What a fab evening, Steve had a really bad hangover today which was very funny to see - the rest of us didn't feel so bad. Emma,Steve and Clare wanted to go to the races (bit like Ascot) whilst us 3 couldn't be arsed to go.

They ordered a taxi which unfortunately didn't turn up so they then decided to go down to a nearby beach instead with Beau.

Toby and I went down the local beach and then went to the cinema to see 'Lord of the Rings' it was a fantastic film!!!

We all got up early to drop off Emma and Steve at the Airport as they were flying to Melbourne- Clare got very upset bless her but we were soon on our way in Betty to see a place called the Pinnacles which was 600k journer there and back again - took bloody hours to get there but was an amazing place - desert with hundreds of sandstone pinnacles standing everywhere it looked really strange and was incredibly hot. We then hopped back in the van and drove down to nearby deserted white sandy beach for an hour then drove back again

We stayed at Vicky and Jon's place that evening whilst Beau and Clare stayed in the van outside.

We spent the day shopping for supplies and getting sorted for our adventures in the van - Toby and Beau went into Perth whilst Claire and I stayed in Fremantleto do all our stuff.

Altogether we had sorted out RAC cover for the van and bought food and supplies so it was a very productive day - we were all really excited about getting going. We met up with Vicky and Jon and some other friends for there farewell drink as they were off for a couple of months travelling then back to England so that Vicky could have her baby boy. We spent the night over Buda's house (another friend) , us two in the van and the other 2 in the house.

Well today was the first day of our big journey- we set off at 10.00am for our first destination of Walpole so that Beau and Claire could attend a wedding they had been invited to. It was a 450K journey and Beau drove all the way. The funniest thing that happened though was we ran out of petrol 20mins from Walpole so Beau hitched a lift into town to get some fuel whilst we sat and ate all the food from the boxes and decides we were going to call ourselves ' The B Team' the crap renegade's who got everything wrong - we ended up in hysterics! Beau caught a lift back by a lovely couple and then we were off again. We found a backpackers place for the evening which was a fab place but they didn't have any rooms left as it was full of other wedding guests. So we set up the tent in the garden and went out for some dinner only to find the restaurants shut at 8.00pm and could only get food that they could deep fat fry -mmmmm ended up with chips.

Didn't sleep so good as the ground was so hard but got up just in time to see Beau and Clare off - the wedding was at 9.30am they then had brunch, come back for the day then go back to the reception in the evening. Toby and I did all the group washing and drying and then bought some hooks for the van and some Velcro to mend the tent as well as buying a tent for us - never had my own tent before so I was quite excited, how sad is that!!

I then sat down to catch up with writing the Website which was now a week behind so it took me a couple of hours, meanwhile Clare and Beau had come back and gone down the pub - they then came back again at about 4.30 a little bit pickled, they were going back to the reception at 6.30 so it looked like they had a long evening in front of them.

We had also sorted out a 4 day trek starting on Monday for the 4 of us and I was really looking forward to doing some walking again.

Really looking forward to doing a 4 day trek in the woods starting tomorrow so just spent the day packing bags and sorting out what food etc we would need whilst Beau and Clare went on a tree top walk with a couple of friends.

Well got up early and ate a hearty b'fast then grabbed our bags and loaded them into the back of Simon's 4 wheel drive, he and his wife own the backpackers hostel we were staying in. - they are a really great couple.

Simon then dropped us of at the beginning of the walk and we took some group photo's looking all excited and eager. We all had our huge backpacks with us but Toby's bag was really heavy as he was carrying the tent and I couldn't even lift it so how he thought he was going to walk all day with that thing on his back was beyond me... The first leg of our walk was along a coastal path so we walked on deserted beaches for most of the morning which was absolutely beautiful but extremely hard as the sand just slowed us down all the time. We were only doing a small section of the huge trail called the Bibbulum track which took about 60 days to walk from Albany to Perth (bugger that) I was quite happy with our small trail.

The fly's were really bad again and just didn't leave us alone but we luckily had some head nets which both Clare and I found a wonderful investment. Toby on the other hand had a habit of walking with his mouth open so ended up eating loads of the buggers!! it was very funny though as every few minutes you would hear him choking then coughing out another fly ........bless him you think he would learn to keep his mouth shut when trekking.We saw some kangaroo's near the beach which seemed quite happy with us getting close to them to take some pictures

We arrived at the first lodge around about 4ish and found the cabin to be a 3 sided structure with raised wooden floor sections for people to sleep on, we realised that it wasn't going to be a comfortable night. Beau and Clare didn't have any mosquito nets with them and they were essential if you wanted to get any sleep in the night. It was decided to erect the tent on the wooden floor and we all slept in it, problem was it was a 3 berth tent and Beau is a very large man so it was going to be a challenge!! We set up camp and settled down to a game of cards when another group consisting of , Peter and his daughter, Clare and her friend Clare - god 3 Clare's in the camp. We all got on really well and we loaned them our mossie nets for the night as they would have been eaten alive.

Well I was the clever one who bought a blow up lilo bed with me that Beau was very jealous of and insisted he should have it! this was becoming a bit of a running joke now as everything I had or bought he complained because he either wanted half of it (usually food) or wanted to have it (my lilo). I had a relatively good nights sleep even though it was really squashed whilst the others were very uncomfortable on the hard floor.

We had a couple of b'fast bars and a coffee then said goodbye to our new friends for another day of hard walking. The path took us away from the sea towards the woods and the huge tingle trees' that towered high above us with massive hollowed out trunks you could camp in. The fly's seemed better in the woods and was alot cooler so walking was easier apart from really steep hills we now faced.. God I hate hills. We eventually made it to the next lodge and set up the tent again then got dinner on the go which consisted of instant mash and tinned meat, a good feast for the 4 of us. We had a little stove and a kettle and plenty of provisions for the journey so eating wasn't a problem - luckily we all eat well so had packed enough to feed an army. Peter and the 2 Clare's turned up in the evening and settled down to a small meal of tinned tuns and dried fruit as they didn't want to carry to much. Toby and I were told by Clare and Beau that there was a shop 20 mins away at the entrance to the treetop walk that they had already been on earlier that week. So when we arrived at our camp for that evening after walking 7 hrs, Toby and I dropped off our bags in search for this 'shop' to find some chocolate and yummy stuff to bring back with us, 30mins later we arrived at the 'shop' only to find it sold nothing but stuffed toys and postcards!!! mmmm we weren't best pleased as we were both looking forward to some treats. We went on the treetop walk anyway which was quite nice if not a little scary then marched all the way back again and told them they were a couple of dingbats only to be told that they had been selling chocolate a few days ago (seems they had just run out the buggers).

Cold beans and Tuna for dinner that evening which was actually quite nice especially when your starving hungry! Later on in the evening Peter and the 2 Claires arrived and we all settled down to a good game of cards

Just did not sleep well as all Beau could do all night is complain that he was cold and then steal Clares sleeping bag off of her!! that girl needs a Saint Hood...

Had another good days walk even though we were all tired apart from Toby who has the amazing ability to sleep through anything. Clare found a snake and was very brave - she ran as fast as she could!! into the arms of big brave Beau.... It had unfortunately gone by the time we got there so I still hadn't seen a snake, godnabbit. We found the lodge eventually and were all impressed at it's location which was right next to a pretty river perfect for swimming in, the only drawback for that was it had started to rain and had become very overcast so we decided to be British and just watch the rain. Peter and the 2 Claires appeared later on again and Peter went for a swim which he said was wonderful and then settled down to another evening of cards and teaching each other Aussie and English phrases we could use on our journey. They taught us some crackers but the only one they seemed to like from Claire's and I was 'Big Pants'? Toby taught them how to play Shitface and they taught him how to play Arsehole which by the end of the evening sounded like they all hated each other!

Drama of the evening was running out of gas and not having a hot drink..... so good ole Beau and Toby went and made a small fire (something we were NOT supposed to do) so that we could drink our tea, it also brought out the 'hunting and gathering' instinct for both men and pleased them no end for the rest of the evening whilst Clare and I just told them how brave and clever they were for making 'fire'

Both of us girlies went to bed early to read our books and ended up in hysterics for one reason or another - OK it was because Toby was acting like a fluffy puppy around the 2 Clares as he was teaching them cards and we could hear him from the tent!! Bless him. I have to thank both the girls as you have done his ego the power of good! oh and Beau is quite happy cause you told him he has skinny ankles and looks younger than 35..........Men

What another bad night.-.was awake all night with stomach ache then got up at 4.00 in the dark to try and desperately find the toilet which was situated bloody miles away in the woods (with snakes) and had severe dioreah for the whole morning which is always nice wondering if your going to get your arse bit by a nasty snakes or come face to face with a killer spider or even have another walker stumble over your pants whilst you empty the remnants of the last 3 days food - little that is was!

Oh well upwards and onwards we gathered our things and all decided to walk together for the day which was really nice and I found I struggled to keep up with them - but at least I tried. We arrived back at Peter and the girls campsite at around 1 ish all looking pretty rough what with Toby and his twisted ankle and Beau with his bad blisters. They very kindly invited us back to their cabin that they were sharing with friends and gave us some lunch and tea and offered to drive us back to our Hostel (being British we refused of course) they introduced us to all their friends etc and just couldn't do enough for us -they were all really nice people. But we had to march on so we all said our goodbyes and carried on for another hour to the Hostel, Simon said he thought it was funny how the girls just walked in looking fine whilst the 2 guys just dragged themselves in looking terrible!!

We all had showers and gathered our now stinking clothes to take down the cleaners and then I bought some chocolate and wine and some Video's whilst Clare got the Pizza's ready for an evening of slobbing. They all went to bed really early whilst I stayed up to 1.00am getting drunk with Simon.

All had Quite a good nights sleep and woke up to a beautiful sunny day - we packed our bags and van and set off for the next destination of Albany where we intended to get my teeth done (chipped the front teeth) the journey only took a couple of hours after stopping at another wonderful beach with clear blue water and white sand.......mmmmmmm. Anyway we arrived in Albany in the early afternoon and checked ourselves into the local backpackers for the night then found out that they were doing a roast dinner with all the trimmings for just $8 per person - fantastic hadn't had a roasty for about a year. At 5.30 they dished out free tea and cake so we all made sure we got some of that then had our roasty which was delicious. We got chatting to a guy called Andrew who said he was going up the pub later so we all decided to join him as everyone was given a voucher of buy one get one free and who are we to overlook a bargain? Bloody bonus so off we all went down the pub, Clare and I ended up having a fab time and dancing around to the duke box music. I somehow bumped into a fantastically mad girl called Kelsie who dragged me around by the hand introducing me to everyone and buying more alcohol, we had to be the maddest person I have ever met in my life but one of the funniest as well. She talked us into coming down to the local nightclub along with Andrew whom we had met and made friends with and a guy called Mat but Toby and Beau were not enjoying themselves at all and decided to go back and go to bed ....

So off we all went down to the club and when it was our turn to go in they actually asked for my ID !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! don't think I have laughed that loud into someone's face before but could have actually snogged him for making my evening. We danced around for a couple of hours whilst being surrounded by young Aussies who were dancing like they were in some kind of competition and were all a little strange but added to the comedy aspect of the evening. We ended crawling back in the early hours of the morning after having a cup of tea in the kitchens with Andrew and putting the World to rights ( I was quite drunk) and snuggled up to our little tired poppets all snugly and warm...........

Woke up and had some b'fast then collected our bags ready for the off again, we had decided to and stay in a free campsite about 25mins away from Albany which meant not having a shower or any toilets....First we decided to all go our separate ways to do some shopping for different things ( I went looking for a dentist) then regrouped to do some food shopping and buy some things for the camper van ( blow up mattress and some trainers for Toby. Beau was going to cook us one of his wonderful curries for dinner that evening which we were all looking forward to! drove to the site and were really surprised at how beautiful the place was - situated on a cliff overlooking a deserted white sandy beach and clear blue water, fantastic. We pitched the tent on a sandy clearing on the edge that someone had built and had decorated it with shells and fish and had a little water trough to have a wash in the morning. We got talking to a lovely man called Mark and his dog Thorn who were also staying on the site and started chatting to him meanwhile Beau was making a beef curry which he takes very seriously having to have all the correct ingredients and NO interference from anyone! Mark and Thorn came and joined us later on in the evening and we all got on really well - seemed he travelled around in his truck with his dog and was really a really chilled bloke. Went to bed quite early after just sitting in the dark looking at the glorious stars.

Liked the place so much we decided to hang around for the day, after b'fast Clare and I decided to drive back into Albany to buy some water and alcohol and BBQ food for that evening. Unfortunately we took a wrong turning and instead of a 20min journey it took us an hour!! we eventually arrived having laughed ourselves stupid grooving o some Stevie Wonder tracks... we then set about gathering our bits and pieces and went down to the Meat shop, but who should we bump into but Vickie and Jon! - we stayed and had a chat with them for half an hour finding out how their tour of Northern Aussie was going then set off for our journey home - forgot the water so had to turn around and find a garage to refill the huge water barrels we were carrying then found the correct way back to the camp.

When we got back to the camp we found that the boys were starving hungry and very thirsty!! OOPS

We gave them some food so that they didn't moan any more then set ourselves up for the evening BBQ that we had invited Mark to for the evening. Clare prepared a dinner fit for a king consisting of home made burgers and extremely hot tomato salsa whilst I video'd her doing her culinary delights - very funny. After a wonderful BBQ that we also shared with Thorn we settled down around the camp fire to tell ghost stories........ Beau ended up doing scary faces whilst Mark told the scariest stories out of the lot of us We went to bed later than our usual 8.00pm and had another shitty evening as the mattress is completely shot to bits with a huge dent in the middle which meant me waking up with a bad neck everyother morning.

Well another night with only 5mins sleep whilst Toby had another wonderful peaceful sleep (bastard) I was really fedup and extremely tired so asked to sleep in the backpackers for the evening in Albany whilst the others decided to sleep in the van (Toby under the bed) we said goodbye to Mark and Thorn and drove back into town. We went and saw some blow holes which were quite scary! basically it was a natural hole in the rock near the ocean that would blast sea air at a tremendous speed and was very powerful. Beau got quite scared after he was sitting very close stating that it was crap and nothing was happening, then a huge blast came through and he ran off shitting a brick!!

When we got into Albany I checked in then we all went down to the cinema so that they could watch 'Lord of the Rings' and we watched 'Oceans Eleven' (mmmmm George Clooney and Brad Pitt - really good film. When we had all gathered back together again they went and dropped me back at the hostel whilst they settled down in the van outside for the evening. I was sharing a dorm room with 3 other girls, one of them snored which was really annoying!! so much for a peaceful night.......

Ended up having chat with the young lady who had been snoring all night - she was talking about how annoying it was to be sleeping with a snorer which was usually due to being overweight - OK love (didn't have a clue she was one of them) I had a dentist appointment at 10.20am for a consultation to find out the prices of having my teeth fixed so I got up pretty early and dumped my backpack in the van and said goodbye. They were off to Stirling Range to climb Bluff Knoll the highest mountain in Western Australia, I wasn't too worried about not going as I new we would be doing plenty more climbs in the future. I used the backpackers Internet to catch up on some goss when Mark walked in to use the shower, we arranged to catch up later. Well the dentists went well and he turned out to be from Bradford!! really nice bloke who told me to come back at 1.30pm for a 2hr appointment for 2 fillings in the back and to rebuild my 2 front teeth. I went back to the hostel to catch up with our website in some peace and quiet when Mark came in to say hello and arrange to meet up for coffee later in the afternoon. Well my dentist appointment loomed up too quickly and off I trogged - two and a half hours later after 4 injection (could still feel the drill after the first 2!) we walked out feeling like I had done 4 rounds with Mike Tyson and was dribbling everywhere when I finally caught up with Mark for our Coffee and cake. The other guys got back about 6ish and were pleased to see Mark again so we arranged to get some takeaway pizza's and some beer and went back to the free campsite for the night (our turn for the tent) had another lovely evening talking shite then went to bed.

Well I had another interesting night - woke up in the early hours screaming my head off (just like the movies) after having a really bad dream and then realised I needed a wee but was too scared to go outside for the rest of the night so just led their feeling very scared........ poor old me.

Mark said he heard a scream in the night but thought he was dreaming so went back to sleep again......lot of help he was if there had been something wrong!

We said our goodbye's again and went back into Albany to use the laundrette and for Toby to have a shower. Took most of the morning and Toby managed to loose his wash bag and my shampoo and razor.. plonker. We then all bundled into the van for an all day drive to Esperance, with the girls sat in the back getting very hot and bothered. We arrived about 6hrs later at another free campsite next to the beach only to bump into another couple that Beau and Clare knew! bit of a stormy night with sheet lighting and some rain.

Didn't rain too much in the night but Clare had a really bad nights sleep - girls aren't doing so well at the mo! Headed off to Esperance pretty sharpish as the fly's were just intolerable and Beau was nearly having a coronary trying to kill them all.

We found the local backpackers and all checked in for the night - Beau was becoming more and more quieter as the days were progressing and i was starting to think he wasn't enjoying the travelling life as much as he thought he would.

Esperence seemed really nice and the Hostel was relaxed and comfortable so after we dumped our bags Toby and Beau went off for some lunch whilst Clare and I sat and read for a while then we headed off to the local pub where we had some 'buy one get one free' vouchers. They had skimpy night which basically meant one woman walking around behind the bar in a pink bikini and silver boots - not a pretty site so Clare and I didn't mind if that was the best they could do!!. We then went back and joined other travellers in a good old piss up outside for a few hours.

Well we spent the morning looking for a guitar from some Pawn brokers which I found fascinating, they were huge warehouses full of everything imaginable. We then went to a garage (or should I say I made Toby go to a garage) as the steering on the van was shocking and Clare and I were constantly asking when we should get it fixed but for some strange reason both boys thought if they got it fixed then it would cause something else to go wrong....... bloody idiots.

They both thought it wasn't bad enough to get fixed and thought we were making a bit of a fuss! so when we drove into the garage and he had a quick look under the front of the van he was quite shocked that we had been driving it, as the ball joint had completely worn and was quite dangerous !!!! We then went round to a Auto Wreckers where we met a really nice bloke called Tim who again had a look at the van and just laughed telling us to come back in on Monday and he would fit a new part for us - his parting words were 'drive carefully'.........mmmm I felt a - 'I told you so' coming on.

We went back to the backpackers and waited until Beau and Clare came back from the beach so we could hand Betty over to them - they were spending the night in a campsite whilst Toby and I stayed at the BP for another night. Clare and Toby then went for a jog, a new health regime they had started whilst Beau and I just sat around and drunk tea.

Later that evening we decided to go to a pub and listen to a live band that Tim had told us about and went down with another couple we had made friends with. The band were actually quite good and much to Toby's delight played alot of AC/DC Watching the locals was the funniest thing though as they just went mad on the dance floor, people of all ages just hopping about - alot were real local country folk who looked quite peculiar but were really enjoying themselves. We met up with Tim and bought him a couple of drinks and then proceeded to drink more and more until both us ended up quite drunk and dancing all round the dance floor with the rest of them. We then all crawled down to another bar which stayed open until 1.00am (hey that's late for us!) and proceeded to drink more and then stumble home.

Woke up a little later than usual......and then waited for Beau and Clare to come and meet us so we could set off to Lucky Bay for the day and camp there that evening - It was really very beautiful and were visited by local friendly Joey's who came right up to you looking for food, very sweet.

Spent a bad night in the tent as it was quite windy and the flap on the back just kept making the most annoying noise which drove me insane!! Once again Toby slept through the whole night.

Woke up early and went for a walk over the rocks and back onto the beach where we saw 2 kangaroos sat on the sand eating their b'fast and taking no notice of us. We then drove back into Esperance in the morning and organised a plot in a campsite for later that day only telling them it was for 2 people whilst the other 2 hid in the back of the van. The other 3 went off for a drive down Great Ocean Drive whilst I stayed in the town for a look around and spend some time on my own. I found a photographic gallery which was beautiful and a lovely cafe which I sat and read in for an hour then went down to the bottle shop to buy some alcohol and walked back to the campsite. On the way back I stopped on the Jetty to have a look at two Seals that were playing in the water and couldn't believe how amazing it was to just see wild animals in there natural habitat - the only time I had only seen seals were in Zoo's!!

Toby and Clare went out for another jog - I was starting to feel bad now as I could see me disappearing into a world of slobness whilst those 2 got all fit and healthy.... I then proceeded to drink a couple of beers and had a wonderful dinner of pot noodle and then went to bed.

Well it was Betty's big day and for some reason we couldn't get her started (first time) must be like going to the dentist! she finally did start and after we dropped her off at the garage we all had a walk around the town, Clare and I decided to stick together whilst the other 2 went there own ways - Clare was a bit irritable today and was finding everything was causing her to snap all the time so I took her to a lovely cafe and treated us to a huge fried b'fast and strong coffee. We then went and have a look in a sports shop for some trainers for me, I had decided to start running with them - stupid as I hate running. Met up with the lads and then did a bit more food shopping before we headed off for a couple hours drive to Norseman the first town before the Nullarbor where we set up camp and watched some of our travel video's which we all found very entertaining.

Well it was the start of our journey across the Nullarbor today and we were all quite excited about the whole thing! The journey was supposed to take 3 days across very hostile territory - a vast plain as far as the eye can see and very hot. We started the first shift of driving by sitting in the back of the van, we started driving early before it started to get too hot which is the only way we could get across or we would have melted away. We camped up at about 5ish in the evening all feeling very tired as the driving was very mundane - driving in a straight line for 10hrs whilst dodging kangaroo's and Emu's. We stayed in a Roadhouse campsite which was quite nice and then Toby, Clare and I went for a run!! can't believe how hard it was and how sick I would feel but the scenery was beautiful - so that made up for it.

Oh my god.... woke up and couldn't move as my legs felt like they had been put through a meat grinder and I walked like a complete pleb, I'm very unfit. We set off very early again and were on the road for 6.00am where we passed more of the same landscape varying between wooded area's and vast open land with the road, as straight as an arrow piercing through it. We veered off the road a few times to go down to the coast to see the wonderful mixture of sights - sand dunes one minute then just a minute down the road we stopped at Bunda cliffs which was like being at the edge of the world, steep cliffs straight into the sea all along the coast line as far as the eye could see - absolutely beautiful.

We stayed at another roadhouse campsite which was full of Aborigines - bit of mixed feeling over the Abo's as the only ones I had seen were in the major cities and all of them had been very drunk and abusive. The people in the roadhouse seemed nice enough but seemed really poor and extremely dirty. Clare and I had had discussions about this later on as I sympathised with them, saying that the white Aussies had been wrong with how they treated the Aborigines ( bit like South Africa) but then Clare had a fair argument about how that was a long time ago but they were still abusing the system ( bit like NHS) and using drink and drugs. She had seen this first hand from working at the Perth royal hospital whilst being over here. I don't really know enough about the people or history to make a fair comment so made a mental note to find out a bit more.

Woke at a normal time for a change as we only had a few hours driving today and set off for the first town after the Nullarbor called Ceduna where the boys left us to find accommodation for that evening. We found an fab deal - a 3 bedroom house with TV, A/C infact every facility you could wish for only $40 per night!! so we did some food shopping first then hot tailed it down to Smoky Bay which was a tiny town/village on the sea. The sea was beautiful and had huge pelicans floating about near the shore, the house was a stones throw away and was soooooo fab, just what we could all do with after being cooped up for so long. We settled in for the evening whilst I cooked a chilli for dinner we then sat down and watched the latest travel video which had us all in stitches.

We had all arranged (not Beau) to get up early and go for a morning run but I couldn't drag Toby out of bed for love nor money, and I couldn't wake Clare so I ended up going on my own. The weather was perfect as the sun hadn't come out yet and the sea was like a mill pond. Everyone was still in bed when I got back so I sat down in the piece and quiet for a few hours before the others crawled in.

Toby can't get out of cooking again today!! so he cooked a wonderful fried b'fast which Clare turned down (not a happy chappy again today) we worked out it must be the time of the month so have all been staying well away before she gets committed for mass murder...... had a lazy day sitting around and reading then went out for a swim in the sea, which was a real big thing for me ( scared shitless of fish and of any underwater living creature actually) the water was very shallow for miles out and very warm so it was quite pleasant. We then went back and all went out for a run in the evening which I found really hard, infact I couldn't walk! Clare and I then went up to a ladies house who said we could borrow a video from her collection - very friendly people, we got 'Moulin Rouge' and 'Something about Mary' we then ate a curry that Beau had made and then went to bed.

Slept like a log and just didn't' want to get out of bed but we all had to pack our bags again and be on our way. We said our goodbye's to Lois who owned the house and thanked her for all her help and kindness - such a lovely lovely lady. Reminded Clare and I of Beau's mum. On the road again! the weather was incredibly humid so the van was just awful to be trapped in for even 10mins but it took a good 6hrs to get to Port Augusta where we found a campsite and piled out for a cold shower a pot noodle and then bed.

MMMMM what a crap nights sleep, it was so hot that I just laid there all night whilst listening to Toby's wonderful snoring! got up at 5.00am and were all packed and on the road for 5.55am - getting better. It turned out the weather wasn't as bad as the day before so we didn't need to leave at such a ridiculous time. The weather was very cool and made the driving so much easier. We drove down to in about 4hrs and found a good campsite where we tried to get away with paying for only 2 people again - didn't work unfortunately, they knew we were trying them on and gave us the camping spot right outside the office which meant they could see us very clearly. The boys couldn't hide on the floor of the van all afternoon so we decided to be honest and pay for them as well, which meant sending Toby in to come out with some cock and bull story of how they had just got there and wanted to pitch a tent next to us bla bla. Clare and I couldn't show our faces as the people were really nice and we felt pretty rotten so we will try again next time! Went for a run again with Toby, Clare had a headache and didn't come with us but i'm still finding it hard and still can't believe i'm doing it! We trogged off to find a pub for the eveing only to find everything shut so Clare, Toby and myself ended up in a bingo/slot machine place for a couple of run and cokes. Beau stayed at the campsite to watch the stars - seems alot happier again and appears to be enjoying the whole camping thing now.

Forgot to mention that yesterday Clare and Beau went into town for a mooch around and came back with a couple of tapes which Beau purchased from a charity shop. The two tapes were Chas & Dave Xmas Jamboree....... and a Beetles tape - the latter being not so bad .....Clare was in hysterics telling us how on the way home they put the tape on and out came this awful noise and when Clare read the tape cover it turned out to the - 101 String Quartet instrumental of the Beatles, so very very dire I wish I could play just a small amount for you all to hear.

All caught the O-bahn into Adelaide to have a look around and check our emails etc. We then split up for the afternoon to go and do our own thing for a few hours so Tobes and I went to the Art Museum and then gave Sally (from the Everest trek) a call to see if we could meet up for a drink as she had sent us an email telling us she was in the area.

We met up with the other two and then went back to our campsite and were invited to come and have cheese and biscuits with our neighbours - Ron and Margaret who were a really nice older couple travelling around Oz in a lovely caravan (Beau kept calling him Alan though and ended up talking about his bowl movements!) I thought it was time for us to go for another jog and made a swift exit.

Found the run a bit easier but still sound like I'm 80 years old when I get back - at least I haven't given up.

Woke up early and packed the gear away very quickly and then went down to the sex shop on the corner for a quick mosey, the guy was really helpful and got all the toys out to show us how they worked and which ones were the best etc. At this point Toby and Beau had badgered off to go and look for a second hand guitar only to find us still in the shop surrounded by opened packets of vibrating and stretchy bits and pieces and looking completely transfixed. After purchasing a well thought about item we then headed off to Westbeach campsite with Beau in the van acting very put out, saying why would a woman want a toy when a real man is all they need............... no comment.

Set off for Westbeach so that we could meet up with Sally in the evening. Set up camp again and then the other three went out for a look around the town and do some food shopping for our evening meal. The campsite was extremely well equipped and had a huge outdoor kitchen with BBQ's so we had huge steaks and salad for tea and then headed off to the Quay - side in town to meet Sally.

It was wonderful to see her again and she gave us the biggest hugs - she looked fantastic and was full of life keeping us all entertained for the evening with her stories so far. She was missing Tom desperately as he was still in Thailand but was meeting up with him again on 21st Feb - lot of catching up I think....

Went back to the campsite listening to the Chas & Dave tape which we all ended up joining in with - the great debate is how do they sing the 'Rabbit' bit in the chorus so quickly? so we all gave it a good try and failed miserably.

We headed off towards the ferry terminal stopping off at Mt Lofty for a swift looksy then bundled back into the van. We sat around waiting for the ferry for a couple of hours then boarded at 5.00pm for our 6.00pm departure time. Very nice ferry indeed, especially as it was only for 40min journey - we all settled down to a smooth crossing then chugged betty off on the other side straight into the first campsite we came across. Had dinner in a wonderful restaurant in the evening as it was to dark and late to start cooking anything, the lady who ran the place was extremely friendly and we were even entertained by the chef with his guitar and a couple of classics!! the food was fab aswell.

Went to the local pub for a swift half and met up with a couple I had been talking to at the ferry terminal (bike riders...) I had asked them how they were finding having Motorbikes around Oz and told them I was very jealous, I wanted a bike for a couple of months - they told me that I had to do it, even though the girlfriend was saying she found the 650 bike very heavy with all the gear on she was still having a fab time - THAT'S ME SOLD.

Bumped into a couple of Wallabies on the way home just outside our tent.

The lady from the restaurant told us to head down to Seal Bay early before the coach loads arrived I got up at 7oclock to go and call my friend Allison then packed the gear away and headed for the bay. Absolutely fantastic!! there were so many seals sitting around on the beach with lots of babies ....arrr. We went on a quick tour which took us walking amongst them which was a wonderful experience even though the bloody Italians that were with us kept falling behind and then going right up to them to take photo's - after the guide told us to stay in a group and give the seals space - GRRRRRR some people are so very very stupid.

After the lubberly seals we headed of to Flinders Chase National Park - a dramatic rocky coastline inhabited with wild fur seals and then off to 'Remarkable Rocks' which were a huge group of oddly shaped rocks ontop of another large rock - sounds odd I know but was quite interesting. We then dragged poor betty off down yet another bumpy off road track to our campsite for the evening called 'Snake Lagoon'. We ended up playing a game which was a bit like pictionary but you had to draw in the dirt...... absolutely hilarious as the girls were very good and the boys crap. Possums joined in the fun and ended up getting in the back of the van and drinking Beau's coffee out of his cup whilst it was still by his foot - these things had no fear of people whatsoever, ended up having to physically push them away from everything as making a loud noise did nothing!! they were very funny and incredibly cute.

AUSTRALIA FEB 2002 >