Thargomindah – Eulo – Cunnamulla

Of course there was an interesting ‘river’ walk we took over two mornings.  Not planning on being out in the hotter part of the day we did our exploring before 11.30am.

The Bulloo river is a ‘contained’ river and would only run after heavy rains in the northern catchment.  Our walk took us beside various waterholes that at other times would be the river but are now stagnant.  There was a weir built west of the town and the road bridge is on the eastern end of town.  Near the bridge is the stony crossing built in the 1880’s and used by the Cobb and Co coaches as they travelled this outback area.  Thargomindah was a coach stop along the track and both coaches and horses were kept there.

how would you like to travel the outback this way?

 

During our stay here we met up with the caretaker Jack, 86yr old and has lived and worked all his life in the area on various properties as a drover etc.  What a pleasure and honour to sit down with Jack for a cuppa each morning.  He would relate various stories of his life in this trying land and we could only wonder at the resilience of this small statured man who has lived through tough and trying times.

Leaving Thargo finally we continued our eastern bound journey to Eulo another small dot on the map.  There are a couple of shops, hotel with camping park attached, police station and a leatherwork/patchwork shop to wander in.

sign just outside Eulo....we walked but didn't find anything

The Eulo Queen Hotel was a place for a cool drink and a chat to the resident barman.  On the walls is the story of the Eulo Queen.  Her name was Isobel ?? and it is believed she was sent out from England as she was illigitement and an embarrassment to someone.  Soon after arriving in Australia she married a well to do gentleman and he purchased a hotel in Eulo which serviced the nearby opal mines.  The town ended up with 3 hotels and he owned the lot along with several other commercial buildings.  One night a rowdy young stockman was in the hotel and Isobel asked him to leave.  He asked ‘who do you think you are’ and she evidently replied ‘the Queen of Eulo’ and that was how the name came about and has stuck ever since.  Husband number 1 died after amassing his ‘portfolio’ and Isobel was left a wealthy woman.  She continued to live in town and she married again within 2 years.  Husband number 2 and she evidently ‘clashed’ quite a bit and once he was arrested for assaulting her.  He was fined 15 pounds and Isobel paid his fine so that he could return to her.  He also passed away and within another 2 years she was married to a young Tasmanian miner.  This marriage was also quite tempestuous and they soon separated and were never reconciled.  Isobel still running the hotel traded with the opal miners and it was said that she had quite a collection of opal from her ‘dealings’.   Unfortunately she fell ill and was finally admitted to the asylum in Toowoomba where she died a pauper and is buried in an unmarked grave in Toowoomba.  The remaining hotel in Eulo however still proudly bears her name and is well worth a visit to learn the story. 

We camped that night out beside the Paroo river along with a handful of other vanners. 

railway station at Cunnamulla

one of only 3 'covered' platforms in Qld

 

Railway Station building

It was now only 67km to Cunnamulla so a leisurely drive for the next morning.  Lots of emus still and many with their families.  Seems dad was trying to teach them how to cross the road and what a lovely sight, 9 chicks with an adult just strolling across the highway.

Cunnamulla is a ‘stock up the pantry’ stop for us and wow how do the locals stand paying those prices for groceries we think nothing about getting.  I couldn’t help but notice the small variety when it comes to fruit and veg and with tomatoes over $11 per kg I am sure there are not many salads served up.

Cunnamulla Fella erected to honour those who worked this land

Beautiful flowers, including roses, were planted along the main streets and in bloom the town looked ‘pretty’.  If only I could capture the perfume as well as the colour of the various blooms. 

Cedar tree in flower, perfume was divine

 

how many of these on the tree above??

 

We leave here tomorrow after two nights and make our way further east to Bollon before turning southwards to head to Lightening Ridge (and more opals!!)  What beautiful stones they are, the colours are amazing.  So different to the opals from Coober Pedy in Sth Aust that we have seen previously.  Oh well how big is that bank balance??

weir at Cunnamulla on the Warrego River

Quilpie – Eromanga – Noccundra – Thargomindah

Well today had to be the hottest we have endured so far.  We were away from the van park soon after 9am and it was only a few kilometres before the road narrowed so that passing involved both parties being partly off the bitumen.  We decided that we would take the initiative and get right off the bitumen, slow right down and let the other vehicle have all the ‘road’ and hopefully that would avoid stones etc from being thrown up at us.  Worked most of the time when the oncoming driver was ‘smart’ enough to realise that was what we wanted him to do!! 

oil well on the way to Eromanga

Eromanga was just over 100km from Quilpie so with the temperature rising we took it slowly and drove into the small settlement but did not see any reason to make a stop there, except for the photo of course.

 

view of Eromanga

Lots of emus along the road and we even saw one dad with 3 chicks.  Most of the other groups looked to have ‘teenagers’ in the family.  The ‘worrying’ wildlife on the road were the lizards.  They were everywhere and you never knew which way they would run.  Standing tall and nodding their head seemed to be one of their favourite reactions to an oncoming vehicle.  During one of our ‘cuppa’ stops Lawrie walked up to the road to try and chase a lizard that had flattened himself on the road when we pulled off the road to stop.  Well waving his hat, kicking (gently) with his foot and finally getting a little more aggressive with his foot convinced the lizard to up and run to the side.  Needless to say I am sure that within a short time of our leaving he would probably have been back on the road sunning himself again.

Noccundra Hotel

We finally reached Noccundra by mid-afternoon and after having a look around the stone blocked hotel built in the 1880’s we drove down to the free Wilson River camping area.  The ‘waterhole’ was very long and there were quite a few other campers already settled amongst the trees along the northern edge of the water.  Birdlife were evident on the river and even though we are over 1000 kms from Brisbane there were a couple of pelicans cruising the water…and catching their food.  Travel information advised that the waterhole was a stopping point for the Cobb and Co coaches that ran through this area as the early means of transport.  After driving from Quilpie and seeing the dry vegetation and vastness of the area the sight understandably would have been very welcoming.

looking east at the Wilson River

After a comfortable night we headed off do to do the final 140km to Thargomindah.  More emus and again lots of lizards and narrow bitumen.  The best thing is that there is not a lot of other traffic so passing does not become stressful.

Again another hot day and it was midday when we arrived in town so we set up as quickly as possible and then spent the rest of the afternoon resting in the shade.  We had set up in the ‘old’ caravan park (the new was further down the street) and there was only another camper in a tent beside us.  There is a motor-cross gymkhana in town this weekend so guess they must all be camping either out at the sports ground or in the other van park.  At least it is lovely and quiet here.

town bore at Thargomindah....can you see the steam rising from the water?

 

check out the corosion on the machinery

Thargomindah is also served by water from the artesian bore and it exits the ground around 80deg C and is then cooled in ponds before being piped to the households.   Back in the early 1880’s Thargomindah was just the third place in the world (behind London and Paris) to have hydro power generate electric current for the town.  The force of the water at the town bore powered a water wheel attached to dynamos and created the electricity needed for the town.  The system was continued till a diesel engine was introduced in the 1950’s and then the Government connected the town to the state grid in the 1990’s and there have been power outages and brown outs ever since!!

Bulloo River crossing used by Cobb and Co coaches at Thargomindah

A reconstructed ‘original’ bore hut has been built at the bore and contains an interesting display about the history of the operation.  The park also contains exhibits of other forms of energy production, windmill, solar panels, steam engine and oil well machinery.  All this on the western edge of town and they only ask for a gold coin donation.  A very interesting spot to visit and the picnic tables have barbeques available as well.

We are spending the weekend here at Thargomindah and as the temperatures are expected to be in the high 30’s for the next couple of days I can see no reason to want to keep travelling on towards Cunnamulla straight away.  

Charleville – Quilpie - Adavale

There was a bakery…..need I say more.  Two visits before we left town……he is sooooo spoilt.

Vortex guns used in 1902 to try and create rain in Charleville...they failed.

We had intended to visit the Cosmos Centre (star gazing etc) however the sessions were booked out over the weekend and Monday dawned cloudy and stayed that way all day.  Even had a shower or two of rain so that ruled that visit out.  Sounded a lot like the Planetarium at Mt Cootha in Brisbane so don’t feel too hard done by.  They also have a captive breeding program here for the Bilby but again we were not able to go.  We shall return however so no problem.  The stay here has been quiet and peaceful and certainly a park we would recommend.

visitors at the van park

We went for a walk downtown this morning (after a cuppa at home) and were surprised at how quiet the main business area was.  I had a long conversation with the lady running a curtain/dressmaking/haberdashery store in town (and has done for 9yrs).   She told me she would be closing at Christmas and she has a night job packing shelves at the local supermarket in order to make ends meet.  The Internet has become the shopping choice of locals and businesses in town are feeling it.  Even the local newsagent (once a licence to print money) are not making ends meet!!  She was telling me she charges $20 to change a zip in jeans etc, takes at least an hour and a half to do, so not charged by time, and due to our increasing import of cheap clothing folk can go to the local Target store and buy a new pair for cheaper, so why replace the zip?  She also told of folk going into the local dress shop and trying clothes on and then going online to order so what chance the small business??  There are some empty shops already in the main street and she holds little chance of them being started back up.  It is a sad fact about the small country towns.

Leaving Charleville behind we headed out next morning for Quilpie, 210km further west.  The road has narrowed however it is all bitumen so with some extra care with approaching traffic there is no problem.

Cattle, sheep, kangaroos and emus are seen along the road as well as kangaroos and wild pigs as road kill.  There is certainly plenty of that. 

Quilpie is much smaller than Charleville but we had no problem finding the van park, only one in town!!  The water supply is from the artesian bore and exits the ground at 71degrees Celsius and is then cooled before it is piped around the town.  In the van park they have a spa fed by the bore and again the water has to be cooled to 38 deg before going into the spa.  The showers are great and the water seems so soft, you just have to ignore the sulphur smell that comes out of the shower head as well.

Boulder Opal is found around Quilpie and there are a couple of opal shops in town.  I am saving my opal fix till we get to Lightening Ridge and I hope to be able to have a good look around.

Quilpie is also the end of the railway line out this way.  The line was finished in 1917 and was a main loading port for sheep, cattle and wool as it began the trip to markets back along the line.  In 1935 a regular twice a week passenger service was begun and this continued till 1994.  There is now a twice weekly bus service linking Quilpie and Charleville for passengers wishing to travel on the Westlander.

the end of the line at Quilpie.....literally

During our stay In Quilpie we took a ‘loop’ drive of just over 200km to Adavale and back.  The total population there is 23 and the hotel has this year won an award for the best outback pub.  The western road there was all gravel and surprisingly quite good to drive.  We saw lots of emus and kangaroos along the way and there were a couple of crossings of the Bulloo River.  This is a ‘landlocked’ river and in flood times feeds the channel country and Coopers Creek system.  The water currently  is a dark chocolate brown and in places just seems to be waterholes.   The return ‘eastern’ road to Quilpie is patches of bitumen along lots of gravel road and this was rougher than the all dirt road.

road to Adavale

Adavale Pub

In 1963 11 men spent the night on the roof enduring cold pelting rain waiting till morning to be rescured from the raging flood

During the night they were allowed (by the police) to fire a gun every hour to let them know the building had NOT been washed away.  They did hear the church bell ringing during the night and found out next morning the church had been washed away.

They were unhappy that the publican only allowed them one bottle of rum for the whole night!!

 

old Post Office at Adavale

note the phone booth on stilts....to stay above flood 

 

Tomorrow we are off further west but our time in Quilpie and Charleville has been very enjoyable.

Mitchell – Morven – Charleville

We finally said goodbye to our wonderful campsite at the weir after another ‘special’ sunset.  This time with clouds present and after a day of strong winds.   Wednesday had been 29deg, Thursday 31deg and then Friday became only 21 so it was much cooler for travelling.

next morning view of water in the weir

Morven is a small settlement of about 250 residents and there is the usual pub, general store and a newsagency.  We were fortunate enough to find a camp site beside the waterhole near the Recreation Ground.   This waterhole used to be used by the Cobb & Co coaches as they passed through on their dusty journey through the western Qld countryside.  I am sure it was a welcome stop for both animals and humans alike.

There are some power sites available up near the amenities block in the showground and work on a ‘honour’ system for $5 per night for a maximum stay of 7 days.  You can even connect up to water so is quite a delightful spot to stay.

As we were only stopping overnight we didn’t worry about being up close to the amenities provided as after all we have our own.

We certainly had some entertainment parked beside the waterhole as the ‘locals’ came to visit with their family!!

Lawrie was chatting to our camping neighbours later in the day and saw a red bill try to take one of the baby geese.  Needless to say the adults all took to hissing and giving the bird a hard time so that it didn’t seem such a good idea to try for one of the babies from this family.

feeding time outside our van

Well this had to have been our coldest night since we left home however the sun shone clear and bright the next morning and it didn’t take long to warm up as we packed up and headed out for Charleville just over 80km away.

We saw cattle grazing along the way and were surprised by the number of wild pigs included in the ‘road kill’ we passed. 

A stop for our morning cuppa and then by late morning we had arrived in Charleville.  We have checked in to a new van park just 2km out of town towards Quilpie (our next destination).  Most shops etc close early at the weekend so other than refuelling with gas (available at 1 of the 4 service stations in town) we visited the Information centre and gathered some pamphlets for further on and plan to take a stroll tomorrow morning to take a closer look at shops etc.  Dinner tonight however is at the local RSL as I am demanding a night off!!

Surat - Roma - Mitchell

Campspot at Surat was beside the Balonne River (still with plenty of water) and we found ourselves a spot near the river and set up for an overnight stay.  There were quite a few vans and motor homes already camped when we arrived.
We took a walk down to the river and found a pontoon that is obviously for the use of fisher folk with their boats.  The traffic bridge looms high overhead but look at what was caught in the underneath of the bridge!!  Just shows how high that water was during the flood.

                                         can you see the tree limb hanging from the bridge? 

The country all around is quite brown and although the grass looks green beside the river as we walked around we could see cracks in the river bank showing how much the ground is already drying out.

cracks in the riverbank at Surat

 Leaving Surat next morning we drove 89km to Roma and filled up with fuel, groceries, coffee at McDonalds and used their wifi to check emails etc.  Wonderful place that Golden Arches restaurants, good coffee and free internet.

no this isn't us refueling

 

Monty's collection of 'old' cars on display

 

Once everything was full again we headed out along the Warrego Hway and travelled all of 41km to a little spot called Muckabilla.  Just a hotel/motel and the Community Park where a hot shower and toilets were waiting for us.  Needless to say we decided to stay the night along with another van and motorhome.  We left a donation in the box provided and appreciate these facilities provided in small out of the way places.

Of course next morning off again to Mitchell, another 40 odd km so no stressing about the mileage on this trip!!  We headed to the Neil Turner Weir just 2.5km out of town to check out the camp spot that others had mentioned was pretty good.  Arriving in time for morning smoko we parked beside the weir and enjoyed the view over the water.  What a great place, toilets and water laid on and water views to match.  There was not much thought had to go into deciding if we would stay a while or not.

Lovely sunny day, even into a singlet top and shorts today, so started work on the tan again.  Sunset was magic so as the day drew to a close we sat and took it all in.

 

What a life!!  I had taken a walk at 3.30pm and counted 24 vans and motorhomes already set up.  I am sure that more would have come in during the next couple of hours but there was not a feeling of 'cramped' as there was plenty of room.  Only ones close together seemed to be those folk that were travelling together so all in all another fabulous FREE place to camp and enjoy nature's bounty.

 



 



Leaving Jondaryan

Relocated Bank of NSW from Dalby at Jondaryan

 

Leaving Jondaryan and Dalby behind we travelled toward Tara.  Green crop fields, looked like grain of some type were standing proud in the fields.  Other than the crops however which were obviously irrigated the paddocks were quite brown and dry looking.  Hard to believe that only 18 months ago this area had been covered in flood.

Leaving Tara after a lunch break beside the lagoon, we turned west onto the Surat Development Road (staying away from the main highway) and drove at a leisurely pace able to enjoy the scenery and take in the passing colours of nature.

We decided to turn off and go and check out the small village of Meandarra that has a camp site next to Brigalow Creek with showers and toilets for travellers, for the cost of a ‘donation’.  We found the park and there were a few vans already set up but it did seem a small area and wouldn’t take much to create a ‘squashy’ feeling.   We decided to drive back out of town to check out the area where we had seem some other vans parked as we drove in.  Down behind the Bowls Club and tennis courts (again beside the creek) there were a few motorhomes and a van parked.  Lots of room with some trees for shade if needed so we decided we might spend the night here before going on. 

Brigalow Creek at Meandarra

The local ‘welcoming’ committee (Tom from one of the motorhomes) came to visit and advised that there was a ‘happy hour’ up at the van from 4pm and we were invited.   It turned out that Tom (from the Gold Coast) and Kay and Gerry (Pakenham Vic) from the van had been camping there for nearly 5 weeks and had become friends and in turn invited everyone else to come and join them.   There were toilets and hot showers available in the amenities block at the back of the tennis club and taps to fill the van from if needed so we could understand why you could comfortably stay for quite a while.

Our final morning we went for a walk across to the creek for some photos, fortunately Lawrie was well ahead and he told me that he had seen a good size red bellied black snake in the grass on the side of the bank.  Knowing me and my dread of snakes I could only be thankful that I hadn’t been in front as is usually the case.  However staying well away from that area I took some photos but of course they can never capture all that is felt in a great spot like this.  There was plenty of water in the creek and again just last year the water had been halfway up the two story hotel down in the main street during the flood.

We enjoyed the peace and tranquillity there for three nights and after exchanging contact details with the new friends we reluctantly said farewell and headed towards Surat which had been our original destination from Jondaryan.  Of course this illustrates the beauty of not being tied to a schedule and being able to take the time and stay where the desire takes you.

Brisbane to Jondaryan

Lefthome on Tues late in the morning after finalising all the packing.
Arrived Jondaryan mid afternoon and settled in for a couple of nights.
What a great place to stay.  Powered sites were $22.50 per night, unpowered $16.50 per night.  There are also a couple of cabins, and shearers quarters where you can stay.

one of the residents at Jondaryan

Loved roaming around the old buildings, seeing the sheep, walking the boards of the historical woolshed, smell the lanolin!!!
Damper and billy tea for morning tea both days ($5 ea) and the damper just like mine!!!
Thoroughly reccommend the place to others, so quiet and peaceful.