Our Inland Adventure

Broome to Port Hedland a distance of 615 kilometers was the next big leg in our around Australia fossicking tour. We planed a couple of short stops firstly at Barn Hill station, a unique cattle station , which had turned a section of it's land , with beach frontage into a caravan park. As July is the peak tourist season , there was 218 other campers there when we arrived, and we had to wait a day to access a powered site and internet connection, not hard in such a beautiful place or so we thought.



   

              Sand patterns look like Boab trees



  

There were more of those wonderful red cliffs and white beaches and spectacular sunsets over the ocean that I have come to love, since being in Western Australia. Not so the wide open spaces we were used to though, sharing with 218 + people in a relatively small area can be very challenging. There was no were you could go to get away, it was worse than Christmas shopping at the mall. So we only spent a couple of days there, just enough time to do the washing, power up the batteries, and catch up with emails and our blog. Note made to self not to go again in peak season.

The morning we left was a Monday, and a common day for van movement on the highways, but we had never seen 50 or so vans (including us) leave a site in convoy, it was quiet a sight, even through the red Bull dust of the dirt track. When we hit the highway we turned right to head south and all the others in the convoy turn left, heading for Broome and the warmer weather, but at least we'd have less traffic.

About lunch time we stopped for a break at the Sandfire road house, not only to fuel ourselves but the car too, being 282 kilometers to the next fuel stop. You need to buy fuel wherever you can it in the outback, because sometimes they run out of fuel, or the pump's not working or don't take plastic cards , so be prepared is now our motto. And glad we did stop at the roadhouse as there were a pair of pure white Peacocks, which we have never seen before. They followed us around until Mylee jumped out of the car and scared them away.

Our next  stop was the De Grey River a beautiful lush green spot in the middle of such harsh dry and barren landscape. It was here we met Ed an elderly gentleman who is traveling the country in search of gemstones, similar to us. I spent an entire day just listening to this guy tell of his travels and his finds which were many as he had been on the road for years. Ed had a trailer with numerous crates of rocks, so many that he now slept in his car. He was there at the De Grey to find Tiger Iron and Jasper banded Hematite, and volunteered to take us out the following day.


Around  his neck was the most impressive rock we had seen in quiet some time, a three inch piece of Tiger Iron, cut into a long crystal shape, with what appears to be gold pulsing through it.

We wanted some for ourselves so early next morning off we went into the wilderness with Ed. He drove slowly along the highway till he found the turn off and once on the dirt we were hard pushed to keep up with him, it was as if the rocks were calling him "hurry". Within 30 minutes we pulled up at a disused Iron Ore mine and beside the car were boulders of Jasper banded Hematite, just as he said. He selected a couple of smaller pieces for himself which he will sell from his car boot shop and one for a lady at the campsite. Then it was off to another site a break neck speeds. This site, another disused mine, was however a 2 kilometer walk once we arrived at the gate. Ed and Laurie stayed behind to fossick around the mullock heaps, (waste from the mine) so I high tailed it, down to the mine, now filled with water it made a good swimming hole.

While I was away three car loads of tourists came by, wanting directions to the water hole to go jet skiing, its existence was not on any maps, they had heard of it by word of mouth. Unbelievable but when you're in the outback you're often never alone.  But to cut this story short we didn't find any Tiger Iron there, and I'm sure we will see Ed further down the track.



Rio Tinto Salt Mine



Onward to Port Hedland, a busy bustling mining town , nothing pretty there, were every second car was a mines vehicle. We desperately needed to get the wheel bearings checked and the lock on the caravan door replaced, what we had not factored into our plans was a long weekend for country race day. Wouldn't you know it, the parts required of cause did not arrive express from Perth.





So we headed south fifty kilometers to Herbert Parker rest area on the Yule river, (Dry River) to wait out the weekend. Herbert Parker (1910-1985) was an esteemed member of the Bundgima tribe and the founder of the concept of bush meetings concerning the well being and management of the land in this region, and this place is were the first community meetings began in 1971, History made right beside our van, but hey seriously the memorial plaque was right beside our camp spot. The local aboriginals still use the site for community meetings as we experienced that weekend, with various groups picnicking and partying there.

While in Port we had heard about a Rock shop just near the Salt mine and the bridge flyover on Redbank road, so we investigated. Sure enough "Rocks Of" is a fantastic rock shop and the owner operator crazy Ann as we called her has sheets of Tiger Iron amongst other gems in her collection for sale. And boy does she know her stuff, rattling off everything from stone hardness and crystal formation to healing properties, locations and how to find. But the local location of the Tiger Iron is a guarded secret as she mines it for sale in her shop, so we bought some, as it's so beautiful and unique.



Stuart Pea

From Port Hedland it was inland all the way to the northern goldfields our next destination. With a slight diversion to Wittenoom, made famous by the deadly Asbestos mining. Now a ghost town in the middle of nowhere, with only two elderly residents who refuse to move out. We were looking for more Tiger Iron but with out luck I'm afraid. A stop over at Bea Bea Creek produced some beautiful Chalcedony specimens and our first Stuart Pea's, both of which were very impressive.

View from Albert Tognolini

From here it was up into the highlands with mountain views, from another stopover at Albert Tognolini rest area.
Boy what breathtaking scenery in all directions. We had been lead to believe that this inland way was very arid and desolate but it was quite the opposite, with abundant wildflowers in every colour, and lush green foliage everywhere. The only thing which was scarcer were the travelers, which was to our liking.

Our next planned stopover was to be the South Gascoyne River. With the sun starting to set and "Happy hour" almost over, we pulled in at the Middle branch of the Gascoyne River some 50 kilometers short of our target destination, but throught we'd would make that up tomorrow. But as fate would have it we didn't leave for five days, not just because it was beautiful with abundant wild life, including wild Camels, but no we finally had caught up with our friends from the Atherton tablelands Topsy and Arie and their three amigo's ( Mylee's doggy friends) It was like coming home, meeting up with dear friends again and sharing our stories, over a brew or two.


Cue Township

 During the next couple of weeks we all traveled through the Murchison to Meekatharra (pronounced Meek-a-thara) were according to Ed we would find some nice Labradorit amongst other gems and of course gold. Whilst there I got news that my son's partner had delivered me another grandaughter Projana that's number nine, how proud am I.

3.2 gram Nugget

Finally arriving in Cue our next main stopover, it was once known as "the Queen of the Murchison". It was here that we introduced Topsy and Arie to gold detecting, but unfortunatly they could only stay a couple of days before heading to Perth. A few days later we found our first ever gold nugget weighing 3.2 grams.




Masonic Lodge

 We again met some fantastic people in Cue, there was Sandy the Scotsman from York and Ron a "Santa clause" look-a-like from Albany, who unselfishly gave of their time and experience to help us learner operators.

Cue also has some remarkable heritage buildings and was a busy centre for mining and exploration in its day.  The Canning stock route was a huge exploration overland, lead by Alfred Canning and 5 other men, 23 Camels and two horses from Cue to Halls Creek in the Kimberly, quite an achievement for anyone especially in 1906.

Heritage Post Office



 

The old Fingall Gold mine office



It's the gold which still brings prospectors to Cue and there certainly is gold to be found in and around Cue.

We were privileged to see some amazing collections, which we cannot of cause talk about, it's "secret business".

How ever, the night before we left the caravan park, a group of three men came into camp having just found a 16.67 oz nugget, near MT Magnet, and were very proud to show it off.

16.67 oz Gold nugget

This was just the right encouragement for us,  leaving Cue with only 11 grams, but still counting, as we slowly detect our way south to the Kalgoorlie goldfields, home of the "Super Pit"

  

     Our 11grams of Gold