Corner Country 2014

[Tweaksta]

Howdy ORSers;

Finally managed to get this trip report up for you all to enjoy. All went well and the Foz performed like a trooper (and no - not a troopy or it would have taken twice as long and used twice the fuel).

Sit down, buckle up and enjoy the ride.

(Sorry about the low res images - they are hosted on my travel blog which degraded the photos massively).

DAY 1: Sydney to Orange
The first day was not that exciting really (as usual). Still have a minimum of 1000km before I can report anything. Left Sydney at 11am, had lunch in Kurrajong and headed across the mountains via Bells Line. Drove through Lithgow and Bathurst, went to a servo in Orange to have a pee when a bloke told me one of my tyres was flat. I filled it up again and could hear the hissing sound of a not-so-slow leak. A quick inspection revealed a fairly decent bit of damage - I won't call it a puncture because it wasn't - it was like a twisted sharp chunk of steel may have gone into it and butchered it. It wasn't a hole, more like a messy scar so I didn't think I'd be able to use my repair kit on it.
A quick trip to the visitor's centre to find out about free camping (they told us to try Mt Canobolas which we did - big sign saying "No Camping"), then we started getting stressed as the tyre was rapidly emptying and we still had no place to stay at sunset. The temperature had dropped below 10 already too so we got a cabin at the caravan park and retired early.

DAY 2: ORANGE TO COBAR
Jumped up and packed the car, went straight to Bob Jane and got two new Michelin Energy XM2s for the rear. We got some breakfast and coffee while we waited. Once the car was ready we were on the road again. It was a fairly long day of driving through Molong, Wellington (where we stopped for lunch), Dubbo, Narromine, Trangie and Nyngan.

By the time we got to Cobar the light was fading and we were knackered again. Using some knowledge gained from a caravanning forum I navigated us to a free campsite not far from town that is getting good reviews from caravanners and campers at the old water reservoir south of town. It was a great spot, it had a toilet block and a few other travellers scattered about. We set up with a view of the water and relaxed with full radio, tv and internet reception.

There was a bit of rain overnight which was nice as we were in a dry spot under the awning.

DAY 3: COBAR TO SILVERTON
The holiday feeling was only just beginning by this day as there is so much hard work involved in accessing the outback.

Once we got out of Cobar we knew we were virtually in the zone with red dirt everywhere. Cobar Bakery got us going with coffee, egg rolls and donuts. Unfortunately SWMBO had her order at the bakery bungled (asked for a latte and got a cap!!!) and she was fuming for hours. I had to pull in at the Emmdale Roadhouse to get her another one - lucky the girl serving was French and knew what a latte was... Not long after I pulled in to Miss Barretts in Wilcannia (regular haunt) to get myself another coffee too.

A few hours later (which included a low fuel scare soon remedied by Little Topar roadhouse) we got to Broken Hill - starving! We stopped at a nice new cafe for burgers and ginger beer before heading out to Silverton to check out the camping at Penrose Park. As soon as we got there we said hello to all the animals in the cages. Jack the Corella, the cockatiels and the Budgies were our favourites. A quick visit to the caretakers office to pay our fees and we were off to an unpopulated section to set up camp.

The forecast was for 3 degrees that night so we set up the tent under the awning to stop dew building up on the tent overnight. We spent a few hours walking around the park checking it out. The animal sanctuary took up a lot of our time. Before we knew it dark was approaching so we headed back to camp to make dinner.

Just as it started to get cold we headed to the bathrooms for hot showers which were damn nice. By 9pm it was too cold to be outside so we watched TV in the tent for a while before going to sleep.

 

[Tweaksta]

DAY 4: SILVERTON TO MUTAWINTJI
We packed up and headed off to the Mundi Mundi Plains lookout. I hadn't had my morning coffee yet so unfortunately I didn't put much effort into capturing the view in the photo.

Then it was off to the Silverton Tea Rooms for coffee and cake.

After grabbing supplies in Broken Hill we headed to the Living Desert for a walk through the wildflowers to see the sculptures. After a quick lunch back in Broken Hill it was off to Mutawintji National Park. We had read that there were hot showers there so it sounded like a comfortable place to head next.

We got there just before sunset, it had a nice, serene atmosphere with lots of birds and a few wallabies. We had some free time to have a bit of a relax and take some photos before starting on dinner. After eating we headed off to the shower block for the hot showers we had been looking forward to - only to find that there were no lights (odd, since the camp kitchen was well illuminated). Somehow we decided that using torchlight wouldn't work so we skipped showers that night.

There was no mobile, tv or radio reception here so it felt isolated even though we were less than 200kms from Broken Hill. All the other campers turned off their lights fairly early so we went to bed too.

 

[Tweaksta]

DAY 5: MUTAWINTJI TO TIBOOBURRA
The next morning we had breakfast at the campsite then made my espresso and Julie's latte on the Rok. If you don't know what a Rok is - see https://www.rokkitchentools.com.
We hit the road intending to get to at least Tibooburra today. After driving out of the Mutawintji camping area, I consulted the maps and the Hema maps showed a perfectly usable shortcut road almost from Mutawintji to Packsaddle so we set our course and were off. After a good few kms we were confronted with a closed gate and a sign which said "PRIVATE PROPERTY - NO ENTRY - BUGGER OFF!".

Turns out that the road passes through the privately-owned Marrapina Station.

Not to be swayed, with 1/3 of a tank of fuel left and somehow hoping for an adventure of some sort we continued into this scary unwelcoming private station. We were hoping the road didn't pass the homestead. Before we knew it, we had arrived at the homestead....****. I tried to find the through road without revving the engine to try and sneak through but it didn't help, I couldn't find the road. I turned around and sure enough there was a person cleaning out a refrigerated truck. My instincts kicked in and I approached him and apologetically explained that the Hema maps said it was a thoroughfare and I didn't have enough fuel to go any other way. He said he was just a worker and told me to see the woman at the homestead, so over I went into her nice green garden and knocked on the door. It felt like ages but a woman came out and was quite understanding when I explained the situation but was quite annoyed that Hema had this as a road. After a bit of grovelling she granted me access and radioed Nundora Station to let them know we were coming through. She warned me about the creek just before Nundora Station and said she had got a Patrol bogged there, so I asked if it was wet. She said it was soft dry sand to which I said "Well that's not a problem - I'm in a Subie". She gave me directions through the right gate to find where the road continued and we were away.

So, just for the record, the shortcut from Mutawintji to Packsaddle via Marrapina and Nundora Stations is not an option. The road passes right past both homesteads and you will be seen.

Running on adrenaline and caffeine, we were beginning to find the country up this way bloody amazing. Even the road was sexy.

After skipping across Nundora Creek without even breaking traction on any wheel we were soon back on the Silver City Highway. After briefly stopping in at Packsaddle roadhouse for coffee and fuel we continued up the Silver City. Cobham Lake was like an oasis in the desert so we stopped for a look. While we were looking around we got fascinated by the gravestone of Eliza Kennedy - "her charity covereth a multitude of sins". Interesting stuff.

A bit further along the highway we got to the ghost town of Milparinka. The remains of the main historic buildings have been restored and turned into a visitor's information centre, a volunteer accommodation cottage and several other interesting bits-n-bobs. The volunteers were extremely enthusiastic about giving us all the info about the area - a lovely retired couple from the Barossa and another friendly gentleman. They gave us instructions to get to James Poole's grave and Depot Glen which Sturt's party camped at for a few months as part of the Burke and Wills Expedition. They also gave us some cherry tomatoes that were growing on the porch of the volunteer's cottage. We briefly took off down the wrong road for about 500m before we noticed on the GPS. We hadn't even completed our u-turn when one of the wonderful volunteers jumped into his SH Forester and chased us down to let us know we had taken the wrong road. What a nice man - I wish more people were like this.

From Poole's Grave and Depot Glen we took the back road to Tibooburra (as recommended by the volunteers in Milparinka). It took a little bit longer but it was clearly the scenic route with spectacular vistas and a really nice gorge to drive through. Once we got to Tibooburra it was already 4:30pm which is time to work out where to stay. Since we had the gear, we were looking for campsites rather than a caravan park or motel. Our research had found that the Aboriginal Lands Council had a camping area with hot showers only 1.5km from town so we checked it out. It was empty of campers, and there was a camp kitchen and hot showers so we paid our $25 at the pub and went back to the Aboriginal Lands campground to set up.
The place was spectacular and well looked after, and it had a great big bunch of boulders which looked awesome. We couldn't believe we had the whole place to ourselves as it can probably fit over 50 campers and the caravan park in town was chockablock full. I highly recommend this campground if you are in the area.

Once darkness fell, it was time for dinner so we headed in to the Family Hotel for a drink and a feed. The staff were friendly (many were backpackers from OS), and the food was good.
After dinner we went back to the campground which we had all to ourselves. It was pitch black and we needed/wanted to have showers. We checked the shower block and found no lighting again. This time it was no problem, I moved the car to outside the shower block and ran a 12v cable from the aux battery to one of our camping lights which we hung up inside the bathroom. A few minutes later the hot showers had steamed up and it became quite a cozy little bathroom in the middle of nowhere. In fact, we regarded it as one of the best showers of the trip.

 

[Tweaksta]

 

[Tweaksta]

DAY 6: TIBOOBURRA TO INNAMINCKA
The next morning we had breakfast and coffee at the Tibooburra General Store opposite the Family Hotel before getting started on the road to Cameron Corner. This is where the exciting landscapes really started. The first was a huge red dry lake (see photo below). Things were starting to look like Mars.

One of the other cool features were these things called jump-ups which are basically dunes which the road runs over, the thing is, they occur every 300-400 metres so after 100km or so they become quite boring and make the drive claustrophobic at times. After an hour of jump-ups my Oziexplorer Hema maps showed that I was about to pass the Yellow Bus soon but I never saw it - turns out the locals removed it as it was becoming an eyesore, a junkyard and a bogan campsite and graffiti spot. Just before we got bored of the jump-ups we arrived at the corner.

 

[Tweaksta]

 

[Tweaksta]

DAY 7: INNAMINCKA TO COONGIE LAKES
The next morning we had our coffees at the Innamincka pub and had a wander around the Parks Office nearby which had a museum-ey type setup inside.

We then hit the road to Coongie Lakes - 112km NW of Innamincka on some pretty rough roads. It actually wouldn't have taken more than 90 minutes to get there but after a stop at Kudriemitchie Outstation it was closer to 2 hours. Once we arrived at the lakes we realised that coming here was the best decision we had made so far. The place was gobsmacking. For nature lovers and bird watchers like us we couldn't believe our luck. We drove around the main camping area first which had 6 or 7 campsites in use along the Cooper. It was nice but a tad too many people for us, besides we wanted a full wilderness experience so we took the 4x4 track across the dunes to the Lakeside camping areas.

As soon as we turned off the main road the sand got softer and deeper and we climbed the first dune which was pretty fun. The campsites were well spread out over this side and there were about 8 main dunes we had to get over to get around the accessible section of the lake. There were a few points where it was a bit hairy and required keeping the car 'on the boil' to get over the really soft bits. I was able to use the torque of the turbo to hold it in 2nd over most of the dunes until the last one which was the end of the lakeside track and terminated with a small turning circle area for you to turn around in. I came down the fairly steep and soft dune in 2nd with some throttle applied, but when I got to the turning area and turned the wheel I let the speed drop and began to dig in on the outside wheel. I tried flooring it, but the engine was already down to about 1350rpm - not enough to spool up the turbo in order to achieve decent boost. At this point, with the weight of the sand on the wheels slowing the wheels I thought I could quickly change down to 1st or it would soon stall.....it then stalled before I could say 'bollocks'. I started the engine and tried to drive out but the car didn't move. There was some slippage occurring somewhere.

Not panicked, but somewhat excited by the situation I got out and had a look. None of the wheels looked too badly buried, in fact none were even sanded up to the hubs. Just the entire profile of rubber plus a few cm of rim above it. The left side was a bit deeper due to the soft berm embankment of the turning area but only about 2cm. I chuckled to myself and told Julie we'd be out in a second or two. I dropped the tyre pressures to 20psi all around and got back in. I started the engine and thought I'd try reversing out. I gave it about 3000rpm and slowly released the clutch. The car started to move but the revs dropped and it stalled again. Not sure why - but I stupidly then tried reverse again, this time with 4500rpm and stalled it again. Geez talk about long gearing for the reverse gear! So I put it into 1st gear and dropped the clutch at 4500rpm again. This time it started to move, the weight of the sand was trying to drag down the revs but the torque of the turbo was too strong and I could feel all four wheels trying to break free before the car smoothly just moved forward and we were back on the surface. I truly believe that if the car had not been fitted with an LSD we wouldn't have got out so easily. I looked over to Julie and said "see, I told we'd be out soon". We had a laugh and continued on our search for the perfect campsite. After that I only went over the dunes in 1st, I never had a problem after that. Go the Subie!

We found a cracker of a campsite on a strip of land between the savannah-like wetland and the lake itself, under the shade of a Coolabah (I think) tree. We were literally metres from the water. We set up camp with the tent, the awning, the 12v shower, chairs, the camping stove and some lights. The Waeco was running off the auxiliary battery on freeze mode and we used frozen water bottles to keep the esky chilled. Everything we could possibly want.

There was amazing wildlife everywhere.

It had been 48 hours since our last shower so I fetched 20 litres of beautiful fresh Coongie Lake water for the 12v shower and warmed the containers in the 32 degree sun. With no humans for miles, no shower screen or curtain - it was the best shower I'd ever had.

The whole place was awesomely beautiful all afternoon but when sunset came it was just mindblowing and surreal, we couldn't believe we were really in such a magical place. I tried as best I could to capture the vibe with photography.

[ame="//www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzoewLYqOyM&feature=player_embedded"]The Road to Coongie Lakes[/ame]

 

[Tweaksta]

 

[Tweaksta]

DAY 8: STAYED AT COONGIE LAKES
We had a slow relaxing morning eating and drinking coffee until next thing we knew it was 32 degrees and we were feeling too hot to do any long walks so we just hung around in the shade and enjoyed the scenery from the campsite. Most of the time we had a camera or binoculars in our hands as there is always something to look at or photograph. It was a great morning for birdwatching until late morning when they began to lay low for the hottest part of the day. The dingoes amongst the Brolgas on the savannah didn't seem to mind the heat - but they got to wade through water regularly so it may have provided some relief.

At about 11am I got another 20 litres of water from the lake and sat the containers in the sun during the hottest part of the day, by 3pm the water was comparable to a hot shower at home so I had an even better shower than the day before. The thermometer was still reading 30 degrees so it was beautiful. Showers in the bush or outback are easily one of life's simple pleasures - it was great.

Again, the afternoon became another wonderful sunset with every tone of red and orange visible.

It was hard to stop enjoying the scenery to cook dinner, but if you don't get started on dinner before dark it's turns into a bit of a chore so we knocked up a quick meal just before it got too dark. By the time we washed up, darkness had fully fallen so we drank our tea watching the moon reflecting off the water with that strange feeling you get when you have to leave the next day.

Before going to bed we played a few games of cards in the tent. Thanks to two wonderful showers in two days here I went to bed as clean as I would've at home.

 

[Tweaksta]

 

[Tweaksta]

DAY 9: COONGIE LAKES SA TO NOCCUNDRA QLD

The next morning we had breakfast, packed up and hit the road as we wanted to get to Thargomindah to restock supplies as we were out of milk and basic groceries. We went via the Innamincka pub for coffees and another quick look around town. On the way out we went to see Burke's grave and place of carking it. The whole Burke & Wills story is always in your head when you see what conditions they had to contend with.

After a few days in SA we crossed into QLD, then not long after the border we got a nice stretch of blacktop for a while which was nice. The scenery was still red dirt and rocks. About 126km from Thargomindah we saw the turnoff to Noccundra 27km away. I knew there was a pub and camping by the river so we cruised the last 27km arriving at dusk at about 6pm . The camping areas were quite full as the crowds from the Birdsville races had begun to filter through all the roads across inland Australia...but still we managed to find a nice quiet spot away from everyone right by the Wilson river. Since we arrived lateish and wanted to set off early, we decided to eat at the pub and not unpack the cooking gear so it was a quick set up consisting of just the tent and our Diamantina 4wd mattress.

The pub was a classic outback pub, full of character - and characters, rustic, homely, comfortable and it was also the petrol station, motel and caravan park. Campers from the riverside could have hot showers for a coin donation to the RFDS. We had a drink and had a chat to the manager and barmaid who was an Irish backpacker. We asked if they did breakfast to which they said yes, and took our brekky orders on the spot there and then. We checked out the dinner menu, ordered our meals and moved next door to the dining room. It was a typical 150 year old job complete with uneven floors, eneven doors and low headroom hallways.

It was full of lots of jokes, laughter and merry travellers on their way from Birdsville to the Gold Coast, Melbourne, country Victoria and Adelaide. There were some funny stories bouncing around. I always enjoy the historic photos and news clippings hanging up on the walls of these old isolated places. Dinner was damn good there too. I had fish & chips with salad and I have to say it was good seafood this far from the ocean.

After dinner and a chat with the gents from the next table we headed back to the tent and played cards for a while until bedtime.

 

[Tweaksta]

DAY 10: NOCCUNDRA TO KILCOWERA STATION
We got up quite early and packed up our camp. Breakfast at the Noccundra Hotel was booked for 8:30am but we were there by 8:15. There were some other travellers who had queued up at the petrol bowsers but no-one was there to serve. This had us a bit worried at first but then we walked around the front and tried the front doors which were locked. We got in the car and considered driving off when suddenly someone ran out and asked if we were the people with the breakfast booking - yay!

The food and the coffee were amazing and the staff were friendly - definitely a place to come back to. After breakfast we hit the road.

There were sections of blacktop on the 180 km drive to Thargomindah, narrow blacktop - but blacktop. Oncoming traffic, especially road trains were particularly fun.

We grabbed basic supplies in Thargomindah and went to the cafe for lunch, then drove the final 100km along the Dowling Track to Kilcowera Station which is a privately owned cattle station with camping, caravan spaces and rooms in the shearers quarters available.

The landscape was different here again, really red dirt, chunky rocks, lots of shrub, scrub and brush with little canopy. We crossed the Bulloo River in Thargomindah which had a small amount of water in it. There were several creeks and waterholes along the Dowling Track some of which contained water. Closer to Kilcowera it becomes the lower part of a massive catchment so it can sometimes be inundated. Plenty of wildlife and spectacular scenery everywhere.

We dropped in to the homestead to say hi and find out where we should camp. Toni (the owner) told us to follow her in her mini-bus to the campsite which was about 4km from the homestead and about 2 or 3 km from the shearers quarters (where the powered sites, showers, bathrooms and laundry facilities were). They had their own artesian bore which provided hot showers without any water heating. It also meant there was enough water for the guests to be comfortable and clean.

We arrived at our camping spot and were pleasantly surprised, it was another beauty. It was on the western shore of Cardenyabba Lagoon looking across water at giant eucalypts. We had seen a constant 32 degrees for the past 5 days and it was a warm afternoon so when we set up the tent we didn't set up the fly - we'd be using the moon roof to see the sky. We also didn't set up the awning as we were planning to do the 60km return drive to the back of Lake Wyara (part of Currawinya Nat Pk), which backed onto their property.

We had a great camp-cooked dinner and watched the sun go down....and watched the water....and the trees...then the moon.

 

[ateday]

Nice one.

 

[guzzla]

Wow - this is bringing back good memories. I've been to Innamincka 3 times - as a kid in 1965 when all that was there was the old AIM hospital ruins & a huge bottle heap, and again in 1993 and again in 2009 in my Forester. None of the times did I get to Coongie Lakes but your wonderful report is giving me itchy feet. Dying to read the rest. Great green GT you have there too - it's staying amazingly clean in those dusty conditions.

 

[Tweaksta]

I've been to Innamincka 3 times - as a kid in 1965 when all that was there was the old AIM hospital ruins & a huge bottle heap

Yeah...I've seen photos of the bottle heap. It got washed away in a flood - all several hundred thousand bottles. Cooper Creek then goes to either Lake Eyre or Coongie so I reckon it'd be pretty cool to try and find some of the bottles.

Great green GT you have there too - it's staying amazingly clean in those dusty conditions.

I think it might be the best colour they made.....maybe I'm biased. :ebiggrin:
It made light work of the roads/tracks/dunes, really fun to drive. More of a rally car with exceptional clearance rather than a full blown fourby. Amazing on sand.

 

[Tweaksta]

DAY 11: Stayed at Kilcowera
After a really slow and relaxed morning making camp espresso with our portable espresso device, we finally dragged ourselves away from the the camp and into the car to do the station drive at about midday. Immediately there were loads of interesting features and flora which the owners had signposted for visitors.

There were some amazing landscapes, vistas and terrains. At some points I thought the rocky road surface was going to destroy my tyres but they held up beautifully - I am now even more impressed with the structural integrity and sheer robustness of the Michelin Energy XMs. They are unbreakable (unless you hit some twisted steel at high speed).

The 60km track to the lake was part a return journey which took you around the all the interesting features of the station. They gave us a map and extra info on the drive when we checked in. There are various stops like gorges, creeks, rare trees, lookouts, bores and "Murderer's Bore" where an actual murder occurred in the 1940's. All up it took about 3.5 hours to complete the drive and it was well worth it.

One of the reasons we came to the area was to try to find Budgerigars in their wild state and WE FOUND 'EM! We had heard them for a few days and saw the odd few flash past but until now we hadn't been able to get a photo of them. Somewhere near Lake Wyara we got a few bad photos.

That afternoon back at camp we had a walk and did some birdwatching. Towards the end of the day we found more Budgies. This time I managed to get some better shots but still not great.

Then as the sun went down I tried to photograph some more sunsets and some cool shots of the moon rising.

We finished cooking dinner and were boiling water for a billy of tea when we ran out of cooking gas....which was ok as the water had just started boiling. After tea and realising that this was our last night at this campsite, we packed a few things to make it easier in the morning before sitting down and watching the moonlit view while absorbing the atmosphere with the occasional splash of a water bird landing in the lagoon breaking the silence.

 

[Tweaksta]

 

[Tweaksta]

DAY 12: KILCOWERA TO CURRAWINYA NATIONAL PARK
After having breakfast and packing up we hit the Dowling Track continuing Southwards to Hungerford, we were expecting to be able to get cooking gas and coffee there. The Dowling Track is a great looking bit of road (or track). Still plenty of red here although, being channel country, there are lots of creeks and watercourses.

Hungerford was only 100km away so it didn't take too long before we saw the one pub town come into view. Again, the pub was the general store, the accommodation and the service station. They also did lunch and coffee so we ate toasted sandwiches and drank our coffees watching the township from the verandah. We also got some fuel from the back of the pub. No premium unleaded, but I had plenty of octane booster packed for these situations. The unleaded and diesel bowsers were elevated tanks with gravity feed - no pumps. Good for blackouts I guess. The also didn't have cooking gas which was a bit of a hassle since we were heading to Currawinya National Park for some birdwatching and another night of wilderness camping.

We thought about it and came up with a feed that wouldn't require heat, so we headed the 50 or so kilometres to check out the lakes. We also had a look at the park office (which was unattended). When we got to the camping facilities area we saw a locked shower block, some good flushing toilets and what appeared to be a cottage or cabin you can rent. We found a crowded camping area which didn't look appealing. The 'Corni Paroo' camping area however, was completely empty. We found a gorgeous spot by the Paroo River and set up camp.

I heated my leftovers in the hot engine bay and also whacked a few teabags in the billy which I also warmed in the engine bay. After about 30 mins in the engine bay the pasta was still frozen so tried to work out what to eat. A jam sandwich got me started. Julie had a vego dish which I also had. I then had some vita weets with cheese, a muesli bar, a packet of chips and some chocolate. After eating various bit and pieces for 20 minutes I felt full enough to have called that meal dinner. It was now time to get the tea ready. After an hour in the engine bay it was now warm and smelt tea-ey, but I wanted hot tea. I got the empty gas cylinder off the roof rack and hooked it to the cooker. It was still able to light but the flame was tiny - barely staying on. I put the tea on the flame and made sure it didn't blow out. Occasionally I'd have to relight it as it was really starting to dwindle, eventually it just died but the tea was now much warmer. To get some more heat into the tea I took out the camping heater and tilted it upward and rested the billy on the grille. A minute later it started to boil - I had just discovered a backup cooker!

After a great cuppa it got too dark to stay outdoors so we headed in to the tent to do some reading before going to bed.

 

[Tweaksta]

DAY 13: CURRAWINYA TO CUNNAMULLA

Woke up to a delightfully peaceful place, and we tried to enjoy the serenity for as long as we could until hunger kicked in. In our heads we knew Eulo wasn't too far so we quickly slurped down some cereal and headed off with Eulo marked as our coffee stop. We were looking forward to having a look around Cunnamulla which would be our next stop after Eulo.

Eulo was a really nice place with a great cafe and shop, as well as the Opal shop which we bought a few things at. We then pressed on to Cunnamulla which was a decent town with all the things you need. First stop was to get a nice lunch so we stopped at the Club Boutique Hotel for some country cooking....jeez it was tasty after 12 nights of camping! After lunch we had to work out whether to continue towards Charleville or to stay in Cunnamulla. Since we were low on milk and the auxiliary battery was getting low (due to the last few days not driving much and forgot the damn solar panel at home), we made the executive decision to stay in a cabin. We pulled everything out of the car and recharged the lot - iPads, phones, torch batteries, laptops and cameras.

Around sunset we headed back to the same place we had lunch to try their dinner.
I took some shots from the table we sat at out the front.

DAY 14: CUNNAMULLA TO ROMA QLD
When we checked out of our cabin in the morning, the woman asked us where we were headed that day.. "Charleville" we said. "Oh you won't get through to Charleville, a truck carrying chemicals exploded on the road from here to Charleville, took the bridge right out!" We thanked her for that vital piece of information, checked out and went into town to go to the bakery to get coffee. Whilst pottering around Cunnamulla, we also had to get gas for the cooker. The gas dealer was at the tyre shop so they also told us about the closed road we'd be encountering later that day. Once we had everything sorted we then hit the Mitchell Highway towards Wyandra.

Wyandra was a nice quiet town on the Warrego River which also had some nice camping options and a pub but we didn't feel the need to stop. After a few kms from Wyandra we came to the "Road Closed" sign with the diversion signage directing traffic about 50km eastward before joining up with another road which led into Charleville. The road was all red dirt with some water damage but had been recently graded as it was the only diversion available for travellers. It passed through a few cattle stations - Wheatleagh Station was one I do remember.

Upon arrival in Charleville we went straight to the visitor's centre which was also a Space museum. We asked about the Bilby experience they told us we were there on the wrong day and we'd need to stay another day to see it.....plus it was a late afternoon display so it would have cost us two days. Since we wanted to drop in to the sunshine coast briefly before heading back out west (prior to going home) we decided not to stay in Charleville this time.....so no bilbies unfortunately. We had toasted sandwiches and coffee at the space museum and hit the Warrego Highway eastward.

After an easy 268 km cruise and some towns with overcrowded free camp grounds (Morven & Mitchell - not as interesting as the towns we encountered further west), we kept driving until we got to Roma at dusk.

We checked into a nice, clean and comfortable motel in Roma and walked a few blocks to the Commonwealth Hotel for dinner which was recommended to us by the motel manager. It was the best meal we'd had in ages.

 

[Tweaksta]

DAY 15: ROMA TO MAROOCHYDORE
Today we wanted to try to get to the Sunshine Coast (to drop in and say hi to my grandma) so upon leaving Roma (and stopping at the bakery for the obligatory coffee and snack), we continued eastward on the Warrego Highway through Miles and Roma until just west of Dalby where we diverted off and headed North towards the Bunya Mountains for a few kms until we changed course again eastwards towards Cooyar, Yarraman and Kilcoy.

Many of these towns were nice and green mountain villages with streams, creeks and rivers running through them - most had free camping areas but we thought they looked a bit too crowded. We turned off the main road and headed North through Maleny to have a look around then took the windy road down to Maroochydore stopping at a lookout just before descending from the hinterland to the coast.

We had travelled over 1500km from the western border of QLD with SA to the coast in a not-so-straight line. It felt crazy to be somewhere this green and fertile. Deep down we kinda wished we were still in the arid zone. Upon arrival in Maroochydore at around 6pm, we checked into our accommodation, unpacked and then went for a drive into town to have dinner at a pub that we like to eat at when we are in the area.

DAY 16: STAYED IN MAROOCHYDORE
With no driving planned today I took the opportunity to get some oil and an oil filter and do a change, I was 1000km over the 5000km oil-change interval but since so many people do theirs less regularly than that I don't think there would have been any harm done. I always put fully synthetic oil in the car and when I drained it out - it didn't look to bad at all.

We had a fairly relaxing day then went to visit my grandmother in Nambour in the afternoon. After that we went back to our accommodation to get changed before heading to Sippy Downs to have dinner with my uncle Peter and his wife Alby. We had a nice, relaxing evening watching TV and chatting before tucking into a delicious Thai meal and next thing we knew it was getting late and it was time to leave.

With two long-awaited catch-ups with relatives done in one day, we were starting to feel like it had paid off doing the long drive to the coast to see them as I had only seen them once or twice in 20 years.

We drove back to our accommodation and watched TV, drank tea and ate some dessert-ey things. Before going to bed, we did a basic packup so that in the morning we could just load up the car and go.

DAY 17: MAROOCHYDORE TO GOONDIWINDI
We had breakfast at the cafe then checked out and drove straight to Nambour to pick up my grandmother. She was ready and waiting, and she also busted us for being half an hour late. We squeezed her walking frame into our packed car and drove off to find a cafe. The local bakery did the job perfectly and we spent over an hour eating lots of cakes and drinking coffee and tea. After morning tea we dropped her back to her nursing home and hit the road.

From Maroochydore we headed back the way we came - up into the hinterland and across the mountains to Kilcoy and Cooyar before swinging SW to Milmerran (where the landscape changed back to earthy brown from the green of the coast) and eventually arriving in Goodiwindi where we - yep you guessed it - got accommodation and ate dinner at the pub. Finally, after a few days on the coast, we were feeling kinda like we were back in the outback even though we were heading in a rough homeward direction.

Due to all the driving (I think around 600km) we didn't take many photos that day.

DAY 18: GOONDIWINDI TO PILLIGA
After grabbing a bite in Goondiwindi, we continued down the Newell Highway through the towns of Bogabilla and Moree (which was a coffee stop) then continued south to Narrabri where we did a lunch and coffee stop. We were looking good to arrive in the Pilliga region not too long after lunch so we patiently sat through the last hundred kms comfortably with plenty of water and snacks.

We went to check out Pilliga Pottery which we had heard had a cafe and a camping area which was only 10 kms off the main road so if we didn't like it then it wouldn't have taken too much time. When we got there it looked pretty cool, much of it was handcrafted by the owner and her family.

The whole property was owned by a woman who came to Australia from Germany 35 years ago. They ran cattle, had a few campsites and tourist facilities and also offered accommodation in the form of a few different rooms, a few cottages and a house so after looking at all the options we took a very interesting looking building for a few nights.

It was 100% built on-site out of hand cut timber, the original purpose was as a place of study for the owner's sons who are now grown up. Now it is available to stay in. The bottom floor is an outdoor barbecue area with a staircase leading up into the treehouse-like structure. Upon entering the house, you come to the dining, lounge and kitchen areas with a doorway leading to an outdoor balcony overlooking the property.

This level also has the toilet and bathroom separate from each other.

Then a staircase leads up to the bedroom. During the afternoon we walked around an checked aome of the property out before heading indoors and watching the sun go down from the balcony. We ate a lot too.