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Off to the sun with GMcG and FOff to the sun with GMcG and F
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  • TravelerOff to the sun with GMcG and F
    Day 9

    Walgett hot springs

    June 26, 2022 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    We were heading for a free camp in Walgett, and were very lucky to get a spot. The camp was pretty full so our two caravans were separated by a very large van, driven by a small man named Wally.
    Greg's site was awkward to reverse into, due to one person choosing to park at an angle to everyone else. Then, to top it all off, Greg's caravan hydraulic system didn't work, and they couldn't get the roof elevated.
    Ian and Wally helped, and eventually the caravan did the job by itself. Just as well as Greg and Fiona now had a bed to sleep in! This was a very nice little park, with a fountain and pond with ducks. We were parked beside a lovely couple from Tassie. They sat around their pot belly stove for warmth and to cook. Wally and his wife Arlene, came over to tell us about the Artisan bath/pool just down the road. They loved it, and that was their principle reason for staying here.    Read more

  • TravelerOff to the sun with GMcG and F
    Day 10

    Hot springs in Lightening Ridge

    June 27, 2022 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C

    On the road to Lightening Ridge we stopped by the Artisian pool here in Walgett.
    It looked pristine...gloriously clean and sparkling.
    When I dipped my foot in - it was a very pleasant 38degrees.
    Surprisingly, the pool was empty!. Not for long though, our Tassie neighbours came walking across the grass in their bathers ready for a dip..Good for them!
    We arrived in Lightening Ridge around lunchtime. What a disappointment. No sullage, so any surface water soaks onto the ground- which was like a quagmire in places. Our site is little bigger than the caravan - not even room to put a seat out!
    We walked the town- plenty of flash looking opal stores.
    The biggest bowls club was on the main street. It was enormous, with plans to make the place bigger again, with another story to be added. The club included a bottle shop, Cafe and restaurant. We met Wally and Aileen again outside a surprisingly well stocked grocery store in town. And of course their caravan park has big drive through sites across the road from the hot baths.
    We took Frankie to the tennis court to throw his ball. We thought all the gates were closed....but he found an open one...out onto a very large oval.....and he was off- out of sight .
    I couldn't see him, but Ian spotted him sitting in the long grass around the edge. He took his time coming back...but he made the right decision. I cooked Nachos for dinner - Fiona and Greg had some too and we told them that we were leaving on Wednesday. Wished Stephen happy birthday 48 years old!!
    ...    Read more

  • TravelerOff to the sun with GMcG and F
    Day 11

    Lightening Ridge mine tours

    June 28, 2022 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    Our plan today is to visit the opal mines. But first we need to go to the pharmacy and pick up some meds. There is definitely something to say for tele conference with your GP.....doesn't matter where you are. We had coffee, and went to the John Murray art gallery - where I bought a new coffee mug. My 'G' mug smashed when I hadn't closed the cupboard door properly before heading off 2 days ago. It was after 2pm before we headed off...first to the information centre. Armed with maps, we headed for the Red door route, green door route and blue door route. We also looked into the Artisian hot pool and Opal CP...very nice on both counts.Read more

  • TravelerOff to the sun with GMcG and F
    Day 12

    St George

    June 29, 2022 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    We thankfully left Iron Ridge and the Outback Pioneer Resort this morning, leaving Greg and Fiona who wanted to stay another day. We were heading for St George which is a smallish country town, surrounded by cotton fields. Each enormous field had an equally enormous dam. The money wasn't going into the local infrastructure though thats for sure! The road surface getting here was appalling, and although the journey wasn't overly long (less than 200 kms) it seemed to last for ever, with potholes, dips and rises, creating an uncomfortable journey. We stopped for diesel at Hebel Motel, and, along with a lot of other people, then crossed the road to the local store to get a pie for lunch. They were lovely pies, stuffed with big chunks of meat. We also bought two T bone steaks which were obscene they were so large!
    Around 2.30 we were parked in the Pelican Rest CP. A lovely grassy site, with a large field to walk Frankie in. We went into town by car- a bit too far to walk. A beautiful big river flowed through the town. A good walking track ran alongside the river, and we walked a way along it. Heading back to the CP, we noticed a lot of vans parked in the towns Showground.
    A singing festival was underway. Walkins until Thursday, then the professionals Friday and Saturday.    Read more

  • TravelerOff to the sun with GMcG and F
    Day 12

    Yellowbelly country

    June 29, 2022 in Australia ⋅ 🌧 13 °C

    We checked out the singing at the Show Ground. Chockers with vans. There were 2 men and 1 woman playing guitars and singing. I'm glad it was free! These are the walk in sessions, but that changes tomorrow.
    I bought a support for my knee which is still swollen, and then cooked a ragu for later. When Frankie and I went over to the field to play ball, he missed and managed to knock the ball over the fence and put it out of reach. No visible gate evident and the fence was about 5ft high. We tied a length of rope to the end of his tether - so we had about 20ft attached, and then Ian lowered Frankie over the fence. He picked up his ball. Now the difficult part was to get Frankie back over the fence!! It was not easy. Ian pulled a tendon in his finger, and Frankie yelped for some reason. Anyway we got the ball back and the dog!
    Greg and Fiona arrived about 2.30. And parked beside us. Pizza made by Greg, for tea tonight.....very good indeed    Read more

  • TravelerOff to the sun with GMcG and F
    Day 14

    Rain coming St George

    July 1, 2022 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    Friday.....A 'wave' of wet weather is expected along the east coast, with a month worth of rain falling in Sydney in one day. Some rain is also expected in St George, but nothing like the quantity along the coast. So a decision was made to stay put for a couple of days, instead of driving in the rain.
    It started raining here after lunch, and while it wasn't too heavy, it was persistent and cold. We went up to the camp kitchen tonight to enjoy the heat from the wood fire. Plenty of others where there doing the same thing. One couple told me to go to Golders and buy a 'dry as a bone' dog coat for Frankie.    Read more

  • TravelerOff to the sun with GMcG and F
    Day 15

    St George

    July 2, 2022 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    The rain had mostly stopped, but it was a very overcast and dull day. We went to Golders Store in town and while they had a lot of 'country' things to purchase......Hats, coats, shoes, toys - they had no dog coats. Took another walk down the river, then bought a pie for lunch. Greg and Fiona arrived back from the morning session of the Yellowbelly Folk Festival, and offered to dog sit for the afternoon, if we wanted to go. Too good a chance to turn down!
    It was Freezing, but some very good singers were on stage. We were entertained from 1 - 5pm. I found it amusing, if a little bazaar, how many of the country women, took their knitting and crochet to the event, and sitting with a rug over their knees, (like me), they spent their time creating. knitting and crocheting to the music.
    Frankie got on well and was asleep in Greg's caravan when we got home. Crows lost the match against the top side Melbourne, and we had sausages from the butcher in town...very nice ones.    Read more

  • TravelerOff to the sun with GMcG and F
    Day 16

    Dalby

    July 3, 2022 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C

    We left St George for Dalby...It was an interesting drive - passing many very large fields of cotton. As far as the eye could see, and on both sides of the road. The road was further lined with pools of water and in several places this water was also on the road.
    Dalby was a moderate country town, full of lovely Queenslander houses. Another river runs past the Caravan Park, - Condamine River, which is full, however there is obvious signs of recent flooding, with garden fences covered in river weeds. A beautiful walk along the river is well maintained by council. Moore hens, cranes, and mallard ducks were all visible, Ian and I walked through the town - mostly closed but then its Sunday! Tonight we went to the pub. Bubbles supplied by Fiona and then dinner sitting outside by the heater in the pub, with Frankie - who was very well behaved thank goodness.    Read more

  • TravelerOff to the sun with GMcG and F
    Day 17

    Parting ways

    July 4, 2022 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    After looking at the weather forcast, Ian and I have decided to stay in Dalby for another couple of days. The BOM radar shows torrential rain falling along the coast throughout Queensland and NSW. Sydney has recieved as much rainfall in a week, that London gets in a year! A lot of Sydney suburbs have had to evacuate. That, accompanied by record low temperatures is hampering our quest to feel some warmth from the sun. Greg and Fiona have decided to head their own way - unfortunately this means heading into the rain - to see friends and family living in Brisbane. We bought Frankie a new harness - not sure if it will make a difference with his walking (which is what the harness is designed to do) but at least there isn't a buckle under his front leg, which causes him grief. Because we were staying longer than the booked one night, we had to move the caravan to a site off the main carpark like area. now we were on grass, which is so much better. We are right by the river, which is also lovely.Read more

  • TravelerOff to the sun with GMcG and F
    1
    Day 18

    3rd day in Dalby

    July 5, 2022 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    I did a wash this morning, and hung it out under heavy grey clouds - live in hope!! We went up the town and Ian and Frankie had coffee, while I window shopped. I bought a canister in a shop called K hub - a mixture of Kmart, Target and Catch - according to the sign at the till. The ceramic canister cost me $4 . Ian then went into Golders and bought me a pair of fingerless gloves. On the way home it started raining - not heavily but enough to stop my washing from drying. So for the first time in all my travels, i decided to use the tumble drier. Both were being used, but I got talking to a lovely Tassie man from Launceston. We talked about the Wall, and how it had such an effect on me...he knows what a beautiful part of the world he lives in...lucky man.
    This evening everyone was invited to a sausage tasting. We sampled the sausages around the fire, and had to guess what meat was used. The first was Emu!! it tasted quite good. Ian liked it best, second was pork, and third was Kangaroo. This one was my favourite, and Frankies too. as he sat to attention when the plate was passed around. Frankie draws people to us. A man from Kenya, working in the town as an opthalmologist, and who looked more like Indian, came over and stroked him. Frankie was quite taken with him (unusual) and another older man, who became quite emotional. He had just recently lost his dog. Frankie was a star all round and behaved so very well.    Read more

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