365 Nights on a Stretcher Bed

The Big Blog

On Saturday dad got up early to go fishing and we seized it as a opportunity to do some stuff for his birthday. When he got back I thought we had better stow these away hastily or he’ll see it but we convinced him not to look at our stuff.
We set off for the beach on the Gulf of Carpentaria shortly after that with lunch packed and lots of water so we could do some fishing and have a paddle in the water. We didn't swim because there was crocodiles there. Erin and I first started by playing naughts and crosses then we made an interesting figure lying down on the sand. Erin and I then made a big river system (it wasn't that big) to form an island.
When we got back to camp we went fishing in the boat again. This time Erin came as well. We went back to the corner we were in last time and dropped the bait in and suddenly Erin was on. When she got it in the boat we realised it was different to the type we were catching yesterday.
On Sunday we left Secret Fishing Spot and went back to Alaska Pools for a quick dip and then back to the homestead for us. We got back and just relaxed for the rest of the day.
On Monday was dad’s birthday so he got to decide what we would do. He decided that we will go to Nanny’s Reatreat and Fern Gully.
We had got him some little brownies for dessert after eating a meal under the stars as they call it. We needed to get them cooked without him noticing so it would be a surprise.
We arrived at Fern Gully first and it was a sort walk in up a gully which then opened out into a big pool. Some people had said that the pool was really cold except after living in Tasmania for 9 years nothing is cold. We didn't stay in for long because we still needed to drive and walk into Nanny’s Retreat.
When we got there we needed to pack our lunch and then walk in for about an hour and then we'll be there. It was brilliantly spectacular, there was a little canyon you could swim up (it wasn't very long) that was quite deep and the water was as clear as day so it was really good for snorkelling.
Dad went up a rocky hill to go to the toilet and when he came back he said “I've found a cave but we’ll have lunch first.”
We went up and found the cave that he was talking about after lunch. We had to wade in through icy water or climb through a small hole that was up high and hard to get to. We all took the easy but cold option that opened out into the cave that had a few bats in it. On the other side of it I found an opening which led out into a rainforest except there was no path so we didn't do any further exploring there we just climbed over a rock and did some rock hopping.
On Tuesday we just relaxed and in the afternoon dad and Erin went to Flying Fox Billabong while mum and I stayed home and she taught me how to cook chilli con carne.
On Wednesday we drove to Fossil Fern. It was quite hard to find because it was facing in the opposite direction that you are walking. We then went to Wildfire George which had a short walk in then there was a massive cliff which you jump off into the pool at the bottom of it. We did some snorkelling around and there was lots of Dragon Weed and one clump looked like a city.
On Thursday we were finally going to leave Lorella Springs. I was very disappointed because I was having a great time there because of all the fishing and swimming and it was just excellently, fabulously BRILLIANT!!!!!!!!
A few kilometres out of Lorella there was another lost city (I'm not sure if I've told you about one already but anyway) and we did a walk around and in it. Although the walk was hot it was still good.
We then went to Butterfly Springs for lunch and a swim in the spring which was refreshing. We went on to Towns River for the night. We had met a family called the Hearns at Lorella and camped with them. Their names are Molly and Bronte who were Ben and Michelle’s daughters. We made damper for dessert and had a little fish in the river.
On Friday we got up early to have a little fish before we had to leave. I was having no luck with a popper so I decided to try a little one hooked laser for the baitfish near the spot where we were fishing. I still had no luck so went and got a bit of bread from the camper, put it on the hook and dropped it in. The fish took the bread so I put some more on and dropped it in and they took it again. I tried twice more until on the fifth go I finally got one. It was very small but well worth the effort.
That night we stayed at Little Roper Stock camp in Mataranka Springs. We taught Molly and Bronte how to play spoons which is a game where there's one less spoon than people and you get dealt four cards. The dealer looks at the top card of the remaining cards and if he/she wants it they pick it up and swap it for one of the cards in their hand. If they don't want it they pass it to the next person without them seeing what the card is. The aim of the game is to get four of the same number or court card and once you've got them you grab a spoon and just keep playing trying to stifle your laughs as the other people keep trying to find there right cards. If you see that a spoon is gone you can just grab another one of the spoons.Read more