Sun 28th September – Day 141: Baxter – 157km E of Border Village (572km)

Up with the dawn as the road trains continue to rumble past. Dew everywhere hampers our efforts to pack up as we must open up all the windows and dry out the canvas or risk very wet beds tonight.
Our first stop Caiguna Blowhole, not far up the road. Reversal air flows are caused by the pressure differences between the underground caverns and the air pressure above ground making the hole breathe in and out. No breathing noticed today but it gave us a 5min rest stop to stretch the legs. Blowholes are formed on the Nullarbor with years of chemical and physical weathering of the limestone bedrock. As high and low pressure weather systems pass along the Nullarbor, the hole breathes in and out – hence the name blowhole.
From Caiguna, the highway twists and turns through the Nuytsland Nature Reserve to Cocklebiddy (once an aboriginal mission). Then 74km to Madura, nestled at the foot of Madura Pass. 116km of uneventful road to Mundrabilla, the next settlement along the Eyre and from there 66km to Eucla where we refuel and the kids play on equipment that was around when I was a little girl!
For the best part of the morning we have all been enthralled with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows read by Stephen Fry. He really is a magical reader of JK Rowling’s characters, accents and all. We are listening to the latest book as that was the only one available in Kalgoorlie, but you can bet I will be getting books II – VI whenever I find them (blow the cost)!
12km on we cross the border into SA, lose 2 hours and say goodbye to the west. There are now no fences as we travel through the Nullarbor National Park, stopping at one of the lookouts and taking in the scenic views over limestone cliffs out into the Australian Bight. Beautiful blue water, white sandy beaches, magic surf and no sharks or whales seen, yet.
A rest area will be our stop for tonight, we pull in 157km east of the border and the kids rush off into the scrub to find wood. Later I take my Bacardi and coke off into the surrounding countryside for a walk, finding more shells and evidence of rabbits everywhere. A curry around the fire, toasted marshmellows then a movie ‘The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants’ our entertainment for tonight.
157k Peg Rest Area (Bush Camp Free)