Day 106: Tue 02 Jul 24 - Kalgoorlie to Baxter Gravel Pit

Tue 02 Jul 24 - Kalgoorlie to Baxter Gravel Pit (493km)

3 feeling like 0 Deg, clear with a light NW wind this morning, reaching a top of 16 Deg and mostly clear mid afternoon. The light 'tail' wind proved to be very handy keeping our fuel consumption down to a respectable 15.5lt/100km. 

It was a very fresh start to the day, but a short burst with the heater took the chill out of the air enough for us to step out of bed and get moving. We were packed and drove away from Kalgoorlie at 08:30am, heading towards Norseman via Kambalda for a quick look, then left along the Eyre Highway. We stopped for our morning brew at a roadside stop just outside of Norseman, before continuing along the Eyre Highway, and stopping again to refuel at Balladonia Roadhouse. Our next stop after Balladonia was Baxter Gravel Pit where we decided to park for the night. There are a number of other caravans and motorhomes here for the night, but it is such a large parking area and everyone is spread enough that you can barely see anyone else. After setting up, we had a cup of tea, then went for a short walk in search of a blowhole located at the back of the camp area (marked on Wikicamps). After chatting with a few other travellers on our walk, we returned to the van for dinner and a quiet night indoors, as it looks to become another cold night. 

The drive today was very easy and the kms seemed to roll over quickly. There were very few trucks on the road, and overall there was very little traffic at all. Quite a pleasant day driving, but we still have more than 2,600km to get home. 

(There is some 3G Phone reception - Internet is care of Starlink).

Eyre Highway - Returning East


Eyre Highway, Baxter Gravel Pit - Where we came from (West)

Eyre Highway, Baxter Gravel Pit - Where we're heading - East

Eyre Highway, Baxter Gravel Pit - Where we landed (bottom left is us)

Eyre Highway, Baxter Gravel Pit - Blowhole 
Cave systems across the Nullarbor have been formed by weathering. Some of the caves have collapsed and formed large depressions, some just have a vent leading to the surface. All caves breathe. When the air pressure is high, the caves breathe out and when the air pressure is low they breathe in. I couldn't tell if this one was breathing in or out, but it was very interesting.

Eyre Highway, Baxter Gravel Pit - Blowhole 
Careful not to fall in - Like many along the Nullarbor, it is unfenced, and deep.


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