TUESDAY MAY 11     COFFIN BAY

In the wee small hours of last night, we were woken by a really loud bang. Lay and listened for a while, but heard nothing more. In the morning, M told us that a roo had bounded full pelt into the side of the Troopy. It woke her up with a hell of a fright. Apparently, it was determined to maintain the course it was on, and crawled and scrabbled under the vehicle to the other side.

She had just gotten back to sleep, when a mouse trap went off in the drawer under her bed. Because the drawer was metal – and empty – that made a fair noise too. One mouse less. The roo did not appear to have damaged the Troopy. M was less than enamoured with wild life, right now.

On a day that was overcast, with occasional showers, we drove to the National Park.

First stop was Templeton Lookout, where there were great views over the bays and inlets of Coffin Bay, and towards the ocean in the other direction.

On to the Yangie Bay area, where we walked the Lookout Walk circuit – about 2kms.

Along the way, we looked at birds, admired the brilliant scenery, took photos.

The walk was well worth doing, through thick but low coastal scrub and trees.

Ate lunch at the Yangie Bay camp area, which was a lovely place, with tent nooks tucked away in the trees, and close to the sea. The van section, though, was further up the hillside and open, bare, unattractive. Had we been able to park the van in a “tent” site, we’d have been strongly tempted to move out here next.

Next, we tackled the drive to Black Springs, some 13 kms away. After a couple of kms, reached Lake Jessie and there we had to deflate the vehicle tyres, to be able to continue through the sand dunes.

The track was a mix of sandy surface, alternating with rough, rocky stuff. Originally, we’d hoped to go and drive along Seven Mile Beach, as John and I had done in ’93. However, because there was a kangaroo cull happening, there was no public access beyond Black Springs. The drive that far was lovely, though. I really enjoyed the coastal bush and the scenery in general.

We went for a short walk at Black Springs, then retraced our route.

Used our air compressor, with its inbuilt air storage tank, to re-inflate our tyres at Yangie Bay. That was such a great tool to have, fixed as it was and wired in, tucked under the rear passenger seat, with the tank under Truck. Much easier than fiddling about with a portable compressor. Over the years, it had been worth every cent it cost to have it installed, back at the beginning of our travels.

Back to town, along the beautiful drive beside the bay.

I had not felt properly well, all day, and was in quite a bit of pain. It was not the greatest condition in which to be travelling over rough tracks, but I was glad we had done the drive – such a beautiful area.

A hot shower seemed to ease the pain somewhat, but I didn’t feel like any dinner. Made some pasta with a bottled sauce, for John, and M had the portion that would normally have been mine.

The night was very cold, and I had feverish bad dreams. The degree of pain was such that I wondered if, in fact, my occasionally grumbling appendix had come to life again.