Outback Queensland CFT Trip - Day 10

Sunday 16 July - Cloncurry

This morning had a relaxed start with a church service at the Anglican church followed by a lazy morning tea.

Lucy and I walked around a few blocks but by then the day had warmed up significantly so we returned to the church to wait for lunch. The lunch was great, with a variety of soups and sandwiches. I especially liked the cream of celery soup.

Allan then took us all back to the motel for a bit of time out. I was able to update the blog and sort photos.

Then it was back in the bus for a drive out west to "Chumvale" station. There we were treated to a tour of the lovely cool garden by Margaret and Tracey.

We enjoyed afternoon tea sitting on the verandah and lawns and were allowed to have a look at Margaret's many beautiful quilts.

On the way back to town Allan was pulled up by the police. It turned out to be Ben who we met at church and he breathalised Allan and checked his log book but in fact this did Allan a favour as he also signed the log book which is apparently significant.

Back at the motel for more lazing before dinner. We also needed to pack ready for our long drive tomorrow.

Outback Queensland CFT Trip - Day 9

Saturday 15 July - Winton to Cloncurry

We left Winton by 8am and before long saw Bustards and lots of Black Kites at road kill and sitting along the fences.

We stopped for a quick morning tea at Kynuna in the parking area next to the pub. It was interesting to see all the signatures and hats that decorate the walls and even the ceiling.

Off again and soon into much moister country with sandy soil, Triodia and termite mounds. There were 8 Brolga at Macinlay.

We arrived at the John Flynn museum in Cloncurry at about 1pm for lunch then spent some time browsing the museum. Lucy, Kerrie and I went for a walk around town but it was mostly shut as it was Saturday afternoon. Even so, there were very few shops anyway and they were very scattered.

Off at about 3pm for a quick tour of town with the local BCA workers Rod and Christene Oldfield. They took us out to the Chinaman Creek Dam and it really was great to see such an expanse of water - a refreshingly cool on a hot day.

Back to the motel for washing and another chinese laundry then some writing and resting before dinner.

The evening entertainment was a trip to a dark spot out of town to do a bit of star gazing before retiring for the evening.

Outback Queensland Trip - Day 8

Friday 14 July - Winton

This morning we had the luxury of a lie in. Breakfast was at 8am then we were to be picked up at 9am to go to the Qantilda Museum. A great little museum but a very sad tale that the original Banjo Patterson museum burnt down in June 2015, sending a lot of irreplaceable material up in flames. Much of the museum was old machinery that survived the fire.

There were two small cottages with displays of the exhibits that had since been donated or had escaped the fire. It was all very interesting.

Our next excursion was to the Musical Fence where we all had fun acting out our inner musician on the fantastic array of 'instruments'. Oh the cacophony!

We were then dropped into town for a free afternoon so after a coffee and shopping at the chemist for necessities Kerrie and I strolled along visiting the Corefield and Fitzmaurice Shop and its display of dinosaurs and memorabilia.

We had lunch at a pub at the top of town then slowly made our way back the few blocks to the motel for a bit of down time.

The bus collected us to drive out to Rangelands for evening drinks looking out over the plains. We were treated to a poetry recitation by Gregory North who is a friend of John's but also a renown Australian poet who is in Winton on an extended gig at the moment.

Unfortunately the bus could not get over the last very steep and gravelly rise so we had to walk up a very slippery slope and carry all the supplies. Everyone coped extremely well, even the non-walkers amongst us.

We had to leave a bit before sunset to get Greg back in time for his show but it was a great way to finish our day.

After dinner at the motel Lucy joined Kerrie and I for a hot drink before bed. We were also joined by Judy Heath (storyteller) and she explained her writing, illustrating and storytelling style. Needless-to-say, we were spellbound and I was even allowed to choose my card from the ones she will be giving out at the end of the trip. Of course I chose the waterlily fairy.

What a wonderfully full day!

Outback Queensland CFT Trip - Day 7

Thursday 13 July - Longreach to Winton

As we were all settled on the bus to leave this morning Allan announced that we had to all vacate the bus immediately. As we were in the back seat we had no idea why but out we all went. Allan then tossed his log book and maps out and various other bits and pieces, found a vacuum cleaner and proceeded to clean around his seat. It turned out that on the bumpy roads of the last few days the pin had fallen out of the fire extinguisher and one of the front passengers had accidentally knocked the lever and the driver's area was sprayed with the dust of the extinguisher. To entertain ourselves we dreamt up all sorts of exercise routines to perform in a conga line as we waited to reboard the bus and start again.

We then visited St Andrews Church where Graeme gave us a short tour.

Then we headed on towards Winton and the Australian Age of Dinosaurs museum about 20 km south of Winton in off the main road. They had lunch ready for us. While we were waiting for our guided tour Lucy and I went for a short walk via the lab to another lookout. The museum is on a mesa or 'jump up' with stunning views over the plains. We even saw an echidna walking across the path.

Our first stop of our introduction tour was to see some of the fossils that have been found and were given a talk about them. We were also taken to the lab and shown the work being done there. They have a huge backlog of finds to be processed! I introduced myself to Lachlan who will be there when I return in August to be part of the dino dig team.

Back on the bus to go into Winton for a quick tour then to settle into our palacial two bedroomed unit. We invited Lucy for a cuppa and sat around chatting and catching up on emails until dinner with a brief interlude to photograph an orphaned brolga who hangs around the motel.