BURRA to PIMBA 2ND July

It was a cool start to the day at Burra.  1oC, perhaps not as cold as Bendigo, though.  We had the heater on about 5 am to knock the chill off. The other campers, without power were up very early.  One campervan had the engine running for an hour or so about 4am, just for some warmth. Those in swags were kicking the frost off!❄️  The water didn’t freeze as it had in Burra the morning before, so that was a bonus.  The international travellers from last night, got wise and left about 7 this morning.
Today’s travel was just all about changing scenery.  Quite interesting how it goes from scrub to good, arable farming, then  to woody, then to looking like it had been nuked! Then to salt pans, back to scrub.  Ever changing.
Pimba is on the North/South railway line.  Hope the Ghan is not going through tonight!
We wandered to the railway line. Nothing coming!  Not like 7 years ago at Mt Surprise on the Savannah Way when we looked down the line.  There was the train coming, it only went through twice a week!
We stopped for a short break at Port Pirie, followed by lunch at a roadside stop north of Port Augusta.  Not much roadkill today, but some live emus, goats and lambs all free range.  There are plenty of grids to stop the stock moving from one paddock (a loose description) to another.  However, they can wander across the road if they are not too smart.
We have pulled in to Pimba, at Spud’s Roadhouse. Near Woomera. Park out the back over night for a $5 donation. Heaps of vans and campers here.  We could have gone further today, but it’s only 350 km to Coober Pedy, where we are booked for 2 nights.

 Salt pans.

 

 

 
 

 

 Lots of flat top mountains in the distance

OUYEN TO BURRA 1st July

It was a very cool night at Ouyen, but the heater did a good job.  Not quite a frost, but a very fresh start. It did turn into a very nice day.
It was an easy run to Mildura, then on to Overland Nature Reserve near the Murray for lunch.
We followed the Sturt Highway to Morgan. Plenty of traffic in both directions. Trucks and vans/campers.  At Morgan, we turned on to the Goyder Highway, heading toward Burra.
Up to this point, we had hardly seen any roadkill. From Morgan to Burra, there was something dead about every 100 metres! Kangaroos,(too many to count!) wallabies, 1 emu, 3 wombats, 1 fox, 1 lamb and goodness knows whatever else!  Fortunately we didn’t see anything alive apart from fat crows, feasting. The albino kangaroo and it’s friends (below and inside a fence) were the only live ones!
We are staying behind an old pub in Burra. Free if you spend $20 in the pub. We have upgraded to have power and water. $25. It will be freezing tonight so the heater is very welcome. Had lovely chicken schnitzel for tea with a couple of drinks. About 8 others here behind the pub.  Toilets and showers available. Met a few locals. A group of young international travellers (8 in 2 cars) were entertaining. They were planning to leave Burra tonight on their way to Uluru!   Bob, the local truck driver and Tim, the publican, were most entertaining telling these tourists what to expect.  Especially regarding driving at night and wildlife. When we left, they hadn’t got on to Peter Falconio or Wolf Creek!  We suspect we might see them in a day or 2 or at Uluru.
Below, a selection of photos from our day of driving and a walk around Burra.

Lovely old buildings in Burra.

This white albino

Straight roads with some interesting cloud formations

Our lunch stop above.

Well, our journey has begun. 3 months on the road. After a leisurely morning, we set off for a short journey up the road.  No, not Marong.  We went further than that!

 Yes, we got to Ouyen.  Not far, but a start. Not much traffic. Uneventful day (quite happy about that. Hope that happens everyday). Our original plan was to leave tomorrow, so knocking 300km off today, makes the next two days easier.  Burra tomorrow night.

Home of the Big Mallee Root

Bilbao - Wednesday

On Tuesday evening, it was walk to the old quarter to find some more pintxo bars.  There were many to choose from.  We followed this up with a stroll around the Guggenheim. The river and building looked good with lights.  The flower dog was not quite so bright, but still managed some snaps.

A drive to the coastal region was the order of the day for Wednesday. 

This was WOW material.  San Juan de Gaztulegatxe was once a castle, a monastery, and a refuge for wealthy Basques who were fleeing someone.

It is an amazing walk, 1.3km just to get down to sea level. Then across the walkway and up 231 steps.  After completing that it was do it again in the reverse.  It got the heart rate up that's for sure.

The view were worth it though. A stunning coast line, quite rugged, but as good a view as I have seen anywhere.  I will let the photos do the talking.

That's where we are headed.

Half way down.

Sea level.

At the top

The toilet at the top was worth a photo.  Definitely a long drop!

A view of the walk back.

We drove a little further around the coastline back toward Bilbao. Some pretty spots.  The Rock on the left is what we climbed earlier.

Even found flowering gums in the hills.

Back toward Bilbao, we headed to the mouth of the river to see a bridge from the 1800's that was built to connect the town's on either side.  It runs a gondola underneath to ferry up to 6 cars and passengers.

We took the lift to the top (60m up) and walked across (160m).

Jan was a bit like me, not really impressed with heights, but it was worth getting over that. View was great.

Caught the ferry across , about 2 mins.  A commuter ride for many.

Dinner out last night, as usual.  Restaurant meal instead of pintxo which was very nice for a change.

We left about 8 this morning for the drive to Madrid.  Got here about 12.30 and checked in to our hotel near the airport.  We used the nearby Metro to head down town, where we did a bus tour around the city.  Not really inspired by Madrid, but perhaps we are travelled out.  It's another big city with lots of old buildings and lots of people.  

Our journey has almost ended.  4 weeks has gone by so quickly.  It has been fantastic, with some amazing sights and experiences.  Travelling with Jan and Jess has been delightful. Great friends, good times, good memories.  

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog.  Hope you found it interesting.

Adios. Until next time.