Well, we started off on our long-awaited trip to Western Australia, our departure delayed by some hours due to having to have a new aerial fitted for our radio (it had snapped off just 2 days before we left!). We were on the road between Narrandera and Hay. At 6pm the sun had set and the moon was shining brightly, when a big kangaroo hopped straight at us and we hit him as we braked. The damage to the car was considerable, and sadly, also to the kangaroo.

We were able to drive on to Hay, but decided the next day to return to Canberra (via Echuca and northern Victoria for a change of scenery) as we weren’t confident we could drive the car for another 15000km or get it fixed quickly enough to get to where we wanted to in WA. Now we’ll be flying to WA and hiring a car there. Will report on Part 2 of our trip when we return!