The missing weeks...


Where have we been??? some of you may be asking...well, I am writing this from home in Rockhampton, Queensland.  We received word nearly two weeks ago that Tony's mum had experienced a mild stroke.  It was an emotional time and it was a good thing we were in Burra, South Australia, having already crossed the Nullarbor, as we decided it was best to go home to Queensland to see her.  This meant covering 2000 km in four days - the boys coped quite well and Tony was magnificent in making the distance.  When we arrived home on the 16th September, we worked out that we had covered 5 067 km in the fortnight since we had left Kalgoorlie, WA on the 2nd of September. 


The boys hanging with Grandma at the hospital - precious moments.



Grandma is stable now and making small improvements every day.  It has been wonderful to see family and to catch up with a few people...and then there is the access to a dishwasher, tools to do some maintenance on the van and the boys are over the moon to see all their toys again! It is also quite nice to be warm again - Rockhampton has a wonderful climate at this time of year.  We are hopeful that all will continue to be well and we will head off on our Odyssey Part Two at the beginning of October.   



The best of both worlds in Rocky: city living against a rural backdrop.



We have checked out the Zoo, which will be magnificent
once the renovations are complete.




Matt hanging out with friends at the fantastic Botanic Gardens Playground.



So, I will fill you in on what we got up to between crossing the Nullarbor and heading home, although it seems a long time ago now :)

As well as doing lots of washing and cleaning in Ceduna, we checked out the local Bureau of Meteorology, where you could go along and see a weather balloon being launched.  The whole process was quite fascinating, particularly as we rely quite heavily on the data these balloons collect to know what weather we are going to be facing on our travels...unfortunately it was all bad news:  cold, rain and wind approaching all down the western Eyre Peninsula coastline.  Oh well. 



Filling the balloon with Hydrogen..




Launching the balloon...




Reading the data.

The next day we bid farewell to Sue, Peter and little dog Jake and headed for Streaky Bay.  It was a cold and windy day but we stopped briefly at Murphy's Haystacks on the way...these are featured in the picture book by Alison Lester 'Are we there yet?'.  That family had been able to make shadows on the rocks as the sun set.  We were there mid-morning so were unable to do that, but it was still good to see these ancient, wind-worn boulders for ourselves.

Murphys Haystacks

 We timed perfectly our arrival in Streaky Bay to be at the same time as cold, windy rain.  There was quite a lot to see in the area...but we had to satisfy ourselves with seeing the beautiful Back Beach only.  We had worked out that if we were to see much of South Australia, we really needed to get moving and get across to the other side of Eyre Peninsula as soon as possible.  As it turns out, we now will return to South Australia and see it properly some other time. 

Back Beach, near Streaky Bay



Streaky Bay

It is a lovely caravan park in Streaky Bay, right on the beach.  And although the weather was much improved the next day we sadly needed to push on to Coffin Bay.  This is a fabulous little town, again with plenty to see and do, especially if you are keen on bush walking with a view.  It has a beautifully presented foreshore...we have really appreciated those towns that have made an effort to make their waterways easy to access with walking paths, and even parks with playgrounds.  It is great for travellers and families alike.

Coffin Bay

 The next day, on we went to Tumby Bay, with a stopover in busy Port Lincoln for supplies. We drove around the central town blocks a few times before finally finding a spot to park the car and caravan, then proceeded to stock up from Woolworths.  This was another town with a well presented foreshore.  The boys enjoyed the playground and we enjoyed the view as we ate our lunch.   Then it was on to Tumby Bay where we were just about blown away by surely the coldest wind we had experienced so far...but worth it for the magnificent views from the waterfront, and very nice fish and chips!  


Port Lincoln.  The owner of Makybe Diva is from Port Lincoln soooo...
there is a statue!  It took almost a year to create!



Tumby Bay in the very late afternoon.

From Tumby Bay it was on to Whyalla and a free camp at Point Lowly.  More excruciatingly cold wind...but a great lighthouse to photograph and hey, it was free! 

From there we drove around, through Port Augusta this time rather than staying there...and on towards Burra.  On the way we stopped in the quiet town of Melrose for lunch in the pub.  Melrose was recommended as a great place to stay but we were looking forward to getting back to Burra.  We had stopped in Burra overnight on our way up to Port Augusta back in May, and promised we would be back. 
Burra has a National Trust Heritage Trail, that exhibits beautifully the history of the area.  There was once a very profitable copper mine there.  There is so much to see and the caravan park is great.  We really love Burra :)

This is what was mined.

What was once the Monster Mine...now the scene for a regular Jazz festival.

There are many historic buildings such as these to explore.

Fun times in the Town Hall - beautifully preserved and presented, complete
with costumes so you can get a feel for life in the 1880's.

Matt was straight into a costume and dancing on the stage...
a star in the making?  He is certainly LOUD enough :)



Full moon rising.



One of the BEST things about Burra is it's close vicinity to wineries!

It was from Burra that we headed home, back through Broken Hill, Bourke and Goondiwindi.  As I said, it has been lovely to be home.  We have until January though, before we have to face real life i.e. work committments, so we are looking forward to heading off again soon.  Until then, safe travels for those of you still travelling.