November 12

Where to go today, no plans, just pack up Winston and hit the road heading to Kalgoorlie-Boulder and beyond until we find a place that takes our fancy.  Kalgoorlie-Boulder is a place to collect supplies (more Bushmans - bug spray, Coles - like Tesco/Wall Mart for ready made salad and Liquorland for some more of that scrummy red wine we had earlier), and pass on as quickly as possible unless you enjoy attractions set up for the tourist.  Liqourland proved a bit of an ordeal for us, it should not be hard to find wine in a box but we looked around and saw none. In the end we did the only sensible thing and asked for help.  Now a language barrier sprung up, we asked for a box of wine, they replied that they could get a box for us and put 6 bottles in it.  We explained we didn't want bottles, not while traveling off road as glass is not a great thing to carry.  They looked at us blankly, I guess they thought we were stupid, if you put wine in a box without any containers it will soak straight through the cardboard.  Then it dawned on them and they asked us if we would like a cask.  Now we looked blank, a cask is a wooden barrel to us.  Not being big drinkers there is no way we were buying a barrel of red wine to drink over the next ten days, any way there would be no room in Winston to put it.  The end result was them showing us what a cask looked like - a cardboard box with a tap, just what we were looking for <g>.

Kalgoorie is where there is a huge open gold mine with a pit which can be seen from space.  We had no intention of visiting this open wound on the earths surface but a sigh happened to be pointing to it just as Alan and I were talking about it.  Looks like we were meant to visit, if for no other reason than to share via a picture with you this monstrosity.  I was at a similar mine way back in the days when I lived in Zambia thirty five years ago, a copper mine at Chingola.  This mine looked no different to me and has certainly not left a positive lasting impression.

Continuing on our quest for something interesting today we headed to Kambalda where the map show is a large lake, maybe a resting place for us.  Alas no, still seems very inhabited and we passed on through without glancing back.

By now I was wondering if Alan had a plan on where we might camp so a quick question and a short response, 'no' <g>.  I decided to check out the map to see if there was any bush camps around, a couple with facilities but nothing without.  OK, one that sounds interesting, if only because it shows a camp site with facilities on one of my maps but no campsite indication on my other map.  About 50km off the highway on a dirt track was the place called 'Cave Hill', that should do nicely.

Not well marked although a reasonably maintained dirt road to begin with we found our way.  What a pretty drive up, the landscape seemed to change almost as if somebody had drawn a line from trees and greenery, to almost alpine/desert and then onto scrubland spotted with more trees.

Our first stop was the car park for walk up to Cave Hill, another Aborigine cultural site where for thousands of years the native Ngatju people camped at the rock to grind seeds on the hard granite surface and collect water from the rock pools.  The cave was also a place for the Ngatju people to shelter, participate in storytelling and art.  We didn't see any cave painting, the cave itself is unstable and one cannot enter to investigate all the nooks and crannies.

Yes, we went for a walk!!!

A pleasant campsite close by was our resting place for the night, a few birds to keep us company with the flies (not many here) and a toilet.  Wonder if we will use that or prefer our spade dug holes!!!!

OOOOOps, so busy writing the blog I have missed taking a good picture of the sunsetting.  Oh well, I will set my brain cell to work and remember tomorrow.  Here is a last minute attempt <g>