22 July - Dad's to home in Moe.

Up just before 7 to finish the unpack/pack. I restarted the fire. After a warm bed with electric blanket, the frost, ice and -1 degree was not a welcome sight or feeling.

Sunrise at 'Greenvale' - ice on car windows, frost on the grass.

Icy tyre.

Sunrise still looks good, even in the cold weather

Anyway got things sorted without too much hassle, helped Dad get the wood off the car (we'd carried some of it from Birdsville!) then a shower, breaky and on the road about 9.15. 

Had to get fuel and stopped for coffee and loo break at Pakenham, arrived home at 1.45. The cat, Aero, was on the verandah waiting within seconds. 

Entering Gippsland, I was struck by how green it is, it was also really windy. Think I’d had a tail wind to Melbourne, but turning East it became a cross wind, which buffeted the car on occasion.

Green and windy.

Nearly there.

Home sweet home, you can just see Aero in the bottom right corner. Don't know where he came from.

equipment. All clothing in the bath to soak and washing is underway. Not an easy task with a cat demanding attention. 

Meg and Stef stayed in Hay last night and were about 120kms behind me. Now home safe and sound. 

Sarah and Michael suffered minus temps in their tent last night and were arriving in Canberra to visit a friend for the afternoon. 

Steve and Carmel are enjoying 26 degrees at Barkly Homestead. 

Dad has been busy cleaning up, seeing about getting some of the repairs done and washing.

A call from neighbour Jenny to see if I needed anything, while I didn't she popped over with some soup and sausage rolls - so lovely and a kind gesture. Barb also offered Beef casserole. So lucky to have brilliant neighbours. A huge thanks to Barb and John for feeding Aero, collecting mail and keeping an eye out. 

Our trip summary:

Speedo on departure Dads Echuca = 27 900kms

Return Dads Echuca = 35 0000kms

Plus my trip to Echuca and Moe @ v 315kms each way. 

A grand total of 7730kms.  

Here is a map from the 'Spot' Navigator messages we sent. Our aim was to 'send' a Spot Message at lunchtime and at each nights camp, we didn't always remember.

21 July - Cobar to "Greenvale" Echuca.

Nice sleep last night. Woke to freezing temps with ice on windscreen, brrrrr! A harbinger of what we are coming home too. Time to turn around.  

Left motel about 7.20 for fuel then out the road a little to stop for breaky. 

Nothing but bumpy roads today, they looked smooth but not the case. 

From Cobar to Hillston then onto Griffith where we took an opportunity for a bit of a look around. Up to the scenic lookout at Hermits Cave, where an Italian bloke used to live in the rocky overhangs etc. he evidently had gardens and several rooms which were painted. 

Griffith was designed by Walter Burley Griffin and is based around a circle with lots of roundabouts. He planned the town to have the lookout area as the city backdrop with views over the town. 

Then we cruised out to Lake Wyangan, there was a fantastic area with heaps of chairs and tables looking over the lake which was busy with moorhens, black swans with cygnets and some cormorants and shags. Nice lunch stop. Last nights left over chook and salads. 

Dad and I at Lake Wyangan for lunch, near Griffith.

Views over Griffith, from Hermit's Cave lookout.

Views over Griffith, from Hermit's Cave lookout. You can see lots of citrus orchards.

Views over Griffith, from Hermit's Cave lookout. - the city

Views over Griffith, from Hermit's Cave lookout. Neat rows of citrus trees.

 Then we cruised out to Lake Wyangan, there was a fantastic area with heaps of chairs and tables looking over the lake which was busy with moorhens, black swans with cygnets and some cormorants and shags. Nice lunch stop. Last nights left over chook and salads. 

Lake Wyangan

Pelican, shag and cormorant and a dead tree.

The moorhens were prolific, near the Picnic/park area. Nice lighting too.

They really are beautifully coloured, with navy breast, and red beak and face.

There were many black swans with cygnets in the middle of the Lake

A shag on a 'clump of reeds'

This guy had must 'caught' some weed and was bringing it in to eat.

Prancing closer to check us out

Strutting by.

 Mmmm, not so sure now.

A pair with nice reflections. The nearer one, was bringing up weed on his foot and eating that.

The car parked alongside the Lake and our table, where we ate lunch.

Then on towards Deni and home to Dads. We arrived home here about 5.45 and started the unpacking. Dad went back into town for some Thai takeaway. It's cold, not sure I can manage anymore unpacking tonight. 

An early start in the morning to finish the transfer to my car and then head for Moe. Would like to make it back mid arvo. 

Heard from most of the others today. Steve and Carmel are enjoying hot weather at Camp Camooweal, Meg and Stef were home bound and in Cobar mid arvo. Sarah and Michael were between Bourke and Nyngan. 

20 July - Bush camp just South of Tambo to Copper City Motel, Cobar.

Not a super fast start, cooked breaky and a bit of a clean up saw us packed up and on the road by 8.45 

We have clocked up just over 800kms today - hence the motel at the other end. Only stops were for fuel and lunch at Cunnamulla- which ended up being just over an hour. 

Nothing of note to discuss, we both drove. I got some blog uploaded this morning and sorted some photos, its a slow job with such poor phone service and therefore internet. Perhaps tomorrow. 

We are currently travelling between Bourke and Cobar keeping eyes peeled for critters, it's the worst time of the day. 

We have seen lots of roadkill - mainly roos, but also emus, cows and pigs. Lots of crows and a few hawks feasting on them too. We have also seen lots of emus and roos alive and healthy, we are also back into goat country during the day. 

We crossed the border from QLD to NSW, temp are back into high teens - warm in the car but really cool morning and evening. 

Another cool sunset along the way. The clouds on both sides of the road were changing colours pinks and purples and blues, some bits looked like a bruise colouring up. 

Sunset colours, looking left.

and looking right

and to the right a little further on. I couldn't actually see the sun, must have been behind us.

Will be nice to get a shower again tonight and that's the end of the tent for another little while. Should be home to Dad's tomorrow night, unpack Saturday morning and then head for Moe Saturday arvo - all going well. 

Hot chook and salads from IGA for tea. Some blogging and now bedtime. 

19 July - Bush camp between Lark Quarry and Winton to bush camp just South of Tambo.

A windy night last night - really our first one all trip, tents were flapping and the dust and prickles blowing around weren't great. It cooled off too, we were glad of the fire and burnt all Steve's wood that he has been carrying since before Diamantina Lakes NP. 

The colour before the sun.

Here it comes.

More shots.

Long morning shadows.

Thought I'd try and jump in.

Up to take the sun rising and lighting up the nearby jump up.

Someone else grabbed the camera, packing up.

Steve is going to try and pick up a second parcel that arrived at Mt Isa after we'd left. So a photo of me with my licence, to support the letter I've written authorising Steve to collect for me.

A lovely psuedo 'last night' camp. This morning we said goodbye to Steve and Carmel who are heading back up to Mt Isa, to Sarah and Michael who were shooting off to Longreach and eventually heading south via Canberra, to Stef, Milani and (poor Meg was still in bed with a migraine) who are off to Longreach to see Stockmans Hall of Fame, Qantas Museum and to catch up with Jadon again, they are then heading home via Charleville and the Bilbies, Jadon is going home via Dubbo to visit his dad. 

We headed out of camp about 9.30 with Steve and Carmel and left the Dundek's with Meg in tent sleeping off the migraine. We had a radio call not long after to say goodbye, hope she is feeling better soon, didn't sound too chipper on the radio.

Straight through Winton, where the Davey's went one way and we the other. Onto Longreach - fuel, quick loo stop (ran into Sarah and Michael - they copped a hit in the windscreen on way here, so were planning to visit O'Briens before heading to Qantas museum,) a squiz at Main Street, pie for lunch then I made enquiry at Post Office as to how I could authorise someone like Steve to pick up my parcel in Mt Isa (a tent part from Black Wolf that arrived several days after we left.)  I have given Steve a letter authorising him to collect, also fowarded the text and we took a mug shot of us both with me holding my licence. Longreach PO folk say this should be enough. 

Then Dad and I hit the road to Ifracombe, Barcaldine, then to Blackall and Tambo for a fuel and air stop. We found a bush camp off to the left not far out of Tambo. 

A pair of bustards, just near where we turned in to find a camp.

Small fire, scrounging poor wood from around the campsite.

Dad and I in the Eastern colours of sunset

and there's the tree again, as the sun disappears behind us in the West.

This morning was cool, but still braved shorts, got up for sunrise onto the nearby "jump up". (It's a hill really, they jump up out of nowhere) and to struggle with packing up with wind, prickles and dust. All happened pretty quickly. We were intending to hang around to say goodbye to Meg, but Stef suggested we go and take the pressure off Meg (really I think Stef thought they were holding us up, but both Steve and us were happy to wait)

An uneventful day all up, as will then next few as we shoot for home - lots of driving, sleeping etc. 

Forgot to mention we did have phone coverage for a lot of this morning so I was able to prepare and publish some blog posts. Hopefully more over next few days. 

9.01pm - the wood is burnt, warmest place is bed, my arms hanging out are cold so off to the land of nod I go. 

18 July - McKindlay - Walkabout Hotel Campground to camp between Lark Quarry and Winton.

Well we actually achieved out ETD - rolling out the gate at 8.05. Showered, packed, pics, fuel and out on the road. 

Sunrise from the campground, looking towards some buildings and tanks.

Galahs everywhere, Bird on a wire in action.

There was a constant flurry for position

Their pink and grey was highlighted in the early morning sunshine

A popular tree nearby.

And another one.

Birds on a wire, in the sunrise.

And a road train passes by along the road.

The front of the Pub

and again.

The bar used in the Crocodile Dundee movie. In a shed out the back of the Pub.

Originally built in 1900, it was the Federal Hotel

Mc Kindlay has a bit going on, so the sign says.

Passed by the Blue Heeler Pub at Kynuna.

A typical outback pub.

A jump up along the way.

Arrived at Winton about 10.30am for fuel and farewell to Jadon who is heading for Longreach today. 

Winton is the home of home of the Crack Up Sisters, who MC'd the Big Red Bash.

Out to Lark Quarry - a much better road than we anticipated so the 100kms out to see the only known Dinosaur Stampede in the world, was quicker than we anticipated and we were able to catch the 1.00 tour. 

Our guide and the video/information session that started the tour.

The tour consisted of a bit of a chat and video of the history of the place and how these footprints of a dinosaur stampede came to be. In the 60s one of the station owners who liked opal hunting accidentally discovered what he thought were chicken footprints. It turned out that a whole layer of a 'jump up' contained a layer of rock that contained hundreds of prints of three dinosaurs. The smallest - chicken sized - coelurosaur, a middle sized emu sized - ornithod and thirdly a horse sized predator - who came and attacked bunches of the two smaller sized critters who scattered and ran away thus causing the only known Dinosaur Stampede in the world. 

You can see the outline of the big predator print

All of these footprints are stamped INTO the rock, depending on the photo however, they sometimes look raised.

and again, these prints look raised to me, but they were definitely not.

At Lark Quarry nothing was done for 10 years after initial find, then a female expert Mary Wade started work to clear the trackways - the labour was army cadets and volunteers. They moved 60 tons of rock to unearth the "trackways" one of the volunteers was a 70 year old named Malcolm Lark was one of the hardest workers - he was honoured by naming the Quarry after him. 

They have built a huge structure over the trackways to protect them. It is now known as the Dinosaur Stampede National Monument. 

Really hard to get your head around the fact that this happened 95million years ago - when the climate here was more like Victoria. How they've come up with the story of the attack. 

Listening and looking intently, Stef and Dad.

The 'Trackways' a layer of rock that miraculously captured the footprints of a dinosaur stampede. The island in the back, has not been removed, there are more than likely more prints underneath.

This one is the predator, that chased all the other dinosaurs, creating the stampede

The small chicken sized Coelurosaur.

And the medium sized ornithod.

The big prints are the predator, lot of the other marks are the prints of the other two. VERY HARD to photograph.

Hard to believe this all happened 95 million years ago!

They have built a huge structure over the trackways to protect them. It is now known as the Dinosaur Stampede National Monument. 

The structure now, built to protect the "Trackways" from the elements.

We went for a short walk around the building, had some good views.

Spinifex grass in the foreground

We had lunch at one of the shelters at Lark Quarry - and headed back towards Winton. Meg sensibly suggested a camp off the Lark Quarry road closer to Winton. This was excellent. We were camped by 4.00, with time to sit and drink and nibble and watch for satellites. 

Our Camp tonight.

Sunsetting.

The all important Toilet Tent.

A hole in the ground, with a loo seat over the top. (a group design from previous trips, and made a reality by Stef) There are toilet tent rules,  burn the loo paper, cover whatever you do with a thin layer of dirt. (don't fill the hole too quickly)

Time for some drone flying. Steve watching progress on the phone

Now looking up to see where exactly the drone is.

Here is comes, ready for landing on the table.

Sun is almost gone.

Drinks and nibbles, with the last of colour in the East.

Someone was playing with my camera...a nice shot.

We had wood to burn and the fire was brilliant. Michael then whipped up some nachos which were great. 

The nachos were a bit of combined effort, Michael, Meg, me, contributions from Steve and advice from others.

Meg getting a little OCD about chip placement

The sauce we whipped up.

The challenge now was to get the flimsy tray into the Webber to bake. We did and they were really, really good.

Dad took this shot of Milani silhouetted above their roof top tent.

No set ETD tomorrow. A great night to end our time together - tomorrow Steve and Carmel turn northwards again and head for Mt Isa and rest of their trip. The rest of us head for Longreach, Dad and I will tootle on. The Dundek's are looking at Hall of Fame/Qantas museum and meeting up with J. Sarah and Michael aren't sure yet, they may do Longreach or head for Charleville. Only time will tell.