Maralinga to Esperance (3-5 Apr)

We left Maralinga in the morning for the long drive across the Nullarbor to Western Australia after spending the previous evening eating dinner and playing Bohnanza (German spelling) by torchlight. We realised our power reserves were quickly dropping after I ran the stove, oven and lights as if there was no tomorrow. We quickly conserved power by switching off all our lights and appliances (apart from the fridge) and made it to the morning. It was a good and timely lesson for our future off-grid days.

We continued our journey along the Eyre Highway which doubled up as an emergency landing airstrip in several sections of the road. We also saw three lone cyclists heading East in the direction of the prevailing wind. With the number of road trains on the highway, we marvelled at the drivers’ skills and pondered how hazardous the job must be. Along the way, we stopped to admire the Great Australian Bight before crossing the border into Western Australia and spending the night at the Eucla Roadhouse.

The next morning, we walked across sand dunes to see the old telegraph station and the Eucla Jetty before continuing our journey across the Nullarbor. During our lunch stop, we learned there had been a fatal road crash that very morning in which three truck drivers were killed near Yalata (a section of the highway we were on only the day prior). It brought home the potential dangers of, and the need to remain vigilant on, the roads. The evening was spent at the Balladonia Roadhouse, our last stop before Esperance which is where our travels will truly begin.