We had a choppy start to the week with us spending the first night "away" in the driveway of our home, then progressed to spend night two at Lake Ainsworth, about 2 km's from home, but by night three we were at Hasting's Point and thought we would reward the children for thier patience and assistance in getting us northbound by staying at an RV park that had waterslides, Neptune's Castle and a restaurant. Nothing like "roughing it"!The following day we pointed the compass toward Toowoomba, stopping at Lake D
yre Bill Gunn Weir for lunch (pictured). Everything was so dry and brown that any remaining grass cracks as you walk on it. Despite this, the farms had their big sprinklers going at 3pm in the afternoon! I was astounded at the senselessness of seeing so much water go to waste as opposed to watering at 4 in the morning to get the maximum benefit of what little moisture is available to them.
yre Bill Gunn Weir for lunch (pictured). Everything was so dry and brown that any remaining grass cracks as you walk on it. Despite this, the farms had their big sprinklers going at 3pm in the afternoon! I was astounded at the senselessness of seeing so much water go to waste as opposed to watering at 4 in the morning to get the maximum benefit of what little moisture is available to them.We headed NW out of Toowoomba to "The Jondaryn Wool Shed" in Jondaryn for t
he night. It is a big spread, full of history and old equipment, some of it dating back well over 100 years. The caretakers there do more than look after the property, they also are nursing this small joey along until it can look after itself and care for alpacas, horses, pigs, sheep, cockatoos, and more.
he night. It is a big spread, full of history and old equipment, some of it dating back well over 100 years. The caretakers there do more than look after the property, they also are nursing this small joey along until it can look after itself and care for alpacas, horses, pigs, sheep, cockatoos, and more.Everyone there was very friendly and the children got to assist in making the morning damper as well as seeing a shearer in action, and helping to lead the big Clydesdale horses up to help with the chores.
Upon saying our fa
rewells we ventured up into Bunya Mountains National Park and did some hiking amoungst the largest stand on Bunya Pines in the world. The Ranger was very helpful in pointing out the best trails to spend time on and we spent the night on the north end of the park at Burton's Well. No power there but that does not mean that you can't have a hot shower. I must give credit where due and my hat is off to Queenlander ingenuity for the Donkey Boiler, pictured. This is a wonderful device whereby one puts water in the boiler, lights the fire, brings the water to a hot temp and then adds more cold water to displace the hot water into a bucket. The water temp is then adjusted to suit by adding more cold as required, then this is poured into a suspended canvas bag in the showers where is it elevated and dispensed through a shower rose. What a treat on a cold night after a day of hiking!
rewells we ventured up into Bunya Mountains National Park and did some hiking amoungst the largest stand on Bunya Pines in the world. The Ranger was very helpful in pointing out the best trails to spend time on and we spent the night on the north end of the park at Burton's Well. No power there but that does not mean that you can't have a hot shower. I must give credit where due and my hat is off to Queenlander ingenuity for the Donkey Boiler, pictured. This is a wonderful device whereby one puts water in the boiler, lights the fire, brings the water to a hot temp and then adds more cold water to displace the hot water into a bucket. The water temp is then adjusted to suit by adding more cold as required, then this is poured into a suspended canvas bag in the showers where is it elevated and dispensed through a shower rose. What a treat on a cold night after a day of hiking!The scenery here is fantastic with massive trees as depicted in the following photos.
We left Bunya National Park and had lunch in Chinchilla, a very well designed little town with a community hall incorporating a museum, movie theatre, and park. From there we went through Miles to Roma, where (believe it or not) there is no italian restaurant! That is where we are at the moment and we are just about to set off on our bikes and do some exploring of this area which, according to the rumours, founded the Australian natural gas industry. More next week...
