Very pleasant campsite in Longreach – it was big, and
there were a lot of people there, but where we were located – In the unpowered
section right next to an (unfortunately dry) billabong, there was hardly
anyone. And the showers and facilities
were probably the nicest of any camp site on the whole trip. I cooked a fry- up breakfast that, though I
say it myself, was yummy, and then we packed up, filled up our built-in 50
litre water tank, and then set off into Longreach to the Stockman’s Hall of
Fame.
This magnificent facility was
opened about 15 years ago to commemorate all the pioneers of Outback Australia,
and in particular the Stockmen and Cattle Ranchers who played such an important
role not only in this part of the world, but in Australia’s history. They have
done a great job, and there is a one hour outdoor show about horses and cattle
and dogs and all the things involved in a cattleman’s life. Very good, and kept humorous for the
kids. Then you could spend hours in the
museum section, as it covers a wide range of Australian Outback life and its
history. We were there for maybe a
couple of hours, but if you really wanted to, you could spend a day there
easily, if that was your interest. Although
it is all very commercial (as is the way with so many of these things
nowadays), it was very worthwhile, and I would recommend it to anyone heading
this way as it fulfils a vital role in documenting the early history of
Australia.
From there, after a quick shop for a couple of supplies
(we stop almost daily so we don’t have to carry too much stuff), we passed a
Corella Tree. What’s that ? you might
ask. Basically, it is an enormous tree,
in the middle of town, and it was COVERED in maybe 4 or 500 white parrots –
Corellas. We just could not believe it –
Never seen o many in one place before.
It was SO tempting to go out and try to scare them to make them all take
off at once – But we didn’t !!!
Then it was out to the airport. Longreach has the first and original
Q.A.N.T.A.S. hanger from the 1920’s.
Although the airline actually started in Winton just up the road, it moved
to Longreach very early on and this is now known as its home. Funnily enough, I flew in here years ago (25
??) to work on a rig, and I have a photo of the hanger, and it was all dirt and
the roads were dirt. Now it is all new,
with a 747, a 707, a Catalina Flying Boat, and a DC3, amongst many other
exhibits, and then there is a massive museum and tours of all the
aircraft. I just cannot believe how much
this place has grown up since I was last here !! Time and tide wait for no-one, I
guess………………………………….
After QANTAS we headed out of town towards Barcaldine,
only about 170 kms down the road. We are
heading towards Rockhampton on the coast which is about 600 kms or so, but we
have a couple of days to get there. After
about half an hour we passed through this little town called Ilfracombe – I
mean it really isn’t much more than a 60 kmh sign, couple of stores, few houses,
lots of tractors – And two emus !!! I am
coasting down the main street, and one emu decides to walk in front of me !! Right in the middle of town !!! It took its
time, so I stopped in the middle of the road, and waited for the other one to
cross – He was only thinking about it.
But when he saw I had stopped and was waiting for him to cross, then he
just sauntered across really slowly !!
I have not laughed so much in a long time. A local pedestrian strolled past and thanked
me for stopping – I said it was my pleasure as it was the funniest thing to
happen to me in ages !!
Oh – Why tractors ?
Apparently 50 years ago Ilfracombe was a manufacturing base for farm machinery,
so they have all sorts of old farm machinery and tractors, 100’s of them, lined
up down the side of the road like an open air museum !!
Emus and tractors !!!
Only in the outback !!
After that it was back to the long straight (and VERY dry)
road east, to a place called Barcaldine.
This pace is famous as the birthplace of the Australian Labour Party
back in the 1891, under a big Ghost Gum, when they formed a Union Movement for
a fair days pay for a fair days work. It followed a big shearer’s strike, I
believe, because shearers were treated very badly by most Station Owners, and
it spread from there. I won’t get into
politics here, but I will say that, in my opinion, (and that of many many
others), it is the most hideous monument imaginable, that totally ruins what is otherwise a
lovely laid back country town. The tree
under which they gathered was eventually poisoned by someone in about 2002, so
the Labor Party took the (dead) tree away, preserved it with resin or
something, stuck it back in a concrete base, and then built this monstrous
wooden façade around it and then filled the façade with all these suspended
logs of wood supposed to represent the shearing tool blades. Right in the middle of the main street
!!! Yuck. Anyway, what we found hilarious was that on
the other side of the road, within a distance of maybe 400 yards (the whole
main street is maybe only 800 yards long) are 5 (yes Five) pubs !! I mean, the population of Barcaldine is
probably about 1000, and they have 5 big pubs almost side by side !! Yup, that sounds like the Union Movement !!!
Anyway, as we were driving out of Barcaldine, we passed
their cemetery, and it was lovely and green compared to the parched surrounding
countryside. Beautifully
maintained. And full of ‘roos eating all
the lovely green grass !!!! Lots of
flowers in peoples headstones, but funnily enough the ‘roos didn’t touch them –
They just mow the grass !!
75 kms down the road, just before we reached Jericho, we
finally saw some feral camels !!! We have
been expecting to see these all through the red centre, but nothing !! Now, we finally see them !! We then came to Jericho, which probably
has a population of maybe 50, and a very nice showgrounds where they let you
camp very cheaply, and provide basic toilets and showers. So we are in Jericho showgrounds tonight, and
after a great home-made hamburger courtesy of Janet, (she has kept me far
better fed all trip than I am accustomed to when normally on the road on my own
!!) accompanied by a nice glass of red, it is getting cold, my feet are
freezing, and I am ready to jump into my warm sleeping bag !!
Pics here :- https://picasaweb.google.com/117739775480775657932/0047LongreachToJericho?authkey=Gv1sRgCN7g_-m5ua79NA#
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