The Joy is in the Journey

  Wednesday 23 rd June Already refuelled at $1.38 we were ready early to move on. Libby made the first of her bold statements for the day. ‘We’ve been parked in a good position these last few days to survey the people who empty the toilet cassettes at the dump point. To a man, they have all been men. You see, it’s your job Eric, that’s evolution for you’. So this morning what happens? We both see a woman doing the task. Immediately I decided she must have been genetically modified. Eric drove to Cloncurry which sits on the banks of the Cloncurry River. These rivers must be a sight after rains. As the passenger my mind wandered, and I considered if she could have been an avatar at the dump point.   Perhaps sent to upset the natural balance of our universe. Maybe it’s time I got behind the wheel to occupy my mind! After a quick fuel top-up ($1.50) we turned off the Barkly and north onto the Burke Developmental Rd which forms the northern end of the Matilda Way. We noticed...

 Sunday 20th The skyline of Mt Isa is dominated by mining industry and smelter processing. There are many mines in the district, but Glencore owns Mt Isa Mines which operates two of the largest.  Each one concentrates on different ore bodies; copper and zinc-lead-silver. The copper mine is the deepest in Australia with a 1,900m shaft.  The smoke stack towers 155m above.  There are a number of statues around town paying homage to the men who work down below. These two show the history from early days to contemporary. The artwork on a water tank at the main city lookout depicts local wildlife including the black shouldered kite and Kalkadoon grasswren. That grasswren is only found in this Mt Isa region.  After exploring town in the morning, we played 9 holes of golf. The weather has been bright and beautiful today, so it was very pleasant though challenging with plenty of trees but minimal grass cover. There were a number of traps to avoid including being off the ...

Wednesday 16th June The planned itinerary had us leaving on Friday but once the awning was replaced and the window fixed after last trip, we were ready to go. Unfortunately neither of us slept well last night; I know I was up at 3am amending an article for the Darwin Golf Club Newsletter. How silly is that? And as a result we didn't get to Mataranka as scheduled but pulled up in Katherine. There were plenty of other vans on the road, mostly heading north.  The last time I stayed here was June 2019 on our way home from Broome. Eric was here more recently to play the NT Vets Open. I really enjoyed the drive through the Top End where the colours were so vibrant.    Fires have recently been burning off the undergrowth so there is a black background to the vibrant green of new cycad fronds. The Kapok bush is in flower, their yellow blossoms are a sign that the mud crabs are sweet at this time.  And then there is my favourite Turkey Bush smothered in pink and you remember ...

Could those rays of sunshine in the morning sky be a sign of better things to come? We're not waiting around any longer to find out. We have even had friend Col from Clare text to check we didn't get blown away in the dark after their experience overnight.  We made it from the heel of the Yorke Peninsula to Port Augusta by lunchtime. And we are in t-shirts again!  On the way we passed many, many more wind turbines belonging to the Snowtown wind farm,located on the Barunga and Hummocks ranges. The name Snowtown evokes memories of that terrible 'bodies in the barrels' episode in our history. None of the people involved were from the town though, it was just where the bodies were hidden. A very grizzly story which had long-lasting repercussions on the town. They even thought about changing the name at one stage apparently.  We have also driven by some lovely pink salt lakes at Price, just north of Ardrossan where they are producing salt and later at Lake Bumbunga n...