We stopped early today, in a free camp spot right on the beach. Really lovely spot, and just the day to appreciate it. Lots of blue sky, sun and just a few fluffy little clouds.
There were only three or four other campers there, but we had our site all by ourselves, facing out to sea.
It rained quite heavily last night for a while, but when we were ready to leave the sky had cleared right up. I’ve been hearing a noise on & off since Yarloop, in the back, left wheel. As we pulled away from Cheryl & Keith’s place, they heard it too. We came to the conclusion maybe there was a stone in the brakes.
We were planning on staying tonight in a free camp spot – GinGin Brook Rest Area, but it is now marked NO CAMPING. Damn. Fortunately, just back down the road is Willowbrook Farm Caravan Park, so we stayed there instead. It was cold and raining, but didn’t really matter. The park itself is OK, but I thought $25 for an unpowered site was a little rich.
Today is Rick’s birthday – poor lamb didn’t even get a birthday card, ‘cos I was really disorganised. I’m not going to live this one down in a hurry. We didn’t leave Yarloop until 2pm, so it was a really slow, relaxing morning.
We stayed overnight with Cheryl & Keith, whose house we are looking after in December. They are a lovely couple, and once again – dinner and a few drinks made for a great evening.
AFL Grand Final today!! Not that Port Adelaide are playing, but Rick really wanted to watch the game. Fortunately, we have good TV reception, so he took the TV outside to enjoy the fresh air.
It got very windy last night, I thought at one stage we were going to lose the awning. But today is beautiful – lovely & sunny.
After a little bit of manoeuvring, we were able to finally turn and head out of the gate at Ann & Don’s place. Big Bird’s a big girl, and needs a fair amount of room to change direction. Don tried to use his tractor to make the move, but it was too little, and just wanted to point the front wheels up in the air. Looked really funny, but didn’t get us too far. Never mind, we eventually made it, and duly arrived in Yarloop.
The HF Radio Club was holding a gathering on private property. It is lovely country, with a large cleared area at the back of the property, big enough for probably 15 – 20 vans and motor homes.
Weather was a bit overcast, but not too cold.
Happy hour at the fire-side, followed by a nice dinner.
Ann & Don returned today from their trip North. Their little van and the vehicle are thick with red dust. They had a fantastic time, and over dinner and a few drinks, we caught up and heard all their stories.
We got the Big Bird hooked up in the morning (after a couple of minor hitches) and ready to sleep in tonight. Though we’ve had a great time here, it is time to move on – we’re both getting a little restless.
Wow – that’s scary. August has disappeared so fast, I’m not sure where it went. It’s not like we have been so busy, but I guess if you add up all the various visits to here, there and everywhere, plus moving into Bonney’s Water Ski Park for 3 weeks and then looking after a property here in Baldivis for some acquaintances, it all adds up. Then of course there is all the relaxing, and ‘doona’ days caused by the rain. 16 days straight. More than enough I think.
Bonney’s was quite good the first week, then it started to rain. Muddy just doesn’t cover it. It’s just a large grassed area, and doesn’t drain well. At one stage, we had to step out of the van into 2” of water. Started to feel a little like a duck (you know – webbed feet). Nice people there, quite a lot of long stayers. It’s really the only park in the Perth area where you can park with a Big Rig, or with dogs. And only $120 / week.
The property here at Baldivis is great. It’s 14 acres, with the house at the top of the property, well away from the dead-end road. This means very little road noise. GREAT! We’re looking after the large house (which feels really strange after 2 1/2 years in a van), a fat 8 year old Jack Russell Terrier (Gemma), 17 chooks and 7 caged birds. A fair amount of the property is bush, so the job is really not very difficult. The chooks lay 8 or 9 eggs a day, and we are giving heaps away.
Over the last month, Rick has been to the psych once a week. The guy is really nice, and really, really different. He is half Japanese, owns 10 purebred collies, 10 cats, 1 purebred Toy Poodle (who is a real cutie), and 1 ‘pound’ bitser. He brings one of the collies and the poodle into work with him, and they really rule the roost. Malcolm is really easy to talk to, and is quite happy for me to come into the meetings with Rick. We’ve got another two appointments next week, and then Malcolm will begin to write the report.
OK, what else have we done? Drove down to Australind to meet with a friend of a friend who needs a house-sitter in December. Lovely house, and lovely, lovely lady – Cheryl. She made afternoon tea for us – scones & biccies, and introduced us to the cat. Moggy is 19 years old, and very doddery, but still hanging in there. Spends most of his time asleep in the warmth. Cheryl has invited us to come for a BBQ and stay overnight after we leave here – probably about the 28th of September, after the HF Radio Club gathering at Yarloop, which is not far from Australind.
At the moment, we have Geoff & Robyn Rilling staying with us for a few days. We’ve known them for a long time, but haven’t seen them since the last time we visited Adelaide, 6 years ago. They are on their way home from a six month tour of the Northern Territory and Western Australia. Really good to catch up with them again.
