After a greasy spoon breaky and a couple of proper lattes, Bessie and the troupe were on the road - destination Quorn, to reacquaint ourselves with Gertie. She'd been holed up at the caravan park eagerly awaiting our return, tired of sitting idle and unused. The drive was long and straight for the most part with landscape alternating between low-lying brush and red sand to bushier areas and back again. There are a few salt lakes along the route back and we decided to stop at one called Lake Hart, about halfway to Quorn. Flies were en masse and the head netting was essential for maintaining sanity. We made the stroll down to the "lake" which is essentially one large dried up cake of salt, white to the eyes and going virtually to the horizon. Back on the road we made good time to Port Augusta and Piper joined me to get some supplies while the boys and Jen endeavoured to get the journals done. We hadn't had a chance to get the Easter supplies so I found the Easter aisle and went to town. With a few key chocolate treats in the cart I discussed with Piper how we needed to keep it secret from the boys and she assured me it was just between her and I. Back at the car, she literally opened the door and announced she had a secret she couldn't tell and it was that we'd got some Easter treats! Oh well - it was good for a chuckle. Gertie was in good nick although the bike cover looked a bit more sun-bleached and she had a slight reddish hue of dust from the rains a few weeks ago. The boys and I had a great game of Monopoly (which Aidan unofficially won) and we headed to bed with dreams of Easter bunnies and Cadbury/Lindt chocolate in our heads. The Easter bunny did come and had hidden a bunch of eggs around the caravan (although some are still unaccounted for...). With glee in our eyes and adventure in our hearts we broke our fast with traditional hot cross buns and croissants (of course) and got back on the road for Port Lincoln.
The drive to Port Lincoln is one through rural sprawl - small towns and then nothing but dry rolling hills or brush for kilometre on kilometre. We had a break in Cowell to take in a local market and a park for the kids. The oysters were cheap, fresh and an absolute succulent slurp - especially the ones with a dabble of jalapeno Tabasco sauce and fresh crushed pepper. We eventually made it to Port Lincoln and were immediately impressed by its coastal serenity and beautiful calm waters gently cresting the shoreline. Although a bit of a number in the crowd at the caravan park (we can almost reach out the window and touch the neighbour's van) the scenery is nice enough, with the ocean on our doorstep. We rode the bikes into the main beach in town along an established walking/cycle track past a massive grain port operation and had a ball navigating the tight corners without Piper falling off (she only did twice!). Tomorrow I'll be off to explore one of the largest ocean predators, face to face, as I'm jumping into a flimsy cage and doing a shark dive. The exhilaration of seeing these massive powerful creatures will be amazing and will fulfill not only my male testosterone-filled need for fear and adventure but also my academic biological interests. Should be quite the trip! Jen and the boys will have an explore of the Port and I'll catch up with them on Aidan's B-day to swim with some sea lions. Too much fun to be had by all!
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