It's Saturday which means we have been on the road for two weeks and have covered 4150kms so far and still not seen a Kangaroo, alive and hoping along the roadside beside us. Our feeling is that as its 33 degrees at 7am, by the time we are on the road, the wildlife has sought shade and as there is not a lot of that, they are well inland. One thing I can testify to working is the Australian firebreak, we have driven hundreds of kilometres, where one side of the road is lush and green whilst the other is just charcoal meaning even less shade in places.....
So we stop for diesel, me on one side of the pump and an Australian Hulk Hogan look a like the other side, we stare into each other's eyes, the intimidation being unbearable before he cracks, giving in saying, "where ya go in" I reply in my deepest gruffest manliest voice possible, "Lake Argyle" We then spend at least 5 minutes talking campsite/route/towns/places stories over the diesel pump, until his partner comes out of shop, from what he said, my feeling is they got caught having an affair, sold up everything in the North, bought a new car and caravan and are heading down South to start their new life together.......
Have you ever noticed when you drive long boring journeys where the journey drags on for hour after hour, the terrain is just the same kilometre after kilometre, that your mind starts to wander.......
Today's journey involved the 'Outback Outlaws' trying to kidnap us and on the approach to Lake Argyle, we were so totally outnumbered by the Comanche Indians looking down on us from the hill tops that someone with slightly less imagination is really happy we have at last arrived at the most voted for best campsite of 2015, Lake Argyle Resort, she is hoping to at last have some sort of reasonable conversation.......
There is a problem however, in about 3 weeks, we are going to do the same journey in reverse, it could be that Mad Max and and Will Smith in Independence day gets a mention........... View from back of van
Lake Argyle
A campin we shall go
Leave Broome early as possibly another long drive ahead of us, should we not like accommodation choices in Fitzroy Crossing, which is described as a Aborigine Welfare Town..... Get to FC around lunch time, stop at roadhouse for petrol, go in to pay and it's like being in a Easyjet plane that has just landed with a load of hen/stag party customers, who of course all stand up with nowhere to go and either get out their phones to tell people they have arrived or shout at their mates at the back of the plane, who are trying to ignore them.......
The security man on the door looked at me suspiciously as 1. I was on my own, 2. I was quiet, 3. I looked almost normal, whereas the other customers definitely would have been out of place had they been on the London Underground, which is the only other place I can think of that would have been as crowded.......
This roadhouse was the Bank, The Shop, The Cafe, The Petrol Station, The Community Centre and if you could get away with it, the free grab a gift shop......... I saw one family walk in, the mum goes in one direction, the dad in the opposite whilst little 3/4 yr old Johnny, climbs up the sweet display in front of the till, Security shouts at Johnny, the cashier shouts at Johnny, Dad shouts at Johnny, Johnny ignores them all and the displays start to bend, sweets start to fall, all that is except what is in little Johnny's hand and all this time mum is busy 'shopping' out of site behind the aisles at the back........
We drive out of FC after checking we still had some wheels and head for Halls Creek another Welfare Town but at least there, the only bad reviews I've read is to make sure your van is locked and about the drunken fights on a Saturday night, thank God it's Friday.......
