A Weekend in Kalbarri

In early December 2012, a small group of GP trainees and GP supervisors, along with partners, children and a baby kangaroo, converged on the Midwest resort town of Kalbarri for a weekend of education, thrill seeking and deliberate attempts to get bogged in sand dunes.

The weekend was organised by the Midwest RAC to showcase the region and its opportunities for fun lifestyle choices, but it also aimed to get trainers and trainees interacting outside the walls of their respective practices. In these settings, potential GPs to the Midwest can learn more intimately what it's like to be a GP in the region. And who better to provide that perspective than the GPs who already live here?

Friday night began with a meetup and barbecue at the family friendly Kalbarri Beach Resort. Our group had the entire pool area to ourselves and a merry night was spent downing gourmet steaks and salads washed down with appropriate beverages. Whilst getting to know each other we were entertained with hilarious anecdotes from Dr Stuey and partner Di as to the antics on their rural property amongst their menagerie of semi domesticated pets, including various rescued kangaroos. Di even had a joey with her for us to coo over.

An early start on Saturday, some more bleary eyed than others, saw us picked up in a minibus and taken out to Z bend Gorge in Kalbarri National Park. Joined by a couple on their honeymoon, we armed ourselves with hard hats, harnesses and gloves and tramped downhill to a pretty spot above the river, shaded by cliffs on either side. Cliffs we were planning to jump off!

Abseiling can be described as exhilarating, or alternatively as terrifying! The trick is to somehow trust that the rope, and the tiny piece of metal attaching you and your harness to it, won't break under what you consider to be your massive weight. But given that not one member of our group would have weighed in anywhere near that of a burly SAS commando, we had nothing to fear from equipment breakage, just fear itself.

Those who'd done it before were most keen to throw themselves over with wild abandon and loud whoops of glee, whilst others were much more circumspect and needed gentle encouragement to ease themselves over the precipice into the void. A leap of faith it was, and all our group eventually passed with flying colours, conquering all three cliffs culminating in the 30m drop.

After lunch back in town, we headed over to Kalbarri's St John Ambulance Centre to update our CPR skills. Receiving training from a highly experienced bush ambo gives us all a unique perspective on the challenges faced a long way from any tertiary care environment. And that evening Kalbarri's long serving resident GP, Dr Findlay, joined us for dinner.

Sunday morning was a more leisurely affair, with participants meeting up in town for a cafe breakfast before heading down the coast road to Lucky Bay. Here we met up with members of Geraldton 4WD Club for a crash course in 4WD Recovery techniques. The theory was long but fascinating, and the practical session, involving deliberately getting bogged and then pulling each other to safety, was enjoyed by all.

Returning to Geraldton hot and sandy, participants agreed it had been a great opportunity to combine fun, education and networking into a relaxing weekend away.