Day 4 – Kimba to Ceduna – 440km

Sitting around the map last night, we decided on a detour to Streaky Bay.

So after Wudinna we head towards the coast and hit the Flinders Highway at Port Kennny. A little detour off the highway to check out Murphy’s Haystacks (apparently, that’s what they looked like from the road).

The sign on the highway to Murphy’s Haystacks also pointed to a seal colony at Point Labatt so we followed the road a further 40 or so kilometres down a dirt road to Point Labatt. There we found about 40 seals lazing on the rocks below. Luckily, dad had a pair of binoculars stashed under the seat for just such an occasion occasion.

From here we followed the coast to Streaky Bay, a lovely little seaside village, and we wandered to the end of the jetty.

Oh and they have a nice bakery in the main street, which restored our faith in pies after a pretty ordinary pie in Renmark two days earlier.

This leg has been a bit of a surprise. There are crops right up to the coastline. Certainly not something we are used to on the East Coast. It’s a bit hard to see in this photo, but they are harvesting this wheat crop, and you can see the sea just on the otherside.!

When we hit Ceduna we did a quick run around, and it looked like we were going to have to pull the tent out … but after calling into a number of places I think we found the last room in town … and the prices reflected that as well.

Once we settled into our room we went exploring and found ourselves looking back at Ceduna from across the bay from Deniel Bay – this whole area was first discovered by Europeans in 1627 by Dutcman Francois Thyssen.

And look … another jetty.

Last night dad was exhausted, the last few days have really taken it out of him. So we are planning to take a day off in Ceduna.

Not sure what we’ll do here.  Coffee and read a book maybe.

And as the sun was setting on Ceduna, we decided this jetty could wait until tomorrow.

Accommodation – motel – $185

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Day 5 – Rest day Ceduna

Today was pretty cruisey. We did some washing, sat around drinking coffee, brought some supplies, played some Sequence, had a rest, and checked out the local area.

Accommodation – motel – $185

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Day 6 – Ceduna to Eucla WA – 560km

Up early and on the road again today with the last push to Western Australia and our final destination, Eucla Western Australia.

Our first stop of the day was the Pink Lake of Lake McDonnell, but it didn’t look very pink to us at all, but it was also very overcast, so we might try again on the way back.

Then the windmills at Penong, such a vast array of different windmills, small to huge, and so many different designs. We wondered whether people still made/bought windmills with solar/batteries being able to run electric pumps.

Today had it all… well everything but very warm. We went through a crazy storm with huge cracks of lightning, and rain so heavy we had to slow as the wipers couldn’t keep up. And then it was really windy (apparently gusts over 70km/h) going across the road.

This is why we are out here … the Nullarbor – the treeless plains.

And it didn’t disappoint. I love it out here, the vastness of the countryside, seeing all the way to the horizon, and then the amazing coastline of the Bight coming up to meet you.  One minute you feel in the middle of the country, and the next, you’re on the coast.  Weird. But amazing.!

The Head of the Bight centre is worth calling into especially if its May to October to see the whales.

But my favourite place is the Bunda cliffs west of the Nullarbor roadhouse and it was great to share this spot with dad. 

First viewing area

Second viewing area

Then onto the border and fill the car up with gold plated diesel ($2.89/ltr) and find some accommodation at Eucla.

Eucla was established in 1877 as a manual repeater station for the overland telegraph.

The remains of the old telegraph station are still there and taken over by the dunes. Apparently, there was a whole town here that was swallowed by sand.

Accommodation – motel – $200

Tomorrow, we start heading back east.

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Out on these open highways there are a lot of big trucks. And while the Eyre highway is a single lane highway, it isn’t too hard to overtake with big long straights that you can see a long way … and with a maximum length of road trains up to 53.5m long, you need a lot of space.

Following a conversation a few weeks ago about trucks I’ve been taking notice of the main configuration of trucks out on the Eyre Highway.

When I think of road trains, I typically think of a truck with three full sized trailers (A-triple) using converter dollys. After looking it up – the Australian Heavy Vehicle Regulator’s (AHVR) definition of a road train is a “vehicle combinations consisting of a
prime mover towing at least two trailers (and is not a
B-double)”. Therefore, any combination bigger than a B-double is a road train.

Based on no empirical data at all and only relying on my gut feel over the last few days … the most common configuration is B-triple by a long way, then the A-double, then the AB-triple.  To date, I have only seen one A-triple on the trip.

There are still a few single trailer trucks, but out here they are in the minority and generally carrying wide loads.

Truck configuration guide —

‘A’ configuration is where each trailer is set up as a ‘dog trailer’ (ie wheels front and back where the front wheels can pivot) with a drawbar coupling. To convert a standard trailer to a dog trailer, they use a converter dolly; essentially a fifth-wheel hitch mounted on a set of axles with a drawbar.

‘B’ configuration is where the first trailer includes a fifth-wheel coupling at the back over the axles (the same as the prime mover), for the next trailer to attach to. These come in B-double (short trailer and a long trailer), B-triple (two short trailers and a long trailer), B-quad (three short trailers and a medium trailer).

‘AB’ configuration uses a mixture of trailers and couplings.