Part 3

Part 3

Well hello again. This time we are in sunny Mt Isa. Although it is sunny it is also unseasonably cool at present with temperatures only reaching about 21C. The diesel heater has been working overtime in the mornings with the conditions plummeting to a low of 0-4C. I haven’t actually seen any frost yet, but that might have something to do with the time we arise from bed!

Travelling from Birdsville we headed north toward Bedourie. Due to the recent flooding in the channel country, roads have been damaged. A detour out towards Lake Machattie made for some scenic driving as we traversed the area around the lake, through the typical gibber and into some red sand dunes. The dunes once again became the barrier between some water reaching areas, while missing others.

Right side water - Left side no water.

Farming in this country is very haphazard with water distribution. The occasional cow or two could be seen, but very little other life form. 

Finally, we reached the main road back into Bedourie where upon arrival we see the vegetable truck we left in Birdsville. What? How did he beat us into town when he certainly didn’t go past us?  It was bewildering, but discovered from the local Hotel owner, local traffic has right of way over the road where we had to detour. 

After the mandatory drink at the old establishment ( Bedourie hotel), we made our way out the road to find a campsite.

Bedourie Hotel

A few false starts and finally we came to a good stand of gum trees along a creek, where a pull-off was enough to get the vans out of sight and settle for the night. The loneliness of the night was quickly shattered with the jovial company we keep. With the campfire lit, it was time for a few drinks, some nibbles and some funny anecdotes about our day. And believe me there were some funny stories. Nothing repeatable on a blog, but yes, funny!    

The next morning, we joined the track again traveling into Min Min country, towards Boulia.  

The road was now all bitumen, so the going was relatively easy, except when oncoming traffic needed to pass. The road is only one car wide. To let other vehicle pass you have to move off to the gravel shoulder. I guess we should be appreciative of the QLD government in putting these roads in, but an extra 6’ either side would make a great deal of difference to broken windows and dinted cars and vans. You don’t realise how big this state is until Bob Katter's posters pop-up in Boulia. This politician covers an extremely large area from Cairns on the coast, to the Northern Territory border. The population in this area is sparse, so I guess we will accept Mr Katter’s effort for a road!

Into Boulia we called and headed straight to Information Centre. From here we obtained some tickets for the ‘Min Min Outback Encounter’, plus the Stone Cottage Museum. We had already seen the experience ourselves, but for our fellow travellers booked the round trip. Once again walking was required to the Stone Cottage.

Original house - Stone Cottage - Boulia

Once again male traveller complained about walking. I find humans strange creatures at times, as this male traveller complains with any walk we take. Yet he will walk for kms around old machinery, or down the road to discover what might be there. This apparently isn’t called a walk! 

Into the Stone Cottage we went, where we discovered the original house of Boulia (stone cottage), all the traditional equipment used in the 1800-1900s including a charcoal meat safe. 

The fellas went off to discover …more old machinery! The girls wandered the place discovering marine mammals from a time when dinosaurs reigned supreme. Big fish with sharp teeth enthralled and amazed us. To think these creatures roamed the sea 100 million years ago and to be discovered in this area, is staggering.

Prehistoric fish from Inland Sea 100 million years ago

The infamous inland sea is responsible for these large beasts and according to the manager of the place “more is out there somewhere!”

Moon rocks at the bottom of the tree

Another fascinating aspect were the ‘moon rocks’ displayed around the museum. Once again according to the Manager, these can be found out on the Winton Road where the road works have recently been constructed.  These rocks are almost uniquely round and were formed (you guessed it) back with the dinosaurs. The theory is that at the nucleus of these rocks is a fossil. To buy one would set you back over $100. 

Better to go and see what you can find on the road, I think!

We were on a tight timeline for this tour and needed to get back to the Information Centre for the next show. In between we had to pull the fellows away from their machine obsession. They even went as far as climbing on some of the old trucks and postulating theories about how they worked. Seriously, how many old bits can you ‘ooh and aah’ about?

Old relics - and fellas!

Yes, more walking back down the street (all of 8 minutes each way) and we tried to push lunch in before our show. And push is turned out to be. After ordering our meal at the hotel we waited and waited. Time was ticking away and nothing was happening.  10 minutes before our show was to start, the meal arrived. I have never eaten a chicken burger as quickly as this one and was sure indigestion would be the consequence. Hubby decided to eat his chips and asked for a take-away for his steak sandwich (wise move!).  Male traveller made a quick dive on his steak sandwich, chewing his last morsel as he sat down just as the introduction to the show began at 1:00pm. Female traveller made the right decision ordering a pie. No indigestion there!

The animated show was once again brilliant, with stories about the Min Min lights and its mysterious appearances in these far-flung areas of Australian. Even though we didn’t actually see a Min Min light, the myth will forever stay in our minds.

A quick shop for milk, bread and chocolate and back on the road. This time the channel country was making way for the more treed acres. Spinifex was starting to dominate and even rocky outcrops were seen on the horizon. Cattle were more prevalent and road-kill appeared more frequently than anywhere previously travelled. Kites, Crows and the magnificent Wedgie (Wedge-Tailed Eagles) were devouring the cadavers of cow and kangaroo on a regular basis.

Wedgie leaving his lunch 

The Wedgie reigns in this harsh landscape, taking precedence in the bird hierarchy. Slow to move from the road I insisted we slow right down. This allowed me the perfect picture, from the comfort of the car. 

The last leg of the day ended in Djarra, a small community 150kms from Mt Isa. Not much here but a Hotel, Roadhouse (selling everything), school and hospital. A lovely free, grassed camp with campfire for the night and we couldn’t ask for more. The Corella's were an extra benefit. A new amenities block under construction is almost complete which will set this area up for more good camping for tired tourist’s in the future. 

Coming into Mt Isa. Scenary is now changing from the gibber and channel country

Now I’ll say here, at times our travelling companions have an issue with their UHF radio. For some unbeknown reason the microphone comes on automatically, but they are unaware of it. We in the other car hear snippets of conversations; a bit like being half-a-fly on the wall! All of a sudden travelling down one of the roads, the microphone comes on and we hear female traveller hysterically laughing. We think whatever was said must be hilarious, but have no hint of what it is. Parking for the night female traveller comes to our van. “You’ll never guess what happened” she says. “I picked up a Women’s Weekly back at Boulia, and read the horoscopes for both of us. Mine is pretty good, but Male traveller’s is spot-on” she says laughingly. She proceeds to read it to us and we can’t help but ‘crack-up’ about the content. It is hilarious! Especially for a man who has an aversion to recycled food! I’ll leave it at that, just in case of embarrassment (what happens on camp, stays on camp!).

We have now arrived in Mt Isa, where the smelter smoke dominates the city-scape. An interesting mining town for zinc, silver and copper (originally). No doubt we will discover more about it all tomorrow. Till then…            

Part 2

You may be wondering why a massive first part to our adventure and a rather shorter version now? Well that's what happens when you forget your password for Google and Blogger and need to reset!
To continue our story...
On our way back from Muloorina, we came upon some unusual stainless steel contraptions normally found on a truck. It appears these things have fallen off the truck on its way either, in or out of the station. No doubt the truckie who lost them would be most put out when the time came to unload. They apparently (according to hubby) are used to put the stabilising legs down when disconnecting a trailer.
Well our good deed for the day was to pick these up and transport them into the Police Station at Marree. As it turns out this was fortuitous as on asking the police lady as to the opening of Birdsville track, she informed us "Anything under a semi-trailer is able to go through to Birdsville". Whahoo! Just the news we wanted to hear. The signs still are saying 4WD only and under 3 tonne, but I prefer the Marree Police policy.
After picking up a few essentials - bread, milk, vanilla slices (other travellers) it was onto the track. I was a little excited, as this was the only track I had yet to travel in this part of the world. Oddnadatta - tick! Strezlecki - tick! Birdsville now the last challenge.
The road although rough, was still in relatively good condition. Very few corrugations, patches of stone and some clay. Throw in the odd wet patch or river crossing and all was making for an interesting drive. It wasn't long before the gibber plains took over the entire landscape. The shimmering rocks made for wonderful mirages. It was easy to think how the old explorers would have been caught out many times when first pioneering this land.
The occasional sand dune was driven over; mostly of the grey type. Red dirt still a while away closer to Birdsville. The land was dry and dusty though with little evidence of rain for years. We were yet to reach the channel country and its wondrous floodplains.

Finally we made our camp that night halfway along the track at a place called Mungerannie. A quaint hotel in the middle of nowhere, with the owners just as excenttric. A very substantial meal and a few red wines (or beers) and it was time to head to bed. We were crooned with Dingo howling for the night. The outback lullaby.
Our male traveler was in his element here as he has a great knowledge and enthusiasm for the old postman Tom Kruse. Even Tom's old

truck was here in the yard, which made both men swoon.
Next day, onto Birdsville - only another 300 kms to go. More river crossings, sand dunes and gibber plains and we passed into true channel country. Green grass as high as your knees reached, in between some dunes (but not all). It certainly was a hit-and-miss business this water caper. A slight detour from the regular road via the bottom of a sand dune made for eventful driving. But the lagoons and water still present in the outback made it all worthwhile.
Finally we made it to Birdsville without much mishap. Paul found a nail in his tyre?? with produced a slow leak, but other wise all unscathed.
Well a day of washing, clothes and cars has ensured. We are now
ready to start our next journey to Mt Isa and beyond. A trip to the racecourse, cemetery and tip and we've seen the sights - according to the fellas. At least I had a look at one of the videos playing at the information centre about the Diamantina  Shire and the residents who make up this unique part of the world.

Gibber plains

Until next part - stay tuned.

Outback Adventure 2019

Part 1

The outback has always held a fascination for me. As a child I watched movies such as ‘We of the Never, Never’ and ‘The Overlanders” dreaming of the wilderness of red dessert sand, Mulga scrub and gibber plains. 

I have now travelled quite a few kilometres over this harsh but wonderful landscape and this trip in 2019 is another adventure with a focus on Lake Eyre, the Birdsville Track and Cape York.

Our companions for this trip were novices to the outback laws of travel; lowering tyre pressures, locking out dust and leaving only your footprints. We on the other hand had never travelled with a ‘real’ caravan before, usually only a home-made camper trailer. This camper trailer served us well in the previous years, but time for an upgrade was required. 

We travelled quickly the first few days from our home in Bairnsdale to Mildura. Crossing the Murray River, we diverted at Wentworth, to see the major rivers of our country converge; the Murray and Darling. From here we went to follow the track out to Rufus River on Lake Victoria, but were thwarted in our attempt as previous rain had made our road impassable. An alternative to Renmark was sought.

The backroad to Renmark was in reasonable condition, with only a few splashes of water and mud making for a fun ride. The poor van was now christened with its first red mud. A great deal more was to follow later in our trek. Only a slight sighting of Lake Victoria was seen in the distance before we found ourselves surrounded by grapevines and in South Australia. 

Renmark was our next stop to restock on fruit and veggies. Quarantine measures at the border, insured all new stock was required. 

Following the Murray River to Morgan we then detoured from the main Sturt Highway towards Burra. A moonscape now captured our imagination as we left behind the irrigated citrus and vines. Low saltbush and sandy red dirt were our scene for the next while until the Clare Valley Hills came into view. 

Bypassing Burra, time was now running short in the day. A place to camp next on the itinerary. Terowie an old railway town was now in sight and it was here we pulled up to camp. 

The history on these long-forgotten towns is something to behold and treasure. All our fellow travellers enjoyed the eerie peace this once bustling place produced. The old railway station; the different gauge train tracks used to suit the once thriving wool and grain industries surrounding this town. Even General MacArthur had his moment of fame during WW2, declaring “I shall return” on the railway platform. 

Nothing much happens these days in Terowie besides a fuel station and general store. The main street is very quiet except for the passing tourist and the odd chook walking by!   

Following a cool night and morning we were off again up the track, this time to stop at the revitalised Peterborough. I say revitalised, as a few years back the community got together and obtained a government grant to help tidy their shopfronts and facias. With the transformation the town underwent, it now looks like someone actually wants to live here. The once dreary falling down streetscape gone. The community also went the one step further, providing a service to all RV (Recreation vehicles), with dump point, water and internet facilities.  

Trains again were a big factor in this town’s history. With five different entrances to town and a major shunting yard, it was one of the busiest railway stations in Australia. Over 10,000 people once called this place home; now the population is down to about 1,500. 

Now the thing about caravanning 2019 style is that most of the vans are self-contained; showers and toilet almost the norm. With this modernisation also comes the dreaded emptying of the toilet. This duty is mostly relegated to the men, under complaint of course. 

As it happened our fellow male traveller is a very animated and talkative man. The usual complaining about the toilet was made as he started to unscrew the outlet cap. Placing the cap upon the lip of the dump-point he continued to release the content of the toilet cassette into the cement pit. Meanwhile my husband had already flushed and returned his toilet cassette to its rightful place and was beginning to fill his water tanks. With water hose rolled out, the lady traveller tripped over the hose, almost losing her footing. On this noise, our male traveller turned suddenly and knocked the cap off the lip and into the dump pit. The issue now was how to retrieve it?  The antics that followed should have been on ‘funniest home videos’. It was too deep in the pit to retrieve by arm alone. And let’s face it who really wanted to put their arm in there anyway? Husband then finds two tent poles and slowly manoeuvres them together, like chopsticks inching the cap up. Several attempts later, and finally an arm goes in halfway, the cap is out. They say a picture tells a thousand words, thank goodness I have a camera in my phone to prove this feat! 

After all this high drama it was time to ‘chill’ out with a coffee and cake. As fortuitous as it may seem, such a shop was just over the road from where we were.

The old Capital Picture theatre had a new identity as a café. On entering the old building, we were met with the staircase and signs pointing inwards. The further we proceeded, the further we were amazed at the transformation the old picture theatre had undergone.

Gone were the theatre seats, replaced by sofas and easy chairs. Small tables and chairs inhabited the interior of the place with old memorabilia scouting the outside. Even down to the Blue’s Brothers statue on either side of the stage, with an American Jeep in the corner. 

The coffee was good but the nostalgia even more appealing.    

The day was slipping past and it was onwards toward our next destination – Wilpena Pound. 

Capitol Theatre - Peterborough

This was the true beginning of our outback adventure. Leaving cities behind, we now turned right into the magnificent Flinders Ranges; this ancient landscape is one of nature’s wonders.

Pulling into Wilpena we made our way over to the information centre, before gaining our bearings on the walk into Wilpena and the old Hill’s Homestead. Walking shoes on, bottles of water carried and we were on our way. Much complaining from our male traveller came “What do we need to do this for? Isn’t there a bus? I don’t like this walking caper” and so it went on. To be honest we were under the impression it was only a 5 kms round-trip, but it turned into 8kms. 

Walking up the track we were surrounded by various gum trees, following the stream. The going was easy although it was a slight incline all the way. A few other walking tracks came off our route pointing to many other highlights of the park. Meeting a few other walkers coming back, banter amongst the group became commonplace. Finally, into view came the old homestead.  Interpretive signs explained the history of Wilpena Pound, the European settlement, farming trials and harsh conditions faced by the early pioneers. 

After a short but very steep trek up the rock staircase we reached the platform where we could survey the pound in its entirety. The panorama is amazing from here.

Panorama of Wilkpena Pound

The undergrowth of the pound was quite thick with only a few larger trees. The walls of the pound are sparse of any vegetation but reign with majesty over the entire place. Once the photo was taken it was return to the bottom and back down the trail.

On trekking back down the track, we happened upon a couple sitting on a log. We asked what they were waiting for, thinking they were just resting, when they said they were “waiting for the bus”. Bus? What bus? Our male traveller was very interested as he was still complaining about the walking, even though secretly he had enjoyed the pound and its history. “How much is the bus?” he enquired. “$3.00 round trip, but you need a ticket” was the response.  

“Where do you get a ticket?” male traveller asked.

“Back at the station!”

“Damn! I guess we will have to walk back after all” male traveller said in a dejected way. A further hundred meters along and male traveller says “those lazy sods. They could have walked back. Fancy taking a bus!”

By the time we had returned to the cars and vans, it was time to head out to our camp. So we thought! Being a National Park, we were supposed to book into the camp sites. Trying the internet, we found the sites confusing and not helpful in any way. We resorted to going back into the information centre to try and gain a site through the main office. Unfortunately, like one of my good friends I don’t like standing in line too long. Impatient, yes!  Especially when the couple at the front of the que has been there over half an hour and line is getting larger by the minute. Many people walked out in frustration, including us. But not until we got a glimmer of information to help in our assessment of where to camp. The rain we had encountered a few days beforehand had also swept its way through the ranges and all gravel roads in the park were off limits. Blinman up the road about 50kms was to be our stop for the night. 

Twilight was now encroaching on us, as we hightailed it up the bitumen, trying to enjoy the picturesque scenery on the way but also trying to avoid the numerous kangaroos. I was on the lookout shouting “there’s one (kangaroo). There’s a heap (Kangaroos)” all the way. As it turns out, unbeknown to us, one kangaroo wanted to make a house call with the travellers behind us, colliding with their headlights and ‘bull-bar’. Eventually making it into town we parked behind the hotel and examined the damage to the car. Not too serious, but enough to be annoying. 

We had had enough of walking and kangaroos for the day, going across to the hotel for pizza tea. Hot showers and nice amenities were a pleasant change from the drama of the day.

In the morning we scoured the old ruins of a copper mine which had operated in Blinman until 1920.

Copper Vein - Blinman

Once again it amazes me how the pioneers found these places and the hardships the people of the day went through. After a short time, we travelled down the Parachilna Gorge Rd, passing some magnificent scenery once again before making our way back onto the main road at Parachilna. Now running low on fuel, it was time to take in the sights of Legh Creek and refuel; both car and persons. A short stopover to stock up on a few basic supplies; milk, bread, ice creams and once again on our way. Leigh Creek was built primarily for the coal mine a few kilometres out the road. It now survives, like many of these outback places on tourist dollars. Only a distant picture of the open-cut coal mine is evident with all access denied into the mine. 

Leaving Leigh Creek, we thought we would now start to encounter some outback roads, notorious for gravel, dust and corrugations. To our delight (and some would say sadness) much of this road is now sealed as far north as Marree. Transportation to some very remote places is now accessible by two wheel-drive vehicles. 

Before Marree though, we found (again) the wonderful old ruin township of Farina. One sign said it all “Far-In-A” (Far In Australia), which I believe sums up the place. It is a place off the main road in the middle of nowhere. Initially a pastoral lease, before becoming a railway siding on the Old Ghan it now hosts thousands of tourists to this oasis, due to an innovative group called the ‘Friends of Farina’.  This volunteer group set up in 2009 to help renovate some buildings such as the Underground Bakery plus others. They also open the bakery over the winter months to provide the tourists with freshly cooked treats like pies, pastries and the necessary bread. It was like a magnet for any passers to drop in, look around the old ruins, before devouring the obligatory coffee and cake. 

Farina Campsite - looking down from War Memorial Hill

We pulled up camp and before long checked out the old cemetery which was full of old pioneers and cameleers. The cameleers were all facing Mecca due to their Islamic faith. At the camp, a War Memorial on top of the hill has been established. This is where war personnel from the area have been distinguished for their duties to our country. Other places of interest was the old ‘donkey’, where you need to stoke your fire drum, heating the water before a shower is undertaken. Novel but efficient. 

Only staying one night, it was back on the road to Marree, where a stop ensued. This was to check the old train engines in-situ where they will be housed for their eternity, at the old Marree Station.  

On then to our camp for the night – Muloorina Station 54kms out from Marree. Leaving the bitumen behind, we now made our way on the gravel. The road, recently graded, was still easy going until we reached the final 2.5kms and found the dreaded corrugations. 

The billabong of Muloorina was now in site with its glistening artesian water beckoning. The trees around the billabong are full of birdlife with fish abundant (small) inhabiting this extremely warm water. You can swim in the water as the outlet to the billabong is quite a way upstream and has plenty of time to cool for you to enjoy swimming if wanted. 56C is the temperature at the head of the water as it comes out the pipe. 

Now I said in the beginning that our mission was to see water in Lake Eyre North. Another 46kms up an extremely awful corrugated road is the viewing point for such an occasion. After talking to other campers, we find that the is NO water can be seen on the lake from this vantage point. NO WATER!!!! What is all the media talking about the lake being full? Very disappointing. Time to re-evaluate our trip. What now? 

As I sit here now, the decision is looming about which way to go. The Birdsville Track is supposedly still closed to vehicles over 3 tonne. Other options are to continue on the Oodnadatta Track through Alice Springs and on the Plenty Highway. The second option is to backtrack to the Strzelecki and go via Innamincka. Each way has its merits but I think a toss of the coin is the next call. Stay tuned.               

     

Camp - Muloorina Station

     

                 

Muloorina Station billabong at sunset