THE KINGS TOUR

[bobandjacqui]

G'day Kingy and Mez, Good to see that the both of you are still enjoying your trip around the block

The piccies of the Bungles are awesome got to put them on our todo list.

We look forward to seeing more pics of your travels ;D

Cheers Bob and Jacqui

[atouchofglass]

Hey Kingy
Keep the photos coming
Since Daggsey has landed back home things have been a little less colourful.... photo wise

Need plenty of urging to get out and see this great country.

Thanks again

Atog

[Deleted]

Hiya Kingos
Glad to hear you two are safe and well in paradise...
hope ya get a mild summer... nothing over 45 degrees would be nice aye ;D
Also pleased to hear you plan on staying out on the road for at least another 12 months.
With Lady Madonnas Travels on hold us travel starved lesser people rely on you guys for our occassion escape from reality via your updates and photos.

Until next time..saty safe.

Reddo

[humpty2]

Only 480days to go................

[Daggsey]

Ya mongrel Kingy......we were just getting into flatline mode.....work, wait for people to pay you, mow lawn, spray weeds, grow vegies, back on committees, argue with local council (remember all that cr@p??) and then ya go and put on those photos ;D ;D ;D ;D

Got on the internet the other night....1789 jobs goin' in Port Hedland (Just between you and me, our house is probably goin' on the market next week.....if ya can keep that to yourselves it would be appreciated )

Daggy

[kingy]

Ha Hah....told ya there was heapsa work up here did i ;D ;D ;D
Should be able to find something that'll suit ya with that many positions available - We'll save a spot for ya's
Kingy

[kingy]

I'm on a roll here, time for another update - After Fitzroy Crossing we headed on to Derby, staying for three days.
While there we ran into ''Kiwi Jim'' from the sister site ''classic vans'' as well as good friends of Don Ricardo who were camped just behind us.



No shortage of boabs here





Albino Peacock





Then it was onto Broome for a week - very touristy & busy
The pearl industry is still on going, although a lot different than the old days
Few old pearl luggers still exist







Beaches and sunsets are the best you'll see











Hope you like sunsets ;D







Look who we ran into - The ''Loveshack''.....Dave & Pat
Spent a few great days with them at Broome & Barn Hill



Barn Hill is a working station that also caters for the travelling tourist, and is right on the coast - TOP SPOT















While on the beach a hammerhead shark beached itself then turned and swam up and down the shallows for some time - did'nt get any clear photo's Shake'in too much - we'd only just left the water

Cheers Kingy

[Deleted]

Ok Kingy..
Prove to me they are sunsets and not sunrises taken over here before ya went to the far side ;D

Thats a nice hat you got there too ;D ;D ;D ;D

good ta see you have caught up with a few of the west coasters too... Oz is a big place .... but ya cant run and hide.. someone will always bump into you.

Remember the bloke from over the next street from me that turned up at Bingara ...
Bloody small world aye... You guys are definitely in a great part of it over there....
Over a 1000 jobs ya say??
Do they build locos over there ;D ;D ;D

Reddoloco-leco

[kingy]

You'll havta take my word on the sunsets Reddo ;D.... As for the hat, i'm down to only one left don't suppose you've any old stock ;D
As for Loco's.......saw a shipment of brand spank'in new BIG loco's bound for either rio tinto - bhp the other week - they were being offloaded at the port in Hedland ........no camera
Kingy

[Cruz]

Dear Mr & Mrs King,
Could you please stop posting all these photos.YOU BASTARDS.
Wish i was there
Leanne

[kingy]

Sorry Leanne I'll wait till tomorrow then ;D
Kingy

[kingy]

Hi Guy's, Well this post should get us up to date with our travels.
After leaving Barn Hill we headed towards Hedland with a couple of stops in between, Dave - ''loveshack'' who was once stationed at Hedland told us it was'nt a real pretty place as it's full on industry with bhp - rio tinto etc. employing thousands of people. Man was he right
One very noticable thing is the red iron ore dust that is everywhere throughout the town, covering buildings, cars, paths, roads etc.
As mentioned earlier i started work not long after getting into town, carting to a mine site 4 hours south of Hedland.
How long we stay here is uncertain - it all depends on the work situation. Mez got a job at KMart - doing a 15 hr. week ;D.....pays for the rent, which is very high at all parks in the area, at around $250 a week .........housing is another story, would you believe a basic 3 bedroom home goes for around 1.5 mil. . people who own rental propertys are asking and getting $1500- 2000 a week.............The big companys are renting them for their workers
The other highlight of Hedland is that it's smack in the middle of the cyclone territory of which they've had a few.......i've measured the van up and it just fits into a shipping container, as does the car, if need be.



Salt on ya chips anyone - Rio Tinto salt mine





A ship leaving port chocka's full of ore





The tame one's walk the streets up here ;D



It gets a bit windy here also



Some locals going to a fancy dress



Spotted this when we first got into town........it's now in our van park.



This load was on it's way to Newman, and they are quite common. They can hold you up for quite some time













The mine i cart to is owned by the Chinese.....and one of the biggest ........ all the structual pieces we take are made in China












Did i mention this HUGE place facinates me



Everything over here is BIG




Bizzo's glad to be back at work ;D





This is what i'm driving at the moment....a twenty year old restored/rebuilt louisville.......Great old truck
We do long and wide loads also







Till next time, Cheers Kingy

[sutcac]

.......i've measured the van up and it just fits into a shipping container, as does the car, if need be.


.............thats good thinkin mate ...........but what do ya tie the container down with??


...great photos Kingy ........Good to see Bizzo on the job ..........

will miss you as " neighbours " at Coledale Heights in a few weeks time...
.......but will have a rumbo on the strength of it...... ;D ;D ;D

..Stay safe ...and keep the pics coming....they're great

C & B

[cobber]

G'day Kingys,

Great photos mate..... you're getting to see more
of what it's REALLY like out there than most of we
tourist types ever do.
But don't forget to do the tourist things too...like
walk the streets of Tom Price & Newman..... sex toy
shops galore, we were told they have wild parties
in their off time
When we were at Tom Price petrol was .89cents
a litre .... what is it now ..... overnight in
the caravan park was $17

Cobber.

[kingy]

Hi Ya Clydey, Good question re the containers.........i'm told they'll either ''secure'' the box to the ground or shove a ''heavy'' one on top ........apparantly you are well warned in advance of any cyclone and many sheds/factorys etc (which have to be built to withstand cyclones) are used for shelters, so thats another option.
Coledale, yeah we're going to miss not being there also have allways enjoyed it........but distance is a bit of a problem this year ;D
Say hello to Barb for us
Note - 40degs. here at the moment...... not look'in forward to summer - been like this for weeks
Cobber, have'nt been to Tom Price or Newman as yet, hopefully we'll get there real soon.............might do some shopping ;D We're going for a day trip to Marble Bar soon, it's about a 3 hour drive from here
Fuel prices here are ''reasonable'' at $1.40/L
Hello Yvonne
The Kings

[halps]

Great pics Kingy. Keep them coming. We are enjoying reading about your travels.
HALPS
Brisbane

[kingy]

Thanks Geoff, I shoulda put it there in the first place
Kingy

[Swellwillys]

Kool photos Kingy !

Thanks for the education. And keep n coming!

Swellwillys

[kingy]

Thanks Swellwilly's , Halps , and others i've missed.....it's been fun sharing our trip with everyone over the last 18 months AND we're only half way . We've covered around 25,000 K's
We've hopefully got 12 -18 months to go before we even think about going home........which we try not to think about ;D
We know we'll never get to see it all, but we're trying hard ;D......IT"S a magic place out here - as are the people.
It's all Mark's fault, and Daggsey & Carrots who talked us into it ;D........Can't thank ya's enough
Kingy & Mez

[kingy]

Hi Gang...........41 deg. here in Pt. Hedland today . .........47deg. in the annexe.........Can't wait for summer ;D
Kingy

[halps]

I heard that it is a dry heat...does that mean it is good to cool down with some XXXX? ;D
HALPS
PS: Keep this thread going kingy.

[Daggsey]

Hi Kingy & Mez,

18 degrees here in the South West today



Can't wait for summer ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

Daggsey

[kingy]

Howdy All, well still slave'n away here in Hedland, with the weather becoming a little harsher by the day .......especially the wind . The EH has been put in storage, and has'nt turned a wheel in around 6 weeks. We picked up a 94 camry to run around in, rather than use the EH........besides, you havta have an AIR CON up here ;D
Work came to a stand still when our last ship was unloaded, so my boss put me onto a mate of his who has a few trucks, and carts to a variety of places........can't believe the places i get to see while being paid for it. It's been a great experience.
The next boat's due in shortly, so it's back to boss no. 1

Gotta keep the sun off up here



Hey Reddo, member i said i had'nt a camera when the new loco's arrived....have now. Here,s two of the 14 going to BHP, a cool 2 mill. each



Carted material out off BHP for a week........people pay for a tour around here.











Some big stuff







Then it was onto carting concrete railway sleepers to a BHP site out in the middle of nowhere ......about 250 k's inland from Pt Hedland, off the main drag and into the scrub. There's a few mines out here, and all the material is sent by rail back to Hedland for shipment.

Thousands of sleepers



Many k's on dirt tracks, and plenty dusty ;D








Pulled over at one stage and took these shots of the trucks and the scenery, for many a klm. you see nothing but nothing........not even weeds grow out here . no green what so ever - just red. It's an eerie feeling, if you were blind folded and dumped out here, you'd think you were on another planet.








Still have'in a ball, till next time
Kingy

[DC3Td]

Hi Kingy. Knowing you`re having a great time seeing a lot of places/sites most folk wouldn`t ordinarily get to see & don`t envy you somewhat, was wondering what camera you use as there`s a stack of awesome pics that show amazing distance clarity? cheers gordon

[Don Ricardo]

G'day Kingy,

Thanks for another set of great photos. They show us a part of Australia that many of us will never have the chance to see.

It's hard to credit that the country can be so barren - not even weeds. I guess things green up quite a bit quite quickly if there's a bit of rain?

How are you going to adapt to driving an EH and a Supalite when the time comes, after driving a road train around the place?

Don Ricardo