan and we were feeling a little despondent.
The weather wasn't being kind to us either, it was so still and hot and the flies were taking full advantage of us being there. But there was a light at the end of the tunnel when one of Kimbo's mates Graham arrived about 7.00pm, and we were able to sit around and chew the fat and forget our woes for awhile and drink in the beautiful night sky which we hoped would bring rain but it didn't!
DAY 3
Graham gave us a toot of his truck when he left at 5.15am so that Kimbo could get the tyres changed before the day heated up. He had that done and dusted by 6.00am....he's amazing!

I was just doing my final check before we left when I noticed the toilet didn't appear to be working....horror of all horrors! So once again Kimbo to the rescue, but this time the rescue attempt was unsuccessful and my beloved toilet was declared f****d! I am so attached to my toilet and the thought of not being able to use it was devastating; but I was reminded that life does go on and bush toileting will have to suffice for now.
To indicate just how hot and dry it is in these parts, while Kimbo was working away in the "cool" of the morning he was inundated with bees, all looking for water. So thinking outside the square we placed a bowl of water away from the bus and bingo.....bee problem solved. It was a bit tricky however when I took the bowl away! We pushed on and spoke constantly about how harsh and hostile this country is and when we'd see an abandoned car, would wonder why anyone would leave the safety of their car and go walking, this country is so unforgiving.
Mining activity is everywhere; big, small and everything in between. Hills are being made where none excited before.
We decided that after 405km we deserved a drink so we stopped in at The Royal Mail Hotel in Meekatharra for a quick tipple. That was an interesting experience, as we were the only two at the bar we got talking to the Irish bar attendant and I asked her how long she was there for (thinking she was a backpacker); 3 years and loved every single day and had no intention of leaving. I don't think she could have picked a town that is so polar opposite to that of hers in Ireland.
Although it was Sunday you could have shot a cannon in Meekatharra and not hit anyone, apart from the activity at the pool the place was deserted, perhaps the locals were just plain sensible and were staying inside! We decided to push on for another 100km or so and that was when we found our little piece of paradise for our overnight stop; Lake Nallan about 10km north of Cue. After such a stressful day we thought we'd died and gone to heaven, how could this beautiful oasis survive in this harsh and dry landscape.
We parked alongside the lake and then perched our chairs at the water's edge and just drank in the beauty while having a drink. There was a squadron of pelicans and a myriad of other water birds doing what they do and we realised there must be fish in the lake or they wouldn't be there. It was so still and quiet that all our woes were forgotten. Kimbo cooked another BBQ and as much as we wanted to eat outside the stillness of the evening brought the bugs out in plague proportions and we were forced inside.
DAY 4
If we'd had the time we would have loved to stay for another day and walk around the lake and see what else there was on offer, however we'll need to leave than until next time. Today was cloudy and much cooler and we were able to travel much better. We drove through Cue one of the most beautiful old gold mining towns in Western Australia with fabulous heritage listed buildings, it was sad to see on the outskirts of town that it looked sadly like Coober Pedy with all the fresh mine activity that has popped up, but perhaps this new activity is keeping the town alive.

The landscape changed dramatically over the day, finally we saw some mallee, decent sized gum trees and eventually crop land, a nice change to the spindly little trees and saltbush of the last few days.

Little towns were appearing rather than roadhouses and we felt finally we were getting closer to the "big smoke". As the weather was cooler the bus was travelling along so much better and the need for water wasn't as great although Kimbo did notice that the header tank above the radiator is cracked and leaking, so that will need to be replaced in Perth too.
We were surprised that when we passed over the rabbit proof fence that there was no indication that it was there, an interesting part of Western Australian history that I thought would have been celebrated, but clearly not. We were hoping to stop the night at Pithara, the sum total of the "town" are grain silos and a tavern that we'd h eard rave reviews about. Wouldn't you know it, it was closed on Monday!
So we had to pull out Plan B; well we didn't have one of those but we did find a big gravel pit well off the road near Miling about 200km north east of Perth.
It was surrounded by beautiful big gums and wheat fields and ofcourse the ubiquitous galahs and cockies that were having a fabulous time squawking their heads off. It was a simply stunning evening with a refreshing breeze and breathtaking sunset.
We were far enough off of the road to not be troubled by road noise with the windows open as we'd noticed especially today that the traffic had increased dramatically.
DAY 5
We were awoken by bird noises which was hardly surprising but a little later than we expected. It was really overcast and cool and maybe that had kept them in bed a bit later. We didn't have far to go and as it was so much cooler Kimbo had no trouble with the bus. We passed Graham mid morning as he was heading back to Broome and I think he was as relieved as we were that we'd almost made it.
Fields and towns were the norm and finally by late morning we were in the Upper Swan Valley and I was so pleased to be here.
It took most of the rest of the day to move everything into it's rightful place and start unpacking and turning the spot which is effectively a sow's ear into what will become a silk purse!

There was no time to buy food so we enjoyed a big country sized meal at the Redroof Bar (our local) at Bullsbrook and talked about how grateful we were to have made it safe and sound albeit a bit later than we expected and know that although it's going to be very expensive everything will get fixed.

The moral of this story is expect the unexpected and the best laid plans can go awry but there are always little gems to remind me that the Universe moves in mysterious ways. What doesn't break you, makes you stronger!