Tuesday 11 September – Today started very cloudy, and during the morning, as we were driving to Cervantes, we actually had rain!  Not for long mind you, but it did rain.  The afternoon, though turned out to be really pleasant (not hot), quite warm with a bit of a breeze.  Today’s drive took us through Geraldton which is quite a decent sized town, situated on the coast and making the most of it.  And we saw several examples of what I’d been told to look for - trees that grow pretty well parallel to the ground because of the strong wings they get there.  We weren’t able to get photos of the best examples, as we were driving, and it’s not always convenient or possible to pull over for a photo opportunity but the photo I’ve put in here gives a bit of an idea.

The example we were able to capture on film.

We had a morning tea cuppa at the historic village of Greenough, and got to today’s destination – Cervantes – at around 2 o’clock.  We drove (from a few kilometres after leaving Dongara) to Cervantes down the Indian Ocean drive where we were treated to numerous glimpses of the ocean as we drove.  Well actually Grant was the one on whale watch, as I was driving with eyes firmly concentrating on the road.

The caravan park here is very nice, very close to the beach, though we haven’t wandered over to the beach because after we set up and had a bit of late lunch, we went out to Cervantes most famous tourist attraction – the Pinnacles.  Scattered along the coast road, some distance inland from the coast there are sand dunes, mostly very white, just popping up here and there.  About 16 km from Cervantes there is such a sand dune area (though not as white as the others), which is dotted with thousands of limestone pillars of varying heights up to about two mtrs. They are really odd, and though they of different form, they reminded us of the white desert in Egypt – a bit like a scene from the moon or some other planet.  We went for a short walk to the viewing point, then drove the 4.5km route they have marked out around and between the pinnacles.  There are heaps of spots where you can stop, get out and walk around them, etc.  By doing this drive it makes it clear what a huge area they cover.  It was quite weird, but most interesting.

  Spot Grant among the Pinnacles.

A couple of tourists who just happened to be posing among the Pinnacles.

By the time we got back to camp from there it was almost 5.30, so it was shower, tea, and another day is almost over.  Tomorrow we head for the big smoke – Perth, here we come!