Day 17 - Homeward bound

The flight was on time and 11 hours later we arrived at Abu Dhabi and disembarked for a couple of hours before joining the next flight for Heathrow and joy of joys I actually managed to sleep for a while and so the remaining 7 hours were not so bad, except they switched the inboard entertainment off before the end of a gripping episode of Secrets and Lies! Not sure I will ever know 'whodunnit' now!
Quickly through the baggage claim and passport check and before 8.30 we had been met by our taxi driver and were back on the M25, speeding homewards. Never thought I would say that it was good to be on this particular motorway but after the deserted roads in Oz it was refreshing to see such a lot! Shame it was also raining - welcome back to a typical UK day in June!

Day 16 - Time to go home!

 Sadly this is our last day in Oz and I have a touch of the hangovers which isn't the best of conditions to be in before a long flight! Luckily a well cooked breakfast (cheers Alan!) and the necessary cleaning of the van followed by the usual dismal attempt at packing the suitcases ( we decided to bring the new heater and huge blanket home with us!) I actually felt OK.
We decided to go for a last look at the beach where they live, which is unspoilt and where we know that dolphins visit and then it was back for a last look round and say goodbye to Jewel, the cat, before we were headed back to Apollo the return the motorhome and on to the Airport in Perth. After checking in we all went up to the bar for a final drink and said our farewells. It has been a great trip and wonderful to cement a friendship that was made on a previous holiday - Huge thanks and big hugs to Alan and Jackie who made us feel so welcome!

Day 15 - Last day on the Road

 Woke to a brilliant blue sky and warm sunshine, fairly typical for our last day to have no chilly wind! Jon cooked breakfast and we were on the road by 8.30 and as he wanted to be back in Port Kennedy by lunchtime we just kept driving! There really is nothing to see except endless grey tarmac, green scrub and sky, whether you are on the freeway or the coastal road, and it's almost a relief to see another vehicle just to make you feel you're not the only people on the planet!
Anyhow we got back as planned and had last lunch on board and then went in search of a hairdresser as we both needed a bit of attention in the hair department! Once restored to our former selves we headed off to Alan and Jackies to catch up on the week and celebrate Alan's birthday. Their friends Anita and Rob joined us and we all set off for a fab meal at the Steel Trees Restaurant. Good food, great company and a generous helping of local wine was the perfect way to end our trip.

Day 14 - Back South Again

Woke really early this morning, Jon said it was 5.20 and I thought that's ok we wanted an early start but as it failed to get light outside after a while I checked my watch and it was still only 5am! Grrr! He really must get an eye test!
Anyway we did get an early start and were on our way back down towards Geraldton again (let's hope there are no dramas this time!) but decided to stop off for a look at Kalbarrie on the way down.  It is a lovely unspoilt little quaint town right on the edge of the sea and we had a wander round and then lunch in the van overlooking the bay, very pleasant!
We had planned on travelling as far as Cervantes as our overnight stop and also to see The Pinnacles but felt we'd had enough driving for one day so chose to stay at the Sunset Beach resort where we would have been on Tuesday but for the Motorhome malfunction!!
1st issue on arrival - the 'world famous surfing beach' was closed!
2nd issue - Part of registration document included a warning letter about a 'thief at large in the camp'!
3rd issue - a rather nasty smell has arisen from next doors toilet!
I do now wholeheartedly believe that we and Geraldton should never be together, it is our jinxed place in Oz!
So as this is our last night In the van we shall light the last BBQ and cook everything left in the fridge and drink any remaining alcohol (last night's Barbie was great).

Day 13 - Monkey Mia and Shark Bay

Woke to blue sky and sunshine, hurrah! And we headed straight off to the dolphin beach at Monkey Mia and as we had missed the first sightings we sat in the sunshine and had breakfast, Jon went for eggs benedict and I tried out the date and pecan bread, both of which were delicious especially when eaten beside a turquoise sea and white sandy beach!!
After a couple of sightings a pod of 6 dolphins came to the shallow water about 11am and were fed a small amount by the Rangers so we could view them.  Feeding is restricted so that the Dolphins do not become domesticated and are encouraged to live normally so there are only about 8 that regularly visit the beach.
We left Mia beach to go to the Shark Bay aquarium where we had an incredibly informative and entertaining tour by a couple of marine scientists. These guys are really passionate and knowledgable about what they do and the marine life they look after.
We sat and had a drink overlooking the bay in the sunshine and then headed back to camp via the village and restocked with food and fuel.
We returned to the Waterfront bar as they have a fab internet connection ( unlike anywhere else we have been!) and then returned to site to attempt a BBQ for our evening meal!

Day 12 - Motorhome Malfunction!

We woke early and got ourselves sorted so that we would be ready for the tow truck at 9am. He was great and loaded us up in no time at all and we headed off to Geraldton Diesel Injections Garage.  By now it is chucking it down with rain and we ran for cover in the 'office'. 3 hours and a couple of thunderstorms later and the van was fixed (thank goodness) and we could finally set off for Monkey Mia.
The journey took 4 hours and the scenery was exactly the same from start to finish! Straight road of  tarmac, orange dirt bank either side and green scrub as far as the eye could see! This was interspersed now and again by heavy rain which actually made the wet leaves on the roadside trees sparkle in the sun as if they had tiny crystals on them (waxing lyrical here shows how even the smallest thing relieved the boredom of the trip!!).
We arrived at Denham Seaside Campsite at 5pm and booked for a couple of nights to recover!
A short walk along the seafront and we found a good looking bar (as opposed to the men only style billiards room / darts board pub with no women in sight) called the Waterfront Bar and settled in for the evening! Great food, music and entertainment in the form of the locals dancing rock and roll!
We are now chilled!

Day 11 - Travelling North

We made sure we were up and ready to go by 9am as we had a really long journey ahead.  Said our goodbyes again and we off and pointed in the direction of Geraldton some 470km away!
Decided to go and restock our alcohol stores but shops all shut due to Bank Holiday so Jon replenished his supply of spectacles (how many can one man sit on or lose in a week?) and we set off minus the booze - how will we manage?
The journey can only be described as tedious with absolutely nothing to look at and a strange harmony evolved with the other cars because we were all going the same way at the same speed and it began to feel like we were all travelling together - very weird!  Anyway we just kept driving until about 1.30 when a roadhouse was signposted and we pulled in to refuel and have some lunch, as did most of the other travellers on our trip.
Set off again and finally reached Geraldton about 3pm and pulled into another shopping centre only to find this was also closed - for heavens sake! It wouldn't happen in the UK!
Went to drive off and the van wouldn't start!! Things were just about to get even worse as when we rang for assistance they couldn't get anyone out to us until the morning!
Packed everything out of sight and walked to the nearest pub to drown our sorrows and use the wifi and power to charge the phones!  We will be wild camping in the supermarket car park tonight!