Dinotopia at Winton

14 days away from home - and about 4 days behind already. Oh well, not in a hurry. A short drive today of only 200k and the weather warming up to over 30.

About 15k before Winton is the Australian Age of Dinosaurs which is located on a "jump up" geological formation. It has the largest collection of Australian dinosaurs in the world and is where people from all walks of life can go on Dino digs or work in the laboratory to prose the fossils from the rock. All the fossils have been unearthed from the Winton area. The local farmers are quite happy for the paleontologists to come and dig on their land as they are able to name a dinosaur - there is one named Mick because Mick owned the land where it was found - makes sense to me.

The famous "Banjo"

There are two tours, each about 30 minutes. One is of the lab where the hands on work is done and the other, the collection room where the finds are explained. Elliot is the main star, over 30 metres long (a vegetarian) and the other was Banjo - he was a fast meat eater, a nasty little critter. The whole show was very entertaining and informative.

Banjo Patterson

A short drive into town, and it was now late and hot - amazing how the hours go by so quickly. We were contemplating going to the Bladensberg National Park to camp, but it was another 45 minutes away down a dirt road, and we had had enough for one day. So off to the Matilda Country Tourist Park for the night, and from there to explore tomorrow. This was supposedly the place where Waltzing Matilda was written by Banjo Patterson, the great australian poet.
The bicycles have been unloaded as we thought they would be the best way to explore - the town ain't that big. A ride to the music fence and played some lovely tunes - very ingenious. Bits of fence wire through different baffles and you get the different notes. There were also all types of instruements made from scrap.

A tour then through the waltzing Matilda centre in the Main Street, full of memorabilia and displays and an easy place to spend a few hours. The town really plays the dinosaur card, as well as opals. Even the bins in the Main Street are dinosaur feet.

The old buildings have history and one of the pubs in in its fourth build, all the others being burnt down. There is also Arno's wall, a mortar and mud and rock 2m high wall that has everything, including the kitchen sink incorporated. Don't know why but maybe the heat has something to do with it.

Tomorrow we head to Mt.Isa via the Min Min highway through Boulia. The tales from other travelers and locals is that this way is spectacular scenery and not to be missed. Will try to early vote before heading off.

Longreach

With our base in Ilfracombe it is only 26k into Longreach. Our day started with David booked in for a 10am flight simulation on F35 Lockheed lightning at the Qantas Founders Museum. A whole lot of fun, not allowed to shoot anything down, blow anything up - so sad. Managed take off perfectly, barrel rolls, loops, and the landing was perfect after writing off three planes - at least I didn't have to pay for them.

Julia trying to fly a 747

We then had a guided tour of the Boeing 747 and 707 - two hours of detail, anecdotes and information from an extremely well informed guide (from East Preston). If you ever visit Longreach this is a must. The history around both planes is excellent and the story of how they came "home" intriguing.

Middle East oppulence

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Lunch followed and then we still had the museum to do. A huge display of memorabilia and things to read and watch and then into the original hanger/work shop - the day was done by 4pm and then back to Ilfracombe for "happy hour" - that was paling somewhat as the crowd is a little older than us, the jokes older than all of us and it went on and on and on - we just wanted dinner. I must say that the happy hour is held in the happy hour shed and normally run by the owner who puts on a good show. He was away fishing this weekend, so may be tomorrow will improve.

Monday was a return to Longreach to now do the Stockman's Hall of Fame. It was just our luck that the "show" doesn't run on a Monday so that just left all the exhibits. It was quite impressive with the history of pastoral and exploration of the Outback with the central players. The diversity and hardships that the early settlers had to put up with, and how they managed, certainly showed a tenacity of spirit.

A good three hours at the exhibit and then into town for grocery shopping and lunch. On our return to Ilfracombe we were taken on a tour of Langenbraker house. This house, now purchased by the local council, was moved here in 1899 where Mary raised 11 children. She died in the house in 1967 and her youngest son lived in it until 1996 when he died. He left everything as it was when his mother was still alive, never moving anything or throwing anything out . The house was a real snapshot in time of how they used to live 60 plus years ago. Lets live like that agin said no one ever...........
The "happy hour" really picked with the return of the owner - a hoot.
Tuesday is goodby to Longreach and off to dinosaur land around Winton.

Isisford and Ilfracombe

We moved on from Blackall taking the tourist road to Isisford. We had been told that it was a lovely place and not to be missed - they forgot to mention the road was crap - 3 glasses, numerous bowls and plates, all in little pieces in cupboards - back to plastic and melamine from now on. Also I don't know how but screw lids on jars in the fridge come off - oh well, if that's our only issue life's good.

sign says it all

It seems that the locals has a bit of a problem with the Labor Party - they are not happy at all with them.
We went bush for the night at the Oma Water Hole, on the banks of the Barcoo River. It was 15k out of town and were wondering if we were ever going to find it along a corrugated dirt road. Once there we found a very restful place with an eagles nest in the tree above us, wandering emu's and roo's and just quiet. Pelicans floating by on the water and the apostle birds kicking up a stink in the dust. There are flushing toilets and hot showers which was a surprise - well maintained by the local council.
One thing I don't understand is, when there are many vacant camps around, people feel the need to take the spot next to you. We had no neighbors for 150m until 2 vans pulled in 30m away. Go figure.........!

After a dinner of gourmet pizza and a nice shiraz, with Julia creating a bonfire as D cooked, it just polished off the day as the sun set.

Life is good

A short 90k drive to Ilfracombe where we plan to base ourselves while we explore what Longreach has to offer over the next few days.

To Blackall

300km pushing north as we traverse what will be known as carnage way. Every 50-100 meters there is a dead roo, emu or something undistinguishable spread over the tarmac. Probably twice the distance travelled as we swerved around them all. You never know how big the critter is (or was) as it is covered with ravenous carnivorous birds, which only fly off when you are close. Could make a good horror movie?

A mid morning coffee break at Augathella, home to the meat ants. The ants are apparently very ferocious little critters and if you put a cow carcass on the nest it will be down to bone in 2 weeks. It is also the name of the local rugby team.
On the way in we were met by a very large herd of cattle - 2000- that were being driven (as in drovers) to Hay. They had been on the road for 4 months - a long way to go before they get to the "long paddock".

Drovers

 

The town is very neat and trim with garden beds down the Main Street. Its claim to fame is being the central home for the 1950s movie Smiley, with Chips Rafferty - never heard of it, never seen it.

Onwards to Tambo, another neat town (they all seem to take great pride in appearance), with a lunch stop by the Tambo Dam, then a quick look at the "Tambo Teddies" where the smallest bear started at $60. Tell 'em they're dreamin...........From there further north we struck what must be the worst road in QLD? It had more bumps and jumps that the mad mouse roller coaster at Luna Park. Some times we thought we were going to take off. Even halving the speed did nothing to help 100k of crap road basically. There are a lot of roadworks happening and it appears they are trying to improve the surface.

Blackall Artesian soak

Arrived at Blackall and we are undecided whether to spend two nights or one. A relaxing soak in the artesian hot springs was beneficially to mind and body, roast dinner and damper with billy tea at the park oven will top the night off.
A drive around the town the next morning as there was no rush to move us on - the inevitable black stump (every town seems to have one), petrified logs and then to the wool scour where wool was cleaned washed and packed for export.It has been restored to the last working model in Australia, powered by steam as it was in the late 1800's - and the tour guide knew his stuff as he used to work there before it closed in 1976. Now all our wool goes overseas for processing and cleaning.

Cunnamulla and Charleville

Arrived at the Warrego Riverside camp where we pitched our spot with a view of the river. Very quiet with pelicans floating past and the fish jumping. A very pleasant spot we must say.

The Cunnamulla Fella

A short 3k into town to the visitor information centre in the old school with an extremely enthusiastic attendant - had all the history and wanted to make sure we heard it at the top of his voice. We now know all about artesian bores (not boring) 101 stand wool sheds where 500000 bales went out in one season. It was all actually very informative.
Outside is the famous(?) Cunnamulla Fella immortalised in song by Slim Dusty which is why I had never heard of him. A walk around the shops where arrangements were made to have Julia's bicycle repaired the next day and then back to river camp where there was going to be some entertainment around the fire pit. Well - we heard it start and immediately decided to hide in the van until they had gone. Two old foggies who think the can sing country and western - not. Camp fire was nice though talking to other travelers later though.
Woke to a beautiful and still morning on the river, sun just hitting the tops of trees, very peaceful indeed.

We hit the road after cycle repairs with a mid morning stop at Wyandra where the fence was adorned by 300m of bras - strange thing to see in the middle of nowhere . Apparently they were collected as part of a breast cancer fund raising and some are being put in a time capsule (don't ask why).

We were directed to a dirt road where we found "The Beach", an idyllic spot on the Warrego River with soft white sand, grass and river pools - only spoilt by a sign advising there was no overnight stays permitted. It was a spot you could stay a week.

The "Beach"

A short drive further north and we were at Charleville. The Red Lizard camp is new, set out well with new facilities and a huge pizza oven where we ordered our dinner for the night. A tour around town and booked in for two events the next day - Cosmos of the night sky (stars and stuff) and a brolgas and bustards station tour. Dinner at the pizza oven with a glass of wine talking to travelers - excellent - cold night 1 degree - not so.
Wednesday morning an early start to meet Kevin McDonald 39k north at the entrance to Woolabra Station. He then drove us around his 90000h station and told his story of moving here 30 years ago from Swan Hill, fights with the banks, the good times the bad, the need to change their farming ways, his vision for the property and on and one. A pioneer vision, struggle and diversity. They needed to change when in one year his wool cheque went from $75000, to $150,000 when the wool market collapsed. He now boom irrigates with one circular boom 585m long. This has attracted huge wildlife colonies (and pests such as kangaroos, pigs, dingoes, etc) so to keep them out he put an electric fence around most of the place - 280 kilometers of fence. They have brolgas (300 at one count), sea eagles, bustards and another 40 species of birds for the enthusiasts . All in all a great story teller and a way to pass 3 hours.

Brolgas ready to dance

A night of stargazing and information, on a bloody cold night outside at the Cosmos Observatory, has completed our educational experience of Charleville.

Back O' Bourke

Into the Outback

Another sunny morning and we headed north along the Kidman Way towards Bourke, approximately 160k's. The road is excellent and flat. not much wildlife to be seen except the many feral goats on the sides. They are every where. Arrived at the Back o' Bourke exhibition centre, a very impressive new development which we will explore tomorrow after the interactive show.
Bourke is situated on the Darling River with plenty of history, paddle steamers, wharf, old buildings and tales of Henry Lawson . We are staying at Kidman Camp caravan park which is very pleasant, with grassed sites. Picked up the "mud map" booklet for the area which has all the local attractions and how to get there.
After a tour around of all the old buildings in town, a visit to the replica old wharf we then trusted the map to take us to Fort Bourke stockade built by Major Thomas Mitchell in 1835 and is the only defensive fort built by explorers in Australia. Either the map or me were out by .4 kilometers but we were not lost at least.

Return was via the Bourke cemetery to look at Fred Hollows grave - he chose to be buried here even seeing he was born in NZ because he loved the area - strange people these Kiwi's. Another short drive via the mud map to the historical lock and weir, the only one built on the Darling River in 1897. After so much history, there is only one thing left to do and that is back to the van for a beer.
Sunday was a slow start with some washing and then to the Back O' Bourke exhibition centre for the 11am outback show with camels, horses, dogs and the biggest Bullocks we have ever seen. The lead bullock was massive, standing nearly 2m at the shoulder. There were corney jokes, old bush poetry and laughs. It was interesting to see how the teams were harnessed together and how well trained they were. After the show it was into the exhibition itself, very well done but far too many words to read - it would take a couple of days to take it all in properly

Bullock Team

Only a mother could love this face

Big Rufous (not Julia)

A quiet later afternoon prior to the bush poet night entertainment at the camp, with plenty of food thrown in which should be a some outback fun. Tomorrow we are heading north again to Cunnamulla - finally into Queensland.

Cobar

We woke to clear skies but a little breezy. After a slow start we trekked out to the Fort Bourke look-out which gave a spectacular view into the Cobar gold mine, about 150m down into the open cut.

Approximately 9 Km south of Cobar is the Peak Gold Mine and golden walk - nothing to see except the large poppet head and some rusty old machinery.
Of course after this strenuous activity it was time to tour the Main Street shops and coffee places (think there are more coffee shops than shops). It may be due to the economic times but there appeared to be a number of vacant premises.

Peak Gold Mine

Great Cobar Heritage Centre - worth the stop and take an hour or two to explore. It was the original mine offices before being sold to the town for $1.00

An afternoon bike ride around the historic town walk finished off the day. Many old buildings, some derelict and vacant, some just derelict as is expected in old mining towns.

Hillston to Cobar

Our first free camp went without a hitch - Julia waking up and her first comment "we'll we weren't murdered in our bed" . Trucks joined us on and off during the night but that didn't keep us awake.
A trip out 15k to the Hillston Cotton Gin was an interesting diversion to see them take the raw cotton (6 round bales to a semi) and transform it into soft white fluffy bales, a thousand of them a day, and about 140 thousand for the season. The plant operator was very happy to explain the process and all the machinery.

A quick look around the town and a couple of "local produce" stores and onto Cobar via Mount Hope.
The Kidman Way is nice and flat with the country changing from salt bush to slightly wooded. There was no wind today which made the driving easy. A lunch stop at Gilgunnia (1087 Camps book), an old gold mining area where there were a number of travelers stopped, and a chat with them, some heading north, some south, and a wealth of knowledge.
Cobar is a bustling and prosperous town steeped in a history based on mining and pastoral heritage. The town’s CBD boasts a mixture of old and new buidlings which chronicle Cobar’s course through the last 130 years of its history. The Cobar District abounds with wildlife which includes kangaroos, emus, echidnas, snakes, lizards and giant goannas. There are over 200 species of birds, including the magnificent Major Mitchell Cockatoo, Wedge-tailed Eagle and Mallee Ringnecks.

We plan a number of nights here to explore the surrounding area and to meet up with some friends traveling through as well.

Gembrook to Hillston

The old cat "Mog" is ensconced in holiday camp and we have headed off for the first night to Rochester to catch up with our old friends Pete and Kerry. A leisurely drive via the Melba highway through Yarra Glen, Yea and a stop for gourmet pies at the Bakery, then via Murchison and Rushworth. The wind kept us company all day making the driving tiring so glad to stop at campground "Brookdale" Park

Parked at "Brookdale" park

From there our trek will take us through Deniliquin and Hay with a stop in Hillston where we pick up the Kidman Way. We are not planning on spending much time at either place as we had visited them a few months ago on a previous trip - not saying there is nothing to see but.......we will have a look around Hillston as a "new" destination. We plan to take close to 5 hours to get there, pretty much what we hope to do daily unless we are going to stay longer at a location.
Before Hillston is the quaint town of Merriwagga - home of the Black Stump Hotel with the tallest bar in Australia - around 1.7m with bar stools to match. After a beer, a look at the memorial to the Pioneer Women of the area, heading north again and decided to spend the night at the Hillston roadside stop (has toilets) for the night. It is only about 2k from Hillston so with a shorter drive to Cobar tomorrow we will do our exploring in the morning.

Hillston is 110km from Griffith and where the "Lachlan meets the outback" according to the town blurb .

The Planning

The planning is underway for the long trip north, leaving a cold wet Gembrook behind and looking for some warmer climes.

Solar panels have been fitted to the trusty caravan (18.5 foot Royal Flair), suspension upgraded, and most importantly, the bike rack fitted.

The plan is to head north along the Kidman and Matilda Way, via Griffith, Cobar, Bourke, Charleville, Longreach, Winton, Mt. Isa, Normanton and then across to Townsville and return via the coastal route. It sounds a bloody long way, it is a bloody long way but who cares.

Northward route

The beauty is not having a locked down return date, no real plan of how long we stay in one place, the expectation of being able to do much free camping as possible and meeting all the fun people along the way. Expected departure is the 13th August, all going well.

Ready to go......

The van is just about packed though I was a little worried if the bikes were going to fit due to the gas bottles but all is good.

We really can't wait until we are on the road and looking at the weather for Melbourne over the next week it can't be soon enough.