Hi All

Last time you were with us we'd landed in Perth and didn't know what we were going to do. Rather unsuprisingly as we had a choice between work or travel, guess what we went for?

Yep a 13 day trip from Perth to Broome and back to Perth. We had a ball. Including the driver there was 17 of us and it being the guides last trip to Broome he was determined to make it a good one. The first couple of days consisted of a lot of driving but also stopping at loads of places and doing loads of activities along the way, such as The Pinnacles (strange rock formations), trying our hand at sandboarding, meeting the locals at a wildlife park, doing the z-bend loop at Kalbarri National Park (including rock climbing!), went Shark Fishing (well the guide did - and got one!) and swimming.

Day 3 was Kates birthday (although that will be news to those of you who were on the trip with us!), we got up early so Kate could open her cards and pressies on the beach (very romantic!). We then went and fed the wild dolphins at Monkey Mia - amazing to see them come up so close and into such shallow water. When I say feeding we weren't one of the lucky 5 people that got to drop a fish into their mouths but weren't bothered either. Another couple of stops at deserted beaches before arriving in Coral Bay and the start of the Ningaloo Reef.

Coral Bay is a really quiet little town that as yet seems to have been undiscovered by mass tourism, although the same can be said for much of the West Coast. We had a day on the beach here which was great to chill out. We also went snorkelling and because the reef is only 100m off shore it means you can see loads. The snorkelling at Coral Bay was merely a warm up for the next day when we did 3 dives from Exmouth on the Ningaloo Reef at a place called the Muiron Islands. We hired a camera to take down into the deep with us which was well worth it, considering the amount of stunning coral and marine life that we saw. The second dive was in amongst loads of soft corals and we saw 2 Bull Rays (like those that killed Steve Irwin we later discovered), 3 stingrays, a reef shark, fantastic. We both agreed it was probably the best dive we've done. It was good for us to clock up a 45 minute dive as well after only lasting for 19 on the Barrier Reef!

Next stop was the massive and impressive Karijini National Park. It's a series of gorges and spectacular scenery. We walked/rock climbed/swam/went canyoning through the water and cliffs. Thankfully all the swimming helped to cool us down in the 40+ degree heat. One day we even got up to 42 degrees, high humidity when the air con went in the bus, damn! From then on it broke down a lot more often! In the evening we camped in the bush which I think was more of a shock for some people than us - we're old hands at surviving without toilets and showers don't you know! The park rangers then informed us that they were closing the park and we'd have to leave because of the out of hand bush fires. So we moved to a roadhouse/camp ground/petrol station (hmmm what don't you want to be near when a fire is around!). Thankfully a big storm set in that night, the kind with little rain and lots of thunder, lightning and wind. The lightning set more of the bush across the road ablaze (n.b. Petrol Station!) and then the storm blew all the tents down, we were grateful for the heavy rucksack (finally!) to hold the tent down though. Scary at the time but amusing now but we did end up in permanent (still standing) tents for the night! As far as we know the petrol station didn't blow up, but we did hear from the locals that it was the biggest storm they've seen in 20 years.

Onto Eighty Mile Beach, after stopping in some crappy mining towns (though everyone there is a millionnaire), it was here that we were lucky enough to go and watch giant (up to 2m long) Green Turtles laying their eggs. A truly amazing sight to watch them drag themselves up the beach and then dig for 45mins, lay their eggs (up to 80), fill in the hole and then turn around and go back into the ocean. Incredible. I forgot to mention before that it was Turtle mating season on the Ningaloo Reef, so we were treated to a bonus snorkelling trip.

From Eighty Mile Beach it was up to Broome where the temperature was only 35 but felt like 60 with the humidity and no air conditioned rooms. Needless to say we didn't do much, but we did go on a sunset Camel Ride which was great fun, just look at the pictures.

Most people left the tour in Broome and headed off their separate ways and four of us were left to make the 2500km drive back to Perth in 3 days! We did manage it and there isn't much to say about it, only that one day we did 1250km and managed to get bogged in sand after setting up our tents at 10.30pm and the bottom of a sand dune!

So now, we're back in Perth we have a room in a house which is really nice and comes complete with ensuite and spa bath. And we're off on the job hunt again, so who knows what it'll bring............

Byeeeee

Rich and Kate

Well, I don't really know where to start with this one.... we have just spent the best two weeks ever with my parents. It was sooooo good to see them and everything was just so easy! It's strange how you get used to life being a little bit more difficult than usual while you're travelling and then what a relief it is when it's all easy again with your parents! We started off with an emotional reunion at the airport in Darwin, but after around half an hour it was like we'd never been apart.

We spent three days in Darwin and visited Nitmiluk National Park (Katherine Gorge) on the first day. It was 41 degrees and 85% humidity!! We all struggled with the heat and we wondered how we'd cope over the next couple of weeks. But a swim in the [crocodile infested] Katherine River sorted us out, followed by a very sedate but spectacular cruise down through the gorges. We saw only a baby croc here but still wouldn't mess with him!

The next day we went to Litchfield National Park and saw the eerie Magnetic Termite Mounds, which do look, as they say, like a graveyard. We then had a short walk through the park which led us to a croc-free swimming hole (all limbs are still intact, although Rich got his toes nibbled by the fish!). Again, it was very hot, so the swim in the water was well received.

We then drove over to Kakadu National Park where we spent the next three nights. The first day we went on an Aboriginal cruise down the East Alligator River, where we spotted loads of crocodiles and were told that for every one you see there are forty that you don't! We had a brief stop in Arnhem land, which is a rare event, and learnt about Aboriginal practices that still go on today. We now know what to do if people are naughty.... think spears and calf muscles or achilles heel.... and then decide if you want to be naughty! Having taken a walk through the bush we saw some of the Aboriginal rock art which is estimated to be tens of thousands of years old. We watched the sun go down over the wetlands, which was fantastic. A 2km wetlands walk the next day took us 3 hours to complete because of all the wildlife we saw on the way. Thanks to Irene, Paul and Roy for the binoculars which came in handy (and just in time) for watching the wildlife. We even saw some water buffalo, which was slightly surreal. My parents were in their element with two cameras, a video camera and a pair of binoculars. On the way back to Darwin we stopped at another wetland area and saw even more wildlife. I think my mum was thrilled to see a monitor lizard just wandering by!

We then flew down to Alice Springs, which isn't much of a place. We arrived at the end of a sporting event, so the town was bustling.... and couldn't get any food for toffee! Or accomodation come to think of it. Ended up in the YHA which was low standard and I think that might be the last time my Dad and Rich share a bunk! We drove over to Watarrka National Park (Kings Canyon) which is around 450km away and stayed in permanent tents on a working farm. We did wonder who the heck was snoring so loud until we realised there were camels in the field behind us! We walked around the rim of the canyon, after a lot of debate as to whether we'd manage it. At 33 degrees, 6.4km and with a steep climb at the start, it was worthy of debate. But I think we were all glad that we went for it. The scenery was again spectacular and after the steep start the rest of the walk was fairly easy. Well worth the effort.

Another long drive to Uluru (Ayers Rock) and a bit of disappointment with our planned accomodation at the cattle station. Unfortunately, the pictures on the net of a cabin with a kitchen didn't show the nails holding all the cupboards shut and a sign forbidding cooking in the cabins. We searched for a kitchen to no avail and decided that although we may be able to manage with just a BBQ, we weren't too happy to eat and drink with our hands! Still, we got all our money back and headed to the dreaded large hotel complex that we'd tried to stay away from! Back in bunk beds, it was probably the best thing we did! With fantastic facilities, including a pool and much closer to the things we wanted to see we couldn't have gone wrong. Especially as my Dad could keep his wine levels up and my Mum and I had access to the shops!

We walked around Kata Tjuta (The Olgas) which was quite a challenge for some reason. But they are amazing formations and again very picturesque. The flies were really annoying that day which didn't help. Still, when we met the dreaded tour groups at the end we felt much fitter than we had the whole walk! The next day we walked around the base of Uluru, which is around 10km and really flat (hoorah) so a nice easy one to end with. We saw more rock art and it wasn't until then that we could appreciate the size of the thing.

We tried, on a couple of nights, to see the sunset over Uluru, but mostly it was too cloudy to see the rock change colour, as everyone raves about. But we did get up super early one day to see the sunrise and got an idea of what goes on. Not as romantic as you might imagine when there's so many other people doing the same thing!

On our drive back to Alice Springs I managed to swerve accurately to avoid two monitor lizards (yes the ones we'd been admiring!), unforunately I didn't manage to save a third one which came out of nowhere and is clearly no more. It went the same way as the pigeon that failed to get out the road and insisted on sitting in the grill for a good part of the journey! Ooops. Thankfully Mum managed to stop in time for the camel that decided to wander across the road. Don't they teach the green cross code in camel school?

My Dad took us out for a Chinese on our last night together. Although we were almost the only ones in there, it was absolutely lovely. We even had deep fried ice cream for pudding... the experiences just never end!

So, after an amazing time together my parents flew out to Sydney the next day for the next leg of their trip. There were many more tears at the airport and later on! It's been a rollercoaster of emotions and we now have to get ourselves sorted out for what the heck to do next! Haven't really planned this far yet as it always seemed so far away.

Strangely, not quite sure how, but we're in Perth??!!! We might get a job, we might travel up the west coast for a couple of weeks. Who knows, some guy said that's the beauty of travelling, but I reckon we feel a bit out of sorts at the minute and we need a few days to see what we're going to do. Plus it's raining and cold (22-23! The jumpers are out again!), so we feel super sad!!

Anyway, we'll let you know the plans as soon as we make them. We'll be this end of the country so you know as much as we do for now! Take care people and don't forget to check out the photos.

Love

Kate and Rich xxxxxxxxxxxx