Directional Quandery!

Sunday, 4th October -we departed the Rock in early morning heat -- 30+ degrees Celsius by 8am -- eager to reach the next "major" town -- Norseman -- so we could refuel vehicle and restock supplies for the last leg of our travels to our final destination, Bornholm.

Norseman is a rather 'sleepy' place, especially on a Sunday when the majority of the town is closed! However, the main service station provides travellers with a good opportunity to do a little washing, contact home, cool off a little in the 40 degree heat, and enjoy a lovely lunch, before hitting the road again! But where to from here?

Leaving Norseman going west

Woodlands trail crosses a salt lake

This 'sleepy' town is basically the end of the Nullabor (Eyre) highway. It is, in my mind, like being at a T-intersection - if you turn left you head south towards the coast and Esperance, and cool sea breezes. If you turn right you head north towards Coolgardie, Kalgoorlie and 40+ degree heat! Both directions on the bitumen road.  My choice? The coast of course. OWO's choice -- north of course, as that was on the original travel plan! After some indepth discussions over lunch and a closer look at the map, a compromise was reached and we elected to travel westward -- along the 'Woodlands and Granite Trail' to Hyden - dirt all the way!!!!!

The Woodlands & Granite Trail

Dirt road it may be but it was a great compromise. The vistas along this Trail are amazing. Beautiful large, pure white, salt lake plains interspersed with colourful Spring wildflowers; eucalypt forests all in bloom; roadside red soils competed with deep purple and bright yellow wildflowers and shrubs; brilliant coloured grevilleas and banksias; sandstone cliffs and granite boulders interspersed with pockets of bracken and huge salmon coloured forest trees; and then the devastating sight of miles of forests that had been ravaged by bushfires earlier in the year. Mother Nature in all her glory in what would otherwise be a dry and desolate countryside.


All along this Trail there are "free" camp spots. Our first choice was MacDermid Rock, but this area was quite full so we chose to keep travelling on to the next spot - The Breakaways. It was quite late when we arrived (after 5pm) but it was worth the longer drive and we found a great spot sheltered from the strong winds and we were set up before sunset.

Information panel at The Breakaways

Entry to The Breakaways free camp area

This camp area is surrounded by the natural phenomena of 'breakaways' - cliff faces that have been eroded over time by wind and rain leaving a hard rock layer forming a Mesa. It was like being inside a large, a very large, open cave. The colours of the Breakaways are stunning - White, cream, rust, yellow, grey, and all shades of red. A photographic delight at any time of the day but magnificent at sunrise and sunset.

Monday - cloudy, windy, and a day for meeting fellow travellers. Awoke at 6am to the sound of a clicking camera and voices outside our tent. The OWO had discovered a pardalote nesting in the cliff face right next to our camp and he was chatting with fellow campers who were from Albany.

Seclusion at The Breakaways

Early afternoon turned to crap with very, very strong winds blowing sand around. But no 'dummy-spit' from me this time ( remember way back at Weetootla Gorge?). No, I just tucked myself into the tent and turned to my stitching!

Mid afternoon another van pulled in next to us and we met another lovely couple (Colin and Deb) from Mandurah on the west coast of WA, travelling north to Kalgoorlie. We really have been blessed with meeting so many wonderful people on this adventure.

Tuesday - not a happy camper to start the morning. A very, very cold night meant very little sleep -- cold AND tired makes for a very unhappy and teary camper. However, once the sun came up and I was warmed up with my morning cuppa, life looked a lot brighter. Despite the cold nights, oh and the millions of flies, we chose to stay another night in this beautiful spot.

Checking on 'willie-willie' damage

We were farewelling Colin and Deb later in the morning when a huge willie-willie passed by the tent area blowing down a large gum tree in its path. What a sight! Seen many small willie-willies on our travels but this was quite a big, strong one (now for all my non-Aussie readers a "willie-willie" is NOT a male appendage, it's probably more like a little dust tornado!!). Once the dust settled we checked out the damage and found quite a few small trees with broken branches as well as the larger tree that had fallen - probably weakened by the fire damage from earlier in the year.

Wednesday - After assisting an elderly couple (Iris and Doug - 89 and 91) who were having trouble with their vehicle, we farewelled the Breakaways and headed for Hyden. This little country town is renowned for its tourist attraction called "Wave Rock" - another "breakaway" phenomenon. However, we elected to by-pass the touristy attraction and continued on our merry way to Bornholm where we would be house-sitting for three weeks.

Golden wheat fields of WA

This part of the journey passed through one of WA's major wheatbelt regions, where fields of wheat glowed golden yellow in the sunshine. We also passed many salt lakes full of water and marvelled at the pinkish colour, wondering how crops could grow so well right next to salt plains. Rail tracks snaked through the region from one silo depot to the next. Many towns along this way only survive because of the wheat industry.

So on Wednesday, 7th October at 5.35pm we had finally arrived at Bornholm where we would be housed until the end of October in a little cottage, on 7 acres with two small lakes, Sheba the maniac dog, Louise the cuddly cat, two roosters, three chooks, and wild ducks.