Mataranka Springs

Even though Katherine was within our driving capabilities after our last free camp on the Carpentaria Highway, I wanted the girls to see and experience Mataranka Springs.  Our only real concern was whether the campground at the springs would take pets.   If not then plan B was to stay in Mataranka itself and commute out to the springs which was 17 kilometres off the main highway.  We took a chance and drove straight out to the Mataranka Springs Resort which is where the campground was located.  Steve parked with the van out in the carpark while I walked into the resort to enquire about an overnight stay with pets.  As I walked into the reception area, I was already convincing myself that we were going to have to go back to town and stay there.  My ongoing dialect with campground managers since leaving Ingham had been to be minimal with the pleasantries and ask straight out whether pets were OK.  It wasn't me being rude but trying to prepare myself for disappointment by asking the crucial question first.  Thankfully, as I said in an earlier blog, everyone had been very accommodating with pets and Mataranka Resort was no different, which surprised me.
I was almost speechless when the young backpacker lass behind the counter said 'yep, no problems' to the point where I had to think what to ask next........like how much?
After paying, the young lady directed me via a printed map to where we could make ourselves at home.  We drove the van around the dusty campground looking for a powered site because we wanted to recharge our batteries after free camping on the previous night.  There seemed to be two large power poles with multiple outlets but they were surrounded by an impenetrable wall of caravans hanging off them with umbilical chords of cables.  There didn't seem to be any space for our 'not so small' mobile home and besides, everyone was packed in like sardines which wouldn't have worked with Brindle the hyper sensitive dog.  We decided to park away from the rabble and work off our own power supply again and I would go back to reception for a refund to non powered site status.  While I was gone, Steve got talking with a family parked at the edge of the group who offered to piggy back our power leads to their van if ours weren't long enough.  Steve, being always prepared like a good boy scout, had two lengthy extension leads which he threaded through this family's site to plug into a power socket without needing to take up their generous offer.
Our new neighbours were also travelling with four children and had been on the road for about a month.  Even though they had a dog, the mum of the family was particularly taken with our cats as she had to leave hers with her mum as I mentioned in my travelling with pets blog.  Our cats seem to be a type of therapy for people who leave their felines at home thinking that cats are difficult to travel with.  After setting ourselves up, the girls and I headed to the springs which were only a short walk from the campground.  Steve followed along later because he had to prepare the dog for abandonment again which was not proving successful on this day.  As she watched us walk away, she started barking and yelping which wasn't condusive to the quiet pets policy of the resort.  As Steve tried to walk away to Brindle's cries, another woman caravanning with her husband (and no pets) made a pointed comment about our noisy dog.  Steve said if the husband had been around, he would have commented about his noisy wife.  Perhaps they should have camped in the non pet side of the campground if they didn't want pet disruption.
We enjoyed the Mataranka Springs which were naturally crowded when we got down there in the late afternoon.  We found ourselves a little seat shelf in the deep part of the pool so Erin could swim and dive while I held Becca with her floaties on.  The pool was fringed by an underwater seat so people could sit in the water without having to constantly tread water as it was quite deep.   Wallabies grazed around the edges of the pool very close to we tourists so they have become accustomed to people.  Once we had sufficiently 'pruned' ourselves, we walked out to the main river channel into which the springs feed.  Then we continued walking along a track through all the pandanus forests to another part of the spring fed water course called Stevie's Hole....chuckle...snigger.   The water was fast flowing into what looked like any billabong one might find in the bush.  The temperature of the water was a lot cooler and it felt a bit creepy as if a crocodile could be lurking anywhere and you couldn't see the bottom even though the water was clear.  After a dabble, we walked back along the track and ended up at the source of Mataranka 's spring called the Rainbow Pool.  The water was an iridescent blue colour and bubbling nicely up to the surface.  There was no swimming allowed to prevent destroying the source spring and it wasn't a big enough pool for swimming anyway.

Rainbow Pool

Stevie's Hole

Oelsner girls at Stevie's Hole

As we walked back towards the van, all we could hear was Brindle barking her head off.  We had been gone for a good hour and a half so was dreading the reaction from other campers when we got back.  Our site was adjacent to a fenced area with bush behind it and Brindle had seen a wallaby and was going nuts at it while it fed just the other side of the fence.  Her excitement at seeing us was shortlived as Steve gave her a dousing with a bucket of water to calm her down.  We had gotten back quite late and so decided to have dinner at the resort bar.  Steve had been up there to check beer prices and noticed the menu board with specials on it so he suggested we eat out.  Being a Saturday night, there was a 'one man' country band playing and lots of people with the same idea.  It was a great atmosphere and we had a great time.  After eating we walked past the stage area and watched and listened for a while and the girls danced which was fun to watch.  There was also a very drunk indigenous man dancing in front of the stage further down the front and he was enjoying the music too.
The next morning, the girls and I went back down to the springs for one last dip while Steve packed up the van.  I think he was a bit anxious about leaving the dog again in case she created more noise pollution.  The springs were very quiet (people wise) and we swam in a section of the pool further down from the previous afternoon.  I was able to touch the rocky bottom in this section so it was easier to swim with Becca.  In the morning air, steam was rising off the water and dozens of orb spider webs hung over the pools to catch their dinner.  At the end of this pool was a waterfall which cascaded over the edge and flowed down to the river.  I shouldn't have pointed out the spider webs because Erin, in particular, was freaking out about it and naturally upsetting Becca.  After a while though, they either forgot about them or became brave.  I eventually coaxed them both out of the water so we could continue on our journey to Katherine.

The Lost City

Our Borroloola information source at the caravan park, whose name was Pam, had told us about a magnificent stop on the road out of town if we were heading west.  She had said it was a conservation reserve, the name of which she couldn't recall but said it had lots of 'i's in it.  Pam convinced us that it was a 'must see' as she had been out there in her bus one day after arriving at Borroloola.  We were planning on going out there before we left but ran out of time but it wasn't a concern as we were going past it anyway once we left Borroloola.
We said goodbye to town and drove along the wonderful bitumen road now called the Carpentaria highway.  These roads can be very confusing and sometimes it is called the Savannah Way but this road is transected by other roads and so our maps on occasion called this section of road the Carpentaria highway.  Anyway it was a pleasant morning drive and this conservation reserve was only 40 kilometres down the road so it wasn't long before we came across it.   As we followed along the highway before getting to the turnoff, the magnificent rock formations lined the roadside like a great wall.  The park was called Carabirini conservation reserve or 'the Lost City'.  Once in the carpark, we prepared the dog for abandonment and walked off to the information shelter at the beginning of several marked tracks. 
The shortest track took us to the most beautiful lilly filled lagoon with a bird hide built on the bank.  We walked into the wooden bird hide and quietly admired the lilypond lagoon.  Quiet is arguably not the most achievable outcome with two small girls.  Erin's constant babble about all that is going on around her tends to break the silence one wants to achieve.  I'm sure sometimes that she will be a tour guide because she is always talking.  As for Becca, she just likes asking questions which can sometimes be answered by just sitting quietly and observing.  Something neither of the girls are good at.  Pam had told me that when she had been to the lagoon about a month previously, that the scene mimicked a painting by Monet with a footbridge over a lily filled lake.  There were lots of purple lilies open on the lagoon but perhaps not as many as when Pam was there.  It was still a beautiful sight nonetheless.
The second part of our walk was a shorter version of the full loop around the Lost City.  We decided to do the loop walk which took us directly to the rock formations.  The walk itself was great and the girls both really enjoyed it which doesn't always happen.  I think perhaps the morning atmosphere helped their enthusiasm and the path itself wasn't too taxing for little legs.   After a short time we were walking right next to these amazing red rock formations like towering skyscrapers.  The track took us around the back of the formations and into an ampitheatre.  The rock formations towered over us and the shadows created a cool, dark atmosphere as we walked through the Lost City.  We weaved through small alley ways and down staircases of rock.  There was an echo as we walked through some areas and our voices were muffled in other areas.  It was quite eery but at the same time incredibly interesting.  The track eventually brought us back out onto the original track which we walked back to the carpark, after another look at the lagoon.  Insider information is very helpful when travelling as Steve and I usually have to make a judgement as to whether the girls will manage a  bushwalk or not and if it is worth it or not.  In general, a 4 to 5 kilometre walk won't be ideal for us or the girls unless the end result is spectacular.  There was a larger version of the 'Lost City' further down the road at a place called Cape Crawford but it required several hours of bush driving or a helicopter flight to see it.  We only saw this tourist attraction in photos but were fairly convinced that the smaller scale version was just as good and easier on us and the girls. 
 
 
 
 
 

Borroloola

Subaru fording a deep water crossing

Landcruiser and van crossing one of
many creeks on Savannah Way

Creeks flood across the Savannah
Way road

In our truck driving days when Steve and I were heading north to Darwin every week, I often saw the turnoff sign to Borroloola and wondered what sort of frontier settlement existed way off the beaten track.  It sounded so rough and unruly like the sort of place where convicts go to escape attention or where crocodile hunters roll around in the mangroves wrestling extra large handbag material.   Anyway we had the opportunity to visit my frontier town, although many years later,  as we drove the Savannah Way from east to west.  In fact, Borroloola was our salvation after several days of red gravel, bulldust and corrugations.  The dirt road driving was taking it's toll on us more than the vehicles as the Landcruiser, Subaru and van had all done a sterling job of riding the sometimes rough, sometimes pleasant road.  Our main issue was the bulldust lingering in the air and causing me to follow at a greater distance behind Steve therefore making it difficult to communicate on our two way radios.  If I wanted forewarning about road conditions which was necessary with my low clearance car, I had to sit fairly close behind Steve and so drive constantly in hanging clouds of bulldust.  Whenever I dropped back to be clear of the dust, I couldn't hear Steve's warnings so the last couple of hours into Borroloola were testing for everyone.  We also had several water crossings to do and we were driving into a late afternoon sinking sun.
The reason for still being on the road so late in the afternoon was the unfortunate blowing of a rear tyre on the Subaru about 70 kms from the bitumen and our destination.  I could not believe that I had driven approximately 400kms on dirt without incident only to destroy a tyre on a large rock so close to the end.  Steve had told me to drive on the soft areas of the road where loose rocks and gravel had built up from all the vehicles driving in the wheel tracks.  The 'roo' had low profile tyres which wouldn't handle protrusions like sticks and rocks on the hard road but if I ran over a rock in the soft stuff, it would move out of the tyre track instead of resisting and spearing my tyres.  All good in theory and it seemed good in practice too but after concentrating for so long on this day, I obviously just lost the steely resolve and a 'bang' was the result.  Thankfully I wasn't too far behind Steve and was able to let him know so he could turn around and come back.  Not an easy task with a 24 foot van and I was crawling along the track to try and catch up but Steve was worried I would damage the rim and so he came towards me.
Of course, where do you think the spare tyre was!....That's right.....under all the extra stuff we had packed into the Subaru.  There we were on the side of a bush dirt road unloading an entire car onto the gravel verge.  Becca thought it was Christmas as we unloaded several toys including her pram which she happily pushed around on the road while Steve replaced the blown tyre.  Erin found a Frisbee and passed the time by throwing it to Brindle to bring back although that didn't happen once or twice.  The actual tyre replacement didn't take long at all but the repacking of the car did.  Steve put the blown tyre on the roof rack of the Landcruiser to dispose of in Borroloola so that we didn't have to unpack again until we had another spare to put in its place.  Finally we got going again but it cost us about an hour of our time which meant we were driving later in the afternoon.
As we drove into town, there were 4WDs and dirt bikes coming out of side roads where communities were located.  There were roadworks with lollypop attendants, one of which was a leggy young lady, holding up traffic going into the town.  It wasn't the place I expected to see sexy young misses doing roadwork.  The one and only caravan park in town was welcoming and thankfully did not have a problem with pets....yaay... and all for $29 a night.  We parked on a site which had a nice grassy area behind it so the girls had somewhere to play.
The next day Steve went into town, after asking local advice, to get the tyre replaced and refitted to the rim.  It was a $213 exercise which, considering the location, wasn't too bad.  I felt a need to wash our linen and towels as they had been through a bit over the last couple of weeks.  While I was outside the van, a lady approached to offer some fantastic advice about what Borroloola had to offer.   She was a retired lady travelling on her own in a van with a tent who had been in the town for about a month and had found out everything about the town.  Of particular interest was the local community pool which had been built for the indigenous community by the MacArthur River silver and lead mine which is operating in the region.  That was our first stop later in the afternoon when all our jobs had been done.  The pool was free to use and was almost deserted apart from a group of aboriginal kids which were hanging around while their mates were working lifeguard duty.  The dry season is too cold for the locals and admittedly it was chilly, even for me, but the girls and I dabbled anyway while Steve watched from a safe distance.  A couple of the lads came over to talk to Steve about life and how dad drank himself silly and their one dream was to play top level football as if it was their only escape from a continuing cycle of poverty and violence.  They were both keen to know if Steve had ever been to the MCG like it was sacred ground to them.  One of the lifeguards told us that the pool gets up to 38 degrees C in the summer and they had closed the pool on occasion for safety reasons.  Fancy having this great pool available and find it is too hot to swim in.....what a bugger!

Borroloola pool

Andrea and girls braving the cold
Borroloola pool

The shopping and entertainment in Borroloola is limited with a country style supermarket offering a reasonable variety of groceries and luckily I'd been told that Thursday was fresh fruit and veg day.  Of course it was all top dollar so my top up shopping was limited.  The aboriginal people gathered around in their groups and the negotiations over alcohol rashions was very interesting.  As I stood at the checkout, I listened as one employee was explaining that one persons monetary allowance wouldn't cover the amount of cans which they had tried to buy.  It seemed like the community government payments went straight into the supermarket coffers as IOU's were repaid.  On another day, someone told me that I was standing in the beer queue which I had no idea about.  There were kids toys, printers, CD's DVD's and much more collecting dust on top of shelves all over the supermarket.  It certainly was a different lifestyle here.  I'd been told by two different parties about the Carpentaria Grill which offers dinner reasonably cheap and very tasty.  We decided to treat ourselves and go there one night and walked because it was not far from the caravan park.  Several groups of indigenous people were walking along the street at night and were friendly enough to say hello as we walked past.  I must say that I never felt threatened the whole time we were there.  The 'famous' Carpentaria Grill wasn't as cheap as we'd been told but the servings were huge.  The most expensive thing on the menu was $34 dollars for a scotch fillet steak but there was a salad bar to top up your plate as much as you like.  It probably cost us more than I expected but it was a good night out in the Borroloola nightlife.
Getting money was another issue altogether.  EFTPOS was not available at the checkout and there were two oldish ATMs in the supermarket which all the locals were using but someone suggested I go to the post office to withdraw money.  The post office wouldn't accept my ANZ card as they were a Commonwealth Bank agency so I ended up lining up behind all the locals to get money out with a $2.50 excess transaction fee attached.  There was, however, a Centrelink office in town which I shouldn't have been surprised about but I was.  From the outside, the building was made from colourbond corrugated iron with bars on doors and windows which gave it the appearance of a shed.  I went inside to enquire about some overdue payments and was staggered to find it was furnished and appointed just like any Centrelink office in Australia.  I could have been walking into the Ingham office if I was blindfolded.  The staff were very helpful and friendly and it's the first time I have ever walked into a Centrelink office and been served immediately without having to wait.  

Old Police station converted into
Borroloola museum

Some of the displays in the
Borroloola museum

Lookout over Gulf of Carpentaria
at Bing Bong

The next day we went to the Borroloola museum in the old police station which was very interesting and relied on an honour system of donations for entry.  Borroloola has lots of history both aboriginal, pastoral and exploration.  I read about a visit by David Attenborough in the 1950's to investigate some hermits living in the region.  That would have been very early in his career.  The trials of every day people living in such harsh conditions both last century and early this century was amazing to read as well as the passing through of more famous explorers.  After the museum, we travelled to the coast so I could see the Gulf of Carpentaria.  It was the one body of water that I had never seen so we headed towards the coast to have a look.  The place on the Gulf was called Bing Bong and consisted of a large wharf facility used by the MacArthur River Mine.  Large dredging ships were out in the gulf keeping the channels open for ships to enter because the tides regularly closed many of the shipping channels.  We then took a dirt road out to Mule Creek which runs into the Gulf of Carpentaria.  A boat ramp was all that was there with mangroves all around and a large resident croc on patrol and although that was just rumour, it was not one to dismiss so we kept the girls and the dog away from the water.  We then drove back to the wharf area and climbed a lookout tower to view both the gulf and the wharf area.  We saw a walking track through the mangroves to the tidal beach so we walked down for a look.  We only went down there because we had seen some locals fishing in the vicinity.  Mudskippers and unexplained holes in the mud were everywhere most likely belonging to some sort of mangrove creature (not a croc).

Bing Bong tidal beach on
Gulf of Carpentaria

Brindle and girls on Bing Bong
beach on Gulf of Carpentaria

On our way back to Borroloola, about 40 kms from town, we detoured down another dirt road to a place called King Ash Bay.  The 20kms of road was as wide as a 4 lane highway and at the time we couldn't understand why.  Once we got to the settlement, it became clear.  King Ash Bay is the place where both tourists and territorians go fishing.  We have heard people from down south tell us in the past that they go fishing at Borroloola for the dry season and we couldn't work out where because Borroloola isn't exactly right on the water.   The MacArthur River runs out into the Gulf and the settlement sits on its banks.  There is a boat ramp and campground along the river and it was packed with caravans, camper trailers and tents all set up for a long term stay.  Some sites had power and water and there were portable toilet/shower blocks set up around the campground.  There were solar panels, annexes, tarps, portable carports and boat shelters everywhere and people were set up well for the several months that they spend fishing there.  Then there were the club grounds which included the Alice Springs Fishing Club and the Tennant Creek Fishing Club and, of course, Borroloola.  As we drove up the bulldust track which followed the MacArthur River, semi-permanent communities of caravans, campers and tents were set up along the banks all the way up to the Barren River junction which was several kilometres downstream.  There seemed to be more permanent shacks as well which must be a more central community when the tourists all leave at the end of the dry season.  The petrol station had all the boating and fishing supplies as well as a supermarket which was smaller but much better supplied than Borroloola.  The most interesting difference being all the supplies were name brands whereas Borroloola's supermarket had more plain labelled brands.  There was a playground out the front with plastic swings and cubbyhouses like what one would buy in Toyworld so the girls had a fantastic time after eating their icecreams.  As we drove away from King Ash Bay, we certainly had a better understanding of why people came out this way.  In fact, we realized that the only bit of dirt that these caravanners had to travel was the final 20kms into King Ash Bay.  The road back to Borroloola and the Carpentaria highway back to the Stuart highway was all bitumen so very luxurious indeed when one compares the roads into Borroloola from the east. 

Mule creek looking out towards
the Gulf of Carpentaria

King Ash Bay boatramp on
MacArthur River outside
Borroloola

After the previous few days of travelling, we did enjoy Borroloola simply because it enabled us to wind down a bit and explore.  Funnily enough, if we hadn't blown the tyre, we may not have stayed as long.  Initially we only paid for one nights accommodation but as we explored and talked to people, we kept extending our stay to see and explore Borroloola.  Another example of circumstance taking us on a little side journey. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Travelling with Pets

Travelling with pets was never going to be an easy option while moving around in a caravan but since adding Brindle to the mix, it has become more difficult but at the same time an interesting experience.  She is such a great dog when not exposed to other dogs or people and although one might think that includes most situations, it's only her puppy nature which has made this transition difficult.  Her reaction to dogs and people is one of sheer exasperation where she just barks, squeals and pulls on her lead until your arm almost detaches from the socket.  On first contact, it might appear that she is vicious and about to rip into another dog or person but she just wants to say hello, get a pat or sniff a fellow canine.   Although she is just a puppy, she looks like a full grown dog and so her behavior can be misconstrued as nasty when it's just playful.
Being a kelpie X doesn't help our situation either.  Her very breeding makes her super active, intelligent, protective and easily bored, although Steve may disagree about the intelligence bit sometimes.  As she has spent most of her life with Steve, she suffers from separation anxiety whenever he is out of her sight and this has translated to the rest of the family since we've started travelling again.  Her upbringing until recently had been in a house and not a caravan so her boundaries have changed and she has certainly been tested.  Steve made a small partition in the back of the Landcruiser for her while we were travelling and the cats, believe it or not, have been travelling in the caravan.  We did have the cat boxes set up in the Subaru with me for travelling but we tried them in the van and they seemed to travel well.  There is also more room for them in the van and they curl up on one of the beds or the lounge while we drive along.  Pirie is usually the first to greet us at the door when we stop for lunch and loves investigating her surrounding albeit restricted by her harness and lead.

Campsite at Mt Surprise

Toilet humour in Mt Surprise
campground

The closeness of one dog and two cats in one 24 foot van has made for some interesting situations where, in particular Pirie, has been only too happy to swipe a clawed paw or two at Brindle because she can't help but stand over the cats when she gets close enough.  Brindle's boredom has caused some destructive moments and we are constantly learning about what to keep out of her reach.  She has plucked her sheepskin rug while in the back of the 4WD on more than one occasion and Steve has the perfect tone when saying "what did you do" to send Brindle cowering under anything nearby or just bowing her head in shame or guilt.  We've returned from walks (usually in national parks where dogs aren't allowed) to find water bowls chewed up and or tipped over.  She has to be tied up with a chain after chewing through 3 fabric dog leads and several pieces of rope.  We returned from the Borroloola pool one day to find the annex strap chewed through and hanging midair instead of dragging on the ground.  The annex strap is very important for Steve to be able to pull out the awning and control its rewind when packing up.  It now has a knot in it which creates a lump when the awning is rolled up.  In fact every length of rope or strapping has one or two knots in them due to Brindle's chewing.  Erin's thongs received the chew treatment just the other day and it's just lucky that they are a bit big for her and she doesn't need the full length of sole.

Erin and Becca at entrance to town

Gilbert River freecamp - walking
Brindle

During our travelling, we have had to have the dog as well as the cats inside the van at night due to the presence of dingoes. The caravan park in Borroloola particularly suggested keeping all animals indoors and we did it without thinking when we were free camping.  Oh... the morning wake-up of a tail banging excitedly against the van walls while the cats hiss and spit because Brindle has encroached on their personal space.  We have been very fortunate that where-ever we've stopped, caravan parks or camp grounds have accepted pets.  One particular campground at the back of a café in Mt Surprise allowed Brindle to be off the lead although we made sure she stayed close.  It meant that Steve and the girls could throw the frisbie and play ball without having to leave the park.  When-ever we free-camped, we had more flexibility to let Brindle run off a lead and explore which she loved.  There were a couple of situations where we had to keep her restrained during lunch stops because we were travelling through cattle properties which had been 10-80 poison baiting for dingoes.  Brindle still hasn't quite resisted the urge to nibble at things on the roadside and Steve has had to growl at her on more than one occasion for chewing foreign bodies (usually wallaby poo).

Gilbert River - dry river bed fun for
everyone

Gilbert River free camp on road to
Normanton

The curiosity of fellow travellers when we bring the cats out of the van and harness them up still makes us laugh.  We are so used to having them with us and they are quite used to the van and the travelling but people are just staggered that we have cats with us.  People were particularly surprised when we were out in the middle of nowhere camping that we had cats with us.  It's quite amazing how many people have left their felines at home but then we used to leave ours at home when we went away on short holidays.  The mother of a family we met in Mataranka left her beloved cat with her mum while they came away for an around Australia trip because everyone told her it wasn't going to work with a cat.  She felt vindicated that her ideas about bringing the cat were not ridiculous and she enjoyed her 'cat fix' with one of our cats while missing her own.  Another lady here in Kununurra was amazed to see cats and also had her 'cat fix' and gave Pirie a cuddle.

Erin and Becca with Krys the giant
Normanton crocodile

Oelsner family photo with Normanton
crocodile

The quality of the caravan parks we stayed at which allowed pets varied so widely that it was quite amazing as was the cost.  Our cheapest accommodation was $17 a night at Mt Surprise and the campground and facilities were beautiful.  Cheeky toilet signs and humour had Steve and I laughing and Erin practiced some of her reading with them.  The sites were green grass and well maintained.  The most we paid for accommodation was $40 a night at Normanton and again at Katherine.  The Normanton caravan park was at the back of a motel and a dustbowl.  About half an hour after we had set up, a police car patrolled through the park and had us rolling our eyes.  A caravan across from us was occupied by an indigenous man and the van had no door.  Steve watched him get dropped off later that night (Saturday night of course) and do the last lager waltz up to his non existent door.  He wasn't roudy though.  The one washing machine in the laundry wanted 5 x $1 coins and I refused to pay that so we went to the laundromat in town and paid $2.40 per wash.....a much better option.  We went down the street to see Krys the giant crocodile while 3 loads of clothes washed.  In Katherine, we stayed in the caravan park which the family we met at Mataranka had recommended.  I had not considered it because it was a resort and they never allow pets but amazingly enough, pets were no problem.  We had a lovely site with our own ensuite (which we didn't really need) and Steve enjoyed some quiet constitutionals for a couple of days instead of the morning family meetings which usually occur in the toilet in the van.  Erin also enjoyed a shower on her own.  There was a mix of motel and cabin accommodation around us and people regularly walked past the van and around us which did set Brindle off sometimes.  In most cases we took her with us in the car but if we took the girls to the pool which was within site of the van, we left her behind. 

Leichardt River Falls free camp
before Burketown

Erin and Becca enjoying sand hills
at Leichardt River Falls camp

When it comes to the reptiles, our only real concern is feeding.  It seems to be difficult in smaller towns to find businesses that stock crickets and rats as opposed to dog and cat food.  While travelling, we catch moths for Matilda the lizard which give her some meaty goodness instead of vegies.  Derek got fed before we left Ingham and we were just hoping we could find somewhere that supplied rats for his sustainance once we settled. 


Pirie the cat walking Andrea after
setting up camp at Leichardt
River Falls camp

Pirie and Brindle wandering around
at Leichardt River Falls camp

We have found travelling with the pets to be no problem while driving along but when we have set up camp especially in a caravan park, the issue of leaving the dog or taking her with us is a day by day situation.  As the dog is untested with being left alone, we are only leaving her for short periods until we can be confident she won't destroy everything in her reach or dig holes.  Many caravan parks will not allow you to leave your dog anyway and people generally take them with them.  The cats are a lot easier as they spend most of the day in the van sleeping in a cosy spot and only want to venture out after dark.  It must be quieter for them and they can lurk around and be inconspicuous.  If they ever do want to come out during the day, they get tangled up too easily so we generally wouldn't want to leave them out.    We got back from a quick pool swim one day to find Pirie tied to one of our annex legs because Brindle had chewed through her rope lead and she had wandered off.  Luckily our caravan park neighbours realized she was loose and temporarily tied her up which was nice of them.  It's all part of the travelling circus we have which seems to twig the curiosity in most people.   We are definitely not alone when it comes to travelling with pets.  Many people just wouldn't travel without them while others do leave their pets with family or friends but you can see that they miss having their companions around as they are happy to talk to you about their pets and have some interaction.  It's not easy but then it's just a matter of working the pets in with your lifestyle and eventually everyone becomes accustomed to life on the road.

Countdown to Liftoff

Our departure was no different from any other new roadtrip.....late!  The ETD (estimated time of departure) was put at 10am where upon we were going to drive to Liddles' depot to say our thankyous and goodbyes.  There was the last minute packing up and double and triple checking of everything to make sure it was all in place.  Ten 'am' came and went which then stretched into 11am and 11.30 and finally we drove away from 20 Hawkins Street Ingham for the last time just before midday.  By the time we had said our goodbyes at the depot and airport it was well after 1pm.  Our first challenge was getting an untested towing Landcruiser to pull a fully laden caravan over the Cardwell Range just north of Ingham.  We've watched as roadworks, which have been ongoing for the past two years, slowly cut a far more direct and less steep climb for the Bruce Highway over the Cardwell Range.  Unfortunately the original road was still being used and on occasion lengthy delays meant vehicles, light and heavy, were stranded on either side of the range waiting.  This was Steve's main concern that instead of gaining some momentum before the range to get us and the van over, we would be stopped and so Steve would have to climb over the range in the lowest gear the car could do (again untested).  We had joked with friends before we left that we might not be gone for long if the gearbox pops and we have to get towed back into town for some lengthy repairs.
All our fears were allayed however as we had an uninterrupted run over the range and the Cruiser pulled like a train and got the van over.  We had no intention of going too far on the first day and so I had arranged for us to stay at Paronella Park near Innisfail.  We had  previously visited PP on Easter Monday and the admission cost included a two year unlimited visit pass, one nights free accommodation in their caravan park and a night tour.  I thought it would be a good first stop and we could take advantage of the free nights stay and do the night tour. 
We stopped at Cardwell for a late lunch after stopping several times because Steve was having very real problems with the towing stability of the van.  Whatever he adjusted and tried to change didn't seem to make any difference.  He felt like the van was pushing the car all over the road so he spent many stops adjusting the stabilizer bars.  Of course this wasn't the same van we had towed before and Steve wasn't the same person that he was before the accident.  We had changed the suspension to independent spring suspension on the new van which seemed to give a different ride to the van as a whole.  Steve was understandably anxious about towing again and it was going to take a long time for him to regain his confidence after what happened last year.
We arrived at Paronella Park at about 4ish in pouring rain.  We had left Ingham with beautiful sunshine but as we travelled further north the rain clouds closed in and the rain started falling.  Once we parked the van and got settled, I started dinner immediately because we were booked into the 6.15 night tour.  A while later, one of the staff came around to say that they had organized a later night tour as they had so many people booked in.  We were put into the 8pm tour group which gave me more time to organize dinner but would put the girls into bed later.  It was six of one and half a dozen of the other so it didn't really make a difference either way.  At about 6.40 while Steve and I were finishing dishes, it poured with rain and we just looked at each other and were thankful that we weren't out on the earlier tour.

Waiting for the tour to start

Dining room and fountain under
lights

With the girls showered and 'pyjama'ed we ambled down to the meeting place for our night tour.  It hadn't rained since that downpour earlier but we had Becca in pink gumboots and Erin in her joggers because we knew there would be lots of puddles.  We also had brought all our umbrellas but the tour guide had a big collection of umbrellas for everyone too.  Before heading into the darkness of Paronella Park, the guide gave everyone torches which impressed Becca immensely.  The tour wasn't particularly imformative but the guide intended it to be that way so that everyone could just enjoy the atmosphere of the place and it's beauty under lights.  The castle was lit up as was the dining area and fountains.  The Mena Creek waterfall and suspension bridge were also lit up and the smaller Teresa Falls had only recently been added to the night tour.  While down at the larger falls, Erin was convinced that she saw a crocodile and the guide did say that they were in the creek so who knows.  She described red glowing eyes but the only reflection anyone saw was the large school of fish in the water.  We did however see the reflective eyes of eels in the streams running from Teresa Falls.  As we walked through the avenue of kauri pines, the guide turned all the torches off and the ground was covered with phosphorescent wood from the trees.  Everyone was quite impressed except for Becca who just wanted the torches back on and protested her feeling quite loudly.  We did have several showers of rain while out on the tour but it did seem to enhance the atmosphere of the place.  It was nice to stand under an umbrella watching rain fall while lights lit up amazing pieces of history.  Becca and Erin both really enjoyed being out after dark with torches shining at everyone and everything.  All in all it was a very enjoyable end to a fairly stressful day and I was glad we had the opportunity to see Paronella Park under lights.

Family photo taken in front of
dining room and fountain

Mena Creek Falls

 
 
 

The Packup

It was like leaving Adelaide all over again.  If we ever consider moving into a house again while travelling, someone please slap me.  I know that we didn't really have an option because we lost our mobile home briefly but boy!.....did we get sucked into the housy lifestyle again even though we tried hard not to.  All we owned in that house came from the caravan and none of it was really materialistic with the exception of the girls' toys.  The furniture was all borrowed from the owners of the house but due to circumstances probably well within our control, we just accumulated 'stuff' again.
Stuff like the two outdoor gazebos which gave us shade from the tropical sun out the back where there was none and the two temporary carport shelters we used to protect the new van from the elements.  There was the swimming pool we bought so the girls (and me) could enjoy a cool dip after school during the stifling wet season humidity and the pedestal fan so the girls could enjoy air circulation in their room.  Yes there were ceiling fans in all the bedrooms but when they sounded like a propeller of a cessna taking off, it was obvious no-one was going to get any sleep while they were in use.  Steve did attempt to service these fans but there were no serviceable parts for him to work with and they looked like they'd been around since the 1940's and one should have yelled "clear" before starting them.
Oh and how can we forget the Subaru which we acquired in Mackay during my recuperation.  Having experienced our first wet season (which wasn't even bad according to locals), we decided that the motorbike just wouldn't be up to the task during days of pouring rain and with Steve's job sometimes requiring him to drive to Tully and beyond, we wanted a fallback vehicle while living in the tropics so the Subaru stayed.  That was lucky because we needed something else to transport all our extra 'stuff' around in.
Packing everything back into the original plastic tubs from the old van proved an even bigger challenge.  When we left Adelaide, Becca was less than 18 months old and was quite happy with a Tupperware shape ball, a Fisher Price singing letterbox and a couple of picture books.  Now at the age of three, she likes dolls and duplo and jigsaw puzzles, none of which I want to deprive her but which take up more space.  Thankfully Erin's toy tastes haven't changed much except for that bloody guitar we bought her for Christmas.....bad impulse buy brought about because she came home with a Christmas list from school which included said guitar.  Steve and I wandered around the house for a week mumbling "what are we going to do with that bloody guitar".  Not an easy thing to find space for.   Both girls have also acquired a library of story books as gifts which needed to be packed.  There were also items which we have had with us since Adelaide but needed reassessing as to their importance in our travels.  Blankets...... I have a few, but they were mainly cot size and used for Becca when she was smaller.  I have since bought her a comforter which isn't as heavy as a quilt but she still thinks it's a quilt like her big sister's.  Questions like...are we going to eventually end up somewhere cold again and will I need said blankets as extra warmth? enter my head constantly.  Our family dynamic has changed as the girls have gotten older but I just couldn't part with some things 'just in case'.
The new van was another completely different challenge.  Yes it was almost identical in every way but once we started packing things into it, we discovered that drawers were narrower than the previous van and that walls between cupboards were different.  These may seem like minor adjustments but after living in the old van for nearly 12 months, we knew exactly where everything fitted after spending countless hours in Adelaide making things work.  Now we had to start again and reshuffle and test everything to make it fit in the new van.  This was frustrating because, for example, the girls clothing cupboards looked the same size but when I tried fitting a plastic tub into the space, it would fit in one cupboard but not the other.  Measurements of 5 mm differences had me tossing fits on a regular basis especially when Ingham's '$2 shops' wouldn't refund due to wrong choice.  Solution......Steve's angle grinder!  Wonderful for cutting plastic tubs and making them fit better.  We did however discover how to better use spaces that we hadn't used before and admittedly some cupboard space was bigger like the vanity cupboard in the ensuite.  I'm sure I fitted more in it this time than in the old van.
Steve had his own struggles because he had stripped the old van of a tv, dvd player, a microwave, a water pump, a jockey wheel etc etc and of course when the new van arrived it had all the replacements of these.  Always aware of the 'what ifs', he tried hard to fit these items in the toolbox of the new van as spare parts.  A difficult task when the front toolbox was full of tools and spares in the first place.  Luckily the Landcruiser afforded some more room for tools and so left extra space in the van for his spare parts supermarket.  He also acquired a cheap welder and a brush cutter which had to come with us.  He really needs to learn the art of borrowing while travelling or at least trading his skills for use of another persons items to decrease his accumulation of 'stuff'.  Oh and the microwave didn't make it's way into the toolbox......we left it in the house for future tenants to use.
So between my emotional tug 'o' war over original items from Adelaide to struggling with new acquisitions, we eventually came to some sort of compromise and fitted everything between the van, the Landcruiser and the Subaru.  Other items ended up in Goodwill donation bins or given away to anyone who wanted them.  On the last day before we left, it looked like we had been evicted and had everything thrown out on the back concrete so we could see what we had left to pack.  That pile took the longest time to shrink and in the end, the 'ifs' and 'maybes' were finding their way into the bin which was already full to overflowing.   It was quite possibly the most stressful packup since Adelaide and one we don't want to repeat.  I do however think that we packed what we should have and left behind what we should have.  No regrets right!  Onwards with our travels!

The Month Long Goodbye

After quitting nearly three months previously, we decided to stay in Ingham based on assurances regarding changes to Steve's work involving helicopters which up until now had been virtually non existent.  Steve and I then made the decision recently that we needed to move on if he was going to have any chance of achieving ongoing flying hours.  The promises and potential for gaining hours in Steve's current situation just weren't coming off and although we would have been happy to stay on, the balance of flying time versus other work were just weighed too heavily against him.
The girls and I had melded quite nicely into Ingham life but after 10 months, I just didn't realize how ingrained we had become into people's lives.  I had been told about the difficulty in becoming a part of the Ingham community but I didn't really find it difficult at all.  My friends were all genuinely disappointed that we were moving on and over the coming month it took us to pack up and set off,  a series of invitations and outings were organized to say goodbye to us.
Mine and Becca's playgroup friends were the first to organize a night out at the Forrest Beach hotel as a goodbye for me and also to continue a once a month get together for the mums.  It was a great night out without the kids although we spent a lot of time talking about them anyway amongst other topics.  Caroline was our playgroup liaison and kept us all in the loop about all things playgroup.  She and her family had moved from Townsville to Ingham for work and she and her hubby liked nothing better than getting away from it all with the kids in their Nissan GQ 4WD and camper trailer and/or boat.  Sounds familiar!!  She is also community minded especially since her son started kindy this year.  She doesn't mind getting dirty as was evident on the day that we dropped over to their house and there was Caroline digging a hole in clay soil to save a tree from a slow suffering in a tub.  They had a border collie dog that became famous for following golfers around the Macknade golf course and picking up their golf balls (only when the golfers needed him to).   Macknade was a community that evolved around a sugar mill near Ingham.  Caroline visited our house while we were packing to give me a gorgeous laminated poster of all the kids hand and foot prints for Becca and I to keep.  She also gave me a framed photo of we girls at our Forrest Beach pub night out and one of all the playgroup kids for us to remember.  It was genuinely warming that my friends wanted to give us such wonderful memories of our time in Ingham.
Next was a Mother's Day get together at Lucinda park on the coast.  The four or so families that we had been invited to catch up with for the once a month 'hot dish' night got together with us for one last time.  It was my turn to host 'hot dish' night but because we were in the middle of packing, it was decided that a fish and chips catchup would be best especially as it was Mum's Day.  The kids (all 14 of them) played on the playground while the parents chatted, mostly without interruption.  Jen and Michael were particularly like minded and although Jen had grown up in Ingham, they enjoyed travelling and camping like us.  Despite their busy lives (Jen would always fly up to the 2 minute drop off zone at school after the last bell in the mornings before rushing to the high school to work as a chemistry teacher) they always had time for a chat or hi!  Hot dish night was particularly important for catch ups.  That is also where I got to know Amanda who was my exercise motivator.  She started walking her son to school to drop extra weight she couldn't lose after her daughter was born a year earlier.  After a short time she started to look great (well she didn't look bad before) and so I got motivated to walk Erin to school as well.  Amanda loves her family and her friends despite some difficulties and is a great supporter of her church group.  We both got excited about 'Jamie Olivers Ministery of Food' classes and had a ball during those five weeks of cooking.  Her kids' birthday parties and hot dish nights were really amazing with her attention to detail.  She went onto youtube to learn how to make balloon art for her kids birthday parties.  Those balloons came in handy for other occasions too.  This had been a transformation from a shift working midwife who's speciality was frozen microwave dinners.  She certainly put all of herself into everything she did. 
The following weekend we were invited to Steve and Linda's place for dinner and one last catchup between their four kids and our two girls.  They had all become firm friends and Chas was Erin's knight in shining armour when she started school in his class last year.  Becca had also become great friends with Katelyn who was a similar age to her.  It was also a goodbye for Brindle who was born there and who's brothers were still living there although much bigger and more boisterous than when they were pups.  Linda and I had become great friends too and used to spend extended periods (usually during and after kids activities) discussing all sorts of things.  She was very easy to talk to and we had quite similar ideas and interests while finding ourselves separated from extended family.  She was always busy with the kids, trying to keep her own dancing and teaching career alive while supporting Steve as one of Inghams' pastors and community leaders.  She has a secret passion to be a pilot too and I truly hope she keeps that dream alive because life all too commonly takes over and dreams get left behind.  I received a most beautiful bracelet and matching earrings in my favourite colour green on the night of our farewell dinner.  Linda told me on one occasion that the colour suited me.  She also gave me a beautifully written card thanking me for being a friend which wasn't hard at all.  Erin and Becca received some little gifts to keep them amused in the car on our travels and a special drawing from each of the kids from 15 month old Prisca, Katelyn, Liela to the eldest Chas.  Although Chas and Erin ended up in different classes this year and Linda and I didn't catch up as much at school, we did manage to touch base at playgroup and kindergym which was great.
Speaking of kindergym, Becca's instructor Rin organized her last kindergym class with fairy themed costumes and cupcakes to say goodbye.  I wasn't there for her final lesson as Linda offered to take her one last time while Steve and I were madly packing everything up. 
As word filtered through to people that we were leaving, farewell cards and well wishes were given and friends talked about how they had 'clicked' with me where they generally keep to themselves or their small group of friends.  The mum of one of Erin's closest friends in class also enjoyed great chats with me both before and after school.  Sometimes Lauren and I would find ourselves all alone in the school carpark after school because everybody else had long gone.  We were vastly different ages but both loved a chat and realized only weeks before we left that we were both Geminis and had birthdays 6 days apart.  When it came to family, we had similar ideas and experiences too.  Lauren was Ingham born and bred and still had great grand parents around.  She has a long standing family history and support in Ingham for herself, her hubby and the kids.  That still didn't stop her making a new friend in me and I received a lovely goodbye card and two hand embroidered Ingham teatowels in my favourite colour green.  One teatowel even had a green tree frog on it which is one of my favourite animals.  We laughed about how she had guessed what my favourite colour and animal was.
Whether it was someone I had only met a couple of months before or someone I had met and known since we arrived in Ingham, the feeling of sadness which everyone felt about our leaving was humbling.  I didn't want people to be sad at our departure and part of me was sad too because these people had all become great friends.  It was a great privilege to have met such wonderful people and I haven't managed to mention them all as they had welcomed me and the girls into their lives.  I have realized how you can have much in commom with people you only meet briefly and that they can enrich your life and enhance our travelling experience while we live away from our family.  Even though Ingham has such a long standing family lineage with many generations of family supporting one another, an outsider like myself can feel supported and befriended in such a short time.  I remember thinking when we left Mapleton that I will never quite match the friends I had made there.  Although Mapleton will always hold a special place for me and my time there, Ingham will also hold special but different memories because although it was a totally different community, the people became great friends to me and my family.