We got underway from Casino a bit later than usual, as we spent some time with our site neighbors before we left.
On the way to Tenterfield we saw in a clearing way across the valley a waterfall over exposed rocks. It had been raining,
but there was just mist in the air now.
When it came time to stop for the day, we tried a new type of camp site - one a distance off the road.
In this case it was Oakey Creek Reserve, about 5km south of the township of Bowenville, before Dalby.
We were very pleased with the site. It was a very large, well maintained site. There were 4 other groups there. Two caravans and 2 tents. Everyone was well separated, and we had a good night.
We started the day in areas we had been before, but one thing we did notice is that someone had installed really nice
town name signs like this one.
We had planned on having a look around Roma, so when we got there we called into "The Big Rig" tourist centre where we found out by reading the signs that it cost $8 each to look at the displays. That, coupled with the total disinterest of the staff there left us walking back to the truck quite quickly.
The Roads had been really bad, so we were not making much mileage.
Again, we tried a site off the road. This time it was the Neil Turner Weir, just North of Mitchell.
Once again, a really great site. We had this one all to ourselves.
Mitchell, Morven, Augathella to Tambo. That was our day's trip. Again, the roads were shocking. Our speed was between 40 and 50kmh, and it was a real effort to keep concentrating on the road to avoid the worst of the holes.
We were very happy to stop for the night, and it was alongside the Barcoo River, just outside Tambo off the Alpha road.
A really first class site. Well maintained, an away from others.
After a walk along the river, we set off for Longreach, where we planned to stay tonight. It was only 300km, so we were having an easy day.
As we drove into Blackall I saw a
sign to 'The Black Stump". We followed a couple of corners, and there it was!
It is now a replica as the original was burnt out, but it was a real thing. It was used as a surveying reference point, so the term 'beyond the black stump' actually meant a physical area past Blackall.
At Barcaldine, the Tree of Knowledge was being repaired, and the Workers exhibition was closed, so after a snack, we headed for Longreach.
The area was green. In fact all we had seen this trip was green grass. The recent rains had left a sea of green everywhere. The sky was quite overcast now, and it felt like it was ready to pour.
As we came into Longreach, we called straight into the Stockman's Hall of Fame. The entrance road was not made for big rigs
but we survived. Called in to ask the price - $22.50 each - and decided to keep on driving.
Was planning to camp at a site listed just out of town, and return in the morning for fuel and supplies, and to have a good look around, but when we got to the site it was signed as No Camping.
The next site was 24km up the road, so we went there. This far out of town, we won't go back in the morning, just spend our money further up the road.
As we headed toward Winton, we saw this
great sign. The town itself was not as good.
Found a place to park and went to see the Waltzing Matilda centre, only to find it was $19 each, and the staff totally ignored us again.
Eventually managed to get into the only service station that had a diesel pump and filled our tanks. Also refilled the water but when we tried it later it tasted like #####.
Found a camp for the night
near MacKenzie. A truck stop and gravel dump. We had another truck during the night, but they were not too noisy.
This is one of the signs that greet you
as you drive into Mount Isa.
I had expected the smelter to be a bit
out of town, but not so. The main street is in the shadow of the stacks.
Everywhere you go in town, you can see the smoke stacks. Hard to get lost.
We booked into the Sunset van park as recommended by others. I asked the office staff about work, and was told that one of their residents used to do deliveries but was retrenched a couple of weeks back. Not a good start.
While Lyn caught up with the washing, I went around town looking at the work situation. It was not good at all.
Later in the evening, we both went to the shops, and found the same situation. Those that had work were not sure they would have it next week.
We decided overnight that we had best continue on to Darwin, so we packed early, went to the post office to send some cards and a parcel, and then hit the road to Camooweal. The road developed into a really great one. For once, we could actually make some speed safely.
About an hour out of the Isa, we came
to an accident site. Two vehicles that had recently passed us were already there.
A four wheel drive with a couple from Sheparton had rolled. They were both still inside in a bad way. The first car there had a well trained lady who did what she could to help the trapped couple, while the rest tried to raise help.
While we waited for the ambulance, we helped clean the debris from the road, and also moved our vehicles to the other side of the crash scene, knowing the passion of the "experts" to block the road. This proved to be a very wise move.
When the local nurse and policeman from Camooweal arrived, we helped them stabilise the position. Lyn ended up holding a drip for ages in the sun, while I helped with the shade.Finally the "experts" arrived from The Isa, and just took over, pushing everyone out, and doing it in quite a rude manner. I took this opportunity to take some pictures of the scene.
Here is Lyn and Lindsay,
the lady who was such a
great help, walking away in disgust. We had spent nearly two hours in the very hot sun with no shelter at all.
Then the helicopter arrived and
landed in front of our van.
When we could get past the chopper, both us and the helpful lady quietly left. All of us were quite burned, and very tired.
It had been an interesting experience. The People from Camooweal were very nice. They seemed used to being badly treated by the "professionals", and just accepted it as normal. We, however, won't accept it so easily.
The good road stopped when we came to
the border. Instead we had quite a long stretch of badly rutted road. Gradually it improved, thank goodness!
We finally found a really nice site off the road a bit. It was recently used as a gravel dump, but looked like it was some sort of building nearby in the past.
We were glad to hit the sack after a very interesting day.
A really good night in this spot,
but it was looking like another quite hot day, so we got underway quickly.
At Barkly Homestead I spotted one of my favorite signs in reasonable condition. You can see the tall grass all around. It's been like this all the way. Endless green. The only sign of the red dirt is the termite mounds that are starting to occur a lot more now. They are still quite small, just up to two feet high, but it is a pleasing sign of the tropics to come.
Finally we came to the famous
Three Ways. Others on the road had often mentioned it. It is the cross roads in the middle of Australia. Darwin, Adelaide or Queensland.
When you come to it you have the choice to make.
We called into the Three Ways Roadhouse for snacks. They were quite busy with people wanting accommodation.
We had picked a camp site
about midday, and the timing worked out quite well. It was at Newcastle Waters, and there was no one else there. Not really
surprising as there were very few vehicles on the road either way.
Once we had set up, it was still 38.7C outside, and the AC was working full time inside.
Lyn had a very tropical night. Even though it was hot, and very humid, she wanted the AC off, and windows open. Obviously she is just a tropical girl! We had the site to ourselves all night, and it was a good quiet night.
On three places out of Daily Waters the road was flooded a bit. We were able to continue through it slowly. The only other traffic
on the road were road trains.
As we were coming in to Larrimah there were signs
for Fran's Tea House. As there was not much else, we pulled in for a snack.
We sat on the benches outside, and Fran came for our order. She told us that everything was home made, and there was no menu, just whatever
you wanted. We chose salad rolls and home made lemonade.
The rolls were very good, and the drink was OK too. Then the bill came - $25 - a bit more than we had expected, but it was very tasty.
We stopped briefly at Mataranka. Saw the talking
termite mound in the roadside park, then pressed on toward Darwin.
Once through Katherine the sky ahead looked very stormy. We drove through several patches of rain, until coming near Pine Creek, it really poured. No way could we camp by the roadside in this rain, so we went to the Pussycat Flats camp ground. They had no area for us to park in the wet. It is a dry area camp only.
We drove on to the Crocodile resort, and they gave us a site. Nothing great to get into, and we left some ruts in the grass, but we had a powered site for the night.
The rain cleared up overnight, but everything was well soaked. We packed up and finished the rest of the short trip to Darwin.
We called in at the Coolalinga Park, but the office was not open till 2.00pm.
While we waited, we went to Shaws Darwin transport, and I saw about work. They were happy for me to start tomorrow. Now I had a job, but nowhere to park.
Next we called at Lee Point park, but they wanted around $250 per week, and the site was not really great. It was an option, but we decided to wait and see what Coolalinga was like.
When they opened, Coolalinga wanted $165 per week plus power, and they had a quite nice site for our style van, so we pulled in and set up.
There we were. Back in Darwin after a lap around the country. We had a credit card debt to repay, so we knew we would be here for a while.
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