Jurien Bay

Leaving Geraldton, we followed the Indian Ocean Coastal Hwy towards Perth. Our next, and last stop before Perth is Jurien Bay. We've heard some good reports about this seaside spot. Along the way we stopped in and had a look at the towns of Dongara and Point Denison, both seaside holiday spots, then stopped in at Leeman, where it was time for morning tea, and we found a lovely little place near the boat ramp.

The new jetty at Jurien Bay

We drove into Jurien Bay a little after lunchtime, and checked into the Jurien Bay Top Tourist Park, right beside the main beach. We found the staff very obliging, and set ourselves up on a nice site, though again we were back on the crushed shell base, and here it is like concrete. Trying to put a peg in the ground for the awning tie down, was impossible. having seen me bend two pegs, Tony the manager came over with a drill! The caravan park is in the middle of town, so we head off for a look around. It is a modern little place, with lots of new subdivisions. It is obviously a popular place with retirees and holiday makers, and the town has all the facilities you would need for a longer stay. Almost everyone has a fishing boat, so I assume fishing is good. The water is a beautiful turquoise blue, and the wind has died down a bit. However, for this visit, we are only here for three days.

Welcome to Cervantes.

John at the Pinnacles.

Next day, we head off down the road for another 30 kms, to the small town of Cervantes, the gateway to the amazing desert Nation Park that is The Pinnacles. What an amazing job they have done to make The Pinnacles available to tourists. After paying your park entry fee at the gate, or in our case showing our annual pass, you head off and follow the well marked track out into the

The track winds its
way through the rocks.

desert. It is quite stunning, with acres of yellow sand studded

Lots and lots of rocks.

with thousands of small, and not so small, columns of stone. Some are rounded, some are pointed. Some are in clusters and some just stand alone. There are plenty of places to pull off the track and walk among the stone columns. A visit to the Interpretive Centre, only adds to the mystery of the Pinnacles, as quite unbelievably, scientists really don't know how these stunning rock formations were formed. One theory is that it is the remains of a forest, petrified, another theory says it may have resulted from volcanic activity. They just don't know. We wandered around for some time, climbing up to the Desert View Lookout, just trying to take it all in.

A couple
of good looking crays.

So many crayfish!

Back into Cervantes we went. This is another nice little seaside town, popular with holiday makers. It is also home to a pretty famous little family business called "The Lobster Shack". Now, we just have to call in and check this place out. It is quite the business. Operating as Indian Ocean Seafoods, the now fourth generation of cray fishermen, bring in 550,000 tonnes of crayfish per year! This is their quota. The Crays are processed, and shipped live, by air, all over the world, but mostly to Japan, China and other Asian markets. The crays are put to sleep for their flight, and will remain "unconscious" for 36 hours, long enough to get them to most parts of the world. We did a factory tour, which was absolute torture! This is an unbelievable business, automated and so clean and well organised. The crays come straight from the boats, are cleansed for 48 hours in seawater, then readied for live export. We have never seen so many crayfish! They grade them by size, starting at around 500grams, and

Delicious!

I'll have this one!

maxing out at over 1.65 kilograms. We were amazed to learn that the crayfish industry is Australia's largest seafood export industry, generating around $600 million in revenue a year! You can buy them from the shop, starting at around $25.00 each, or better still you can eat in at the Lobster Shack Cafe, which is what we did. There are lots of choices and sizes to choose from. The meal is cooked fresh while you wait, and comes served with chips and salad. Delicious!! There was no shortage of patrons, with a high proportion of Japanese, on tours. We had a talk to one of the owners, who told us an hilarious story of his attempts at getting into the Russian market. It was a story of graft and corruption as they managed to get live lobsters into Russia, carried in their luggage!! Their proposed wholesaler helped along the way, telling them it was the only way, as if they'd tried to ship them in, they would have been "confiscated" by customs and never seen again.

Carols By Candlelight at Jurien Bay.

I've been a good girl Santa!

That night back in Jurien Bay, it was Carols By Candlelight at the park across from the caravan park. We headed across with our chairs, and were surprised at how many people were in attendance. It was a lovely night, and even though the performers won't be appearing on Australia's Got Talent anytime soon, they sure were enthusiastic. The local dance school had all its kids dressed for Christmas, and Santa was in attendance and getting a constant stream of kids across the lap. When the little kids were done, the bigger kids took over and Santa grew an extra couple of hands, and started making promises he had no hope of keeping! Overall it was a fun night. 

Western Australian Christmas Tree.

Perth City Skyline.

In the morning, we packed up and headed for Perth, just 200 kilometres away. It was a pleasant drive, with the landscape dotted with a lovely tree in flower, with a golden bloom. We subsequently found out that this is the rarest tree in the world, and is commonly known as Western Australian Christmas Tree. Along the way, we dusted off the old Navman GPS unit. Haven't had any use for it for the last 12 months! It didn't miss a beat, and had us weaving through the outer northern suburbs of Perth, headed for our home for Christmas, the grandly named Lake Karrinyup Resort, a Top Tourist Caravan Park. We settled in with help from the staff. We have a nice big site, with a view of the lake, and each afternoon the ducks come by for Happy Hour. The Caravan Park is set in a wetland area, full of parks. There are walking and bike trails all over the area. We will be very happy here. On 17th December we cracked a bottle of Moet and celebrated the conclusion of our 3rd year living our dream and exploring our wonderful country. How time just flies!!

Three Years down and ???? to go!

The Xmas lights are up.

This will be our first Christmas away from family and friends. We have booked ourselves into the Crown Metropole Hotel & Casino for a couple of nights, the 24th & 25th of December. We decided to spoil ourselves a little and let someone else do the cooking for a change. We would like to wish all our followers a very safe and happy Christmas, and we'll be back in the New Year as we continue our amazing journey into a fourth year.

Merry Christmas to all from John & Carolyn.