Hello all

after well in excess of 70,000 views, I have decided it is too time comsuming to keep going, as I never seem to find the time.

This doesn't mean I have stopped wandering or posting, currently at Shark Bay WA

I have found over the last 6 months or so it is so much easier to just use instragram

For those interested my Instagram is listed below

https://www.instagram.com/bazmelb

Thanks for the views 

Since I have been back

I arrived back to a luscious green Kimberley.

a lovely green Cockburn Range

I love this time of the year, although still blistering hot and humid the country is green, fresh and alive.

Pentecost crossing was dry most of last season

Diversion Dam

Over the humid months the sunsets are amazing, and 2 weeks after my return we were blessed with a double whammy from a passing tropical low.
We received 310mm of rain in two days......the waterfalls were pumping.

Just west of town a few kilometres, there was 4 waterfalls where previously was nothing.

Once the weekend arrived a trip to the Grotto near Wyndham was essential.

a side fall at the Grotto

The Grotto

The Grotto

Ranges near Wyndham

Ivanhoe Crossing after 310mm of rain

After a big rain event like that there remains beautiful  clear flowing cascades for days, sometimes weeks afterwards.

The Ord River floodplains also look stunning this time of year.

Then for a trip up the Ord River, and  a swim.

Elephant Rock from the Ord

Sunset on the river was superb.

This was followed by a sunset BBQ at the Pentecost Crossing.

late afternoon on the Durack River

Last weekend I headed to a tourist free Purnululu National Park for a few days. This will be my next update.
Bye for now

A Quick Lap - part 2

After spending a few weeks with family in Gippsland, it was time to make tracks back towards my beloved Kimberley.

Innes National Park

I spent about a week camped in a good friends yard on the York Peninsula while waiting for the Eyre Highway to re open from bushfires.

Innes National Park

Innes National Park

Eventually the Eyre Highway was re opened and I headed Westward.through some atrocious conditions. On the run to Port Augusta 46.5c and 80kph headwinds. 

An onlooker at Nullarbor Roadhouse

Bunda Cliffs, Nullarbor Plain

Bunda Cliffs

After the Nullarbor it was a bit over a week in Perth catching up with Friends.

Dawesville Cut

While there we went out for a bit of cloud surfing in my mates RV6 Aircraft.

175 knots thats 315kph groundspeed in a little 2 seater

Rockingham

cloud surfing

cloud surfing

All too soon it was time to head north, and spend a week at Ningaloo, Cape Range, without the crowds.

view from camp at Cape Range

no crowds at Ningaloo

no crowds at Ningaloo

After avoiding fires in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and WA I was now looking at a late season cyclone.
There was a developing tropical low heading West towards Broome, as I left Karratha.
I stopped at Sandfire Roadhouse as it passed over Broome and headed offshore developing into a cyclone.
At 11pm at Sandfire it was 35c and 85% humidity.

Cable Beach

I slipped up the side of the developing cyclone spending a week in Broome.

Leaving the Kimberley late October and arriving back mid February, let me tell you travelling 'off season' was hot, in fact bloody hot............I had more days over 40c than under 40c

statistics.............
4 months away
16,000km travelled

there was a few expenses, as it was sooooo hot powered sites were the normal to run the air conditioner, new tyres for the van, vehicle service and so on

fuel approx $4500
site fees approx $2500
average weekly cost for making miles on a trip like this towing a van $1000 per week.

bye for now

A Quick Lap

Hello All
With all these restrictions in place I am using my down time to bring this Blog up to date.
Late October I headed off towards the East Coast.

I was pretty excited to be hitting the road with the Van in tow. After spending eight days in Darwin it was time to head South.

One of the major benefits of travelling off season is the lack of crowds. 

Mataranka Hot Springs

Mataranka Hot Springs was an awesome place to chill out for a few days, and with only about 8 other camps there, it was even better.

Further South was a quick stop at Daly Waters Pub.

After leaving Daly Waters it was a long hot drag against the headwinds to Townsville.

Magnetic Island from Castle Hill

After a few days in Townsville it was time to head further South. I was running low on time as I wanted to spend Christmas with family in Victoria.

Cape Hillsborough National Park

I had a wish list of things I wanted to see on my trek down the East Coast.

Cape Hillsborough

A couple of nights at Cape Hillborough was next.

Turtle track next to camp

After a week at Hervey Bay I had hopes of heading to Moreton Island to see the shipwrecks at Tangalooma but unfortunately it had been closed due to fires.
Ok time for plan B.........Noosa North Shore for a few Days camping......closed due to fires.
At this stage much of the North Coast of New South Wales was ablaze
After a bit of zig zagging and delays I managed to head up the Waterfall Way and then down the New England Highway to Canberra.
I managed to get down ths Bonang Highway a couple of weeks before the area was decimated by Fire.
While spending a few weeks with family over Christmas I took a quick trip up into the High Country where I first started my camping life.

Kelly's Tamboritha Saddle

Kelly's

I headed across from Arbuckle Junction to Horseyard Flat, then on to the Pinnacles Fire Lookout.

With fires raging right down the East Coast visibility was fairly poor.

Pinnacles Fire Tower

From there I headed down Billy Goat Bluff Track and home along Crooked River Road.

In the next update I will cover tsthe York Peninsula, across the Nullabour, Perth then up the West Coast back to the Kimberley.

Here is my Instagram link which I an tending to use more frequently lately

https://www.instagram.com/bazmelb/

 Bye for now .......