Kalgoorlie to Yulara

We left Kalgoorlie on 10^th July and travelled north on the Goldfields Highway to Menzies, a 130 km backtrack, then turned off towards Laverton.    We called in to Niagara Dam, which was constructed to supply water for the railways during the gold rush days.

Niagara Dam

Mulla Mulla  (just like my placemat)

There were plenty of good campspots around the dam, but it was too early to stop for the day, so we continued on to Kookynie, a “living” ghost town.   After lunch here, it was 50 k’s of good dirt road to the highway to Laverton.    Along this section of road we passed Lake Raeside, and were pleasantly surprised by the amount of water and birdlife.    I also spied my first desert pea of the trip, and it was such a vivid colour.     Just 100 k’s then to Laverton, past nickel and cobalt mines.

Lake Raeside

 

Such delicate flowers in a barren landscape

Friday morning dawned clear and cold for the start of our adventure on the Great Central Road, also known as The Outback Way, Australia’s Longest Shortcut – the route from Laverton to Winton.   Our first day’s travel was 315 k’s which included some very challenging corrugations, and quite good dirt.   We travelled at speeds between 10 and 80 kph.     Our overnight stop was the Tjukayirla Roadhouse, which provided a very good campground and excellent showers/toilets, especially considering the remoteness of the place.  

Start of The Great Central Road

Lunch stop - Day 1

Tjukayirla Roadhouse - fuel in cages

Sunset behind, moon in front

Road conditions to Warburton on Saturday were quite good, with about 30 k’s of bitumen, which was a nice change.    We stayed at the roadhouse overnight, keeping a keen eye on the dark clouds coming in late in the afternoon.   After an early start on Sunday morning, the driver was becoming very concerned about the possibility of rain.   We made good time to Warakurna for fuel, hot coffee and chips, so decided to keep going.   

Just a few corrugations!!!!!

Lots of footprints, but only 3 camels on the road

Avenue of desert oaks

.......... and the worst section of road

The road was in good condition until the WA/NT border where it quickly deteriorated, for many kilometres past Docker River.    It had started to rain, and the idea of spending a night beside the road was not a favoured option.    A decent downpour and we could be stuck.   Luckily we met the grader driver working his way along the road, and he said we just had about 10 more k’s of bad road, then it would be good right to Yulara.    We were very pleased to come across the newly graded road as it had begun to rain quite heavily and was getting dark.

We reached the bitumen leading in to Yulara around 7 pm, and made our way to the campground.  We thought we knew our way around the camp fairly well, having stayed here twice before, but this time we were placed in the overflow area, as they were allegedly full.    It was very stressful trying to find our way up to the back of the property, through very narrow “streets” in an area we didn’t know existed.  

On Monday morning when we went to check out our allotted powered site, it was still occupied, so we stayed in the paddock – much less crowded (and $10 instead of $48 per night).   I had lost track of which states were on school holidays, but it could well have been everyone by the number of vans, tents, and children at Yulara.    The morning was very cold and overcast, but during the day the clouds cleared somewhat, so I took advantage of the lookout in the park to view Uluru near sunset.   I am glad we have seen The Rock at its best, and we did not have to stay here any longer than necessary.

Lots of room in the paddock

Uluru from the campground lookout

The Olgas in profile

Newman to Kalgoorlie

Thursday, 3^rd July – Newman was very cold early in the morning, but it quickly warmed up with clear, blue skies making for a very comfortable day’s drive.   Less than 20 k’s south of Newman we crossed the Tropic of Capricorn, and during the morning’s drive we saw many magnificent wedge tail eagles on or near the road.    They don’t leave their feast of road kill until vehicles are very close to them, sometimes being a bit too slow to fly off as we saw several dead birds.  The countryside was much drier, with spinifex looking like fields of wheat, then mulga scrub, red dirt and gibbers.  We had planned to overnight at Meekatharra, but at our lunch stop at Gascoyne South a fellow traveller told us about a small caravan park at Karalunda.    It was in fact a boarding school for indigenous youth run by the Seventh Day Adventist Church, with two cabins and space for about 8 vans – a great overnighter – and locally grown oranges and pumpkin for sale.

Friday morning we travelled 60 k’s to Meekatharra for fuel, then headed off on the first major dirt road of the trip, the Goldfields Highway, 180 k’s to Wiluna.   The road was in very good condition, with up to 50 k’s of bitumen, which was a pleasant surprise.    Our lunch stop was at Wiluna, which was the end of our Gunbarrel Highway trip in 2011.  It is also the start/finish of the Canning Stock Route.    We continued south to our overnight stay at Leinster, a BHP town for their nearby nickel mine.    It was established in the late 60’s and reminded me very much of Weipa the way the town centre, etc was set out.  We were surprised by the number and size of gold and nickel mines along the way today.

Start of the Goldfields "Highway"

Lunch stop at Wiluna

The drive south to Kalgoorlie was quite picturesque, passing through the historical gold mining towns of Leonora and Menzies. 

Main street of Leonora

Menzies

Town Hall, Menzies

The landscape nearing Kalgoorlie was very green woodlands with beautiful gums, wattle, grevilleas, and other species.    

We chose the Top Tourist Caravan Park at the end of Burt Street, the main street of Boulder, which is really an extension of Kalgoorlie.    The epicentre of an earthquake was in Boulder in 2010, and buildings are still being restored, though some will not be rebuilt.

The very cold south-westerly winds from a storm front were with us on Sunday, but we did visit the public lookout to the Super Pit, then had a walk around the streets of Kalgoorlie (very quiet, with no Sunday trading here).   Except for the wonderful bakery!   A good view of the town was had from the Mt Charlotte Reservoir, which holds water which is pumped from the Mundaring Dam in the Perth hills.

View from Mt Charlotte to Super Pit

Main street of Boulder to Super Pit

The Kalgoorlie Super Pit

Kalgoorlie Town Hall with gold-leafed dome

Part of Hannan St, Kalgoorlie

View towards town from Mt Charlotte Reservoir

The alarm was set on Monday morning so we could be at the office of the only company which conducts tours of the Kalgoorlie Gold Mine Super Pit – the office was not open on the weekend to book a seat.   It was an excellent tour, with lots of information and views from 2 lookouts within the Super Pit.   The mine has approval to continue until 2021, not sure what will happen after that.  The population of Kalgoorlie/Boulder is about 32,000 and there are new suburbs being developed, which would seem to indicate a long life for the town, with or without the mine.   It was interesting to learn that apart from mining in the pit, there is mining 1.2 k’s underneath the main street.    Tonight we had heavy rain with thunder and pea-sized hail – not something we have ever experienced in winter.

Tuesday was windy and very cold, so a visit to the Museum was a great indoor activity.   It was very informative, with lots of old photos and stuff.    While watching one of the TV screens, there popped up a photo taken in a Kalgoorlie office on the 4^th June, 1909 – just 1 day after Grandma was born.   

Today has been spent on van maintenance, washing, etc.    We were able to get our permits for the Great Central Road here which was very helpful.   Not sure where we will be tomorrow night, maybe Laverton,  but most certainly will be on the road to Uluru by Saturday – a 3 day drive on what will most likely be a very dusty, corrugated road – we won’t be in any rush.

Exmouth to Newman

Saturday, 28^th June we left Exmouth and after 86 kms the GPS was showing E as we drove towards the North West Coastal Highway to Nanutarra, so I suppose we are now heading towards home.   On our last drive along this road the landscape was just red dirt and mulga, but this time there was much greenery and very healthy, young spinifex.    After a refuel at Nanutarra Roadhouse,  we travelled along Nanutarra-Wittenoom Road to our overnight stop at the Beasley River.    This was our longest day’s drive in many weeks – 460 kms.   Luckily we reached the camp area by mid afternoon and found a good spot before other areas quickly filled.

Beasley River campsite (no water for paddling here)

A type of hibiscus

Sunday we continued to Paraburdoo, a Rio Tinto mining town, then in to Tom Price, also Rio Tinto, to refuel.    Unfortunately the bakery here had closed, so I only have memories of the delicious vanilla slice I had there 2 years ago. 

Coming in to Paraburdoo

  It was only about 60 kms to Karijini National Park, where we were allocated a very generous site.

Monday morning we awoke to just 3 degrees, so the diesel heater was given a good workout.    We left at 9am to walk down to Circular Pool, along Dales Gorge to Fortescue Falls.    There was much rock scrambling and short water crossings on strategically placed rocks, but a very scenic walk.    After climbing the rocks near the Falls, we went in to the Fern Pool, where 2 brave Scottish girls decided they would go for a swim.

The local corellas were having their midday nap in the trees nearby.

A pair of spinifex pigeons

Circular Pool from top of the gorge

Circular Pool after a rocky climb down

A vein of asbestos (blue in its natural state)

Fortescue Falls

From top of the Falls back down Dales Gorge ( a very good climb)

The Fern Pool with resident corellas

Looks like  mini mulla mulla

After leaving Karijini on Tuesday it was a short distance to the Great Northern Highway, then 100 kms south to Newman.  This is a very busy road used for moving mining equipment through the Pilbara.   We had to park right off the road a couple of times to allow wide loads to pass.   We arrived at the caravan park at Newman by lunch time.    We are now well and truly into red dirt territory, so a good supply of napisan for soaking socks, etc. is on board.  

This morning we enjoyed a tour of the BHP Mt Whaleback Iron Ore Mine – it is huge and apparently has about another 60 years of ore left to be mined.    The daytime temperature is a very acceptable 23 degrees.