Welcome to the travel journal

As I travel about I will be recording my thoughts and observations as semi-regular journal entries, blogs and instagram posts. I expect the subjects covered will be many and varied and in an attempt to classify my notes and photos into some sort of order I will be posting to one of the three channels noted below; so you can click on the links that are of most interest to you.  


Travellers Tales will be a Log where I record the day to day highs and lows of life on the road;
Lighthouse Stories will be a catalogue of my and other peoples lighthouses stories, and
Thoughts of the Solo Traveller will be more introspective and collection of my personal thoughts and observations that I expect will come to the surface as I spend time alone and outside my comfort zone.

observations: the weird & the wonderful

travel advice & tips

the lonesome traveller

Casuarina Point Lighthouse stands prominently on Marlston Drive in Bunbury, Western Australia, its distinctive black and white checkered pattern making it one of the most visually striking maritime landmarks along the state’s coastline. Rising 25 metres tall with a focal height of 43 metres above sea level, this unique structure serves as a vital navigation […]

Lighthouse Stories

#137. Casuarina Point Lighthouse:

Rising from the island known to the Whadjuk Noongar people as Wadjemup meaning “the place across the water where the spirits are”, the two limestone towers of Wadjemup and Bathurst lighthouses have safeguarded vessels approaching Fremantle for over a century. These lighthouses bear witness to both maritime triumph and colonial tragedy, their origins intertwined with […]

Lighthouse Stories

#135-136. Rottnest Island Lighthouses:

The evolution of lighthouses around Fremantle tells the story of Western Australia’s transformation from a struggling colony to a major port serving the riches of the golden west. From the earliest beacon fires on Arthur Head to the sophisticated cast-iron towers marking the harbour entrance, these lighthouses have protected countless vessels over nearly two centuries. […]

Lighthouse Stories

#130-134. The Fremantle Lights:

Be careful what you wish for, after travelling by myself for all but the last three weeks I was looking forward to flying solo again, but the truth is I’d got use to having company and it felt a bit strange to be traveling by myself again. After dropping Richard at Learmonth airport I set […]

Travellers Tales

SXSW:

Guilderton Lighthouse stands at Wreck Point near the mouth of the Moore River, representing the only major navigation light between Fremantle and the lighthouse on Escape Island off Jurien Bay and the last lighthouse to be built in Western Australia. While this is Western Australia’s newest lighthouse it has a long and tragic history. Before […]

Lighthouse Stories

#129. Guilderton Lighthouse:

Overseeing the dangerous reefs offshore from Geraldton Point Moore Lighthouse is Australia’s first all-steel tower built on the mainland, a distinctive red and white striped “barbers pole” that has guided ships into Champion Bay for nearly 150 years. At 34 m it was the fourth-tallest lighthouse in Australia and the tallest metal lighthouse in the […]

Lighthouse Stories

#128. Point Moore Lighthouse:

Although relatively small in stature the Cape Inscription lighthouse is located at a place with a very big history. Dating back to when modern Australia separated from Gondwana, almost before time began, and became our continents western extremity, to the 25th October, 1616 when Dirk Hartog became the first European to set foot on our […]

Lighthouse Stories

#127. Cape Inscription Lighthouse:

After dropping Marianne at the airport in Broome I headed 200km up the Dampier peninsula to visit the Cape Leveque lighthouse. To my surprise and disappointment when I got there I discovered that the two local indigenous communities had closed access to the lighthouse, notwithstanding that all indications were that it was open to the […]

Travellers Tales

Red Rocks & Pay Dirt: The Pilbara

Over the past 130 years there have been a number of lighthouses built to assist mariners navigate the treacherous waters surrounding the Ningaloo reef system and barren coast of the North West Cape. Each of the three lighthouses below has an interesting history and each has either been destroyed, damaged or decommissioned and replaced with […]

Lighthouse Stories

#124-126. The Ningaloo Lights:

Welcome

Join me as I travel around Australia using our historic lighthouses as my waypoints. While these will mark my route it is what happens between them that is as important as discovering the story behind each and every lighthouse.

In many ways this will be a voyage into the unknown, not only for the roads I will travel, the people I will meet and the stories I will discover, but also for the time spent alone.

It will be a new experience for me to be on my own, with no itinerary or timeline, taking each day as it comes and going wherever the urge takes me. By trusting fate and following my instincts I'll allow the road to take me where it will, and by being open to opportunity and adapting to circumstances I trust the journey will be just as interesting as the destinations.

"A good traveller has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving"


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