Up down and around a bit in South West W.A

[OZDUCK]

The town of Gwalia is basically a ghost town. It is open to the public and you can wonder through the various buildings without charge or supervision. The mine shut in 1963 and the town died overnight.

A Brief History Of Gwalia And The Sons Of Gwalia Mine » Shire of Leonora

www.leonora.wa.gov.au

 

[OZDUCK]

We had a number of these old cyclone beds when I was a kid. I used to sleep on our verandah in one over summer for years. I actually used to find it pretty comfortable when combined with a kapok mattress.

















I had a President fridge just like this as a bottle fridge for decades. All the plastics inside eventually broke but the compressor and motor was still as good as new when we got rid of it.

 

[OZDUCK]

The lockup - lined with Jarrah.







I have some of those screw jacks in my back shed - inherited from my father



The most impressive remaining building is the old State Hotel



There was a nice sunset glow that evening

 

[OZDUCK]

A quick look at the museum around the Hoover House

One of the old 'woodlines' trains - used to collect timber for firewood and construction



You can see how narrow the gauge was



Some machinery

 

[OZDUCK]

The next day we headed south. Our departure was full of mistakes. When we checked out at the museum office my wife bought me a book for Fathers Day. I cunningly put it down to chat to the lady running the shop and then walked out without it. I remembered it far enough down the road where it would have cost more in fuel and time costs to return than the book was worth. Our German friend then discovered her room key in her pocket about 200 km down the road. After a phone call we dropped it at the Menzies Council Office as the council staff often travel between the two localities.

Our next stop was to see the statues at Lake Ballard

Everything you need to know about Lake… | Australia's Golden Outback

Western Australia is blessed to have such an incredible, unique landscape - like white sandy beaches, waterfalls, and red outback deserts. The state is also scattered with our famous, naturally occurring salt lakes, coming in all colours, shapes and sizes! One of our favourites is Lake Ballard ,…

www.australiasgoldenoutback.com

It was actually pretty pleasant weather there at around 23 C. On our previous visit it had been over 40 C and very trying.







The nearest 'island' is climbable - but not by me





Our German friend was convinced that there was water in the lake. She was very doubtful by our explanation that it was just a mirage so she went off for a bit of a walk. As I said, the weather was mild and we could see her all the time so it wasn't dangerous. She returned and admitted that we were right.

 

[OZDUCK]

Some more wildflowers







We then went south to visit the abandoned cemetery where my grandmother is buried. She is buried at Mulline which is just a little north of Davyhurst.

The roads were a lot rougher here.

 

[OZDUCK]

Only a few graves have markers







A group called Outback Graves has started a project to mark the 'lost' graves in these abandoned cemeteries.

Home

Preserving the Outback Pioneer History of Western Australia by finding, researching and telling the stories of unmarked graves.

www.outbackgraves.org

Among the graves they have recorded is my grandmothers and her 4 year old daughter. My grandmother died in childbirth with her unborn child. From what my father and aunt recalled her daughter was a 'blue baby' and may have had a heart defect. The original grave markers have disappeared over the years - they may well have been wood. I had thought about placing a plaque previously but was unsure about the legalities and so forth. A donation will be sent to this group to thank them for their efforts.





We took the Riverina road back to Menzies - a long stretch of gravel.

 

[OZDUCK]

The next day we headed off to Esperance - just under 400 km.



Just north of Norseman we passed by Lake Cowan - a salt lake measuring about 160,000 hectares when filled.





These flowers were scattered all around the approaches to Norseman. They are gazanias a South African flower. I don't know why they are so prolific in this area.











Norseman Hotel



The roundabout at the entrance to town has a memorial to the Camels that were widely used to open up this area

 

[OZDUCK]

The first thing we did in Esperance after unpacking was to go for a walk out on the Tanker Jetty. This jetty was opened in 2021 and replaced the 'real' tanker jetty that was built 1935 in and demolished in 2019 after being deemed unsafe and unrepairable. To say that there was a controversy about its destruction is a severe understatement.







We then for a drive along Twilight Beach Road to the east ,oops, west of Esperance

It was a pretty wild evening







I don't know why foreigners think Australia is dangerous. There were also a couple of portable illuminated signs warning that sharks had been sighted very recently.



We saw that there was a chance of a nice sunset so we headed off to get to a better spot for it.

 

[Daver6]

Having stayed a night at the Menzies hotel, I can confirm it truly needs work done to it and not surprised it's deemed unsafe. A real shame as it's the only accommodation in town and the gateway to Lake Ballard.

For your German friend, there is water in the lake....sometimes. It has rained heavily the evening prior to our visit in 2018.



Obviously it was beer o'clock for Mr Horse when we visited...

 

[OZDUCK]

Driving 'towards' the sunset was a bit awkward



Some more gratuitous sunset shots











The evening light was beautiful



The mighty Statesman is equipped with the latest in Green Screen technology and more physical buttons than you could ever want

 

[OZDUCK]

Having stayed a night at the Menzies hotel, I can confirm it truly needs work done to it and not surprised it's deemed unsafe. A real shame as it's the only accommodation in town and the gateway to Lake Ballard.

For your German friend, there is water in the lake....sometimes. It has rained heavily the evening prior to our visit in 2018.

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Obviously it was beer o'clock for Mr Horse when we visited...
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We were at Lake Ballard around Easter in 2018 and while it was very slushy we couldn't see any standing water. I would like to see it when the statues are knee deep in water.

 

[Daver6]

We were at Lake Ballard around Easter in 2018 and while it was very slushy we couldn't see any standing water. I would like to see it when the statues are knee deep in water.

Suspect it was the leftover water from when I was there first week of March that year. I think it would be pretty rare for the water to get knee deep for the statues but that would be very cool!

 

[OZDUCK]

Righto time to get back to this. I put it on hold for our trip to Singapore/Malacca and then when we came back I was instantly knocked out with a heavy cold. Just as I was recovering my wife came down with something twice as bad.

Anyway, back to Esperance

Firstly a day trip to Lucky Bay in the Cape Le Grand National Park. Unfortunately the kangaroos were not present. They apparently normally only turn up in the hotter months









The sand is high in silica and you can really get a good squeak going in bare feet. As you can see you can drive your car along the beach



As a sop to animal lovers a couple of kangaroo photos from our visit in 2018





Some wildflowers around the beach





A bee was also enjoying this flower

 

[OZDUCK]

Unfortunately we didn't see any of these animlals in the park.



Being a keen hiker our German friend jumped at my suggestion that she should walk up Frenchman's Peak.



The top of the peak remined the early explorers of a French sailors cap. She only took less than 2 hours for the return trip but said that it was very steep and the strong wind was a nuisance on the bare rock areas.





Her photo through the cave on the top



And her photo of another wildflower - a Lambertia



While she was climbing we went to Thistle Cove





And Whistling Rock

 

[OZDUCK]

Later we went for a walk in a nature reserve just outside Esperance





The rise in the water levels of the lakes due to human interference is causing tree loss on their fringes.





There were numerous wildflowers in the park including plenty of orchids



















There were also two very interested bystanders

 

[Disco]

Later we went for a walk in a nature reserve just outside Esperance

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The rise in the water levels of the lakes due to human interference is causing tree loss on its fringes.

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There were numerous wildflowers in the park including plenty of orchids

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There were also two very interested bystanders

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Beautiful, glad you're finishing the TR and hope you have both recovered from the lurgy.

 

[OZDUCK]

Beautiful, glad you're finishing the TR and hope you have both recovered from the lurgy.

Thanks I am 99% better and today my wife has managed to stay awake for about 4 hours - which is an improvement.

 

[OZDUCK]

Finishing off Esperance.

The view from the Rotary Lookout over the town



And over Twilight Beach Road



Another orchid on the hill



Esperance Pink Lake - notable for the fact that it shows absolutely no signs of being pink. Mining operations destroyed the conditions that once caused it to be pink.



Our German friend was quite taken by the this sign at Twilight Beach - her photo.




A little Bell Tower in town



The nearby marina. We saw a seal swimming around but he was to quick for us to get a photo



A nice piece of artwork conveying a diving whales tail

 

[OZDUCK]

A few extras.

There is a little heritage park in the centre of town. It contains various historic buildings from around the area that were in disrepair. They have been moved to this central point and refurbished. A number of them contain 'arts and crafts' shops.



Courtesy of our visitor. Our room - bathrooms on both levels



She is basically saying that "my kingdom is upstairs off the gallery"



A demonstration of the squeaky sand.

Lucky Bay is truly a lovely spot