Big Red Bash Birdsville and Beyond 2017: 1 July - Cordillo Downs Craney's Creek side camp to camp West of Birdsville.

The tent held up well.

Nicely coloured sunrise.

Sunrise over the camp.

Sunrise again.

Sunrise

Well we did manage our ETD of 9.30. It was actually 9.35 but we had a load of wood on our carrier and on the roof cage. Phil also changed his slow leaking tyre in which he discovered a screw.

There was a bit of traffic today as we neared Birdsville.

Phil rode with Dad this morning and I hopped in with Mary and Kate. We dropped in the Woolshed at Cordillo Downs - built in 1883 from sandstone and curved tin roof. An enormous shed that at times saw 82 000 sheep shorn in one season.

Cordillo Down's woolshed.

Old steam engine

Mary fascinated by the old truck.

The truck sucked a few of us in.

Our crew parked at the Woolshed.

Some annoying caravanners on our radio channel prattling on about something missing from one of the vans, perhaps stolen.

We crossed time zones again as we moved from SA back to QLD.

Border crossing

South Australia

Then after a brief lunch break (with no trees for a wee)

From there we joined the traffic heading to Birdsville. Our plan was to fuel up, get water, suss out the actual process for collecting tickets and early bird passes.

We made it to Birdsville - it's a bid mad today.

As we entered Birdsville we were in awe of the sheer numbers of vans, campers, 5th wheelers and other configurations camped along the roadsides into town.

We managed to get pretty much straight in for fuel. Steve managed a shattered rear window which he became aware of when he returned to the car after fuelling.

We ran into Kelvin and Joanne, friends of the Davey's who we met at Riverboats Music Festival. They are volunteering at the Bash.

We headed over to the information centre where several food trucks are set up for the bash along with BRB info tent and merchandise areas with pictures to start choosing.

We grabbed a coffee, sat around and chatted, utilised the toilets.

Kelvin gave us the good oil about water and toilets and showers a couple of kms out of town. We went to find no water to showers but the drinking water was excellent so we hooked up hoses to fill tanks and containers. Jadon went the more agricultural approach of bucketing the water into his water tank- whose filler hole was in the middle of the car, hence the bucket and cup, as he didn't trust the hose directly into the vehicle.

Sarah was also having some issues with her tank with the potential of water flowing into vehicle. In the process of carefully clearing an air pocket Steve ended up with an embarrassing wet patch.

Then we headed out further and found a campsite on a clay pan for two nights.

When Steve was waiting at the Petrol Station, he noticed a crack in his rear window, it is shattered, a stone had hit it, he is blaming some stones thrown up by other vehicles during the day.