When I was telling my dad about our plan to swap drivers at Hyden on the way down he eagerly pulled up photos of the last time I'd been there. It was 2000 and toward the end (?) of a 3 month family camping/caravan trip, and directed pigtailed me (an also sometimes my sister) at wave rock. So after we'd had pies at the Hyden bake house I pushed for us to stop by on our way out of town to recreate the photo. In the end I couldn't find my hair lackies (it's a currently /just/ long enough to tie up) so there were no pig tails but we did take a photo to send to my dad next time we got reception. (I'll try an upload it when I get a copy/reception)
While we were there we commented on how much of a nanny state we live in, to have erected a wall across the top of such a beautiful natural land mark, so that people wouldn't fall off. It turns out however the wall was built to increase the catchment area of Hyden dam, when it was extended in 1951, which is actually pretty reasonable. We did the shortest of short walking trials up to the top of the rock and then down again which afforded us an awesome view of the surroundings.
After the brief interlude I took the wheel and we tottered on down to Ravensthorpe where we topped up Leroy's air bag suspension a touch (Leroy is the car we're in) and did our produce shop. The boys were weirded out by the fact the iga had a carpeted floor, but I was somewhat more distracted by the fact that they had camping/hardware supplies, and no sliced bread. We picked up a couple of gems, like discount (expired) 'regular spread (margarine) and a loaf of unsliced artisinal bread (of which half still remains with us and we're nearly at Albany). It was then just an hour further to our first vaguely planned camp-site (for which I relinquished vehicular control).
That night we camped at Stoke's inlet where there was a lovely volunteer camp ground manager couple, Bob and Pat (apparently Bob only had one had but the validity of that statement cannot be confirmed by and additional party), a well established and sheltered camping area, a barbecue and a toilet block. It made for a nice soft entry to camping. We arrived in time to figure out our swag arrangements, and get started on dinner before it got dark. I'd spent much of the car trip babysitting my not-quite-dead-yet bunch of flowers which made a nice addition to our table spread.
The following day (Saturday) we headed into Esperance for sliced bread, gluten free bread, an extra day's worth of meat (having revised our journey somewhat) and a tarp (there is alot of forecast rain). For lunch we stopped into Top End Takeaway at the recommendation of a friend who grew up in Albany, and their Mick's burger was just the delicious monstrosity she'd outlined. The boys' faces lit up at the mention of double patties. We got them to go and headed straight for the ocean, eating on a picnic table overlooking the Scout's yatch club.
Onwards we went to our second camp ground: Mason Bay. This was a beautiful little place right on the coast and it had a fire pit. It was still incredibly clear so we gave the tarp a miss. Woolies Esperance had provided us with the lovely gem of a discount butterflied lamb shoulder that we enjoyed with fire roasted veggies. Determined to beat the previous night's 7.30 bed time we stayed up watching the fire and listening to the surf (also warming our feet on the edge of the concrete fire enclosure). Whilst enjoying the fire we also sacrificed most of the forlorn looking roses to the rain gods in hopes of continued fair weather. The moon was incredibly full that night and despite my complaints about it being too bright this is probably my favourite camp ground so far; after getting into my swag I lay and watched the stars for a while listening to the waves crashing.
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| Flower Sacrifice to the Rain Gods in hopes of continued fair weather |
After a good 11 or so hours of sleep and Lochie's pre breakfast swim we pottered around for a bit before packing up and heading off towards Fitzgerald River national park. And while we're on the topic of sleep I must say, we sure are getting a lot, after getting to camp early to mid afternoon we set up, occasionally have a brief chill then start getting dinner ready around 5 as it begins to get dimmer. We're generally eating by torch light and not long after yawning ourselves into our swags only to rouse again at 7 or 8 the following day. That's what you're supposed to do on holiday, right? Sleep a lot?
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