Esperance At Last!

We made it OK (sort of)
To far-off Esperance
Less by good planning
More by good chance

The cars both ran well
No problems or drama
But the trip was eventful
With a touch of bad karma

No mechanical trouble
Just driver related
A navigational stuff up
Saw us get separated

Busso to Bunbury
All went well
Next stop in Collie
No problems to tell

Arthur River was next
On the Googled route
Both arrived safely
Both cars running beaut

Favourite Daughter leading
Sport Boy the co-driver
Mrs Holt Press and I
About 5 minutes behind her

A fuel stop at Wagin
Next on the agenda
Then on to Lake King
Lest assistance need be rendered

Then things went awry
No Wagin showed up
Next place we came to
A servo in Kojonup

Oops, that's not right
We're heading south not east
We missed the turn off somehow
Mrs HP wasn't pleased

Where were the kids?
No sign of the VW
Did they go to Wagin
Or had they missed it too?

Tried ringing the mobile
No reception out here
No way of knowing
Were they anywhere near

Mrs HP got stressed
Worried the kids might be missing
I tried calming her fears
Using logic and reason

A new route was plotted
We'd head for Katanning
Gave the mobile a work out
And the horizon a scanning

No sign of the Kombi
No word from the offspring
No way of knowing
No news, not a thing

Time to call in
Reinforcements at home
We need some help
Get Spike on the phone

"Hey mate we got lost
Took a wrong turn and missed Wagin
Try ringing your sister
She'll be worried I'm gauging"

"Let her know where we are
And to head for Ravensthorpe
We'll rendezvous there
In a couple of hours we hope"

"No worries Dad
I'll ring and I'll text
When I get in touch
I'll tell you what's next"

Gnowangerup, Ongerup
We drove on as night fell
Rang again at Jerramungup
But no news to tell

We figured our messages
Would get FD's attention
But our plans were thwarted
By her lack of reception

Our next concern
Now became our own fuel
Would we make it to Ravensthorpe
With the tank under half full?

A 24 hour
Card system we found
Filled the tank and set off
Till finally the sound

We'd been hoping and praying for
My phone started to ring
Favourite Daughter on the line
Asking us where we'd been

Oops, sorry
We missed the sign
Went to Kojonup
Instead of Wagin

Where are you?
And are you OK?
We're at Lake King
We went the right way

That's great news to our ears
Head for Ravensthorpe keep going
We'll meet you there in an hour
No more to-ing and fro-ing

By midnight we'd found them
Safe sound and happy
Mrs HP much relieved
Sport Boy a bright chappy

We drove on for a while
Lightning storms lit the way
Till FD was too tired
Time to call it a day

Two girls in the Yaris
We two boys in the Kombi
Uncomfortable sleep
Woke up feeling like zombies

A coffee and toilet stop
At the next roadhouse
Before finally arriving
In cold windy Esperance

Got the keys from Beth's Mum
Found the house of our friend
Went to bed, slept like logs
Our long journey at an end!