Geraldton (Dongara) 9-10 October 2006

As this was the first big town we had found since Darwin, we have been busy running around and getting work done on the Vitara and Jimmy. We visited the Geraldton Museum and saw some impressive displays, especially the section on the large number of shipwrecks that occurred along the coast in the past 300 years. Of particular interest was the information and relics from the Batavia, as we had both recently read a book on the grisly history of the wreck. The accompanying videos and information notes made it very real. The ballast recovered included all the carved stone for a portico for a court house in Batavia that was reconstructed using the original stone from Holland. The regional art gallery had a very unusual and confronting photographic exhibition. The other exhibitions were more mainstream but interesting.
The local fish co-op supplied us with top snapper, dhur, and whiting for a few meals. The big hum on the coast over the last few weeks is the imminent opening of the crayfish season. It will be all along the coast for a few months so we will not miss out!
We both left feeling impressed by the town – luckily it was not too windy or we may have had different thoughts.
Didn’t leave until all the work was completed (tyre alignment last) and after a short shower of rain - still a very unusual event for this whole trip! We set off about 4pm for Greenough. This is an old stone village that had been deserted and ( ironically) avoiding redevelopment until now when it is being restored by the National Trust.
Stopped for the night at Seven Mile Beach outside of Dongara. Once again we had the beach to ourselves. Fairly windy night but not enough to get sea sick! This did happen to Heather once in Qld!