Up and about early, we were on the road by about 7.30am. As we turned left out of the stunning Cape Keraudren onto the Great Northern Highway, the reality of 460 km of white line fever ahead hit us hard.
It was difficult to get motivated. The road remained straight, save the occasional change in elevation by a foot or two, and the even less occasional bend to match the lay of the land.
After a couple of hours we dropped in to the Sandfly Road House (actually it’s the Sandfire Roadhouse but Sandfly sounds better) to find a line of at least 9 vehicles wanting for fuel. Deciding that our need was entirely a want, we kept going, hoping Puma would continue her diesel frugality.
We passed the road on the right that almost exactly 20 years ago we had taken from Alice Springs across to the WA coast. It was then an un-maintained 4×4 track that was in places a real challenge to conquer. Today it is a mining road that is kept smoother than the bitumen highway.
Further north we noticed the distinct absence of mining trucks. We had obviously passed above the iron ore belt into the caravan belt. Almost every vehicle on the road was towing some sort of accommodation. Camper trailers of all shapes and sizes, vans of ridiculous proportions, and of course a few loose cannons driving big American utes towing their egos.
As the kilometres passed, Puma hummed along. With the day seeming to never end, Peter loosened the reigns and the old beast moved from piss off speed (the speed all caravaners sit on to deliberately piss off everyone else) to cruising on the speed limit. To hell with fuel economy on this run!
In due course we arrived in good time at the Roebuck Roadhouse. This place is a business case study if ever there was one. Situated at the top end of the Great Northern Highway where it intersects with the other highway, it is a must stop for almost every vehicle in the north west. Employing 7531 back packers, in the bar alone, it serves great food at good prices and sets it fuel price at just a bit higher than Broome such that you can’t be bothered travelling the extra 39 km into to town to fill up. With all of this, it is simply a side business to the real money maker, being Roebuck Plains Station.
To top of the Roebuck experience at it’s entrance is one of the best road safety signs we have ever seen. It was the only pic we took today, but it is a cracker. The behavioural scientists would get all hot and sweaty over it, for it offers incentive to act, clear direct language and a genuine road safety message in a form that is cost effective. Marvellous!!
We had booked into a van park 20 minutes out of Broome as a last-ditch attempt to get accommodation. We had been ringing for over a week and could not get call backs from anywhere. Realising how far out of town it was, we headed into the Broome Caravan Park on speck to see if they had a spot. In a turn of good luck they had one spot left in the over flow section just for us. As its turns out, the overflow was on beautiful green grass whereas the supposedly good spots were on gravel, crammed amongst the common folk!! We were sitting pretty.
We now look forward to two days of rest. Peter will try to keep G out of the pearl shops so he has enough money to buy fuel on the way home.