Silver Schoolies No More - Chapter 7 - Bullara Station to Onslow

We seem to have getting through the night on an unpowered site under control. We wake to plenty of volts remaining in the batteries although we used plenty of power during the night, with the Cpap machine and the fridge going all night. Kids wake us talking to Emma through the fence as she wanders up and down the line.

Being that close Robyn the intrepid reporter is out again interviewing the inquisitie emu. Its early and Robyn’s brain is not quite perfectly engaged and there are several takes to get it right. Emma walks away but is enticed back through the remonstrations of the kids.

We need to be careful. The scone stampede opens at 8.30am and if we are not early, the line can be frustratingly long. Unfortunately unlike our last visit here where we were all but first in line, I end up at the end of the line as Robyn takes a call and is engaged in a long conversation with colleagues from her Business Blueprint A Team.

Although the line is long the efficiency of the Bullara Team has it under control. We of course need to be out of the station by 10.00am or may need to pay another days fees, but this is not the case. An order of scones, a cup of tea and hot chocolate and the indulgence of a steaming hot chocolate brownie do ore than provide an adequate (if not particularly nutritious breakfast). There might be a little reason in the fact we are a little overweight when we indulge in things like this – but you only live once.

The wind in directly in front of us today. Its not strong like it has been. Our consumption only rises a couple of litres per kilometre as we head out to the highway. On the highway what os a head wind becomes a cross wind and the van starts to fight the EBS and my attempts to keep everything straight. We slow down and the fight becomes less strenuous, but that means more overtaking vehicles looming in the rear view mirrors of course.

First stop is a roadhouse and the shock of the wind is married to the price of fuel. $1.90 per litre  is quite a shock from the prices we have enjoyed recently. Having said that, we are remote, and we “need” the fuel. Supply and demand are one thing (and certainly the inbred demand of the remoteness is one factor) but here the price is somewhat tempered by the cost of provision, both freight and man power, attracting staff to such remote employment.

We are transitioning from the bleak flatness of the Gascoyne to the Pilbara. What was relief of hills in the far distance slowly biomes precipices we need to drive through. Wild flowers white like snow, cover the peaks even in the 30 plus degree heat the vista cools the mind.

To contrast the serenity of the outlook, the brake alarm has started to make its annoying presence felt. Every time we touch the brakes, thankfully not very often on the open road, the screaming alarm engages. Thankfully we will be set up in Onslow shortly and the van disengaged, as will the alarm.

The first sights of Onslow are through the massive salt mining lakes. Vast areas of water where Mother Nature does her thing evaporating the water leaving the gleaming salt behind in the circle of life. There are several bridges crossing these, would be salt pans as we drive in. Closer in the LNG processing plants become evident and the industry that is the Pilbara area of Australia becomes all too evident.

We reach the Ocean View park and set up. We are early enough that we can do some exploring this afternoon. The electrical appliances, the TV, the laptop and the monitor all live on the bed in transit. Set up always sees the TV move to its proper place, and while we are doing the rest of the set up, the auto scan is engaged to find the channels available.

But something is wrong. The TV seems to get to a point and stop, as if the whole thing is shorting out and taking with it the 12 volt system. Thankfully here we are on Park Power and as soon as I plug into it, the remaining systems come back to life (or so I think). Living without the TV wont be an issue and we can have a look at it when we get to a more major centre, assuming their waiting list will allow for “emergency” repairs.

Set up completed, its off to the Information Centre. Always an encyclopaedia of local information, the one here is no different. Here the difference is the Centre is attached to a museum. This will need to be investigated, but not today. Not only do we want to investigate the old Onslow, we don’t have the $6 cash entry fee on our persons to walk in.

Time to play the Old Onslow Scavenger Hunt. Nothing to retrieve, just places of interest to find and tick off the list. There are 20 “cairns” or historical markers to find but first we need to get to the town. Its a dusty, corrugated road along the river to the old town. Many free campers have taken up refuge along the bank of the Wongalwarra Pool and we engulf them all in shrouds of bull dust rising from the road as we pass.

Looking past the vans and motorhomes parked here, the views are idyllic across the river and the land beyond. If it wasn’t for the dust and our issues with power, we might also be camped here as well we fantasise.

There is not much left of the old town of Onslow. The markers of the scavenger hunt point to decaying or decayed remnants of time gone by. We manage to track down all 20 markers. Having said that marker 20 was at the cemetery and we didnt stop to wander the graves, and marker 19 is not where the map suggests. It is found eventually, and having completed our hunt, we retrace our steps to the ones having the most interest.

The old police station with its walls of stone and mud, still the hardiest of the standing buildings is a camera’s greatest enticement. Its amazing almost to think the constabulary with their rules and laws fabricate the strongest building, when building like the old hotel and hospital are all but bumps in the dust.

A tennis court still has form, even though it has not been used in many, many years.

The trip back approaching sunset, engulfs the campers on the river once again in the bull dust of the road. We stop to photograph mounds of salt, extracted from the pools and awaiting export.

There is a bridge across the conveyor belt of salt, on the way to the beach access points. Slowly we traverse this bridge, the conveyer belt is taking volumes of salt to the awaiting ship which is yet to reach its Plimsoll Line suggesting it is filled. Robyn snaps several pictures.

Just past the belt is the first access point to the beach. I turn the Cruiser in, not to access the beach but to take more shots of the filling ship. A couple seem oddly parked and I ask if they need assistance. Not having reduced inflation pressures in their tyres, they are now “parked” just short of hard ground.

Lucky for them I have the snatch strap handy and very quickly they are on their way as are we heading towards the other end of the beach, but via the bitumen. At the end of this road I am told is one of the many reasonable fishing spots around Onslow. Its time for a quick check out.

The sun is getting very low in the west. We do a quick lap of the fishing spot and head back up the beach to the lower access point. As we head in to get the best sunset shots we come across yet another “parked” individual. This retrieval will be a little trickier than the first as they have stopped well short of firm ground. Luckily they also have a snatch strap and we add them together and get the parked vehicle to solid ground quickly enough.

Peter Parker (Stan Lee/Steve Ditko – Spiderman) Robyn happily snapping the experience manages to get some great shots of the sun setting behind the strict vehicle.

Who would have thought it. Me pulling someone off the beach. History suggests it is usually the other way around. But this time with the right equipment at the right time we were able to assist two, count them two, parked individuals. Both under the impression over inflated tyres will not be an issue on the beach – hmmmm.

The sun has gone now. We have not thought forward enough to have taken anything from the freezer so we resort to the pub for Schnitty Night. A Mexican version with jalapenos in the parmigiana sauce does me just fine. Robyn goes more traditional. Its a good pub feed at a very reasonable cost and enough to see us off and back to the van and bed ready for an early start to catch the sunrise over the water just like we have caught the sunset.