On the way

Departure
Left Epping on a perfect Thursday ( I know, we were supposed to leave Wednesday but last minute jobs etc..) and had to stop in Katoomba for an early lunch. Time marched on but we were blissfully wiling away the hours until we realised it was 1.00pm and we still had 300km to get to Dubbo, find the caravan park, set up camp for the first time and cook dinner. This did not look promising!

Finally arrived about 4.30pm and by the time we set up we decided to “treat” ourselves to dinner at the Hogs Breath Cafe. The truth was that we did not defrost any meat and could not get our act together to cook.

The caravan park is insane! There are too many kids, too many young people, and just too many... caravan travellers. What with noisy neighbours, noisy trucks (on the Newell Hwy) and the occasional aeroplane it is a wonder we slept at all.

Spent Friday at the Dubbo Zoo. A worthwhile day with some great time on the bikes. Photos tell the story.

Tried to get out of Dubbo early but still can’t seem to get our act together. Supposed to check out by 10.00am but finally got away around 10.45am. Finally on our way to Bourke. Very standard drive – nothing to report.

Technical Note: (You don’t have to read these in the future if you don’t want to)
The car is running extra well and consuming about 14lts/100km. The trailer is always behind us which is a good thing.

Road Conditions: Nothing exceptional here but stand by for later reports!

Bourke:
We looked and looked for a particular campsite on the Darling River but to no avail. Had to settle for another caravan park! Fortunately this time we stuck some luck. The park was friendly and welcoming and QUIET.

Cooked our first meal (a quickie called two minute omelette – tasty but not worth sharing the recipe.)

Got away okay the next morning (Mother’s Day – happy Mother’s Day Mum). DISASTER!!! ( See the picture) the road to Tibooburra is closed! Not a problem – just ask the locals.
“You don’t want to believe that mate, if you followed all the signs you wouldn’t get anywhere”

So began the adventure...

All was fine and dandy (that’s country speak for okay) and we were travelling at about 100km/hr. A number of wash outs and detours gave us some indication as to what the road condition must have been like in the last few months with all the rain up here. Then we came across what appeared to be an impassable stream running across the road (see photo). Bear in mind that we have only passed two or three cars in the past 3hrs. As I was getting out of the car to test the water a local farmer pulled up and guided us across the stream. What luck! After this, the road actually improved. It seemed that this was the reason for the Road Closure sign at Bourke.


Tibbooburra
Just as you would imagine, or at least it was as I had imagined. A local pub and another local pub and, well, not much more. The map said there was a camp ground at Dead Horse Gully – a suspicious or perhaps auspicious name? The site was rocky, remote and fantastic! There was only one other camper over the other side of the campground so we felt completely alone even though we were only a short distance out of town. So short in fact that we decided to meet the locals at the pub for a sundowner. Met Tom Allan, a local who may have been auditioned and cast for the role but I can assure you he was the real thing. Long beard, cowboy hat, sheepskin vest and about three weeks of dirt all over. He used to repair the dog fence between NSW and Qld but now is a bit of a rouse-about. A reeealy interesting man who had a philosophy on life that was related to us with religious fervour. Nevertheless, we spent an interesting couple of hours with Tom Allan. (we’re not sure if his name is Tom or Alan. He introduced himself as Allan but all the locals called him Tom – go figure!)

Before heading into town we spent a peaceful afternoon in the camp with classical music playing and Tia painting and I started this blog.

Everything is washed out around here. We could not get to any of the local attractions so we decided to move onto Cameron Corner.

Wildlife is amazing. We have seen eagles (lots of), a dingo, roos ofcourse both greys and big reds, emus, snakes, lizards, many types of water birds such as (apologies to Miss Carolina – see Kit for an explanation) cranes, turns and egrets. Have also seen lots of wild horses and goats.

The trip to Cameron Corner had us crossing a large recently dried up swamp which was surreal (see photo).

Not much at Cameron Corner but we did enjoy a hamburger and beer – we seem to be drinking quite a lot – this must stop; but then, why? The Bore Track was closed so we had to pick our way through minor roads and tracks to get to Innaminka. I know I have said it before but this was a reeealy interesting drive. Lots of sandy sections, dust, gravel and just plain dirt track – am I in my element?

Innaminka
Don’t blink. Just a pub and general store this time and the local National Parks Office. Most of the campgrounds are washed out but we are directed to Ski Beach. Weird name in a place like Innaminka but I think there is some irony in it. The camp was next to the Cooper Creek and the bird life was prolific as was the insect life (get out the mozzie coils!). We took refuge in the tent to eat dinner.

Again, all the roads are washed out. We cannot get to the Dig Tree and the Cordillo Downs road has the Cooper Creek running over it and is impassable (see photo). In fact all the roads north and east are inaccessible due to a local bridge over the Cooper being destroyed. We are obliged therefore to take a 300km diversion back south, then east, then north to end up at Noccundra. This is literally just a pub with campgrounds beside the local river. One benefit however is the availability of showers! How good is a shower after spending 4 days in the dust of the outback.

Got away early the next day to put in a big push to Longreach. This was the longest day of driving and we do not want to do too many of these although I am sure there will be some. The caravan park is not great but we need a day or two to re-group. The Anderson plug on the trailer has disappeared as has one of the dust covers on the trailer hub. We also need some camping gear and food and a good coffee. What’s the chance in Longreach? – I’ll let you know in the next blog as I am sitting in the tent finishing this off before we head into town to post this blog.

Well we went into town to post this blog but guess what, Longreach is closed for the Show. So we decided to join them. Tia found a friend in a cow and I inspected some wool to buy for Kit and Jono – they know why (see photos). The show was a typical country fair. Lots of produce, animals, machinery and girls with stock whips (give you more details on this in a closed adult blog sometime later.)

We also spent an interesting 3 hours at the QANTAS museum.

We will now have to go into town tomorrow to post this blog. On a recognisance today it would appear that the prospect of a good coffee looks promising.

Late note: where did all the baby boomers come from? Did the rain bring them out or do they emerge from southern summer heat around this time every year? I expected to see locusts but not a plague of baby boomers in oversize caravans with oversize 4WD’s. Too much money and too much time on their hands. I think the nation needs to find something productive for them to do – am I sounding a little hypocritical??

Technical Note: Too much dust on the road and too many corrugations. Fuel consumption has dropped. The trailer is still behind us which is amazing. There were times when I thought it had disappeared (see photo). Weather is fantastic, cool nights and warm days with not a cloud in the sky.

Note to Nate: started Doxy today. Will be wearing extra sun protection from now on.