We have arrived at Roxby Downs - exit the Stuart Highway at Pimba, pass by the Stepford town of Woomera, the off-limits Area 51 giant golfball of Pine Gap and continue east across 83km of scrub and large flat areas of red dirt called lagoons and lakes.
But back to four days ago. We met up at Wagga with its solid sandstone buildings and wide streets and continued west along the Sturt Highway.
The Hay plains were dressed in green with Saltbush bows instead of her usual dusty brown frock. Bails of cotton rolled and wrapped in plastic were waiting patiently in lines stretching as far as the eye could see. It has been harvest time; no wonder the Murrumbidgee languishes low and sad, the mighty gums lining her route standing naked at their roots.
We free camped on the Murrumbidgee at Hay. The lamb cutlets sizzled on the biji, only one got flavoured with fresh ash; the foot long sausages snaked around the biji plate, sizzling and dancing as the glowing coals gave off their intense heat. Fire monitor duties had to start early to create a good stove top of glowing coals.
We free camped on the Murrumbidgee at Hay. The lamb cutlets sizzled on the biji, only one got flavoured with fresh ash; the foot long sausages snaked around the biji plate, sizzling and dancing as the glowing coals gave off their intense heat. Fire monitor duties had to start early to create a good stove top of glowing coals.
The next night we set up camp at Lyrup Flats on the banks of the Murray. The sun set behind the mighty gums, reflecting on the waters of the Murray and adding a iridescent glow to the reflections in the water of the gums on the opposite bank. Pelicans were nesting and chatting loudly about their day's fishing. Others were returning home following a long day out fishing.
I have not been idle and have learned how to clip a magnetic brake pad in and fix a gas hot water system with spit on a finger (yes.... but effective).
Monday we spent the day driving through the undulating foothills of the Flinders having left the Sturt and turned north west to follow the Goyder Highway. We stopped for fuel and bakeries in old and pretty towns like Morgan, Burra and Crystal Brook.
The bush was peppered with the sandstone monuments to settlers of old, driven away by the harsh conditions and lack of water. If only they could come back now - the hills are lush and green. The sheep were chewing on the fat of the land in conditions ne'er seen by them or generations of scrawny lambs past.
Mount Remarkable National Park sits at the western edge of the Flinders Ranges and Mambray Creek campground provided the most beautiful camp. Majestic Red Gums guarding the creek in the Mount Remarkable National Park. A creek in name only - more a winding roadway of stones and boulders with the occasional pool mirroring those mighty gums. We walked along the path as it wound its way through Nukunu Country and posed in the tunnel created by a giant red gum split as it rose from the earth like a giant fat beanstalk. Behind us a baby joey was eating tea in bed as mum grazed further up the incline. Enough, with a full tummy he rolled around and lay head down, feet protruding as mum adjusted her position for the layabout offspring.
Mount Remarkable National Park sits at the western edge of the Flinders Ranges and Mambray Creek campground provided the most beautiful camp. Majestic Red Gums guarding the creek in the Mount Remarkable National Park. A creek in name only - more a winding roadway of stones and boulders with the occasional pool mirroring those mighty gums. We walked along the path as it wound its way through Nukunu Country and posed in the tunnel created by a giant red gum split as it rose from the earth like a giant fat beanstalk. Behind us a baby joey was eating tea in bed as mum grazed further up the incline. Enough, with a full tummy he rolled around and lay head down, feet protruding as mum adjusted her position for the layabout offspring.
Magnificent was the light on the trees, with clear skies, bright stars and Venus arising as bright and clear as the waxing moon.
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