Packing the trailer for the last time.
Today was day eleven, and our last chance to have breakfast and pack the tents and trailer to a deadline. It was a fairly strict one to, with our plan to be out of the campsite and down the road by nine o’clock sharp.
Things did not quite go the way we had planned. Breakfast didn’t wrap up until about twenty to nine which then delayed packing the utensils into the trailer until about ten past.
Thankfully we got on the road by twenty past and we started to make our way south to lake Thetis, which would be our primary destination for the day. It was about a two and a half hour drive, however, this was extended to more than four with the usual number of re-fuelling and coffee stops.
Looking into the murky waters of lake Thetis
We arrived at the lake around two and quickly rushed down the board walk to its edge where the stromatolites were to be found. Even though it was fairly small and completely inland, Lake Thetis had a very high level of salinity (almost 1.5 times that of sea water) which is thought to be one of the reasons that Stromatolites find it a favourable environment.
An underwater shot of a Lake Thetis Stromatolite
Unlike the ones we had seen in the ocean the previous day, the Stromatolites in the lake were much flatter and took on quite a number of different shapes. As seen in the pictures, one recurring style was circular with a small depression in the middle.
Looking down on the Stromatolites
About an hour was spent walking around the lake, in which time the team observed quite a number of shells washed up on its banks, water birds on its surface, and a number of different water plants growing around the edges. However, we saw no fish in the water whatsoever, so there would seem to be little around to prey on the Stromatolites.
Upon leaving the lake the group split, with two cars heading straight back to Perth, and the other three going to the Pinnacles Desert, a famous area just south of lake Thetis.
For those that hadn’t been there before the Pinnacles Desert was a very interesting environment, and as one team member said, it looked “completely Alien”. As we were arriving the rain which had kindly been absent for most of our trip began to pour. This meant the more sensible individuals stayed in the cars as we did the short desert drive, but a brave few (equipped with waterproof cameras) got out to take a closer look at the rock formations.
The Pinnacles Desert
After leaving the Pinnacles we made our way back to Perth and made quite good progress, arriving ten minutes before the end of the dinner provided by Trinity College. After having a big meal we set to unpacking the cars, making sure that anything anyone owned was removed as they were to be returned that night.
Since it was our first night back in civilisation many people retired quite early, however, one group remained up for some hours until they finally decided it was far too late to be awake for the 7 am breakfast planned for the following morning.
The view over the Pinnacles
The open fire hot water system for our showers.
On day ten we were fairly rushed to leave in the morning as a ranger was set to come down and accompany us to the Stromatolites, just ten kilometres away at Carbla point.
Since the road down to the point was quite rough we decided to leave one car and the trailer behind so that there would be no chance of them getting bogged.
A dolphin washed up on the beach.
The beach at Carbla point was unique in many ways. First of all, it was almost entirely made of small shells about a centimetre across. Although this was quite sharp on bare feet, at least they were easier than sand to brush off. (and didn’t tend to get stuck between toes!) The second special feature of the site, and the one which had brought us there, was the Microbial Mats and Stromatolites very close to the shore.
A washed up sea snake on the beach.
After a quick speech by the Ranger, the group dissipated in all direction. As it was still fairly early in the morning nobody was particularly interested in getting into the cold water right away so most just spread out along the beach.
Close to the shore there were many Microbial Mats, which are similar biological formations to Stromatolites. In fact, at a couple of locations we even saw a seamless transition from matt to Stromatolite, with no apparent difference in the organisms creating the two.
A stromatolite in the shape of Australia
We got into the water at about lunch time and most of us swam out into the deeper areas to see the larger formations. Many of these were more than a metre tall and surprisingly there was an abundance of fish surrounding them. This was unexpected, because the theory as to why Stromatolites formed in the area rather than others was that there were no predators, due the high salinity.
A microbial mat appears joined to a stromatolite.
The GPS cameras which had been bought by the Coopers came in useful again, as they were apparently waterproof (or at least claimed to be). Again, only one was charged, but we could take this one out with us swimming to take underwater photos and video, such as the one at the bottom of this page.
Some Stromatolites seen from the beach.
After everyone had had their go at swimming, and subsequent shivering on the beach, we quickly packed into the cars and made our way back to the shearing shed HQ. Unfortunately, on the way off the beach one of the Land Cruisers became bogged and our trusty ranger (who evidently knew far more than us about motoring) had to dig it out and send us on our way. Once back at the station we packed the remaining car and set on our way down the coast to Geraldton. This was about a four hour drive and went mostly without hitch, although once again the car with the trailer (which should have been the slowest) managed to arrive a good twenty minutes before the rest of the convoy.
A cluster of stromatolites off of the beach.
We set up the tents, and then prepared for dinner. An expedition party was sent out to find some bread for the morning, but unfortunately this proved quite difficult as almost everywhere was closed. This took close to an hour, but one break down and twenty stops later we managed to get our bread and make it back to camp. After dinner we sat down on our camp chairs and had a short chat about the day’s Stromatolite observations, however, this was rudely interrupted by two very bright meteors, which burned in the upper atmosphere for at least ten seconds each. (And were far brighter than stars)
The ranger digging out our troublesome land cruiser
We were told by Larry that these had probably been about 5-10 metres across, and that they had bounced off of the atmosphere (as they had instantly dimmed during their flight). Our expedition leader Chris McKay instructed us to cover our tents in aluminium foil, as this was a sign that the Aliens were coming.
Some stromatolites in deeper water, along with some fish.
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Day nine was quite a nice day, with mostly clear skies and a temperature of about 25 degrees. Unfortunately, over night there had been quite a lot of dew, so we found that the chairs which had been left outside were now quite soaked, and would need to be dried out once back in Perth.
The Dish we saw on our way through Carnarvon.
We got going from the camp site at about 9:30 and began to make our way to Shark Bay. It was about a 500km drive, so it was to take up a fair portion of the day. Along the way we stopped a number of times, however the shenanigans of previous days were mostly averted. In order to save time everyone ate their packed lunches on the go, which we had made at breakfast from a range of ingredients set out by Maureen. Along the way we saw the radio telescope in Carnarvon, part of the NASA tracking network, however we did not get out to do anything more than take photographs.
The cars pulled up on the side of the Indian Ocean in Denham.
At about 2:30 we arrived in Denham, a town close to the Shark Bay stromatolites. We were going to come back the following day to see them, so in the afternoon we went to see a nice aquarium on the road into the town. It was down on the sea front, and included its own Cafe and Shop. Since we had such a large group, the staff put on a special tour just for us and gave us all concession discounts. A few elected to stay outside and enjoy Beers on the balcony, but the majority of the Spaceward Bound team went in to have a look.
Looking at a pond in the aquarium.
During the tour we got to see many examples of the wildlife found in the seas of the area, such as a Squid, Sharks, Lion Fish and a Sea Turtle currently in rehabilitation. We got to see one big tank full of the commonly caught fish of Western Australia, and food was thrown in to attract many to the surface. Included in this tank were a couple of Barramundi, the same kind of fish we had eaten for dinner just two days earlier.
We also got to see the tour guide play with the sharks (which were in a separate tank) using some fish heads on the end of a rope. Although the sharks were quite large the guide assured us that they were harmless and that he often got into the tank with them in order to scoop up algae from the bottom.
Sitting around the camp site at night.
After we left the aquarium we made the long drive back to the Carbla Station were we were planning to stay for the night. Since it was fully outfitted, we did not need to set up tents or stretchers and could just sleep on their beds in our sleeping bags. Some members of the team were very surprised by how autentic the accommodation really was. We had just a tin shed to sleep in, with plenty of holes in the walls, and showers in an outhouse, which had warm ground water heated up by an open fire. The owners of the Station were very accommodating, and came over to talk to us as we sat around a camp fire and talked about the plans for the following day.
Day eight was another Travel day, so for most of us it was quite a relaxed start. However, there was one car of five which had to leave early to get to a local mine in order to examine an excavated Mesa. This was to take about two hours, after which they were going to make their way to our middle-of-nowhere campsite.
Fixing the troublesome car.
We made our way out of Karratha without any problems (a refreshing change from the day before) then we set off down the road in a convoy to the camp destination. After about an hour of driving we pulled up at a service station, as most of the cars were running low on fuel. However, after refuelling one of the cars we found that it would no longer start, which was certainly not good news. The problem was identified as a missing bolt on the alternator, without which the starter motor could not function. Unfortunately there were no replacement parts for sale, so we had to find a replacement from other areas of the vehicle.
Still fixing the car.
After trying about a dozen different non-essential bolts around the Car’s engine we finally discovered one of the right dimensions to replace the one which had gone missing. This was put in, and with a jump start from one of the other cars, we got the Engine finally ticking over.
As the car was about to leave we could hear that the starter motor belt was still loose, at which points the other cars figured it was about time to push on in order to reach the camp before night. This forced a decision to leave the trouble making car and its passengers behind to await assistance, as the rest of the team pushed on.
Arriving at the location for our overnight camp.
We arrived at the camp location at about 5 pm and managed to set up the tents and cooking areas before dark. This was followed by a barbequed meal of sausages, after which we watched a documentary on the native people of the Rio Grande which had been produced by Daniel.
A view of the beach at Port Hedland early in the morning.
Since there was not a large amount of driving to be done on day seven, we got off to a fairly relaxed start, with the team not leaving the camp site until about ten thirty. Although the cars were packed well before this, some members needed to run errands in Port Hedland and Mark and Carol had to wait for a local news reporter who was en route to interview them for a broadcast later in the day.
When we finally got on the road the convoy set off on the drive south to Karratha, which if everything went as planned, would take only about two and a half hours.
A large earth mover in Port Hedland.
However, as we were leaving Port Hedland we realised we needed to fill up on fuel, so we decided to call in to a BP service station, which unfortunately was next to a Woolworths Supermarket. This meant everyone left vehicles and spread throughout the area like ants. This unfortunately extended the fuel stop for about an hour, after which time two cars decided to leave. As the leavers were the only ones that knew the way this left the other three cars lost at sea, so they took an additional half hour to catch up.
This was not a complete waste of time however, as whilst we were perusing the supermarket we found that on page six of The Weekend West (Western Australia’s Newspaper) was a picture of an Astronaut being arrested, which had been taken when we were testing two days earlier. This was good news for the team, as one major goal of Spaceward Bound has been to raise public awareness of space-related endeavours. However, the accompanying story claimed that
local stromatolites were only 3.5 million years old (a factor of 1000 too small), although at least the gist of the story was conveyed correctly.
A Bird at our lunch stop.
Along the way to Karratha we stopped for lunch in a small pub/road house which had two pet parrots, both named Harry, who were very intent on saying Hello Harry whenever anyone came near. Thankfully this did not have the chance to wear too thin, as we were soon back on the road for an additional hour and a half until we arrived at our camp site for the night. By the time we were all set up it was only about four thirty, which gave the team members enough time to go for a run (if they were so motivated) and swim. Although the pool was very cold it was quite refreshing after the hot day, but even then many people refused to get in. For dinner we had a nice North American meal of Tacos.
Later on, like the night before, some of the team went out to a local convention centre and gave the locals a talk about the space program, as well as a demonstration of the suit and some of our other scientific equipment.
A view of Karratha from the top of a hill. Our camp site is in the trees at the centre of the picture.
Day Six was the most ambitious get-up-and-get-ready effort so far. The plan was to have a cold breakfast and be out of the camp site as early as seven thirty if at all possible. As previous performances had been closer to nine o’clock this looked fairly unlikely, however, against all odds the convoy of vehicles rolled out of the camp site at about twenty to eight.
Making our way to the North Pole site.
The destination for the day was the Stromatolite site called North Pole, which was some way back down the road we had taken to the previous day. The trek included a substantial drive on a very rough track, which would have been very difficult had we not had such hardy vehicles.
We arrived at the site in the early afternoon and after a short picnic lunch, (on the only spot of grass in sight) we made our way on foot the rest of the distance to the site.
Still making our way through the bush.
Many of the researchers had been looking forward to visiting this location for some time as it could potentially show us some examples of Stromatolites rarely found elsewhere. The team’s exploration of the area was mostly successful, and a few good sized faces with large three dimensional stromatolites, rather than the usual 2d cross section, were found. We took many photographs of these and logged their locations in case further research was needed.
The famed cave, along with Kangaroo skeleton.
Also found at the site was a small cave which contained the skeleton of a Kangaroo. The general consensus as to why the bones was there was that the animal must have crawled in and died on a hot day. However, one team member had an interesting theory that there was an Eagle hunting fully grown Kangaroos (and carrying them up mountains), which we decided would need some more investigation.
As the site is protected by a nature reserve we were not allowed to take any samples home with us, but in the hours that we were there the team and its many cameras managed to photograph almost every point of interest at high resolution, so if nothing else we have a complete photographic database of the location.
 A stromatolite at the site. |
 The view across the dry river bed. |
 More Stromatolites. |
Late in the afternoon we began the drive home, and arrived some time after dark. Everyone was very relieved to get into hot showers after which five people headed off to give a talk (and suit demonstration) to some of the locals. This went well, and the party got back to the camp site just in time for dinner which had been prepared by Maurine.
Admiring the view.
A shot of Nullagine early in the morning.
Day five started fairly early with a nice breakfast of bacon and eggs, as well as the usual assortment of cereal and fruit. Since it was a nice day (like the previous one) taking down the tents was quick, and we were able to get away without too much delay. Only four cars left at first, with the other two waiting behind so that they could fix some of the scientific equipment which had not been functioning the previous day.
The view from the top of the Mesa as team members clamber up. In the foreground you can see some spiky Spinifex.
The convoy that left drove south for about 70 kilometres to a private farm/mine, where we were kindly allowed to look at a local Mesa (kind of rock formation). A number of the team members had been wanting to do this, as samples from the area would help them with their research. The rock formations that we wanted to take a look at were at the top of a fairly small hill which unfortunately was covered in Spinifex, a spiky cactus which caused much grief to everybody’s shins.
Some rugged cars at the farm containing the Mesa, seen as we were leaving.
At the top it was explained that the formation was the bed of an ancient river, but due to it being made of harder stone than the surroundings, it had not eroded whilst the rest of the landscape had. This made an interesting level plateau which could be seen to run throughout the landscape, almost parallel to a modern dry creek bed.
An outcropping seen on our way to Port Hedland
After leaving the site the team travelled back north to Nulligine then continued, after a quick stop, to Marble Bar. The two cars that had been left behind earlier in the day had left two hours before, so they would have been almost at the spot for our overnight camp. When the rest of the cars arrived mid-afternoon, and after a short look around the town’s war memorial, we decided to continue to Port Hedland. (which had been the planned stop off for the following night) This was because staying in Marble Bar would have involved bush camping, which didn’t seem to be a popular option with most of the team.
As we arrived in Port Hedland we got to see some of the town’s industry for which it was famous. Right next to the road were a number of salt lakes, and in the distance we could see many cranes at the town’s harbour, one of the busiest in Australia.
Our day early arrival at the camp site was understandably surprising for the owners, however, they were able to provide tent spots for most of the team and there were enough cabins available for the others to sleep in.
A mountain of Salt in Port Hedland
An action shot of Chris McKay.
Day four provided quite reasonable weather, about 20 degrees Celsius, and gave the team its first full day of sunshine without the threat of rain. As we did not have to pack up camp, we managed to get away quite early on day four. We all packed our own lunches; salad, fruit and sausages for most, then transferred all of the equipment we wanted to take into five vehicles so the trailer could be left behind on the day’s trek.
It was a short drive out to the Dawn of Life site which was made easier by the dry conditions of the past 24 hours, which meant the road was no longer a mud bath. The cars pulled up at just before ten and everyone split up into groups to work for the day. The major two groups included one to help survey the area, making photographs and GPS waypoints of interesting sites, and another focusing on testing the prototype mars suit which had been brought along.
One of many stromatolitic growths found on day three.
The surveying group had a very successful day and found examples of all kinds of formations that the scientists had hoped to during their time in Australia. Unfortunately, as it had not been functioning when tested the night before, the scientific equipment could not be used in the field as hoped. That aside, a lot of photographic evidence was retrieved so if any startling discoveries are made team members can always come back for more research, thanks to accurate locations recorded for all of the pictures.
Testing the prototype Mars suit on the rough terrain.
The Space Suit team had designed a small course where users of the suit would examine rock formations for fifteen minutes, and tell the examiner whether they could see signs of early life or not. Although this may seem simple, in the thick rubbery suit on a hot day our would-be astronauts soon became very sweaty. This made the fifteen minute course about all that anyone could stand, but the astronauts were more than willing to help out in the name of science.
Some local school children with Spaceward Bound team members.
Sometime during mid afternoon a few car loads of local school children came to look at the research going on. They were very excited to see people in space suits waddling around the bush, and they wasted no opportunity to take photos of each other with the strangely dressed mars men.
Late in the afternoon a policeman and his family turned up at the site, after driving for more than four hours to where they had heard scientists were doing Mars experiments. They were very pleased to receive a guided tour from Chris, and got to see all the best sites which we had found throughout the day. Soon after they had left the team packed up and began to make their way home. Along the way the convoy stopped a number of times and everyone got to sample a tasty Australian treat, Sturt’s Desert Pea, which was spotted growing along the side of the road by the lead car.
Sturt's Desert Pea, one we tasted on the way home.
After arriving back after dark everyone was treated to a delicious dinner which even consisted of multiple courses. Soon afterwards a number of team members gave a presentation at the local school, which was attended by just about the entire population of the small town. Here we spoke about planned Mars missions, space suit design, what it is like being a current student, and also how we can educate the next generation of scientists in space related disciplines. The crowd of young and old seemed quite enthralled, and Chris in particular was barraged with questions on how planned exploration of Mars will work in the future.
Our Land Cruiser stopped as we waitied for photographers to return.
Today the team set off at about 10 to continue the journey to Nullagine. Although this was only a 200km journey, it was over rough road which had not been helped by the constant rain of the previous few days. During this leg some of our Americans saw their few Kangaroos, they looked cute at first, but this changed when later the lead vehicle almost crashed into one whilst returning to camp in the dark. Along the way we stopped a number of times at opportune photo locations where the team enjoyed getting some quick pictures, as well as geological explanations of the area from John.
Our convoy stopped for a photo opportunity.
Due to the muddy road it took until 2pm to reach our new base of operations, but thanks to our new found expertise in setting up tents and cooking utensils, the entire camp was complete by 3:30. A DIY sandwich lunch was prepared in no time, and we managed to be away just after four for the journey down the dirt road out of town to the Cradle of Life site.
A picture of some mountains, as taken from the peak of another.
At the site we soon found some stromatolites which are known to be about 3.46 Billion years old, making them relics of some of the oldest life on earth. The team diverged to all corners of the area, each taking their own pictures as they searched for objects relating to their interests. Unfortunately the light was fading, meaning this could only go on for about an hour. So, with the promise of returning the following morning, we made our way back to Nullagine for the night.
The cars as we made our way down an overgrown road.
When we got back to the camp site Maurine had prepared a delicious Beef Stroganoff, which the whole team enjoyed right when promised. (Although it was quite a late dinner due to the long drive back from the site) This was followed by a brief meeting discussing the plan for the following day, which led into testing the scientific equipment which was going to be taken out to the site early the next morning.
A stromatolite on the ground at the Cradle of Life site.
A second Stromatolite at the cradle of life.
Our cars after packing up in the morning.
At the crack of dawn the team left their tents and began to get ready for the following day. Some of the tents were quite an interesting sight, as they had been pitched in the darkness the previous night by a fairly inexperienced workforce.
After a nice breakfast of Bacon and Eggs the trailer was re-packed and we began making our way north once again.
As this was the trip’s major day of travelling there was little sight-seeing to be done along the route. We did however get some nice pictures of birds of prey along the route, courtesy of the lead car which made sure to tell us what to look at as we came up behind them. Also seen were goats and cattle, however there were no Kangaroos in sight to please some of our American companions who had still yet to see one.
Looking down the convoy at a roadside stop.
During the afternoon the trailer experienced a major blowout, which saw one of its rear wheels ripped completely to shreds and the corresponding tail light taken out by the flying rubber., This was only a temporary setback, as there was a spare wheel and a jack on board, but it gave everyone a good opportunity stretch their legs and take a look at some of the many termite mounds in the area.
Around six thirty we arrived in Newman, and decided to change plans and stop there for the night. ( rather than continuing on for another couple hours in the dark to the planned destination) This time the tents were pitched expertly, thanks to the previous nights practice, and the cooking area was set up. Thanks to the many chefs it produced a great spread in record time.
 A friendly local butcher at our lunch stop. |
 Apparently there is a tradition for elderly citizens to spend time looking at rocks. |
