DAY 80 - 84, August 4 - 8

DAY 80 - AUGUST 4th On Wednesday we arrived in Exmouth. First me and Dad went to an engineer place to repair the slide out bolt while Mum and Adam went down to the visitors centre. There were no caravan parks that could fit us in at Exmouth so we went about 45km out of town and stayed at the Yardie Homestead Caravan Park. After we set up we went into the Cape Range National Park to check out some campsites to suit our motorhome. We were told at the Mesa camp that in order to get a campsite we had to line up at the ranger station. We looked at a couple of sites and we decided that we would like to stay at the Osprey bay or Mesa camps. On the way home it got dark and we saw heaps and heaps of kangaroos it was really scary because you didn't know if they were going to jump out in front of the car. One of the kangaroos nearly hit the car on the side but dad swerved and we were OK.

DAY 81 - AUGUST 5th Today Dad got up at 12 midnight in order to get a camp site for us. On the way to the ranger station which was 8km away, he counted 100+ kangaroos. Dad ended up being 4th in line but we still got a camp site in the end. Early in the morning we packed up and left to go to Bulgarra campsite 39km in Cape Range National park near Osprey Bay. After we set up we went snorkeling at Ospry Bay 1 km from our camp. After we went snorkeling we joined other campers for happy hour on the beach at Osprey Bay camp.

DAY 82 - AUGUST 6th. After a windy night we moved camp to a fabulous site by the beach - Lakeside. We have booked for 3 nights and the beach is very beautiful. In the morning we went to the lighthouse and saw some whales just off the coast. We went for a snorkel in the afternoon, and then had happy hour watching the sunset.

DAY 83 - AUGUST 7th. Overnight it was windy again but in the morning it calmed down. We went to Turquoise Bay for a snorkel where Mum saw a reef shark and we also lots of beautiful fish. We did the snorkel drift twice and it was a lot of fun. After our snorkel we checked out the sand dunes and me and Adam rolled down the huge dunes. After the dunes we saw some people kite-surfing and then we went back for happy hour where it was our neighbor Sandy 60th birthday so we all celebrated.

DAY 84 - AUGUST 8th. Today we have been going around Australia for 12 weeks. Today we went snorkeling for the last time at Lakeside - once in the morning and then in the afternoon. Our last snorkel was probably the best because the water was really calm and clear. But the thing that made our first snorkel for that day really good was that we saw a sea turtle and we swam with him. We think he was a green turtle. He was about 1.5 m long. After our snorkel we had our last happy hour at the Lakeside. After dinner we went down to the beach in the dark and watched the stars.

Robe River Free Camp

Day 79. On Tuesday we did a tour which told us about the Karratha area and showed us iron ore loading operations and gas plant operations of the North West Shelf. After the tour we got Macca's and we went to a free camp called Robe River camp. It was a nice area and the river was good because Brock and me could throw rocks in there.

Karratha

Day 76. On Saturday (July 31) we were lucky enough to get into Bamoral Caravan Park in Karratha. We went for a drive around the town and drove up to TV lookout. You could see the whole town of Karratha from TV lookout. After that we went back to the caravan park and we went for a swim in the pool. At night we went to the carnival. At the front gate we saw Matt and Kylee Best from Leongatha. They are now living in Karratha and they hire out scooters. http://www.elephantblue.com.au/ We rided the bumper cars and brock and me saw Marg Armstong from Leongatha and we got two toy machine guns.
Day 77. On Sunday we went to the town of Dampier for a while. We saw big ships being loaded and a massive gas plant. While we were on the way there Mum and Dad told us about an old 70's show called "skippy the bush kangaroo", which was cool. That night Mum waked me up and me Dad and Brock watched the F1 Grand Prix in Belgium. I was going for Lewis Hamilton but he blew up his gearbox, and Mark Webber won.
Day 78. Today we skyped Nanny Marg for her birthday. We also went down the street to post some letters and I saved my money but Brock bought some Lego. After that we went for a swim and we rode our bikes around the caravan park. Matt and Kylee came for a visit in the evening.

DAY 79 - AUGUST 3rd

In the morning we did a tour of the North West Shelf Gas facility and Rio Tinto Iron Ore ship loading operations. After the tour we left Karratha and went to a free camp at Robe River.

DAY 76-78, July 31 - August 2

Karratha

DAY 76 - JULY 31stOn Saturday we were lucky enough to get into the Balmoral Caravan Park in Karratha. We went for a drive and went to the TV Lookout. At the TV lookout you can see all of Karratha. That night we went to the carnival and saw our friends Matt & Kylee Best. Also at the festival we go some Elephant Blue rental hats and stickers, and then we went for a ride on the bumper cars.
DAY 77 - AUGUST 1st.Today we did some shopping in the morning and then went to Dampier for a look around where we saw massive iron ships loading. We also went North West Shelf Gas processing plant lookout, after that we went to the visitors centre and then at night time there were fireworks. We also watched the Hungarian Grand PriX. Webber came first!
DAY 78 - AUGUST 2nd.Today in the morning we skyped Nanny Marg for her birthday. Then we went to the post office and sent some letters. I also got a lego seaplane. That evening we caught up with Matt & Kylee Best.

DAY 74-75, JULY 29-30

DAY 74 - JULY 29th Today we left our Barn Hill and arrived De Grey River campsite. It was a big day of travelling (420km & over 5 hours!). After we had set up we went for a walk around the campground and realised there was a lot more campsites than what we thought. We also saw a big stork wandering around. Total km 7928.
DAY 75 - JULY 30th Today we travelled from De Grey River and stopped on the way at Port Hedland. Port Hedland is well known as a shipping town for Iron Ore. At Port Hedland we had some lunch next to a good playground. After we had lunch we set off and arrived at Herbert Parker rest area which is 70k out of Port Hedland. We went for a look around at the dried up river and we found a old tyre. So we decided to roll the tyre back up to the camp to sell it. Me Adam and Mum had a game and whoever could roll the tyre the furthest got to sell it. Me and Adam were one team and we won. But later on Dad bought the tyre off us for $10 for each of us. After we had sold the tyre to Dad we hung up the hammock had a little play in it.

Port Hedland

Day 75. On Friday (July 30) we packed up and headed to Port Hedland. We checked out the town, but sadly there was no toyworld. We had some lunch and played at the community park after we had seen some ships that looked like they were at least 400m big. The fill up the ships with Iron ore which goes to China, to make steel. We left Port Hedland and travelled an hour to our free camp called Herbert Parker Rest Area. We went for a walk along an empty river bed. We found a tyre and we rolled it all the way back to camp. Back at camp we set up our hammock and we relaxed for the rest of the day.

De Grey river campsite

Day 74. We left Barn Hill today and travelled 420km, which is a total 7928km so far. We did school work while travelling in the morning and watched Mr. Bean & Jurassic park dvd's in the afternoon. We stayed the night at De Grey River and the river had water in it. We saw a huge stork in the afternoon when we went for a walk.

DAY 71-73, JULY 26-28

DAY 71 - JULY 26th Today we left Broome and camped at Barn Hill station. After we had set up we went down to explore the beach. People said that there was a reef shark in the water but we didn't see it. After we had a swim we went back to the camper and I cooked chicken and vegetable risotto for dinner.

DAY 72 - JULY 27th Today we decided to explore the Barn Hill Beach at low tide. In the rock pools we saw a lot of seasnails and we also saw an octopus. After we explored the rock pools we dugout big holes in the sand. At night before the full moon we did some stargazing - I spotted one shooting star, and I also spotted three of the six satellites (two of the satellites were running parallel).

DAY 73 - JULY 28th Today in the morning we went for a walk down to the beach. on the way back to the camp we saw a dolphin. When we went back to the beach later that day we did another dig out and me and Adam both made F1 cars. At night we went to the green area and we saw a couple of our friends.

Barn Hill Station

Barn HillDay 71. On Monday (July 26) we said goodbye to Broome and set off to Barn Hill Station. This is our eleventh week on this trip and we are loving it. At Barn Hill we set up camp and we got told there was a reef shark in the beach near us, but we didn't see it. While we were down at the beach we went boogy boarding. The beach at Barn hill is good for boogy boarding in the morning and in the afternoon because in the daytime at high tide the waves are too rough.

Day 72. The total kilometres we have done is 7528. Lately we have explored the beach at low tide. We saw rock pools. We saw a huge rock pool, after the huge rock pool mum saw a huge octopus hiding under a rock, so Dad lifted the rock and we saw a huge grey octopus. We also saw lots of fish and some little sea snails. After we went to the rock pools we headed back to the camp and had dinner.

Day 73. Today at Barn Hill Station we went for a long walk along the beach. After that we had breakfast and after that we had a rest at the camp, played lego then headed back down to the beach. Brock and me made F1 cars in the sand. Then in the afternoon we had dinner then went down to the bbq area. Around there we saw Maggie Wallis and Bob. Brock and me played lego there.

DAY 68-70, JULY 23-25

DAY 68 - JULY 23rd Today we went to the bird observatory it was 20km out from Broome. We saw a couple of birds and then we went down onto the beach and rediscovered the dinosaur footprints from the hovercraft tour. After we saw the dinosaur footprints we went over to the rockpools looking for crabs. When we were looking we saw two crabs fighting but afterwards we saw a REALLY BIG CRAB. After we had seen the crabs we went home a had a bike ride.

DAY 69- JULY 24th Today in the morning we just stayed in the camper and played with our lego. Later on we went to cable beach for a swim. That night Dad, Adam, John and me went to the Broome Speedway. It was really fun, apart from when we were sat up in the middle of the corner and when one of the cars came around we go sprayed with a lot of dirt and a couple of little stones. When we got back from the speedway Mum had cooked us some cookies.

DAY 70- JULY 25th Today was our last full day in Broome. In the morning mum went shopping while Adam, Dad and me went to the swimming pool again. When we got back we went to the beach and had a swim. We stayed on the beach after our swim because we had a bbq dinner.

Broome

Day 68. On Friday (23 July) we went to the Broome Bird Observatory. We took a short walk around the little park and we looked at bird through the binoculars.After the walk we went to a lookout and we saw a few birds it was low tide so there was lots of shells on the beach. We left the bird observatory and went to Redcliffs and saw the dinosaur footprints - the same ones that we saw on the hovercraft tour. when we were exploring we found a few crabs I told Dad to lift a rock to see if there were any crabs under the rock, and there was - the first rock we lifted we saw we thought we found the biggest crab. But then we lifted another rock and saw the biggest crab that we had ever seen that was alive and in the wild. Dad took a bit of a stick and poked it. The crab grabbed on to it and he got lifted up with it! After a good lot of exploring we went back to the camper and had a rest. We went for a bike ride in the afternoon.

Day 69. On Saturday all we did was go to Cable Beach for a while but then at night Dad Brock and Me and Johnny next door went to the Speedway. At the speedway there was motorbike racing, V8 racing, old little car racing and a few a sort of modern car racing. Mum stayed home and baked cookies and brownies. While we were at the speedway we were getting flicked at by rocks, then we moved but when we were watching the V8 racing we were still getting hit by rocks.At half time from the racing a Holden SS with 2 people in the back threw lollies to the kids I didn't catch any but Brock got 4. He shared them with me and it ended up with us all happy.

Day 70.On Sunday it was our last day in Broome. So Brock Dad and I went to the aquatic centre while Mum went shopping for supplies. While we were at the aquatic we swam in the pool and I got a hole in my blow up splash rider. In the afternoon we went to Ganthaume Point beach and we saw some fish. We had dinner on the beach and I had some of Lyn Davidsons chocolate cake dessert.

Broome Lego & Kayaking

Day 67. Today we went to the Target toy sale in the morning. I bought a lego city airport and mum bought me a world racers set for my birthday (for in two months time). Then we went to the kayaking. Dad and me saw a turtle then we paddled over to the turtle beach and went in some caves. (had afternoon tea there as well). Then we paddled off and saw a whale on the horizon. Then headed back to the beach. Our tour guide was called Dale. Dale was a good guy. I liked kayaking.

Broome Kayaking

Hi everyone, alls good here in Broome, weather is lovely!

Highlights of the past week were: Brock's Birthday - 11 wow!, Visiting the Snell's aboard their fantastic Cat "Kiella" and the kayaking from Cable Beach.

We caught up with the George, Wrigley, Davidson & Wallis families last Sunday evening on Cable Beach (it is a weekly event - Sunday bbq & drinks on the beach), and we also had the pleasure of having Jen's son Dale take us on the Kayak tour (see pic for you Jen). It was a lot of fun!

We have loved staying here but will probably move on next week and start heading South - next stop Barn Hill! The boys went to Speedway tonight so I have had the camper to myself for a few hours.
Hope all is good at home, Sad news about Geoff's mum though. Everyone take care... Love from Deb. XXX

DAY 67 - JULY 22nd

Today in the morning we went to the Target toy sale and I bought a Lego Agents helicopter and Adam got a Lego City Airport. When we got home we started to construct our legos but then we had to go because we had booked a kayaking tour.
On the kayaking tour we saw only a single turtle on the way to a little beach area where we had afternoon tea. On the way back we didnt see any turtles but instead we saw a whale on the horizon surfacing and blowing. It was really fun.
When we got back we continued constructing our Lego until it was time for bed.

DAY 66 - JULY 21st

Today we did schoolwork in the morning again but in the afternoon we went down to the beach and made a sand fort for our lego men. We dug a channel to the edge of the water to get some water in our river around our fort, but as the tide came in it started to flood the fort so we had to make the walls bigger. But then a really big wave came and flooded our fort underwater. Luckily our lego people had evacuated. After our fort was demolished we decided to have a surf.

Broome

Day 66. On wednesday we finished reading the Fear Street first book. Then we went to beach with our boogy boards. We made a fort sandcastle our lego men. It got washed away with the waves. We saved our lego men.

Broome

Day 65. On Tuesday we had schoolwork in the morning. In the afternoon our next door neighbor John took us out in his boat to visit Kiella the Catamaran (boat with two hulls) Kiella is Elaine and Ians boat. They are from our area at home. The boat is awesome and massive. John took us home before dark. Mum and me read a scary story 'ghosts of fear street - hide and shriek'.

DAY 65 - JULY 20th

This morning we started off with some schoolwork such as mental maths, soundwaves and signpost maths and blog. After lunch our neighbor John took us out in his boat. We visited Ian & Elaine on the boat called Kiella. They are travelling around Australia in the Kiella boat which they made themselves. It was a very nice boat, but we had to leave because we had to travel home before sunset.

Ian & Elaine have a blog about their voyage: it is http://thevoyageofkiella.blogspot.com/

DAY 64 - JULY 19th

Today in the morning we went into town and did the pearl luggers tour. We got to see how the divers worked in the olden days. And how they would use pearl
shell for example buttons, badges, and jewellry. One in three divers would not survive their first ever dive. After the tour we went into town and had a
look at some of the shops. That evening before sunset we went down to the beach and played soccer with Adam's soccer ball (Wilson) and my Wahu water ball.

DAY 63 - JULY 18th

Today in the morning we went to Sportspower and mum kindly bought me a wahu water ball. Later that day we went down to the skate park and had a lot of fun
and then we went to the pool next door and I used my floaty water seat. In the afternoon we went to the beach and had a swim we also had dinner on the
beach with the George, Davidson, Wallis & Wrigley families. When we got back from the beach after dinner me and Adam watched Jurassic Park until 11pm.

DAY 62-JULY 17th

Today is my 11th Birthday! this morning I got a lego plane, a new scooter, a floaty water chair,a home made voucher for a dvd and some chocolate. Later that day we went to the skate park and I tested out my new scooter. After that we went to Mcdonalds for lunch and I had a cheeseburger, chips, a frozen coke and a donut. Later on we went to the dvd shop and I used my voucher to by a Jurassic park 3 dvd pack. Later on back at the camper we had cake and then
me and Adam watched my new dvd. That night we invited some friends down and we played our video of our flight with John. I had a very very very great birthday.

Pearl Luggers Broome

Day 64. Today (Monday) we went into town and did the Pearl Luggers tour. We got to see the history of pearl shell harvesting. They harvest the shells by using a huge and heavy diving suit. In the olden days one out of three divers died on their first ever dive. I got to try on a pearl that was worth $50000!Then we went window shopping and headed back to camp. In the evening we went to the beach and played soccer before dinner. The temperature is 31 degrees in the day and around 20 degrees in the evening.

Broome

Day 62. On Saturday it was Brock's Birthday 11th birthday. He got a few presents including a heap of Lego. We went to the skate park and Brock tried out his new scooter. We had lunch then we had cake. We watched Brocks dvd Jurassic Park.
Day 63. On Sunday July 18th we went to Sportspower and bought Brock a wahoo waterball. I got a splash rider. Then we went to the skate park, then to the Broome Pool. Then we played with new toys and I brought Wilson to the pool with me. In the afternoon we went to the beach for a swim and for some dinner.

Willie Creek Pearl Farm

Day 60. On Thursday we went to Willie Creek Pearl Farm which is 38 km from Broome. On the tour we saw some oysters which are what they use to make pearls. We played on the boat they had in the playground and then we had a picnic lunch. Then we had some lemonade cordial. Then we went on a boat cruise to see where they farm the oysters which grow pearls and to see if the oysters are sick or not. Then we went into a tributory of the river looking for the crocodile. After the boat tour we went to the showroom and learnt how to value and care for real pearls. The quality of a valuable pearl are: color, shape, size, lustre (shine) and complexion (smoothness).
Day 61. On Friday we hanged around the camp for the whole day. Then we baked a cake for Brocks birthday. We went grocery shopping in the morning.