Chapter 7 - Western Australia - West Kimberley

From 12 July 2011 

To     28 July 2011 

We are now moving to the western side of the Kimberley (and have been for a few days I guess).  On Tuesday we headed off to Derby – a trip of about 260 km.  About 90 km down the road we reached an overturned fuel tanker that had flipped over in trying to avoid some recalcitrant motorist.  This caused a stoppage of around two hours while they transferred the fuel to another tanker.  When we got to move again the line up on our side of the blockage was as follows (approx), 18 caravans, three motor homes, one bus decked out as a motor home, three 4WD with holiday stuff, two 4WD with holiday trailers, two other 4WD, ONE sedan.  

Our estimate was 75% had Victoria number plates. When we pulled into the caravan park in Derby two hours later (after some serious highway jostling) Daryl and I had moved from positions 10 and 12 to positions 1 and 2 – not counting the non-towing or small trailered cars (who were miles in front).  The need for coffee and toilet stops was shelved. The caravan park had eleven arrivals in around five minutes.

We found a bottle shop in Derby whose beer prices could compete with Dan Murphy’s in Melbourne.  Dinner was barra and chips ($23.50 for two people) from the local “greasy’s shop”.  It was pretty good – straight out of the paper under the stars.  Tonight was probably our warmest night on the trip.

Horizontal Waterfalls

An amazing sight

Our first full day in Derby was superb.  I was in the co-pilot seat on a 14 seat sea plane for the 35 minute flight to the coast due north of Derby. We took off from land and landed on water in a location that cannot be reached by road.  We then had an unbelievable jet boat ride at speeds up to 60 knots (about 100 km/h I think) though a narrow rock pass called the horizontal waterfall.  It is a quirk of nature that the change of tides causes a lot of water to need to get through an opening that is too small to allow easy flow.  

So, depending on which tide it is, there is a strong flow from one side to another – among awesome scenery.  We had Barra for lunch then swim with sharks in a cage (sharks outside, us inside).  We even had a visit from a huge groper.  Then another jet boat ride (we have a video) and a demo of friendly fish (see photo) where the fish was content to swim into the hand of our guide – and then be lifted out of the water – quite amazing.  I patted one of the sharks (about 1.6 m long) – very quickly of course.  To complete the day we had a take off from water, lots of scenic views, then a landing on terra firma.  It was a costly day but worth every cent.

To finish off a great day we took some photos of the sunset at Derby pier.

  

Sunset at Derby

Our final day in Derby was a day of culture, starting with “scone a clock” where yours truly cooked the scones for morning tea, then we went for a drive and witnessed such national treasures as the ‘boab prison tree’ (the 2^nd of this trip) and a water trough that can water 500 head of cattle at one time.  All ‘serious’ towns need to have a ‘biggest’ of some sort.

Boab Prison Tree

At 5:15 Shirley, Fay and I headed off to the Mowanjum festival which is an aboriginal celebration of their roots.  It includes a number of tribes, one of which was responsible for the aboriginal component at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.  It was notable for the fact that all management was performed by white people, the amount of dust that was raised by the performers, the enormous fun that was had by the huge number of young aboriginal kids and the quality (or lack) of the crocodile kebab that I consumed.  Still, we engaged in some local culture and witnessed a corroboree.

Our next stop was Broome and a reunion with friends who now live in Merimbula.  Broome has changed significantly since Shirley and I spent four days here in 1995.

Broome has changed significantly since Shirley and I spent four days here in 1995.  It is a bustling and vibrant tourist precinct.  Not sure what that means but I read it somewhere and it sounded good.  On Saturday we had a leisurely day with our only real activity being to check out the “stairway to the moon”. Alas it was too cloudy and we had to settle for a quiet drink and nibbles under the stars.  On Sunday we visited the Broome brewery and had a few schooners while we listed to some live jazz/country music.

Try http://www.davidrivettmusic.com/ for a sample. Shirley had some alcoholic ginger beer.  The beer and wedges were excellent.

We have suddenly slipped from travelling mode into relaxing mode – our first real break since home. With the weather being pretty warm it is easy to be lazy.  We had an enjoyable, lazy week in Broome with relaxation being the key activity.  However, we did enjoy the sights and benefits of 'stairway to the moon', famous cable beach, Willy Creek Pearl farm, various walks, various coffee venues (although hard to find after 2pm).  The other notable achievement was my first pizza since leaving Melbourne.   The days were warm to hot and the nights were balmy.  Some of the mornings were cool enough for a track suit top – until 8am anyway.

 

 

So far, for every 1000 km towing the caravan we have done and extra 450 km without the caravan, visiting local sights once we set up camp.  Minor glitches on the trip have included the following (in chronological order):

·     A broken part on the awning (fixed by me with the help of John and Darryl),

·     Lost plug for the sink (bought two so we now have a backup),

·     An “allen key” embedded in a car tyre – not good (lucky it happened in Katherine),

·     Air bed # 1 going flat,

·     Air intake hole in new airbed too big for pump attachment, and

·     Air bed # 2 going flat.

To cap it off, a second tyre issue, this time a split on the inner wall – possibly caused by a sharp rock somewhere around Broome (lucky it happened in Broome).

 

All part of travelling.

Anyway back to Broome.  As you do when in Broome we visited Cable Beach and caught a few waves.  Brought back memories of July 1995 when Shirley and I were last here.  And, as it the right thing to do, we sat on the beach (Coronas in hand) and watched the sunset (see photo).  

Eventually we retired back to the camp ground where the BBQ was gunned up to cook some fish, which was followed by pancakes/fruit salad/maple syrup/ice cream. How hard is this life?  On another day I cooked scones for 9 (with cream & jam) and then we had a group spaghetti dinner (for 6) with crispy bread, following by fresh fruit salad and let over whipped cream. As you can see we are doing it pretty hard. Of course we had our 5 pm session between scones and dinner, i.e. a few coronas with lime.

 

The pace has been so hectic that Shirley and I decided to stay another 3 days in Broome to get some rest (said with tongue in cheek).  Darryl and Kay decided on another week.  John and Fay hit the road – off to Eighty Mile Beach.  However we had to shift sites, going from 60% shade to 80% shade – so that was OK.  Also closer to the pool.   Of course this also gave us a chance for a second visit to the brewery to try a couple more beers and visit the place up the road that had half price prawns on a Sunday. 

Another thing - there was a crocodile in the Cable Beach waters yesterday - just where we were swimming a few days ago.

By the time we leave Broome (maybe tomorrow) we will have spent about 4 weeks in the Kimberley and will have covered just under 3000 km – 60% of it without the caravan – 450 km on dirt roads. It has been a wonderful four weeks with lots of memories to take away – not to mention the number of photos that I have taken.  It will be hard to leave Broome.

Next stop will be the start of the Pilbara. Please stay tuned.

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Chapter 6 - Western Australia - East Kimberley

From 29 June 2011 

To     12 July 2011 

This report is from the Kimberley.  Never ending flat plains are behind us.  The rugged rocky beauty of the Kimberley is before us.  We had a great drive form Timber Creek (NT) to Kununurra with a stopover in a few places to review the magnificent scenes.  When viewing the majestic Victoria river from a bridge, crocodile footprints in the river mud bank could be seen around 100 metres away.

On Thursday we had a lazy day and planned the rest of our time in Kununurra.  The notable points are related to Shirley’s retail therapy, plus finding a banana farm/plantation who sold bananas for $6 per kilo.  We also checked out an amazing phenomenon called zebra rock.  Let your imagination run wild and you may be close.

Ord River

On Friday we had the trip that had to be seen, experienced and heard to be believed.  It was a 70 km bus drive to the Argyle Dam and then a boat trip down the Ord river for the 55 km back to Kununurra.  

When you consider the amount of water that is held by the dam, continually flows down the Ord, is used for irrigation, is left over and flows out to sea, increases in the “wet” season, etc etc.  It is huge.  

They measure water volume in “Sydney Harbours”.  That is, the amount of water that is held in Sydney Harbour.  At the moment the volume of water in the Argyle Dam is 32 Sydney Harbours (I think).  At the moment the daily amount that goes out to sea is enough to supply Perth, Adelaide and Melbourne for a year.  

If you couple those statistics with an amazing ride through breathtaking scenery, at speeds up to 60 km/h, and you include sights of rock wallabies, fresh water crocs, many birds big and small, a huge range of foliage – you get an idea of how good it was.  But wait, there is more.  Add to that the idea of returning to Kununurra in the dark after having seen the sun set over the hills and down the Ord – the experience was truly amazing.  And what was more amazing – Shirley enjoyed the entire boat ride (I think).

One of the more famous components of the Kimberley is the Gibb River Road that runs roughly from Kununurra to Derby.  Its length of 590 km is mainly dirt road with many water crossing.  

We ventured down about 40 km of that road to visit the first station from this end – El Questro.  El Questro is not rectangular but if you imagine  a property that is around 100 km wide and 135 km long you get an idea of its size.  

We left the caravan (and our friends) in Kununurra and took a two man tent to El Questro (see phot below).  It has plenty of 4WD drives and plenty of rocky walks – most ending in a swim of some kind.  One was even a warm 27 degrees.  

We set up camp and enjoyed an open air BBQ which consisted of tomato soup, main of barra/scotch filet/chops/chicken/pork/sausages/hot spuds/salad, plus a great range of desserts.  All this was eaten to the accompaniment of local music.  On the way back to Kununurra we called in to check out Wyndham and see the Boab Prison Tree (photo below) plus the sight of five rivers joining the ocean at roughly the same spot (viewed from a high lookout hill).  In a different way the two days were as good as the Ord river cruise (above).

About half the places we stay at have some form of entertainment, either bush poets or singers.  Although the singers are not substitutes for Clapton or McCartney they are great entertainers. They ALL LOVE their guitar, and love playing it whenever the opportunity arises.  In fact they remind me of a good mate who loves playing the guitar.  At El Questro the singer appeared at the tent next morning in a “ranger” uniform.  He is a stonemason by trade and, in the wet, he is also the brick layer, the stone layer and general construction worker.  He is also called on to muster cattle.  What a life.  And I bet he could tell a few yarns as well.

Boab Prison Tree

Monday 4^th was my birthday. The highlights stared when we had home made (by Fay) iced cupcakes and sang happy birthday (one candle) at morning tea.  We then took a flight over the Argyle Dam, the Argyle Diamond Mine and the Bungle Bungles.  It was excellent.  Six passengers and a gorgeous blond (female) pilot crammed into a flying tin can for the two hour trip.  

Lake Argyle stretches for 76 km and we flew down the middle of it at 2000 feet (maybe about 600 metres).  The Bungle Bungles are breath taking – we can’t wait to get out there and go through some if it on land.  The drive in to the National Park is 55 km and takes two hours with about 25 water crossings.  More on that later.  To finish the day the six of us went out to dinner at a flash restaurant called the “Kununurra Grand” – and it was.

On our last day in Kununurra we went to the Hoochery (http://www.hoochery.com.au/) where they make Aussie rum.  Hmmmmmmmm.  Three nips for $5.

Shirley in Echidna Chasm

On the 6^th we drove the 250 km to the edge of the Bungle Bungles and set up camp in a new caravan park (opened in May 2011) which is in a true bush setting.  They even have new ready grown turf that was put down a week ago.  Then on the next day we did IT.  How more Aussie can it get when you are driving down a corrugated red dirt road (good name for a song) in a 4WD at break neck speed (40 km/h), listening to Slim Dusty sing “The Ringer from the Top End”, while cattle graze beside the road and the Bungle Bungles loom out of the flat plain in majestic multi coloured rock.  Shirley and I had left the caravan behind and had migrated to the Bungle Bungles for two days and one night. 

Our camp site

It took us 2 hours to travel the 55 km into the Bungle Bungles National Park – with 25 water crossings. The tent came to the fore again – this time with a new air bed.  

We visited a place called “Cathedral Gorge” which was a huge open air cavern/amphitheatre with such good acoustics that a lot of people sing in there or take pre-recorded music to experience the sound effects. We heard a guy sing a few bars of the “Alleluia”. After another couple of walks we set up camp and had a relaxing couple of hours of relaxation before total darkness set in.  

Dinner was early, then bed was early, then the dingoes started howling.  However it was a good night for sleeping and an early start was on the go – particularly as Shirley’s air bed went flat this time (not the new one).  We spent four of the next five hours walking – mostly along dry rocky river beds.  

Again, the sights were majestic – it is too hard to explain the rugged beauty of the sights.  I took 175 photos in the two days.  So we tackled the 55 km again with the water crossings and arrived back at base camp looking forward to a long shower – after the car was washed of course.  It went from red to its natural gray.  Our four friends did an organised tour into the Bungle Bungles instead of the tent caper.  The Bungle Bungles are probably the highlight of the tour so far.

A magic view of the Bungle Bungles

I have a new item on my “Bucket List” – to write a fictional children’s book.  It has already started with the setting and the characters being established.  Publishing contracts prevent me from releasing any details.  I have already dictated half of the book to my secretary.  Stay tuned for updates.

Shirley in Tunnel Creek Cave

Our next stop was Fitzroy Crossing after a brief pause in Hall's Creek which is nothing to write home about - with due respects to the people who called that neck of the woods home.  Our first day in Fitzroy Crossing was fairly lazy with just a 60 minute cruise along Geikie Gorge - a magnificent limestone gorge with lots of great views.  It was very pleasant cruising along the river – the only thing missing was a glass of wine. On Monday we had a sweet and sour day. The “sweet” was the stroll though the magnificent Windjana gorge (many crocs were present), followed by a stroll/wade through “Tunnel Creek”.  Tunnel Creek is a 700 metre tunnel mostly big enough to drive a couple of buses through.  

About 300 m of the stroll was wading though water, some of it waist deep – so we were wearing bathers.  About 50% of it was pitch black requiring all walkers to have a talk.  This is not for the faint hearted – a stroll in the dark in a tunnel through water – where crocs are NOT guaranteed to be absent.  However it was a great experience. The exit of the tunnel flowed into a free flowing very pretty large creek. 

The “sour” was the 300 km round trip, 220 km of which was probably the worst 220 km of dirt road that I have ever driven in one day.  Again there were plenty of water crossings, albeit small.  If James Bond was with us his martini would have been well shaken – not stirred.

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Chapter 5 - Northern Territory

From 23 June 2011 

To    29 June 2011 

Now we are in the Northern Territory.  We departed Mt Isa this morning and travelled around 450 km to a place called Barkly Homestead, which is sort of in the middle of nowhere – about 200 km from the nearest town.  It is a cattle station around 465,000 acres where cattle are mustered by helicopter.  They own a fuel stop/eatery/bar/camp ground in the guise of roadhouse with shady trees and powered sites around the back.  Diesel was $1.96 per litre after being $1.49 in Mt Isa this morning. A stubby of beer was $5.60, and a splice icy pole was $4.20.  The majority of the road was excellent except for about 10 km when we crossed the NT border.  We also passed though Camooweal where the local store owners are animal conversationalists.  So Shirley got to cuddle a 5 months old red kangaroo joey.

It was very pleasant having a “coldie” with a local in the bar.  Then the six of us (three couples, in case I have not mentioned before) demolished two big boxes of hot cooked chips – which had so much salt we were forced to quench our thirst with the obvious Outback drink.

 
The army must be on the move as at Barkly Homestead we saw the first of about 70 army vehicles (small, big & huge) to pass is heading somewhere east.  We had a stroke of luck here as all three of us bought diesel from the same place who was unknowingly serving diesel with water.  We know of four people who had a problem - one with a new Mercedes - one in a rented motor home - another two in Land Cruisers.  THese people bought diesel BEFORE and AFTER us.  Phew. 

On Wednesday 22^nd we drove a mere 330 km to Renner Springs, which is a roadhouse not a town.  So we started at a cattle station, drove 330 km, never went through a town, and stopped at a roadhouse.  For the second night in a row we stopped at a roadhouse-type establishment where the main feature was a rustic outback bar.  For the second time this trip I cooked scones for the troops.  They were soon demolished.  Apart from being attacked by five over zealous geese (who probably wanted to eat my camera) the evening was quiet, pleasant and uneventful.  This was the first night since leaving Melbourne where we had absolutely no mobile reception.  Diesel at Renner Springs was $2.05 per litre but our capacity allowed us to look and smile – but not purchase.  In fact once we left Camooweal on the border it was another 600 or 700 km before we saw a town –just the odd roadhouse – and some of them were odd.

Just before Renner Springs we accidently happened onto a place called Newcastle Waters which was about 4 km off the highway.  This town (not even a pub) is famous as a watering hole for the droving teams many years ago.  Apart from a school about the only thing here is a tribute statue to drovers and a stack of water with zillions of waterbirds.  Great photo opportunity.

The roads are so straight in this neck of the woods that there are signs with arrows to indicate the occasional turn – in case you are in cruise control with a coffee and biscuits in hand.  If we had not been towing the van we could have taken all corners at the permissible speed limit (i.e. 130 km).

Then came one of the highlights of the trip so far – Daly Waters.  We camped for $24 and then surveyed the pub.  It was to be seen to be believed.  The “Beef & Barra” (at $27.50) has to be tasted to believed.  We did not even look to see what else was on the menu.  The entertainment was superb.  Mere words are not good enough to describe this place.  It is not even on the main road (i.e. Stuart Highway) – although only a few km off it.  I was up before dawn to go for a walk down a local historic track (all about John Stuart the explorer).

Next stop was Mataranka and the hot springs – about 30 degrees I think.  We relaxed here for two days, about 300 metres from the hot springs.  One of the additional highlights here was the water birds and the friendly wallabies – one of whom had a ‘big’ joey in her pouch.  It was now starting to get warm with the days into the mid twenties but still cool nights.  Shirley and I visited the Mataranka Saturday market and spent an entire 45 secnods there – three stalls with nothing of interest.

I continue to be fascinated by the huge range of water birds and windmills – in a part of the country that is renowned for being dry.  I have fluked some good (for me) photos of birds – even a kookaburra – different to the type seen in Victoria.

Next stop was Katherine on Sunday 26^th June.  It was fairly hot as we pulled into a grassy and shady caravan park.  Before long I had met a fellow lawn bowler who bowls for Eltham.  Bob clued me up on where the best spot for beer was in Katherine.  This action was duly taken and product was purchased.  We also caught up with my sister and her husband (Lynn & Daryl) who drove down from Darwin to have an evening with us – and very enjoyable it was as well.

On Tuesday (28^th I think) we headed off 300 (of 500) km towards Kununurra and stopped at a small place called Timber Creek.  It was a dry as a bone but we had lovely grassy sites.  This area is popular for its Barra fishing and fresh water crays.  We have also started to see Kimberley type landscape with the flat planes seemingly behind us.  The following is a sample of the sights.

 
  We will have covered about 4800 km by the time we cross the border into WA tomorrow.  With a bit of luck we will get to the WA border before we leave Timber Creek (with the 90 minute clock change.  It was not starting to get hotter with days in the low 30s and nights getting warmer.  Apart from one tank of diesel at $1.97 per litre the most we have paid is $1.56.  But lets wait and see what happens up the track.

Please note the photos of our travelling clan (great haircuts on the blokes):
Chris, Darryl, John and Fay, Shirley & Kay

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Chapter 3 - Matilda Way - Queensland

From 9 June 2011 
To     21 June 2011

Our first stop of note (re size) in Queensland was Cunnamulla which was a sad and sorry looking place. The bakery even had burnt pies. The highlight of the visit was just the statue of the Cunnamulla Fella, who was immortalised in song by Slim Dusty. Now that I have had my brush with Slim Dusty we are on the lookout for a “pub with no beer”, and we can become “wine dots”.

Another favourite of Slim’s was Charleville and we duly arrived there about two hours later. We camped the night on a 17,000 acre station (who supplement their meagre income by inviting campers) where we had our second campfire in two nights. The station is about half stocked with a mere 1200 head of cattle. We could not go star gazing at the Cosmos centre as it was too overcast so we gazed into the bottom of a glass or two. It was not a late night.

Next morning (Fri 10^th) the temperature on the car thermometer was -1 at 7am, so I went for a walk – because I could. About 300 metres into the walk I heard footsteps (so I thought) and turned around to see a youngish kangaroo (just above waist height) following me. No, he did not need lessons on lawn bowls. He just wanted a mate for a walk on a very frosty morning. He stayed with me for the 40 minute walk and even posed for photos and let me scratch his head. And yes, I was sober.

We travelled another 300 odd km for the day and arrived at Blackall – one of the many places famed for the source of the saying “beyond the black stump”. So in 8 days we have been “back o Bourke” and “beyond the black stump”. Our dinner was a campfire cooked roast beef (to die for), veges, damper & jam and billy tea. 

The following day was very leisurely with long walks being followed by a tour over a woolscouring shed – which is where wool is washed and tried before being shipped overseas. The washing is performed with artesian water that comes to the surface about 52 degrees – pretty warm. The shed also includes shearing stands, so in the one location the wool is shorn, washed, dried and baled. By this time we thought that we deserved a soak in a spa fed by the same artesian water, but at a more comfortable 32 degrees.

The day was completed by a visit at the park by Graeme Rodger – a Slim Dusty clone – who provided some great singing while we sipped on a drink before cooking the BBQ. He was very good.

Sunday saw us head off through Barcaldine to Infracombe which is a popular stopping place because of its mile of (old and protected) machinery and a few other attractions – including the pub. As the sun was very close to “over the yard arm” I tested the amber fluid while checking out the many hats, $A notes on the ceiling and the cartoons sketched on the wall. The tasted liquid was cold and exellent. We then drove the 27 km to Longreach which is famous for many things – most of them something Qantas or something stockman.

Our first visit was the Qantas Founders Museum and it was everything people have told us it would be. Magnificent. We had a detailed tour over a 747-200 (similar to the one I travelled on to London in 1974) and a 707 – which was the first Qantas owned jet and the first 707 sold to an airline outside the USA. 

The latter jet had many owners and one of them fitted it out luxuriously so that people like the Beatles, Madonna and Michael Jackson would/could/did use it. Our tour was follow by pre-dinner drinks at the camp bar as we awaited the “bush entertainment”. It was called that as most people went bush when the duo started singing – they were terrible. Not sure of the problem but I think they were a couple of “ringers” off a local cattle station with a lot of bull dust down their throat.

On Monday (Queen’s Birthday) we awaited a phone call about some Australian honours. As non came we went to the Stockman’s Hall of Fame and had a wonderful 4 or 5 hours. There was much sight seeing in the museum, but the highlight was a live show by a horse trainer, etc etc who demonstrated horse breaking/training, sheep mustering with dogs, camel attributes and hitching/working an 8 head bullock team – which constantly cracking jokes and reciting C J Dennis. 

Did you know that a camel can stand their hair up on end on hot days to make it work like an evaporate air conditioner. Did you also know that when a camel breathes out the breath contains NO moisture – it is retained by the body. And last but not least – camel urine is so concentrated that you could use it for nail polish remover – again to be moisture smart.

Then we headed off to Winton which is well known (by gray Nomads anyway) for its fossils and dinosaurs – as well as the birth place of Waltzing Matilda. We have never seen so many caravans on one stretch of road. Gray nomad caravans must have been over 50% of the traffic between Longreach and Winton. In some places there were convoys of 5 to 8 caravans. We duly visited the Waltzing Matilda exhibition which was another fine outback tourist attraction – brought a tear to the eye. Then the dinosaur hunt was on. Did you know that in the time of the dinosaurs the moon was closer to the earth and each day was only 20 hours long? How on earth could we have done all of our sightseeing with four hours less per day? For a laugh, do a google on “Arno’s Wall Winton”. It is an amazing demonstration of eccentricity.

The highlight was probably Shirley drumming out a tune on the musical fence and a drum kit.  You had to be there.

 

On Thursday we did a guided tour (read “Chris did not drive”) to Carisbrooke Station and the Dinosaur Stampede.  

Our chauffer was the owner of the station and we covered 330 km, 260 on dirt roads.  Charlie quoted facts, figures, ideas, theories and philosophies for probably 8 of the 10 hours we were in his care.  

We had lunch about 30 metres from a 1.5 metre rock python and afternoon tea in the middle of the 40,000 acre station  about 200 metres from where LBJ (remember him) crash landed in 1941 (i.e. during WW2).  

The commentary and the scenery were both extraordinary – not to mention the scones, jam & cream for afternoon tea. The Anzac biscuits were nearly as good as mine.

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Chapter 4 - Landsborough Highway - Queensland

From 21 June 2011 

To    23 June 2011 

And so is was interesting that we were 2500 km out of Melbourne and having not traversed a hill since before Shepparton that we departed from Winton. The 340 km drive to Cloncurry was normal and uneventful except for a drink in the McKinlay pub that was used in the Crocodile Dundee film. Then we established that it was show day in Cloncurry and everything was closed - so we pressed onwards to Mt Isa. The 120 km to Mt Isa is a lovely undulating (trees included) drive that has no straight roads and no flat roads - what a refreshing change – not seen since about Kilmore.

We enjoyed Mt Isa, partly because of the lovely weather and partly because of Mt Isa itself.  We did an underground mine tour – the mine being specially dug for tourists.  We had to don gum boots, overalls, hat, belt and light.  Did I look good in bright orange.  The photo has been deemed “classified”.  Today we visited an underground hospital, that was never used.  It was built during WW2 when intelligence suggested that the Japanese were intending to bomb Mt Isa, partly because of the prolific lead production (handy for bullets) and the 500 US troops stationed here.  It never happened. 

As a special treat we dined at the Irish club on our last night in Mt Isa.  The Guinness is said to be the best outside Ireland – and I agree with that assessment.  The Guinness & beef pie was also excellent.  Mt Isa is an amazing place in many ways – too many to mention here.  I suggest that you put it on your “Bucket List”.

I hope you like my new haircut (see photo).

We will have covered about 3250 km by the time we cross the border into NT tomorrow (Tuesday).  On the way we will pass another town put in song by Slim Dusty – Camooweal.

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Chapter 2 - Kidman Way

From 4 June 2011
To     9 June 2011

Day one saw a 460 km drive to Griffiths - which was the first serious town on the "Kidman Way". Not far out of Griffiths are cotton crops with a lot of cotton balls on the side of the road. So we stopped and got a handful – because we could.

We caught with friends (who left before us) and then went to the local Leagues club to eat, drink and gamble. Shirley tried “calamari schnitzel” which was a big slab of crumbed calamari. She said it was excellent. Then our three investors turned $1 into $30, $2 into $60 and $1 into $8. A happy result for all. And of course I turned $12 into three glasses of red - an excellent local Merlot called “Poker Face” – a good name in a pokies venue.

We spent 2 days (3 nights) in Griffith which is a nice place, and would have been much better were it not for the plentiful rain and the very cold weather. The highlight would have to be the end result of a drive down an extremely muddy 4WD road to visit a “fruit salad” farm where we tried pecan nuts, carob beans (pseudo chocolate), about six different mustards, some jams, olives, persimmon, three different red wines and some prunes. Geez. The owner was a short chubby guy of Sicilian heritage who loves a chat and loves what he does.

Night # 4 was spent at Cobar, 360 km on from Griffith. Cobar is sort of in the middle of nowhere, being over 150 km from any town above three people and a dog – not counting wild goats – which are plentiful. The main claim to fame around here is sort of “on and off” mining of copper – depending on market prices. We left the park early to take a photo of the magnificent “Cobar” sign at the entry to Cobar – which is on the old working of a closed copper mine. When we got there we found some goose in a 45 foot (or so it seemed) caravan had parked his van overnight in front of the sign. The trip north took us into the “real” outback.

The towns so far have been pleasant - being clean and attractive in a country sort of way. From memory the 360 km from Griffith to Cobar had three bends.

Nights # 5 & 6 were spent at Bourke, and of course I had to have my photo taken “back o’ Bourke” – but not before we scored a paddle steamer trip down the Darling – which in flood is no darling. Apparently many decades ago when the river flooded the paddle steamers would go cross country to pick up wool etc. Some did not get back to the Darling before the river dropped and were stranded for one to five years. There were no GPS aids in those days. However the grog that was stored in the ballast tanks would have come in handy. We visited the grave site of Fred Hollows and his location is covered by a large and magnificent hunk of granite. The evening of night # 6 was spent around a campfire having a camp-supplied BBQ with pikelets, jam and cream for dessert – plus billy tea. 

The entertainment came from a local bush poet and the shire CEO who gave us a few facts and figures about the local area. For example, when the Darling is in flood the water that flows passed Bourke daily is in excess of the water in Sydney Harbour. Another example, pregnant women in Bourke need to go to (at least) Dubbo (340 km) for the birth.

Our last morning in Bourke was accompanied by ice on the windscreen and a temperature around or just above zero.

Our 7^th day took us over the border into Queensland and from the Kidman Way into Matilda country. Hopefully you can work out why it is called Matilda country. More on that in the next edition. We had covered 1267 km by the time we crossed the border. 

So far, on the side of the road we have seen cattle, sheep, horses, wild goats, wild cats, rabbits, a dead hare, a dead pig, a dead wombat, heaps of emus, lots of kangaroos, foxes and a huge range of birds. Needless to say some of these were feeding off deceased versions of other listed animals. The roads so far have been fairly good, very straight and very flat. If you take away the caravans and the semi-trailers the roads would be very quiet.

Jump to the next chapter

Chapter 1 - Overview

Three Galaxy caravans and three couples are setting off late May and early June to travel via outback NSW and Queensland to the north west of Australia - with the Kimberley and the north west coast being the expected highlight.  Major towns are Bourke, Longreach, Mt Isa, Katherine, Kununurra, Broome, Port Hedland, Coral Bay, Geraldton and Perth.

Please stay tuned for regular updates and follow the map as you see our progress in anti-clockwise order.

Table of Contents

Chapter 2 - Kidman Way

Chapter 3 - Matilda Way

Chapter 4 - Landsborough Highway

Chapter 5 - Northern Territory

Chapter 6 - East Kimberley - WA

Chapter 7 - West Kimberley - WA

Chapter 8 - The Pilbara

Chapter 9 - Coral Coast

Chapter 10 - Wildflowers & the Nullarbor

Chapter 11 - Finale & Wrap Up