Rain, wind, single digit temperatures, floods its been quite the summer

I had no idea it had been so long since my last missive. I think my lapse was due mainly because I had to re travel to places I had already been to so there wasnt anything new to speak about.

After the Eyre Peninsula I headed to a very nice small town in the Flinders Ranges called Quorn, although the caravan park wasn’t up to much the actual town was very pleasant indeed. It was one of the few places I had been to where I could see myself living, not sure I would have liked the winters but hey a good log fire and all things are possible. Oh and also a decent win on the lotto would have helped as well. Then it was back to Port Augusta which at this point I realised I had completed my lap around Australia. A normal distance of approx 14000kms if one goes the direct route, had taken me approx 68000kms and just over 3 years. But on looking at my map I realised I have a gap of about 600kms between Mt Isa (Queensland) and Tennant Creek (Northern Territory) which still needs to be filled in. That will have to be put on the back burner until the winter of 2024, as I wont have time to do it this winter as I have to be back in NSW in August for a very special event (Nephew Matthew’s wedding to the lovely Lisa). Note to self on that subject I had better get some decent clothes to wear for the occasion.

After Port Augusta I took a drive down to Adelaide via a night at Crystal Brook and a couple of nights in Dublin. Neither town had a lot going for it but at least Crystal Brook was quiet and had a decent IGA. it must mean something when you start judging townships by what sort of shops they have. Anyway onwards to Adelaide and parked up at a nice caravan park in Semaphore Beach, it was very busy and the sites were a bit tight but it did for a few nights. I drove into Adelaide in rush hour and it wasn’t bad at all, Traffic kept moving and no major delays to speak of. Such a change from most cities, even managed to find a parking spot within 100mtrs fo where I was going.

After my little stop in Adelaide I decided to see a bit more of SA while I was there and a couple of places had caught my eye so I decided to go and visit them. One of them was a place called Hawker which was also in the Flinders Ranges and about 40kms or so further on from Quorn. In all honesty it wasn’t worth the trip, It was very hot and dusty and yes I am well used to those conditions, but there was really nothing in the town of note, and anything that may well have been worth looking at had long since fallen into disuse and disrepair. The campsite was good though and only three of us in residence during my stay. From there it was down onto the Yorke peninsula nowhere special I wanted to see or to go to but more for a nosey and to tick it off the places I have travelled to.

By this stage the national radio (ABC) were putting out flood warnings as the amount of water flowing down the major rivers into South Australia from all the flooding they had experienced in NSW and Queensland was starting to affect SA and Victoria. Whilst on the Yorke Peninsula I had thought about doing the SA silo trail as I do like seeing all the art painted on the silos around the country, but due to the dire predictions and warnings I was hearing I thought discretion was by far the better option and decided to give it a miss. So with this in mind I started to head north and this necessitated going back over previous destinations on the way back to Broken Hill. Places like Burra, Terowie, and Yunta to name a few. I did stop at these places on my way up but will not bore you all with describing them once again. Suffice to say that there were no great changes at any of the locations. I did pull into a place called Cockburn for a couple of nights before I got to Broken Hill and boy did that turn up an experience. The first night was good, on power very warm I think it was low 30’s but a good couple of cold beers at the local pub took care of that. Nice new toilet and shower block where I was parked which was an unexpected bonus. The second night I was stood outside having a chat with the dogs and watch a very black and nasty looking storm heading towards me, well not me personally but in my direction. The wind was starting to pick up and as I was watching the clouds the wind was picking up a load of dust ahead of the storm. Well the dogs and I got in the van and battened down the hatches (as we nautical types say) to await the storms arrival. Well looking out the window the dust arrived and made the car a very nice shade of rusty yellow then the storm hit. I can honestly say it was the strongest wind I have experienced so far. Really concerned that the van may actually go over. Luckily the rain washed the car and the van and the thunder and lightning went on for a good couple of hours after the worst of it had passed. When it stopped raining I nipped out to check everything was ok and i noticed drag marks behind all four stability legs on the van, It was a huge distance probably only about 5cms (about 3 inches), but had never had anything like that happen before. So I wasn’t sorry to leave there and head on into Broken Hill for Xmas.

Now I had arranged with my sister that I would pop into Bendigo and catch up with here as it had been a good couple of years so from Broken Hill I was going to slowly head South to do said thing. Anyway heading North out of Broken Hill I was going to head off to Tibooburra and Milparinka. This opposite to planned direction was due to flooding In Mildura and Wentworth which precluded the direct southern route, and flooding in Wilcannia stopped me heading East then South. I thought if I went North first it would give the floods a bit of time to dissipate before I headed that way. I was very surprised how green the landscape was heading North it showed just how much rain had fallen. There was still a lot of water lying about in the paddocks and at the side of the road and quite a few of the floodways had water in them. Floodways happen regularly on Australian road they are basically just shallow dips in the road where the water runs off into from the land either side. I think this was the first time in all my travels around that I had actually come across any with water in them. The worst of the ones I came across was about 30mtrs wide and came halfway or so on my wheels at least the underside of the car and van got a bit of a cleaning. The one drawback with these floodways is you have to be aware of any debris that the water may have washed into the road and the sheer amount of mud they generate as well. Very soon I arrived at Packsaddle Roadhouse where I stayed for a couple of nights. The caravan parking bit of the roadhouse was nothing to write home about but it did have a very nice and modern amenities block and the actual roadhouse is probably one of the best I have been to. Very friendly staff, good honest pub food and very cold Great Northern beer. The second day I was there I went for a meal in the evening, a very good porterhouse steak and salad, and the wind was getting up while I was enjoying it. Said to myself I must put my awning in when I get back before it gets too bad. Well too bad had already been and gone, the fabric of my awning was in tatters, it had ripped along and away from the caravan and also ripped on the ratchet arm as well. Luckily none of the hardware of the awning was damaged so that was a bit of a blessing. Small mercies and all that. Anyway new awning fabric being fitted 6th March all being well. After Packsaddle northwards again to a place called Milparinka, which is an old gold mining town which is now deserted but has been turned into a sort of museum. Very hot while I was there every day was over 42c, luckily aircon was earning its keep. I was going to go up to Tibooburra to stay for a while but having driven up there one day just to get a couple of bits from the local shop I decided against it. Not really much there so I stayed in Milparinka for an extra day. Then it was time to turn around and start heading South towards Bendigo. Rather than take the direct routed I decided as I normally try to do to take the back roads and Im glad I did as I came across a few really nice little towns on the way. I did have one bit of a disaster just south of Mildura I stayed at a freecamp called stub tank. As i was sat reading I seemed to be swatting and spraying bugs a bit more regularly than normal. I go up to check and see if any windows or roof vents were open and noticed that the ceiling of the caravan was absolutely inundated with little black bugs, not sure how many exactly as I wasn’t inclined to count but I would say easily over a thousand. I emptied two full cans of spray into the van and the dogs and I went outside for 30mins or so. This still didn’t kill them all but luckily I had my third and final can handy and also my trusty hoover. Well it was the early hours of the morning before I felt comfortable enough to go to bed. Needless to say we were out of there pretty darned smart the next morning. The rest of the trip down to Bendigo was uneventful but there was a lot of evidence where the flooding had been and still more places that were still flooded. Any way I got to catch up with my sister for a week and picked up some bits and pieces I had ordered, namely a new awning fabric. Sis manage to top my freezer up with goodies and also a few bits for the fridge as well. And a very good week was had. As an added bonus I also managed to catch up with some old friends who live down in Melbourne so a very pleasant way to round off that part of the trip. From Melbourne (lilydale to be exact) I was heading off into the Victoria High Country as there was a place I had read about a while ago which I wanted to see in a town called Jamieson. Anyway on the way I stopped for a while in a very small town called Yarck, not much there at all apart from some very friendly locals. Free camping on the town oval with a cafe and small local shop just a short stroll away. It was a very pleasant few days. And from there it was on to Jamieson where I am now arriving this morning. Stunning drive through the hills and mountains with all the lakes most of it in second and third gear depending if I was going up or down a steep hill. As I said now in Jamieson and feeling a bit disappointed as the thing I read about and wanted to see is not here. I must have got the wrong town, or more likely I have remembered it wrongly. Never mind it was a lovely trip here so not a complete loss. Anyway from here Im heading back to the way I came then across towards Wangaratta then South of the Great Alpine road down to the coast then following the coast road up into NSW and toward my brothers house by the 6th March when the van is booked in.

So my apologies that this has been a long time coming and have told myself to buck up my ways and try and be a bit more regular. Hopefully no more going over to much previous ground so new adventures will unfold. Bye for now and keep safe and wel