Day 44 Googs Track

Weather looks good here but it wasn’t.

It was still very blustery and cold

Neither of us slept very well because of the howling wind and the van was shaking from the force of the gusts of wind

When I got out of the van in the morning I found that part of the roads behind the park had been closed off for the start of the Perth to Sydney Rally, then I saw some of the cars go past. I didn’t manage to get any good shots through the fencing though

The Foreshore Caravan Park where we were staying wasn’t too bad. It was the typical all lined up in rows next to each other set up and this one was, as it is named, on the foreshore which would have been nice being near the ocean 

But too windy and cold too enjoy it.

The park itself was excellent with good amenities, camp kitchen etc and a good laundry that we utilised to catch up with our washing. 

We have tended to stay in van parks whilst in towns to make the most of spending the time in the towns 

However, today we were heading out of town. For this we needed to utilise the pass that I had obtained the day before. 

We had decided that we would go out on the Googs Track as far as Lake Googs. This was one of the reasons why we stayed in a caravan park so that we could leave the van behind

We refuelled at one of the self service fuel stations in town

We called in at the Oyster Shack on our way out. We weren’t sure if we would be back in time to call in on our way back before they closed

We shared a dozen oysters - our morning tea!!!!

Out on the Eyre Highway west



Across the rail line

Then turning off at the Kalanbi rd. There were no signs there saying that that was the way to the Googs track but we had checked it all out the day before so we knew where we were going 



We stopped at these signs





The information on here reminded us that there was no signal when out on the track and that we should let a responsible person know that we were going out on the track so we contacted all three of our children to let them know





Not long after that we reached the gravel road





Then this sign indicating that we had reached the Googs Track

And the road suddenly turned into a narrow track



With pools of water starting to appear on the track











Not far along the way we pulled over to let some air out of the tyres



Then we came to the gated entrance to the conservation Park where there was an information board telling the story of the origins of the Googs Track







Threatening skies but we continued on



Took lots of photos and video of our journey along the track







This gate sign was letting us know that we were reaching the dog proof fence

Where we had to make sure we closed to the gate





A very impressive structurally sound dog proof fence



More information here about the track







We encountered lots of pools of water on the track most of them had little side tracks around them but this one in particular didn’t and it was quite deep

Took lots of photos of our journey along the track With the surrounding countryside changing from lots of high bushes to  trees to heathland









And of course high dunes that we could not see over the top of









When at the top of the dunes we could see the track way ahead









This was a side track as part of a loop to a rock pool

Eventually after a couple of hours driving we came to this fork in the track

Just down the road from this fork was an incredible memorial for the family



With places set aside for other members of the family still living















The sign mentioned a money tree so we checked and yes there was a tree with money in it so Bill decided he would put his contribution into the tree

At this point we came to the junction where the Googs track continues on to Mount Finke which I was quite interested in seeing where it went by just going a little way along to see if it was any different to the track that we had been on but there really wasn’t enough time

Then we arrived at the campsites 

And the lake





Where we pulled up beside the lake

I went to use the amenities believe it or not yes there was a drop toilet there and in there was a visitors book so I signed it and left a message





We sat at the one table that was overlooking the lake and ate our wraps that I had made that morning



We then went down to the lake and explored















Took lots of selfie‘s







On the way back to the car we noticed that the numberplate had been wedged forward from the deep hole that we went in and was just hanging in there

We didn’t hang around long at the lake as we needed to get back as it had taken us more than two hours to get there we weren’t sure how long it would take us to get back



According to the map this was the track to the landing strip - wonder when that was last used 

Took a few more photos on the way back

Highlighting some of the deep puddles

There are a few random photos here taken towards the bushes as we spotted a flock of green budgies flying past

Hopefully one of the photos shows the budgies

























Before long we were back at the gate this photo taken through the windscreen where mud has splashed over it

Before long we were back on the road on the highway 

Going back through the quarantine checkpoint where the girl there recognised us from the twice that we have been out and back, so we had a bit of a chat with her. She said she had never been out on the track and was impressed that we had and said she would do it one-day

We got back along the track a lot faster than we went out as obviously we were familiar with the way and the road

And we were back at the oyster shack in time to have a complete dozen of Japanese oysters washed down with some bubbles to celebrate 

And a fish and salad meal





This is our HEMA map tracking that went a bit weird when we got to the lake as it didn’t seem to be able to find a locator

Would you believe I even managed to get some sort of a sunset photo of the sun over the ocean before it disappeared



And a photo of the pier




Caught up on some emails and accounting and made a donation for Michael‘s cause before going to bed