This Adventurous Age

Adventures travelling and working around Australia.

Category Archives: 2004 Travels


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2004 Travels June 23

WEDNESDAY 23 JUNE   PERTH TO MULLEWA   550kms

We managed an early departure from Perth. I was feeling better than yesterday.

Returned north on the Brand Highway to Geraldton, stopping only for a couple of coffee breaks, and to eat our lunch in a roadside parking area. I think we both wanted to keep going, just to reassure ourselves that we were actually on  the way again!

Friend M phoned just as we were entering Geraldton, to check if our prior arrangements, to meet up, were still ok. Back before we left Melbourne, we had arranged to meet up with her in the coming mid-year school holidays and take her touring in the Pilbara. She had bought herself a mobile phone, so that should facilitate our communications.

After John and I discussed it a bit, I phoned her back to see if she would prefer to meet us in Exmouth, rather than Karratha, now that we were so far south of where we’d planned to be. But the hire car tour she had organized with a friend was too far advanced to change now.

We refuelled in Geraldton. $1.09cpl.

John decided we would continue on to Mullewa. Maybe, once past Geraldton, we would start to think we were making progress?

We had driven that way in 1993, on our way to try metal detecting (unsuccessfully) around Yalgoo. So it was not new country to us, but pleasant to travel through.

Went into the council run Mullewa Caravan Park. $16 a night. The park was fine for an overnight stop – the amenities were good, and clean. We did not need to unhitch.

Resize of 06-24-2004 01 Mullewa camp.JPG

There was a noticeable aboriginal presence in the township.

I was definitely recovering well from the cold.

Resize of 06-24-2004 02 Mullewa camp morning

Resize of 06-23-2004 to mullewa


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2004 Travels June 22

TUESDAY 22 JUNE     PERTH

I felt a bit better today, at least in the morning.

We had to go back to the specialist in South Perth for test results and verdict.

The traffic seemed very heavy on the freeway. Maybe it just felt that way because of the heavy rain?

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Perth in the rain

The doctor did not have the blood tests results back yet, but felt it was probably Sjoengrens. John was to get liquid tears for dry eyes and Biotene stuff to counteract a dry mouth – neither of which he had mentioned having! The specialist would send the results on to our doctor, but said there was nothing more he could do.

The good news was that he saw no reason why we could not continue with our travelling.

Drove back to camp with mixed feelings. It was not great that John appeared to have a chronic disease, but we decided to think as little as possible about that and just focus on enjoying the rest of this year’s travels.

Collected the library books and took them back. At Karrinyup shopping centre, we claimed the doctor’s bills refunds from Medicare. Bought the things required for John from a chemist. Had lunch at the shops and did a few more bits of shopping.

Refuelled at $1.02cpl.

In a sunny break back at camp, took down the annexe roof.

We went for a – hopefully last – walk around the gardens of the caravan park.


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2004 Travels June 21

MONDAY 21 JUNE     PERTH

It was a very chilly and rainy day, as befitted the shortest day of the year.

I felt awful – sneezing all the time, runny nose, stuffed up head. The cold had finally decided to hit full on. I couldn’t take any medication apart from Panadol. Things like Codral were not compatible with my blood pressure medication.

We stayed around the caravan park. John did some computer things. I tried to read.


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2004 Travels June 20

SUNDAY 20 JUNE     PERTH

We drove across to the coast, then followed that south, through Cottesloe and onto the Stirling Highway, where we cut back up and went to Kings Park. This is a large area of parkland, gardens and bush, in inner Perth.

We walked in the park for a while. There had been some impressive improvements and development of facilities since we were last here, in 93.

I did not feel very well, due to the cold.

We had to extend our original booking at the caravan park – operating on a day by day basis now. We had exceeded the discount allowable per stay, so were now paying the full $25 a night.


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2004 Travels June 19

SATURDAY 19 JUNE     PERTH

Went to Karrinyup Library and borrowed books to read – both of us! With time to fill in while we wait for medical outcomes, and with neither of us feeling very fit, for once John actually wanted reading matter.

Whilst in the Library, looked up Sjoengrens Syndrome on the internet, and in medical reference books. A little knowledge was not a pleasant thing to have! Sjoengrens is not nice. It is an auto immune disease that shuts down the salivary glands. There can be other, associated, auto immune ailments too. They did not know why it came on, and there was no cure. All they could do was act to alleviate the symptoms. John was quite depressed by these research results. Me too.

This trip is just not turning out as it was supposed to!

We drove across to the coast and went to Scarborough where we walked along the beach for a couple of hours.

My cold was not too bad.

Resize of 06-01-2004 Camp Perth first.JPG


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2004 Travels June 18

FRIDAY 18 JUNE     PERTH

We drove to Joondalup for John’s scan and blood tests.

He was told that the scan did show swollen salivary glands, which could be consistent with Sjoengrens.

We went to Spotlight, where I bought some more knitting wool.

I was getting a cold – a rarity for me when travelling. I knew that spending time keeping John company in Casualty was a bad idea! After all, they have sick people there….Felt increasingly miserable as the day went on.

Bought fish and chips for tea.


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2004 Travels June 17

THURSDAY 17 JUNE    PERTH

Today was John’s specialist appointment.

We had an easy drive down the Mitchell Freeway, over the Swan River and to the South Perth Medical Centre on Mill Point Drive.

We saw, in passing, the place on Mill Point Drive, where daughter and husband had a flat for a few months, in ’98/’99,  whilst they were working in Perth on their extended trip.

Resize of 06-17-2004 Mill Point Perth where V and B lived.jpg

Distant Mill Point Drive, and the Swan River

The doctor wanted a scan done, and blood tests. He was not sure of a diagnosis. It might be Sjoengrens Syndrome – which neither of us had ever heard of!

It was a bit of an anti-climax to still come away with no definitive answers.

I still had a sore throat!

On the way back to camp, collected our mail. Notes from L were interesting, but there was nothing else interesting or important.


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2004 Travels June 15

TUESDAY 15 JUNE     PERTH

After breakfast, drove to Herdsman Lake, just a little to the south.

This lake was filled by ground water and was really a circular set of lakes that went round an island in the middle. Parked Truck and set out to walk around the lake. It was much further than it looked! Found out afterwards that we’d walked 8kms.

That was quite enough exercise, under the circumstances.

Got fuel at Gwelup – $1.02cpl.


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2004 Travels June 14

MONDAY 14 JUNE     PERTH

At 9am, John phoned the ENT specialist that he had been referred to, from Geraldton, and was given an appointment – on Thursday!

We walked to the Karrinyup shopping centre. John did not feel very well as we walked there, but was better after a sit down and a drink at the centre.

We browsed the shops for a few hours, and had lunch there.

It was frustrating that we were having to fritter time away like this, but it was best to get the health thing sorted before we went really remote. If we got to go remote at all! Given the state of medical services in a place like Geraldton, I couldn’t begin to imagine them further north!