Week 13

Sunday

We wanted to return to Emu Park Caravan Park (where we stayed on the way up) but after one telephone call yesterday we found out the whole of Capricorn Coast was nearing  100% capacity.

 Apart from all the grey nomads who book from one year to the next, the NSW School Holidays start on Monday so this just adds to the problem. Emu Park Cvn Pk said if we wanted a week on any decent site . . . we would have to wait until the middle of August!

Fortunately, Cooee Bay Cvn Pk managed to find a grassed site for us on their 'overflow area' and whilst it's close to the road, it's quiet after 6pm.

Cooee Bay Cvn Pk

 

Monday - Sunday

 

We've seen our friends (Brian & Elaine) who live at Emu Park and plan to catch up with a couple from McLaren Vale who are caravanning at Yeppoon on Thursday.

 

Men's Bowls on Tuesday / Mixed Bowls on Thursday and if we want we can bowl again on Friday and Sunday!

Update; We skipped bowls on Friday 'cos Roger pulled up lame after bowls on Thursday.

One hour on Google on Thursday night provided a self diagnosis of a partially torn plantar fasciitis (tendon under foot) and it bloody well hurts.

After forcing Nola to watch three YouTube videos I strapped my foot up on Friday morning . . . much better now, but no bowls for me for at least a couple of weeks.

On Saturday we caught up two couples (at Yeppoon bowls) that we know from Adelaide and thanked them for their hospitality.
 

 

Week 12

Sunday

 

Frank Fayers (Bush Poet) at Winton Cvn Park

Australian Stockman's Hall of Fame - Longreach

Another one of 'Life's Challenges' to contend with!

Our Show Stockman and his crew.

 

Muster Time

Singing 'Cow' Boy

 

 

The 'Best Looking' windmill I've seen

 

Nola found a friend

 



Bon Voyage

First Class seats for Nola

 

Free Camp at Jericho

Saturday

Heading east again towards the coast we stayed at huge free camp at Duaringa, just off the main drag. No power, but toilets and showers . . . just a donation at the visitors centre across the road.

 
This free camp could fit a hundred caravans and motor homes if it wanted too, but thankfully less than twenty RV's were there that night

Duaringa Free Camp

Week 11

Sunday

We were going to have a lazy morning after our bacon and eggs breakfast, but we were distracted by the commotion outside.

What do you do when you get your 13 tonne motorhome / bus bogged

 

 in a hole this size?

 Easy, you get one of these (can u spot the nosey campers?)

 

 And pull the bugger out backwards!

Lawn Bowls again, this time at Mareeba Bowls Club. One of the bowlers (Sue Brady) is in the Qld Ladies Squad.

This year she won the 2013 Australian Open Ladies Pairs and came 3rd outright in the 2013 Australian Ladies Singles. Great bowler and personality, doesn't have tickets on herself and is born and bred in the Mareeba area.

Monday

Moved 50kms down the track to Yungaburra in the Atherton Tablelands. The caravan park is situated on Lake Tinaroo and is only $20.00 per night for a powered site.

Although Monday arvo turned out a bit 'drizzly',  we couldn't resist a drive to  waterfalls.

We thought the waterfall would be a nice quiet spot for a lunch and a snapshot. How wrong could we be.

Three bus loads of bloody tourists (oh that includes me) have gone ballistic in the rain and it now resembles a Public Swimming Pool.

 

Millaa Millaa Waterfall



Tuesday

Mixed Social Bowls again at Atherton Bowls Club today. All six teams ended up with one win / one loss for the day. The 'lucky draw' was won by . . . . . not us.

The sunset tonight was quite spectacular;

Lake Tinaroo - Yungaburra

 

Wednesday

Foggy morning across the mountains as we moved on to Rollingstone / Vincent (Bushy) Parker Rest Stop which is dedicated to a local WW2 pilot. The rest stop has thirty sites with water (no power) but it's a real beauty.

 

Vincent (Bushy) Parker Rest Stop

 

 

Bushy Parker Creek

Thursday

Pushed on to Charters Towers . . . very interesting place

 

Charters Towers Lookout

Friday

I finally found the problem with our leaking shower. A nine inch crack in the shower pan. Grrrrrrr.
This will need to be poly-welded when we get home. 'Not happy Jan'

 

That's where the water is coming from?

Saturday

Day trip out to Fletchers Creek, about 40kms north of Charters Towers. This 'Free Camp' is very popular with caravanners and campers alike.

It's not on the road to most destinations, so perhaps that's why it's popular?

Fletchers Creek near Charters Towers

 

 

 



Week 10

Sunday

 

We left Townsville today and heading north again. Arrived at South Mission Beach (Beachcomber Coconut Village) around 1pm.

 

This area is a sanctuary for cassowaries and is thick with kangaroos grazing on foreshore front lawns. Apparently a large cassowary walked straight through the caravan park yesterday at midday!

Signs everywhere saying ‘don’t feed the cassowaries’, but I just couldn’t help myself;

 



Do not feed the Cassowaries, Roger

Now that we have installed a 300 watt inverter in the caravan, we’re all setup for 12 volt or 240 volt power from our caravan battery, we are saving money by using a Non Powered Caravan/Camping Site (watch this space)

Monday

Our last day at South Mission Beach today, so a morning walk along the beach was a must (but we did have to share it with one other person)

South Mission Beach

We have been blessed by another fantastic day - 27 deg Cel, but as there is a chance of rain tomorrow, we're heading up to Mossman just north of Cairns. It's close to the Daintree which may be as far north a we go this trip???

Nanna just had to do this for the grandkids to have a laugh;

 'Go Nanna Go'

 

 Second Childhood???

A Poolside Campsite for the Bradley's

Tuesday

Left South Mission Beach early and arrived at Mossman (about 75km north of Cairns) jus after midday. Setup camp and headed off to Mossman Gorge which was really spectacular; 

 Mossman Gorge

Thursday

After a day off from rushing around like 'mad tourists', we head off to The Daintree for the day (like mad tourists again)

We decided to go on the Daintree (Copper Creek) Crocodile Cruise which is the only one operating in the Daintree National Park.

Only a small number of crocs sighted, but we were lucky to see a 4.5 metre croc bearing it's teeth (just yawning) 

'My what BIG teeth you have'

 

 This cheeky swallow hitched a ride on our bow rail

 

 Heading back to the Cooper Creek Mouth

On the way out of the Daintree a cassowary crossed right in front of us and I was able to snap a picture to prove it;

 

We spotted this cassowary just metres from the main road

Friday

Left Mossman and headed south towards the Atherton Tablelands. We found out that the Mareeba Rodeo Grounds provide cheap powered sites (just $16.00 per night) so that's where we're going.

It's a long weekend up here so once we setup camp, we went straight to the Mareeba Information Centre which was manned by three volunteers.

I asked the local  man behind the counter (aboriginal) what was happening in Mareeba over the three day weekend. His reply was . . . 'not much happens around here'.

Thinking he was joking, I waited for him to follow up with information or suggestions about events in the area. Thirty seconds later I realised he wasn't joking!

Anyway we did find out that there was a large market in Mareeba on Saturday.

On the way back to the Rodeo Grounds we noticed there was quite a crowd watching the golfers at Mareeba Golf Club;

 

 

The locals turnout in force to watch a game of golf!

Saturday

Markets in Mareeba and Kuranda kept up busy for most of the morning.

It's been eighteen years since we were last in Kuranda and I think half of the Byron Bay hippies have taken over Kuranda!!!