Driving into the station, which is only 12 km from the township of Kalbarri, we saw a scattering of old army tanks and Mk IV (LVT) Water Buffalo. We later learnt that these were acquired by a past owner of the property Prince Mukrramm Jah, the 8th Nizam of Hyperabad.
We did a quick check in as it had just past dusk and getting quite dark, and set about finding a campsite down beside the Murchison River.
As day broke we were treated to the beauty of the this 350000 acre property which was founded in 1858. The sound of the river trickling by enticing us to kayak along it, the large shearing shed ready to be explored, the historic buildings to be seen and the surrounding bush land were awaiting us.
Murchison House is a working station specializing in beef cattle and free range goats. It was a pity that it wasn't mustering season as I'm sure the kids would have loved to experience that. There was however, a BBQ and band night in the old Shearing Shed added to the country nostalgia of the property.
Nick entertained the idea of the potential marketing opportunities available thinking constantly of "what he would do" if given the chance.
Kalbarri National Park is also close by and we walked the 8km loop around Natures Window. We had been advised about the risk of dehydration and people dying down in the gorges as the temperature can be at least 10 degrees hotter down there, so we packed plenty of fluids and scroggin (dried fruit, nuts, lollies and chocolate mix) before venturing down. The first 3 km we walked along the ridge, offering spectacular views of the river and gorges below. Then descended down into the gorge to a beautiful sandy swimming area on the river. Here we ate lunch and enjoyed a quick dip before finishing he final 5km of the loop. There were warnings about the difficult terrain ahead and thought we could always turn back the way we came if it got to hard. The sign posts led us along the banks of the meandering river. Sometimes through soft sand, other times over river rocks and sometimes we rock hopped over boulders and crawled across rock ledges. At one point we saw hundreds of fish swimming upstream in a continuous line looking almost like a log floating along the river. Abbey enjoyed "coo-eeeeing" and hearing her echo come back. We crossed paths, at about the 4km mark, with a family, Darryl, Tracey, Joel & Jarrod, who were also camping at Murchison House. Funnily enough we both got back to the starting point at almost the same time.
Josh and Matt enjoyed "hanging" (not playing) with Joel and Jarrod who were similar ages and "doing the loop" around Australia & who also love fishing and using the kayak. Nick and I also enjoyed Darryl and Tracey's company sharing thoughts and ideas on our travels, daily life, backgrounds and dreams.
Jo, Pete, Summer and Ciara also camped here for a couple of nights, much to Abbeys delight. Ciara celebrated her 3rd birthday with a "bush birthday party" set up on the banks of the river, complete with pass the parcel, dancing, tunnel ball, party food, lolly bags and cake (which I got to help decorate - my first cake since leaving home).
Matt is doing a project this term on Western Australian Birds for school (Distance Ed) so a trip to Kalbarri's Rainbow Jungle was a must. This Parrot sanctuary had hundreds of birds, and Matt (with his bird book in hand) eagerly learnt about each one, taking photo after photo of them, taking particular interest in the endangered ones. He was however less than impressed when one of the cockatoos thought he was getting too close and bit his finger causing it to bleed.
Later that day Josh enjoyed fishing off the rocks - even though he didn't catch anything, while the other kids swam nearby.
There were a couple of other families staying at Murchison, and each morning the younger kids would all meet up at the shearing shed and play for hours, returning only to get food or a drink or to check the crab nets, there were a couple of decent sized crabs caught over the week. Other activities we enjoyed during our time here were borrowing a couple more kayaks and heading down the river with Jo, Pete, Darryl and kids. On the way back a large mullet jumped out of the water straight into Jo & Pete's kayak - a funniest home video moment if caught
on camera for sure.
Finding a baby goat (perhaps only a week old) who had strayed from its mother was a real fascination for "city kids". Another family, camping here, had looked after it for one night, and when it was still wandering around and bleating loudly, Zach and Abbey took it upon themselves to carry it around for hours on end. Apparently goats aren't particularly good mothers and so sadly this little kid probably won't survive.
Josh enjoyed driving around the property, and would jump in the drivers seat at any opportunity.
Apart from the black dirt and a few too many flies we have thoroughly enjoyed our stay here.
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