The Great Budget 4wd Trip Around Australia – Week 20

Australia, Gregory, Pink Lake

 


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Distance Travelled:
1174km

Spot of the Week:
Natures Window, Kalbarri National Park, WA

Camp of the Week:
Wintersun Caravan and Tourist Park, Carnarvon, WA

Tip of the Week:
Wash your car regularly!

4wds love to wear dirt and mud as badges of honour, but this uncleanliness can be hiding problems.

Mud and dirt can easily hide damaged paint and even rust. In fact leaving it on, can help cause rust by trapping moisture or taking off protective coatings.

We are guilty of having a dirty 4wd, but it is really not worth it with the longer term potential costs.

It is hard to keep your vehicle clean when you are travelling remote areas and roads, but try to give your pride and joy a good bath as often as possible!

Disaster of the Week:
Flies, pesky non stop flies!

I have no idea how something so small can fly against a 40kmph wind and still manage to land on you and invite hundreds of its friends along for the ride.

But there we are, such is life in Australia!

The Budget ($ AUD):
Fuel – $252.28
Groceries – $239.92
Camping Fees – $70.00
Total – $ 562.20

Yes! Another week in at under $600 – woo hoo!

 

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Day 1 – Carnarvon, WA

one-mile-jetty

Carnarvon is a cute old country town on the water with a stunning foreshore redevelopment.

The council has done a great job here providing a lush green space right along the estuary, with awesome free BBQs, children playgrounds and some lovely walking paths.

Carnarvon also has a ton of history to explore. From the One Mile Jetty to the Lighthouse Keeper’s Cottage Musuem, there’s plenty of fascinating heritage on display here to get your teeth stuck into.

It is also home to the cleanest and friendliest caravan park we have come across!

The Wintersun Caravan and Tourist Park is superb.

Super chilled and a lovely homely feel, it was a delight to spend 3 nights here.

 

Day 2 – Carnarvon, WA

our-camp-at-wintersun

Hanging out in the camp kitchen, blogging, chatting and watching a bit of cricket … well the boy was, I can’t stand it!

This was the day we also started looking at and applying for jobs.

Money is getting tight, so we hope to stop somewhere in the next few weeks and pick up some work.

 

Day 3 – Free Camp, Denham, WA

quobba-blowholes

Finally pulling ourselves away from Carnarvon, we headed north quickly to check out the infamous Quobba Blowholes.

These were actually really impressive and we had a great time watching the wild ocean and enjoying a nearby beauitful beach.

After this we headed back into Carnarvon to check out infamous ‘Fruit Loop’, which features tons of local fruit and vegetable suppliers.

Mostly they sell to major superamrkets across the country, but many also have honesty stalls and some great fresh produce.

Eventually, we were on our way down towards Shark Bay.

We made it to just outside the main town in this area, Denham, where there was a convenient overnight free camp.

Sadly there were perhaps more flies here than we’d ever seen before!

ERGH!

 

Day 4 – Edagee Free Camp, WA

stromatolites

It was an early to start to avoid the flies and off to see the world famous Hamelin Pool for breakfast.

Optimised in Bill Bryson’s book about Australia, Down Under, Hamelin Pool is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site because it contains the earliest forms of life on planet earth, stromatolites.

These are essentially strands of cyanobacteria that clumped together to form colonies and started producing enough oxygen to sustain life in the world as we know it.

Don’t ask me how old they are exactly, they’re old!

After this, we visited Eagle Bluff and were delighted with the viewing area that afforded us some birdseye views of reek sharks and a few large-looking rays.

Then we motored into Denham to check out the town.

Unfortunately it was blowing a gale and our quest to find a sheltered spot for lunch failed.

Instead, we drove a bit further onto towards Little Lagoon, where the wind direction helped us at least get the gas cookers lit!

We ended our day in Shark Bay, with an excellent and relaxing dunk in a free hot tub!

Contained within the Homestead at the start of Francois Peron National Park, this natural hot spring should not be missed, with water temps around 40 degrees!

 

Day 5 – Kalbarri, WA

natures-window

As like all other National Parks in Western Australia, Kalbarri is a beauty!

The lookouts offering views into the gorges are spectacular and there’s some lovely short walks down to the river.

If you manage to visit during wildflower season, the colours across the landscape would be quite the picture.

We just caught the tail end of this, but nevertheless it was pretty impressive.

The BIG drawcard however has to be Natures Window.

This is a rock formation in the shape of, well, a oval window, that gives an amazing view over one of the gorges.

Spectacular!

After the National Park, we headed into the town of Kalbarri itself to enjoy a night out of the wind in a great caravan park – Murchison River Caravan Park.

We loved this cute little town for its great setting at the edge of the river mouth and the Indian Ocean.

 

Day 6 – Geraldton, WA

geraldton-esplanade

Leaving Kalbarri, we checked out many of the cliff tops heading south to snap some awesome views.

Unfortunately it was just too windy to do anything else and we almost got blown off the edge!

After this, we couldn’t resist scheduling a stop at the famous Pink Lake at Gregory.

This place really is as bright as the pictures make out – what a sight!

Then we motored onto Geraldton

What a delightful little town!

Geraldton has done a fantastic job in the revitalisation of this beachfront haven.

The esplanade here is huge and it is fresh, clean and full of green space and the best kids’ playgrounds.

The locals obviously love it, as every afternoon there are hundreds of people enjoying the amazing facilities while watching the awesome sunset.

The weekends are even more of a reflection of how much the locals love their waterfront playground.

There’s  a ton of street art everywhere too in Geraldton and plenty of awesome coffee shops! Hoorah!

Throughout our time in this great town, we stayed in the fantastically located Ocean West Apartments.

They come highly recommened for their outstanding customer service, cleanliness and great amenities.

 

Day 7 – Geraldton, WA

hmas-sydney

I’m usually not into this stuff, but the HMAS Sydney memorial in Geraldton is superb.

It elequently tells the story of the many men who lost their lives after HMAS Sydney was sunk by a German Destroyer, just off the Western Australian Coast.

Perched high on a hill overlooking Geraldton and the waterfront this is hard to miss when walking or driving around town.

We spent a good hour at the monument enjoying the light from the sunset while absorbing the story of the HMAS Sydney.

Another fantastic treat was the Museum of Geraldton.

With a large array of exhibits including the 3D footage of the discovery of the HMAS Sydney, pioneering feats, the pearling and the mining industries, the museum was a standout attraction of Geraldton and, best of all, it’s FREE!

We really enjoyed Geraldton and would highly recommend a visit there!

 

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