It was foggy this morning with some frost. We waited for the fog to clear before leaving Cocklebiddy. Tilly kept warm in the bathroom in front of the heater outlet.
The first roadhouse was only 66kms from Cocklebiddy so we did not stop. Caiguna Roadhouse was established in 1962 to enable travel across the Nullabor for the Perth Commonwealth Games. The gravel road was not fully sealed until 1976.
Five kilometres west of Caiguna is a blowhole. This small hole in the rock is a vent allowing air movement to and from the complex network of underground caves. Some of the caves are more than 6kms long and are full of water. Exploring these is not on our bucket list!
The 90 Mile Straight section of highway starts just west of Caiguna and ends close to Balladonia, famous for being the unexpected landing site of Skylab space junk. We drove at 100kph following a truck travelling at exactly the same speed all the way from Cocklebiddy to Balladonia. The speed limit is 110kph but all vehicles towing are limited to 100kph.
In December 2019 we crossed the Nullabor west to east with Beccy Cole. We were amazed the temperatures were mild during our trip. A week after we had crossed the temperatures were extremely high and fires halted vehicles travelling on the Eyre Hwy for days. The fires came within metres of buildings at the Balladonia Roadhouse, and large areas of woodland with dead trees.
Our stop for tonight is a free RV campsite in Norseman, named after the horse reputed to have discovered gold here by pawing the ground uncovering a nugget. Other than two service stations only three or four shops are trading – the IGA, a cafe, bottleshop and pharmacy. Several old shops are for sale. The pub appears to only use part of this lovely building.
The town makes great efforts to attract tourists, such as the impressive visitor centre, sculptures and artwork.
Next to the visitor centre is a fantastic gallery showing photographs by Lynn Webb. I asked Lynn if he was a local and he said not as he has only lived here for 35 years! Some of his works are featured outside the building so I could take photos.
I downloaded this photo from the gallery website which has many more amazing photos.
Bluey and Leo had a run on the basket ball court. Blue spotted his friend looking for him through the motorhome door.
Committed Travellers 