Kalbarri 2 November 2006

Up very early for no particular reason. Seems the sun rises at 5.30am and that sets off the farmers and the birds. It is nice to respond to the environment that way. We had done everything by 7am and were shocked at the time! Had a relaxing trip admiring the countryside and stopped at Kalbarri NP. It was really strange to see cleared paddocks of wheat, as we hadn’t seen them since Dubbo. Hiked into the NP to see the Natures Window, which displays a large elevated arch overlooking the Murchison River. The river was very low and very green from algae. The land around the NP and the river still looked red and harsh and the temperature was 32 and the flies tasted foul! They came from nowhere for the first time on our trip. Then onto Kalbarri, which was an agreeable seaside village, slumbering quietly while awaiting the start of the holiday season. The wind really picked up and rocked the Jimmy! Drove out of town to the southern end of the coastal part of the NP to see some spectacular rock formations along the cliffs, resulting from the erosion of the soft calcium deposits above a harder sandstone layer. They were very wild and rugged with the wind whipping up the sea. Settled down for the night along the side of the road in a protected, quiet spot.