Kingfisher Travels

Day 21 Sun With 6000 people all in close contact 3 of us depart Birdsville with colds.  So best to have a pie for the road and we head to our first stop…  not even out of town.  Nothing random about this stop, every driver is tested. Then into the convoy of travellers heading home from Birdsville. Early stop at Cooper Creek near Windorah.   Day 22 Mon & day 23 Tue Continuing the trip home.  Still feeling the effects of the Birdsville cold and therefore miserable, so hardly any photos taken.  Although a full moon and some cloud gave us something. Ending up at Jondaryan Woolshed on Tuesday night.  Lovely spot… grass and all.     Day 23 Wed The woolshed at Jondaryan is the oldest and largest operating woolshed in the world…  operating as a virtual museum of sorts, old huts, equipment and on weekends folk showing how it was done.  We looked around a while, had Devonshire tea and scones then started heading back home...

Day 19 Fri Kate cooked pancakes for breakfast on the first morning of the 2 racing carnival here at Birdsville.  Then a little less formal for the race day Marquee event, this how we scrub up in the dust. We have tickets into the fully catered marquee at the track today. With limousine style transport especially for us…   well the shuttle bus from the corner across the road from the caravan park anyway!       A little warm today, so happy to have some space and shade in the marquee tent.  We will need to get to the track tomorrow early to ensure we get some shade. Need to concentrate as we review the form guide.   Of course, Tracey picked a winner … Give her a Rally!!!!!! And our combined winnings for the day..   After a successful day at the track back to the campsite, changed into shorts and shirts and cruised the town.  Then queued up for ‘Fred Brophy’s Boxing tent’.  Have been told “got to see this”.  ...

Day 17 Wed A bit of a sleep in this morning.  Then Tracey made a lovely Bacon, Egg, Cheese & Onion Damper made in the Cob for brunch.  A bit of a walk around town again, purchase of our alcohol tickets (cash not used across any of the bars).  then a relaxing (finally) afternoon.  Very different sight than before with the number of people in the caravan park.   Day 18 Thu Another bit of a sleep in this morning, definitely more action happening around as more and more people arrive.  Activities start today. Equine Races.  Began back in 2007 when the Birdsville races had no horses (Equine Flu), a set of races using horse dolls and string… of course allowing betting on them as well. The stage is set!        The riders prepare… Take their marks… And racing… And the results, unfortunately i couldn’t manage a win, only second.       And intermission saw the dunny brush and role race!!  ...

Day 16 Leaving Boulia early due to the wind, on to Bedourie for another dip in the Artesian Bore Hot pool and some lunch. Then finally back to Birdsville, This time in readiness for the Birdsville races.  plenty has changed since we were here only a few days ago.  More people, food, souvenir vans & trucks surrounding the info centre and pub area.  We setup in our allocated area within the Caravan park.  This provides us with access to showers and is close to all the action in town.  We will need to hop on the shuttle bus for the 6.5km trip out to the race track on Friday & Saturday.       A bit of a wander around town and the new stalls, then drinks and dinner again in the pub.  Last night for meals at the Birdsville Hotel until after the races.  Back to the campsite for cards, but to remove the white light attraction for insects, Paul sets up his ‘disposable’ mine tour overalls to act as a filter around the light to ch...

Day 15 In the morning Paul and I took then “Hard Times Mine” underground tour, whilst Tracey and Kate grabbed some shopping and (in preparation for our Birdsville Races Cocktail Party) a Manicure and Pedicure – as you always do out in the outback?? The mine tour was great, amazing to see how hard the miners have to work both in the old days and now.  As you can only see as far as your light, and the noise of the drills, machinery and air pumps making it even more difficult.  So any emergency light or sound is not sufficient so they use smell – onion smelling gas or eucalyptus gas to advise all of an emergency/evacuation. Lunch and then on the road again to Boulia. Camping on grass is a welcome change. Curry Dinner made by Paul.  Followed by some cards and a surprisingly windy night in the tents.

Day 14 Just before leaving Urandangi we took a quick look at some old engines some bloke has lined up along his fence line.  Strange things out here, not to mention Pop able to make new friends.  Then an uneventful trip into Mount Isa.  We have chosen to freshen up here, get some washing done etc. So are staying in a cabin rather than our roof top tents. In the afternoon we visited the local lookout and information centre including visiting the Riversleigh Fossil Museum and the Mount Isa history Museum.  Both very good and interesting.  Riversleigh being one of the very few places in the world where a multitude of fossils from various era’s can be found, 200 unknown previously have been found in this area just north of Mount Isa.  The town history was also very interesting from its beginnings back in 1924 when ore was discovered, through the beginnings of a public company that effectively grew the town to the town being self sufficient around the 1970’...