Clare Valley, Port Augusta, Woomera, Coober Pedy

 The predicted Big Storm was forecast to engulf a large part of South Australia so we decided that, although we could not avoid it completely, we should skip our next planned stop and drive as far as possible out of the worst of it. 

 We headed for the Clare Valley, stopping to look at the painted silos in Coonalpyn. We have seen some beautiful silo art on our travels and some not so great but the bright colours attract the attention of passers by and generally encourage them to stop and maybe part with some tourist dollars in the town. The Coonalpyn silos were decorated with black and white pictures of some local schoolchildren. The artwork was exquisitely executed but did not catch the eye at all, in fact the pictures were a bit difficult to make out even after we had read the sign and knew what we were looking at, so they did not really do their bit for the town in my opinion. 

Next quick visit was Murray Bridge for supplies from Coles, Aldi, Liquorland etc. We discovered that no Aldi stores in SA sell liquor and the quantity we were permitted to buy anywhere was restricted so we bought all we were allowed and headed off through the pinky landscape to the Clare Valley. Even the alpacas and sheep look a bit pink in SA and we climbed up through hills scattered with rocks (also pink) in to the Barossa Valley. After dithering around for a while we settled on the Auburn Community Caravan Park , which is a showground, as a suitable place to stop $35 powered, $25 unpowered and walking distance to several wineries on the Reisling Trail.

 Auburn was a very pretty town with stone buildings made of Auburn Bluestone and Mintaro Flint. Unfortunately, being a Monday, most shops and cellar doors were closed but we did manage to get a coffee at the only one of the High Street wineries to be open. The riverside walk was very pleasant and we got chatting to some locals who suggested we visit Mintaro a few kms away which turned out to be gorgeous. There was also a cellar door open so we went and did a bit of tasting and came out with a bottle of prize winning reisling. The sommelier recommended a drive out to Martindale Hall, used in the filming of Picnic at Hanging Rock, so off we went. 

Martindale Hall was a fabulous stately home on an, equally fabulous, estate and well worth the $20 entry fee. As we looked out of the huge windows over the rolling grounds it became clear the wind was really getting up and it was probably time to start heading back. We drove through Clare on the way back to our caravan, it was a big, fairly ordinary town but useful for food and fuel shopping. 

 It rained overnight, we felt bad being grumpy about it as SA is dry at the best of times and they had been in drought for some time. It was really wet around the van as we packed up but the countryside soon became much drier as we headed towards Port Augusta. Apart from a few hills, the part of SA we were travelling through was pretty flat and well cultivated. Pink still with huge water pipes crossing the landscape. It appeared to be quite a windy state and there were plenty of wind and solar farms which was not a surprise because SA relies on renewables for most of its energy and is self sufficient for much of the time. There were also EV chargers everywhere, even at the remote roadhouses. There were loads of oversized vehicles carrying huge bits of machinery as we passed by Gladstone and Port Pirie and finally arrived in Port Augusta. 

The Augusta Caravan Park was about 7kms outside of town and we managed to get a powered site for $30. The sites were all large and gravel surrounded by well tended flower beds and the amenities block was old but clean. It was a great little place to stop, not our usual choice of park but we needed to do some washing and shopping and generally prepare for the next leg of our trip which would be heading into the outback with no real certainty of where we could buy supplies next.

 Port Augusta itself was a big industrial hub but served the purpose we were there for except we were shocked to discover that the bottle shops only sold tiny wine casks, we were required to show our drivers licences and were only allowed one each, we should have stocked up in the Clare Valley. The Wadlata Outback Centre furnished us with maps and the cafe served Quandong Cake, a quandong is a bit like peach crossed with rhubarb and was a specialty around those parts. We took a walk along the waterfront where there was a nice little memorial to members of the ocean swimming club lost in the two world wars. We dropped Harvey back at the van and visited Port Augusta Arid Botanic Gardens which were gorgeous. There were all kinds of plants from tiny little corners of Australia, heaps of birds, a nice cafe and visitor centre and the Matthew Flinders Red Cliff Lookout. 

Spud's Roadhouse was the first stop as we finally headed off into the scrub. It was 2 hours up the Stuart Highway and just a dirt parking area but had decent toilets, $2 for a shower and picnic tables all for a donation. We had read that the roadhouse was very expensive but it was only $16 for a burger which is pretty reasonable in the middle of nowhere, I don't know what people expect. The road trains were starting to get bigger, 3 trailers or petrol tankers on the back of each and Harvey was turning an interesting shade of pink in the dust. There were not many vans when we arrived but the place was absolutely packed overnight then they all disappeared as quickly as they had arrived the following morning. We were really bucking the trend by staying for two nights (nobody does this) because we wanted to go and look at Woomera, just up the road. 

 Woomera is a missile testing area, chosen for its remote location and lack of vegetation. At one time 7000 people lived there but now the number is 142. It had a bit of a ghost town feel about it and the museum was closed because of a shortage of volunteers but the visitor centre housed two amazing historical displays, one about the village and another about the missiles. There were also a large number of aircraft and rockets on permanent display in the town square. Back to Spud's Roadhouse to watch the campground filling up again and a very cold night - 6°C. 

It was too far to drive all the way to Coober Pedy the next day so we needed to find a roadside stop, there was nothing else. This was a bit tricky because there was no phone coverage and the distances between stops were huge. We had a quick look at Lake Hart, a huge pink salt flat where camping was allowed but it was not far enough to take a chunk out of our journey so we kept going to Bon Bon Rest Area where we parked up for the night. Next morning we continued ever north on the Stuart Highway with the same flat landscape and occasional mine site until we approached Coober Pedy and the opal mines began to be evident. 

 We pulled in to the Old Timers Mine, a dusty flat area with one toilet where camping is permitted for up to 72 hours for a donation and walking distance to everything. In the morning we walked up to the Big Winch Cafe and Restaurant which had an outside seating area with an amazing view over the whole town. Coober Pedy was a bit more touristy than I expected but still quite fascinating, a bit of a Mad Max vibe with homes built into the hillside and old rusting vehicles and inventions dotted everywhere. We decided to go on the Old Timers Mine Tour, a self guided tour which was absolutely brilliant and took us through the mine itself the into the underground home of the family who had owned the claim. It was astonishing, only $12.50 each and really informative. 

 The next fun visit was the golf course, all dusty dirt without a blade of grass for miles around.. Coober Pedy Golf Club is the only club in the world where membership automatically makes one a member of St.Andrews too. After visits to the delightful Catacomb Church and the Umoona Opal Museum where we learned that opal can come in singles, doublets and triplets. Doublets are slim pieces of opal with a resin or glass cover while triplets are just slivers of opal with larger resin or glass additions. We had dinner at the Big Winch and watched the sun go down. Booking was essential as it was crowded but the view was incredible and the food pretty good too. 

The Big Adventure Begins

New Holland Honeyeater

 After weeks of continuous rain, Lemon Tree Passage was enjoying a rare day of glorious sunshine as we set off on our biggest trip so far. Port Stephens can usually be relied upon for beautiful weather but not over the past few months. At one point our only access road washed away in a couple of places, trapping me at home and Ian in Berowra visiting a sick friend, so leaving for the winter seemed like a good idea.  

  Our first scheduled destination was the South Coast of Victoria. A strange choice, you would be forgiven for thinking, when we were planning to beat the cold and see the sights in the Northern half of Australia. The reason for the detour was a good one, our third grandchild was due and Zoȅ's home is in Inverloch so we set off a week before the expected arrival and sauntered slowly down South.

 

A trip to Victoria would not be the same without our regular stopover in Gunning. It grew progressively colder as we headed along the Hume Highway and was a chilly 7° by the time we arrived at the showground which now has excellent new showers and toilets instead of the old creepy, graffitied amenities block. As usual, we needed to bring both summer and winter clothes because the journey was going to get a great deal colder than home before we eventually reached warmer climes and Gunning did not disappoint, the temperature plummeted overnight and it rained steadily all night long. Fortunately we had not unhooked the van so we just pulled down the pop top then ran to the car and set off, stopping only for a coffee in the Merino Cafe. 

Three hours of driving through solid rain later we stopped at Walla Walla Showground in the hope of trying somewhere new. The ground was pooled with water and it looked so miserable we took off again for Culcairn Caravan Park and took one of the $30 powered spots because we desperately wanted to be able to run our little fan heater. We usually camp below in the beautiful unpowered area by the river and laugh at the people who take the grim little powered sites by the road but it was still bucketing down and freezing so...needs must. 

Misty, wet, cold and jolly unpleasant when we woke up but it had pretty much stopped raining and we had been as snug as bugs overnight so, with renewed enthusiasm, we headed off sharpish for Alexandra. We had opted for Alexandra because it is a town we really like, just three hours from Zoȅ and we knew we could amuse ourselves there for a few days but still get to Inverloch in a hurry if we needed to. By the time we arrived it was sunny but still cold.so we set up in the very empty showground, $35 with power. We were surprised it was so quiet as there have been times we have arrived there to find the showground fully booked, maybe everyone else had realised Victoria was not ideal for a winter holiday.

 We wandered in to town and Ian bought a couple of coats in the op shop as he had forgotten to bring one, then we had a great coffee at The Grant Street Grocer cafe. Alexandra has several decent shops, a selection of cafes and a Foodworks although the pub is a bit of a mystery. It is supposed to sell award winning chips but we have yet to find a day when it is open to sample said chips. The town is very pretty and many of the houses have fabulous gardens which makes the walk to and from the caravan park most pleasant. It is also on the Victorian Rail Trail walking route so a great destination for walkers, cyclists and bird watchers. 

The next day was sunny but still incredibly cold and we made the mistake of having a coffee in the worst of the six cafes. We wandered along to the Railway Museum, which was not open but we were able to walk around the outside bits. When it is open there are train rides etc and the gardens are maintained immaculately by the volunteers. After another cold night we woke to a message from Shaun saying they were at the hospital, so we high tailed it down to Inverloch in time to look after the boys. A beautiful, healthy little girl arrived in the evening and we set about helping out and getting to know Hayley.

 After a few days of playing with the boys and enjoying having a granddaughter we waved goodbye and embarked on our trip proper. Unusually for us, we had made a bit of a plan for the start of the trip and Ararat, 3.5hours away in the Victorian Goldfields was our first destination. The journey took us right through Melbourne and over the West Gate Bridge so an interesting journey but no places to stop and change driver and by the time we reached Ararat it had begun to rain. The area had been in drought for some time and the locals were celebrating saying it was the first decent rain they had seen for many months - lucky us! We had chosen Acacia Caravan Park when we were planning at home and it was great. There was a railway line running nearby but the park was small and friendly with oldish but clean amenities with a huge pile of fluffy bathmats by the showers, guests just took one off the pile then popped it in the laundry basket when finished. I know I sound unreasonably excited about this initiative but, when it is cold and wet outside, a fluffy bath mat can make all the difference to the showering experience. Other delights at the caravan park were a great camp kitchen with coffee machines, a book swap and DVDs to borrow all for $35 a night for power, which we needed because the area around Ararat gets very cold in winter. 

Splendid Fairy Wren

Ararat turned out to be a city and bigger than we expected. It was the only town in Australia to be founded by Chinese settlers and there were still plenty of Chinese grocers and restaurants. There was a big Woolworths but the other shops were an odd mix of cafes and massage parlours with grape vines running over the canopy along the whole main street. The town had a very modern visitor centre and the cafe attached called Foragers, a most unfortunate name as the state was right in the middle of the very high profile court case of the Mushroom Lady. We took Harvey to the excellent fenced dog park then went to the art gallery and museum which was the usual collection of donated old stuff, the highlight being a 1927 farm vehicle adapted by a local which had taken part in various parades including the Moomba Festival.

 We really liked Ararat and were a bit sorry to leave after a couple of nights but were spurred on by thoughts of warmer weather to come. The next drive was very straightforward and took us to Nhill, our last stop in Victoria. On the way we stopped for a terrible coffee at the cafe attached to the Big Koala in Dadswells Bridge, widely recognised as one of Australia's worst Big Things. It was pretty bad. Ian spotted Loch Eil Pink Lake so we hopped out for a look. There are a number of pink lakes, especially over  the border in South Australia, the pink is caused by an algae which forms pink salt and the surrounding plants had taken on the pink tinge too. 

In Nhill we were staying at the Nhill Heritage Aviation Centre which was fantastic, a huge flat area where we parked with a view of the runway. The museum was closed but the toilets remain open for campers and there was a brilliant history trail around the grounds with information boards showing where all the buildings were when Nhill was a camp in WWII housing 800 airforce personell. There were accommodation blocks, training centres, ablutions blocks, canteens, a post office, tennis courts and much more. There was a flurry of activity in the late afternoon when some people turned up and got a small plane out of the hanger and took off for a short flight landing again later, no end of entertainment and all for a suggested donation of $10 a night.

Nhill was not much of a town so we grabbed a coffee and got some supplies from the IGA Supermarket. We had to throw away our fruit and veg as we were due to cross into South Australia later and the fines can be quite steep if you get caught with an avocado or banana in the caravan as a friend of mine did a couple of years ago. We got across the border with no mishaps and passed through Bordertown where there is a colony of white kangaroos, then on to Keith Showground to top up our water tanks. The showground was a bit ordinary and did not get good reviews so we kept going to Tintinara and our planned destination of Lake Indawarra. The town itself was a bit like a strip mall, situated along the side of the highway and no town centre as such, just a supermarket, closed pub and cafe but Lake Indawarra was very pretty. It was a manmade lake and the planting around it was relatively new but it had already become a haven for birds and made for an extremely peaceful, pleasant walk. The trucks and trains were a little noisy overnight but we woke to warm sunshine and decided to stay for a few days to recharge after quite a bit of driving of late. There was a toilet by the lake and we paid our $10 a night at the Heart of Parks Visitor Centre.

 The Coorong was not far from Tintinara so we drove there to see where Storm Boy was filmed. The Coorong is a massive coastal lagoon and they certainly made the most of the film connection and there were countless pelican statues all named Mr.Percival. It was a very beautiful spot and we were tempted to transfer to the Albert Caravan Park on the waterfront but there were warnings of a Big Storm on its way so we thought better of it. The storm did arrive after we left and did a fair bit of damage destroying an historic jetty. 

Back at Lake Indawarra we went for a walk and noticed a huge brazier alight behind the Action Shed on the banks of the lake. Later crowds began to gather for what, we found out later, was a monthly community gathering. How nice we thought, even though the music was pretty loud. Unfortunately it was not so great when Dolly Parton was still belting out Jolene at 3.30am, it would have been nice to have been given a heads up from the visitor centre when we paid but we  will know next time not to stay there on a Saturday night.

Victoria Trips

 

Having sat down yesterday to put a few plans on paper for our next trip, I realised I had not added our last couple of jaunts to this blog. I will try to combine them and apologise in advance if the post appears a bit jumbled.

First of the trips was our regular wander to Victoria and back to spend Christmas with Zoë, Shaun and the boys. This year they would be moving house while we we there, leaving the outer suburbs of Melbourne to live at the beach in Inverloch. 

We made our usual first stop in Gunning and woke to 37°C in the morning. This made our minds up to put in a big driving day for two reasons, a) the car was going to be the coolest place, b) we would be able to listen to the cricket on the journey. We take it in turns to drive so the 6 hours to Lake Eildon was doable and we would be able to stay there for two nights instead of rushing on.  The huge lake had always appealed to us but, for one reason or another, we had never stopped there, Little free camping areas are dotted around the lake with drop toilets every so often and we selected Newton's Campground which only had one other caravan parked there, unfortunately the owners had a generator which they ran all night..

 It was 41°C when we arrived and there were a lot of flies around. Having dragged a big, heavy bug tent around with us for the past 10 years almost never using it, we decided to leave it at home this trip - sod's law. Harvey got covered in prickles when he set off after a kangaroo, after we got them all out of his fur we went for a walk and found another entrance to a different bit of Newton's Campground, no toilet but only a couple of minutes walk back to the one where we were camped, no prickles, far fewer flies and no generator man! We packed up quick smart and were settled in our new spot within the half hour. 

The house move went smoothly and Christmas was fun. It was still very hot and dry and a few fires were burning out of control in Victoria as we began our slow journey home. Wandering from one spot to another does not suit everyone for a holiday, we love it and try to find different places to stop every time but we did fancy returning to our spot at Newton's Campground for a couple more days. The lady in the visitor centre in Mansfield advised us it was now packed and suggested a spot on the Goulburn River between Jamieson and Kevington, which turned out to also be packed. We found another place further along the river called Doctor's Creek which was still pretty crowded but we needed to stop somewhere so set up for the night.

 There were still fires raging around and it was perfect fire weather, 40°C and windy so we stayed hooked up in case we needed to make a quick getaway. The police drove through every so often to make sure everyone was ok, apparently some groups had been lighting camp fires, idiots. The campsite is in the shadow of Mount Terrible and surrounded by trees, it would be great outside of the holiday season. 

It was surprisingly quiet over night but more bush fires were popping up all around so we decided to get out of there. The total fire ban had been lifted overnight and we were appalled to see several campers assuming that meant it was now ok to light camp fires, unbelievable.

Stopped for a quick coffee and a cheese scone in Jamieson. What a gorgeous town, all the old buildings have been preserved and none knocked down to build ugly new ones. Pretty gardens, loads of trees, nice gift shops and cafes.

 We pressed on to Culcairn, where we have stayed before at the excellent council caravan park on the banks of the river $22 unpowered, spotless amenities and a short walk into town. The man next to us seemed to be preparing for guests, he had a huge set up with tent, caravan, gazebo, hammock. He spent ours tinkering and setting up fairy lights then lit a huge fire, just for him it transpired. 

The caravan park filled up in the afternoon but, as usual, everyone had left (except fairy lights guy) by the time we got up in the morning. We were thinking of heading to Oura Beach but decided it might be too busy so went to Ariah Park instead. We should have checked Rabbitts on the Road because we had forgotten we didn't like it much. The historic little town is really just a tourist attraction with nothing open and the rave reviews we had read for the Ariah Park Camping Ground were over egging the pudding rather as it was very ordinary. $8 unpowered and the key to the showers had to be collected from the hardware store or the hotel, neither of which were open. The caretaker turned up late in the afternoon and gave us a key, they were jolly nice hot showers.

 After coffee in Temora we pressed on to Koorawatha where we spent New Years Eve just like last year. Showground was good again and the same group of detectorists from our previous stay were there again. Good food and entertainment at the pub again and another trip to Koorawatha Falls made for a pleasant visit. 

We spent our last night in Rylstone at the council caravan park. The reviews were great but we thought it was disappointing, $33 unpowered and tiny pitches. It is unmanned and had to book online then receive an email with a code for the amenities block. The town is very pleasant with nice shops and cafes and it was a convenient stop for us as it is right on our route and easy striking distance to home. 

 

After a couple of months at home it was time to set off again, this time to look after the boys while Zoë and Shaun went away for a couple of days. It was the middle of March and we left at 11am. After the usual return for something we had forgotten (tool kit this time) we made good time to Gunning. The showground now has new toilets and showers and has become pretty popular. We had dinner at the pub where the bistro has become more of a burger bar instead of selling traditional pub food, not quite as nice but ok for a quick feed. Had our usual coffee in the Merino Cafe before heading off.

 Now that Zoë and Shaun had moved to the coast we were trying a new route. We had arranged to meet our dear friends Tim and Virginia at Buckenderra in the Snowy Mountains for a couple of days. We stopped at a wonderful little town called Gunderoo by Lake George for a break. It was delightful and had won a Tiny Tourist Town Award, really lovely old buildings and an easy commute into Canberra.

Got to Buckenderra in good time and took the advice of a fellow camper who was keen for us to camp on the spot she recommended (I think she just didn't want us near her). It was a good site but really awkward to get onto, nestled among huge rocks looking down over Lake Eucumbene. The Lake is part of the Snowy Hydro scheme and great for trout fishing so a really popular spot for fishing folk. Buckenderra is a huge property, now a G'Day Park, $30 unpowered with old but clean amenities. Tim and Virginia had a cabin just behind us. 

Virginia knew the area quite well as she once lived in Nimmitabel so she was able to show us around. We went into Adaminaby and saw the Big Trout then went to old Adaminaby which was the original site of the town. It was moved to its new location and the old town flooded to make another lake for Snowy Hydro. There is a fascinating museum about creating the original Snowy Hydro in Adaminaby, then another in Cooma dedicated to the new Snowy Hydro 2.0. We tried to visit the Cooma Museum but ironically it was closed because of a power cut! 

After a great couple of days with our friends we went our separate ways and drove through misty conditions to Nimmatabel. The enormous Nimmity Bell struck while we were looking at it and frightened the life out of us then we set of to drive down through Bombala and on to Orbost. The road got very winding with really tight bends and the fog descended until there was almost nil visibility. I was very glad to be driving behind a car which was driving very sensibly and able to lead the rest of the traffic along. Somehow between us and Google we managed to miss a turning in the fog and we ended up taking a very circuitous route which added about two hours to our journey.

We finally screeched into Orbost Caravan Park 15 minutes before it was due to close $30 a night unpowered, spotless amenities, right in town. However, the unpowered sites were right by the road and we were also by a culvert, because Orbost is in a flood plain, so it was very buggy. It was Ian's birthday the next day so we had breakfast in town then checked out the art gallery. The featured exhibition was "Reigning Goats", the artist was incredibly prolific, there were hundreds of paintings of goats up to various antics, hilarious I'm sure if you like that sort of thing. Later we had dinner at the Bottom Pub as recommended by the caravan park and it was very good, half portions, live music and decent wine.

 Next stop was Inverloch with the family then on the road a week later to try and get a few stops in before the Victoria school holidays began. As we left Inverloch we popped into Venus Bay nearby to have a look. It was very much our kind of town, quieter than Inverloch with nice cafes and a community feel. There was a fantastic little travelling art exhibition in place called Art Cubes. A group of small shipping containers are moved around and become exhibition spaces for local artists in small towns for a few weeks, what a great initiative! There were heaps of birds as Venus Bay is part of the sanctuary that leads into Wilson's Promontory, unfotunately there were also signs saying 1080 bait was used in the area.

We carried on along the coast road through Yarram to Reeves Beach free camping area. It was nice, a few pit toilets and a couple of camps that looked rather permanent. Everyone was very pleasant but sadly did not keep their dogs on the lead which meant they were yelling at them all day to come back, a problem which could have been resolved by employing a lead I suspect. There was a path through the sand dunes straight onto the expansive beach where Harvey was in his element. If I stayed there again I would camp further from the permanent people partly because it felt like we were intruding a bit but mainly because the toilet near them is in constant use, there were other spots but we couldn't be bothered to move.

We were planning to drive to Mallacoota next but decided nearly 5 hours was beyond what we wanted to do so stopped at Lakes Entrance Rec Reserve $25 unpowered, great showers. The price goes up to $80 in the season and I imagine Lakes Entrance can be a bit unbearable when full, all crazy golf and arcades, but it was nice for one night out of season. The Bowling Club was right beside the rec ground so we had a really good dinner there, half portions available again. Good coffee on the waterfront then a wander around the little artesian collective  before we set off for Mallacoota.

For some reason I have always wanted to visit Mallacoota and it did not disappoint. The road in was long and winding and it was easy to see how the residents and holidaymakers got trapped by the fires in 2019/20, 130 homes were lost but no lives. Mallacoota Foreshore Caravan Park, $30 unpowered, old but clean amenities, sprawled along the water front with no real entrance, I'm not sure how great that would be for residents over the school holidays. The staff told us where a koala had been sighted and we actually found 5 near our caravan, just like it used to be at home when we first lived in Australia. It was a gorgeous spot, one side of the point had raging surf while the other was protected by a series of islands and a bit of a bay, so beautifully calm.

The town was fabulous too, great coffee and toasties at the cafe and decent dinner in the pub garden. There are all kinds of activities advertised on the town noticeboards and it would be a great place to live if you wanted to really immerse yourself in a community.

Set off again and had a quick look at Pambula Beach (fabulous) and Cobargo which was badly damaged in the fires and famous as being the town where a firefighter refused to shake the Prime Minister's hand after he had flown to Hawaii for a holiday while the fires were raging. Cobargo was a delightful place and we were interested to see the display of fireproof materials being used in the rebuilding. I don't know how the little wooden post office survived when all around it burned to the ground but I am very glad it did.

Mystery Bay looked interesting in the atlas so we kept going until we reached it. How incredible! $20 for pensioners, very quiet and peaceful with the cleanest drop toilets I have ever seen. We camped among the trees with the sensational beach just behind us, it was very special. Dogs were allowed off lead on the beach before 9am and after 5pm so Harvey had a whale of a time. 

It was now the day before the school holidays and we phoned several caravan parks for our last stop but they were all full so we decided to keep going up to the Hume Highway and maybe stop as usual in Gunning. A couple of towns along but still on the Hume we discovered Marulan. Well look out Gunning, I think we may have found your replacement! Free flat area behind the pub in return for buying a drink or a meal, we bought both. No all night toilets but great food and really friendly staff.

Yowah, Bollon and Texas

 It was spitting with rain when we woke so we packed up quick smart to get off the muddy riverbank before it became impossible to leave. We had enjoyed Quilpie but really wanted to get off the route being taken by the thousands of caravans and campers travelling from the Birdsville Bash. After consulting the atlas, we were confidant our selection of Yowah as our next destination would be ideal as it was in the middle of nowhere and definitely not on a route the hoards would be taking. 

We drove for two hours along single strip tarmac and, apart from Toompine which consisted of a pub and a toilet, we did not see any buildings or signs of life at all until we rolled into the tiny opal fossicking town of Yowah. We discovered a caravan park and donation camping area which both looked pretty much the same so we went for the cheaper donation camp. The amenities were new with excellent hot showers and actually looked better than those in the caravan park, both areas were on red dirt. There was no phone signal or wifi on our regular phones so we were glad we had invested in the Boost mobile sim to manage in the remote towns.

 Yowah sits on the artesian basin and there were hot springs all over including a warm stream which ran from our camp to the centre of town (a small grocery store at the entrance to the caravan park). The whole area was home to some beautiful birds and they were especially prolific along the walk by the stream. There were lots of signs boasting that Blue Bonnets lived there, they were obviously hiding from us but we did see a Mallee Ringneck, which is a gorgeous bird. 

 For such a small town there were a surprising number of eating options, the Miners Club were doing a roast dinner on Wednesday and Saturday, The Nut Cafe offered up pizzas on a Monday (must be ordered by 2pm) and a limited menu on Tuesday and Friday and there were Rubber Duck Races at the caravan park on a Thursday. What a social whirl! Things were about to get far more exciting the following week because the Yowah Opal Festival was set to take place, we saw a poster for the festival and the star attraction was a singer from our home town, how bizzarre. 

 We were starting to really enjoy Yowah and discovered a very presentable pool complex fed by the hot springs. Two pools, one hot, one very hot and changing rooms built into empty water tanks all for the princely sum of $5 for a day pass! There were also hot baths in little beach huts for public use. We got chatting to some locals in the pool and realised Yowah was not like other opal towns where residents seem to be trying to escape from something, these were people who had moved to the town for a quieter life and most had done pretty well out of the opal deposits. 

 We had not been in Yowah too long when it started to rain and pretty soon our caravan was a little island standing in a sea of very slippery mud. We were caravan bound for a couple of days and the walk to the showers was pretty perilous, we would often arrive back dirtier than we left having slipped over in the treacherous mud. After two days of endless Rummikub games we had serious cabin fever and were relieved to see the rain easing off. The ground around the van reappeared, although the mud still tried to suck our shoes off when we walked on it, so we set about enjoying the little place again. We visited the huge fossicking area and found some tiny opals, popped into the spa again and had dinner at The Nut Cafe. Even with the weather, Yowah was one of our favourite stops on the whole trip. 

 The town was already filling up for Opalfest so we reluctantly decided to move on and set off on a misty morning to head for Bollon. Eulo was our first coffee stop, a tiny place with extremely unfriendly dogs, then Cunnamulla for fuel which was just a big, functional place. We followed the long, straight, single strip road all the way to Bollon and pulled into Wallam Creek, a beautiful riverside donation camp with toilets and showers. However, it was packed. It turned out we were now on the route to the Thargominda Music Festival which had been postponed for a week due to the rain so everyone was holed up in Bollon killing time until it began. We really must check for festival dates before we plan our next trip. 

After our initial disappointment we expolred the town and found it to be very nice indeed. The pub and cafe were staffed by the same people, there was a very interesting visitor centre and museum, a decent general store, hardware store and a rather good art gallery in the old Post Office. It was nice and peaceful during the day so we decided to stay and were rewarded with a sighting of a Diamond Dove and one of the most incredible sunsets I have ever seen.

 Woke up to discover we had no power, probably as a result of so many days without solar in the rain, so this made our minds up that our next stop must have power laid on to charge our battery. We had planned to head for Texas but it was a bit far and our research told us there was power at Talwood. After a quick stop in St.George for groceries we arrived at Talwood Recreation Ground to find that the power was just a couple of sockets on the back of the toilet block that caravans couldn't get very close to. We finally found another on the back of an old railway building in the ground and plugged in there. The amenities were old and tatty but clean, although it was a bit alarming to have to get dressed in a completely open area after showering, even more so when a neighbouring couple of ladies just wandered in for a chat with me as I was trying to get my clothes back on as quickly as possible. 

The donation was paid at the shop and we had a look at the town. Talwood is a nice little place on a popular caravan route but I could not help thinking they could have made far more money from the passing trade. Far less attractive little towns, like Thallon or Nindigully, have really tapped in to the grey dollar by setting up huge camping areas and souvenir trade in the pub. However, it suited our purposes. The cafe was interesting, we had to ask in the Post Office for it to be opened then the woman locked the Post Office, made us a coffee then went back and opened the Post Office again. There were some very lovely houses in Talwood with beautiful gardens unlike the scrubby yards where they can only grow bougainvillea that we have been used to lately and the town had a pub, so all good.

 The next morning we went to get a coffee again but the Post Office was shut so we enquired at the general store and the owner picked up a key and went and opened the cafe, made us a cup and returned to his store. Dark clouds were forming again so we set off through Goondiwindi to Texas. The free camp by the river was a great place to stop and we had an expansive view over the farmland behind us. They have a novel idea here, campers write their postcode on all their receipts for food, drink and anything bought in the town and place them in a tub, these are then presented to the council to convince them that keeping the camping free is benefitting the town. 

Texas is a great, medium sized town but absolutely everything is closed on a Sunday, including the pub. We were hoping to visit the Texas Rabbit Works but it would not be open until the Tuesday and we were running out of time. It looked fascinating, in the 1930s the rabbit works employed 30 men and exported 3 tons of rabbit meat a week to England. The other museum in Texas was The Museum of Tobacco which only opened on Saturday mornings so, if you want to take in the presumably thrilling Texas attractions, you need to plan ahead.

The walk into town from our camp was very pleasant, just over 1km through farmland. As we were strolling along a cow popped out a new calf just as we were walking past her! What a treat! We stood and watched until the calf got on its feet and started feeding and walked on feeling very privileged. It was a good bird walk too with Pale Headed Rosellas, Little Friarbirds and Black Shouldered Kites among others. We left Harvey in the van and repeated the walk the next evening to have dinner in the pub. It was very good, not just by country town standards but would have held up anywhere.

 Woke to sunshine and mist. Ian went to check on our calf and found another one had been born overnight, that made 3 in the paddock altogether. The cafe selection was not brilliant for such a well presented town, the bakery cafe was truly awful. The area around Texas was known for growing Lucerne Hay but now cotton is taking over so I guess that would explain why the place appeared so prosperous.

We saw signs for Goat Rock, just outside the town, and drove up to have a look. The camping there looked amazing among huge rocks and rolling hills. Composting toilets only and bucket showers (I'm not sure I like the sound of a bucket shower but we have our own in the van) there was also a very good cafe there, one for next time. 

Texas was our last proper stop on a wonderful trip that took just over 7 weeks of our winter. It has taken me so long to write it up that we are already well into planning the next one. We just stopped the once on the way back in a place called Kootingal, just north of Tamworth. Very pleasant campsite $40 for power but the weather was becoming cold by then so well worth it to use our heater.