Home run

The leg home Broome to Esperance. 20 October 2013

 Leave Broome, with a minimal fuel up just enough to get us to Port Hedland, as it is cheaper there.  We re going to camp at Eighty Mile Beach however we think we have spent enough money so push on to Port Hedland. We arrive at a friends place (fellow Gibb Road travellers) at 7.30, so good to have a shower in a house !  They have 3 rescue kittens so you know where the children are ! 

We decide to just spend a day catching up, look for Flatback, Green, Loggerhead and Hawksbills Turtles laying eggs, stairway to the moon then head off tomorrow ........ What is that saying "The best laid plans of mice and men" ....... We decide to get a head start and fuel and food up after lunch making to easy to just drive off tomorrow !

We think that The Gibb has taken its toll on the bus ..... The fuel tank full with 500L of diesel sprung a leak ! Jurg reckons we wasted some, syphoned some into helpers cars and the rest into 2 x44 tins. Taking the 2 tanks out was another story ! At least we now know for sure how much fuel and what tank carries how much ! We have 225 in the top and 275 in the bottom.  The hairline fracture is found in a weld and taken to get re-welded

We are so lucky - Jurg was able to make all the repairs, with friends help, I hate to imagine how much it would have cost to get someone to do it all here and how long it would have taken, and the other thought is we could have been stuck between here and Dampier with nothing and no one AND no fuel !

Wondering what the hell happened ? 

In this time, now 2 days, we manage to look for turtles at near on midnight - nope none out for us. We caught up on the NSW fires - very sad.  We went on the BHP Port Loading facility tour.  

The highlight - the children were very lucky ! One of our friends here is a helicopter pilot flying the harbour pilot out to the ships (42 sitting in the harbour while we were there) sooooooo he scammed a ride for the children with the harbour pilot.

                                                     Our version of stairway to the moon.

                           Warroora station

We love this place ! This is the family's 2nd visit and Jurg's 3rd.  4 nights we stay and soak the west coast in. I know that Broome is west coast but the beaches, reefs and water colour make it here, beside I'm not dying from 39 degrees and 60% humidity !

Our first Bustard about 1m tall.

Dampier

We dropped into see Red Dog Statue ! 

Had lunch at the beach, we both felt it was a place we would like to explore further, not this time ! 

We head out and camp at Robe River again, we camped here over 3 months ago.

Broome

Our Boabs are really waking up.

We collect mail and check into a caravan park close to Cable Beach.  I start three loads of washing ! Jurg finds a friend from Esperance ! Dave and Jeanene Riggs, they have been working with the ABC on a documentary regards a pod of about 30 Oscars, sharks feeding out of Hopetoun. 

We also spot a German couple we met on The Gibb, fixing tyres, we share the rest of our Barramundi.  The children make friends in the pool and even have a birthday party to go to.  Neesabella even has a sleep over in a tent ! 

We visit Cable beach on sunset, again !

Gian-Luca collects his big toenail, soft from the pool, on the trailer ramp - he now has 1/2 of a nail left........ with the base in one corner flicked out of the skin.

The humidity is between 55 and 70 and 34 degrees, so my translation - hot, sticky and yucky !

A week we have been here and today we are off to Cape Leveque 200 ks north of Broome. We have packed our camping gear, including mattresses this time, and will be away for a night. The drive up is easy.

We put up the tent and decide a visit to the beach would be good. Taking the advice at reception we put the tyres down to 18 psi and head off....... we didn't get far the sand is soft and we sunk and had to get help, using our tracks (all 4) and our snatch strap we got them stuck too ! Jurg and Gian-Luca head off to try for dinner -nope !

On the way home we dropped in to the church at Beagle Bay - decorated with pearl shells.

On our return to Broome we hit the pool again to cool off.  Neesabella decides at this point that Gian-Luca has had enough attention for his toe and directs some to herself - she hits her mouth on the step in the pool and takes a corner off her front tooth (oh joy dentist bills to come) she now has a fat lip and a rough tooth.

We do the touristy thing and head to the dinosaurs foot prints and then head to the town beach for the stairway to the moon - the moon is a beautiful colour but sadly it is a bit cloudy and then dark too fast for our camera to work :(  We head to dinner at the wharf for some seafood, as the boys can't catch any !

Ok after just over a week of sitting still we decide we better get a move on and start heading back to our real world. On the way out of Broome we visit the 12 Mile Bird Park, Neesabella says 'a kids best bird experience.'