Yalgoo to Geraldton 12/5/14-14/5/14

Heading west again on the way to our mate Dave Sharps place in Dongarra.

Stopped for lunch in Sandstone and went to have a look at "London Bridge" which are sandstone archways that have formed over or weathered over thousands of years. Around a hundred years ago they used to be able to take a horse and buggy over the archway but now it is not safe to walk over. 

Next stop Yalgoo which is another ghost town with old relects laying around. 

Geraldton is a large town right on the ocean and they have a very special memorial to HMAS Sydney that was sunk by the German battleship Kormoran on the 19th November 1941 Second with the loss of her 645 crew. The huge dome made so stainless steel has 645 seagulls representing the 645 lives that were lost.

Dongarra. We arrived a Dave Sharps place on the 15th of May and set up camp around the back of his house. What a magnificent place Dave and Julie have built here over looking the ocean. Set on 100 acres the house is made of rammed earth and it is huge. Dave has also built a slaughter house ( remember he once was a butcher) and a blacksmith shop filled with usable tools and equipment from yesteryear and it even has a working forge with bellows. Dave had several projects he needed a hand with so the first one was to get the old 1924 Dodge running that had been sitting in his shed for a number of years. That one was ticked off the list now time to go and check the crap pots and maybe catch a fish. Bloody hell Min caught a 32 lb Dhufish it was a bloody monster and one of the biggest caught in Dongarra for a long time so she definitely has bragging rights with that one for quite some time. We spent an enjoyable 16 days with our old mate and had many an enjoyable night yarning over a drink or two. I managed to complete the majority of projects assigned to me so Dave was going to start a project list for our next trip. We headed off with our freezer filled with crayfish and Dhufish so we were very happy also Dave chucked in so lamb roasts and chops from his butchery.

Northern Goldfields 10th May

Kalgoorlie to Lleninster

After leaving Kalgoorlie we traveled north on the Goldfield Highway to Niagara Dam, great camp just off the highway. Niagara Dam was constructed by the railways in 1897-98 to provide water for the steam locomotive. For the last 100 years this little oasis has been a great camping and swimming.now only

used by the grey nomads to chill out.

Next stop 

KOOKYNIE 

Location 

70kms NE of Menzies and 67kms S of Leonora

Gold was First discovered here by propectors in 1895. In 1907 it could boast; A population of 3,500,11 hotels and the first public swimming pool on the Goldfields due to the mine having to be pumped out in 1902 at the rate of 500,000 gallons a day, remembering they were down 1900 feet. A brewery and 2 cordial and soft drink factories as well as many other business houses, churches and 7 brass bands graced this booming mining town. Alas because of the increasing dewatering problem the mine closed down which is a rare occurrence having too much water in the outback. 

Kookynie, is a living ghost town. There are only a few remaining buildings left and the pub off course!

Niagara dam

Kookynie pub,still in business only opens @ 12.00 pm

Kalgoorlie

Ss

Kalgoorlie 

Population 32,000

Max temperature 25

Min temperature 11

Kalgoorlie is pure gold

We arrived at Kalgoorlie 7th May. First stop a good flat white coffee. Kalgoorlie is a great RV friendly town. Behind Coles there is a great parking area for motorhomes and Caravans with a toilet dump and fresh drinking water easily accessible another block up the road. We stocked up on fruit and veggies then headed off for the free camp on the outskirts off town.nwe found a nice level spot and set uo camp. During the night it poured with rain and when we opened our door in the morning we were surrounded with water but it sooned drained away once the rain stopped.

The next day we headed back into town. First stop information centre to find out about the towns history. The ultimate melting pot of history, culture,architecture,fun and adventure as the city traces it origins to one of the most significant gold discoveries in Australia made by Paddy Hannan. What followed was classic 'gold Fever' with thousand of hopefuls steaming to the goldfields in search of their fortune. A  leisurely stroll down Hannan Main Street serves as a rich reminder of this golden era with many of thr original building still standing  and totally functional  after more than 100 years.

Attraction such as the Museum of the goldfields and the world renowned Super Pit and Hannans North Mine carry vivid reminders of early goldfield life. The super pit provides a breathtaking larger than life experience of one of today's biggest working open cast mines in the Southern Hemisphere.

Gold was discovered in Southern cross in 1887. Five years later, news of a rush at Mt Youle resulted in three Irish prospectors ,Paddy Hannan,Thomas Flanagan and Daniel Shea, setting off from Coolgardie in June 1893 to explore the area to the east. Discovery of gold deposits located some 5kms to the south led to the discovery of the word famous 'Golden Mile' the richest square mile of gold anywhere in the world. A chronic Water shortage was finally relieved in 1903  through the genius of the States Chief Engineer C.Y. O'Conner. An engineering marvel in the form of a water pipe line dug and laid by hand totally 563 kilometres from Mundaring Weir in Perth into the goldfields in Kalgoorlie. Sorry folks that's all from us till next stop. Cheers Wassa & Min

Part of Kalgoorlie town