Silver Schoolies No More - Chapter 6 - Carnarvon to Bullara Station

Monday morning and I have a staff meeting set for 9.00am Eastern Standard. In Carnarvon that means a 5.30am wake up alarm because in the non-daylight saving observing state we are three hours behind the east coast.

The meeting finished its bug out and on the move time. We don’t have far to go today. A short 281 kilometres to Bullara Station. In this case though we are travelling the Gascoyne area of Western Australia and the land is relentlessly flat. The relief of the constantly flat land is only broken by the occasional incline and decline. There is very little roadside vegetation and the distance only occasionally a hill changes the lines of the horizon.

Robyn thinks she sees a different type of bird and seeks to get a photo as we pass. We get a giggle out of the “bird”, its a bottle lodged on a tree.

In the three hours or so on the road we manage to help a number of faster moving vehicles around us and get appreciative waves or the obligatory left/right trafficator combo acknowledging our efforts. The van takes quite a deal of vision from trailing vehicles and the assistance around, given we can see well into the distance, can greatly enhance their experience.

Bullara Station is well patronised. So well in fact there are no powered sites available for us transients. We are parked in an area close to the cattle yards. There are cattle in the yard, perhaps there is actual station work happening during our visit.

One of the consequences of demand means tonight’s dinner is fully subscribed. There will be damper made for the entire park later in the afternoon but as far as that, there are no other dinner options available for the late comers like us.

We will need to provide for ourselves which requires a raid of the freezer as soon as we set up so it will be thawed by dinner time. Although dinner is fully subscribed, breakfast tomorrow and their famous scones will not be a problem.

While we are setting up, a gust of wind attacks a van nearby. He is attempting to deploy his awning when the whirlwind hits. The gust all but rips the awning from its attachments to his van. There is separation as some points. 

He is injured and the awning destroyed. We enquire, does he need assistance, and we do what we can. The wind has gone now but the awning is not serviceable. With the injury assessed he and his returning partner will deal with the broken apparatus. Our awning will stay undeployed for now.

The internet works well enough. Alas, that means work can be done, emails can be checked and queries sorted. The internet also allows for Robyn to collect raw video and turn it into marketing videos, as well as attend to the consulting work plaguing her as we travel.

On the other side of the fence our neighbour is an inquisitive emu. Robyn sees an opportunity to “interview” Emma the Emu, putting into her mouth words talking about allergens, nutrition and date marks on food labels. This was then converted into marketing material for Food Labelling Experts. Emma gets bored quickly and moves on, pursued by her interviewer, creating more and more content.

Emma is not the only resident in her paddock. There is a goat and several sheep there as well. None as photogenic as Emma and the intrepid interviewer leaves them alone.

Whilst this is going on I go for a wander to shoot some of the amazing artistry in the modified but well past their use by date machinery but repurposed for the good of the eyes of the Bullara traveller.

Wandering I come across the damper exhibition, but with it is one of the farm staff talking about what makes Bullara such an experience. The sheep roaming the station grounds all have names – and not “Lunch” as many might believe.

The talk is done in front of an amazing mural, actually the siding to his caravan awning. He talks about the station while the damper is baking. I text Robyn to join us.  He talks of the “pet” kangaroo and how if you leave the door to your caravan open, it will more than likely come inside and sleep on your bed. “But don’t worry it will leave a deposit” he jests with a wry smile.

There is also talk of Scratchy, one of the station’s bulls. So big have his feet grown he can safely traverse the cattle grids. The story goes that he is so quiet (and so big) you can jump on his back and he wont move. Unless of course there is a heifer on heat close by. One such experience was had by a couple of Irish travellers who were encouraged to ride the bull only to have him “rub them off” by wandering under a tree whilst seeking out “work” in an adjacent herd.

Apparently they could not be encouraged to re-ride the bull.

 Robyn joins the talk just as the main part is ending and the damper is coming out. The food is distributed with lashings of butter and honey. The kids come back for more and more they are given after everyone else in the crowd has had their chance. The damper is hot and it is good.

Now that the Emma the Emu video are “in the can” Robyn too wishes to wander. There is a designated walk called the Bottle Track which was discussed in the managers talk and meanders away and around a nearby paddock.

The sun is getting low as we start the walk. Lines of ants traverse the track, heading home for the night we suspect. The dam wall gives a great vantage point for the capturing the setting sun. And once the sun goes down, the light fades quickly. We have only done a small percentage of the track but we turn and head back with a couple who have also made the decision to curtail the exploration.

They are going the opposite way to us. Actually it seems like everyone is going the opposite way to us – away from the increasing heat. They have just come from Onslow and Karratha, places we have high on our list to next land. Theri experience of a 5 week jaunt in Onslow is mind blowing. We are sure we have definitely lots to experience and have decided correctly on the right park to do it from.

We are close to the 26th parallel again but the sun is still well north of us. The solstice when the sun might be south of us at noon is not for a few months. Having said that, the transition for light to darkness is swift as if there is no angle for the sun to engage to allow for elongated sunsets. In Melbourne in January the dim light of the sunset can last until well after 9.00pm. Here and now the sun is lost to the daylight and darkness engulfs the land quickly.

Thankfully we are not far from the salvation of the van.

Dinner and bed ready for the breakfast of their famous Bullara scones in the morning