Northcliffe - Pemberton - Donnolly River and Balingup

The view outside the motel all the parrots come for feeding in the afternoon, the pub meal down there at northcliffe was lovely colm had a mixed grill and I had lamb chops with 8 different vegetables, let me tell you its all about food on the track! Also something we have noticed in the forest is that when there are kookaburra's around they are the last bird call of the evening and the first one in the morning

Schafer dam colm went for a swim brrhhh

schafer hut

We stayed at the kilns that night old tobacco kilns that have been turned into accommodation, comfy bed and nice meal what more could you ask for? and bonus we got 6 free range eggs and nectarines and plums from the farm

On the road from the kilns

On a bridge

I do cook despite what colm says later that evening I fell over in grand style on the make shift seats near the fire!

Warren campsite

Look at the people you bump into in Pemberton!

Twins but who is Danny and who is Arnie? Trust them to be wearing the same shirt!

On the forest track from Pemberton

what no shirt? A rat ate into colms rucksack at this camp so he has fine memories.... also at night we saw two quendas coming down to the pool for  a drink

Two different trees growing together

Walking from beedelup to beavis campsite

We met another walker Guy from exmouth who said he now had çalves of steel'after walking the hills where we are now so just to prove that mine aren't exactly steel yet I fell over and caught on some twigs....but all better now

Are we there yet? also I have a confession to make I am now part of the sad bastards book club yes I have actually read a mills and boon book now when our reading material ran out. I told colm how good they were and how he would have to lift his game but he said Raye that is why they are called fiction!

Our morning tea breaks, coffee and a muesli bar to see us through! Better than the night meals cream of chicken soup tastes insipid according to colm I do not think that any masterchef contestant has any concerns with us!

One tree bridge

The beautiful forests

Boarding house campsite the hills to get to this campsite were tough

What a fine specimen of a man what can I say

Forest starting again after a controlled burn

Donnolly River village and the chinese laundry and the emus here are very friendly colleen you would love it not!

Making sure I hang the wasking out correctly

The forests again after the controlled burn so green and coming to life again

Old Paws take two

Gregory brook campsite

Blackwood River, like a mirror

Okay to get to this campsite about a 1.5klm out the notes read that now you will find yourself at the base of cardiac hill colm and I just say what? Then he says well no hill has killed us yet and proof we did make it! One person made me laugh in the red book he put "I thought I was a heartless bastard until I went up cardiac hill now I am just a bastard"

views from Blackwood campsite yes we had to climb that high!

Other views as well

Walpole to Northcliffe

This was a really great campsite first one out of albany and we both found it an easy 10klm walk (only easy one this far) In the morning we woke up to the cacophony of the bird chorus, sue you would have loved it

At Mt Clare in amongst the Tingle Trees

He's in awe of these giants

Yes that is me in the dark on the suspension bridge just after Mt Clare, what a wild walk that was really bouncy!

The views along the coast

Long point campsite and boy it said in the book it was only 12.5klms but it was hard over undulating hills of sand.....aargh soft sand = hard walking

Then when we get there this is the path yes that is right through soft sand to the drop toilet. Gee its great being a girl....

Lost beach

Consulting the oracle or the guide to the southern half of the bib track

This was a great campsite as it was the first one near the shannon river or what was left of it as its quite dry out here we both went for a ?bath in the river and it was freezing, here is colm just putting on a cup of tea as you can see we had the shelter to ourselves....

Shannon river or at least the remnants of it most of the rivers here are dry now

Warming up by the fire, kookaburras call out at the end of the evening and the start of the day who needs an alarm?

Again I am in the dark but this is lake Maringup beautiful million dollar views from shelter and the price tag you ask well its just a 25.6klm walk in from dog pool..... we were skeptical at first as the guide book whenever it said flat terrain before it usually meant soft sand but this was an easy days walk although very long

Doing a pope when I touched down only I could not bend my knees at the end of this day.....

Sue we have walked through fields of flowers and these are banskias just beside the track just beautiful

Last camp before northcliffe and can I say brian its all about the food at this time we were on lean rations here is what our typical days food is like breakfast - porridge with skim milk powder and sultanas and some almonds. Morning tea a nescafe coffee (those instant sachets like latte or irish cream) and a muesli bar. Lunch time well its a choice of cup of soup or two minute noodles and some dry biscuits with vegemite (to replace the lost salt) and some cheese sticks. Dinner well that is a choice between tuna sachet and a continental pasta (they say it serves 4 as a side dish, try it yourself bloody ants eat more!) or one of our favourites is pea and ham soup with suprise peas and a cup of cous cous. Yes starvation diet it is but we are coping but have both lost weight!

On a bridge over gardner river on the way to northcliffe

That is how far we have come in just under 3 weeks

That is how far we have left in who knows how long.....