WA during Covid - we are free to wander out yonder

In what may be the world's most pleasant hostage situation, West Australians have been effectively barred from leaving the state due to the hard border closure that has been in place since late March.
With the annual winter pilgrimage to Bali off the table, most West Australians have been fanning out across the state in record numbers.  Kalbarri, with its spectacular cliffs and gorges has been one of the go-to destinations for people from Perth and further south.  But others from Perth and elsewhere are more adventurous and they wander all around the vastness that is WA.  Campgrounds all the way from Geraldton to Broome are chock-a-block full.

As tourism operators in the rest of the country grapple with an uncertain future and beg for an extension of government assistance, the biggest challenge for WA business has been keeping up with the unprecedented demand.  West Australians typically spend more outside the state than visitors from the east ever bring in.  The Australian newspaper reported that the border closure had begun to look like a cynical exercise aimed at boosting domestic tourism.  But the subsequent outbreaks in Victoria and NSW have justified the health reasons for the WA Premier's unmovable border stance, while delivering some economic boost.

Here are some photos of the diversity of landscape in the Pilbara that we have come across.

Doolena Gorge on the way to Marble Bar.

Strange rock formations on top of a hill.  These rocks are similar to the granite jumble of black rocks we came across in Qld at Black Mountain, on the way to Cooktown.

Landscape near Karijini.







The divide this pandemic has created between places and people has been very sad.  The enormous difference between life inside the contagion and life beyond, where life feels almost normal has been very marked.  We are very fortunate to be, at this time, in the safety of WA.