day 4 Fowlers Bay finally
We still haven’t unhitched the trailer! Which means we haven’t really had the opportunity to sit still at camp and soak up where we are. It has been driving and stopping and driving again, which has its own certain charms.
In the morning we packed up quickly and went to the beach for a swim with dolphins. Being remote as we were, we took the opportunity to keep it natural for the swim. The water temp was perfect. I expected it to be frigid but we enjoyed lolling in the shore break. Back up in the car park, we did see another vehicle, people who were inspecting the signs and hammering the posts in to stabilise the signage! Presumably the owners.
We headed into Smoky Bay for a look around, to reinflate the tyres, and also to pick up a coffee. It was pretty good! Then on to Ceduna. Being a Sunday, the shops were quiet, if they were open.
Driving into Cactus, one of Australia's preeminent surfing spots, we passed Lake Macdonnell, a broad shallow expanse of water, with another salt pan on the other side of the road. This is a spectacular lead up to the surf break. The cliffs and cobalt ocean, white sand and grand spaces are breathtaking. The surfers looked to be 500 metres from the beach and there were waves to be caught even in the howling onshore conditions. The campground here is extensive and beautiful. It’s a shame we didn’t plan to stay here for the night.
I started my online tutoring in the dusty Cactus car park. It was strange and fun to talk about Shakespeare and Margaret Atwood sitting with the sun on my back and dust on my keyboard. Once again, Jeremy helped set up a workstation in the shade of the car awning.
We are learning so much. I was counting on there being a Foodland in Fowlers Bay. Unfortunately there’s only a kiosk at the caravan park with basics: milk (one litre costs $5), soft drinks and ice blocks, some frozen veg, postcards, two-minute noodles and so on. I misread the info online a day or two back. We obviously have heaps of food but I could have bought a few more fresh vegies at Ceduna, a three-hour return trip from here. While we are keen to use up all our fresh fruit and veg before heading across the border, with a handful of days in SA to go, I should have used the Ceduna shop-stop more judiciously.
Days in SA may also be determined by our water supply. We have 80 litres in the camper plus 60 in jerries. Now that we are at the start of the Nullabor, it is unlikely we’ll be able to source water until Kalgoorlie, around 1200 km away.
We drove through salt and clay pans to Mexican Hat campground. Once again, we were alone. The solitude and seclusion are beautiful. The silence, the stillness, the space to breathe.
Fowlers Bay sits beside an extensive dune system which is encroaching on the tiny township. There is movement of the sand into the village, with streets having disappeared over the past decades. In the surrounding low-lying, windswept heath that covers the sandy landscape, there is simple beauty in the muted greens and pinks of the shrubs, surviving in a harsh environment with an average annual rainfall of 300mm. The buildings are reminiscent of other SA towns such as Port Gibbon: low profile buildings, lots of corrugated iron, shacks with the odd historic building. For more info check out this interesting ABC story: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-09-22/fowlers-bay-in-south-australia-fights-encroaching-sand-dunes/100440452
Another beautiful place to explore.
Dinner: Sri Lankan spiced chicken thigh fillets on the bbq, a white curry powder from Lankan Filling Station. Delicious.
Total kilometres so far: 2294 km
