Day 54 - Mundrabilla Roadhouse to Penong - Saturday 1st July 2017

On leaving the Mundrabilla Roadhouse today I began to encounter the various 'trees' a little way down the track. They include such trees as the bottle tree, the thong tree, the bra tree and my favourite the undie tree. Needless to say I had to stop and add an old pair of my undies to decorate the tree - see if you can spot them in the before and after photos. I notice someone got a little confused and added a bra to the undie tree as well - oh well, still an attractive addition nevertheless. I pushed on and after a brief stop at the Nullarbor Roadhouse I went off the highway to once again visit the Head of Bight lookout. This time I was in luck with quite a few whales resting in the shallows with their young beside them. My stop for the night was back at the Penong campground, the trek across the Nullarbor completed.

Days 52 and 53 - Southern Cross to Fraser Range to Mundrabilla Roadhouse - Thursday 29th and Friday 30th June 2017

First stop today was the Southern Cross dump point to empty the toilet cassette before moving on to Coolgardie where I filled with water. Next stop was Norseman for fuel and vegetables and I finally ended up 5 km past Fraser Range Caravan Park at a rest area for Thursday night. Friday was spent covering many kilometers over the Nullarbor to finish up at Mundrabilla roadhouse with it's associated campsite  providing power and an amenities block for $20 per night. Just two days of tedious driving - and were it not for the endless supply of music from the motor-home's music system I think I may just have gone slightly mad.

Day 51 - Wannamal Rest Area to Southern Cross - Wednesday 28th June 2017

On the road again. Popped in to Bindoon for a hot shower before heading on to Gin Gin and an olive farm owned by the brother and his wife of our close friends Bev and Graeme in England. Bev had spoken about her family in the west on many occasions so it was good to put faces to names at last. They were kind enough to entertain me at short notice and show me the farm. Needless to say I took some of the produce with me which will please Sue at home no doubt. Then it was on via the Midland Highway to join the Great Eastern Highway. I had lunch at the Rotary Park in Northam before heading on to my stop for the night which was an isolated roadside stop some 9 km west of Southern Cross - I was the only one here so it felt quite spooky.

Days 49 and 50 - Carnarvon to Northampton then to Wannamal Rest Area- Monday 26th June and Tuesday 27th June 2017

First thing this morning after packing up and heading off was to drive up the hill to the Space Museum to retrieve a pair of glasses I had inadvertently left there the night before. Then it was back on the road with a brief stop at the Wooramel Lookout perched as it is on top of a large hill in the middle of this desert-like landscape. I spent Sunday night at the Northampton Golf Club which allows overnight stays for a small fee if one is self-contained. The following day (Monday) I drove into Geraldton to tend to a few tasks such as a gas bottle refill, groceries at Coles, Centrelink to clarify a mysterious payment that had arrived in my account and lastly Bunnings for some LED lights for the bedroom end of the motor-home. Lunch at Enneabba rest area and bedded down for the night at Wannamal rest area filled out the rest of the day.

Day 48 - Manilya Bridge roadside stop to Carnarvon - Sunday 25th June 2017

Another short drive today venturing only as far as the Wintersun Caravan Park in Carnarvon. I had wanted to visit the Carnarvon Space and Technology Museum and as it is located perhaps 1 km from the caravan park I saw my chance. I set out on foot and climbed the hill to the museum where I had a thoroughly enjoyable time viewing the exhibits dating from a time in the mid sixties when Carnarvon played an important part in the manned space program. When back at the campground it was almost dinnertime and I joined others at the rather large camp kitchen for a prepaid curry night. Not having to cook was wonderful and we were also entertained (though not my cup of tea) by Outback Paddy and his songs celebrating the Australian bush.