Wed 6 Nov 2013 - Cactus Beach then off to Nutbush Retreat

We had another surf/rock pool bathe this morning, the wind had come up again so the surf was big. Rodger was so delighted to get 2 good surfs after so many disappointments.

While he was getting ready to surf, Rodger saw a brown snake in the vegetation next to our van. A bit later, he looked out and saw a bob tail lizard sitting on my thongs- no shortage of wildlife here!  We then left Cactus heading back via the pink lake and checking out another beach "Caves" where some of the guys were surfing this morning.

I also made a big bolognaise in the Dream Pot and some salad sandwiches, to use up all our veg before going through quarantine at Ceduna, the SA end of the Nullarbor.

We had a break in Ceduna, first to eat our lunch before going through the quarantine barrier and then to go to a shop to buy more fruit! There was also an Op shop so I was able to get a couple more books.

As we'd had such a leisurely start to the day, we now needed to get in 4 hrs good driving to reach Port Augusta tonight. The whole trip there were wheat fields each side of the road and stretching far into the distance and every small town has a large silo beside the station.

Again, it was very hot, peaking at 40C in the afternoon, so we stopped in Kimba to buy icy poles - such a treat on a hot day.

Kimba is the halfway point between Perth and Sydney, as the crow flies, so we're halfway home now! It's also the home of the big galah, but I don't know why - these birds seem to be common all over Australia.

I was thinking we needed to stay somewhere just West of Port Augusta and then I saw a place advertised on the map, called The Nutbush Retreat, in just the right place so we thought we'd have a look. It turned out to be a cattle station that has a caravan park and cabins. We're the only people here and have everything to ourselves.

First we went to swim in the pool but it had a whole lot of hornets floating on top so we ended up cooling off in the spa, which the hornets didn't seem to like.

Next we had nice, long, hot showers and washed out our sweaty clothes in the laundry. Dinner was ready in the Dream Pot but we reheated it, ate, and charged our electrics, in the well - equipped camp kitchen, which is part of the shearer's quarters.

We then adjourned to the Recreation Room for a game of pool. it's a hard life on the road!