After Kalgoorlie it was time to move on, chasing the sun northwards for some warmth ! I headed north and across to the coast, bypassing perth and surrounding area, I’m not a city boy.
Last night was spent at Cliff Head North, where I met Richard and Soph that I mentioned in my last post. This spot was a great stopover, free camping right next to the beach. It was certainly in stark contrast to the adjacent shire, the Shire of Carnamah, which had “No Camping” signs every 5 kms along the roadside plus at every little track off the main road.

Welcome to Hutt River

Next stop was at the “Hutt River Province” … a wheat farm that declared itself independent in 1970 . The state government introduced quotas for wheat farmers, and Leonard Casley was allocated only 100 acres after already sowing thousands of acres.
After the government threatened to resume their land, Leonard Casley declared the Principality of Hutt River independent.
At one stage “Prince Leonard” declared war on Australia, then while the Australian government was still laughing, proclaimed peace 3 days later and quoted some point of international law which, according to him, justified his claim of independence because the province was undefeated. Since then he has appointed Ambassadors and consuls, even a Commander of his Navy although the only water on his farm is a small dam !

The flag flying proudly

The royal limousine

Prince Leonard was not there when I visited, he had taken his wife “abroad” to Perth for medical treatment, but I did get to met Prince Ian, his son. Some people reckon he is a bit of a nutter, the government just ignores him, but he is making money from tourists, plus his farm income, so I reckon good on him !
The next morning it was a short drive to the coast and on to Kalbarri, with the sun shining and the temperature several degrees warmer, life was looking better !

There is a rather impressive gorge in the Kalbarri National Park, with a couple of good walks. Of the 2 walks the shorter “gorge trail” was the best IMHO ….parts of it were rather “Indiana Jones-ish” , climbing ladders and clambering over rocks, with part of the trail along a narrow crack in the rocks. The “Loop ” walk is much longer and hotter, and less rewarding in my opinion.

Surfing Jakes Point

Kalbarri is also known as a surfing spot, so I took the chance to get some surfing pics. More practice needed I think !

Tomorrow it is back on the road, heading further north towards Coral Bay and then Exmouth.