17^th March, Tuesday (Cocklebiddy)

We were up early this morning but don’t ask us what the time is we are still confused so let’s just say that we left when it was light HAHA. The Nullarbor from Eucla starts getting a little more growth with low trees and a lot more scrub with a range on the right hand side of the road, we are not sure what this range is called but I will do some research to find out more and let you all know as I am sure you are waiting with baited breath to know it’s history. Still no camels, all these thousands and thousands of camels that roam around the Nullarbor are an urban legend the same as the Nullarbor Nymph, we haven’t seen one or any signs that they have been here, the only wild life we have seen today are dead ones on the road. Cocklebiddy is very much like the Nullarbor roadhouse and we are feeling like a dunny in the desert again, it will fill up later as people pull in for the night. We are parked next to the generator which runs the place but you eventually get used to the sound and it’s only one night. There’s an airfield here and a small plane landed not so long ago. We were chatting to the pilot and the plane is chartered by the RFDS (for this region based in Kalgoorlie) to fly a doctor around the remote areas every 2 weeks. He has landed here today with a doctor who needs to see a few people and he will take off in a few hours for his next stop which is a station not far from here and then overnight in Eucla to see more patients and some other places and then back to Kalgoorlie. There is a large cage here with which houses the most magnificent Eagle, it’s sad to see such a majestic creature behind bars but as Ralph says he may be an injured bird, I hope so. Tomorrow we are off to Fraser Range station for 2 nights, we are looking forward to that as we enjoy station stays. I know that on the way there we have another time change so we will be even more confused, I think that we go to WA time proper. The weather is lovely at the mo although the sun is really hot but there is a nice cool breeze blowing through the van. Once again there is no water here, it looks like our water in the van is holding out ok. We will only get water again when we are in Norseman which is in 3 days time so I think that we have planned well. We last bought water and filled up in Ceduna which was 4 days ago and it has to last us for another 3 days. We have to be very thrifty and not waste a drop and so far we are doing quite well. We are lucky though as the showers in all these places are coin operated so we are not having to use the vans water for personal hygiene.