Out of the Desert and into the Rainforest

Out of the Desert and into the Rainforest

We left you on the last post in Longreach and we got our good cup of coffee. Decided not to go to Carnarvon Gorge NP as by all reports it seems to be quite busy. Instead we headed for Winton to follow the Dinosaur trail. Camped at Bough Shed Hole in the Bladensburg NP. This is a great site if you happen to get lost one day and find yourself in Winton (See photos). We stayed here for three very pleasant nights. Whilst in Winton I bought a pair of Blundstone workboots. Tia had previously bought a pair in Dubbo and has raved about them ever since so I couldn’t miss out. Now we can get about in matching boots – very becoming (Tammy, eat your heart out!). Other than the great service in Searles Men’s Store (two brothers run the store and are both in their eighties at least – what a treat) there is not much to say about Winton. We tried to buy wine in the local pub BUT “we don’t stock wine here”. Okay, how about some dark beer or stout? “No, but we do have XXXX aye”
We travelled out to Lark’s Quarry, 220km round trip, to see the largest collection of Dinosaur tracks in the world. The guide was fantastic and added real value to the story of the dinosaur stampede. Next day we visited the Aust Dinosaur Exhibition and got to see how the fossil remains are prepared for display. What painstaking work. Using needle-like tools they chisel away the rock from the fossilised bone. One piece on display took a team of workers three years to complete.
Enough of Dinosaurs! Alan, can we move on now! Yes, but can we go and see the Muttaburrasaurus in Heughendon? By the time we got to Heughendon, even I had had enough so we just moved on. We picked Porcupine Gorge NP just because it was a convenient place to stay for the night. Sometimes the unexpected can be the best! The camping ground was small and well laid out and Porcupine Gorge was spectacular. We clambered down to the bottom of the gorge and discovered a clean flowing stream. A quick dip was called for and stripping off to undies seemed the right thing to do – only shocked the local wildlife, no people around.
“Welcome to the Undara Experience!” This does not look promising. Very organised, very commercial and very Queensland! The national park is restricted to guided tours only (for good reasons as we later found out) but the end result is a commercial operator setting up a caravan/lodge/camping complex complete with free campfire entertainment. We took a powered site but in retrospect wished we hadn’t. The unpowered sites are great and tucked away at the back of the camping grounds while the powered site we were on was a bit like being in a goldfish bowl.
The visit to the lava tubes was fascinating not only because of the tubes themselves but our guide must have been the sister to Dave O’Neil. She was as dry as a James Bond Martini and had the typical Queensland inflection – aye! She was however very entertaining, genuine and informative.
How quickly can you pack up a Cavalier Camper Trailer? Very quickly when you want to get out of “The Undara Experience”.
From Undara to Atherton is only a short drive but what a contrast to the days of desert and scrub. The scenery changed as if you had changed channels on the TV. Temperate rainforest closed in on the road and where the land has been cleared dairy cattle are grazing rather than beef cattle. It takes a while for the eyes to soak up the greenery and the abundance of water. Although the country we have travelled through from the start of this trip has been well watered from the rains and floods this year, it does not compare to a rainforest. Atherton is a great town and we will go back there in the next day to explore more. Well we are now up to date. I am sitting by a lake penning (can you pen something on a computer?) this blog. Tia is sitting beside me working on a painting she started in Tibooburra. She is having a field day with the camera (thank god for 8G memory sticks!)
We have decided to head for Cape Tribulation before coming back to Cairns and flying out to PNG next Friday (28th). I will try to get another blog off before we fly out.
This blog will be posted later today. We have already found a coffee shop with good coffee and an internet.
Technical Notes:
The road from Porcupine NP to The Lynd Junction was a surprise. I expected a gravel road in reasonable condition but instead got a mixed bag. Some parts were bitumen, some gravel and for no apparent reason in parts it deteriorated down to a track. We had two small stream crossings (see photo) which made it interesting. We are now mainly on bitumen – how boring, but it does allow you to get to a place in predictable time.

The Jeep continues to perform well. The roads have shaken a couple of wires and tubes loose but these have been easy to repair. No new squeaks or rattles. Hopefully this will continue.

Don’t buy fuel in Innaminka! $1.82 for diesel. The bad news for petrol driven vehicles is that there is no ‘cheap Tuesday’. Petrol is within 2 – 3 cents of diesel. Generally I have been paying around $1.40 for diesel.