We set south from Bourke at about 9. Pack up was a bit more challenging because of the overnight rain and an inundation of ants. We gave the tent a hefty dose of bug spray as we packed up knowing we’d need to deal with the corpses at the other end. 

Long stretches of tarmac and literally hundreds of wild goats weee the theme of the day.  The goats seemed to be attracted to the road side – not sure why, and we drove past gingerly hoping they wouldn’t dart out in front of us. Fortunately they were streetwise.

Not many stops today. We had intended to lunch in Cobar but didn’t realise it was a public holiday so nothing was open.

We ended up with a roadhouse lunch (unexpectedly with  beautiful fresh sandwiches and coffee).

Afternoon tea stop was in the Mount Hope Pub- the new owners, a  lovely couple , had just taken over 31 days ago.  They were certainly getting lots of business today.

Our final destination for today is in a gem of a campground in a historic school in Merriwagga about an hour south of Hillston. We’re camped in the old school grounds (closed since 2001). The owner is a real card- he and his wife bought the property when the school closed and runs it as a caravan park- and he builds tandem bikes!!! Who would have thought!

Some really cute signs around- there are literally millions of flies around (we’ve had to deploy fly nets), hopefully that means we are more at the bug end of the food chain rather than the snake end.

It’s cloudy and a bit chilly here- am about to put on some long pants and break out the polar fleece for the first time in 3 weeks even though it’s about 23 degrees. Perhaps I’m turning into a Queenslander!

Total km: 3990

Woke up as the other campers started amping up their generators and the kids hit their dirt bikes- most with horses had left late last night- I guess travelling in the cool.

We checked out the flood warnings in Vic before plotting our route- although if I’m being totally honest the thought of being trapped in outback Queensland had just a smidge of  attraction.

We headed out of camp at our usual time, just before 9.

We passed through the wild dog fence out of Queensland at 9 and arrived in New South Wales at 10 – we are time travellers!

We travelled south down the Hungerford Road savouring every last bit of red dirt knowing it’s the last we’ll see for a while.

Caught this guy on video as he ran in front of us- and yes he did make it to the other side!

We stopped at Fords Bridge naively thinking we’d have lunch at the historic Warrego Hotel, only to find the pub was deserted – the owner passed away a while back and nobody has taken it on. While we were there a couple we met in Hungerford pulled in and told us that the pub is going free to anyone who has a liquor license and wants it….. hmm now that sounds like a retirement plan to me!!!!!

Found I had company in the public toilets there….

Just outside Bourke we hit tarmac again, feeling a slight malaise that this meant we really were close to the end of our trip.

Arrived in Bourke just before 2, absolutely ravenous.   However we met our match with ‘The Northy’s’ counter lunch.

We’re camped right in Bourke in a camp ground that meets our key requirements after 3 days of free bush camping- shower and power- yes!!!

Awoke early to light rain ( the first of this trip), the hum of dirt bikes and clatter of horses as all the kids got ready for their events. The Hungerford Sports Association had planned their event day to coincide with the 150th and the flood relief activities so the joint is jumping.

We watched the morning gumkhana (a photo free child sporting event sorry). So much fun- starting with an under 4 event with cute tiny tots riding equally cute tiny ponies, led by their parents trying out junior versions of flag races, barrel races and ‘Apple our of the bucket’ races. Man you have to be fit to be a parent in these parts, those ponies can move.

Was amazing watching the skill of the young riders – going up to 17 and their positively gleaming stock horses- heaven!

The gymkhana was all over by late morning with the 150th celebrations starting with a parade of pretty much everyone who currently living in Hungerford either on foot or horse back followed by the adult events, and finishing the day with novelty events including broom tossing and egg throwing. So much wholesome fun and the entire community got into it wholeheartedly. 

I’d say we were pretty much the only people here who don’t have a connection with the town, but people were very welcoming. I had long chats with an 85+ year old cattle farmer who had travelled with his mate (also 85) from the other side of Roma. His mate was competing in events and his mates wife had asked this fellow to go with him to ‘keep him out of trouble’. I asked him if he was still riding and he said ‘no my grandkids made me shift to the Ute 3 years ago’.

Back at our camp site exhausted and literally coated in red dust. We definitely need a camp site with shower facilities tomorrow night, but in the mean time- baby wipes it is!

There are two types of morning people in campgrounds- this who are up and at ’em at the crack of dawn and those that stay in bed, air conditioners on the blow until well after 9. Our observation is the length of time in bed is proportional to the size of your van.

The sweet spot for us having made and consumed a leisurely breakfast seems to be a 9am departure.

We spent the morning checking out the sights of Cunnamulla – a really pretty historic town, we did a mandatory stop at the bakery (very important to support local businesses….) then headed out of town- backtracking through Eulo before heading south towards Hungerford.

It was a mix of gravel, gibber rock and corrugations as we headed through Currawinya National Park. 

originally part of an old merino station, the woolsheds have been preserved.

We turned on our dust machine and listened to our duco being exfoliated.

Arrived in Hungerford round 2 pm and called into the Royal Mail Hotel (another one on our list) with a hope of getting lunch. The owner informed us the kitchen had closed early to prepare for the town’s 150th birthday party this evening- farmers and travellers alike (over 300 of them) are expected for a weekend on food, family fun, barrel racing, gymcana and motocross racing- along with live music each night. Camping is free as is the pub camo roast tonight. 

We scurried off to secure our camp site in the bush surrounding the sports ground and are now nestled in at our site waiting for 5.30 when the fun begins, and calculating how long it takes to drive to Melbourne should we get parked in until it all ends on Sunday.

Have felt a few big drops of rain but hopefully BOM predictions for minimal rain are correct or we may be at the biggest party in town for quite some time

Joined the masses at the Royal Mail Hotel. The free dinner had been sponsored by the flood relief and resilience program as a way of bringing three remote community together to connect- and it certainly seemed to do the job. . It was easy to spot the tourists – we were the ones not wearing work shirts, jeans and boots. Stayed for dinner, drinks and some live music before heading back to camp, which is very quiet now except for the sound of generators and people’s dogs  barking in their vans. I suspect it will get much noisier later tonight.

Woke to cool but strong winds this morning so made haste to pack up the camper before it became a giant kite.

Once that was done we enjoyed a relaxed breakfast in the camp kitchen chatting and sharing tips with other campers (to be honest their tips are always more valuable than ours).

We left Quilpie just after 9 taking the Quilpie Thargaminda Road – based on morning recommendations first stop was the South Western Hotel in Toonpine – it’s one of the famed iconic bush pubs and reputed to have the best morning teas this side of the black stump, so how could we not? The owners’ daughter served us-    the pub has been in their family since the 1940. The morning tea certainly lived up to expectations.

And where would an outback town be without a rusty vehicle sitting on top of a pile? 

From  there with full bellies, fully caffeinated, and clutching a signed copy of the Australian Bush Pubs we went on n our way. 

Our mission is now clear…..

Again the road was the narrow single lane tarmac road with reasonably wide verges except for the creek bed crossings.  We definitely heeded the signage, pulling over and sucking in our tummies as the big cattle trucks passed us. 

Got off the road for this bad boy- they don’t slow down for anyone.

Lunch stop was in Eulo, an old opal mining town from the 1880s, also famous for its artesian mud baths. Despite their transformative health claims we gave the mud baths a miss given the mercury sitting at 37 and our reluctance to have mud lodged in every nook and cranny. 

Never let it be said we’re ‘unAustralian’ – we stopped for  a hearty Angus sandwich at the Eulo Queen Hotel,. The pub was founded and now named after Isabel Robinson, ‘the Queen of Eulo’ , an early pioneer woman who set up businesses in the town in the late 1800s, trading with the opal miners.

Arrived in Cunnamulla mid afternoon and made the (not too) difficult choice – caravan park with pool or free camp with flies? Let’s just say we were parked up with togs on within 15 minutes. We wallowed until the sun went low and we resembled prunes, chatting to the other late afternoon arrivals doing the same. 

Awoke to the sound of a barking owl echoing across our camping spot., followed by a cacophony of water birds.

The sun was ferocious this morning so we decided to swap a leisurely breakfast for a muesli bar and pack up and hit the road before we melted. We had intended to pick up breaky along the way…. Not such a good decision as it turned out.

Our first stop was Eromanga Pub (the only open establishment in Eromanga- at 10.30 it was too early for food, service and while beer was a go, it was a bit early in the drive for us to imbibe.

Eromanga is another tiny town- apparently the furthest town from the ocean in Australia. It is also the town closest to the station where Cooper the titanosaurus,  Australia’s largest dinosaur skeleton was found. 

The finding of Cooper led to the establishment of the Edomanga natural history museum and research facility which we toured on our way in. It is staffed mostly by interns, who pay for a 2 week training course after which they can come up any time and help with the dinosaur retrieval. They painstakingly scratch, brush and blow the clay and rock from the fossils which are then reassembled as best they can- each Dino taking about 10 years to extract from its rock.   While it sounds interesting I’m pretty sure a bull at a gate blind woman doesn’t have the requisite skill or patience.

The real Indiana Jones

Still foodless and more importantly without coffee we pressed on to Quilpie. The frequent signs warned us of the 50m road trains that were likely to over take or come towards us on the narrow tarmac strip- however thankfully we were lucky enough not to come across them.

Finally got lunch in Quilpie round 3pm by which time we were just about ready to eat each others arms off.

We’re staying on a fabulous station stay, just a few clicks out of Quilpie. They have a great set up including a little corrugated iron bar that opens from 5 to 7 every night. All the campers came up for a  sundowner- some really interesting people there- including a couple who have rented their house and have been on the road  for  3 years . They gave us some good tips for tomorrow’s route, so stay tuned.

Anyone looking for a remote caretakers job just let us know and we will give you deets. Mind you it averages 45-47 here in the summer….

Awoke to a bit of a puddle alongside our camp site- the sprinkler system across the way had burst and been running madly for several hours. Fortunately it was close enough to give us a sea view but not so close to turn us into a houseboat. 

And what a view it was. The first sign of water in a desert and along come the birds _ a family of beautiful brolgas among them- just mesmerising. This led to us having a slower start than we planned but well worth sitting and taking it in.

We finally headed off just after 9am turning our nose south towards Windorah. 

The first half of the trip (actually most of it) was once again under big skies and vacant landscapes- amazing how truly beautiful nothingness can be, even if the photos don’t do it justice.

First stop was at Stonehenge- a tiny little town with one of those signature outback pubs. The town has a population of 14 and at 11 am when we arrived 4 of them were in the pub. Lovely chatty folks who obviously come in for their daily yarn with the young woman working the bar who is working her way across the outback and coastal NSW depending on the time of year. Was hard to move on and leave the atmosphere butt alas we had to.

From there we stopped for a brief look at the Swanvale lookout- a rocky outcrop with magnificent views over a relatively lush landscape – a bit of an oasis that kind of emerged and left as quickly as it appeared.

And then there were two

A quick caffeine stop at at Jundah roadhouse  then on to Windorah. Windorah  is right in the heart of channel country and seems to be a key intersection of routes in the outback. North towards Longreach, west to Birdsville, East to Quilpie and South towards Corner country. 

Fuelled up in Windorah – a massive $3.35 per litre but hey, it has to travel a long way to get here.  Perhaps we need to return to the one horse power alternative….,

We arrived round 4pm in blistering heat and are now camped up in a free camp at Cooper Crossing (a small causeway across Cooper Creek). There’s quite a few campers here. We managed to snaffle a shaded site on the east side of the river- very peaceful except the occasional roar of the cattle trucks as the cross the bridge (an unavoidable sound in this neck of the woods).

River sunset and man cooked omelette for dinner. Life is good

Woke to birdsong (or more parrot squawks) for the first time in a couple of days. Most of the campers left yesterday and with only a few of us left the  wildlife has returned. A troop of roos scoured the camp site last night making it clear we were in their territory not the reverse. 

After breakfast and a bit of route planning for tomorrow we headed off to explore the Cobb & Co history of this area.

Like all good visitors to Longreach we booked into the Cobb & Co outback ride experience. Our main goal was the coach ride and a bit of horsey time (me) but once we got there we found (like most other tours we’ve done in the outback), the  history was fascinating. The young fella who did our tour walked us through the evolution from mud wagons to coaches to the first outback trucks, the mechanics of the coaches, the set up of tack, and the evolution of Cobb & Co the company who at one stage employed 40% of men along its route. 

Noting that I didn’t select the props for the next photo

The coach ride itself was fab- now pulled busy a team of 5 ex-racing trotters. One was being a bit pesky, but so would I be pulling a gaggle of tourists through rough and ready roads. It was certainly a rough, dusty  and noisy ride  so I think both humans and horses are better off with the advent of locomotives!

Part of the tour included a screening of the 1950s film ‘Smily gets a gun’ filmed in Augathella, in a historic cinema with original deck chair seating. A cracker of a film even if a bit non-PC to have a plot involving an 8 year old reprobate doing good deeds to prove he was responsible enough for the local sergeant to reward him with a gun.

It was a scorcher today so we finished our day with a swim and early dinner in the local Chinese restaurant. We are now contemplating the pack up for an early start tomorrow.  We are heading for Windorah or thereabouts.

Today marks the turnaround point for our trip as we start winding our way slowly home.

Today was all about outback history, and the characters and horses that shaped it. Having heard great things about the centre we had booked in for the ‘full stockman’s experience’ which involved a screening of the brilliant short film ‘A Stockman’s Tale’, entry to the museum and a one and a half hour stockman live show.

The museum was fabulous- a truly accessible audio tour with the audio being sensor driven so it clicked into the narration for each exhibit as you arrived there- heaven for me. The displays bought to life the immense challenges, incredible feats, and daily realities of early pastoral pioneers, drovers,  Aboriginal workers, stockmen and women who shaped the Australian outback. 

We gave it a good crack, listening to as many of the stories as time would allow but I came away feeling like we’d only scratched the surface. 

The live  show was brilliant- but how could it not be when it featured three of my favourite things- horses, dogs and whip cracking- as well as an incredibly  moving tribute to the stockmen and horses who joined the Lighthorse Brigade… gulp.

David almost had to drag me out of there, and let’s just say there’s been an old girl demonstrating her whip cracking skills in the camp ground this afternoon!

Today we followed the Paddy Behan Way, an alternate route recommended by the caretaker at our station stay who said it would offer nicer outback views .

it was a pretty rough and ready narrow tarmac road,  which promised to avoid the road trains (and hopefully road kill). It lived up to expectations and the small amount of traffic we did encounter was mostly locals and caravans who like us, had obviously been given ‘the word’.

The road passed through several unfenced stations,. The first couple were cattle stations but after crossing the ear piercing dingo fence we began to see sheep.

We stopped for an early lunch in a cute little town called Isisford on the banks of the almost dry Barcoo River renowned for its annual giant yellow belly fishing competition- of course with a giant sculpture to go with it. 

Arrived in Longreach round 12.30 to 35 degree heat and opted to tour the Qantas museum rather than melt. (It was a line ball to be honest). While it didn’t change my world it was quite interesting, and after walking through decades of old planes I can confirm we who sit in the back definitely have less leg room than we used to.

We finally did set up camp late afternoon as the cool breeze came in. And even fit in a load of washing. The wading  machines require you to enter your mobile number and send you a text as your washing finishes – a neat solution to the usual dog eat dog world of camp laundries. 

The camp ground is ringing with the sound of cracking stock whips from all the kids (and big kids) who visited the Stockens  Hall of Fame today.  Maybe I’ll be doing my own little whip cracking tomorrow!

Had a hearty meal at the local Woolshed Tavern , and now feeling replete having devoured a small calf (me) and a ram shank (D).