To the Gulf and Beyond!

Monday - 8th June

Day 14 came and went with us just mostly relaxing. I changed the front tyres (STs) on my car with the 2 spares (ATRs) as I had been experiencing a low speed steering in-balance for the past week, and I hoped it was a tyre problem and not a mechanical steering problem. After the change, the problem was no longer so I was pleased with the outcome. Of course, getting the tyres off the roof wasn’t a problem as I just got up on the cage, release the straps, and threw them down to the ground. One rolled off into the bush but that was ok. However, getting the 2 used ones up onto the roof involved a lot of grunting, but with K’s help, they were put in place and strapped down ok. Apart from my strenuous work, nothing else really happened.

Klaus made the decision that he would take his van down the dirt, rather than go back through Gregory, and then the long way around on the bitumen. As such, at the beginning of Day 15 (Saturday 6^th) instead of turning left out the gate, we turned right, travelled about 1km, then turned left onto the dirt towards Riversleigh Fossil centre (world heritage apparently) which was 51kms down the road. The road was very friendly to us, and even when we shot past heading towards the Gregory to Camooweal Rd, it was still a good dirt road. Of course there were a few bumpy bits but here were 3 wet creek and river crossings which of course created a few Kodak moments. The two river crossings were very picturesque with lots of palms and greenery. Lots of photos were taken. See below. The Gregory to Camooweal road was one that we heard could be a bit ordinary, but overall, the 61kms we had to get through before we hit the bitumen alternative, was bearable enough. We hit the main east-west highway and headed for Camooweal without dramas and stopped there for fuel and lunch. Camooweal is not a town which is very high on the ‘must see’ list, so we headed towards the river out of town for lunch. We didn’t go all the way to the billabong, but stayed pretty well under the big bridge. We pumped up our tyres, then continued in a westerly direction, with our target being the Barkly Homestead. After a couple of hours we made it safely and checked into a luxurious campsite. The sites were just pull-through lanes, but they were wide and clean. I couldn’t hammer a peg into the ground as it was like concrete! We decided not to put out the awning and even went to the restaurant for dinner to save unpacking anything but the bare essentials. The meal was good; the amenities were good, so all was good in the end. We were in the last row so our tent faced south-west, so the evening breeze blew straight at our door, so all night I could hear a rustle of the tarp and I could have sworn that I heard some animals. I got up at 3am to investigate, but it was just the wind. The sky was crystal clear with stars everywhere despite the moon still big and setting. I watched them for a while then went back to bed, as it was quite cool. When we got up later on, it was very cold, and when I checked the thermometer, it read 8 degrees….and me with my soccer shorts, thin t-shirt and thongs!

The pack up was pretty quick and we eventually got away at 9am, and then turned directly north towards Cape Crawford and onto Borroloola. It was mostly a single lane so encounters with oncoming road trains, caravans, trucks and cars meant we had to drop our left wheels in the dirt while they did the same. Of course, with the road trains, we got completely off the road so that they could stay on the bitumen which stopped them 3 or 4 trailers from throwing up rocks as they passed. The country was pretty open, with a lot of nothing to be seen at times. We had lunch at the second of the larger rest stops. This one didn’t have a loo, but it did have a large Southern Cross windmill. The blades were about 8metres across. We didn’t stay too long and soon stopped in Cape Crawford (CC) for fuel. From there, it was only just over 100kms to Borroloola. Just out of CC was the Lost City, but you cannot get there by car. The only options are walk, or helicopter. Walking was free, but the Helicopter was $150pp (15 mins), and we decided to do neither. The Lost City is a bit like the Bungle Bungle ‘beehive’ formations, just a lot smaller.

We hit the town mid-afternoon and checked in the Caravan Park. K & I did a quick trip down to the 2 town boat ramps to see what the river was like. I was surprised that it was so wide. We were also surprised to see croc traps near each ramp. The second ramp was clear and gave good fishing opportunities. I am not sure if we will launch the boat, or just fish from the banks. K & I also drove down to the big bridge that crossed the river further south and discovered that there was only a trickle of water going from one side to the other. Back to camp and we had dinner, sat around and chatted for a while, did some photo work and went to bed.

It is now Day 17 (Mon 8^th) and I am sitting on my ‘porch’ typing this up. We have made no plans for today - the girls want to wash, and the boys want to fish, so am I am pretty sure everyone will get their wish. We are booked in here again for tonight, but depending on what happens today, and what info we hear about the condition of the dirt road up to Lorella Springs; we will make a decision later about tomorrow. But, tomorrow is tomorrow, and we are still in the today :)

This guy was our daily visitor in the mornings...

Obviously cicadas breed well up in the tropics. I counted over 40 shells on this tree alone..

The night sky was beautiful. I did a 1 hr exposure and it came out too bright, as there was so much ambient light. I will try more later.

The first creek crossing on the road from Adels to Camooweal..

Lots of stock crossing were encountered on our way south.

Wedge-tailed eagles were a lot less common than we have had in the past, but it is always good to see them. With a 2.5m (8') wingspan they are awesome to see in the air.