western australia : 14 mile beach, ningaloo, Warroora Station

Initially we thought we'd stay three nights at Warroora Station which is situated on the Coral Coast at Ningaloo. 

We'd been forewarned that one end of Fourteen Mile is like a carpark with vans parked closer together than in caravan parks. Many people stay months on Warroora and I can see why. The cost for a night is $15 with a free nights stay if you stay 5. You need to be self-contained and there is no water. 

We were lucky to have a spot at the other end of Fourteen Mile, only metres from the water and for four days the whole family unwound. The kids played in the water, the sand and the dunes creating elaborate games and meeting new friends. Our little one spent the days crawling and commandoing through the sand. 

The wind came up in the night and our superb annexe did its thing by providing shade during the day, a confined space for the baby to play and a mozzie-free spot to eat dinner. 

The view from Telstra Hill. 

western australia : steep point

Overnight J decided that he should have visited Steep Point when we were camped at Monkey Mia and he had to go back. 

I have funny rule that I've tried to stick to. I don't go backwards. By all means I was happy for J to break my rule so he headed out of Carnarvon a happy man with the truck, his kayak and his tent. It's some 360km from Carnarvon to Steep Point with 130km of dirt with the final 30km a soft, sandy single lane 4WD track. J was so pleased he went back and you can see he made the most of time on his own with his truck, his tent and his kayak. 

western australia: wooramel station

Wooramel Station is a few hours drive from Monkey Mia but only a few kilometres off the highway. The campsites are right by the river though it's very dry at the moment. When Cyclone Quang came through a few weeks ago it took down a lot of huge branches from the old gums on this property but they've been tidied up. 

Our kids had a ball playing in these giant trees when we arrived. Another family set up next to us in the dark and we ended up chatting with the parents in to the night. The four kids roamed together, making games and having adventures under the trees and on the wide sandy river bed for a couple of hours while we chatted and packed up in the morning. Making friends on the road can be tricky. The kids meet little friends and within minutes one of the families can be leaving. Depending on how quickly/slowly the families are travelling we might not see them again on the road. So the kids are learning to grasp at opportunities to make friends. It's has done wonders for their confidence. 

The Artesian hot tub is a real draw card at this station stay. The bore water is steaming out of the ground and spilling out in to two tanks. It's a really well done bathing area and a novelty on a free camp! The amenities are in the halves of water tanks (I wish I'd taken a pic) - showers and toilets. 

western australia : hamelin pool, hamelin station, shark bay, monkey mia

We deliberated about whether we'd stay at Monkey Mia and in the end we decided we needed to go and then decide whether or not we'd return. We'd heard it's very commercial and expensive and they are fairly accurate descriptions of the place but it's also quite beautiful and we met some really great families staying there who we'll keep in contact with. 

In the end we decided to stay at night at Hamelin Station on the way in which is only a few kilometres from the incredible stromatolites at Hamelin Pool. The station facilities are excellent with a recent upgrade. The amenities are clean and the commercial kitchen available to guests. We enjoyed this station stay. The stromatolites blew us away as these ones are thousands of years old. These are examples of Earth's earliest life forms. 

There's only one way to test the water on a HOT day when swimming is prohibited.

Of the 150 people on the shoreline watching the dolphins come in each morning on,y a few are selected to have the chance to feed one. I was lucky enough to be chosen to offer a fish to the dolphin, Nicki, who barely gave it a sniff. 

It was simply,magic watching these creatures close up. They are beautiful and we saw so many in the bay just off the beach up so close that after two days the kids didn't even raise their heads from their sandcastle building when we excitedly shouted out!

If our kids were a bit older we'd have taken them out on a cruise on Aristocat 2 to see the dugongs but it would have been a strength to have thm out for three hours. 

I had visions of meeting new friends on the road. We've met quite a number of travelling families on the road and kept in touch, sharing our experiences at different places and keeping an eye out for each other when were travelling. It's a real roaming community! We shared a meal with new friends in Monkey Mia. They had wine that they wanted to share and we had a roast beef we needed to cook and needed help eating. It was a perfect match!

The family grown, picked, produced and labelled wine, Corymbia, is a tempranillo and cab sav blend and is very drinkable. Grandfather Jack Mann was a pioneer of the Western Australian wine industry, being chief winemaker at Houghton from 1930 – 1974. I wish I had a decent photo of the Corymbia label but I'm sure it can be found online.

western australia : kalbarri, natures window

It's hard to get the balance right when you're on the road with the three kids. We need to factor in the needs of everyone and sleep for the baby is generally a priority. Baby A does so well transitioning from his car seat and the pram but on days when we don't have to go anywhere I like for him to have his sleeps in the caravan. What this means, too, is that B gets a good solid morning of schoolwork completed.

On one such morning (while A slept and B did schoolwork) I took P to the camp kitchen at Murchison House Station and we made fresh rice paper rolls with carrot, cucumber, lettuce, mint, spring onions and a soya chilli dressing. 

This meant that we couldn't leave until lunch time for the the second walk we wanted to do near Kalbarrii - Natures Window. We ate our rice paper rolls under a shelter in the car park with an incredible view across the gorge and along with the gazillions of flies. They were dive bombing the dressing and it was so bad that even Baby A didn't bother pulling his fly net off because he was happier with it on!

Natures Window is a very short but picturesque walk but it was so hot on the day we did it. 

And when we arrived a Malaysian couple, who live in Perth, were having their pre-wedding shots. They looked amazing. The juxtaposition of the glamorous wedding shots against the back drop of the dusty and somewhat isolated outback with the swarms of flies wasn't lost on us. 

western australia : z bend lookout, kalbarri

The oranges and pinks combined with the soft greens of this country gets us. And the clear skies and the warmth. We love it. 

You could base yourselves at Kalbarri for a week exploring the surrounding gorges and beaches. There's so much to see but you must be prepared for the flies. Swarms of them. Herds of them. This was the view from the Z Bend Lookout. We would have walked down with the kids for a swim but it was late in the afternoon and the walk up would have been impossible. 

We have the rule in our family that you can play with sticks as long as it's responsibly and away from others. B took us both on in a show-down.

The backpack weighed a few extra kilos. 

western australia: murchison house station, kalbarri

Just a few kilometres north of Kalbarri is Murchison Station on which you can freecamp in the sand by the beautiful Murchison River. The station is a working property where goats run throughout the year until summer when some 5000 are mustered. There's plenty of history here being an old farm. It was once owned by a Turkish Prince. The cost to stay is $11 per person per night and there are showers, toilets and a camp kitchen. 

We've seen and met so many backpackers on this part of the West Australian coast. It was hardly surprising when a couple of 2WDs got themselves firmly bogged in the sand and had to be towed out. It was a new thing for us and J was pleased when he manouevered out of the sand without any trouble. The kids played in the river sand and from the rope swings for hours (when they weren't doing school work, that is!)

Unfortunately the biggest downside of the area is the fly population. I'm not kidding when I describe a plate of dinner with at least 50 flies on each plate and when those pesky little critters went to sleep the mozzies were waiting to move in. 

Our girl is obsessed with all things horses at the moment. Big River Ranch (on the highway towards Kalbarri) has pony rides and trail rides depending on age and experience. Our kids were pleased to have a half hour pony ride each. 

Our boy, on the other hand is bird obsessed since we stayed with friends in Hobart who had two pet birds. Every other day B is asking for a pet bird (remember him wanting to trap one to cuddle at Bay of Fires?). We've said that we'll need to finish our trip before well consider buying a pet bird. The next best thing was taking the kids to Rainbow Jungle - a parrot breeding centre - in Kalbarri.

western australia : geraldton

We needed to refill our water tanks otherwise we could have stayed at Sandy Cape until they chucked us out. Geraldton was the next stop. A family we met at Sandy Cape stayed in the same park as us not far from the lighthouse. It's not a caravan park I'd recommend but then we just love free camping. 

My new found mum friend and I took the morning out to go to the tiny farmer's market. As we pulled up we realised it was still being set up so we had to go and find ourselves a coffee and a couple of garage sales. What an awful way to spend the morning. 

Between K and me we cleaned up at the garage sale, bearing in mind that we are both caravanning and can't buy anything too big or too heavy. It was good fun. The farmers markets have the potential to grow but we grabbed rockmelons, salad greens, olives and locally made rice paper rolls for lunch. 

The Railway Market the following day was a lot bigger with a wider variety of stalls from crafts and handiworks to plants, birds, fruit and veggies, sauces and relishes. 

We bought veggies from a stand packed with produce from MEEDAC - the Mid West Education Employment District Aboriginal Corporation from Mullewa,100km east of Geraldton. They sold the sweetest little cucumbers - ideal for snacking, and baby zucchinis - which I cooked in butter one night.

We also bought homemade tomato sauce and the fluffiest lemonade scones I've ever seen from the markets and took them up to have for morning tea after a tour of the HMAS Sydney Memorial. 

The memorial is an especially moving tribute to the men who lost their lives off the West Australian Coast and it's well worth timing a visit with a free tour by volunteer guides. 

Our guide, Bob, took us on a very informative walk through each element of the memorial which culminated in the Pool of Rememberance. The Pool was constructed following the discovery of the Sydney in its resting place on the seabed and provides a place for reflection for visitors. 

western australia : lynton station

Linga Longa at Lynton Station - Western Australia's first convict depot north of Freo - has an well documented and interesting history. It was established in 1853 for its proximity to the Geraldine lead mine. We stayed overnight at Lynton for $30 for the family in a powered site. The station has showers and toilets. 

You can spend a couple of hours exploring the original homestead, which was recently historically listed, the windmill and other buildings on the property. Caretaker Vic will tell you the story behind the settlement. 

If you're umming and ahing about spending $10 on a fly net you'll be thankful you do from here to Kalbarri. The flies are shocking. I wouldn't mind them quite so much if they didn't want to suck my eye juice and swim in my mouth! 

The road from Lynton to Kalbarri winds around the picturesque pink lake where the algae is harvested for its use in medicines. 

western australia : sandy cape

                        

Early mornings at Sandy Cape were spectacular. 

 

And our little boy loved a swing in the hammock. 

                 

western australia: stockman gully cave, three springs, sandy cape

We sometimes lament about the places we've passed, the experiences we've missed that we don't even know of. Often we lament about the places and experiences we have had to miss because we just don't seem to have long enough to travel around this great continent. 

Most of us would think that a year is enough time to travel around Australia and it is but its not enough to see and do everything that this country has to offer. 

Nevertheless we've been given this opportunity and we're determined to make the most of it which doesn't always mean visiting every spot on the map. It does mean that some days we need to just stop and enjoy doing not much. 

Yesterday we had one of those relaxing days exploring Sandy Cape - the dunes, the beach, the limestone rocks. And we also just sat in the sun by the caravan playing lego, drawing, reading and getting school work done too. It was a welcome day of relaxation. 

Today was a very different day. B needed to get his head down and knock off a lot of school work for the morning. A woke up and at midday we drove to Green Head to grab a few groceries.

No sooner had we arrived than we realised we'd both forgotten our wallets (that's the second time I've done that) so we scrounged around for coins in the car and the gentleman at the servo/ liquor store/ grocery store was very helpful. 

From Green Head we drove east to Stockman Gully Cave. J happened upon a brochure for the cave while he was browsing through a bunch of papers at the caretakers caravan at Sandy Cape. It was a bit of luck really and we are so pleased we found out about this place. 

The Stockman Gully is a dry (when we were there) riverbed used by stockman to muster their cattle overnight. The cave itself is a limestone cave of about 250-300 metres long. 

We took our head torches and it's lucky we did because you walk a lot of the cave is in darkness. The kids and J loved it. Me, not so much. J remarked "how amazing would it be, diving through here?" Um yeah. I think he would find that amazing. You wouldn't get me down there at all. Ever. 

Another interesting thing about the surrounds were the half dozen bee hives at both of the entrances to the cave. The long sheets of honeycomb were visible. 

We met a family at the picnic ground by the cave and the uncle, a local, recommended a spot just off the track back to the highway. Three Springs is only accessible by 4WD - along a sandy track scattered with solid limestone rocks. 

Three Springs is literally an oasis. The gums are and beautiful banksias are fed by the springs. Apparently the palms were planted by Afghan cameleers. There was recent activity by camels, wild horses and foxes and no doubt this spot is a frequented water hole by plenty of wildlife. 

It was a great day out but even a few hours away from the caravan can seem like a huge day for the kids. If we can get back well before dinner then that's ideal. Today we weren't back until after 4 and that rush to get dinner and the kids in bed before 7 can be a little frantic. 

It's all about balance though. If we don't go out we miss things. We had a great adventure today. Tomorrow we'll charge our batteries - the caravan and the family's -  another day of relaxing at this beautiful beach. 

western australia: sandy cape

I can safely say that Sandy Cape Recreational Park has been added to our growing list of favourite camps. It's a free camp 12km north of Jurien Bay (and 8km west on a well maintained dirt road). I suspect the nearby sand mines are responsible for the upkeep of the road and there were a few of non off-road campers. There's a loo, dump point and bins. 

The cost to stay at Sandy Cape is $15/n per van regardless of the number of people staying which is an unusual but welcome way to charge campers. As a family of five we are frequently paying for our eldest two kids who are only four and six and whom don't use a lot of water or power. 

Regardless of cost the site is simply beautiful and we happened to snaffle the best site, Site 1 Shady Reatreat, right on the beach!

The kids could explode from the van in the mornings and head straight on to the beach. On the days when we had to knuckle down and get schoolwork done B could jump up for a break down on the water. In one such break he announced "I'm going on to the beach to fish. You can watch Mum but I know how to cast." 

There's a four night limit at Sandy Cape. Needless to say we would have stayed weeks. 

western australia: gingin

The view from the 13 storey purpose built tower for learning about gravity. 

Sandy Lake Farmstay ($35/n) a short drive from Perth, was a good place to base the family for two nights while we reacquainted ourselves with the caravan. It is exciting to hit the road again knowing that we don't know what adventures are in store for us. 

The  Gingin Gravity Discovery Centre and Observatory is a short drive from the farmstay and we thought we might stay an hour. It cost $54 for the family but it really was money well spent. Four hours later we dragged the kids and ourselves from the Discovery Centre. If you've been to Questacon in Canberra then the Discovery Centre is a similar concept on a smaller budget with incredible resources and hands-on activities - the best way to learn about science!

western australia: perth

This was the dinner we all threw together one night. 

It was Cuban black beans with pulled beef, rice, fiesta salsa and nachos. What we didn't take photos of was the sangria which was delicious!

Remember to throw pomegranate seeds in to the salsa. 

http://m.gourmettraveller.com.au/recipes/recipe-search/feature-recipe/2014/6/cuban-black-beans-and-rice-with-pulled-beef/

http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/32001/fiesta+salsa

western australia: perth

We raced up to Perth from Walpole, stopped in Bridgeton for lunch. Sadly we didn't have the time to stop at Donnybrook Apple Park but if you've got kids in the car you'd either better make sure you do have time to stop or they are asleep. One word. Epic!

We were in Singleton overnight in a cousin's front yard a stones throw from the beach. It was so good to catch up. P and I enjoyed our morning walk. 

And what a week in Perth. 

Initially, when we were discussing the West Coast, we'd considered bypassing Perth though we had a few mates we wanted to catch up with. 

It was great to see our friends, have dinner with them and have the kids play together. Our friends also put us up in their place in Subiaco so we spread out for the week with a house to ourselves. Funnily enough, though, we all slept within 21 foot of each other!

If you've been reading the blog you'll know that Cyril, my great great uncle, was being recognised in a sunset ceremony on the eve of ANZAC Day. It's hard to put in to words exactly what this meant for me. As I delivered a wreath to the memorial, with my cousins, I thought of Cyril's father and mother (and so many more like them) who lost sons, of his sister, my grandmothers mum, who wouldn't have remembered her older brother. I thought of Cyril's brother, Norman, who was later exempt from the war due to the loss of his brother. And I thought of my grandmother. Cyril's family would have been proud of him but they were heartbroken. 

Before the service my cousin who is dedicated to our genealogy mentioned that there is one line of the family that she's not yet been able to track down. Well out from the crowd came a couple, the descendants of Cyril's sister, whom my cousin had spoken of. And what a wonderful surprise!

We were able to meet with them later in the week AND his aunt, who, at 90, spent time with and knew many relatives. This meeting only emphasised the far reaching impact of Cyril's life and death. 

Curtin University have enlarged and enhanced the photograph taken of the 11th Battalion (after they emerged from a church service) in Cheops, Egypt and it takes up a huge wall of the gallery. It's impossible restive and worth making a trip to. The exhibition is on until late 2015 and the soldiers are almost life sized. 

Our Cyril is #587. 

Many of my West Australian relatives are buried at Karrakatta Cemetery in Perth so we took the time to pay our respects. 

This is the grave of Cyril's sister (my grandmothers mum) and their parents. 

Our time in Perth, being with family, was especially significant. It was important for me to touch base with them and listen to their stories.