Thursday 26 June 2014

Gracemere, Yaamba, St Lawrence, Clearview, Sarina





From Dululu I went to Gracemere via Mt Morgan. Sign telling c/vans to be careful but a pretty good although winding  road. Mt Morgan is a hilly town – thought about stopping but need to get the spare tyre holder welded. Detour out of town – glad I was going north as a VERY steep drop on the back road we had to take! Stayed at a Caravan Park in Gracemere then back up the road to an engineering place. $50 to weld tyre holder – ok but didn't tack on to the bottom frame – or straighten itL Headed towards Rockhampton – and got stuck in a traffic jam about 2km long on the motorway. Road works ahead and down to one lane. Very pretty town with a huge park, tidy houses, gardens, new suburbs and shopping areas etc but so much traffic so kept going to Yaamba. Large sealed area beside pub and heaps of people here. Headed to the pub for dinner – and found  a couple I met at Jingellic so went with them and had a lovely catch-up. Gave myself a big fright coming out – didn't see the bottom step (no lights!) and fell over. Slight graze on knee and elbow and a bit shaky!!


Noisy night – ute parked on the grass beside me about 11pm and lots of door banging while they set up camp!  Lots of trucks park here at lunchtime. Another couple I met at Broome will be at St Lawrence tomorrow so will catch up with them also.


 Bruce Highway to St Lawrence is pretty good and not too much traffic. Mostly wide  flat with hills along each side. Interesting line markings in places north of Marlborough. Maybe a couple of feet between the centre markings – so double dotted lines – or solid for no passing. Certainly feels safer with the extra distance. Waverley camp looked pretty full – nice spot also. No towns up to here – just road houses. St Lawrence camp is a big area beside old stock yards. Our group of three managed to park together. Very strange tides - water in the estuary for an hour either side of high tide  - then just mud flats. I waited for ages after low tide, then went back a couple of hours later - still nothing.Hundreds of Harlequin bugs on a tree. The guys caught a Threadfin salmon - delicious.  Then a campervan arrived with TAS couple who played ukes & sing so we had a great session for an hour or so. All my favourites! Their music is on IPad – Hobart uke club. So much easier to see at night!
A very noisy night at Clearview, - trains and trucks -  although the camp spot was fine. the 3 of us managed to find a spot under the trees. Made damper but we still dont really know how to cook it yet - burnt the bottom but was very tasty. Left the 2 couples I was with and to a CP in Sarina. So looking forward to a long hot shower etc!
Tame possums that come down in the evening for apples. Entertained by the young one pinching it's mother's pieces then scampering up the tree again. Glad they didnt squawk too much during the night - or scamper on our van tops! As a Kiwi it is very hard to get excited about them - such a pest at home and many an hour spent shooting them! I have some beautiful sox and gloves made from possum fur and merino wool.







Tuesday 17 June 2014

Allora, Nobby, Eidsvold, Dululu

Amazing drive up over Cunningham Gap. What a shame it was raining as the views must be magnificent. Maybe 10km climbing – double lane all the way up thank goodness. They have used 2 layers of containers as a barrier from falling rock  near the top – about 15 long. Interesting pix on Google of accidents, rock falls etc. Thick rainforest everywhere. Over the  top there is an easy decline to a wide fertile valley – carrot crops! Lots of contouring on the gentle slopes. Dark fertile soil also – could be in the Waimarino! Stopped at camp at Allora – popular place but quite small, full overnight. Nice park beside it and a very tidy town. Drove to Clifton and checked out the recreation reserve. Decided not to stay so on to Nobby for 2 days. What a quaint little place. Good camp on a railway siding across from the pub. 2 power points ($3). Long chat to lady running the craft centre in the old station. Got Rosella jam! Bought a paper at the little store/takeaway/crystal shop then lunch at the pub. It has a large area out the back to cater for big groups, and is full of memorabilia. The rest of the main street has an art shop and an antique shop. Good TV reception also.
Rudds pub is of ‘Dad & Dave’ fame – and there is a museum to Sister Kenny = polio cure?  Very heavy rain in the evening – water pouring in beside the fridge – stopped when I put the side out! 




Another dull day – more rain coming so went across to Pittsworth then to Cecil Plains camp. A couple of others here. Another place with no TV – for me anyway even though on the edge of town. Nice spot. Weird older cyclist who spent all day talking loudly to himself – pacing up and down around the shelter he was camped beside. Almost like he was practicing a speech! Otherwise a lovely peaceful night – no street lights. Very cool night though.Finish a book I was enjoying then to Dalby. Nissan place can service the ute this arvo so in to the Caravan Park – 3 blocks to walk!  Noisy night with traffic over the bridge beside the park – main highway.
Was going to stay at Warra but overnight camp not there so on to Chinchilla Weir for 4 nights. Free power. Busy long weekend. Nice spot. Spent a couple of days visiting Kiwi friends in Chinchilla. Not impressed with the Warrego hwy though – pretty rough. Talking to kiwi couple in Dalby who say coal mining over here is collapsing. Chinese have not renewed their contracts and hundreds being laid off around Mackay etc. Rents have dropped like crazy and heaps of houses around.
Hundreds of pelicans on the lake – and revolting water – and sandflies biting my ankles! 

Via Wondai Road to Wooroolin camp. Popular place also. Large grass area beside the pub. Coffee shop, butcher and PO over the road. Large manmade lake behind the camp but very long grass and old buildings between us. Rough road coming through though so a very slow trip. Stopped and had lunch and was going to camp at Stuart River but no-one else there. Cold wind here – has been so calm for weeks it seems.
Good meat from the butcher = had a long chat with him also. Should have bought more I think!
I have had a ‘silly’ indecisive day - headed off north after 2 days at a pleasant camp at Wooroolin. Got to Ban Ban springs and should have
stayed there – lunch time and quite a few there – but had heard the next camp was better as this is at a T junction of busy roads and many trucks stop as well. Mmm – Gayndah was worse - also beside a main road and smaller – so on to the Bon Journo except I couldn’t decide where it was. Pulled over to the right at the top of a steep hill – a truck rest area – and suspect the camp was along the road behind me but to get there I would have had to do a u turn into the traffic coming up the hill. Ah – no she thinks - so on to the next one at a weir – nice spot but so small. Checked the camp just out of Mundubbera but it is quite sloping and above a main highway  – so on to Eidsvold and ended up in a little and very full Caravan Park for the night. Probably done well over 200 km today – that makes for a big day. 9 am – 3pm!!!! It is so dry up here. Would be a very pretty area with grass. Saw a deer farm – only the second I have seen in 2 years!
Found Ceratodus camp 11 km north beside the Burnett River so will stay here instead of going to the Wuruma dam. I am told there are many heading out there. Nice big area, clean loos etc.-  no internet or phone though. Stayed 2 nights. Rained all day Saturday so had my barrel out for water!

The red lines on the photos show the level of the 2011 Mundubbera floods - camp is beside the Burnett River.  Pauwlonia plantaion beside the camp sustained quite a lot of damage also.
Pleasant Sunday drive – rolling hills and bush, dry farms but water in the dams. Photo of the Bunyip At Mulgildie. Getting a little more feed as I got further north past Monto. Quite a climb at one stage then out to a high plateau  - Lawgi camp is quite exposed up here. Good happy hour – 7 kiwis and 6 Aussies!!!! 
Next day was a chilly morning so decided to go 100 km to Dululu camp. Lots here including a couple of lots from past 2 days. 
 Sat around a community camp fire – wood provided. Power here @ $5 pn but haven’t bothered. Another kiwi couple in motorhome.