2013 #10 Geraldton and Eneabba

We enjoyed a week in windy Geraldton.  Though the temps are about 21 or 22, it is still cold due to the ceaseless wind. We decided to put the awning up so we could get some sleep.  We took off in a tiny little mosquito-like aircraft with just us and the pilot and headed out to the Abrolhos Islands, 70 km from Geraldton.  It is the home of the cray-fishing industry and is held in high regard by many.  There are 120 odd coral atolls in the group.  We stood on the highest point – 50’ above sea level.  So if foul weather hits the islands, the results are not always good.  The most beautiful thing we saw was the varying, gorgeous colours of the sea all around each atoll.  We got some interesting photos, but not easy from the plane.  The huge ocean waves rolled in, in all their glory, thwarted only by the coral cays which lie on top of, or just under the water.  We were given the history of the shipwrecks (which we had already studied up on), and the places where historical events had happened.  Well, they make great stories, but looked at in another way, the results of the Batavia wreck was that most of the people who escaped the ship and sea were murdered and dealt with treacherously.  In fact it is the greatest mass murder case in Australian history. That was 1629 AD.

We had two landings on the coral cay airstrips.  We settled on East Wallaby island and walked 1 km with all our heavy camera gear.  We had to be ready for just about anything out there. The highlight was to photograph two Osprey (Raptors) on their nest. Their wing span can be as large as 2 metres.  I whistled and sang to them.  Hopefully, this kept them calm enough to let us reasonably close, but not close enough for them to attack us.  In the perfectly clear waters I spotted a squid.  He swam so gracefully with all his legs together behind him. He was about 16” in length. Out on the Abrolhos they have several pearl farms. They have a school from time to time when there are enough children.  The island we were on is just for day trippers, like ourselves. There was one other airline company out there with about six guests, so we all got chatted together.   We could have snorkelled on the reef, but the cold weather deterred us.  Lots of fish out there and big blue Groper. Had we snorkelled we’d have a far more exciting tale to tell!

I did have one funny experience. We drove to a town nearby, called Greenough.  It was built in the early to mid-1800’s. The Museum I went into had been someone’s home - a woman with 13 children lived there. Her husband was usually away on business, so she ran a business and raised, and had, the children. It was a spooky place.  The lower floor was bad enough to spook me, then I climbed a very creaky and uneven spiral staircase with very narrow steps.  I reluctantly crept into a “bedroom” wondering what I would find.  As I pushed the door open, a great flurry of fur came flying towards me.  I screamed at the top of my voice.  The cat got a bigger fright than I did.  So he came out almost flying in mid-air at me.  It was a funny situation.  The caretaker said, “thanks for finding the cat”???  Graeme was downstairs with the cat sitting obediently at his feet by the time I escaped. I did not even dare to go into the underground bedroom.

Greenough is the place where the trees grow parallel to the ground, due to prevailing winds.  Age of trees 800 years old.  They started growing about 1230 AD. So the story goes….  We also drove out to Ellendale where a beautiful river winds its way past a lovely gorge on one side. Many folk were enjoying the lovely spot for camping, but the ominous notice was there for all to read.  “Once this river reaches a certain temperature, it is full of Amoebic Meningitis. So don’t put your head into this water”.  I also met a young woman at church who is doing research on the river, but unable to speak about the results at this stage.

Passing through many of the Wildflower towns we arrived at Eneabba. We did a “tag along” 4WD expedition to the wildflowers.  A stay at this place will enrich you in so many way with regard to our environment and flora.  There is only 5% of Australia which still has remnant natural bush and wild flowers and this is one of those places.  Soon it will all be gone forever.  Farming has taken precedence over all else.  The Brand Highway is outside The Western Flora Caravan Park where we are staying.   Nearby on the main Highway are kilometres of tall, beautiful red and green Kangaroo Paw plants.  When you drive fast, you miss it all, even though it is there for all to see.

Notes on photos:  Observe the tiny flower in Allan Tinker’s fingers. When magnified 40 times you can see the transition of all the colours in the flower.

Also note the heart of a Geraldton Wax flower magnified, all the tiny grubs and critters who are living in there. These two photographs were snapped off Allan’s projector screen.