A Great Adventure

The most amazing things in life are free. Such as star gazing outside our tent up here in Cervantes, only to find that the trees are twinkling away too. Realisation that the trees are peppered with fire flies struck & I gave thanks for the wonderful sights of nature.

Our alarm went off at 4 am today. Hubs silenced his, I snoozed mine. I finally rolled out of bed at 4.15 am. We departed at our planned time, 5 am. 1st stop, pump up the tires at the petrol station. We were approached by this guy with a dog who wanted directions to his brother's place. He asked if we could give him a lift. We wanted to but we didn't for fear he's a robber in disguise. If it were daytime, I probably will. I wish I can have more faith in people.

We drove west then turned north onto Indian Ocean Drive. Hubs drove on high beam once we passed the outskirts of town, only to dip the headlights when there are approaching vehicles. This is the 1st time we pushed my car to 110km/hr & at some point, close to 120km/hr. The high beam was literally a lifesaver. 2 kangaroos decided to hop across the road & as we could see them from afar, we managed to slow down enough to let them pass safely. Others were not so lucky, flattened & smashed across the long straight road.

Abandoned tire by the road side.

120 km into the drive, hubs stopped by the roadside to "rest the car". I took the opportunity to (what else?) take photos. The sun was beginning to rise. We drove the next 80 km watching the scenary fly by. Finally, we arrived in Cervantes. We had breakfast at their cafe after checking in to the caravan park I had booked. Ham & mushroom quiche, scones with jam & cream to share. As usual, coffee for him, tea for me. I don't drink hot tea, much less sit under the sun to do it. But I enjoy it here when the weather is cold.

Satisfied that we got the tent up.

We headed to our tent site & got started on pitching our tent. It took a bit longer than expected as the ground was soft-ish & the metal pickets kept coming off. We had to try different spots for each anchor until they stayed put. But finally, it was done. What great sense of satisfaction we felt! If there is 1 Singaporean trait I can't get rid of, it's my desire to take picture of everything. Memories fail but photos these days last practically forever in their digital format.

The Pinnacles.

Tent done. Air mattress pumped up. Next stop, The Pinnacles. Dogs are not allowed in national park. I'm guilty to say we smuggled him in. But, I didn't let him out of the car at any stage. Hubs was driving & I was riding shotgun. I made Ton Ton lie down on the floor in front of me & covered him with my bag. When we got to the payment booth, I turned the music on loud for fear he would start making noise when he hears strangers. He was very good. Didn't make a sound. In fact, I stayed in the car the entire time & took photos by sticking my arm out the window.

Stromatolites.

We went to Lake Thetis next. Again, this is part of Nambung National Park. So I was the only 1 who walked down to the lake to take pictures of the stromatolites, leaving hubs & Ton in the car. (Hubs said it was too far to walk. -_-''') We had lunch in Jurien Bay & it was the 1st time I tried coffee float. I ordered it for hubs & I was surprised when it came (coz it says ice coffee on the menu). Very nice.

We got back to the camp site at 3.30 pm. We stepped into the tent & I laid down on the air mattress for the 1st time. Ton 是真的很会享受的狗。Upon seeing me on the bed, he jumped into the tent & up onto the bed with me, making himself comfortable. You can just see the excitement & anticipation in his eyes as he jumped up. We rested for a while until I decided I wanted to have a shower before it gets dark. Then I realised, I forgot the towels. Luckily, I brought 10 pieces of blue disposable hand towels I took from work. I had already used 1 to wipe sand off Ton Ton. So I had to ration them carefully. I used 2, 1 for drying & 1 to wrap my hair in.

We finally found a use for the night sticks hubs brought home ages ago. I had packaged tuna with rice that tasted like combat ration while hubs had cup noodles. He saw people with their portable BBQ & he started chanting that he wanted 1 too. We agreed on electrical grill since we don't have to deal with charcoal ashes. That was when I looked up into the sky to star gaze.

If for whatever reasons, things don't work out & we have to return to Sg for good, I will leave knowing our life here has been a fruitful 1. 1 full of adventures & fond memories.