The town of Ravensthorpe is home of the largest free standing lollipop in the world!! At Yummylicious Candy Shack.
It has an assortment of lollies that reminded me of some of the lollies we had as kids. Of course we had to buy a few. And some lollipops for the grandkids, I’m sure the parents will thank me 😂 They also have 15 flavours of ice cream.
Ravensthorpe is also know for its ‘Farm Gate Art Trail’’. Apparently the project currently has 32 locations. These fabulous sculptures, mainly crafted from farm scrap metal, are themed around local wildflowers and dotted around the country side. We came across a few on the way to Hopetoun.
Hopetoun is back on the coast and has that beach town vibe. Relax, chill and take in the beautiful water. Again the weather was not in our favour with overcast skies and rain.
We stayed a few nights at the free RV camping area, a short walk into town with easy beach access. You have to be self contained, it does have some bins.
Nice easy run to Kalgoorlie from Norseman. After stocking up on a few wares we settled in to the Kalgoorlie self contained RV park. You can stay here for 72hrs, camping is on gravel which was very handy when it rained. Bins, and toilets can be found at the near by park. On site is a dump point and drinking water. It’s a popular spot.
Star Date 22/4/26
We went exploring, visiting the Hannans North Tourist Mine first. One of the first registered mines in Kalgoorlie. With over 30 exhibits in Kalgoorlie’s largest open-air museum. Entry cost $20A or $17 concession, it is self-guided tour, with historical buildings from the 1920’s, plenty of gold mining equipment, you can go gold panning, and climb the modern day equipment aboard a 793C haul truck and 994 wheel loader.
Even though it is outside dogs are not allowed. Which personally I thought was disappointing and saw no reason why dogs could not go, if people were responsibility. The word being responsible.
We spent over 1 1/2hrs there and you could have spent more. On the eve of the 1st anniversary of Chris passing, I kept thinking how much he would have loved this place. He would have been right into it climbing and exploring all the machinery, reading all the history, he loved things like this.
There were automated stories, which were interesting.
Lots of old relics.
Old buildings and mining huts.
In the 1800’s the game of Two-up was born. Toss the coins games dated back to Roman times but the custom of launching two pennies from a wood bat seems to be Australian introduced. 1890 with the gold rush in Kalgoorlie it became the hub for all fans of two-up.
In 1983 two-up was legalised in Kalgoorlie. Only to be played in the two-up shed, all other establishments would face a $1000 fine. To this day it is still legal to play two-up in Kalgoorlie and remains only 2 places within Australia that can regularly host two-up games, Broken Hill being the other. The game is played every Sunday at the two-up ring in Kalgoorlie a 10min drive out of town.
So many things to see and touch, a highly recommended visit.
After having some lunch we went for a walk up the main street of Kalgoorlie. A lot of very old buildings, many old pubs, they certainly don’t build pubs like that any more with so much character. Unfortunately a lot of the buildings were also is disrepair and a lot of empty shops.
It’s a typical old mining town, people were friendly and helpful.
We also had a shower at Market Arcade a manned refreshment area. For $5 you got a shower, which included a towel and a bar of soap. The facility is cleaned after every use.
Another interesting place is Questa Casa the oldest brothel in Australia. Questa Casa is still operating but primarily as a historical tourist attraction rather than a functioning brothel. On their website is states. “Alas, at present there are no ladies offering their services from our premises.” Apparently the place is for sale or lease as the madams wishes to retire.
Yeah we did it, we crossed the Nullarbor East to West. I’ve achieved a bucket list trip for Chris and I, I know he would be cheering and doing fist pumps up there in heaven. I know he would be so proud of me.
Corrugated iron camels on the main roundabout in town.
So we stayed at the Norseman 72hr free camp. A fenced, some grassed area with marked large sites. Bins and a short walk into town. There is also a dump point and toilets not far away.
We arrived on a Sunday, pretty well all shops were closed, we were able to duck into the supermarket and grab a couple of things.
After lunch we did a walk around town and had a lemonade at the pub, as it was hot.
Mural on the side of the Woodlands Centre which is the Information Centre.
Even on Monday the place is pretty quiet, the Woodlands Visitor Centre was open so we popped into there.
There are several other murals around town.
Laurie Sinclair’s horse Norseman pawed up a very large nugget of gold, from there the town was born and name Norseman after the horse.
We spent 2 days here resting. But did have several bad storms, some very strong winds and dust storms.
Wow there are sure a lot of flies out here. If you were a Ferengi, from Deep Space Nine you might think they would make a great addition to a meal. I’d rather not, not keen on eating them, having them between my sunglasses and eyes, up my nose, buzzing my ears or swallowing one. Poor Jess isn’t impressed either, she has her own fly net.
Wearing a fly net constantly gets a bit thin, eating meals or drinking a cup of tea can be challenging. Many years ago Chris forgot he was wearing his fly net and drunk a cup of tea through the net, he also nearly blew his nose through it. Judy has followed his example many times, with the cup of tea that is 😂.
Over the next few days we continue to head west along the Nullarbor, not as much to see this side of the border. We stopped for the night at the Madura Pass. The Madura Pass lookout offers views of the Hampton Tablelands dropping down to the coastal Roe Plain.
The view
Drove along the Nighty Mile Straight (146.6km’s) Australia’s longest straight road.
Stayed a night at Baxter Rest Area which was an awesome large area, well off the road. Bins, dump point, table and chairs. So many little bays to camp in leading off the main entry road. But OMG the flies, they were still around when it got dark and first thing in the morning back again with a vengeance. If we were Ferengi we would have had enough flies to last us several days of meals. But since we are not Ferengi we could not wait to get out of there.
Just one of the unusual things you can see out here.
We called into the Balladonia Roadhouse, famous the US Skylab space research laboratory which burned up on re-entry on the 12th of July 1979 scattering fragments in the Balladonia area. Balladonia was rocketed to international fame for the point of impact of Skylab.
The day after Skylab returned to earth, Balladonia Roadhouse had a call from the American President, Jimmy Carter apologising for crashing the satellite in the Australian outback and offered the U.S Government assistance for any damage.
We stayed a night at Newman Rocks, a free camp area off the main hwy 142km’s east of Norseman. It is a large area with a bins and tables. Right at the back is an area of rocks, with a lagoon and impressive views. Again more flies and horse flies wow they would make a great finger food for the Ferengi, and the smallest mossies I’ve ever come across. Not much of a feed in them, sorry Ferengi.
We stopped at several viewing areas overlooking the Great Australian Bight, some with some great views of the cliffs.
One area had many people camping there on the cliffs edge, one of the few places left to camp. Great views be awesome to have a sunset on the cliffs. Fingers crossed for on the way back.
The Vegemite Kangaroo at Border Village.
SA/WA sign at the border. Unfortunately surrounded by a fence.
The big whale at Eucla.
Eucla has its own timezone. 45 mins behind WA and 45min ahead of SA. All our devices are on different time zones. A common issue travellers talk about so nobody really seems to know what the time is.
Next to the roadhouse at Eucla is a good gravel road down to the Eucla Old Telegraph Station, with free camping close by.
The Old Telegraph Station is only a short walk, most of it is being taken over by the sand now. So sad to see some graffiti all over it. Eucla telegraph line and manual repeater station were established in 1877. Together with the telegraph line, a jetty and tram line were also constructed for offloading supplies brought by ships. 1927, the Eucla Telegraph Station closed.
The station also had to deal with a rabbit plague. The sand drifts were caused by the rabbit plague that destroyed dune vegetation. Now it is little more than a few old stone walls protruding above the moving dunes.
The Old Eucla Jetty was a bit more challenging to get to. Follow the 4wd tracks they said. Well that worked in the soft sand, we were happily following the 4wd tracks and other foot prints. Until we came to hard ground with no clear 4wd tracks and multiple tracks leading off in all directions. We took what we thought was right, which turned out to be wrong. Having us taking the long way, getting lost and following our nose or maybe Jess’s nose to the beach. Which we eventually found a little distance from the old pier.
Built in 1887, the old Eucla Jetty was once used by sail & steam ships to bring stores from Albany and Esperance. It was also used to export wool and Sandalwood from out of the Eucla region. The original jetty structure extended out into the Bight for more than a hundred meters.
Some young people climbed up there easy.
There were some other people there in 4wd’s so we asked them was there a clear road back. Yeah sure follow our 4wd tracks. 😳 So we did that coming back and again came across hard ground, with no tracks and multiple ways to go. Thankfully another 4wd came along and we headed off on the track they took. Eventually we go back to camp exhausted, very hot and sweaty.
Head of the Bight is a great place to see Southern Right Whales in the winter months from May to October. Outside that time the entry price is half price and is still a great place to visit.
Free camp area at the entry gate to the visitor centre.
A easy boardwalk leads you to the cliff edge with amazing views of the ocean and Bunda Cliffs.
Amazing views of the Bunda cliffs, our first glimpse.
A couple of small lizards heaving a fight.
The coloured one seemed to be loosing the battle.
Next was the sign for the Eastern End of the Treeless Plain. Nullarbor” is derived from the Latin words nullus (“nothing” or “no”) and arbor(“tree”), directly translating to “no trees” There was indeed no trees but small bushes. It is a really good road.
I was a little emotional at the sign, thinking of Chris and how much we both wanted to do this trip together.
The famous Nullarbor Roadhouse. We had lunch here and I bought a cute Emu with big eyes that will sit on my shelf at home reminding me of this trip. I’ve called in Nelly from the Nullarbor Roadhouse.
Photo of the original roadhouse.
Camels, Wombats, Kangaroos and dogs 😂 We have not actually seen any animals on the Nullarbor so far.
A few other signs at the Nullarbor Roadhouse.
Inside the roadhouse an amazing mural.
A sense of humour, love it.
Royal Flying Doctor Service R.F.D.S landing strip on the Eyre Highway.
The first scenic lookout of the Great Australian Bight showing the Bunda cliffs. Amazing, can see how the cliffs edges are falling away. A lot of the previous entry points to view the cliffs have been closed off deemed too dangerous.
We found a spot to camp for the night just off the road well hidden from sight.
Time has come to finally cross the Nullarbor, as mentioned something we have tried to do many many times, that hasn’t happened for different reasons. With the current fuel situation it was once again up in the air but I felt it was now or never and something I had to do for both Chris and myself and a big step in my healing journey.
So the day has finally come, our idea is to take our time stopping as many things as we can. First stop was the Penong Windmill Museum. A great display of windmills of all shapes and sizes, including Australia’s largest windmill. We decided we would do Lake MacDonald – The Pink Lake on our way back.
Australia’s biggest windmill, called Bruce
Lots of windmills.
All shapes and sizes.
A brief detour to the Big Wombat.
Minions on the side of the road.
Bookabie School Ruins, the remains of a school that operated from 1892 until 1957.
We stopped for the first night at Kidnippy Rest Stop near Yalata. This was a big area, going a fair way from the Eyre Hwy. We were able to get a great spot along the back fence and had a really quiet night.
We left Peterborough and headed to Port Augusta for a few groceries and a stop at the local bakery. Judy had taken us on a bit of a short cut that took us past wind farms and some picturesque scenery, road was narrow and bumpy.
It had rained the night before and was still a pretty gloomy day.
We stopped for the night at Iron Knob RV Park, a donation park, and $2 for hot showers. The best hot showers since I have left home.
Camping was on a gravel base which was great when the storm rolled in at 4.30am.
There was not a blade of grass around, plenty of spiky weeds and loads of flies.
The town of Iron Knob is situated at the foot of an iron ore mine on the North East of the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia.
Iron Knob began as a housing settlement for miners somewhere between the late 1800’s to early 1900’s. It is often said to be the birthplace of Australia’s steel industry, and the mine is among the oldest still active in Australia.
Star Date – 9/4/26
We stopped for a break at Kimba and boy were we impressed. We weren’t staying the night but plan to spend a few days there on our way.
We pushed on at stopped at the Star Base Wudinna at the RV park. $10 unpowered, $20 powered. Drinking water, bins, table and chairs, toilets and one shower for $2.
Aboriginal meaning is Granite Hill (Woodina), has a population of approx 500 people and is the largest town in the council area.
A “state of flux” describes a situation that is constantly changing, unstable, and uncertain. It signifies a transitional phase where the outcome is not yet determined or settled, sounds like the world at the moment. And also a title of an episode in Star Trek Voyager, so seemed a fitting title for this post.
On my trip, I need to be fluid, be able to change, adapt and be flexible. I’ve certainly felt like my plans were in a “state of flux”
My planned route had to remain flexible, it has changed several times due to different reasons including flooding.
I also factored in where more star-bases were to fuel up, keeping topped up along the way.
Houston we have a problem. Ready to head off and leave home port to find my Staria Trek would not start. It turned out to be the power cell and I had to get Battery World out for a replacement. Have to say they were excellent. The power cells in my particular star ship are rather unique in that, they are an AGM and the poles are the opposite to most star ships, according to the guy who came out they are the only star ship like that. That means they can charge a premium for the power cells. An extra cost I could have done without but also very thankful I was still at home base and they came out very quickly. Only 2 hrs delayed start.
First stop for the night was Goondiwindi show ground. It is rather dry and dusty.
Next stop was Hickey Falls, not far out of Coonabarabran. It was nice and green, gravel bitumen base carpark area that was relatively flat. A nice green grass area next to it. Shelter shed with tables and seats, several bins. A local council worker came and cleaned the tables and seats, saying they were cleaned 3 times a week.
The walk to the falls is less than a min walk from the carpark. It was not flowing when I was there but did have some water in the swimming hole, which Jess got to have a little paddle.
Well it was a different kind of trip for me. This was a trip I wanted to do in Chris’s honour. Places he wanted to go to on our last trip that we didn’t have time to do. He loved the hot pools, we both did.
The van “Trek” went brilliantly, the setup we did was very easy to use, setup and packup. I found even in a small space with a Jess in wet weather we could manage. Not ideal in the wet, but we did it. The van setup made it easier for me but also sad for me, as Chris was not there to enjoy it.
Easy to setup or drive.
We had some fun times, laughs, adventures and met some really lovely people. Went to a few new destinations.
It was a challenge for me at times missing Chris, going to places we had been together and having the memories of that time.
Judy was hanging out for a cuppa and tried to take the Cunnamulla Fellow’s one. 😂
The weather had a big impact and changed our plans a lot. So weather wise not the best trip. It also shortened our trip; we were away a little over 3 weeks.
One of the main places Chris wanted to go was Charlotte Plains and it was supposed to be the highlight of the trip. Unfortunately, that did not quiet pan out and was a little disappointing for us both.
Cunnamulla Bushlands.
The highlights for me were Goodooga and Yowah. I think Judy would agree. Both places we said we would go back too. I had a bit of a toast to Chris at the Yowah hot pools. I know Chris would have loved both of these places.
I did learn a lot on this trip, great to have confidence in the van and my ability to deal with it all by myself.
Campfire at Bollon.
I took Chris with me in my heart, his hat and some photos of him. I told him every night, of the day I had, the things and places we did and saw. It’s not the same at all as having him physically with me and that was hard, real hard. The first trip I assume will be the hardest, so I’ve done that. I know he would be up in heaven cheering me on. Pleased I did the trip, thankful that Judy was with me and able to share this first trip with me.
Judy just about blending in with the watermelon. 😂
