Monday, Oct 13 - Geraldton to Kalbarra

(pics: freighter ouot of Geraldton, the Pink Lake, a grevelia species)

Bob and I got up at 6 and got an omelet at the Best Western restaurant. It was completely clear, but windy. We walked across the street to an old hermitage and birded a bit. Called Mark who was still getting his stuff together. Finally met up at nine and packed the car and drove south of Geraldton to the coastal road where we parked and walked out onto the beach. Can see why it’s called the Turquoise Coast as the water is amazingly beautiful. We can also see why it’s called the Shipwreck Coast as there are numerous reefs off shore with crashing surf and spray.

We drove up to Geraldton and through the harbor. Although it only has a population of 20,000, it is a major fishing and freight harbor on this lonely coast. Enormous red and green buoys line the channel to guide the freighters out to sea between the reefs; lobster processing plants and grain elevators line the shore.

We continued north about 60 miles, stopping to bird in the increasingly howling gale. At Port Gregory we stopped at the Pink Lake, a large estuary filled with algae that turns the water bubble gum pink. Lovely black and white Stilts with bright red legs were wadding making quite a lovely sight.

We finally reach the little holiday town of Kalbarri at the mouth of the Murchison River and found our Best Western where we had reserved a nice two-story apartment for the three of us, complete with kitchen and a washing machine!! It was way too windy to hike, so Mark remained there to do some of our laundry and take a nap. Bob and I drove into the Kalbarri National Park a little ways. Scrubby brush and red dirt. Saw our first ‘roo of the trip! Always a thrill. Probably a Euro, a reddish 4’ high kangaroo. We were pretty tired and hungry so we returned to town stopping at a pretty-well stocked IGA grocery and got dinner and breakfast stuff. After driving around a bit we located a drive-through liquor store and got the important stuff: beer, wine and rum!

Returned home to find our laundry neatly hung up behind our casita and relaxed with rum and cokes. I sautéed some onions, green pepper and garlic and then some beef strips and tossed them with some pasta flavored with a tube of Italian herb mix. Not great, but did the trick! Mark left after dark to try and see some mammals on the road with his spot light and we collapsed into bed.