Day 43 and 44. Today we turned south! We drove only a couple of hundred clicks and stopped at the Stanley Rest Area. It is a free camp well off the highway and well set up. We just felt like a quiet afternoon reading and, in RM's case, minding his own business, as he just told me. A nanna nap was also in order. RM got another chance to use the new toy, the solar panels. Elle met new dogs.
Next day we drove to the deGrey River free camp site. The countryside is pretty boring but we did see some wild camels. To liven things up, I was driving but still chief navigator as well. The deGrey site is 82 clicks north of Port Hedland. So I started to notice the signs that said P100, P 90 etc. RM was dozing! When we had passed a rest area but no river about 82 clicks north of P, I started to worry. I awoke RM and we deliberated. He consulted the map and did say something about Pardoo, which I missed. We stopped for lunch and reconsulted the maps. Amazingly however, we had Internet connection and were able to work out where we were using Google maps. We were a bit short of Pardoo and nowhere near 82 kms short of PH. RM was stoked and is threatening to add comments to this blog if I don't admit my shortcomings on this one. In the end, it cost us about an hour in flummoxing. Not bad in 7 ,000 kms! The wait was worth it as we are ensconced by the deGrey River on a lovely site. The cattle come by for a drink which keeps Elle amused too.
Our first technical hitch, apart from RM's brain snap, also occurred. The electrical connection to the car from the van blew up because .....a loose plug .....? The technical crew effected the repairs quickly and professionally once the problem was identified.