Saturday, 20 August 2011
Friday, 19 August 2011
Boodjamulla National Park ( aka Lawn Hill ) and Mt Isa
After Cloncurry, we drove in the direction of Normanton. Then, ( after approx 180km, at Burke and Wills roadhouse ) we headed west towards the Northern Territory. This brought us to a lovely little spot called Gregory Downs.
With a caravan park and a pub and not much else, it was the discovery of the Gregory River nearby which provided the attraction.
Grandparents, parents and children alike, all had heaps of fun jumping into the river at one spot and letting the current carry us quickly downstream and then jumping out to do it all over again .All accompanied by cheers of encouragement from bystanders, whoops of joy and much camaraderie. Plenty of vans were lined up side by side along the river, all free camping and there was constant chatter and meeting of new people.We were entreated to move our van down by the river to join them but I quite enjoyed swimming there by day and then retreating to our peaceful site up at the park to watch the sun go down.
After 3 nights at Gregory Downs, we made the foray into Adel's Grove. This fantastic little camp ground began as a government project in the 1930's. A Frenchman by the name of Albert de L'estange was commissioned to plant thousands of different trees ( maybe to see what would grow, but I'm just guessing.)
We felt like Robin Hood's merry men camped among the trees and kicking the leaf litter as we walked along under the dappled sunlight. It was a very relaxing place to stay and the boys enjoyed swimming in Lawn Hill Creek ( They stayed in for 6 hrs one day! ).This beautiful, fresh, clear water and that in the gorge at Lawn Hill is thought to originate either in New Guinea or The Great Dividing range and is possibly up to 10 000 years old.
Lawn Hill National Park is an easy 10km drive from Adel's Grove and is a great place to explore by canoe. It's quite serene paddling quietly up the Gorge with red sandstone walls towering 60m high on either side whilst spotting freshwater crocodiles lazily sunning themselves by the banks. Further up where we swam by a waterfall, dozens of newly hatched brown frogs were jumping about on the rocks.
Reluctantly,after 3 nights we left Lawn Hill and Adel's Grove and continued our travels.
After days of driving through dry, dusty, flat plains covered with yellow spinifex, the scenery between Cloncurry and Mt Isa was a pleasant surprise. The flat plains gave way to distant red hills which bcame more and more frequent and closer together. Whilst they were still arid and sparsely vegetated the land in between became greener with bushes lining what must be waterways during the wet season.
We knew that the town of Mt Isa was built to service the mine, but the first sight of the smoke stack as you come over the hill and the proximity of the mine to the town still comes as a bit of a shock!!
So too, have we been surprised to still need doonas and blankets on the beds at night... Some of our card games have been retired indoors where it is warmer!
Yesterday we played tourists and went on the Hard Times Mine tour. Whilst not a working mine, they do use it for training purposes and our tour guide still works as a contractor at the mine, so was up-to-date with his information. He was quite a character and regaled us all with some hilarious stories of miners' antics.
We have one more day here at " the Isa" before wending our way to The Territory.
With a caravan park and a pub and not much else, it was the discovery of the Gregory River nearby which provided the attraction.
Grandparents, parents and children alike, all had heaps of fun jumping into the river at one spot and letting the current carry us quickly downstream and then jumping out to do it all over again .All accompanied by cheers of encouragement from bystanders, whoops of joy and much camaraderie. Plenty of vans were lined up side by side along the river, all free camping and there was constant chatter and meeting of new people.We were entreated to move our van down by the river to join them but I quite enjoyed swimming there by day and then retreating to our peaceful site up at the park to watch the sun go down.
After 3 nights at Gregory Downs, we made the foray into Adel's Grove. This fantastic little camp ground began as a government project in the 1930's. A Frenchman by the name of Albert de L'estange was commissioned to plant thousands of different trees ( maybe to see what would grow, but I'm just guessing.)
We felt like Robin Hood's merry men camped among the trees and kicking the leaf litter as we walked along under the dappled sunlight. It was a very relaxing place to stay and the boys enjoyed swimming in Lawn Hill Creek ( They stayed in for 6 hrs one day! ).This beautiful, fresh, clear water and that in the gorge at Lawn Hill is thought to originate either in New Guinea or The Great Dividing range and is possibly up to 10 000 years old.
Lawn Hill National Park is an easy 10km drive from Adel's Grove and is a great place to explore by canoe. It's quite serene paddling quietly up the Gorge with red sandstone walls towering 60m high on either side whilst spotting freshwater crocodiles lazily sunning themselves by the banks. Further up where we swam by a waterfall, dozens of newly hatched brown frogs were jumping about on the rocks.
Reluctantly,after 3 nights we left Lawn Hill and Adel's Grove and continued our travels.
After days of driving through dry, dusty, flat plains covered with yellow spinifex, the scenery between Cloncurry and Mt Isa was a pleasant surprise. The flat plains gave way to distant red hills which bcame more and more frequent and closer together. Whilst they were still arid and sparsely vegetated the land in between became greener with bushes lining what must be waterways during the wet season.
We knew that the town of Mt Isa was built to service the mine, but the first sight of the smoke stack as you come over the hill and the proximity of the mine to the town still comes as a bit of a shock!!
So too, have we been surprised to still need doonas and blankets on the beds at night... Some of our card games have been retired indoors where it is warmer!
Yesterday we played tourists and went on the Hard Times Mine tour. Whilst not a working mine, they do use it for training purposes and our tour guide still works as a contractor at the mine, so was up-to-date with his information. He was quite a character and regaled us all with some hilarious stories of miners' antics.
We have one more day here at " the Isa" before wending our way to The Territory.
Wednesday, 10 August 2011
Carnarvon to Cloncurry...
It's been a while since I've written and I still have to work out how to upload photos...
and bought Akubra hats and whips. We had a lovely local Winton lass teach Ben how to crack a whip in the middle of the main street and 24 hours later he's cracking it like an expert.
If anyone is considering a trip to Longreach and Winton, it's well worth the effort.
Today is a stepping stone on our way to Lawn Hill, spending the night at Cloncurry.
- The world's largest deck chair, Winton.
and bought Akubra hats and whips. We had a lovely local Winton lass teach Ben how to crack a whip in the middle of the main street and 24 hours later he's cracking it like an expert.
If anyone is considering a trip to Longreach and Winton, it's well worth the effort.
- Sam at Arno's Wall, Winton. An eccentric collection of items concreted into a wall!!( Not Sam though.)
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Thursday, 4 August 2011
Carnarvon Gorge
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| Sam at the top of Boolimba Bluff |
We had a funny moment when we were playing boules. The birds thought the shiny balls might be good to eat and would run in to examine them and then all squawk in unison and flap backwards again. All to be repeated time and time again. I guess you had to be there...
Ben and Mick packed a tent, sleeping bags, and food and camped overnight at Big Bend which is roughly 10 km along the gorge. They saw dead fish in the nearby creek which ( the ranger said later) were probably killed by the shock of a huge boulder that had crashed there a few weeks earlier. Glad I didn't know about that before they went as it had bounced close to their campsite. ( While a man was camping there too I might add..)
Ward's Canyon, with its sole remnant of King Ferns in central Qld, was declared the most impressive sight. This small colony is apparently not reproducing ( or as Mick puts it... " the king fern is not talking to the queen fern " ) and is destined for extinction in this region.
Sam's and my favourite sight ( because we didn't make it as far as the others )was the Amphitheatre. This is a massive cave with towering walls, and daylight peeping through where the water has eroded the sandstone over thousands of years. It was eerily quiet with just the sounds of water trickling and awed voices whispering in the chilly half-light.
Carnarvon Gorge is one of those places that needs to be experienced to fully appreciate its magnificence.
Monday, 25 July 2011
Day 4 Hervey Bay
We have extended our time in Hervey Bay because it was such a big push to get here and we have such a beautiful spot overlooking the bay. The weather is superb as it would be in Brissy ( but not in Sydney, I've heard...)and the temperature is perfect for the kids to spend hours on the beach.Sam had a playmate until this morning and the replacement neighbours have been travelling for 8 years. Should prove a font of knowledge.
Everyone is very friendly and helpful. Our other neighbours just gave us some whiting fillets for tea.( caught today)
We went whale watching yesterday and while we did see whales, they were pretty quiet and did not put on the displays that occur later in the season. Still, we can tick that one off...
We plan to stay until fri morning and free camp near Moura then arrive in Carnarvon on Sat. Booked there for 3-4 nights.
Saturday, 23 July 2011
Day 1. Brisbane - Hervey Bay
Well...I knew that life on the road wouldn't be without it's fair share of dramas but I didn't expect them to happen quite so soon... Just 15 minutes after leaving home, having just hit the open road, we had smoke billowing out from under the bonnet, accompanied by a horrible smell of burning rubber. ( insert plug for RACQ )
To cut a long story short, 3 hours later, we were back on our way but need to get the compressor for the air-con fixed. Just bad luck; they can apparently go at any time.
Probably it was good luck really...We could have been at the back of Burke...
And Mick had said he didn't want to drive the van in the dark...and especially didn't want to be reversing the van
in the dark...
Hopefully whale-watching tomorrow...
To cut a long story short, 3 hours later, we were back on our way but need to get the compressor for the air-con fixed. Just bad luck; they can apparently go at any time.
Probably it was good luck really...We could have been at the back of Burke...
And Mick had said he didn't want to drive the van in the dark...and especially didn't want to be reversing the van
in the dark...
Hopefully whale-watching tomorrow...
Friday, 22 July 2011
Finally...
Well the day has finally arrived...
It's a beautiful Winter's day; clear blue skies with a light breeze. Perfect for
setting off on the adventure of a lifetime.The van is packed ( well almost ) and we're heading north to Hervey
Bay to settle in to life on the road for 6 months.
Thanks to everyone who offered their help and to those friends who wined and dined us before leaving. We may be going a bit later than originally planned but we've had fun catching up with everyone and it made a good start to the holiday.
Thanks also to Natalie for setting up this blog site.She had plans for teaching me some fancy tricks but I just ran out of time...
Don't forget to stay in touch. I'll be keen for news of home. Hopefully I can work out how to post photos with my new camera. ( Insert plug for the Panasonic Lumix... Maybe they'll advertise here and sponsor my blog...)
Cheers and see you all next year. xx
It's a beautiful Winter's day; clear blue skies with a light breeze. Perfect for
setting off on the adventure of a lifetime.The van is packed ( well almost ) and we're heading north to Hervey
Bay to settle in to life on the road for 6 months.
Thanks to everyone who offered their help and to those friends who wined and dined us before leaving. We may be going a bit later than originally planned but we've had fun catching up with everyone and it made a good start to the holiday.
Thanks also to Natalie for setting up this blog site.She had plans for teaching me some fancy tricks but I just ran out of time...
Don't forget to stay in touch. I'll be keen for news of home. Hopefully I can work out how to post photos with my new camera. ( Insert plug for the Panasonic Lumix... Maybe they'll advertise here and sponsor my blog...)
Cheers and see you all next year. xx
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