Wildflower Trip – Part 2

The plan was to follow a wildflower route NW of Moora which I’d found online. 

 

Being naïve, I had anticipated driving the unsealed back country roads viewing fields of pretty wildflowers.  Ken quickly disabused me of that idea.  We would have to hunt for them by leaving the vehicle and bashing our way through the bush.  Moreover they would be tiny and likely not grouped together.  After driving two thirds of the above route I hadn’t seen a flower.  At that point Ken had us stop and start walking.  I’m looking for wildflowers whilst he is carefully watching for snakes!

OK, the last one isn’t a flower!  It’s a gumtree seed pod.  When you shake it you can hear the seed rattling around inside.  The pod will eventually drop of the tree where it will lye dormant until a bushfire will cause the pod to burst open.

We pressed on reaching the end of the route at Jingemia Cave on Eagle Hill Road.  The cave is in a low rocky range in what would otherwise be a flat plain.  The range extends north of Moora some 80km.  For hundreds of years Jingemia Cave has been frequented by bats and birds and their droppings (guano) became a local source of fertilizer in the early 20th century.

 

 Can you see Ken making his way to the cave?

I took the high path for a view of the surrounding wheat belt.

No wildflowers; so we continued north to the next location on Sweetman Drive. 

There was a blue tree just north of Coorow

These trees are not naturally blue.  The locals paint dead trees blue as part of rural men’s mental heath support.  During the past several years there has been a significant spike in male suicide caused by financial concerns following droughts and bushfires.  The trees are a sign to locals that if they are feeling “blue” (depressed) then help is available.

We drove another 160km north to Sweetman Road where the local shire had mentioned there were more wildflowers.  There were NO FLOWERS!  Feeling disappointed, we continued another 70km north to Mingenew where there were supposed to be views of the wildflowers from Mingenew Hill.

Time for a pie and flavoured milk from the local Mingenew Bakery.   But NO FLOWERS!!