Overland Australia

This is our last day of the trip and we (Anna and I) are a little sad its over and we had such a great time but we have missed the kids and are really looking forward to seeing them. I'm glad the kids didn't come on this trip as I don't think the Races and the activities in town were suitable for young children. We were able to really enjoy ourselves without constantly worrying about the kids. In saying that I'm really disappointed that they missed out on travelling through some beautiful outback regions, but we will be back and next time the kids with be with us. We were greeted with a cool morning with a very heavy dew (first of the trip) in Moreven, we wanted to get on the road ASAP so we all had a quick breakfast and got into the job of packing up. Steve and I did our best to dry as much as the canvas as we could and I was really surprised at how wet the canvas was... Anyway we were soon on the road again and had an uneventful run home. We stopped at Miles to refu...

T his morning we woke to a warm morning and after a quick breakfast we swung into our pack up routine and we were on our way again. It was a pretty uneventful run through to Quilpie where we stopped for late morning tea at the Bakery for another pie... After filling the car with diesel we continued onto Charleville where we had a quick stop for a photo in front of the Diamantina Development Road sign and then continued onto our overnight stop at Morven. We stayed at the Morven Recreation Ground which was the first place we had to pay for our accommodation, all of our previous stops had been in free camps.The facilities here are nice and clean and the $5 per nights per camp site is very cheap for what is supplied. Hot showers are available and we all looked forward to a proper hot shower, the camper hot water system is great but doesn't compare to a proper shower. Unfortunately by the time Steve and I got to have a shower all the hot water had been used so it wasn't as great f...

Today was our final morning in Birdsville and we were up early to complete our pack up and enjoy another beautiful outback sunrise. After packing up we visited town to get a few last minute supplies and one more pie for Steve and then we joined the progression of vehicles on the Birdsville Development road heading east. We really enjoyed our time out here in Birdsville and I'm keen to come back and visit again when its quieter. The road conditions had deteriorated a little but nothing too bad and the convoy settled into a good rhythm with most opting to stay out of the dust of the vehicle in front. Along the way we stopped at the Dreamtime sculpture near Betoota to stretch the legs and have a quick look around, then it was back into the car and before long we had reached the end of the dirt roads. We pulled over aired the tyres back up and continued onto Windorah where we stopped to refuel and then drove out to the Cooper Creek via the Nature Drive to find a camp site and settle ...

Today racing starts at 12:35 and we used the morning to start packing up some of camp as we plan to leave tomorrow for our return journey back to the Sunshine Coast. Steve and I went into town to restock some supplies and fill up with diesel, town was chaotic with lots of vehicles waiting for diesel and a large number of people packing up ready to hit the road. Just before lunch we all made our way into town for lunch, Bron and Steve hit the bakery for more pies and Anna and I grabbed a steak burger as we were well and truly over pies... No walking to the race course today so we jumped on another bus and were soon at the race course, we should have done this yesterday... We managed to get a spot in the grandstand again so we were able to keep out of the sun for most of the day. Today was another successful day on the horses, we had worked out a winning combination between a trainer and jockey and backed that combo most of the day. Out of the 13 races over the weekend our combo wo...

Today's racing didn't start until just after 1pm and we decided to walk out to the race course from our camp-site which took us 30 minutes or so. It was a warm day and I couldn't help but think how hard it would have been for the early explorers like Burke and Wills who walked through this country in the heat of summer... We arrived at the Race Course about an hour before the first race which allowed us to find a seat in the covered area and then locate the beer tents and the bookies. We met up with the guys we met up on Big Red a couple of days ago and had a great time placing bets, having a few drinks and cheering on our horses. Before we knew it the last race for the day had run and we made our way into town for a quick dinner and to get in line for the 7.30pm Boxing session. The lines for the buses were very long and we decided to walk again which took us just on an hour with a quick stop back at camp to drop off some gear. The crowd for the boxing started to grow ...

Today the organised activities in Birdsville started with the Equine Flu race events in the main street outside the Birdsville Hotel with a kick off time of 1pm. We relaxed around camp and enjoyed a warm morning before setting off to explore some of the local sites around town. First stop was the Waddi tree's just north of Birdsville, these trees are unique to this part of the Australia and are up to 1000 years old. Apparently the timber is so hard that it destroys axes and saws and is almost impossible to burn. After a quick look around we returned to Birdsville and had a look at the Artesian Bore and Cooling Ponds that supply Birdsville with its drinking water, the water comes out at 98 degrees... Next stop was the old Royal Hotel ruins for a quick photo and then onto have a look at all of the food and merchandise vendors in town. Around lunch time the crowd started to gather outside the Birdsville Hotel for the start of the Equine Flu Races, these events were first started i...