Have parked up about 50 ks out of Broome with a lot of action happening in the next few days.
Monday new windscreen and Wednesday 100,000 service on van.
All going good, having a great time and have to pinch myself to make sure it's me so far up north and so far away from all the family.
We've had some great experiences along the way so far, easier to read mine and Steve's blogs than for me to write it all again.
Met up with Gerty Dancer and her man at Derby, having a delightful lunch at the Wharf Café. I wanted fish and chips, I got fish and chips on the wharf with the tide way out. They say it comes right up to just under the jetty when it's all the way in.
Colleen, Steve and I all got windscreen chips somewhere between Fitzroy Crossing and Ellendale, all within 15 minutes of each other and all from different passing vehicles. Unfortunately mine has gone into a crack at least 8 inches in a curve. Thankfully Insurance will cover it and all booked in for tomorrow.
Hi HW, good to read that your still enjoying your journey. Pity about the windscreen, but good to know the insurance cover is there. We have put off going into that NW corner because of stories we hear of rip offs and difficulties in obtaining CP sites. Is it really as expensive and difficult as we've heard, or have the stories been enhanced for effect.
Friar
Happywanderer said
04:13 PM Jun 22, 2014
Very expensive I hear. We are 50ks out of Broome in free camp as it's the closest.
Roebuck Plains Roadhouse have powered sites for $33 and is 33ks out of Broome. Probably the cheapest.
Haven't heard of any ripoffs yet. Depending what kind of ripoffs you have heard of.
the rocket said
04:22 PM Jun 22, 2014
Hi Marj, My goodness, I am out of the loop. Did not know you were there. have a great time. rocket
Vic41 said
04:33 PM Jun 22, 2014
Happywanderer wrote:
Very expensive I hear. We are 50ks out of Broome in free camp as it's the closest. Roebuck Plains Roadhouse have powered sites for $33 and is 33ks out of Broome. Probably the cheapest. Haven't heard of any ripoffs yet. Depending what kind of ripoffs you have heard of.
I am not sure which freecamp you are at, but there is another in Camps further down the main road heading south from Roebuck Plains Roadhouse towards Perth, more like a roadside rest area but with no facilities at all and close to the road with no vegetation in between from memory.
Might come in handy on the way south after Broome.
Happywanderer said
05:09 PM Jun 22, 2014
This one is 23 ks south of Roebuck Plains Roadhouse on the left Vic, no facilities except rubbish bins.
Vic41 said
06:33 PM Jun 22, 2014
Sounds like the one Marj, if you do decide to go to the Roebuck Roadhouse CP I can recommend it, I went from Darwin to there via Katherine free camping all the way and that was my first CP stop. I did a run into Broome from there, I had been to Broome before a couple of times so had no intention of stopping there for long.
Don't know if you have this info, but they put out a pamphlet as well it should be available at the Broome Info Centre, see;
Beautiful sunset in Broome this evening, looking at the Live Cam over Cable Beach I wonder if they are GN looking towards the cam and waving lol, Cable Beach looks lovely, its a gorgeous place.....Kisha.
sufil said
08:30 PM Jun 22, 2014
Gerty, Colleen , Steve, Billee (and any others I have missed,)When you get closer down the road to Perth we have 5 acres about 60kms north of there. You are more than welcome to camp here. Just let me know when you get closer and I will give you the address.
Sue and Phil
Happywanderer said
08:52 PM Jun 22, 2014
Thank you so much Sue and Phil. What a generous offer, will be in touch.
Happywanderer said
09:03 PM Jun 22, 2014
We saw Mavis.
Mavis is a lovely lady we have seen on the road a couple of times. Once in Jericho and once at Longreach. She is now parked with us here. She is doing very well having spent 2 days in Broome and now on her way south. I asked her if she was intending to travel around Aus, as this wasn't her original plan. As she said Well it looks like it now, having got this far. Not bad for a lady in her late 70s travelling in a small hi-top travelling on her own.
Forgot to say, I was in the Roebuck Plains Roadhouse today where I saw a wall of number plates. Among them was a Grey Nomads number plate.
-- Edited by Happywanderer on Sunday 22nd of June 2014 09:18:26 PM
PJK said
11:31 PM Jun 22, 2014
Marg, I hope you have received a quote for your 100k service.
If I remember correctly, it is a big one that includes the timing belt.
At least $1000 if they do the timing belt.
Just didn't want you to have any nasty surprises.
Regards
Peter
PJK
Happywanderer said
11:36 PM Jun 22, 2014
All good Peter. Timing Belt isn't till 150,000 ks, this one is a small service. Oil, oil filter and air filter.
_wombat_ said
08:42 AM Jun 23, 2014
good to hear you are all happy and enjoying yourselves, I was sorting through some pics yesterday and here are some I took at Ngumpan Cliffs
Congratulations wombat. Well done. Love the name. Haven't been able to get online for a while, hadn't realised you were there.
_wombat_ said
09:15 AM Jun 23, 2014
Happywanderer wrote:
Congratulations wombat. Well done. Love the name. Haven't been able to get online for a while, hadn't realised you were there.
I wasn't there recently, these are old pics, hey that offer of a place to stay 60klms nth of Perth is great, if you do want to go into Perth and Kings Park try to stay away from the freeways they are nearly allways chok a blok with traffic, just put into your gps avoid freeways if you can.
bugga I only just seen the name, now I know what you are talking about. now it's official, don't tell that other lot. (ps I like it too)
-- Edited by _wombat_ on Monday 23rd of June 2014 09:18:55 AM
PJK said
09:29 AM Jun 23, 2014
Happywanderer wrote:
All good Peter. Timing Belt isn't till 150,000 ks, this one is a small service. Oil, oil filter and air filter.
That's good Marg. Yours must be a later model than the one I remember.
Mornin Marg, [ & co. ] stayed at roebuck pl.roadhouse for 2 nites ,did the tourist bit into Broome. Lovely area, but very busy at this time of yr!.. Goin sth there are some GREAT freebees, the ''royalties for regions'' scheme especially in the Gascoyne/Pilbara shires has provided new toilets/ dumpoints in a lot of the free camps as u come sth.
I hope t go nth after the school holidays,had $$$$ car trouble with the van last mth ,only got to hedland, all fixed & returned home , but budget is shot t sh.t, so will jus do a cuppla wks. on the bike... I should run into u mob onya way down maybe? Will watch ya posts..
sufil said
11:30 AM Jun 23, 2014
We have a couple from Qld staying here at present, they head south today, been here for nearly two weeks. Some others are arriving in the next couple of weeks. We will be replenishing the woodpile this week as I don't think the campfire has been out at all.(we also had to build an undercover area with the oz pig as the heater when it rained!!We had 4 inches this week.) so now we have an outdoor fire and an indoor one. Oh and we don't mind pets and can keep our chooks locked up if your fur baby isn't chook friendly. (our chooks think they are people and love happy hour!!) There is no power but we do have plenty of water and a dump point.(homemade,not flash but it does the job!!) We are happy for people to use us as a base to explore or just to chill out for a few days.
NOT for Joe Random off the street, must contact us thru the forum. There is a public rest area just 10 kms down the road for them.
PS if anyone wants to organise a GT close to Perth you are welcome to come here. We are an hour from the Pinnacles, New Norcia, 1/2 hr to Gingin where there are a few activities,honey factory (very interesting) Observatory, history walk thru the town, Lancelin is just up the road for fishing,4wd driving etc, Moore River is minutes away or you can just chill out and do nothing.
Sue and Phil
kandagal said
12:07 PM Jun 23, 2014
Marge, we stayed at that rest ago for a few days a couple of years ago. There was a group of pea****s living in the bush nearby & they often strayed into the rest area. One was an albino pea****.
Suefil - long time no see Regards Alice
Vic41 said
12:17 PM Jun 23, 2014
sufil wrote:
We have a couple from Qld staying here at present, they head south today, been here for nearly two weeks. Some others are arriving in the next couple of weeks. We will be replenishing the woodpile this week as I don't think the campfire has been out at all.(we also had to build an undercover area with the oz pig as the heater when it rained!!We had 4 inches this week.) so now we have an outdoor fire and an indoor one. Oh and we don't mind pets and can keep our chooks locked up if your fur baby isn't chook friendly. (our chooks think they are people and love happy hour!!) There is no power but we do have plenty of water and a dump point.(homemade,not flash but it does the job!!) We are happy for people to use us as a base to explore or just to chill out for a few days. NOT for Joe Random off the street, must contact us thru the forum. There is a public rest area just 10 kms down the road for them. PS if anyone wants to organise a GT close to Perth you are welcome to come here. We are an hour from the Pinnacles, New Norcia, 1/2 hr to Gingin where there are a few activities,honey factory (very interesting) Observatory, history walk thru the town, Lancelin is just up the road for fishing,4wd driving etc, Moore River is minutes away or you can just chill out and do nothing. Sue and Phil
Hi Sue and Phil,
That sound great for a GT for those heading south from up north and those of us in the Perth area for a day trip etc.
Will keep in touch. Thanks for the kind offer.
Vic
Friar Park said
02:02 PM Jun 23, 2014
Thanks for your reply HW. It sounds as if your trip down to Perth could be interesting with all the offers of GTs your getting.
Good luck with your vehicle and keep enjoying yourselves
Friar
_wombat_ said
02:30 PM Jun 23, 2014
DON't get down here to quick, cos it is really cold at the moment and it's going to get colder.
Happywanderer said
04:02 PM Jun 23, 2014
Windscreen not getting replaced till Pt Hedland now as O,Briens And Novus don,t get on. Well, what's new??
In a caravan park for two nights, van service early Wednesday. Beautiful spot overlooking the ocean.
Vic41 said
04:21 PM Jun 23, 2014
_wombat_ wrote:
DON't get down here to quick, cos it is really cold at the moment and it's going to get colder.
Vic, that offer to stay at Sue & Phil's looks great for a GN meet, I did email Sue, still awaiting a reply she maybe busy.
Vic41 said
04:41 PM Jun 23, 2014
Sounds good Sir Wombat, if they are agreeable it could be used for our GTG's as you say, also for meetups with travelling GN's.
Not sure if the main group from up north are arriving separately (they are in two groups at the moment) or together, I would assume they will be in Perth around September if not sooner.
Leave it up to you to organise the next one wherever, and your "Serfs" will follow on, LOL
BarbandDaz said
05:02 PM Jun 23, 2014
Hi HW,
We stayed at Roebuck Plains Roadhouse in 2012 for 11 days. We found it great and not that far out of town. Still able to get in and see all that we wanted to.
Enjoy your trip to WA.
Barb and Darryl
pws25 said
06:11 PM Jun 23, 2014
HW....., c/parks in Hedland are roun $50! [ sth. Hedland anyway ] when u get to Karratha similar price, but go to Dampier, ''transit park '' $ 28 on waterfront. & a GREAT feed at ''the mermaid'' tavern, free pickup & return from the park.......
-- Edited by pws25 on Monday 23rd of June 2014 06:12:58 PM
Have parked up about 50 ks out of Broome with a lot of action happening in the next few days.
Monday new windscreen and Wednesday 100,000 service on van.
All going good, having a great time and have to pinch myself to make sure it's me so far up north and so far away from all the family.
We've had some great experiences along the way so far, easier to read mine and Steve's blogs than for me to write it all again.
Met up with Gerty Dancer and her man at Derby, having a delightful lunch at the Wharf Café. I wanted fish and chips, I got fish and chips on the wharf with the tide way out. They say it comes right up to just under the jetty when it's all the way in.
Colleen, Steve and I all got windscreen chips somewhere between Fitzroy Crossing and Ellendale, all within 15 minutes of each other and all from different passing vehicles. Unfortunately mine has gone into a crack at least 8 inches in a curve. Thankfully Insurance will cover it and all booked in for tomorrow.
Hi HW, good to read that your still enjoying your journey. Pity about the windscreen, but good to know the insurance cover is there. We have put off going into that NW corner because of stories we hear of rip offs and difficulties in obtaining CP sites. Is it really as expensive and difficult as we've heard, or have the stories been enhanced for effect.
Friar
Roebuck Plains Roadhouse have powered sites for $33 and is 33ks out of Broome. Probably the cheapest.
Haven't heard of any ripoffs yet. Depending what kind of ripoffs you have heard of.
Hi Marj, My goodness, I am out of the loop. Did not know you were there. have a great time. rocket
I am not sure which freecamp you are at, but there is another in Camps further down the main road heading south from Roebuck Plains Roadhouse towards Perth, more like a roadside rest area but with no facilities at all and close to the road with no vegetation in between from memory.
Might come in handy on the way south after Broome.
Sounds like the one Marj, if you do decide to go to the Roebuck Roadhouse CP I can recommend it, I went from Darwin to there via Katherine free camping all the way and that was my first CP stop. I did a run into Broome from there, I had been to Broome before a couple of times so had no intention of stopping there for long.
Don't know if you have this info, but they put out a pamphlet as well it should be available at the Broome Info Centre, see;
https://www.mainroads.wa.gov.au/usingroads/touringwamaps/pages/restareas.aspx
Beautiful sunset in Broome this evening, looking at the Live Cam over Cable Beach I wonder if they are GN looking towards the cam and waving lol, Cable Beach looks lovely, its a gorgeous place.....Kisha.
Sue and Phil
We saw Mavis.
Mavis is a lovely lady we have seen on the road a couple of times. Once in Jericho and once at Longreach. She is now parked with us here. She is doing very well having spent 2 days in Broome and now on her way south. I asked her if she was intending to travel around Aus, as this wasn't her original plan. As she said Well it looks like it now, having got this far. Not bad for a lady in her late 70s travelling in a small hi-top travelling on her own.
Forgot to say, I was in the Roebuck Plains Roadhouse today where I saw a wall of number plates. Among them was a Grey Nomads number plate.
-- Edited by Happywanderer on Sunday 22nd of June 2014 09:18:26 PM
If I remember correctly, it is a big one that includes the timing belt.
At least $1000 if they do the timing belt.
Just didn't want you to have any nasty surprises.
Regards
Peter
PJK
good to hear you are all happy and enjoying yourselves, I was sorting through some pics yesterday and here are some I took at Ngumpan Cliffs
I wasn't there recently, these are old pics, hey that offer of a place to stay 60klms nth of Perth is great, if you do want to go into Perth and Kings Park try to stay away from the freeways they are nearly allways chok a blok with traffic, just put into your gps avoid freeways if you can.
bugga I only just seen the name, now I know what you are talking about.
now it's official, don't tell that other lot. 
(ps I like it too)
-- Edited by _wombat_ on Monday 23rd of June 2014 09:18:55 AM
That's good Marg. Yours must be a later model than the one I remember.
Hope I didn't scare you.
Regards
Peter.
Awesome - you lucky people.
Check out Roey's pub sunday roast - self serve - yummy.
http://roey.com.au/food-drinks/pearlers-bar-bistro/
Mornin Marg, [ & co. ] stayed at roebuck pl.roadhouse for 2 nites ,did the tourist bit into Broome. Lovely area, but very busy at this time of yr!.. Goin sth there are some GREAT freebees, the ''royalties for regions'' scheme especially in the Gascoyne/Pilbara shires has provided new toilets/ dumpoints in a lot of the free camps as u come sth.
I hope t go nth after the school holidays,had $$$$ car trouble with the van last mth ,only got to hedland, all fixed & returned home , but budget is shot t sh.t, so will jus do a cuppla wks. on the bike... I should run into u mob onya way down maybe? Will watch ya posts..
NOT for Joe Random off the street, must contact us thru the forum. There is a public rest area just 10 kms down the road for them.
PS if anyone wants to organise a GT close to Perth you are welcome to come here. We are an hour from the Pinnacles, New Norcia, 1/2 hr to Gingin where there are a few activities,honey factory (very interesting) Observatory, history walk thru the town, Lancelin is just up the road for fishing,4wd driving etc, Moore River is minutes away or you can just chill out and do nothing.
Sue and Phil
Suefil - long time no see Regards Alice
Hi Sue and Phil,
That sound great for a GT for those heading south from up north and those of us in the Perth area for a day trip etc.
Will keep in touch. Thanks for the kind offer.
Vic
Thanks for your reply HW. It sounds as if your trip down to Perth could be interesting with all the offers of GTs your getting.
Good luck with your vehicle and keep enjoying yourselves
Friar
DON't get down here to quick, cos it is really cold at the moment and it's going to get colder.
In a caravan park for two nights, van service early Wednesday. Beautiful spot overlooking the ocean.
http://www.perthnow.com.au/news/western-australia/perth-inland-wa-shivers-as-temperatures-drop-below-0c/story-fnhocxo3-1226963400292
Vic, that offer to stay at Sue & Phil's looks great for a GN meet, I did email Sue, still awaiting a reply she maybe busy.
Sounds good Sir Wombat, if they are agreeable it could be used for our GTG's as you say, also for meetups with travelling GN's.
Not sure if the main group from up north are arriving separately (they are in two groups at the moment) or together, I would assume they will be in Perth around September if not sooner.
Leave it up to you to organise the next one wherever, and your "Serfs" will follow on, LOL
Hi HW,
We stayed at Roebuck Plains Roadhouse in 2012 for 11 days. We found it great and not that far out of town. Still able to get in and see all that we wanted to.
Enjoy your trip to WA.
Barb and Darryl
HW....., c/parks in Hedland are roun $50! [ sth. Hedland anyway ] when u get to Karratha similar price, but go to Dampier, ''transit park '' $ 28 on waterfront. & a GREAT feed at ''the mermaid'' tavern, free pickup & return from the park.......
-- Edited by pws25 on Monday 23rd of June 2014 06:12:58 PM