With the announcement that the Govt. is going to reinstate the 44.2c a litre fuel excise I’m relieved that we’ve had our big trip prior to that happening. In some places the price was already nearly $3 a litre and that was with 50% off the excise. We did 11,600 kms so used quite a lot of fuel!
It was nice to get into the car and on our way this morning because we’d had another cold night interrupted by a loaded cattle transporter parking too close to the Caravan Park. I alternated between grumpiness at the noises the cattle made and sympathy for them being in the truck.
I also had a reality check when, wearing my thermals, trackies, and beanie my freezing, hunched body made it to the ablutions block, there was a young woman perfectly relaxed applying her mascara at the basin. We live in different worlds!
We had 416 kms to cover today and one little interlude had us hypothesising about what we could see up ahead. A vehicle? A tree? A slowly moving tree? None of them, it was a tractor pulling a Tradies trailer. About 70 kms before Bourke we started seeing feral goats again.
In Bourke a man approached to talk to Fergus. He told us about a dog his family had owned that “Would have eaten a dung sandwich but he didn’t like bread”. These little gems we hear along the way make this type of travel special.
Bourke is another town with some lovely old buildings. And we enjoyed take away hot drinks from there but there was nothing appealing to eat there so we carried on. Just outside Bourke we saw evidence that cotton is grown in the area.
Our next stop was Engonnia, where we sat outside outside the Oasis Pub and enjoyed a cider while sitting in the sun, it wasn’t exactly warm but we were comfortable. At least half a dozen other travellers stopped but only one other couple came to the pub the rest only visited the rather flash galvanised iron toilet.
We crossed the border and then the Queenslanders appeared, not the people but the houses on stilts with big verandahs etc. Arriving in Cunnamulla was a surprise because it was Thursday afternoon but very few people were in the Town Centre, it’s not the way we remember it.
Goodnight from Cunnamulla.
I didn’t think it was so cold this morning until the wind hit me then it was freezing. I took Fergus for a walk towards the billabong with no camera but of course I saw things I wanted to capture. I used my phone camera and now have to work out how to download them. The Bluetooth isn’t working etc etc. Technology is wonderful…..when it works easily.
OK I’ve done it! On the walk was evidence of someone else’s Manic Mud Moment. Fergus also was convinced something had set up home in an enormous log.
We’ve heard that some places on our route (new route since the road we intended taking is closed) are difficult to get Caravan Park sites so we’re being very flexible about our route.
Bugger! The power has gone out but a voice from somewhere has just asked if we’ve lost power so at least it shouldn’t be a problem with our setup!
Only took about 20 mins to get the power back on, apparently Air Fryers and Barista Coffee Makers play havoc with 40 amp fuses. I’m pleased to say we weren’t responsible.
When Fergus and I came back from our walk this morning, Alex was well on the way with packing up and we were soon on the way to Cobar. The road was quite busy with Caravans but we sat on a comfortable speed and had no issues. We did have to pull over once for a very wide load! The most memorable thing were the goats, ranging from large mobs to small family groups. Several very small kids were with small groups.
When we arrived at the Cobar Caravan Park, the only CP in town, the sandwich board outside said No Cabins, No Rooms, No Sites.
We decided I’d go in and check. When I said what I was looking for the woman had no hesitation in providing a powered site for us. I told her the board outside said nothing was available. She said, “Oh, is that still out? We’ve been too busy to change it.” The sign didn’t move all day though and tonight it’s apparently telling the truth.
After setting up we went into a town for some lunch.
We drove up to the mining Memorial display which really showed the human cost of mining in the early days. Information boards are attached to the walls of a simulated mine shaft.
On top of a hill is a view of the Cobar New Mine, the size is staggering and if we looked far out we could see more Poppet Heads running north/south. The seam runs for 9 kilometres and provides copper, silver and gold.
We’re in for another cold night and I promise I’ll be wearing Shaun the Sheep socks and Alex will have at least one pair of his new Thermal ones on.
2macstracks 
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