The Pacific

Monument to the Bounty in Papeete

Anyone who reads this blog knows that I have a thing about journeys and I do get caught up into the history of these routes.

This has happened again in a way I did not expect. When I was planning this trip I was reluctant to say how I was going to the UK. I felt uncomfortable about the self indulgent 7 weeks. The first few days I wondered what I had done, 7 weeks but now that has changed.

I am sailing…

Sydney to Southampton 2015

So it is now just a little over a week into my trip on the Queen Victoria from Sydney to Southampton, a journey of 51 days across the Pacific and through the Panama Canal.

Queen Victoria in Sydney

I know there are quicker ways of going to the UK.

Scraping the barnacles off the blog

The tyranny of Twitter

As I  am about to embark on a 5 months trip I thought it was time to scrape the barnacles off the blog.   So a change of name.  Why?  Well bmpermie meant something to me but not much to most. In fact I didn’t even explain it in my About page.  ‘BM’ is for Blue Mountains, where I live outside Sydney and ‘permie’ is someone who follows the design principles of Permaculture.

Where are we now? Cook

When I went to Perth on the Indian Pacific in 1980 with Emma the train called into a number of small communities, whose sole purpose was to service the train and the railways. All goods were brought to the towns by the train.
On this trip the train stopped for water and fuel at only one community, Cook, but much has changed.

Canning Stock Route – Things along the way

Camping under desert oaks at Lake Disappointment

The land we travelled through was mostly Indigenous Protected Areas (IPA lands) which require a permit for access.

An Indigenous Protected Area is an area of Indigenous-owned land or sea where traditional owners have entered into an agreement with the Australian Government to promote biodiversity and cultural resource conservation. Indigenous Protected Areas make a significant contribution to Australian biodiversity conservation – making up over a third of Australia’s National Reserve System.

Canning Stock Route – 2

We were 16 passengers of mature age who had all travelled with Outback Spirit previously. There were 4 terrific blokes who drove the purpose designed vehicles, set up camp, cooked our meals, provided information on the track and the Surveyor Alfred Canning, and kept the show on the road.

Canning Stock Route – 1

Canning Stock Route

Sign at intersection at the start, the intersection with the Tanami Track

Map of the Canning Stock Route from Wikepedia.

Travelling the Canning Stock Route was an incredible experience. We were 16 passengers of mature years with 4 incredible blokes in 2 4 wheel drive vehicles towing trailers and 2 6 wheel trucks. We are on the track for 14 days and saw half a dozen other vehicles and one Polish fellow riding a bike along the route.

It is different here – Broome

Cable Beach – haze is due to bushfires.

Broome is different, not just the climate and the fact that it has 2 seasons, wet and dry but perhaps because it is 3382 km from Sydney or 5 hours flying time. One guide talking about the history of the pearling industry said that in the early 20th century laws made by Perth or Canberra were taken as a recommendation.

Canning Stock Route

Canning Stock Route & Indian Pacific

View Full Size Travel Map at Travellerspoint

The purpose of this trip is to travel down the legendary Canning Stock Route.
However first I need to fly to Broome where I will join the 16 day Outback Spirit tour which ends in Newman. We then fly to Perth. Being a train buff I will return to Sydney by the Indian Pacific.

Bmpermie Why?

Archie holding Brenda

I write this blog about my travels, food and gardens. The name bmpermie says it all really,”bm”” is Blue Mountains west of Sydney where I live and “permie”is short for permaculture which is the design principles by which I try to live.