Here We Go Again - Chapter 84 - Broome Day 6

Time on the road, poor posture while driving, not to mention while sitting over the laptop and not a huge amount of exercise, have been slowly taking its toll on an aging body. My back is still and there is a constant headache developed in my neck all of which can be alleviated with a good chiropractic session. One thing about travelling is the loss of those contacts, necessary to life and the pursuit of happiness but never regarded as essential – until you need them.

We have seen signs for the appropriate services as we have travelled around but not much hope is given to being able to see anyone given the sickening demand for other services we have run into on the trip so far. For now, it’s the weekend and with movement there might be relief.

Gantheaume Point is a place where there are dinosaur footprints and we decide a jaunt to the rock ledges might be in order. Unfortunately, its high tide and all the prints are below the high tide mark so finding them will be impossible, but there will be other things to see.

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Like a lot of places, we have experienced, the drive to the area is unappealing. There is red bull dust everywhere. The bitumen is tainted red from those turning back to the road from the track to the point. The road tracks past the race course. Thankfully we were not trying to do this yesterday in the throng of the equine enjoying masses. Given our experiences with the parking protocols of the locals, negotiating past the race track may have been impossible.

There are remnants of yesterday’s festivities, but far less than one might imagine. The litter has apparently been cleared and except for a few small pieces, except for the marketing paraphernalia you may think it was just a normal day at the course. Strappers, owners and the like are all plying their trades. There is movement of horses and people just like there may be on any day.

The dirt means plumes of dust. There is enough breeze to take it away and not have it hang like a Moorish mist of red haze polluting any scenic vista.

We find an enclave and wander towards the water. The stark contrast between the water and the rocks belies what we are about the experience. One might be forgiven for expecting the rocks to end in a cliff-like structure and the water started. Waves pounding into them in the eternal struggle between the forces of nature, an irresistible force (the sea and the waves) against an immovable object (the cliff face).

What we find are remnants of the battles between the enemies that are nature. The water, along with its fierce ally the wind, are winning the battle here. Impurities in the rocks are exploited by them, causing cracks to appear, then as if in a relentless attack, exploiting weakness until the rocks give way. Ledges have been formed, some with pock marked pools of water, one of which is enough to hold revelers, basking in its, and the sun’s warmth.

This pool is many metres above the sea for now, but it would not take much of a rise in a high tide (they get huge tidal differences here) for the water to be replenished and renewed. It provides a great vantage point to simply laze and take in the vista. Its crystal clear water, protected from the wind by the adjoining cliff and a couple are enjoying the surroundings.

There is a buzzing noise. The noise of a drone sitting directly in front of us, just out over the ocean. It seems lost, simply sitting there waiting for its next command. The couple have some friends, one of which is struggling with the controller of the drone. In time it returns to its master after its defiant lap of the cliff.

Originally here to chase dinosaur prints, now with our efforts thwarted by the tide, perhaps there are other pieces of majesty to be encountered. From the top of the cliff you can see huge crabs clinging to the rocks as the sea rolls over them. Their bodies, as large as your hand, moving about whilst the water has waned, then stiffened as the next wave hits, sometimes disappearing with the rush of the white water.

The tide is stirring the muddy bottom. The turgid stream of sediment, moving with the pressure of the water, creating channels in the ocean distinct from the deeper water, apparently shielded from the cascading mud.

There are caves and arches all along this area. They are further monuments to the nature battle. Clambering over the rocks, under arches and into caves we struggle to ensure what we see ends up in the cameras we carry. Photographs here, like in so many places, do not do the picture justice. I can easily take a picture through an archway or of a cave, but the moment I do the whole picture can change, if only for the sun (sorry the rotation of the earth in deference to Greg Quick) to move, slightly changing the angle and therefore the shadow effect, the moment in time captured by the camera is no more.

I can experience this moment in time. I can even capture it but unless you are there experiencing it for yourself, there can be no substitute for being “in places”.

We spend hours here, facing new vistas with every step we take. Sometimes we get close to the edge, at others (and Robyn is thankful for this) we can get a great view well back from the edge of the cliff. Simply sitting, camera in your pocket and taking it all in, is the greatest enjoyment about travelling to us.

We take lots of pictures. Memories for us of times when we are able to sit and take in what Mother Nature has to offer. They prompt memories of our times in these places, hopefully they will inspire others in the family to do just the same.

Enough with the cliff where the dinosaurs were supposed to be, we walk back towards the Cruisers. Robyn is videos doing her best to negotiate the red bull dust. Shin deep powder licking at her legs.

Without having to move the Cruisers we can walk to the Gantheaume Point Lighthouse, a similar distance from the vehicles but in a different direction. There is a radio tower on the way. Ospreys have nested in it about half way up. Chicks are visible in the nest. They put on a show for us to photograph before heading out to the point guarded by the great light.

The view here is 270 degrees of pristine ocean. To the right Cable Beach stretching as far as the eye can see. The left Gantheaume Point from where we have just come. The tidal movement of mud has not reached here. Currents have taken it out to sea. 

The views here are breathtaking (as if nothing else we have seen this morning haven’t). But to stand here on top of a point where the ocean casts its mesmerising veil across you is something many similar points around the globe can only do if you are there. I send lots of pictures to family and friends “wishing they were here”/

Its lunch time and clambering over rocks and red bull dust has certainly sharpened the appetite. Silver Leader suggests one of the Cable Beach eateries but we only make it as far as Divers on the road in.

It’s Sunday and this is ostensibly a pub. Their signature “dish” is the Diver Parmie. The meal is huge. Two chicken breasts, lashed with parmigiana topping, served with chips and salad. We see them “walking” past as we find a table. Robyn won’t even try, taking a salad option, but I am game.

We were expecting, given the venue is full and the line for ordering is long, it will take some time to get our lunch, but we are surprised the meals arrive before the need to order second drinks. Again as is the apparent “want of the world”, although he ordered after us Silver Leader and Rose’s meals come first.

Time to dig in. For a pub meal, the repast is first rate. For once we have apparently seen a business faced with a demand, actually being able to handle it. One wonders whether this is the norm for this establishment on a Sunday and they have catered for demand (and been able to attract the staff accordingly).

It’s Sunday and it’s lunch time, no real need to hurry anywhere and the meal, like I said, is huge.

When the eating is done it’s back to the park for a nanna nap. My daughter wakes me wanting assistance with the lodgement of her tax returns. This will take some time, so I curl up in a comfortable chair and walk her through the vagaries of the lodgement. She is satisfied with the outcome and lodges her return after about an hour of ensuring the correctness of the information provided.

Lunch will certainly carry us through what should have been dinner. We settle in to binge watch some West Wing. Robyn is snoring before we are into the second episode.

Reflecting on what we have crammed into today, and the roundness of my stomach, I feel we got a lot done in a very small area and that the 2 weeks may not be enough to fully cover what there is to see and do here.