Monday, April 7, 2014

Back on the road! ~ Broome to the Pilbara

Finally!  Eight months in Broome, one new baby, a couple of last minute trailer troubles - and we're off.

We've been a bit nervous about how Little Bird will fare on long stretches of outback highway, and the first stretch was one of our longest, six hundred kilometres from Broome to Port Hedland along the strip of scrub that separates the Great Sandy Desert from the Indian Ocean.  We had worked out all the potential camping stops on the way just in case she decided to totally lose it at some point.  We needn't have worried - we motored straight past our planned stop at De Grey River and headed into Hedland with our little one blissfully asleep in the back seat.  Our new rule for roadtripping: When the baby is sleeping, there shall be no stopping.

Next day we drove out past piles of salt and ore and other industrial stuff then headed inland through the guts of mining boom country - massive roadtrains, white utes with orange lights, and plenty of high-vis work-wear.  A proper lunch at a proper roadhouse (not one of those kooky tourist traps that line the grey nomad migratory routes) was an unexpected pleasure, but the real highlight came when at last, after about barely even an upward incline on the road since leaving Broome, we started driving up into th Hammersley Ranges.  We reached our destination, Karijini National Park, just before sunset.

~ posted by gav




No comments:

Post a Comment