Australia 2007

Perth - Kalgoorlie - Newman - Mt. Robinson

On Saturday July 28, 2007, early in the morning (flights arriving at 1 am in the morning should be forbidden ...) our friends Roger and Katarina arrive from France into a wintery wet and cold Perth.

We know Roger from 2005, when we travelled from Europe to Australia via the Panama Channel on the container freighter "CMA CGM Matisse" .
Roger travelled with us from Le Havre to Tahiti, were he showed us his island.
Now it was our turn to show him our "island" .... or at least some parts of it ....

To get them adjusted to a time-difference of 8 hours on Sunday we head off to Perth ....

... and enjoy Kings Park and the spring flowers ... in the rain ....

.... the Swan Bell Towers ... have a bit of a chat at Mrs. Maud's with cakes and coffee .... meet some of the "locals" ...

We leave Perth on Monday, July 30, 2007, in direction of Beverly were we plan to visit Robert and Cherry Williamson on their sheep farm .
The weather is absolutely disgusting, rain, rain, rain … we hope to find some better weather out east.

The country is soaked in water, some areas slightly flooded.
This is the fourth time we come through this area and for the first time we see water in the creeks, most of them are brown and swollen.
Many dams are full, but not all of them .... the last creek before the Williamson's farm is just about to be flooded …
Later on Robert tell us that this is an average rain year, like they used to have it.

We stay at Robert and Cherry farm for the night.

As usual there is lots of laughter and fun until late.

After a stormy night with a fair bit of rain and temperatures dropping to 9°C the sun breaks through the clouds, but not for long.

Cherry arranges that we can visit Robert's sister in Hyden.
This is great!

After a last feast on Cherry's famous date cake and details on how to get to the local tourist attractions we head off into the rainy day.
Thanks again for all!

The country is green and very pretty.
The sheep look like white clouds in a green ocean.

We stop at the Corrigin Dog Cemetery and then visit the small nature reserve right opposite of it.
Some flowers are just starting to get out ..... and the road is pretty wet ....

Then we turn south to wards Kulin to visit "The Tin Can / Tin Horse Highway" .

Along the road to Kulin horses made from tin cans have been lovingly placed to draw attention to the yearly horse races in October.

When stopping for a picture-taking session (another one ....) Ruedi makes his first experience with prolong periods of rain and their effect on shoulders of dirt roads ....
But luckily with engaging 4WD and the diff the OKA pulls out of it with ease.

At the Lake Grace turn-off we cannot continue because the road has been damaged and they only allow vehicles up to 3.5 Tones.
This means that we have to drive back to Kulin, adding a total of almost 50 km to our route.

We reach Hyden just as it gets dark and manage to find the farm of Garry and Wendy Whitwell.

We have a great evening with Garry and Ruedi playing the guitar and the rest of us singing along.

On Wednesday Garry shows us the farm's machinery.

Garry, Wendy and their sons farm 4'800 – 5'000 ha of arable land.
Seeding takes 4 men two months (6 weeks 7 days 24 hours non-stop work).
Two drivers change shifts every 12 hours, one person brings supplies and spares and one person removing the large rocks and tree roots.

The machine for seeding is 18.5 m wide.

The tractor pulling the seeding machine and the liquid Nitrogen tank is fitted with caterpillar tracks to lessen the compression of the ground.

The whole digging, seeding, fertilizing and covering process is done in one go.
If the Tungsten digging-tool hits a rock it bounces back and then tries again with a softer approach, to get around the rock.
The fertilizer is dropped a bit aside the seed, close enough to fertilize but not too close that it would burn the young plant.
Then liquid Nitrogen (Flexi-N) is sprayed on the ground close by, but again far away enough.
Then the wheel will close the drench and compact it.

The machine can be configured with regards to the depth of the drench and also with the amount of pressure applied to the soil after seeding according to the seeds that are planted.
Every 50 – 60 ha the machine needs to be reloaded with seeds, fertilizer and liquid Nitrogen.
The crops they grow are Lupines as sheep fodder, Fabar Beans and Barley for human consumption and Canola for oil production.

Other heavy machinery is also sitting in the shed, ready for when they are required to do the job.
Maintenance to the whole machinery is done locally.

The sprayer is 45 m wide. It is pulled by a tractor with wheels to keep the amount of plants flattened by the machine as little as possible.
The tank holds 7'000 litre and 120 – 150 ha can be sprayed with one tank.
The tractor is automatically guided by a GPS. Thanks to differential GPS the driven route, calculated by a PC, is accurate to 3 cm.
Garry's role basically is to watch for alarm lights, the rest is all done automatically.
Today's modern farmers must have a good understanding of computing and also on how to maintain the complex machines.

Later on Garry has to move the sprayer to another property some 60 km north.

Roger and Katarina's camper is equipped with an "Oversize" sign, Ruedi climbs into the tractors cabin with Garry, we all tune into channel 40 (the channel uses by trucks) and leave.

Roger has to keep a distance of approx. 500 m to the sprayer.
Susi is manning the UHF radio; she has to warn Garry about every oncoming car so he can drive to the side of the road

Most of the road is dirt track. Roger's camper is not made for these roads and every so often has a bit of a problem.
On the corrugation the camper also looses one of its wheel covers which is then picked up by Garry and Ruedi.
But at the end we all manage and are proud of it.

When reaching the other property Garry checks the rain gauge.
In the 10 days since he was last here, 38 mm if ran have fallen.
Garry is very pleased with that.
It looks like after the last six dry years this one could be a good one.

Garry explains that until a few weeks ago there had been so little rainfall that in some areas the seeds did not even germinate.
Some of the Lupines have stayed so small that it will be hard to harvest them with the machine.
With this rain the lupines will not be able to catch up but at least the seeds that have not yet germinated will now have another chance.

On the way back we stop at "Mulka's Cave" and "The Humps".
We decide to climb "The Humps", a large set of rocks that provide a 360° view.

"The Humps" are also called the poor-man's version of Wave Rock.
Both were created by belowground weathering ... moisture present in the deeper layers of the soil continuously chewing away at the rock face while it was still underground.

A string of miniature gardens cover the rock face.
They host large numbers of sundews (carnivorous plants), their sticky leaves trapping insects that nourish the plant.

The rock ferns (Cheilanthes austrotenuifolia) growing among the boulders are also interesting.
They are a type of "resurrection plant" - subjected to heat and drought they wither to a dry and twisted thing, apparently dead, but regain their full healthy shape within 24 hours of rain!

Hundreds of millions of years ago the climate here was tropical, and "The Humps" was covered in rainforest.
One of the survivors of that area is the "Silver Princess" (Eucalyptus caesia subspecies caesia), with its pale silver-white bark and its pink flowers, one of Australia's favourite trees.

"The Humps" is bordered by rock sheoaks (Allocasuarina huegeliana).
Their walnut-sized woody nuts are so rough that emus sometimes eat them to help grind up the food in their stomachs!

The sculptured rocks are mostly the product of wind and water, with a little help from chemical reactions and microscopic creatures.
A hollow or cavern (tafone) forms in the rock and grows from the inside outwards. Eventually the outer rock shell is breached, leaving this "windows".
They can reach metres in diameter. "Mulka's Cave" is also an example of a tafone on a giant scale.

On the way down we pas a dam and read about the unwelcome help in fostering an invasion of weeds the deliver ....
Plants such as rat's tail fescue (Vulpia myuros - a Eurasian species that grows to 20 cm), three-leaved subterranean clover (Trifolium subterrruneum - from Asia and the Mediterranean), blowfly or quaking grass (Briza maxima - also from the Mediterranean) and a daisy from South Africa with yellow to reddish flowers (Ursinia anthemoides) have all moved in.
Nonetheless, a hardy collection of natives stand their ground, including triggerplants, local grasses, tiny daisies and geophytes (plants with underground tubers) like the elbow orchid (Spiculaea ciliata) and early Nancy (Wurmbea graniticola).
Sadly, on battlegrounds such as this the native species are rarely the winners.

The recent rains have left puddles of water everywhere and the animals love it ... and the rainbow is stunning!

We head back to the farm and have a very interesting evening with discussion about God and the world.

After a cold night with only 6.9°C we wake up to beautiful warm sunshine.
Garry has taken the opportunity and is already at the other property spraying the crops.
As we pack up Wendy keeps spoiling us.
Thanks Garry and Wendy!
We had a great time at your place.

We head into town for shopping and find this mob …

... the horse even has "intestines" ....

Then its time to hit the Hyden – Norseman Road.
This time we will take our time and have a look at all the signs and attractions.

We pass the State Barrier Fence and find out what this fence was built for.
For details about the fence and its reason please click here.
We had seen similar fences in Coober Pedy ( dog fence ) and also in Roxby Downs ( Arid Recovery Project ) earlier in the year.

Soon after we also pass the turn-off into the Holland Track.

The few flowers that are already out wake memories of last year's beautiful trip along the Holland Track into the spring flowers .

Then we reach the shire boundary.
Just a bit of statistics ....

Size: Measuring just 40 km from north to south, but more than 200 km from the eastern to the western boundary, the Shire of Kondinin in the West Australian context is of medium size, covering 7'340 square kilometres.	Size: Stretching more than 900 kilometres eastward to Eucla near the South Australian border, the Shire of Dundas covers a massive 92'725 square kilometres - more than ten times the area of the Shire of Kondinin.
Population: The population of the Shire is approximately 1'200, split between farming properties, some mining camps and the three towns in the Shire - Hyden, Karlgarin and Kondinin.	Population: Yet so much of the Dundas Shire remains 'wilderness' that the population is similar to its western neighbour - around 1'200 people.

This nicely shows that we are really heading in direction of the famous "Outback" ... where there is a lot of space and no people, just a lot of "nothing" .
This also means that we are heading into areas, where we will have to be a bit more careful with what we do
There won't be too many cars and people coming past to help should we have a problem.

[This week , as we write this diary (end of September), 3 Australians went missing in exactly this area. They didn't return from a 4 hour trip. A search operation using airplanes and cars were started and they were found 3 days later - totally dehydrated but alive.
They had just 2 punctures and a leaking radiator ...
Reason: Bad preparation.
Costs: "mere" 100'000 AUD.]

It is not easy to understand what the Outback really means with regards to precautions you should take e.g. always carrying water, wearing proper shoes (even if it is hot ... thongs and sandals are not really the shoes you should wear in the bush ...) etc.
You have to run into problems first (or realise that you have just been very lucky and things could have gone terribly wrong) before you actually start acting accordingly.

Then we find "The Breakaways".

We are impressed about the colours of the different rocks.

Breakaways, those hard capped and colourful cliffs, are one of the oldest geological regions on earth (Yilgarn Block).
Soil types of any softness have gradually eroded through the ceaseless action of wind and water.
Only those areas with a hard laterite (ironstone / granite) top have resisted this grinding and reshaping.
Where the crust of these laterite layers has crumbled the hard top remains to form a 'mesa' while the continuing erosion of the surrounding softer soil and rock forms a steep "breakaway"
The magnificent colours so often seen in these cliffs are a consequence of varying soil types, with lateritic types giving the rusty reds and shales and sandstones the softer yellows and whites.

Here we can also see the "bark stripping" that occurs in a number of woodland eucalypts or ribbon gums.
In late spring, summer or early autumn long trailing streamers of bark are gracefully dangling down from the trees being the eucalypti's annual bark replacement.

We reach the first mines and stop for lunch at the crossing of the Forrestania Southern Cross Road, wondering what kind of vehicles cross here ...

The truck seems to consist of two parts, each equipped with its own engine.
We also learn a lot about the Lake Johnston Nickel Mine Operations.
For details please click here.

But time is pressing, we want to be in Norseman before dark.
So there is no time left to investigate any other of the attractions along the track.
We roll into Norseman with the last light of the day and have a quiet night at the caravan park.

Friday morning is cold but sunny.

A camper takes his parrot for a walk and stops for a talk ...

As it was already to dark last evening we head back out to Lake Cowan for some photos.
For details about what kind of life salt lakes like Lake Cowan can support please click here .

Next stop is at the Bacon Hill Lookout.

The old parts of the mine are well visible, the new parts are underground.
For some history of Norseman and how it all began please click here.

Time goes past fast and already it is time to leave and to drive to Kalgoorlie, where we stay in the bush for the night.

After another cold night with 5.6°C the sun wakes us up.
The second battery in Roger's camper has given up on the corrugation and needs to be replaced so we head into town.

Kalgoorlie is a pretty little town.

A fountain in the middle of town remembers Paddy Hannan.
His water bag actually works!

When in June 1893 Paddy Hannan found gold and registered his claim within days an estimated 700 men had joined him and were prospecting in the area.
By 1897 the population had grown so fast that two towns had been established, Kalgoorlie and Boulder.
There was so much wealth generated that by 1910 the cities had fresh water (being brought by pipeline from the Mundaring Weir some 500 km east), electricity, gracious buildings, a tramline running on Hannan Street and every possible comfort hardworking men could wish for.

Many of the original buildings still exist and have bee restored nicely ...

... the City Markets ...

A number of squatters had set up small businesses in the place were the City Markets stand today.
Any attempts by officials to remove them met with resistance.
Sir John Forrest told the Council that if they could be removed, then the land would be given to the municipality as an endowment.
With a "characteristic common to gold-mining communities Council took the shortest way out of the difficulty and bought out the squatters".

… the hotels and shops …

… the Court House and Town Hall …

There is a fountain in honour of St. Barbara, the patron saint of the miners.

St. Barbara was the Christian daughter of a heathen noble man who had promised her hand in marriage to a non Christian suitor.
She fled to hide in mines underground. The miners protected her and in return she passed on her Christian teachings.
For two years she remained underground until shepherds informed her father of her whereabouts.
Getting water she was captured sentenced to death and beheaded by her father.

At the tourist information centre we find out that there will be a blast at the Super Pit, the largest open-cut gold mine in the world, at 1 PM.
So we head out there and have good look around.

The pit is still very impressive, even if it is not the first time we look down into it.

The fleet of machines they use is pretty impressive in all aspects, not just its size .... for photos and more details please click here .

Here some more comparisons in size ...

It is almost 1 PM and we try to find out, which area will be blasted, without success we must admit.
The loud speakers start crackling and the blasting preparations are broadcasted.
The tensions increase and then we hear boom, boom, boom, and a light tremor can be felt.
Was that all?
Yes … the blasting was done behind the corner and the only sign of it is a slowly rising dust cloud … we are a bit disappointed.
But had they had a large blast the visitor section would have been evacuated anyway.

Next stop is the Miner's Hall of Fame.
We arrive just in time for the Gold Pouring demonstration.
We watch in awe as the liquid gold is pored into the little mould ... only later the guide tells us that is not gold … just a mixture of copper and other minerals.
Considering the price of gold it is not surprising that they don't pour real gold.

Then its time for the underground tour.

We fetch a hard hat and enter the small elevator that takes us down 15 m underground into one of the original mines on the "Golden Mile".

The tour guide is a retired miner and shows us the different tools they used for the job.
His comment is "The money was good but the job was horrible."
For more pictures and info please click here.

There is much more to be seen .... but as we want to reach Menzies before sunset we have to leave this interesting place.
Another reason to return to Kalgoorlie (again and again ....).

We reach Menzies just with the last rays of sun and find us a spot at the local caravan park.
The night is not too cold with 10.9°C, we are getting further north into the warmer climate.
We don't mind at all!

On Sunday morning we head out to Lake Ballard.
We want to have a look at the carbonised steel figures that were created by Antony Gormley.

We climb the small hill and find some pretty views.

The 51 figures derived from laser scans of the inhabitants of Menzies ... we find it hard to see different people in them.

After the recent rains the salt lake is still wet in some areas, shoes leave marks on it.
It is also interesting to investigate the various animal tracks and the formations of salt crystals on the slowly drying lake.

But some people that cannot read signs have driven their cars onto the soft surface of the salt lake, leaving their marks there until the next flood will wash them away or maybe for even longer.
With some pleasure we inspect the track of one that got nicely bogged .... suits him / her right!

As we continue on the dirt track a nice little Goana lets us take pictures.
Otherwise the route to Leonora is rather boring, nothing special.

In Leonora we spot this tree ... amazing what people do.

We visit the ghost-town of Gwalia that we visited last year and liked so much.
It is sad to see such a great place deteriorate so quickly.

Then head out to Malcom Dam for the night.
The nights are getting warmer; this one only fell to 12°C.

We are wakening up to beautiful sunshine. The surface of the water in the dam looks like liquid metal.
We are lucky - the weather forecast for the Leonora area predicts nice weather, for the coast and south (Norseman area) rain.
We don't mind ...

We head north. More and more flowers are in bloom at the side of the road.
We are definitely heading in the right direction.

A strong wind hits us head on, the fuel consumption is going to be very high on this stretch of road (90 km/h driving speed + 30 km/h wind ...)

We turn into Leinster, a small rather new town (was built in 1977 to support the local mining industry).
When checking the road conditions with the local Police they don't recommend to travel via Wiluna to Mekatharra as the connecting gravel road is "very corrugated at it's best" and definitively not recommended for Roger and Katarina's camper.
So we head east towards Sandstone.

The wind is now hitting us from the side making driving a bit of a challenge for Roger and Katarina's camper; they get pushed around a bit … the OKA does not really care, its weight keeping the truck firm on the road.
For once the weight is an advantage.

The weather is just great, the temperature reaching 25.5°C with beautiful sunshine. Bliss!!
After passing the Booylgoo Range the wind hits us so strongly that at times it is not possible to keep the 90 km/h speed.

Then we reach the sleepy little town of Sandstone, which is located in the Black Range.
It is the classical development story of a town in the Goldfields ....
In 1894 gold was discovered in the area.
In 1907 the town already had 6'000 to 8'000 inhabitants, four hotels, many cafes, four butchers, a well staffed police station and two banks.
In July 1910 the railway came to Sandstone, by 1919 all was over, only 200 people remaining in the town.
Many buildings were pulled down and moved to other towns, leaving many empty spaces throughout the town.

People at Sandstone try very hard to make the town attractive. The wide main road is decorated with pretty wildflowers, the houses renovated, the old mining equipment used as flower pots ... even skimpy nights are organised at the pub … But other things just make you realise how remote this place is. Sandstone has a nursing post that is operated by the Royal Flying Doctor Service ... one day per week every three weeks. The next medical facilities are in Mt. Magnet (150 km on bitumen road) or Mekatharra (195 km on dirt road). This really is bush …

The post office is typical for a small town, housing the post office, the general store and the bank in one room.

We want to know more about the tourist attractions they offer and visit the tourist information centre.
It is cute and also houses the local museum.
There we also get the key to the town's church.

The small church used to be a Catholic Church and was built in 1908.
In 1995 the church was restored and became a non-denominated church.
The main feature is the stained glass window showing the local landscape, flora and fauna.

Then we head out to the London Bridge.

London Bridge is a rock arch, formed from sandstone believed to be 350 mio years old.
Erosion has taken its toll.
In the 1900's one was till able to cross it with horse and wagon ... these days there is a warning sign not to walk over it.

We stay for the night at the dusty Sandstone caravan park.
A thunderstorm passes but sadly does not bring much water to the drought-plagued area.
In "normal" years at this time of the year in this area the red earth should be converted to a carpet of colour.
But in the guide book it clearly states "Subject to seasonal rain" which this year has not come.
We are starting to doubt that we will see the famous wildflowers at all ....

On Tuesday morning we continue west and stop at Mount Magnet, the oldest operating gold settlement in Western Australia.

Here too some of the old buildings have been restored.
Prospecting gear and guide books on how to find gold can be bought at local stores.

They for sure have a special way of wording their job-offers!
Here the transcript (please excuse the wording in some parts ....):

"Are you sick of living the normal life? Do YOU want to ruin your home life, divorce your wife, drink like an alcoholic, have NO friends or money, no interest in anything but work, lose your mind, become a big fat slob, get treated like a child, look like shit ... IF THIS IS WHAT YOU WANT IN LIFE, THEN YOU ARE JUST THE PERSON WE ARE LOOKING FOR! COME JOIN IN THE MINES, We have all this to offer, and more ... Do you have those days when you just don't know what to wear to work? Well you needn't worry any more, have a few drinks in the wet mess and just go to bed in what you've got on, wake up the next day. No problem, about looking fancy, just go as you are. If you like working 24 hours a day, no problem, because that's what the wet mess is for, repeating the day's events Tonne for Tonne. If you have a wife or girlfriend, don't worry, you won't for long once she sees what your like now .... If you have hobbies we can easily get rid of them, the only one you need is a drinking hobby. If you have manners, well they will have to go too, the only vocabulary you will need to know is the following .... That's a carton, Brown nose, Fucking wanker, Double time, snatch it, Nice tits, Me Aircon's not working, Where's me pay and NO, I didn't do it! (IN OTHER WORDS - COVER YOUR ARSE!) THIS IS JUST A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF A LIFE IN THE MINES. For a full colour brochure, (6'789 pages) please write to the following .... "

It is also obvious that we are back on the Great Northern Highway.
A lot of heavy mining machinery is transported on this road.

We head out to "The Granites", breakaways in pretty orange, red-yellow and white colours.
Erosion has created some interesting rock formations.

Then we head north through Cue, another Goldfield's town.
Today just a few buildings remain, some of them still waiting to be restored.

Gold was so abundant in Cue that a sister town, Day Dawn, was erected, its mine was the premier gold mine in WA in its time.
In those days the mines would provide the infrastructure in the towns.
So when the mine closed in 1918 it took Day Dawn's light and power supply with it, which not surprising was the end of the town.

We continue on to the "Walga Rocks".

The rocks are pretty and quiet impressive.

The rock art has suffered a lot.
Interesting is the painting of a large sail boat with some sort of script below … it is definitively not traditional Aboriginal painting style …

We settle down, get the chairs, cameras, Port and nuts out and enjoy the sun set.

The rock also changes colours but not as much as the Ayers Rock or the Olgas.
Still, the atmosphere is very peaceful.

The temperatures drop fast and we hurry into the campers for some shelter from the wind.
Over night the temperatures drop to 5.6°C again.

We get up early on Wednesday morning as we want to reach Mekatharra in the morning to be able to visit the School of Air and the Royal Flying Doctor Base.
Being on the move again already at 7.30 AM enables us to see many kangaroos.

On the way north we pass many mines, some of them with large equipment parked right at the side of the road.

We reach Mekatharra shortly after 10 AM.
When asking at the Tourist Information where the School of Air can be found we are informed that it had burned down 12 month ago.
When asking about the Royal Flying Doctors we are informed that they are a bit short staffed and there is a chance that they are not at the base … which is the case when we get to the base.
We are a bit frustrated but decide to hang around for a bit and see if by any chance they come back to the base.

There is lots of historical stuff to have a look at.
The displays again show us how much change the Goldfields have gone through.
For details please click here.

We explore Mekatharra.
The town is very clean but all windows are secured with bars and security screens, which gives the town a bit of a hostile atmosphere.

We head north towards the next town, Newman, some 422 km away.
There is a lot of traffic on the road, mainly Road-Trains and in between the odd Tourist with campers and caravans.

We don't manage to reach Newman and have to stop at the Capricorn Roadhouse for the night.
It is too dangerous to drive at night with all the kangaroos and other animals crossing the road.
For the first time on this trip we can eat outside.
But the night temperature still drops to 5.6°C.

On Thursday morning we get up early and reach the Newman Tourist Office shortly before 8 AM.
The friendly staff informs us that there is no 8.30 AM tour of the Mt. Whaleback Mine today and that the 10 AM tour is already fully booked.
We are a very frustrated, but then decide to change plans and do a bit of washing and shopping and go on the 2 PM tour.

There is no laundrette in Newman anymore so we ask at the Dearlover's Caravan Park if we can use their machines.
While Roger and Katarina do their washing and Susi the shopping Ruedi drives up to the Tourist Office and tackles the assembly of the new spare tire.

Something is wrong and the tyre just cannot be assembled.
We try and try, but even brute force does not change things, we cannot assemble it.
As Ruedi has to finish this tyre Susi returns their tickets for the mine tour. Roger and Katarina will have to go on their own.
Ruedi and Susi inspect the tyre and carefully push the beadlock under the rim.
Then suddenly the tyre can be assembled and the screws tightened.
As it is shortly after 1 PM Susi rushed over to the Tourist Office and gets the tickets back.

We just manage to clean all up and already it is time to go on the tour.

The bus picks us up and we are driven through the security gate into the Mt. Whaleback Mine.
Soon we all stare at the large equipment and the mind-boggling "details" that the tour guide passes on to us.
We are very impressed!
For photos and details please click here.

But soon it is time to continue on.

We head out to Mt. Robinson where we stay for the night.