If the getting there summed up the stay then Carnarvon would be a nightmare for me. Fortunately, there is not direct causal impact.
After a week in Perth to celebrate birthdays with Ethan, Thali, Jenni, Georg and Jenna I was due to fly to Carnarvon on the Sunday. We took off but turned back around due to a problem pressurising the cabin. The plane was meant to be repaired and we would take off later but it was cancelled and we were all left stranded with no alternative flight available until Friday.
While we were waiting for the plane to be repaired I struck up conversation with the head of nursing at the hospital in Carnarvon. She had to be at work on Monday which was not going to happen now. When the plane was cancelled I suggested that we stay the night near the airport and hire a car the next day and do the 9 hour drive to Carnarvon, sharing the driving as we go.
So next morning we went back to the airport and hired the car. All was going really well until we made it to a town just outside Geraldton where we noticed that 1 of the tyres was flat. We did manage to get it fixed but took about 3 hours and put us well behind schedule. And what schedule meant was the need to be off the road before dusk otherwise the Kangaroos goats and cows crossing the road become a real issue. Anyway we managed to get to our destination without any more hiccups And so my time began in Western Australian coastal town.
The 1 thing that really Obvious on the car journey north was the lack of rivers. We travelled for 9 hours and probably only crossed less than half a dozen rivers, most of which were bone dry. This part of Australia is really dry, really barren and very harsh. It is probably typified by the fact that the river that goes through I Carnarvon, called the Gascoyne, is what is referred to as an upside down river. On the surface it looks bone dry but underneath there is an aquifer of water running towards the coast. The local indigenous mob used to dig down and access the water enabling them to thrive in this area.
The major feature in Carnarvon is what is called the Fascine which is defined as reinforcements of a bank to allow for a firm path around a boggy patch. Well it is not quite that but what it was was a very nice waterway that I managed to look out over everyday. Apart from that there was not a lot happening in Carnarvon.
However, one thing that was on while we were there was the pride march affectionately known as Queernarvon. I didn’t march with them but I did hang out and take some photos. The community there was very strong despite the fewer numbers. To be Queer in the city is a challenge enough but to be queer in a small country town where everyone knows your business must be shockingly hard. So I was really quite moved by the closeness of this community and they support they have for each other. I can’t imagine what the other 364 days of the year are like.
For a large stretch of the coast from north of Carnarvon all the way to Geraldton is the Ningaloo Reef. The home to an amazing array of fish both small and large as well as whales and the famous whale shark. OK it is not the Barrier Reef but on the snorkel I did I managed to see some pretty amazing things. I swear I don’t think I saw the same species of fish twice there were that many. The water is this amazing blue and then it butts up to a red, rocky, barren coast. Incredible contrast. A very special experience and one we really do need to protect. When I was snorkelling I was just mesmerised by this piece of creation that is invisible to us from the land but when you break that barrier and look below you see a myriad of life and beauty. If I can be philosophical for a moment I think people are like the reef. From the outside we only see a fraction of them. It is only when we dig deep and take a look inside someone that we realise what else is there.
Life is hard in small towns. But when you put that small town on the desert coast of the Indian Ocean then you get tough magnified. The people that live there want to be there. They have been born there so appreciate it from that perspective or they just have a thing for that kind of environment. Not my cuppa tea but an amazing place to visit.
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