August Trip 2011
At last the time has come for our annual sojourn into parts
unknown with new adventures to experience.
Desperately wanting some warm, dry weather, we did a quick
three days of driving through Victoria
and N.S.W. Into Queensland at Cunnamulla before the rain stopped and the sun
came out.
Our first proper camp spot was Yowah (motels last two nights).
Yowah is a very small Opal mining town or
should I say was as there are very few Opals there these days.
My parents used to own a house here over 20 years ago long
before the town had electricity or bitumen roads. Today it has a new larger
general store that sells "coffee lattes”!! We only stayed the one night as
a blast from the past memory....not the same place today.
Quiplie We camped for the next week on the banks
of Lake
Houdaraman
with spectacular birdlife.
Wedge tail eagles, hawks, cormorants, ducks, and Brolgas to
name just a few entertained us throughout the day.
At night on one side of the lake the sun would be going down
and on the other side the full moon would be rising. The red glow and the
reflection across the water out did the stairway to the moon in Broome. Plus
the bonus was we only had to share it with a couple of other campers and not
thousands of tourists squashed on the beach viewing it.
Qulipie has an interesting history as being the town where Amy
Johnston landed her plane there in 1930 more by mistake as the town had extended
the railway line from Charleville where she was meant to land.
Climbed to the top of what is known as Baldy Top lookout, well
worth the climb for the 360 degree view.
Thargomindah where we passed through was also very
interesting for its past history. It was the first town in Australia, and the third in the world, to
produce hydro-electric power for street lighting, through the harnessing of
bore water from the Great
Artesian Basin. www.thargotourism.com.au
Noccundra the pub with no town as it is known for
was where we set up camp for the next week on the banks of the Wilson River.
The township has a population of 4 and had swelled to 26 with the grey nomads
camping along the bank.
I thought the bird life back at Lake Houdaram
was special but it faded in to comparison by what we experienced here.
There would have to be a least a hundred pelicans plus the
usual bird life.
Waking every morning to what looked like a ballet on the
river. The pelicans would all form groups, then forming a circle as they
rounded up whatever fish they could underneath them. Next, what looked liked
the lead Pelican saying on the count to three, put your heads in and bums up
now. Then all appeared with a fish in their bills. Amazing to watch this over
and over again. I did take some footage and hope I can make a small video clip.
Watching each and every different bird you find they all have
a certain pattern they follow daily. Their massive wings spanned out fully as
they dried themselves along the banks, all lined up like soldiers.
Eulo looks like we have found another perfect
free camp spot on another bank of this time the Paroo River. After the floods all the
rivers are full and of course the bird life is thriving. Eulos population is
108 so a bit bigger than Noccundra. Unfortunately for the town they lost the
General Store and the petrol bowers plus the owner’s home in a fire just over a
month ago. As that is the town’s lively hood they are doing it hard at the
moment. Hopefully the insurance will pay up soon and they can get on with the
job of rebuilding.
Bourke
What can I say about Bourke but oh
dear…..shutters and bars on shop windows and inside bottle shops.
Weather is lovely and the pool is
great.
Not a good place for a haircut
neither (unless of course you like the rat ends look!) Thank goodness it will
grow again.
Wilcannia , now there is
a run down out back town with some beautiful old buildings just boarded up or left
to rot. It is a disgrace that we can allow these towns to disappear while we
have such a huge housing crisis.
Tomorrow we are heading for Trilby
Station ( www.trilbystation.com.au )
We have stayed before there , it was
lovely, but when I spoke Liz the owner today she was discharged from hospital and
heading for Avoca Beach for some r & r before coming back to the station.
We were offered a spot on the Station, but didn’t end up staying as the river
was 30 feet down the embankment(even after the floods.)
Thanks anyhow Liz and Garry for the
offer, as we said we will catch you next time.
Tilpa Weir, what an
incredible sight when we arrived. There must have been well over a thousand
birds of all descriptions down in the Weir.
I soon found out that the fish which were mainly bloody Carp, were spawning and the
clever birds were just patiently waited at the waterfall. Once again I hope
when I get home I will be able to splice all film footage and make a decent
clip for you viewing.
I am unsure where this love for bird
life and the out door life has grabbed me with such passion this trip
especially. All I do know is I may have to take it up full time!!
Met a great local couple the day
before we were leaving and they invited us to morning tea the following morning.
Their Station, which was on the road to Broken Hill where our next stop was to
be.
Chris and Ken’s place was called
Budda Station. They had just been flooded in for three months! Beautiful old
homestead on the banks of the river. Fortunately the house hadn’t been under
flood and they had a boat to get around in. Lovely break along the way thanks
Chris and Ken.
Broken Hill
Well wasn’t I silly, because we had
been here before, I didn’t take any photos. We still did the local tours again
with me thinking I can just add the photos later. Well, so I can…..when I get
home and get them off the disks from my old computer!
So for now www.visitbrokenhill.com.au
Still a lovely place to revisit, my
favourite places would be
www.prohart.com.au
www.jackabsalom.com.au
www.visitbrokenhill.com.au/pages/the-living-desert-sculptures/
Menindee Lakes
What a different place from our last visit here, an abundance of water just for a start. Last time there was only a puddle way out in the centre of the lake. This time it apparently is holding nearly three times the capacity as Sydney Harbour !
It really is a sensational sight with all the greenery and water lapping the shore edge. One wouldn't think you were in the middle of the Australian bush. We are also once again very privileged to be able to camp right near the waters edge with million dollar views and all for free.
The days just seem to fly by and yet we don't seem to do much. I sat yesterday for over an hour just watching a Willy Wagtail playing by the waters edge. He was like a toddler who was experiencing the sea for the first time. A wave would roll in and he would jump it,next he would tip his tail in and then shake of the water. This would be repeated time and time again. Meanwhile I sat transfixed waiting to see what next he would do to entertain me.
We have seen some lovely bird whilst here and on I had not seen before ( well not that I can recall) it is an Australian Shelduck. His colours were a brilliant chestnut. Unfortunately they were a little too far away for a good photo.
The weather turned really cold yesterday and out came the thick winter jumpers. Today is magic and the sun is out and the temp is a pleasant 25 degrees.
I will add some photos of Menindee then we are going to try our luck with the Yabbie net....so far all we seem to catch on this trip is Carp!!
We managed to catch some yabbies but no fish.
After 10 days of pure bliss we pack up the camper for the last time this trip.
We will head off to my sister Sue's at Moama for a couple of nights then once again another wonderful trip has come to an end.
More to follow………
