From the
freecamp at De Grey’s, we headed east along the coast to
80 Mile Beach. We stayed at the caravan park at 80 Mile Beach, and this is a great
example of an industry which is HUGE and (again) I had no idea existed until we
started this trip. I was very naïve back then…
So I knew
that Australia had huge ‘stations’ and that these were enormous properties where people raised/farmed
cattle or sheep. (I had no idea we had so many GOATS in Australia though.) I
know these properties can be as large as the US state of Texas, though many of
them are a little smaller than that. I DIDN’T know that so many of them also have little caravan parks that cater to
travellers. Bertha is set up for free camping, so we really only need a patch
of ground and power or water now and then, but these stations have fully set up
amenities blocks and camp kitchens for those travelling in caravans or tents
without facilities. They have stores that sell bread/milk/basics and even fuel
if it is remote enough. Many of them have added bonuses like meals or
entertainment at night. One even has a bowling ‘green’! We really like staying in these
places, as the people seem friendlier and more laid back than in a larger town.
And by people, I mean the travellers, not the managers!
80 Mile
Beach is one such station stay, though that wasn’t particularly obvious on Wikicamps. It is accessed by 9km of dirt road
and, even though the Oodnadatta Track has scared us off of corrugated roads in
general, we will take Bertha down a shorter track if the destination is good
enough. We have worked out that a gentle cruise at 10-20km/h means we roll over
the bumps without stirring up the dust too much. It chews up a heck of a lot
more fuel, but that’s ok for a short bit. We are happy
to wave caravans past us, though we have noticed many other people are also
driving at our sedate speed. I always prepare for corrugations by moving everything
off the bench, just in case, and our broom (which lives wedged between the
fridge and the wall) is pretty much guaranteed to fall out, but that’s no stress.
The main
thing about Station Stays, is that you are making your way through an operational
station. This means multiple gates and grids, which they use to regulate the
movement of stock. Every gate needs to be opened and closed again after Dunc
has driven Bertha through.
80 Mile
Beach was well worth the effort though! The beach was insanely beautiful and
the shells were amazing. WA is a state where beach driving is permitted so Dunc
had to give it a go again. We stayed 2 nights and spent the days wandering the
beach looking for shells. Dunc threw a line in from his new surf rod in the
hope of catching a threadfin salmon. Ha! No luck there. No-one was having any
luck, and apparently this was due to the time of year according to the guy at
Broome.
We did get to
watch some entertainment in the form of a stubborn old man. Apparently he had
already moved his car 3 times due to the tide and just didn’t want to move it anymore. We watched it
creeping in and in and in. Everyone kept saying that at least it was high tide,
and it wouldn’t come in any further, but it was.
In the end it was well up to his side steps – and this was salt water, not just
a river crossing! The sand was washing away from under his tyres too, so it was
settling further down in the sand with every wave. A number of people had
offered help, but apparently he was too proud to accept any. They all kept
driving off after chatting to him. It was getting dark soon – the sun was only
about 20 minutes away from setting and I was worried about how I was going to be
able to drive off and leave this old couple and their car at the beach.
In the end
a ute arrived. I think they were from the station and not prepared to let him
suffer. They hooked up a snatch strap and within 2 minutes he was free and
further up the beach. Seriously, it was 2 minutes of help. All that angst that
I experienced, worried about this poor man, because he wouldn’t accept 2 minutes of help. We were able to
head off home to Bertha free in the knowledge that no cars were drowning that
day!
No comments:
Post a Comment