Making our way back into QLD

It is always hard when you leave such a wonderful place like we had at Bitter Springs but we didn’t need to worry as there was something totally awesome ahead of us.  Of course we didn’t leave Bitter Springs until after Hamish’s on-air lesson, so just after 10am.  Daly Waters Pub was our destination for the night and was only 170km down the road.  Of course we still managed to drag out the drive by pulling into a café at Larrimah which is really a pub and café in the middle of no-where.  Now if you are after a cheap meal and coffee this isn’t the place to stop.

Typical NT burning off.

We knew that already!  As soon as we arrived the lady who owns the cafe greeted us and was already helping us decide what to have.  We were then presented with three large plates with an assortment of different morning tea options.  She also went inside and brought out two books for the kids.  I thought it was a lovely touch as Hamish wasn’t keen to stop!  Apparently he just wanted to get to our destination!  So whilst we waited Hamish and I read his book and before we knew it morning tea had been brought out to us.

Kayla sitting down for some morning tea.

Each plate had a few lemingtons, some freshly backed blueberry scones and part of a chocolate muffin.  Needless to say we could not finish everything on the plates and we happily paid the $40 it cost for all that and left.  Yes maybe expensive to some but sometimes it is the atmosphere and then not to mention how far she would have to drive just to get all the ingredients.  I told the kids to hand back the books but she said that they could keep them as she loved giving stuff out to the kids.  Hamish was so happy as he loved his book and so did I so it was like we had totally scored.  I mean morning tea for a family and two books for the kids all for $40 seems like a cheap morning out really.

So back on the road we went and kept heading south, even passing a bus and caravan.  This gives us a lot of entertainment as honestly we hardly ever pass anyone and normally get overtaken!  Before we knew it we were turning into Daly Waters and making our way to the pub.  We were so excited to finally be here as we had heard that this place had a lot of character and everyone before has also enjoyed it.  Even just checking in was an experience as you are right in the middle of the pub and have so much to take in. 

Mind you the gentleman checking me in couldn’t believe my address had Longreach (yes I am using my parents) and told me that he use to run a pub there!  Then he informs me that only a few days earlier the gentleman who own Woody’s (a clothes store in Longreach) had been there.   Okay he did also use names but my memory isn’t that good so that is all you are going to get out of me!  From there it was down to the gate to await the character and his horse to show us our site.  No he wasn’t on horseback, instead the stuffed toy horse was tied to his bike.  He must be so fit riding around showing everyone where to park, but he did a wonderful job and had us in our spot in no time.

Showing people to their sites.

Just pulled up for a break.

Time for an afternoon beverage.

As Kayla was fast asleep we all just chilled in the van waiting and waiting for her to wake up.  We also finished off school for the fortnight with Hamish.  In the meantime Jason went and met a really nice young couple who are travelling Australia in a VW motorhome and have aptly called their facebook page “VW snail trail.” Eventually we did manage to actually get back over to the pub to check it out properly.  Hamish thought it was so cool how all these things were stuck to the wall and even coins glued to the poles.  Thankfully he didn’t ask about the underwear hanging from the roof!  So we sat down and enjoyed a cold beverage and listened to the duke box that Hamish had put on for us. 

Jason thinks it is pretty good.

Kayla checking out the chair.

Everywhere you look was something new.

Afterwards we returned to the van to just chill some more before starting the process for showers and heading over for dinner.  On check-in I had booked us in for dinner for their famous ½ steak and ½ barramundi dinner which happens to be called the Beef and Barra.  There were also musicuians/singers providing entertainment as we ate.  For the number of people they had to serve they have a really well run process and before long Jason and I were tucking into our meals.  They were fantastic and cooked perfectly.  I was so happy as for so long I have been craving a good pub meal and for so long I have been left disappointed.  Not here, it was just what I wanted.

Lots of thongs.

Nice little message.

Outback humour.

The gentleman singing the country songs was very talented and great to listen to.  Unfortunately he had just lost his partner earlier this year to Ovarian cancer and they had been due to get married this year also. He was still so young, probably early 40’s and she was originally from the NT so he was finally now visiting all these places she had told him he must go to.  This really just reiterates why we are doing this trip, we just don’t know what is around the corner for us.  Whilst we hope to live to a lovely old age it just isn’t guaranteed.

Hamish and I didn't know where to look.

Local travel agent maybe???

Love the last comment someone added on.

So after he finished his set we decided to head back to the van and get the kids to bed.  We knew we had a big drive ahead of us the next day so didn’t want to stay up too late.  Honestly if you are driving up the Stuart Highway, you really can’t miss Daly Waters pub.  It might not be for everyone but if you like an outback pub that is quirky, good meals and great company then you really should stop in here.

Sign for the toilets.

Well we were up early Thursday morning thanks to Kayla.  I am guessing she was cold as she had kicked off all her rugs and had decided that Mum and Dad’s bed would be a lot warmer.  It felt like not long after that Hamish was joining us too.  Jason is now researching a gas heater for the van!  Still it wasn’t too early, but still dark for my liking.  We did eventually get up and going and hit the road about 8 am.  It is so hard to be motivated to get going when you know you are going to be sitting in the car for hours on end.  Our aim was to get to the Three Ways roadhouse at least and if we made it to a free camp just a bit further on then that would be the added bonus.
 

We pretty much stopped in most towns or servos just to stretch the legs or get fuel.  We had a really bad ESE headwind and it was pushing up the fuel consumption along with blowing the van around a bit in the more open areas so it was an even longer, slower trip.  Still we managed to make it to the Three Ways roadhouse by 1:30pm so enjoyed a late lunch before hitting the road again.  As the free camp approached Jason decided that he could keep going the extra 100km to Barkly Homestead which would mean less driving the next day.  So on we pushed. 

When we eventually rolled into the Barkly Homestead at around 4:30pm we were all over it, well everyone except Kayla who had been asleep for the last hour.  So I took the kids in and got us a powered site which was a bit of a shock as it was quite a bit more expensive then when we passed through in November.  I am guessing it is the difference between peak and off-peak seasons.  Still we were just grateful to be off the road and set up for the night.  We then just walked around the caravan park area and Hamish found some friends to play at some dirt piles so he was over the moon.  It will be an early night for all of us who are tired, well except for Kayla who had such a late nap, she was up partying all night!

Another caravan park, another resident cow.

Friday saw us get away a fair bit slower as we decided to make the most of having the power and water available.  So of course the reverse cycle heater was running and then Jason decided we should do a load of washing and we could then hang it out at the free camp later that day.  Hamish went and played with his friend that he had found the other day so there was going to be no school done there before we left.  Even getting him to hop in the car a little later was a bit of an effort, but we did need to get on the road.

Token photo on crossing a border.

Of course another one of the car and caravan.

Farewell NT.

At least this day we weren’t driving for anywhere near as long and only had about 260km to go.  The thing was that there really wasn’t anything along those 260km so other than a quick morning tea stop in one of the rest areas we continued onto Camooweal were we grabbed some fuel, a few snacks as we were running low and worked out how to get out to the free camp.  Both phone and car navigators were taking us the wrong way so we had to read the comments to find one that had the right details.  Then off we headed and down a dirt road, unsure exactly where we should pull in but we decided to take the third road in and were not disappointed.

Not a bad view at all.

Nothing like marshmallows.

Nice little campfire we had.

It was just before lunch time and already spots were going very fast.  We found one between two other vans so checked with them that they were okay for us to park in between and once we got the go ahead we reversed on in and got ourselves level.  It is hard to believe how far we have come with getting our van into a spot and all level.  I used to dread having to use the levellers but now it seems quite easy.  Then all we had to do was sit back and admire the view that we had right out the front.

Now we are serious as the chairs are out.

Two brolgas on the other side.

The afternoon was so relaxing and peaceful, we did a bit of school, Jason and Hamish attempted fishing and tried to catch a yabbie.   We even made some piklets for afternoon tea before going for a walk to collect firewood.  Of course we were allowed a fire so Hamish just had to have a fire and toast marshmallows.  The plan was to also have some damper but by that time in the afternoon we just couldn’t be bothered.  We chatted to our neighbours over the fire that evening before retreating into the van to cook dinner and get the kids into bed.

Even the ice-cream van found us.

Well it was chilly the next morning that is for sure, what a welcome back into sunny Queensland (ha ha).  Jason and I got the added treat of watching a group of pelicans feeding together which we had never seen.  So even after ten months of travelling there is still something new to see every day.  It was so hard to drag ourselves away from such a wonderful spot but we had booked into Mt Isa for the night so we could attend the rodeo.  We also had decided we needed to get the flannelette sheets back on our beds quick smart so wanted to get there and wash all the sheets and swap them over.  Not to mention we needed to restock our food levels as the kids had eaten all the snacks for the car that we usually have.  They didn’t complain though about only having a packet of chips and lollies as snacks in the car that day.

Really Queensland, the cows eat the cars???  Well that is what we thought it looked more like.

Once in Mt Isa, trying to find the entrance to the caravan park was a little bit harder as our navigator brought us in the back way and of course we accidently took the wrong entrance (the one for mining workers) so had to turn around in that carpark and go back down the road a bit more.  Eventually we were checked in and in our site.  I think we impressed the lady beside us with our reversing skills into the site.  It was probably one of the easiest we have done (straight back) but hey we will take the compliment.  Then it was a mass production of washing clothes, stripping beds and taking the sheets over to their washing machines to speed up the process. 

Hamish and I then completed school whilst Jason and Kayla went out and got us some lunch.  Then Jason and Kayla went back out and did the food shopping whilst Hamish and I did some more school.  Then it was re-making beds, finishing school, un-packing the shopping and folding and putting away all the washing.  This was all done in record speed as we wanted to catch the 4:30pm shuttle bus to the Mt Isa Rodeo.  It would save us having to drive and find a park, and when it picked us up we also got a free tour of Mt Isa as the gentleman drove around to all the other pick up spots.  I think he was very glad when he dropped us off as Hamish had sat up front with him and asked a million questions.

Kayla picking her show bag.

Family happy snap.

Kayla really loved the bull riding.

The rodeo was huge and of course had a sideshow alley down there, so we took the kids down there and let them have a few rides, get a showbag each which was a bit harder as some had sold out, but they were happy with what they got in the end and then we grabbed some dinner and headed over to the arena.  We managed to get a few seats to sit on, not in the best of spots but at least it was a seat.  We watched the bareback bronc riding, bull riding, barrel racing and a few other things.  The kids were quite into the riding of the bulls, but before long we decided that we should really head off before it got too late and the kids over tired.  We were in luck as the bus was there waiting when we got out so hopped straight on and he only had one other stop to make before dropping us off.

Even batman was at the rodeo.

It certainly looks painful.

Back home the kids were straight into their pjs and put to bed and of course they crashed.  Jason watched the end of the rugby but I was too tired so went straight to bed.  We have another day of driving ahead of us the next day.  We managed to get away just before 10am the next day which we were pretty happy about as Jason headed out in the morning to do a few jobs whilst I stayed with Hamish and did some school.  I can’t believe that some caravan parks still don’t have dump points.  It is something you kind of expect from ones in big cities especially when they are charging top dollar.  Still at least Mt Isa had a general one for all to use as we needed it empty as we were free camping our way to Longreach.

The drive felt like it went on and on forever, especially once you get past Cloncurry as the trees disappear and you enter grazing country, but it just looks so sad due to the wet season never really turning up.  It probably also didn’t help that we have already driven along this road so it is kind of a been there and done that thing so we limited out stops and aimed to get to Mistake Creek just outside Winton for the night.  Thankfully when we rolled in around 4:30pm we managed to squeeze into the first little spot we came across, of course checking with the people we would be beside if it was okay which of course they didn’t mind.

Out the front of the Kynuna Pub.

On the road you see all different ways of travelling around.

We did a bit more school before heading off to pick up some sticks to light our fire for the evening.  Hamish is a great helper when it comes to finding some sticks and before we knew it we had our fire going.  Luckily I had finished reading my magazine as the last few days it has been sacrificed to help start the fires.  I love how Hamish would refer to ours as a ‘beauty’ and look at all the nomad fires in comparison.  As we only had basic thin sticks from the ground we went through them all pretty fast, but still we managed to sit down and have dinner in front of it before retreating inside for the night.  Another beautiful bush camp.

Another great evening.

Passed this guy coming into Winton.

The next day we were up bright and early.  We wanted to get along the road and back into phone reception in time for Hamish’s on-air lesson that day.  We hit the road just before 8:30am and I think we both knew we weren’t going to make it.  Still we were only about 10 to 15 minutes late for the lesson by the time we had enough reception and found a pull in area.  We joked we should do it more often as Hamish did a really awesome lesson and we were back on the road before we knew it.  The next stop was the Apex Park on the Thomson River just outside of Longreach.  We had no problem getting a spot since it was so early in the morning and we quickly unhitched and setup. 

Driving past my Aunty and Uncles place, can't believe how fast the time has gone.

 

I then left Jason with the kids whilst I went into town to do the washing (lets be honest there is only a certain amount of dirty washing that is reasonable to turn up with at your parents place).  Whilst that was washing I met with Mel and Kendra for lunch in at one of the new cafes in town.  Then it was back to the laundromat to put the washing in the dryer before going around to see another friend Shona and check out the new camper trailer that they had bought.  From there it was pick up the washing, pay the $3 camping fee at the Information Centre and grab some bait for Jason so he could go fishing.

Feeding the local roosters.

Fishing on the Thomson.

Only got a little one that we threw back.

Gosh it felt like I would never get back out there to Jason but I eventually did.  Jason then decided he needed some yabbie pots to try in the river so headed back into town to buy them.  Once he was back he got all his fishing gear ready and we headed down to the river.  Jason’s idea of a nice relaxing afternoon fishing was constantly interrupted by fellow travellers asking him if he had caught anything yet and then giving him tips!  Still it was a nice was to spend the afternoon just sitting back and relaxing.  Jason even managed to catch two small yellowbelly which kept the kids interested.  The feeling of being back in my home country is a wonderful one.

Hamish playing under the old bridge.

Kayla trying her luck.