> 6th Sept. Wednesday 1967.
Camped at Merlinleigh Homestead. Chased fox down on flat on way to exposures[bw]. Drove down to the boundary fence and then along it northwards past the big bluff closest to it. This bluff (this hill referred to as the Hill at 24.8 earlier) seems to be the type section. The Tertiary in it is entirely marine and is about 10ft. thick on the Southern side.
Drove through the fence line and across several small creeks to a low isolated outcrop of quartzite & mulga. Find impression of leaves and wood plentiful. Collected these. These do not seem to be bored and there is no sign of marine shells or fossils here. The deposit is very narrow only about 100* or so and perhaps 30-400*in length in an approx E-W direction.
Unfortunately it is nowhere in situ that I can see. It only occurs as weathered boulders on a limited part of the top of one of the mesas overlying the marine sands of the Tertiary sequence but lateral to this it is replaced by boulders of quartzite which are much lighter in colour and quite unfossiliferous.
The best exposures of the fossil(?) leaves us down on the "scree" slopes and in the heaps of weathered boulders below and to the east of the mesa[4115,16].
Drove back to the Homestead for lunch very struck by the resemblance between this and the Kojanup sandstone. Some leaves from memory - even a scrap of what appears to be Nothofagus. There is also the same strap like leaf and unknown [?] proteaceous fruiting bodies. As far as we can see, this has not been reported in the literature and it confines ludbrools [?] as equivalent + between the Plantaganates [?] and the Merlinleigh Fm [4117,8] Plant & word fossils for lectures [?].
After lunch drove down to the Type [?] section and made a collection of the fossils from the Marine series. These are nowhere abundant and seem to be not numerous on the northern side of the big isolated mesa closest to the boundary fence. Collected wood in situ with molluscs, corals, Aturia ( the Nautiloid). No sign of the Echinoids or funans[?] reported previously. No sign of any Facies here.
Back to the homestead after collecting the largest Gecko (Oedura) I have ever seen. A great thick tail - more like a vaumid[?] than a gecko. It was concealing itself in a crevice in the massive chincrest [?] vertical face of the breakaway. I chipped it out - very strong and attempted to bite when I grabbed it. Will try to get it down alive to Glen. Also saw a small Lygorama [?] with a long red tail and stripes on its body.
Met stockman who tells me that the spinifex and red clues[?] which occur on the top of the Merlinleigh ridge go all the way to the coast.
It has been a lovely day - rather hot working in the sun pretty exhausted by about 1400 hrs. this will be a good place to work in Aug.
Turned in v. tired at 21.00 hrs.
> 7th Sept 1967 (Thursday)
Camped at Merlinleigh Homestead. Sched to VJP. 2 TELEGRAMS.
1. TERRELL PHONE 284411 PERTH
LEAVING KENNEDY RANGE TODAY FOR CARNARVON STOP PLEASE ENSURE MEETING PAPERS AT MY HOME STOP ASK LYN RING ME LUNCHTIME SUNDAY REGARDS RIDE
2. BROAD MELLENBYE WA YALGOO SORRY UNABLE CALL MELLENBYE ON WAY BACK FROM NORTH STOP PLEASE FORWARD ANY MAIL TO PERTH STOP REGARDS DAVID RIDE
Packed up specimens before going a little further up the track northwards for a last look.[4119, 4120] Old homestead. Drove a little less than 2 miles N. where the track comes across the breakaways down onto the flat. Here they are with quite extensive exposures of Tertiary. No fossils at all that we could see. Walked across to two isolated breakaways. The furthest cut is entirely Permian found a couple of little bits of wood floating in the valley floor. Bob found an exposure of rotten wood a little North of where we left vehicle.
[4121,22]. Eratic block - brecciated quartz at base of breakaway (Permian) isolated in valley floor, bears homestead[?] 226*. Plant[?] exposures 220*. Drove over to the Plant[?] beds & climbed breakaway to the West of where beds occur as boulders on surface. Bearing to Homestead Mill 245*. Bearing to isolated breakaway (above) 28*. Made fucker collection of plant fossils. Back to homestead for lunch. After lunch packed up and drove out to the beds of rotten wood to collect some in the hope that lab disintegration may reveal something.
Left Merlinleigh for Gascoyne Jun. Collected Cuphibolus[?]. Arrived after dark & put up at the pub for night.
> 8 Sept. 1967 (Friday)
Up at 7.00 and had breakfast. Drove over to see Merv. Johns at the garage & found that the breakdown was a complete write off. A bit had come loose & rattled around inside - cannot be repaired here. Will have to be careful back to Perth.[4123]
Left crossing at 09.30. Fuel 12 1/2 gals.Turned off to Yalbalgo. Country dunes with acacias & grasses. Lots of goats. No sign of exposures. We ought to crovn[?] tertiaries on this route.
Marron Homestead. Still no exposures all low dunes well vegetated. No spinifex on this route at all. Took road to Wahroonga & then Wooramel. Still no exposures. Arrived on the West Coastal Highway at the 550 mile post 12.15 pm. Stopped to look at the exposures atYaringa, as usual nothing. There are divicasted[?] on the top & seem to be an early Tertiary marine limestone. Sharkn bay turn off. Stopped for a meal. Northampton filled up with 19 gals. Drove through tp Dongara where we interviewed Mr. about fossils he had written to Bob about. As suspected, they turned out to be concrete. Brought one of them back in case useful for "pseudofossil" display. Arrived home at 0310 hrs.
End of trip.
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