Deviation from the Itinerary

While in Coral Bay we were evaluating our travels. Our up comping itinerary was 1 night booked at Yardie Homestead, 5 nights at Ned's (only facility was a pit toilet), a long 8.5 hours of driving that didn't include rest stops followed by 3 nights at Dales Campground in Karijini (only pit toilets) and 1 night at Millstream Chitchester (again only pit toilets).

We were worried amount two things - arriving at Karijini well after dark and lasting  2 weeks without doing any laundry. I looked into Cheela Plains Station Stay and noticed - showers, laundry and it was only a 5 hours drive from Exmouth. Unfortunately their online booking indicating they were full. I sent an email in hope but it was confirmed that they were full but suggested to keep checking as things changes quickly. So I did and a site came up.

Turned out to be a very good decision for numerous reason - 

- we had done everything we wanted to do at Ned's although we could have always gone back snorkelling again.

- shorter drive;

- we could stop in Exmouth for coffee while connecting back into the real world;

- our battery would be fully charged;

- Cheela Plains had showers and laundry facilities;

- we could stop in Tom Price for a food shop on the way to Karijini.

The drive was easy. Again no other traffic heading north/east but heaps going south. No wildlife except for the occasional Wedgetail eagle. Andy and I had finished listening to our first audiobook borrowed from the library - Seven Years in Tibet so we began Nancy Wake by Peter FitzSimmons. Ella listened to her music or her favourite (and my least favourite) podcast Rotten Mango while writing in journal. Previously she had been obsessed with solving a rubic cube getting down to less than a minute! Katy on the other hand listened to Alice Miranda, doodled on her whiteboard or in her notebook.

As we drove further inland, the flat coastal plains dotted with termite mounds, gave way to occasional isolated lump of a hill. Filling up at Nanuturra allowed us to grab a bit of lunch. A distance sign at the roadhouse indicated that we were just over halfway to Broome in distance - 1200km to Perth and 1100km to Broome. I suspect these distances were based on the shortest route which we hadn't taken.  As for time left on our West Coast Wander, we had 9 more night left on the road followed by another 6 nights in Broome. 

The road to Paraburdoo was more interesting - the landscape was changing - the red dirt was becoming more intense and deeper in colour. The low lying grassland of the coastal plain was giving way to scattered scrub with the occasional gums outlining the dry river beds.

We arrived at Cheela Plains by late afternoon. Our focus was on washing and showers. Andy then walked up the nearest hill for sunset, while I watched Katy practice her gym routine on the grass. We the converged at the communal fire pit and chatted away to random people. Andy got talking to a group of four (2 couples) semi retirees who had been travelling along a similar itinerary as us.

They had noticed us camping next to them at Wooramel - especially Ella hanging upside down out of her tent trying to open the door of the car before manoeuvring herself out (the ladder was way too easy!) Anyhow they had nicknamed us RedSands and had a chuckle when we yet again drove past them at Cheela Plains!