Wanted to let you know

I can look at stats of my blog - from what country the views are made and also how many page views.
This blog has had over 2,500 page views since I started.    Who is reading this?????

travelling south

School holidays started last night so the roads are busier.  I am by the beach in Geraldton and it is pretty and the ocean a gorgeous colour.  Windy though and cooler (as you expect travelling south) so it feels so different.  It is amazing how the body gets used to the constant warmer temperatures that when it is a tiny bit colder it feels sooo much colder.  The landscaped changes on the way down to larger bushes and some wildflowers and then the paddocks with trees and grasses - I found that I was missing the flat plains and spinifex and wide open spaces.  I think the red dirt, heat, remoteness and life style of the north gets under the skin.   Travelling solo has its moments.  Sometimes I have a big smile on my face and I am thoroughly enjoying the adventure and other times it is hard work and I would love someone to be sitting in the seat beside me sharing the journey. (I am sure I have said this before in a previous post but today is one of those days.  People are so important - family, friends, acquaintances - all add to the journey of life and without them it lacks the reflection of who I am.  Add to that nature and landscape we are in and it is an amazing planet!!!  No is midday and I haven't been drinking!  Just waffling on.  AFL grand final today I hear.  Who am I cheering for - neither side really.   It has been lovely to get comments - even if you don't know me and come across my post by accident please leave a comment and say hi.  It would be nice to know who I talking to.  It has also been great to chat to friends on the phone.  I do appreciate the contact and support from home and elsewhere.  Mobile phones can be very handy.  xxxxoooooooo

Pics

Petra, Pinky and Brown dog with Sugar

Sugar looks like she wants to box Brown Dog

Speigltent at Karratha - bizarre

hey Tom

more Speigltent

Spiderwoman visits Lyndon

Lyndon, Red Dirt, Bananas and Rain

I arrived in Carnarvon about 4 pm yesterday.  The bottom road from Lyndon to the highway is about 150 ks - some of the road is good however a lot of corrugation and some parts a lot of small rocks and some sand.  I am very lucky that the river crossing was recently graded so that was good.  It took a few hours longer than it did when I drove the subaru there 3 years ago.  Myrtle certainly doesn't like the rough stuff. 
It was great to have time at Lyndon and catch up with Cath and Sean (and spend time with 4 gorgeous children)  and also to meet up with Sam (Cath's mum) and Chrissie (Sean's mum) who were there to help out.    It was sad knowing that a week before Lyndon had 3 lovely girls working and having fun around the place and in a moment everything can change.  Life moves on after these events and people grieve and pick up the pieces and carry on - cattle to muster, workers to feed, cleaning, children to school, meals to prepare and eat,  and cups of tea and conversations.
Lyndon maybe remote but not at all boring and there is always something to do or someone calling in.   Lyndon is a cattle station 300 k north east of Carnarvon and is about 1 million acres.  It is on the Lyndon River but no water in the river unless there is a bit of rain.   Usually around Broome to Darwin there is a dry and wet season however sometimes around the Pilbara/Gascoyne area they don't get a good rain every year. 
They were doing some mustering when I was there.  Sean goes up in a plane and instructs the guys on the motorbikes on the ground.  When they are in the yards they draught - some go off in the road train on a holiday by boat, others back to the paddocks, or marked or spayed etc. 
I helped out in the homestead and with the kids with school of the air work that Chrissie was doing with them.   Everyone sits down together for a meal in the evenings.  Usually early to bed as it starts early in the morning again.  I stayed four nights then down the road again.
In Carnarvon I bought some fruit and vegies from Doris at Morel's (beautiful fruit and so nice when you buy from where they grow - the most amazing strawberries, paw paw and star fruit).  Carnarvon is such a food bowl.  They have heaps of plantations here and grow wonderful sweet little bananas they are not sprayed like east coast bananas.
Last night I went to the Post Office Pizza Restaurant for a prawn pizza and said hi to Kerron who is a friend of Donna's from Wang.
I am feeling a bit lonely after about a month with company.  Well on the road again......

Farewell Karratha

This morning I said goodbye to Tom and Petra and Julie and Brian - it was so great to hang out with all of you and it is sad to say goodbye but I had to move on sometime and head towards home.  I am now at Lyndon Station.    Mollie-Beetle and Griff have grown and I met Leslie and Saffy.  Griff is 4 tomorrow so it is 3 years since I have been here.
Everyone is still coming to terms with last week's tragic accident.
On Friday night (after pizza night at home with Eddie and Fran visiting)  Tom and I went to the Speigltent in Karratha.  It was part of the Red Earth Arts Festival - very different - sword swallower and all.  Photos later. 

Pilbara

Petra and Tom at a look out in Karratha

"Sugar" being held by Ollie (one of Tom's work mates)

4WD in the sand dunes (we got stuck - but only temporarily)  Then Tom let me have a drive.  I have never driven in 4WD in sand - I was sort of brave.

After digging and a few sticks we are off and away

So hot that we didn't do the walks!  Typical Pilbara scenery.

near python pool

I was so looking forward to a swim on such a hot day - but couldn't because of the blue green algae.  This pool has not seen rain or running water for a while.

"Sugar" is a lovely little orphaned joey who Petra is looking after.  "Sugar" was in the car when the accident happened that took darling Emma.  Emma had been looking after "Sugar" so Petra has taken over the job.  It is so lovely having "Sugar" around - she is so delicate and gets on with the little dogs so well.

A sad time.....

All my other posts have been of my happy adventures .... this time my post is written with a heavy heart.  Tom and Petra have lost a dear friend from Lyndon Station.  On the weekend at the cattle station there was a single car accident involving 3 of the overseas workers.  Dear Emma (from Ireland)  died in the accident and the other two were injured. (one being a friend of Emma's who had come out from Ireland to spend time with her).   My heart goes out to her parents who would have received the phone call that no parent wants to receive.    Petra was down at the station with the Brian and Julie for the weekend.  Tom and I were here in Karratha as he had to work on the weekend.  I intended to head down to visit soon and catch up with everyone  (the girls I had only just met at the rodeo the weekend before).   I will still go down to the station to see Cath, Sean and the kids.  It will be a sad time.  Emma had worked there for over a year at first as a nanny and then as the cook.  In memory of Emma.

More photos

picnic at Mairie Pool

Looking over Karratha

Dampier Salt

Pannawonica Rodeo

We drove about 2 hours down the road to the Rodeo yesterday.  Pannawonica is a small Rio Tinto mining town.   It was a 3 day event but we just went for the Saturday.  There is a huge camp area with lots of people set up for the night.  It was interesting to go as I have never been to a rodeo before but I don't think it is very kind for the bulls or horses.

Tom, Petra, Julie and me in the big shovel at the Pannawonica turnoff

The boot tree

Breakfast time - nearly everyone has packed up and left

cowboy

It is a big event and people come a long way to watch and compete.   In the evening there were a couple of bands and one was the Sunny Cowgirls who were great.  I went back after the band finished to have my first night in a swag.  I think I just got to sleep and the partying continued in the camp area to the early hours so I didn't get much sleep.  It was so nice in the swag though looking up at the moon and stars.

Hi from the Pilbara ( and pics of my visit to Broome)

Town Beach Broome (don't know the little boy - he just happened to hug the Japanese thing as I was taking the photo)  Does anyone know what it is called???

Sunset at Cable Beach

Gary, Denise and Elizabeth cooking at the backpackers (Beaches of Broome)

I am still chilling (well chilling probably isn't the word as it quiet hot here - well relaxing)  in Karratha.  We did stairway to the moon at Hearsons Cove last Sunday night.  Heaps of people go and we had a bbq on the beach waiting for the moon to rise and reflect on the low tide of the mudflats.  I didn't get a good photo of the moon rise.  There was also poetry readings and a choir singing as it is part of the Red Earth Festival.    It was also interesting to see the gas works, flares and lights at night..  We are off to Pannawonica tomorrow for a Rodeo so that should be fun. 

Up and Down Hills

Hi have been relaxing this week and reading some books and going for walks with Petra and the little dogs.   Last night we all went to the open air cinema and saw Ted (very funny but silly - imagine a movie about a talking teddy bear!).  It was fun and we took pizza and drinks.  Today Tom and Petra took me 4WD up very rough hill tracks and done again of course.  I wasn't very brave and screamed a bit and closed my eyes.  Did some hyperventilating!  During the week I went to some agencies re jobs and a couple of other places to drop off resume.  I got offered one job but due to being with WA gov job it would take 4 weeks to get paperwork done and that is too long and I don't want to stay here that long.  So I will just go with the flow and see what happens or move on after awhile.  Stairway to the moon is one here - full moon rising over the lowtide mud flats.  We might go tonight or tomorrow night.   I hear there has been very cold weather and snow down south in Beechworth/Stanley - hope spring has sprung by the time I get home!