Easter Camping Trip--Day 2--Burtville and the House of Dreams

The next morning the first person up stoked the fire.  We had breakfast and broke camp.  On our way back out to the main road we followed a fence line that led us up onto the rim of the breakaway.  As is typical up on top of the cliff, the country behind was sandy spinifex country.

Open spinifex country

This is the first time I have actually seen seed heads on the spinifex.

As we travelled back on the main dirt road past Mertondale we stopped at another interpretive panel telling us about the environmental effects of feral goats.  I was more interested in this rock outcrop with some nice Ptilotus flowers growing on top and a view of Mulga country behind.  Mulga is Acacia aneura and is the dominant shrub-tree in this country.

The road we were traveling on took us past Erlistoun Pastoral Station and then past the RX station.  Most of this way was in sandy spinifex country.  Some of it had been burnt out and as always there are interesting things that germinate in country that has been burnt out.  Halgania cerulea was blooming with its royal blue flowers. And growing up over the edge of the road is a very strange leafless plant called  Leptosema chambersii.  I pulled the branches back so you can see the flowers below that form a wreath around the base of the plant.  The flowers are a tubular red flower.  Once Phil and I found one growing in top of a dune and you could see the tiny foot prints of a mouse like marsupial that had been walking right up to the flowers.  We wondered if they are pollinated by a small marsupial.

Anthrotroch with its dark purple flowers

Anthrotroch

Lots of these small germinants coming up.  I don't know what it is.

Just an overview of the vegetation 

This is a much better picture of the Leptosema chambersii flowers.

Close up of the flower

Lunch time in the shade of Marble gums, Eucalyptus gongylocarpa

Some sort of succulent

A member of the Malvaceae family, or Hibiscus

After lunch we eventually rolled into Laverton.  It was Saturday morning and just before noon the shops were open.  We fuelled up and by the time we rolled down main street it was after 12. The place was like a morgue. Except we met Sylvia and Desmond in front of the pub.  They must have looked at us and thought we were the answer to their prayers but they didn't get anything out of us.

We headed south east to Burtville and discovered there that the archway of the old pub had fallen down or disappeared since we were there last.  Phil was really upset. The arch of the pub was a favorite stopping spot on our way home after a long day in the field.  We used to stop there and have a bit of a stretch of the legs before continuing on to the mining village for the evening.  We continued south of Burtville to the breakaways that we had promised everyone they would see and like.  We got lost.  Turned left at the first fenceline instead of the second one.  However we just kept following fencelines and in the end we ended up at the top of the breakaway instead of at the bottom as we had planned.  We didn't fancy camping up there although the view was spectacular.  We were worried that a wind or bad weather might blow up in the night.  The sun was dropping below the horizon so it was decided to take the bull dozer track down to the bottom.  This is the track that I swore I would never go down again but Phil convinced me after he walked it that it would be ok.  The track at one point is only one and a half a vehicle wide with cliff on either side and then just at that point the track drops steeply ahead and makes a right hand turn at the same time so you cannot see where you are going.  I just closed my eyes but Phil expertly got us down in first gear without even a hint of a slide.  Hew.  We camped that night on a level knee of the hill.  Saw an unusual tiny marsupial while collecting firewood.  Phil said it looked like a deer mouse but with a longer snout.

The next morning we drove around to some Gnamma holes that Phil and I had found a few years ago.

These Galas were either tame or refusing to abandon their waterhole!

Me photographing me in the water of the gnamma hole

I wondered who put this stick in and why

Cavalcade parked in front of the hole

View off the low breakaway near the gnamma hole

Next we drove back down to the creek and crossed over to the Rowena mine workings.  The track followed the creek downstream to this old abandoned Out Station that would have been used by the pastoralists when they were working far from the homestead.  We fell in love with this place the first time we ever saw it.

Welcome to The House of Dreams!

It even had a kitchen bench!

The paint has faded.  In white it says, "ROWENA".  In black it says The House of Dreams (Wetones).  Just imagine if walls could tell tales.  On second thought.....let's not.

Remains of an old windmill and tank next to the creek.

Phil and I dubbed this Tithill.  You get this stuff when you work out bush with blokes.

Hakea suberea.  Only seen near wells and Homesteads in this area.

One last loving look before departing.  Hakea preissii in the left foreground.

We stood up on top last night

Dysphania kalpari

These last pictures of the gnamma hole and the house of dreams took place really on Day three but I included them in Day two because if we had not gotten lost we would have been there on day two.  My next blog for Day three will start after we leave the House of Dreams and head back north to Burtville.  See you there!