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P.S. Check the Broome Webcam at 10:00 am sharp tomorrow (3rd
June)! All being well, we will be
in front of the barriers on the edge of the beach
http://www.broomecam.com/camera.htm
(Pictures from that webcam.....click on pictures en-large)
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© Bunky Chollox FC 2014.
Established 1994. All rights
reserved.
Cheers
JMBEA
23rd June 2005
Hi all,
Hope all's well back in Blighty, (in Perth, Sydney, New
Zealand, Vancouver and Abu Dhabi for all our
friends there too). Things are still great here and the boys are still having
fun. Since our last email,
we left Coral Bay, still heading south along the coast and crossed the line on
the road which marked
the Tropic of Capricorn. We spent the night at Point Quobba (58kms off the
highway - in the middle
of nowhere) which was an experience in many ways. The accommodation was a patch
of red dust ground
on the edge of a working sheep station, all very agricultural and basic. The
sheep shearer's quarters
were a real eye opener. They looked like they were taken from an old Western.
Jus initially thought it was a museum, but no. Benjamin found it very exciting and enjoyed poking
around the place. The
coastline was staggering, nothing like we have seen elsewhere on the West Coast
- jutting cliffs,
ferocious waves and amazing surf. This area was definately out of bounds for
swimming as the water
was too treacherous and prone to 'king waves'. During the afternoon we stood on
the cliffs and watched
a school of hammerhead sharks just yards from the shore, a pod of dolphins
passed by and three whales migrating North. It was absolutely amazing - we were
all on our own too!
Next was Monkey Mia, famed for its dolphin interactions. We got up at sunrise
and walked to the water's
edge and saw four dolphins already playing. The ranger gave us lots of
information and told us all about
the dolphins personalities. we were then joined by another six, including two
calves. They no longer allow
you to swim with the dolphins as they found people were abusing them and the
dolphins were beginning to
retaliate. They did however happily swim around our feet. They were also joined
by 5 cheeky pelicans
(very large) who were after any fish going spare. Benjamin was chosen to feed
one of the dolphins which
was a special experience for him but this did upset his brother. Later that
morning we went on a walk with
an Aboriginal guide who taught us about tracking animals and what plants to eat.
He also found some desert
mushrooms - Jus was delighted! We tasted all sorts of things - our own little
bushtucker trial, no witchetty grubs though. He was really good with the boys
and they made quite an impression on each other!
Next we drove through Kalbarri National Park which had stunning gorges and
rainbow cliffs. We spent a
night a Port Gregory and then drove on to Cervantes, a little town on the edge
of the Pinnacles Desert. We
had a pretty special walk (about 2 miles) watching the sun rise over the strange
rock formations in the
desert. As we have come to expect, we saw only a few other people whilst there.
Travelling out of season has worked really well. Everything is lovely and
peaceful - just how we like it.
Except for the racket made by our little cherubs (constantly) of course. Glad to
hear that the weather is
good back home - it is getting colder and wetter here the further south we go.
We've met some really nice and very interesting people so far but all are either
retired couples or backpackers. we have come across the occasional Australian family who are
travelling, but no English
families yet - don't understand it!
We will keep you posted and thanks for all your messages.
Love from the Long family.
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© Bunky Chollox FC 2014.
Established 1994. All rights
reserved.
9th July 2005
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© Bunky Chollox FC 2014.
Established 1994. All rights
reserved.
29th August 2005
Hi everyone, hope all’s well with you. We’re all still having a great time
although starting to prepare ourselves
mentally for the return home – only a few days left!!
Many thanks for all your emails and apologies for the lack of response. The past
few weeks have
found us in some remote locations with few facilities, not least telephones and
internet.
We are now in Canada but have also visited Los Angeles since our last message.
L.A. was big, noisy
and full of smog but Disney was good fun and Mandy, Ben and Elliot enjoyed
meeting Mickey Mouse
in his film studio. Ashley on the other hand was traumatised by the experience –
he clearly doesn’t take
after his Mum. The Californian beaches proved to be good fun and the boys (and
Justin) had the
chance to enjoy their boogie boards again.
Early in August we flew into Canada and spent the first few days in Vancouver
where we met up with our
friend Sharon. Vancouver is a very vibrant city and has a great atmosphere. We
were lucky enough to
see their annual firework display over sunset beach (quite a spectacle), caught
the little ferry
across to Granville Market, visited Gas Town and China Town and did lots of
shopping for the next
stage of our trip – camping in and around the Rocky Mountains.
On our trip towards the Rockies, we camped in both Wells Gray and Mt Robson
Provincial Parks. Then we
moved into Jasper before travelling down the length of the Icefields Parkway and
reaching Banff.
The scenery has been truly magnificent. The sheer scale of the place (seeming
infinite number
of mountains, turquoise lakes and glaciers) is more than we’d anticipated.
One of the many highlights has been a helicopter flight which we took over the
icefields. The boys enjoyed
it so much that Benjamin has decided he’d like a helicopter for his next
birthday!
The tent (which we’ve carried around the world with us) has proven to be an
excellent home and
has kept us dry through a number of thunderstorms. The boys have really loved
camping and the freedom
of being in the middle of the wilderness. We have seen black bears (although
fortunately not in the campground), elk,
coyotes and salmon jumping up a number of waterfalls. We then went to Shuswap
Lake on the way back
to Vancouver which was pleasantly warm and dry considering the cold and wet
(including snow) we
suffered in Banff. Currently back in Vancouver again staying with Sharon –
Jus borrowed Sharon’s
roller blades today for a trip around the sea wall of Stanley Park and didn’t
fall over (although came very
close plenty of times) – even Ben and Elliot had a go too!
So that brings the Long’s big trip (of 2005 anyway) to a close. The last major
event of this one will be our flight home!!!!
Look forward to seeing you all very soon
MJBEA
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© Bunky Chollox FC 2014.
Established 1994. All rights
reserved. |
