Saturday 1^st August 2020: Back into Karratha today – trucks and trains still going. Morning tea/lunch at the shopping centre.  Jeanette and Phil are there and a blast from the past, Malcolm & Donelle Humphries are just coming through the till. Malcolm was the Principal at Yuna Primary School, back in 1970, so we played lots of badminton with them  and they had good memories of the fabulous cabarets in the Yuna Hall. Over lunch we ring around the caravan parks, but there are no vacancies, so we join others in the overflow at the Golf Club.  We then made bookings for Port Hedland and Broome – we are going to Eighty Mile Beach, but you can’t book there. Cooking on gas again tonight and were looking forward to a long hot shower and washed hair after our days at Millstream but that will now be Port Hedland. We all enjoyed the Eagles win.  

Sunday 2^nd August 2020:  Happy Birthday Laylah, 14 today.  We are on our way North again, not too far today (238 km) to Port Hedland, but there’s plenty of places to see on the way.  First stop is Roebourne where we plan to have our morning cuppa – unfortunately it is Sunday and nothing is open, not even sure whether that nice little place we enjoyed coffee with Peter and Pam a couple of years ago is still operating. The main street is wide and well cared for and the community certainly doesn’t want for any infrastructure. They have a Primary School, a District High and a Regional TAFE.  Today at the Cultural Complex they are about to hold a combined Church service in the amphitheatre at the rear of the building as the Anglican Bishop of the North West is in town and the crowd would be too large for the little Church up on the hill. The Complex is a beautiful building.

From the lookout it is possible see over the whole town with the Harding River right on its doorstep  - easy to see why the lawns and trees look so good.  At the lookout there are 6 corten steel warriors each one facing their homeland – very well done. 

Next stop is out to Cossack and it is humming today as the Art Competition entries along with the  winning entries are displayed in a transformed shipping warehouse. Coffee is our first priority and there’s a fashion parade etc happening showing off culturally designed fabrics with local girls doing the modelling. Music etc happening, it’s a big weekend here. The Art Competition has categories for children as well, some as young as five and there are some budding artists.  

A quick check-out of the restored old buildings which have been lovingly restored and we are on our way to Port Sampson.  Cape Lambert is visible in the distance with large machinery working and creating the accompanying dust. Decision made that we don’t have time to go in here today and that Port Samson is somewhere we need to stay and not just drive in and out – maybe on the way home.  It’s getting late but we decide to make it through to Whim Creek Pub for lunch as we want Marg and Mark to experience this quintessential place – what a disappointment when we drive in and the there’s one car driving out and the closed signs are up – no cocky in the cage and a very late lunch in the van in a truck bay down the road. 

We couldn’t get into the Cook Point Caravan Park, so we are in South Hedland at the Black Rock and despite what you hear, it is fine. A hot shower and washing machines, great.