Tom Price Mine

We had to meet back at the visitors centre at 9.30am where we were picked up by coach and taken out to the Tom Price open cut iron ore mine. Rio Tinto's assets in the Pilbara are managed by Pilbara Iron and it operates ten mines, three ports and over 1600kms of railway track. The Tom Price mine commenced production in 1966.  Everything was oversized - the tyre from a loader has a diameter of 3.7metres which was taller than the coach we were travelling in. It required a specialised fork lift  to change it. We were taken to a lookout over the mine site where the mountain once stood and also got a close up look at an old digger. We drove through the processing plant and learnt that a lot of the operations are controlled remotely from Perth airport. There is big money to be made - the train drivers earn 250 000 p.a. but not sure about the lifestyle. This mine alone exports over 20 million tonnes of iron ore a year. At the completion of the tour we fuelled up and started heading towards Exmouth which was over 600 km away. We stopped at Paraburdoo for lunch which is another mining town. There were a couple of overnight roadside stops so we planned to get to one of these. There were huge storm clouds out to the side of us and we weren't sure if it was going to get us or not. We made it to Nanturra roadhouse and decided to continue on another 60km to the next rest stop. We set up and seemed to have missed the rain and hail which had already been here. The flies however, were driving us crazy. After dinner we enjoyed watching an electrical storm off in the distance.

Tom Price

We had to call past the visitor centre because Caitlin and Cooper completed their Junior Ranger worksheets and were presented with a badge (also flushing toilets located here!) We farewelled the others who were to meet us tomorrow for the Tom Price tour. On the way we stopped at Mt Bruce to do the short walk to the lookout over the Marrandoo Iron Ore mine. It took us just over an hour to get to Tom Price. The mountain and the town were named after Thomas Moore Price, who worked for the American company Kaiser Steel in the early 1960s. He was instrumental in convincing mining companies it was worth mining here. We checked in to the caravan park and I caught up on some washing. The kids had a swim then we all got ready to go out for dinner. We thought we might get a decent meal at the pub assuming it would popular with all the mine workers - we were wrong!

Karijini National Park

Oxer Lookout

Desert Rose

Fern Pool

What a great night for sleeping - it was the first night in a long time it got cool enough to pull the doona out. We dropped past the visitors centre to ring Tom Price mine to put our name down for the tour on Monday morning and then continued on along the dirt road to Weano Gorge - a further 44km. We walked across to the Oxer and Junction Pool Lookouts for the extraordianry views of the junction of the Red, Weano, Joffre and Hancock Gorges. We then took the trail down into Weano Gorge to the Handrail Pool which involved some rock scrambling, swimming and rock climbing - it was great fun and the kids got right into it. When we got back to the car park we had some lunch in the picnic area. Heading back towards the campground the next stop was a couple of short walks to Joffre and Knox lookouts. After all this walking we treated ourselves to half price 'Cornettos' from the visitors centre. We decided on another quick swim at Fern Pool which is a little further on past Fortescue Falls. We caught up with Tori and Michael there who we had met in Broome.

Karijini National Park

Dales Gorge

We got away just before 10. Our next destination was Karijini NP - 343km along the Great Northern Hwy. The temperature was back up into the high 30s. The trip was quite scenic and reminded us of Gibb River Road. We fueled up at Auski Roadhouse and continued on to the Karijini Visitors Centre. We decided to stay at Dales Gorge camping ground which was pretty basic - no power or water and a 'don't look down' toilet. We found a nice shady site and it wasn't till we had set up that we realised we were a little close to the toilet which seemed to be wafting our way - hopefully the wind will change direction! We changed into our bathers and did the walk down the gorge to the picturesque Fortesecue Falls where you can go for a swim. We were mindful of the fact a father had died here earlier this month when he fell down the edge of the gorge after trying to rescue his 7 year old son who had slipped down an embankment - very sad. Needless to say we warned the kids to stay close to us and walk carefully. After a refreshing dip we walked back out of the gorge and along the rim for a view over Circular Pool and Three Way Lookout. We cooked some snags for dinner and once the flies dissipated we enjoyed some amazing star gazing.

Port Headland

Turtle tracks

Salt Works - Port Headland

It was a lot cooler overnight so we all woke up feeling a lot better rested. Rick and Caitlin headed down the beach while I waited with Cooper who slept till 7am. There were a few large cracks of thunder over the next couple of hours followed by lightning and a big downpour which didn't last long. We were worried the dirt road heading out would be muddy but it was fine - only one large puddle to negotiate. We were headed for the industrious town of Port Headland. The first thing you actually see when you arrive into town is the huge piles of salt. Then you see the huge stockpiles of ore - the source of the layer of red dust that coats the town. We dropped in at the visitors centre and then drove down to Marapikurrinya Park which overlooks Finucane Island and the huge port. One tanker was being loaded and the tug boats were heading out to guide the next one in. Cooper was more interested in the play equipment. Port Headland handles the ore from the BHP Billiton mine at Newman and exports more tonnage than any other Australian port. The ore is transported by rail. Each train is operated by a single driver and comprises 230 ore cars; each car has a load capacity of over 100 tonnes and the total length of the train is 2.4 km. We went and checked in at Cooke Point caravan park then went for a drive around town to take in some of the sights including the Courthouse Arts Centre & Gallery and Cemetery Beach where the flatback turtles nest. Back at the van I cooked some dinner while Rick took the kids for a swim in the pool.

Eighty Mile Beach

We left Broome just after 10 - it was a big pack up having been here over a week and we also kept getting distracted chatting to fellow travellers. It was 365km to Eighty Mile Beach. The terrain was very flat and featureless and sadly no more boabs. After setting up Rick had a rest whilst I took the kids down to the beach. Eighty Mile beach is the longest uniterrupted beach in WA and is actually 220km, stretching between Cape Missiessy and Cape Keraudren. It is no good for swimming here with huge shallow tides and lots of nasties in the water but excellent for beach combing. The shells were amazing. The kids had a great time and were very selective in what they took unlike some greedy people we saw walking off the beach with plastic bags laden with shells. We went back down the beach with Rick, went for a long walk and stayed for sunset. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me. The section of beach here is a rookery for flat back turtles and it was the start of the nesting season. After dinner we decided to head back down to the beach to see if we could see any. We did see some tracks where obviously a turtle had already been up to the dunes but the kids were feeling a little uneasy out on the beach in the dark so we headed back.

Broome

bower

white-bellied sea eagle

We decided to stay in Broome another day to get organised. I did some washing and we made some phone calls. I was keen to check out the Broome Bird Observatory which was 25km up the road on the Roebuck Bay shores. We went to the observation deck over the water which was a great view but the only birds we could see were a few sea-gulls. We went to the shade house which looks over a few bird baths and an ideal place to sit and watch the birds coming and going. There were a couple of serious bird enthusiasts there. We saw some long-tailed finches, honey eaters, peaceful doves, bower bird and an agile wallaby who came to have a drink. The friendly bird watcher took us to a nearby tree to see a small flycatcher nesting. He also showed us the bower (we incorrectly called it a nest!) from the bower bird. On the way out we did get a great close up of a white-bellied sea eagle. We headed back into town and had a quick look at the restored Streeters Jetty which used to be where all the luggers docked. The kids had a great time watching all the bright orange crabs in the mud. We went for a stroll around the shops and bought some groceries before heading back for a swim. Rick gave the car a quick wash and we started the pack up. The kids spent the afternoon playing with other kids they had meet along the way.

Dampier Peninsula - Broome

We had a better nights sleep but were still awake early with the sun beating in. After breakfast we packed the car and the kids went down to the beach for some more hermit crab action -it was high tide so there weren't many to be found. We had a smoothie at the cafe and then went out on a boat tour around Cygnet Bay. The water is an amazing emerald colour. We saw a couple of turtles and a school of tuna. We were taken out to the pearling lines where the boats with the skipper and two deck hands were busy hauling in the oyster shell racks and cleaning them. We stopped at a small island (actually Tilly, our tour guide ran us up onto the rocks) and had a swim in the safety of the shallows. The tide was running fast. We headed back to Broome deciding to give Middle Lagoon a miss because we were short on time and fuel. We got back to the caravan park around 4 and Rick took the kids for a swim in the pool while I unpacked.

Dampier Peninsula

Aquaculture Centre

Cape Leveque - East Beach

West Beach

Rick cooked bacon and eggs for breakfast in the camp kitchen then we headed back up to One Arm Point to do the 10am tour of the Ardyaloon Trochus Hatchery & Aquaculture Centre. The main operations of the centre was farming Trochus shells which are sold to Italy for making buttons. There were a number of tanks set up including a touch tank with samples of the local marine reef life, barramundi, clown fish, green sea turtles and very cute baby flat back turtles. The kids enjoyed it as it was very hands on. We drove to Kooljaman and had a swim at the very beautiful eastern beach. We had lunch at the cafe and drove down to the western beach for views of the red cliffs. Back at Cygnet Bay the kids did some more beach combing for hermit crabs. We watched the sunset and Cooper was keen to have a campfire. The kids were kept entertained by the hermit crabs which came right up to the cabin.

Dampier Peninsula

We left the van at Broome as the Cape Leveque road is a 4WD track. We had booked 'Eco-tent' accommodation at Cygnet Bay Pearl Farm. The 200km long red pindan road passes a number of isolated Aboriginal communities. We had a quick stop at Beagle Bay to check out the mother-of-pearl altar at the church, built by Pallotine monks in 1918. We arrived at Cygnet Bay Pearl Farm - the driveway was scattered with old pearling equipment, workshops and machinery. We were booked to the pearl farm tour at 11 which was a good introduction. Dean Brown and his son Lyndon Brown started the business at it's present location when they were granted the first Australian pearl licence in 1960. We learnt about the history and how the pearl is harvested today. The modern day pearler spends their day on the boats cleaning the seaweed and growth off all of the pearling lines so the oyster shell can filter feed properly. After the tour we had a mocktail at the cafe and were then taken to our tent which was in a great location amongst the shade of the trees and a short stroll from the beach. After messing up our lovely tent we drove to One Arm Point, and the Ardyaloon community which seemed pretty quite. We went for a walk along the nearby beaches. Back at Cygnet Bay we found lots of hermit crabs along the beach which the kids loved. We cooked a BBQ for dinner.

Broome

We were without a car today as it was in for a service. We spent the morning arond the pool and th van. After lunch we walked down to Cable Beach and had a sim and boogie board. Rick had to pick the car up about 4pm. He was gone for ages - when he went to start the car all these error codes showed up so he spent some time at the workshop trying to fix it - the mechanics weren't much help claiming it must have been a total coincidence! Rick was a little worried we weren't going to have the car to drive up to Cape Leveque but he removed the performance chip and resettle computer which seemed to fix the issue.

Broome

I went for a stroll around town while Rick and the kids went swimming. After lunch we we went and did the Pearl Luggers tour which was quite interesting. From the late 1800's until the mid 1900's the pearling industry in Broome was based primarily on the collection of oysters for the 'Mother of Pearl Shell' called Pinctada Maxima, which was mainly used for buttons. Pearl diving was in open water, and initially without breathing apparatus, many divers were taken by sharks or got the bends. Pearling peaked in the early 1900s when the towns 400 luggers supplied 80% of the worlds mother-of-pearl. With the introduction of the plastic button the demand dropped but around the same time the cultured pearling industry began. The Japanese introduced the technique of seeding the oyster with a bead to create perfect cultured pearls now known worldwide as 'Australian South Sea Pearls'. We had a look at the restored Pear Luggers on display and the collection of old equipment. We were amazed to learn that the used the old heavy helmet diving suits right up to the 1970s.

Horizontal Waterfalls

Cape Leveque

Buccaneer Archipelago

Horizontal Waterfalls

Bull Shark

Sun Pictures

We dropped the kids off at the childcare centre around 10am feeling a little guilty. We went and had a coffee at the Cable Beach Club. It was a perfect day. The bus picked us up from the daycare centre and dropped us off at the airport where we boarded the sea-plane. We took off and flew up the coast to the spectacular Cape Leveque with its white sandy beaches and red cliffs. We then headed across the Buccaneer Archipelago which is made up of over 1000 small islands. We landed at Talbot Bay and pulled up to the pontoon where we boarded the Jet Boat. We were taken on a thrill ride through the gorges. The horizontal waterfall is created by the huge tides (often reaching up to 11m) forcing water in and out of the constricted sandstone gorges. The rate of flow can reach 30 knots. The two narrow gaps, the first being 20m and the second being 7m wide, create a difference in the water level of 5m. They only take the boats through when it is around 1.5m difference. We had fun going back and forth through the rapids and then headed back to the pontoon. We had dip in the cage where there were a number of nurse sharks hanging around for a feed. Then to our surprise a large bull shark appeared for a bit of the action. We had BBQ barra for lunch and then went for a cruise around Cyclone Creek. We were then flown straight back to Broome airport - the courtesy bus dropped us back at the childcare centre. It was a great day. The kids were pleased to see us and seemed to have had a good time doing lots of artwork. We went back and had a shower then went to the 6.30pm showing of Red Dog at Sun Pictures - the world's oldest operating open-air picture gardens. It was very cool with the planes flying overhead (Broome's airport is in the middle of town) and the occasional bat flying across the screen. It was a great movie and quite timely as we would be heading into the Pilbara very soon.