One more night with Frenchie

OUR legs stuck to the seats on our drive to Exmouth.  Not because of our dedication to get there but we were dripping with sweat.  We shut the curtains only leaving enough gap at the front to see.  We soaked our shirts with water however it only relieved us for a few minutes.
I can't remember the name of the roadhouse but we had to stay there for an hour or so to cool Applejack's ass.  Again Oliver kindly offered to drive the next stretch but I told him he should just relax in the back.  Meany yeah?   Ha

It was dark by the time we reached the turn-off and we still had over 150km to go.  I never drove at night.  I was always happy to stop mid afternoon and I'm not sure why I was so determined to get there but I'm sure I had a good reason at the time?
I was really tired and ended up hitting a kangaroo and a bird so when I saw a homestead sign I sighed with relief.  I am so disappointed I didn't write down the name of the place because it was cute little spot.  It was on the left-hand side only a couple of dollars to park on someones cattle property.  They had a camp kitchen and a camp fire.  They told us to park wherever we wanted and with no one else around we had front row seats!

It was Oliver's night to cook so Kristy and I played with the sheep while he cooked up some burritos.  Good man!  OK so maybe I would miss this.  Being our last night with Oliver we let him show us his magic tricks by the fire and listened to his stories.  After all he was meeting his new friends the next day.
It was such a nice change of scenery staying in  the bush again after all the beach.  It also reminded me of my home in Queensland where my parents still live.  The air smelt different and waking up to the sound of motorbikes, Utes and men working in the shed was nice.
We packed up, tooted Apple's horn and got back on track to Exmouth.  Home of the whale sharks.
When we finally got there I said to Oliver "do you know where your friends are"?
"No I can't reach them but I think they will be at the beach".
If you have ever been here you will also know there are many beaches and all off beaten tracks.
I gave Kristy the "what do the hell do we do with him look".

If you like...I drive?

Our new crew member in the middle...Oliver

THE drive from Port Headland to Exmouth was a long drive in the sense of kilometres.  I wanted to do the whole stint so I could spend more time in the area however at the end of the day it depended on how Applejack handled the weather. 
He is a speedy kombi but if I let him pin his ears back in that heat a fire could start in his backside.  Not a risk I wanted to take. 
Every morning as strange as it sounds, Kristy and I would talk or sing to Apple and encourage him to keep up the great motoring.  It just came naturally to us. 
One thought that went through my mind when we felt followed to 80 Mile Beach was..."Please Apple...please get us to safety".
For those who have a kombi might be able to relate to the characterising of a kombi.
Maybe it's just me.  Maybe I spent too long on the road by myself with Applejack but he's my man!  The big ray of sunshine that I step into everyday and he makes me feel great.  Sad?  Ha

Oh enough about my obsession with Apple, lets get back to the road around Oz.
Oliver was given the back seat with his single backpack and we were South bound.  Most of the time he just read or listened to his ipod then after fuel stops he'd lean forward and have a chat.  He seemed easy to travel with.  Being the lovely girls we are we offered to put his French music on and we even managed to play a few rounds of cards with the esky being our table. 
Yes I am multi-tasked.  Drive and play cards, what a woman! 
As the time went on Oliver leant forward and asked "Do you do all the driving Alyce?"
"Yeah I love it" I said.
"Well if you like I drive" he said.
Hmm I thought to myself.  Would I really like to let a stranger who crashed his van into a cow drive my Applejack?
"Nah I'm good thanks."
I do recall him saying on that day in Broome, "It's my dream to drive and travel in a kombi."
I'm sorry I only let you fulfil half your dream Oliver.

Frenchie

THE camping grounds at 80 Mile Beach consisted of red dirt and a few shady trees.  As mentioned earlier this doesn't matter over there as the beaches are so lovely.  One long stretch of sand and water for as far as the eye can see. 
Kristy wasn't feeling well with her ankle so she took refuge in Applejack but I took a XXXX Summer in my favourite stubby cooler and relaxed on the sand.  I remember the sunset clearly.  For those of you who haven't been to Western Australia or the Northern Territory I will do my best to describe its beauty.  The heat of the day instantly drops and your body relaxes completely.  The sky can fill with colours of orange, red, pink and yellow.  I am sure everyone has seen a sunset before but these really are unique.  The sky looks soft and your mind and body absorbs every little bit of the moment.  The sand feels softer, the water feels cleaner and everything around you brings a smile. 
You don't say "nice sunset" and continue what you're doing.  You simply just stop.

Anyway we 'crashed' early and planned our next drive.  I knew friends of friends in Port Headland so I thought about dropping in and checking out the area which is very well known for mining.  We didn't have much that we really wanted to see from Port Headland until Exmouth so we were keen to get moving further down the West Coast.
I made some calls and decided to stay the night with friends in Port Headland.  It was drab driving into town after being at so many little parks and beaches.  I realised how much I had enjoyed not being in a mining environment. 
We found the nicest spot that we could with a bit of green grass and shade to rest until our barbecue dinner.  Needing to stock up on food before travelling into further remote coastal areas we spent a little time in air-conditioned shops.  We were in deep concentration over which water to buy when we hear "elloow".  Remember my post about Broome when I wrote we never thought we'd see that guy again who was checking out Applejack?  Well....we did! 
We both looked up and saw a head full of dreadlocks on a French guy called...you guessed it, Oliver!  He told us how he crashed his van in the middle of the night, after hitting a cow.  He had to grab a few belongings, leave the rest with his van and hitch a ride to town.
We took pitty on him but offering him a lift didn't even enter my mind to be honest.  I know how mean am I!  I knew he had other travellers close and I just presumed he was waiting in town for them.  He asked where we were heading next and turns out he wanted to get to the same place.  "Hmm" he said.  "Maybe I come with you?"
I looked at Kristy and she did the I don't care shrug and I thought well our next stop is Exmouth so why not.  I felt sorry for the guy.  Port Headland wasn't a place for a traveller to be stranded in.
We exchanged numbers and said we'd let him know when we knew what our plans were.  We went back to the park and there he was again.  Apparently he could see Applejack from the Caravan Park he was staying at.  OK, so maybe dad was right.  "People will always be able to find the big yellow kombi" he'd say.

Oliver wasn't strange.  He didn't make us feel threatened in anyway and was nice to chat to so we weren't worried about giving him a lift.  It could be fun to have more company until Exmouth.  It's not far I thought happily. 
We told him we'd pick him up early in the morning and deliver him to Exmouth where he'd find the rest of his friends again.  Or would he?

I could sit and look at this forever

Plan of ATTACK

80 Mile Beach.  Another breath taking beach on the west coast.

OUR destination when we left Broome was 80 Mile Beach which was only 350km down the road.  Not in any hurry again, I got my tyres checked and grabbed a cuppa at the coffee van on the way out.  You will not believe who was there.  Yes...McDreamy was also grabbing a coffee, waiting to send us off.  ha Kristy and I have that lasting impression on people.  (sorry a personal joke for Kristy)

We were on the road again and excited for the next beach.  I'm really glad we soaked up so much sand and ocean on this trip because we have missed it in Victoria.  Yes the beaches down here are lovely but damn they're cold!
Kristy was back in the swing of things, telling Applejack what to play for us and I was back behind the wheel.  All of a sudden a 4wd came up behind us.  Probably the second vehicle we had seen that day.  It felt odd to me because he wasn't over-taking.  When you're that far out and a vehicle quickly catches you but doesn't pass, it's unusual.  I didn't say anything to Kristy.  Finally he passed but slowly and just stared in on his way.  Not a smile or a wave was exchanged.  He just stared.
We were travelling on no more then 80km per hour so we lost sight of him until we turned the corner...His vehicle was parked on the side of the road.  I instantly had a wave of sickness fill my body as he put on his blinker and pulled out behind us again. 
I saw Kristy reach for her phone which in itself was odd as she NEVER had reception on her Vodaphone.  Again no words were said.  He sat behind us and ideas on self defence filled my head.  Kristy was on crutches so I thought he might go for her first.  Sounds horrible but this was going to work in my favour because I would have a chance to strike him down with my little axe.  The other plan was to drive onto the opposite side of the road the minute we saw an oncoming vehicle and Apple would beep his mighty lil horn uncontrollably. 
As I wrote earlier our next stop was about 350km which didn't seem far but in this situation it was a horrible feeling.  I didn't want to say anything to Kristy incase she got scared.  I felt like I had to stay calm and keep her safe.  I'm not a tough person but I really felt like I was going to have to fight hard! ha
I would speed up and he'd speed up.  I slowed down and he slowed down.  It was making me really sick and not a car was to be seen.  All of a sudden three 4wd's came up behind us and overtook quickly, leaving us alone with him again.  He went to the other side of the road and passed slowly again, looking in as before but this time with a hat and sunglasses on.  Kristy broke out nervously "oh my god Alyce, he's freaking me out!"
"Me too mate" I said and slowed Apple right down. 
"What do we do!" she said. 
I just replied "I don't know but we've got an axe in the back".
She slightly laughed and we lost sight of him again.  It was honestly the worst drive I had ever experienced.  I haven't felt that fear that I can recall.  As I read over what I've wrote it sounds as though this all happened quickly in but it didn't.  He followed us for a long time and my body was in defence mode big time!
The feeling didn't go away until we saw the 80 Mile turn-off however when we saw the badly corrugated road and 6km sign it all came back.  Every truck rest and corner we approached made us scared to think we might see his vehicle. 
Finally we saw caravans set up at the park and we had found safety at last!  I told Kristy of my plan to defend ourselves and she filled me in on her text saved on her phone to her dad.  It had the guys number plates and where we were.  Between the two of us we had the situation covered and both of our instincts said at the time "THIS MAN IS NOT RIGHT".

We will never know what that man was thinking and although it is a horrible thought a little part of me is intrigued to know.  We aren't scaredy cats.  If we were we wouldn't have taken on the trip around Australia and I certainly wouldn't have ventured into it alone but I truly believe something wasn't right that day but I am thankful nothing happened. We still talk about it to this day and hope that no one else ever came across him.  I never told my family until the trip was over.  My dad was already in a panic that my van would attract crazy people and I wouldn't be missed in a big yellow kombi so I only told him when I returned to Queensland safely.  ha


The beer tasted soo good over there!



A whole lot of open road out there!



The parks are simple but the scenery and land surrounding....won't find better!



We said "Goodbye" McDreamy!

Such beauty!

EACH morning in Broome was a slow start.  Between the heat and the patient we were happy to slow down for awhile.  We had a bit of shopping to do, but a trip the shops and a visit to the pharmacy landed us back in the waiting room of McDreamy's hospital.
Darling Kristy had a lil rash the same foot as her sprained ankle.  I shouldn't laugh but it was pretty damn funny until the pharmacy sent her straight to the hospital.  We thought it might just be best to amputate it the way she was going.  We sat for hours in the waiting room after getting blood tests.  Trying not to giggle like school girls we went into Dr McDreamy's office for the results.  Remember we were living out of a van, mostly showering and walking around barefoot so we were looking really classy. 
First thing he said was "well your blood results have come back negative to (something along the lines of) cancer."  Um thank god for that!  We had no idea that was even a possibility!  However she did have some fungus.  Now I could laugh again and when I had finished paying her out the Dr said something along the lines of "your feet aren't much better".  OK so my feet were a little black but steady on Mr!  Get back to your patient thank you very much!

Finally out of that bloody hospital for good we made the call to Gregg and caught up for a 4wd'ing trip, BBQ and a night listening to Xavier Rudd on the lawn of a resort.  Was feeling like our timing for where we were driving to on certain days, was falling into place just nicely.
It was really sad saying goodbye to Gregg again but it was once again time for us to leave town.  As Dr Suess would say "Oh the places you'll go".

Everyday was just as lovely as the previous.  We couldn't get enough of this sunset.

Applejack loved being able to join us on the beach instead of the parking lot

Sore much?

Me, Gregg and Kristy enjoying a drink at Xavier Rudds concert

Whoa slow down girl...

Cable Beach Therapy



Applejack thought our misfortune the night before was pretty funny...(fish eye shot)

 We woke up with the bottom of our sheets wet from melted ice and sand was exfoliating our legs.  We knew what we had to do.  Yes see McDreamy.  Poor Kristy.  We shoved everything into Apple and distracted by the nights events we realised half-way to the hospital that Applejack's top was still popped.  Embarrassing much!  We were off to a shifty start. 
More hours were spent in the waiting room but as you will find out they weren't our last.

Kristy was given x-rays and crutches and it was time to say goodbye to McDreamy and hit the markets.  A little tiring for the patient we decided to look for comfort on the famous Cable Beach.  I have heard about it from travellers and through songs but you can't really grasp the beauty until you step on it. 

With Kristy on crutches the sand was making her day tough so we sprawled out on the grass and laughed a little more over the nights events.  The patient was on struggle street.  She went pale, felt sick and I quickly splashed water her way as she was on the verge of fainting.  Under a palm she lay while I skipped to the sand.  The sun was setting and oh so beautiful so grabbed Apple for a spin on the beach.  Seems my little ray of sunshine was making new friends.  He was surrounded by French men peeking through his windows.  "Back off boys he's ours."
The last guy we shooed off was Oliver.  We didn't think we would ever see this man again.  Boy were we wrong.  You'll have to wait and keep reading to find out how he popped his dreadlocks into our adventure again. 
One friend we did want to see again however was Gregg from my stay at Daly Rivers in the Northern Territory.  On the blower we got and organised to catch up the next day.  This was the longest stay we had in one place but as the couple beside us said "it's hard to leave Broome".

OUCH!!

Where were we?  Agh that's right...Kristy woke up with crutches! 
I am sorry for this gap between posts.  Between moving and working I had to put this little blog of travelling in a Kombi to the side.  However I am back and hope to continue the laughs and bring a little inspiration to travel and explore our mighty country if you haven't already.

I know you are keen to just get to the point of what we got up to that night in Broome, so here it is. 
We woke up in our sweet Applejack.  Flat on our backs, hot and Kristy moaned and put her hands on her head and said "oh man". 
You see the night before we treated ourselves to a night out.  Away from the usual beer at the campsite with fellow travellers or just alone listening to music.  No not here.  We were in Broome and it was pulling us out damn it!
The beer garden was quiet and on the big screen $500 was flashing.  We gave each other a look but Kristy wasn't budging.  She wanted the money but not the stage.  I would also like to take this opportunity to let you all know that she is really good at convincing me to do random and usually embarrassing things because she gets a massive kick out of it.  Yes followers...Kristy likes a good laugh and that is one of the many reasons why I love her.  Anyway I on the other hand wasn't ruling out the stage.  Never been too shy, no one knew me and I also wanted the money.  I knew my chances were slim but "you gotta be in it to win it right"?
I was the first to register and was hoping to be the last as I would just be handed the money stage free. 
A few drinks later and we were being called over the loud speaker.  I was nervous but I knew I would regret not giving it a go so I headed back stage.  While drinking I thought about my talents and to be honest juggling was the only thing I could think of.  Sad?  I convinced the bar to hand over their lemons.  I was going to do it my style...nothing too serious.
Getting on stage was a bit of a blur to me.  No not drunk just shaking like a dog at the beach but I knew Kristy was somewhere in the crowed supporting me and ready to capture the moment.  The beer garden had filled up quickly which I was oblivious to while mingling.  It was too late to back out.  I was on stage, lights were on and this was definately a Canon moment.
I juggled my lil heart out to the music hoping not to get kicked off stage.  I was looking for Kristy and listen to her screams while keeping the balls in the air.  There was four of us left now and then three but the English girl took the stage and it was over.  I had my adrenaline rush for the night and I was happy even without the money but as I walked off I said to the Aboriginal girl next to me "well that was embarrassing".  She said "nah girl I dunno you, you dunno me, it's alright". 
She was right it was hilarious and I couldn't wait to find Kristy.
Everyone had dispersed and the pub was back chatting.  Kristy on the other-hand was in tears, dragging herself to the nearest stable object to hold on to.  She had fallen down a step trying to get to the stage and sprained her ankle.  She was in pain! 
With great difficulty and no help from the security, to the hospital we went and in the wheelchair Kristy sat.  She moaned with pain and I was still checking the camera, still shocked there was no footage.  Then all of a sudden we thought we were on an episode of Greys Anatomy and McDreamy was heading towards us.  Yes I was relieved to know Kristy was in good hands. 
A few hours later we left with instructions to return early morning to see the Doc again.  "Oh man do we have to." ha