A whale of a time on the Nullarbor

Whales! First stop - whale watching at the Head of Bight lookout. 

It is Southern Right whale calving time and this eastern corner of the Great Australian Bight is where they come to give birth. A series of boardwalks and viewing platforms  grants access an incredible wildlife experience.

About a dozen whales including calves, so close to the bottom of the cliffs. I could hear them calling as well as blowing water when breathing and slapping the water with their tails and rolling over.

They had me mesmerized for over two hours. The cliffs views were good too.

I free camped with about 30 other groups near the gate to the Head of Bight. Almost 2 kms from the highway. You might think The Nullarbor is remote, and it is, but the traffic never stops. All through the night trucks continue to serge across the plain. And there are lots of grey nomads. But it doesn't feel crowded. And the views go on forever.

Sunrise over the plain.

Our second day on The Nullarbor was interesting. There are eight roadhouses on the Nullarbor, no towns. The old Nullarbor roadhouse is now a museum piece.

The current Nullarbor  roadhouse. Each roadhouse has a different feel, some newer, some quirky, all with plenty of business from trucks and caravanners.

There are four lookouts along the Bunda Cliffs. The first was the best. 

My lunch spot was equally as spectacular. Maybe a little too close to the edge on the right?

After lunch, the day took an unexpected turn. I was waved down by a man on the highway. His campervan had broken down and he had no phone reception. For 45 minutes, nine or ten other drivers had zoomed past, not stopping to help. I wasn't sure if I should stop but I did. He turned out to be a fellow Tasmanian, about my age. We discussed what to do. He had a tow rope and Sally has a tow bar which I have never used. I didn't know if the old girl was capable of towing a vehicle almost the same size as her. But she did it! Without any effort, she towed him about 30 kms to the next roadhouse where I left him to find assistance.

I then returned to my lunch spot to go for a ride and camp for the night, a little further away from the cliff edge.

I woke to a damp morning, light showers. The drive took me inland, by numerous roadhouses - no problem keeping Sally's fuel up. Border Village has a big kangaroo.

After Border Village, Sally was inspected at the WA border, checking for fruit, vegetables and honey which I had already consumed. Then near Eucla roadhouse, there is the old telegraph station being buried by the dunes. It is close to a beach.

Eucla is on top of an escarpment. The road didn't feel like it climbed but it must have done. After Eucla, the road drops down to follow the base of the escarpment for a long time before climbing again just past another roadhouse.

Straggly trees began to increase. Mounds of wattle flowered.

Cocklebiddy roadhouse has Bruce and Samantha, two wedgetailed Eagles, living in a large aviary. They had been injured by collisions with trucks. Samantha lost an eye and Bruce can no longer fly properly, so they could not survive in the wild.

It had been raining at Caiguna roadhouse.

After Caiguna, we began the longest straight section of road in Australia, the infamous 90 mile straight. To be honest, the whole road across the Nullarbor is a series of long straights connected by the occasional slight bend. It is all a bit of a novelty for this Tasmanian driver used to constantly twisting and turning roads.

Trees began to increase as we drove further west. We stopped at a roadside camp along the 90 mile straight. A dozen other vehicles spread amongst the trees.

Day 8. Leaving the camp go to the last roadhouse- Ballagonia.

At Ballagonia roadhouse, there is a small local history museum. It contains a piece of Skylab, the space station that fell to earth in 1979, leaving a trail of debris across WA. I just had to touch something that had been in space.

I enjoyed my Nullarbor crossing. The weather was good, Sally behaved perfectly, even rescuing a fellow traveller and the sights were interesting. Next stop - Kalgoorlie.

To The Nullarbor.

Almost a year ago, I was wandering around Iceland and a Swiss mountain. This year I am a little closer to home but it still feels a world away, a different country. This time I am travelling with Sally, no flying involved. We began by lining up to board the ferry to the big north Island.

Sally had a cramped night on the Spirit of Tasmania ferry. I had a comfortable night in a cabin, and a smooth sailing.

Here is Sally settling down for her first night on the big North Island after driving 633kms from Geelong through Victoria (surprisingly green) into South Australia, also very green, until I entered the arid area near Port Augusta on day two.

Our first morning was freezing. I had to scrape ice from the windscreen at Murray Bridge. I watched pelicans fishing in the Murray River as the sun rose to a still, clear day. No cloud at all.

The country was surprisingly green. A message of hope as I pulled over on the hill to let a car pass. I do that a lot as Sally is rather laid back. She doesn't race, she likes to trundle.

You know you're in SA when you see multiple abandoned stone cottages nestled in wheat fields.

We drove all day on our third day and made it to Kimba, the home of the big galah where there is an excellent free camp at the footy club. 

There is also a lookout on the only hill nearby with a rusty statue celebrating the explorer, John Eyre, and his Aboriginal guide.

The next day we continued heading west. Australia is a very big country. Destination-Ceduna via Pildappa Rock, SA's attempt to rival WA's Wave Rock. I walked around the base.

And then I climbed up to the top. Interesting, but very remote, 15kms off the highway.

An afternoon drive via the coast brought us to the town of Ceduna. I assume the beaches get busier in summer. All rather sleepy now. This is Perlubie Beach. The only shade as there are no trees.

We got the last available site in a caravan park on the foreshore of Ceduna. I went for a walk on the town jetty and along the beach which was rather underwhelming, a bit grotty. But the caravan park was nice, clean and I had electricity and the shower was lovely. 

Day 5. Still in SA. A few light showers. First stop was in the tiny town of Penong to see the windmill museum. Sometimes blokes do come up with a good idea over a few drinks which is how this started. 

This one is a giant. 35 feet in diameter 

This one is weird.

More driving through wide open country, still in SA. We finally arrived at The Nullarbor to commence a 'bucket list' adventure. The name comes from the Latin for 'no trees' which is pretty accurate, most of the time.

Then I had a very special afternoon. More about that in the next blog.