Full Record

David Ride : [field notebook] : Fitzgerald (1970)
Record no:
Call no:
FN210
Author:
Year:
19 - 22 July 1970
Description:
15 p. : 13 cm.
Subject:
Notes:
Includes "Mud map by Alex Baynes" inside back cover.
Type:
Archives
Abstract:
> [Sunday: 19th July 1970]
Museum to pick up Ken Youngson [Left lane at 10.00 am Fremantle].
Half way home 5 1/2 gals to fill L.P.O.
First Pallid cuckoo call of the year.
Stopped at Beecles' for lunch at 1.25 pm. left at 2.45

Jerramungup fuel 15 1/2 gals LPO time 4.50pm. (13.3 mpg at 65-75)
Went down road towards Ravensthorpe.
Turned right (South) along road signposted "Twertup Quarry" 23 m. soon joined rabbit proof fence continued down along that until branching off to westwards at about 10 miles.
Crossroads. left fork Alex's camp. Camped here for the evening.

> Monday 20th July 1970
Near Twertup quarry, a beautiful morning.
Wind started up about 6.30 & then died until about 8.00.
Bearings on Mt Drummond 61* mid Mt Barren 97* Woogerups 77*.\Can see down into the valley of the Fitzgerald and Sussetta from alongside the camp. Ken lifted tripline, nothing in any of them. Spoke to VSQ, told them that we are here. Canyed a call to 8WOX next morning at 7.15.

Checked on Level - fuel right down, put in 1/2 gal to between the L & F marks where engine ran. Decided to go on the fuel Alex at tell him that we had borrowed his oil.

Drove down the track to Jonecoonac and turned north at 52.4 & out the Twertup Creek at 1552.6 [C3 & 4] schists with quartz overlaid by a coarse sandstone which is probably the base of the Plantagenets :(?Werrilup Fm) [Werillup Formation]

After heading approx N. [C5-6] last photo F, Roe Rock for base of breakaways which run between Twertup Creek and Tooartup Creek. Fitzgerald R. flows in valley up behind Roes Rock, Tooartup between covers and Roes Rock. Climbed breakaway and collected fossil sponge from the spiculite. Seems to be spiculite right up to the top. Collected a weevil and some scats (possum like) from the track at the bottom of the cliff face above the scree [C 7] at top of scree slope looking north.

Drove on. Met a landrover and the Falconer family, John & Lalage and children, stopped for lunch. Took photos across the group at lunch. They had been netting the Twertup pool where they had caught lynestes[?] previously - but no luck.

Left Falconers and drove back to Twertup creek where we met Alex and Jan Taylor. We told them about the scats at the breakaway and then drove on down to the camp at the junction of the Sussetta and the Fitzgerald. Searched for the coal seam outcrop marked in the maps of the Jupiter prospectus without success except for a few isolated bits to the south of the junction. Seems a very poor prospect indeed up the Sussetta the sequence seems to be Precambrian, quartz and schists overlain by a conglomerate of tean a coarse sandstone.

We collected some of the coal from the outliers and then set traps. The Falconers joined us for the night. Alex and Jan went back to their camp and decided that they would try to investigate the breakaway with the scats - poor prospect bright moonlight night. Scats [sketch] filled with vegetable fibre.

Collected chelodina [?] shells in riverbed. The whole aspect of the entry is reminiscent of Lake Baker [?] and Sharpes Bluff[?] and yet in decent climatic conditions and within easy reach of Perth. [C-16].

Pleasant evening visit from Falascos[?], He took Fred & Sally (and kids) off for a walk. Turned in about 1.30, every night mosquitoes bad.

> Tuesday 21st July
Camped near junction of Suzette and Fitzgerald. Talked to Eric Swan, told him that I would be through[?] with John Morgan[?] between 12-15 of August. They said O.K.

Packed up and went across the river to look at strata directly opposite [C17-20]. The situation there seems to indicate that the interpretation to date requires revision. The so-called schists and quartzite which I have interpreted as Precambrian seem to be micacious [?] clays very finely bedded and with bands of digentia[?] quartz or calcite though both in bedding and jointing planes. At intervals there are conglomerates with large quartz pieces - rather regular[angular?] and little rounded then above that nestis[?] and rather fine grits. These are faispinged[?] strata in the upperbanjes[?]. Collected a bit of the "Schist" for John Glover.

Left campsite to drive up to Susetta Junction to find the coal seam proper [?]. Drove to the old camp and then followed truck into the river above the Susetta junction[?] to where the prospectors had backed a truck and drilled a hole in the seam in the bed of the river. They had capped the hole with a small boulder. The core diameter on about 4-5", depth 1-7 ft. The seam extends abou50* downwards[?] and underlies a v, hard sandstone which outcrops above it in the bank.

The high-quality stuff is at the borehole and goes only about 10* downstream, it san bears a perty clay (?). Collected a good sample from about the centre of the exposure.

Took numerous photos [C21-30] of different aspects of the exposure & its relationship with the valley. Seems to me that if this is to be a chayline[?] operation it will have to be confined to the alluvium of the new[?] flow. taking out the whole of the valley of the Suzetta and the Fitzgerald and destroying all below it.

Left at 12.25
Crossed salt flats of Martin Creek after driving down through dense shrubs of mallee and mort[?] [C31]
Unburned[?] sand plain good for trapping.
Hit main road, turned West. Turned East to go to the river mouth. Photos up valley, end of film. White Rover with 1 left passing UCP576.
At river mouth [C1-2]. Glorious view across to the Barrens[?]

Drove back to site photography's we went. Got here just at dusk and set all the traps at 1599.0. Drove in the dark and south to the main road at 1600 approx. then drove east along it for 1.1 miles and turned south down the Point Ann track. Hit rabbit proof fence at 1609.1. Beach. Had a look at it with spotlight. Walked along no luck and no sign of anything that looked like rock crevices. Drove back along rabbit proof fence to find map site. Continued along track up onto an open burned[?] heath.

Stopped in a little dip & made camp & had meal. A lovely night with stars and little wind. No mosquitoes.

After meal took walk with spotlight to east of track. Ken went west. No luck my way all burned. Ken found a damp and thick valley unburned to the east, decided to go over in the morning.

> Wednesday 22nd.
Camp. Bearing on Mt. Bland 238* (Think [?] peak 52*, West end of island 157*.
Walked over to the Boondadup River. Excellent valley, v. steep sided surrounded by unburned heath which seems to go all the way over to Mt. Bland.

Wildflowers in the bottom with sedges & rushes, dense mallee slopes of variousspecies with acacias hakeas etc anstyled[?] with clematis down the sides.
Sdn[?] rocky, soil of the last 30-40 feet vertical
would with norns[?]. Ferns between the rocks. Fresh running water in the bottom, many small animal tracks runs a dingos[?], scats of a small seed-eater(?minid). Birds plentiful Golden Whistler, wattle birds, green parrakeet, ? white-naped honeyeater.

This place seems to have escaped burning for many years - must be trapped before too late, pity the light so poor.

Ready mix pays for calcite, silica, Ilite, Diatomite, Quartzite 12 July 1970.
Down into well vegetated river valley of St Mary River.

Low relalence[?] about 6-10 ft till well sandled[?] valley sides with good mallee of about the same height. Unburned. Worth trapping.

Backst track crossroads. Turned right. Back to trap line - in luck. Back to road, turned right, straight over the Pt Ann crossroad at 25.7. Vain[?] proof fence at 31, turned right. Drove kyle[?] the fence just before the fence passed a lake. Through fence a 31.8. Stopped for lunch in a little hollow out of the wind. All country around here burned but regenerating. Vert striking the thickness of the fruit coats - how long has selection taken to produce this sort of fire-proofing ?

Photographs of Quaalup Bells [C6620-22].
Joined graded road N/S turned soutrh[?] al immediately after tirned east and across Gairdner River at a made crossing (40.1)
Road coming in from the southeast[?]
Road from north.
Custer road for the Southwest, joins Devils Creek Rd (road we are on which is going west). Whole countryside blowing away. [C6623]
Bitumen[?] going N.S. turned north.
Jerramungup 11 3/4 gals. L.P.O.
Stopped Beeches for evening meal.
A very wet night. Driving difficult - cold too.
Williams 10 1/2 gals. LPO.
(17 mpg on the road.)
 
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