Aug 2, 2012 - Still at Winton

Hi, Thought I should drop in and let you know we are ok. We are still at Winton - have been here for just over a week and cannot see us leaving for ages yet. Last night was our 13th night without power or water connected - we cannot see ourselves staying in many caravan parks from now on, as we are loving the freedom and peace and quiet - never mind the financial saving (especially after the cost of fuel and caravan parks on the way to and in Northern Territory)! We are loving our spot by the waterhole, under a magnificent gum tree. The...

Jul 29, 2012 - Longreach 30/07/12

Before we left Barcaldine yesterday morning, we called into the local museum. Tom Leckie was there, still entertaining people with his stories and jokes. He recognised us and came over to say hi, and then proceeded to tell everyone how the bus load he had the day before (of which we were a part of) entertained him all day. Don't know how, 'cause it's hard to get a word in edgewise with Tom. Going back to the aboriginal rock carvings, Tom has taken people from all over the world out to study them. He showed us one particular carving that was...

Jul 26, 2012 - Mount Isa to Winton

Before leaving Mt Isa we drove around hunting for a little fan heater as the last few nights have been way to chilly! Unfortunately we had no luck - the locals said it was the wrong time of the year for heaters - even though its been the coldest winter in years..... We stopped by Woolies to top up on grocerys and then supercheap for some oil and off on the road again. The drive was really nice and went quickly. We called through Cloncurry - a nice country town and home to the RFDS and also Australias hottest temperature on record. Our...

Jul 26, 2012 - We Moved!

Hi, Well not much to report this time. We did struggle to leave our gorgeous, riverside spot at Boulia. We wound down well and truly and enjoyed an assortment of neighbours (except for the ones that parked so close to us that they ran over our fire and we could not get out if we had needed to - idiots - and that is not what Barry called them!!!). The last couple (Ros and Malcolm) were really interesting and we have swapped addresses and we have been invited to visit them if we go to the Lockyer Valley and they want to come to Tasmania for...

Jun 7, 2012 - Blackall to Winton

Blackall to Winton 30th May - 6th June At last we have access to the internet again, had some problems with the Modem but had it fixed in Longreach. After leaving Blackall, a very friendly town, we drove to Barcaldine, had a quick look around and then went East 85 Km to Jericho as we had been told about a good camping spot, and it was a lovely spot right on the lake with good amenities. There were about 30 campers enjoying the area, so this small town attracts visitors who spend money in the town. Jericho also has the smallest drive in...

Nov 1, 2011 - Winton - Nov 1

We arrived home from Longreach, about 4.30 and had just sat down to our coffee when the biggest storm we have seen for YEARS, just landed right on top of us! We were out attempting to get our awning down, as it was in real danger of ripping off the van - of course, the arms were bending in the gale, and everything jammed - we were absolutely drenched, with Pete screaming abuse at the wind, rain, thunder and lightning!! Our chairs, buckets and everything else loose in the park, all ended up down in the very bottom corner jammed against the...

Oct 28, 2011 - Winton - Oct 28-Nov2

Winton is HOT HOT and HOT - around the 40 each day and high 30s into the late evening!! We are getting close to having had enough of the heat (and humidity) already!! Our "luck" continues - the Dinosaur Stampede Footprints at Lark Quarry were closed 6 days before we arrived, due to a crack in one of the walls!! Most Touristy things have now stopped for the Wet - all seemed to finish on 30th Sept, and here we are, in Oct!! Oh well..... We spent 3 great hours in the Waltzing Matilda Museum - the only museum in the world dedicated to a song....

Jul 24, 2011 - Our Last Night in Winton.

Hey, The last few days seem to have taken ages to pass, but also have flown by! The first night in Winton was very noisy with massive generators for the pub running all night. I slept fine, but Barry struggled. Did not take long to pack up the van and then we went and had breakfast at the bakery - will not say what we had, but it was not a normal kind of breadfast! The caravan park we are in now is much better - trees and peace (except last night when Elvis was playing in the shed and boy was he loud!). Friday we explored the township and...

Jul 21, 2011 - Ok time for a proper catchup.

Hello, Having to go back in my journal to see what I have missed. I think I forgot to say that we enjoyed our tour of the School of the Air - it was so interesting and was a real eye opener. We donated a book to the library for children to be asked to find out about Hobart and learn about Tasmania. We made it to Blackall before the rain arrived after leaving Isisford. Apparently they had quite a bit of rain there, so was a good decision. We parked up outside the Barcoo Hotel in Blackall and it was a great spot. We had one wet and soggy day...

Jul 21, 2011 - Proper Catchup Part 2.

The day after my birthday we had lunch in the tea garden and sat under the umbrella for a couple of hours. Yesterday we decided to go to Aramac for a look and took a picnic. We got there about 1pm. Had our lunch in the Memorial Park and then walked around the tiny town. Had a drink in the pub and chatted to the barmaid who is a german backpacker and working there for 8 weeks. She told us about the Gray Rock, which I will tell you about in a minute. Firstly I was posting a postcard when I heard a little voice say hello - after looking for a...

May 23, 2011 - Winton

20th May. On the road again this morning we are heading for Winton, another small country town, we have booked into the Matilda Caravan Park for two nights, it’s a not so O.K. park, old transportable amenities, we are now really in the Outback, so we can’t expect too much. After lunch we went down town, but there isn’t much to see, lots of opal shops, five or six pubs, but little else. There is the Waltzing Matilda exhibition, and we had a cold drink in the North Gregory Hotel, where it is said that the Waltzing Matilda was first performed,...

Aug 20, 2010 - On to Winton

We arrived in Winton after an easy trip of 179 km, through flat endless plains with very few trees and only the occasional glimpse of a cattle station far off in the distance. Winton is a small country town with a number of tourist attractions including the Australian Age of Dinosaurs centre. Fossilised dinosaur bones have been found in several locations around Winton and “digs” are carried out in this area all the time. We toured the Dinosaur centre and found it very interesting, amazed at the size of the fossilised bones so far recovered....