DAY 19 – DOOLENA GAP TO EIGHTY MILE BEACH–08/05/16 315KLM

Michael and I get up early and after breakfast and chores go for a walk up into the Gap.   It is an easy walk on the road tracks into the Gap, which are surrounded by an avenue of white trunked gum trees.   Red rocky escarpments flanked one side of the gap.

At the end of the Gap track is a wide open dry sandy river plain, with flowing water and shallow pool towards the head of the Gap.  Two camper buses are settled in amongst the trees and have been there for a while by the looks of things.    What a great spot, but due to the trees either side of the track  there would be insufficient clearance to take the caravans this far.

We head off about 8.00am and after approx. 100 klm we intersect with the Great Northern Highway and then head towards Broome.  We have a coffee stop at Pardoo Roadhouse, with Tony getting a slice of Mud Cake and Spray cream whilst Jen had an icy pole.   On the other hand Michael and I went savoury and had a homemade meat pie………very very oily and repetitive later in the morning (actually horrible, the worst pie I have ever eaten).

Back on the road and we were getting quite a buffering from the wind.  94klm up the highway we turn off the Eighty Mile Beach Caravan Park, arriving around lunch time.   We both have drive through sites which makes life much easier.    After setup, due to our earlier pie, we have a very light lunch.

The park is quite popular, and there was a very basic market happening in the Park.    Michael and I head for the beach and find the tide well out, with a long straight beach deeply covered in a variety of shells and sponges. We walk for over a kilometre, picking up a range of shells and photographing the range of dry sponges.  See more photos in Album.

Tony is very domesticated and attends to loads of washing using their machine, but needs to seek me out on stopping issues and not allowing his machine door to be opened.

Later in the afternoon, both of us visit the shower block and have a long refreshing shower and hair wash…..able to get rid of some of the mud and dust caking us.  Michael has a shave and is no longer a scruff!!

Being Mothers Day, both Jen and I receive calls from our children, which is great.

Michael cooks our Milners chicken sausages with sweet chillies and cashews on the BBQ, but they are disappointing in flavour and taste.

Early night reading, listening to music and trying to catch up with the blog.