Day 97 Ceduna to 1st Scenic Lookout on The Great Australian Bight...Approx 110km from the WA Border.

Ok everybody...chill out.  We are fine, but the Nullarbor is long and arduous and amazingly there is no internet connection from Ceduna to Norseman.  Time for catch ups...Enjoy.

Today is the last day in South Australia.  Tomorrow we return to our home state.  The border is close, but the sun beat us and we had to stop for the night.   It has been an unusual day with Lisa being a bit uptight about schedules and distances.  In the end, we have agreed to take our time, see the sights and finish our holiday as a holiday, and not as a transit from one point to another.

It was 0730 when our day started, and we began in style with a hearty breakfast of bacon and eggs before packing up the van.  We were bound to Ceduna whilst we waited for the visitors centre to open up.  We decided to use our time effectively, and made a quick stop to the newsagent / video store / hardware store / kitchenware store/ toy retailer / sports store for a new journal for Emma.  She is embarking on her third book for the last week of her journey.

 
 

Funnily, this multipurpose store didn't have a toothbrush, so we had to go elsewhere for that.  They had a chaffing dish, taupe paint and a Shimano quick cast reel though.  We took the time to walk out to the end of the jetty where baby cormorant chicks were supposedly following their mothers around in the ocean, but we weren't able to see any chicks, only adults.

 

Once the visitor centre opened, I was able to go and pay for my green fees on the longest golf course in the world.  The Nullarbor Links begins in Ceduna with two holes at the local golf course, and finishes in Kalgoorlie with two holes.  In between there are 14 holes to be played at roadhouses and small towns.  The course was designed and introduced to lower fatalities on the Nullarbor crossing, and since the introduction, the tally has dropped from over 100 deaths per year, to 2 in the past 3.5 years.  Not a bad achievement for the humble game of golf.

Anyhow, Lisa and the kids will have to endure my golfing for the next few days.  Being Saturday today, I won't actually finish the course until Tuesday when I get to Kalgoorlie.  The two holes at the Ceduna Country Club were pretty rank with shoddy fairways, clay surfaces and oiled sand greens.  To say I played crap on these two holes is an understatement, but I never proclaimed to be a great golfer.

From Ceduna it was a short drive to Penong where the third hole is situated.  I did a bit better here, but the green was astro turf, and I played over it twice before I could get the ball to stop on it properly.  Onward we drove to Nullarbor which is the fourth hole on this crazy course.  Lisa was making lunches at the car, and the kids and I walked the kilometre to the tee to play back towards the road house.  Something had definitely died in the car wreck on the way out to the tee, but I wasn't game to look and see what or who it might be.

 

This hole at Nundroo was challenging to say the least.  At over 500 metres long, it was always going to be a tough par 5, but add to the mix that it is mostly up hill, and that the grass is a foot long and littered with large white limestone rocks, finding a golf ball is challenging in itself, let alone predicting which way your ball will bounce before disappearing out of sight. 

 

From the  Nundroo Road House we drove on to The Head Of Bight Whale Conservation Park where we stopped for a look at the Southern Right Whales that are calving in the bay.  The cliffs off to the West were majestic, whilst the Eastern shore was littered with pristine white sand dunes.  In the water, Emma counted 28 Southern Right Whales, of which I estimate 5 or 6 mother and calf pairs were clearly visible.

 

The Southern Right Whale is much different to the Hump Back Whales that I have seen in parts of Western Australia.  They were mostly very serene, and quiet, floating and playing with their young.  There have been 108 different whales spotted in the are recently, so it was very easy to stand watching them frolic in the ocean.  Eventually we had to leave though.

 
 

We reached the Nullarbor Road House at 4pm with the intention of making some more mileage before packing in the drive for the night.  I got my card stamped for the golf, and was warned of the local hazards.  Firstly, the crows steal your golf balls, and secondly you have to play across the runway of the main airfield.  Please be cautious of the low flying aircraft.  This hole at Nullarbor was evil.  There was no fairway to speak of, and the salt bush was riddled with wombat holes that were bigger than Milo tins descending deep underground. 

I lost two golf balls on this hole, quite possibly to wombat holes.  Lisa and Emma had to run back to the car for spare balls so I could play out the hole.  I should be thankful that the crows stayed away, but was still dirty to card a 10 on the hole.  At 538 metres, I don't know if I've ever played a longer golf hole.

 At this stop we came across the BIG Whale, which we have added to the list of Big things that we have seen.  I find it odd though that the BIG whale is actually smaller than it's life size model.

It took me 50 minutes to walk to the tee and play out this hole, so it was near 5pm when we started driving again.   Lisa was really anxious about meeting wombats and kangaroos on the road, so we pulled into the first scenic lookout for The Great Australian Bight.  Hence we are approximately 110km from the border, but better to be safe than sorry.  We were the only people stopped here originally, but there have been two other cars pull in after dark.  We had a hearty and satisfying steak dinner, trying to cook and consume every last vegetable and piece of fruit in the car before we reach the border tomorrow. 

 

All I can think of now, is what is the score from the footy?  No mobile phone, no internet and no radio…Eagles are playing the Pies for third spot on the ladder tonight...POOP!