We've been travelling through one of the most geologically stable areas in the world across the rim of a huge volcanic crater hundreds of kms in diameter, stretching to Esperance about 500km to the south.
First stop on our westward trip was the town of Southern Cross, with the town slogan "Southern Coss, a Five Star Town". The streets are named after stars and there's even an observatory in this little town. The Yilgan History Museum is in the building that was WA's first Registrar's Office and Courtroom where Arthur Bayley and Paddy Hannan registered their claims for the Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie goldfields.The memorial and lookout over the town celebrate and remember the town's farming and mining histories.
There are several drives around the area to explore the huge granite outcrops. We stopped off at Frog Rock, a popular picnic area before driving on to Mt Hampton and then to Dulyalbin Rock with its huge water tank.
The next day we hitched up and drove the 125km through the town of Bullfinch to Mukinbudin where we stayed in a 5 star council run campground for a couple of nights. We'd heard about this park and are glad we stayed here as the amenities are first class - something for many other caravan parks to aspire to! At the Visitor Centre we picked up a free booklet and CD set of drives through The Wheatbelt Way. We also stopped off at the local Arts Centre where the weekly sewing club was in session, and had a chat to some of the locals.
The next morning we fired up the CDs and headed for Bencubbin, 37kms away, for coffee and a look around. This area was a big sandalwood growing area in times past. There are still a few stands of trees around although nothing like what was here 100 years ago.
One of the things we wanted to see here is the Pergande Sheep Pens. The granite sheets were split from the nearby rock using water and fire and were carted down the hill to the nearby homestead where the sheepyards were placed. Nearby Marshall Rock provided great views of the countryside, with the bonus that we could drive up to the top.
Yesterday we drove to Wongan Hills, through broadacre crop farms. Harvest is in full swing with plenty of "boys toys" to be seen. It's been interesting to see the different farming styles with hay bales and stacks unlike those we've seen before.
Today we made the short journey, only about 100kms, to Bindoon, about 90kms north of Perth on the Great Northern Highway, last seen at Mount Magnet. This is an interesting town which we're visiting to track down some family history information for a friend. One place we visited is the Catholic Agricultural College which in a past life was a boys home for post WWII evacuees from the UK. It was featured in the movie "Oranges and Sunshine" about Margaret Humphreys a social worker from Nottingham in England who lifted the lid on the abuse suffered there by many of the boys.
Dinner tonight was "Bindoon Bangers". The local butcher took out First Prize in the National Sausage King Awards. They were delicious! Tomorrow we're off to Perth. We'll be based in the Perth area for a couple of weeks, with a quick trip to Melbourne in the middle to attend Cherryl's niece's wedding on Saturday. It will be good to catch up with family again.
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