5. ENTERING THE CHANNEL COUNTRY. QUEENSLAND.

Since leaving on this trip, our diet has changed considerably due to road kill and now boasts Radiatored Roo, Expired Emu, Wasted Wombat and Levelled Lizard.  Moths and locusts form great entrees.
Crows manage to avoid being hit when scavenging on the road, by having a lookout crow on a fence post giving warning alarms of our approach by calling "Car, Car!"
They don't have warning calls for trucks or buses though.

Fuel is cheap out west, still on 2 shillings a gallon

An early morning start from our camp at Tambo to get us to church on time 105km away for a welcoming service at Blackall where we increased the congregation by 20%; a look through the town, and a tour of the only original Wool Scourer still in existence. Most of the gear is over 100 years old and is steam powered.  The restoration is impeccable.  Before that we saw something interesting on the medium strip.

Petrified tree stump grazing on medium strip in Blackall

Wool scourer. 1920s technology 

Cogs and chain gang

OH&S?  Safety comes second. 

We entered fly territory, and had never seen flies as bad.  Nor has anyone else we have spoken to. Keeping still to take photos allows them to land and crawl up noses, into ears and behind glasses. Not a pleasant experience, resulting in the majority of the folk, apart from the tough locals, wearing fly nets. Something we didn't think we would ever wear, but have found them to be a necessary accessory. The word is that the flies are even worse beyond Winton.
Our friend Brad raves about fly fishing.  We don't see how he firstly baits the hooks to catch the flies, nor how he guts them once he catches the flies.  Brad needs to be out here to catch a few and reduce the quantities.
In summary, fly nets are great except when the nose is blown, or a drink is taken when it is forgotten that the net is being worn. Not a pretty sight!! 

Dunraven is a property of 25,000 hectares near Barcaldine, which we had the pleasure of a morning tour of part. The owners, Peter and Roberta, along with son Paul, take small groups on a tag along tour to explain life on the land.  The property has been in Roberta's family for about 110 years. This is their 6th year of drought, only having had about 100mm of rain in the last year.  The knowledge they shared of grasses, trees, cattle, sheep and life on the land was staggering.  We were also surprised by the number of kangaroos on the property, vying with the cattle and sheep for food.  Kangaroos must have out numbered other livestock by 20 times.
We mentioned that we felt at home due to the amount of dags, as so many of our friends act as dags. A pommie who happened to be with us, couldn't possilbly see how this could be a word of endearment, and that it is occasionally good to be a dag.  (Occasionally, but not all the time!!)

Our hosts Peter and Roberta 

The front drive

Meteor over Dunraven.  We  were saved by the windscreen

6 years without any substantial rain

Artesian bores make a difference to plant growth

Out on the plains, the brolgas are going to a dance

View from shearers shed.  A shearing song by the (Sheep) Seekers comes to mind. "Ï'll never find another ewe"

The Tree of Knowledge at Barcaldine, is quite an architectural marvel.  It symbolises the original tree which was silent witness to the struggle between the shearers and the pastoralists way back in 1891. This was a crucial time in the formation of the Australian Labor Party.
A labour party can often consist of a mid-wife, obstetrician, expectant husband, nurse and the guest of honour; the expectant mother who happens to be in labour. She doesn't always view it as a party though.
The actual birth can be called a labour movement.
Once born, the babe is often struck on the bottom to encourage breathing. This act is called a strike.
The welts from the fingers of the hand on the tender skin, look like, and are called picket lines.
Hoping this helps with an understanding of terminology often used.   

Evergreen by night

ANZAC day saw us in Charleville for the dawn service.  We were so impressed with a young girl who led without accompaniment the national anthems of New Zealand and Australia, with the kiwi version also being sung in Maori.

Lest we forget

Longreach is just like the Gold Coast without the sand, sea, crowds and tall buildings.  Similar to the Gold Coast, multi passes are available for so many activities, such as Australian Stockman's Hall of Fame, QANTAS Founders Museum, Cobb and Co Stage Coach Experience and many more.
Not only the is Longreach the centre of the universe, but also the centre of Queensland.

Stockman's Hall of Fame and Man from Iron Bark

This is not the only Furphy in this blog

RFDS plane in suspenders

A brilliant building 

Impressive staging 

The Aussie humour is very much alive out west as evident in a dusk cruise on the Thomson River. The night was so full of wit, without concern for what might be called political correctness; and all without maliciousness or swearing.  It was so much appreciated by all who attended.
The river which flows through Longreach is very much unpolluted as their is no P in Thomson.
Longreach owes it's name to the stretch of river, which is a long reach 14.5km long with an average depth of 9m.  Quite astounding as there is not much of a sign of water anywhere else approaching the river.  (We originally thought the name came from being far away from the long reach of the law.  We were wrong.)

There is no p in Thomson River

World cruise on the Thomson 

Chook chariot 

The QANTAS Founders Museum  featured the tallest structure in Longreach.  A 747 aircraft, which stands out like the proverbial large plane on a large plain.
We note that the use of Founders in the name is extremely clever name as if the future QANTAS goes into receivership, a simple letter "L" could be added to the name to form the QANTAS Flounders Museum.

A plane on a plain

Start it up Boris!

Early Avro biplane in the early arvo

Pilot practicing aerial maneuvers.  Passenger in awe of skill

Piston broke.  Preparing for repairs

No trip to the outback would be complete without a gallop in a Cobb and Co stage coach behind 5 horses.  This is supposedly the only stage coach gallop in the world.  Dusty but exhilarating.

Riding shotgun

2nd Class passengers

Tight turn

Foot view of full gallop.  Bumpy ride and no seat belts.

A longreach from front to back. 53m overall, 620 horse power, 150 cows, 80 tyres, 100ltrs/100km

We have moved out of the metropolis and are camped by the Crawford River in the rain shadow of the mighty Mount Landsborough, which stands almost twice as high as Charlestown, NSW.
Our day's travel was a mere 90 minutes, with the intention of simply chilling and getting the breath back.  By nightfall we had 5 other vans within cooee of us.
Our next stop is Winton where we enter Dinosaur territory.

Hoping all is going well with all and sundry.
Happy travelling in everything you do!!
Cheers, Don and Carrol.

4. CENTRAL WESTERN QUEENSLAND.

Hi all,
Most of this blog sees us still in the Murray- Darling catchment area, which we entered as mentioned in our first blog a few hours after leaving the Hunter Valley.
The Warrega River which runs through many of the towns in Queensland we have been to, covers 7% of the catchment land area, however less than 1% of the water entering in the system. All very arid, and the wildlife is so different to back home.

Gaol Bird (or it could be if it commits a fence)

Morven, west of Roma has a small volunteer run museum with a unique kerosene tin hut constructed during the depression.  The ingenuity using available products in tough times is most impressive and resourceful.

Kerosene Tin Hut

Fantastic flashing 

Storing in a cool place didn't quite work

Double skin roof. Early double glazing technology 

Furniture from tins. Note the legs in tins to be filled with water to prevent ants climbing the table legs

The museum displayed also hand made model buildings and relics from times gone by.

Something for everyone to study

Moving upstream to Charleville, Don put the effort in the open air Olympic Pool, knocking down a very needed casual 2 km, much of it backstroke whilst watching a Wedge-tail eagle circling overhead.  The eagle no doubt thought the swimming style was an animal in distress and  was contemplating zeroing in on his next meal.  Fortunately, the swim ended without drama. The eagle flew away hungry.

The station at Charleville has just two more trains a week than Newcastle Station.

2 trains a week to Charleville Station

Charleville has a Bilby Experience Centre for getting up and close to these cute little Australian Marsupials. They are restricted to only small pockets of Australia, due mainly to 20 million feral cats which have taken over 99% of Australia and kill 75 million native animals every 24 hours; 7.2 million foxes doing the same; and 200 million rabbits taking over Bilby burrows and competing for the same food.
Fenced off areas giving protection for Bilby are being built, along with further research to help prevent extinction.
For further reading and donations, go to www.savethebilbyfund.org   

ENDANGERED BILBY. They taste like dodo and are best sautered in plum sauce.

Oh so cute

The Corones Hotel in Charleville is a large opulent hotel built with no expense spared in the 1920s. Such a contrast to the kerosene hut seen a few days earlier.
Guided 2 hour tours are taken through the hotel, culminating in an afternoon tea of scones and cream.

Corones Hotel. Charleville. (Nothing like the Mattara Hotel of Charlestown)

Flood levels reach the 8th step. The lower steps are inundated with regularity

Ladies have a room to write. Gentlemen are right in all rooms

Absolute class

Great floors. Macho colour scheme

QANTAS had one of it's first flights out of Charleville, with the Corones Hotel catering for the flights.  It is thought this was the first of inflight catering anywhere in the world.
So many of the early aviators also stopped off at Charleville, including the Smith Bros, Amy Johnson, Nancy Bird.  As well as being a compulsory stop in the 1934 London to Melbourne Air Race.

If sheep had been carried in lieu of passengers, there could have been a ewe in QANTAS.

World War 2 saw Charleville as a base for the US Airforce. In 1942, the airbase stationed 3500 US airmen and ground crew, 101 buildings, 3 runways and 160 aircraft. Aircraft included Flying Fortress B-17, Liberator B-24, Cobra, Hawk, etc. We took a fascinating tour of the base, seeing a top secret Norden Bomb Siting  machine which originally sat up in the glass cone of bombers.

3 Airstrips and 160 planes 

Norden Bomb-Siting bomb proof shed. 2 fences, men and dogs surrounded this shed, marked on plans as dentist/ doctors shed

USAF  ice hockey rink.

The latrine is that way

Complete with fire hydrant. Apparently hydrants are targeted in air strikes, not so WCs. Hence the camouflage. 

The Cosmos Centre has a wonderful shed, the envy of all men present, allowing for the complete roof to peel back for viewing of all things celestial.  A great evening was enjoyed after being cancelled on two previous nights due to storms and cloud. We don't have any film record of this.  Just mental notes of the 6 sites we viewed.

Goat indicating  we are approaching  the Tropic of Capricorn (perhaps an escaped star sign from the Cosmos Centre)

The Royal Flying Doctor Service  also has a  base in Charleville. The method of identifying injuries or ailments with a numbering system; along with a numbering system for treatment is so straight forward and easy to apply.  The old pedal powered radio transmitter no doubt help cut the remoteness for the caller.

Keeping fit whilst calling the doctor. Note the pedal generator

Numbering system on body for assisting in diagnosis

Numbering system of drug/ bandage treatment

These flying doctors are not associated  with the RFDS

Heading north we encountered more wildlife at Augathella.  This town featured in the 1956 film classic "Smiley". (So many classics originated in 1956)
The town has some great sculptures scattered around. 

Rin Tin Tin

 Meat ant on telegraph pole

Moving north and more traffic congestion and road trains.

Cattle heard about and herd about the bull bar

Clarabelle, Daisy, Buttercup, Big Mac and friends

For the first time in 1700 km, we have moved out of the Murray Darling basin, and camped on the banks of the Barcoo River. The Barcoo flows NW, before turning SW and  joining the Coopers Creek to eventually run into Lake Eyre.

View of the Barcoo from van window 

Almost Albert Namatjira

Under the shade of a coolabah tree

How Great Thou Art

Seeing Australia is so awe inspiring and wonderful. We feel so blessed in being able to get out and see the sights and this great land.  We hope more folk  get out and do the same. It seems that it is too easy to simply get on a plane and go overseas rather than see our own backyard. 
Meanwhile, it could be an interesting time ahead as the mobile home that Uncle Eddie drove in the Griswold's Christmas Vacation movie has just pulled up behind us for the night. 
We will see how we go!

Happy travelling.
Cheers, Don and Carrol