Day 12 Barcaldine

This town is covered in information boards and a Heritage Trail winds through the town but I haven’t seen any mention of cotton which surprises me because driving in yesterday a B Double Semi and a Road Train loaded with cotton passed by going south.

There are interesting things to see around the town including shops selling handcrafted items.

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This morning we walked around town and climbed up the lookout at the back of the Information Centre and from the top Alex spotted a red beacon, “Bakery”.

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After a delicious Beef and Bacon Pie with Parmesan Sauce we went to stock up on supplies at the IGA. The shelves were empty of salad greens, apparently they’ll come in tomorrow. There is also a little shop called “The Friendly Grocer” away from the main streets and Alex did manage to get some little cucumbers there, tomatoes always seem to be available.

In the afternoon we walked along the Lagoon Trail and spotted a few birds including some Pelicans coming in to land but the path was in full sun so we didn’t make it all the way around.

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Coming back we walked through the kids bikeway.

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Alex refuelled the car at a Truck Stop, Auto Pay, they bear no resemblance to a Service Station but have the best prices in these areas. They are unmanned.

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Tonight Damper and Billy Tea was available over where a Bush Singer is performing. Alex managed some damper which he said was good but the Billy Tea was already drained.

Currently the song is “Backing in the Van” and I think you can imagine how it’s going. He’s reminisced about fixing things up when they get broken, having chooks in the backyard and growing vegies., chip heaters for making hot water etc. He certainly looks as though he predates bottle and can deposits but he’s also been singing about getting money for bottles and cans when he was a kid. He’s good on the mouth organ and has quite a repertoire. The hat will be passed around later. Many of the Caravan Parks up this way have Bush Poets and singers appearing in the early evenings they usually stay a few weeks before moving on to another Park.

Tomorrow we are moving on to Aramac, it’s only a small place so might not have adequate phone reception and Internet.