Author: Jude & Tui

After 11 days we decided that it was time to leave Onslow.  What a great place! Many thanks to Macka for his hospitality and Turbo for the use of his boat, crabs, fish and great company. We were parked out the front of Macka’s house but after a visit from the Ranger the next morning we had to park down the side of his house as there had been a complaint.  So after a few adjustments with the Chainsaw we made it in.

Tui and I took a drive out to Old Onslow in the Suzuki.  Lots of rain so the road was very messy.  Hence the Suzuki is pretty dirty.

Asburton River Old Onslow                                        Causeway Old Onslow

Old Jail & Hotel at Old Onslow

Tui finally got his bike off the trailer to do a couple of rides with Macka.

Macka and Tui coming back from Bike riding.

We had these cute little Bush Canaries coming up to the windows on Tiki Tourer.

Tui and I managed to get a days work at the local Hardware Store doing stock take and after a few nights socialising at the Pub by the time we left we felt like locals. Great to meet Marbo and Phyliis, who coloured my hair for me, thanks buddy. Unfortunately the only fish Jude caught was under size and had to be thrown back, luckily Tui caught a feed and came home with Prawns after helping unload the trawler.

Our last weekend there was an awesome fireworks display as well as a Rihana, Lady Gaga impersonator concert.  Great night!

Our camera doesn’t do the fireworks justice.

It was then off North again.  Called into Robe River Rest Area for a cuppa.  A great spot to camp but we figured we hadn’t traveled far enough, Tiki Tourer hadn’t even warmed up so we carried on to Miaree Pool, which is in the camps 5 book.  Fantastic spot but once again a visit from the Ranger in the morning to tell us no camping allowed.

Robe River Rest Area

Went out to Dampier to have a look and we cooked Bacon & Eggs for lunch. Dampier & the road back to Karatha below

Spent the rest of the day shopping for supplies and had planned to drive out to a Freedom Camping spot but by the time we were finished it was getting late.  Stayed at the overflow camping at the Golf Course for $15.  Pretty good we thought.  Tui had visited Karatha a few years previously to do Garage Doors and said that you can get a meal at the Mining Camp for $18 so off we went.  Price has gone up to $25 but what a variety of food and the quality is great.  After filling up Suzi and finally finding Tui some Home Brew ingredients next morning we headed out to Cleaverville Beach, which is only 26km NW of Karatha.  $7 a night!  The thinking was we would stay for 1 or 2 nights , however below is the view from my office so we may hang a bit longer.

The road in is 13km of gravel but pretty good except for the last bit which is pretty corrugated. Check out the Wild Flowers!

Well that’s about it for now.  Until next time as we always say “Laugh more, live longer!!”

Left Hamelin Station and intended to stay at either Gladstone or Bush Bay, however there had been heavy rain the night before and the roads were too wet and slippery to travel on so we ended up staying at the Canarvon Caravan Park, after finding the Dump Point and Water access at the Aboriginal Centre. Very friendly people but it was a tight squeeze getting Tiki Tourer in.  Went and got a Seafood Basket each for tea and there was so much we couldn’t eat it all.

Gnomesville at Gladstone Scenic Lookout.  Very cute!

Carnarvon Jetty by the Rail Museum                       Quobba Point

Next morning after stocking up on Food & Fuel we headed to Quobba Point to see the Blowholes.  You are able to camp at the point for $5.50 a night, with the Ranger collecting the fees, however you can also camp at Quobba Station, which we decided to do.  Not a good option really $22.00 a night and the facilities are not that flash.  Tiki Tourer also got a bit of a bashing on the corrugations. It was ok though as we were close to the Beach. Another lesson!

Fishermen at Quobba Point                                        The Blowholes

Tui contemplating on Quobba Station Beach

Off again next morning to Barradale Rest Area.  This is a free 24hr camping spot 156 km NE of the Minilya Roadhouse.  Great spot, plenty of room and we had friendly neighbours.  Sorry no photos. This part of the journey we have had a few issues with getting Internet Service.  Should have bought that Satellite connection!!

We actual had a fairly early start next morning and it was off to Onslow we go!

Some scenery driving to Onslow.

We have a good Mate that lives here so parked Tiki Tourer outside his gate.  However we had a visit from the Ranger to say there had been a complaint and that we had to move it.  Luckily Tui managed to get it down the side of Maka’s house.  So all good!

Photos of Onslow.

It is undecided how long we will stay here.  Tui is considering work options but also wants to catch up with people in Broome.  This is a great place!  More about it in the next Blog.

Until then “Laugh more, live longer” and we are doing lots of that!!!

Just back from a very successful 1st 4×4 camping trip. As in our previous Blog we stayed at Hamelin Station Stay, a great place to set off from for Steep Point. www.hamelinstationstay.com.au. A special thanks to Mary & Brian and John & Wendy for making our stay so enjoyable.

Dining, Barbie & Reception area  and the sign to Reception

The Lake at Hamelin Station Stay & the ablution block.  Very nice!

Sue & Paul arrived up from Perth all loaded with their double swag, Barbie, Fishing Rods etc. & food to last a month or two. We all stayed at Hamelin Station Stay Monday night then set off for Steep Point Tuesday morning. What a magnificent place!!  A MUST see if you have a 4 wheel Drive vehicle.

All set to go                                                                     Our Camp Site (Turtle camp)

The road out there wasn’t as bad as anticipated.  Mind you there had been rain prior to our departure and the Ranger had just graded the day before. Our camp site above was spectacular as you can see we couldn’t get much closer to the beach, however our closest Dunny was 10 mins walk away. We drove out to Steep Point just as the sun had gone down so unfortunately our photo of the sign is a bit dark and unreadable.  We had decided we would go back in the daylight but that didn’t happen. The 1st night Tui & Paul found a good fishing spot and didn’t get home till midnight.  Not huge fish but very tasty and it was fantastic to have fresh fish for breakfast! Jude made the mistake of offering to do the filleting the 1st day so that was the designated chore from then on.

The flash Dunny!                                                            Jude Filleting

Thursday was a day of looking at the sites. It is really hard to describe the scenery.  It is spectacular to say the least. really hard to pick only a few photos.

Thunder Bay Blowholes

Headed back out Friday calling into False Entrance Blow Holes on the way back to Hamelin Station.

So lucky with the weather then rain last night! Staying at Hamelin Station again tonight then off North to who knows where!

Until next time “Laugh more live longer”!

With seeding all done it was time to leave the farm!  Tui was up till 1am the night before we left getting his distilling done, then up again at 6am to finish it off. The wheat was already sprouting so we just had to take a photo of his work!

Headed off through Moora to Carnamah.  The photo above depicts a typical cropping farmer of years ago when they used to put their wheat etc in sacks, sew them up and transport by Horse & Buggy to the Flour Mills. Then at Three Springs were saw Jude’s shop and the amazing Mural below.

Camped up at Ellendale Pool, approx 35km East of Geraldton.  Fantastic spot so we stayed 2 nights.

Met Deb & Neil from South Australia and Ken & Barb from Victoria.  Heaps of laughs, great joint camp fires.  Really neat people.  We are hoping to catch up with them again further North. Stayed in Geraldton for 2 nights to stock up on food etc and do some bits and bobs.  called in a saw one of my customers, Mitchell & Brown, and ended up buying another high gain aerial for the Suzuki from them. Stayed at the Sunset Caravan Park, which was pretty good but had shocking weather, rain & wind. although the day we left as you can see wasn’t too bad.

The plan was to go to Kalbarri next.  Drove out to Horrocks and Port Gregory and then through Kalbarri as we had been there before and decided to stay at Galena Bridge (Free Camp on the Murchison river) for the night.  Great spot but we had no Phone or Internet.

Horrocks

Port Gregory

Galena Bridge (Murchison River)

We then decided we had better move further North so that we had coverage so stopped off at Nerren Nerren Rest Area.  Still no coverage! Nice enough place but NOT if you want a good nights sleep! Very noisy with the trucks passing and we also had a refrigerated truck stop with his generator going all night.

Nerren Nerren Rest Area

We are now parked at Hamelin Station Stay.  www.hamelinstationstay.com.au . Just finished parking Tiki Tourer and Robyn & Murray from NZ pulled up.  Great timing! They are staying at Denham a couple of nights so might catch up again on their way back to Perth.

We will be here for awhile, planning to take the Suzuki out to Steep Point for a couple of nights camping in a tent, Tuesday, weather permitting.  Yipee, I will miss my creature comforts!!  More about Hamelin Station Stay, Steep Point in the next Blog.

Until then “Laugh more, live longer”

Seeding on the farm is now finished and Tui is now doing some odd jobs for Pete.  Crutching sheep today and he hasn’t done that for a few years! Might be some sore muscles tonight!

Filling the seeder                                                           Putting Diesel in the tractor

Had a neat night at Pete’s Saturday night as he put on a great Barbie.  Then Sunday we all went out to the other farm for lunch.  Lit a fire and cooked sausages on the hot plate with onions, tomato sauce and bread. Caught yabbies in the dam and cooked them in a pot over the fire.  Yummmm!

The yabbies before going in the pot                          Tui’s designer Barbie, plate on an old chair                                                                                           frame, worked a treat

View from where we had lunch                                  Tui & Jude with the Wood family

Last week Tui decided to purchase a Still to save us money whilst travelling.  Two brews have been put down and the 1st lot will be ready to distill tomorrow.  Will be interesting to taste the results. Hope it is as good as Tom’s & Kim’s!!

The two brews                                                                The Distiller

The next Post will probably be from a different location! It will be quite sad to leave the farm as we have both enjoyed it and have met some awesome people.  Still it will be nice to travel North to warmer weather and get back into summer clothes again. Many thanks to Pete for the work with the opportunity to learn about the cropping industry. You are a great, easy going bloke and have made the job extremely enjoyable. Also thanks to Pete’s Dad for giving me my lunch breaks and Pete’s Mum for being a super host and fantastic company. To Pete’s great girls, all the best for your studies and work opportunities and  remember Dad knows best!!

Until next time “Laugh more, live longer”

It is hard to believe that it is June already and we are still only 2hrs from home! Seeding is going pretty well except for a wayward rock going through the Tyre of the seeder, what made it worse was it was late at night! Not nice and expensive.

The Damage                                                                   The rut as a result

It was my Mate, Annie’s, birthday yesterday so I met her and Jock at the New Norcia Hotel for lunch.  Unfortunately Tui had to work. The food was beautiful and the prices good.

The Birthday girl & Jock                                              New Norcia Hotel

Our shared tasting plate                                              Jude’s Twisted Prawns – Yum!!!

It is an amazing place and well worth a visit. Read more about it on this site  www.avonvalleywa.com.au and click on the link for New Norcia.

That’s it for now, laugh more, live longer!!

The rain has come!!  Week 3 on the farm and seeding has started in earnest, however the boys had to stop at lunchtime Friday as the paddock was too boggy!  Can’t win eh? then yesterday they were all set to do a day & night shift and the sprayer broke down. This country amazes us.  Months with no rain and now there has been some it is starting to show a bit of green already. To all you Kiwi’s, there are lambs at this time of the year as well.

Ewe’s & Lambs                                                               Sheep at the Feeder

We also had the chance to check out our tent in the rain and it is definitely not water proof so we will have to plan our 4 wheel driving/camping trips carefully and check weather conditions.

I guess some of you are wondering now what is Jude doing while Tui is seeding, seeding, seeding.  Well apart from continuing to give the customers in Headset World amazing service, she has actually started reading real books!  Finished Barry Crump’s “The Life and Times of a Good Keen Man” and well into a real good read by Sue Williams “Women of the Outback”. True stories of amazing women. Thanks to Annie for loaning them to her.  Also her Walking Boots have been getting some use. Trying to walk everyday, although a couple of days have been missed.

Our driveway, part of the daily walking route         The farm sign

We have had a plague of mice in Tiki Tourer.  Tried for a few days with the old fashioned traps with no success then Annie put us onto these amazing traps and have caught 8 to date. However this morning the traps were empty so fingers crossed we have them all. The freakiest one was Jude went to light the oven last night and there was a dead one in there!  We have had to move any packet stuff into the microwave to keep it away from the little buggars. Jude manages to set the traps alright but it is Tui’s job to take them outside and dispose of them.

Had another Skype moment this week for Cameron’s Birthday, 12 yrs old already!!  Unfortunately the only snapshots we got were of Tracy eating cake, so engrossed on what was happening, forgot to snapshot at the right times.

Another trip to Wongan Hills last week for supplies and met Annie for lunch.  Had a lovely day.

That’s about all the news from us for now.  Until next time “laugh more live longer”!

It is now week 2 on the farm with not much seeding done because of the lack of rain.  We did however get a few teasing drops last night so fingers crossed there will be more during the week.  Tui has still been busy with picking up rocks from the paddocks, feeding sheep, fixing Pete’s motorbike and generally doing odd jobs around the place.

The Solar Panels are now fully operational, Tui completed the last bit of wiring yesterday.

Our set up for our Internet is working really well with our Yaggi Aerial.  We will add more information on that and our Solar Panels etc on our “Getting Ready” page.  Skype has been a fantastic tool as well.  It means we are still able to be part of things that are happening. Hayden took these snaps while we were on Skype last night for Blairs 7th Birthday with his mates. Thanks Hayden for your expertise!

We have had some lovely sunrises and sunsets here.

Sunrise                                                                              Sunset

Tui had yesterday off so we went for a drive to Wongan Hills, got a few bits and pieces and then had lunch at the Pub. Drove through Piawaning then on the way back we went through Ballidu to the Great Northern Highway, through Miling and back to Bindi Bindi, making a round trip.

Piawaning Car grave yard                                           Wongan Hills Pub

Wall painting Wongan Hills                                        Ballidu, a quaint little town

Airfield at Ballidu

For those of you that don’t know, Tui is a Poppa as well. Jaxon was born in November last year.  Seems like we are destined for all Males in the family.  here are a couple of the latest photos we have received.

For those of you who don’t already know, I am a Nana again.  Jeff & Amie had a son, Maxwell John Morgan on the 26th April, 8lb 5oz.  I was very tempted to jump on a plane to New Zealand for a cuddle. Thank goodness for Skype so that I could at least have a peak.

It is hard being so far away at times like this!

We have now been on Peter Woods Farm at Bindi Bindi for nearly a week.  My how time flies!

When preparing for our trip we purchased a Fly tent with additional sides that close over the fly mesh.  The intention is to use this both as a tent by Tiki Tourer when the flies are bad and also to double as a tent when we go off road in the Suzuki.  We are extremely happy with how it is working out so far.  Fresh air with NO Flies!!! Tui has also ingeniously set up our own street light, set away from Tiki Tourer a little so that all the big bugs & moths are attracted to it and not the lights on in Tiki Tourer.  Works a treat!

Obviously the Fly Tent                                                 Our Street Light

The only thing really missing, is a washing machine! really over washing Tui’s work Jeans by hand.  Peter has kindly said I can use his washing machine, and I will take him up on his offer!!!

Tui has a Ute to use to drive to and from where he is working.

The Company Vehicle                                                   The only way to buy Roundup!!!

After a few days of getting machinery organised etc. Tui is now working on the tractor. Will add more info on this when Tui is back in.

The Spray Unit                                                              The seeder

Tui at work!  Oh my the dust!!

Until next time!!

We can now say we are officially on the road although we haven’t moved far. The Solar Panels are now mounted on Tiki Tourer but the wiring is still to be completed.

Calingiri Traders & Cafe                                                Caravan Park

After spending a few days with our friends, Jock & Annie, at Calingiri we have now moved up to the farm where Tui has a job seeding wheat.  Great time at Calingiri, awesome night at the Sports Club, very friendly people and lots of fun.

Sunday Breakfast with Jock & Annie

The farm is not far from Bindi Bindi.  See our link “see where we are”. Our  camp site is next to an old farm house.  We have water, power, an extra toilet and shower to use which will save having to empty and fill tanks.  I have good phone and internet coverage for my work, so what more could we ask for.