1 week of driving

3000 kms!!!

On the first night, we made it to a free camp spot at Rockhampton.

Mum had reminded us to appreciate the Qld rest stop bathroom facilities.

2nd Night, made it to a free camp spot just short of Longreach.

Along the drive, it was great to spot a flock of wild emus running alongside the road.

Tuesday morning, we drove the final hour to Longreach Water Hole (yes, free camp spot) for 2 nights, and enjoyed the rest of the day just doing nothing.

Stockmans Hall of Fame...

Wednesday, we visited the Stockmans Hall of Fame - fantastic. The live show was wonderful - Rusty, the stockman, rounding up his sheep, chops, chops & chops, & his cattle dogs.

Nat even lost his tooth while enjoying a steak sandwich for lunch!

The longest days so far were by far, from Longreach to Mt Isa,

Mt Isa to Three Ways & finally Three Ways to Mataranka.

The driving was so long & boring that Nat & Noah even wanted to do their school work!

Mataranka ...

But now that we are here, it was worth the drive! It is beautiful, and we can see why Gran liked it so much.

We have enjoyed 3 nights staying at the Mataranka Homestead, walking to the Thermal Springs - a constant 32 C. Nat & Noah brought their snorkel gear & have been scaring all the fish. Beautiful rainforest walks - especially appreciated after the long drive through nothing! Lovely peacocks walking through the park grounds.

Well, it's off to Kakadu now - to meet up with Mum & Dad (Lance & Cathy, aka Gran & Poppy).

Sorry there's not many pictures, the internet service here at Mataranka is a little slow, and keeps dropping out!

Also, a big thanks to our dear friends (most likely the evil Austins) for our Bumper Sticker - applied in the dead of night - to our Caravan, saying:

TONY & VAL - Living the dream, 2008.

Ant, Lis, Nat & Noah Leave Tomorrow!!!

At last our time has come...

We had intended on beginning this great journey on Saturday, but after such a busy week, with heaps of last minute catching up with friends, etc., our whole family was fairly zonked!

So, we have had a restful Saturday, Nat in particular has been lying around all day, letting his tummy settle down from all the excitement, and finished the packing & getting ready without any pressure, with intentions to leave tomorrow, Sunday, 15th June 2008.

Thank-you to all our dear Friends & Family who made this special time to catch up with us ... (& those we ran out of time to see)

We were fortunate to catch up with dear friends, Tan, Andrew, Lucas & Fin, Katie, Heath, Tatum & Silas, Mark, Leesa, Jordan & Micah, Kim, Jon, Amy & Vhairie, Tracey, Peter, Jesse, Tiarna & Zander, Kate & Steve, Ma, Luther, Jo, Catherine, Paula, Judy, Kerryn and all of Noah's Prep Red Class Mates & all of Nat's 3G Class Mates - this week alone (& that doesn't include all the loving phonecalls).

Mt Crosby ...

Last weekend was a wonderful opportunity to catch up with all of Anthony's family, (Ron & Shirley, Kath, Pete, Emily, Grace, Sarah & Thurston, Heather, Steve, Ellen, Robert, Gillian & Charlotte).
We all camped at Mt Crosby Allawah Scouts Grounds. We enjoyed beautiful scenery, gorgeous weather & a very special & wonderful time together.

We even had a small church service together on Sunday morning, where Lissa demonstrated ( or rather trialled) her "still-improving" Camp Oven Skills, making damper for our communion bread (also added to these Holy Sacrements, were the jam & cream!!!)

Please pray for us ...

Well, whatever we have forgotten now, who cares !!!

We ask you all that you might keep us in your prayers, for our safety, for protection over the car & caravan, & God's blessings over our family.

We hope to keep in touch now ... God Bless You Richly,

Love Lis, Ant, Nat & Noah.

Darwin

On to Darwin for a week ...

Lance & Cathy have stopped at a Caravan Park on the Stuart Highway, approx. 10 minutes from the beach.

Lance has had to work for a couple of days, doing tenders for TCS, but in the process, able to catch up with an old work colleague, Terry.

Each evening, they have discovered a new beach to take Zoe & Scruff for a walk & to watch the beautiful sunset with their dinner.

Mataranka - Cathy's been waiting!

Aaaahhh....

Beautiful Mataranka ...

Finally, after 2 weeks, Lance & Cathy have moved on to Mataranka for a few days.

Cathy has been looking forward to returning here.

Each afternoon they take a casual 10 minute walk to Bitter Springs, which is a natural thermal hot spring, with a constant temperature of 33`C. Very relaxing

We of the Never Never Homestead ...

Mum & Dad also called into the replica of the We of the Never Never Homestead (the original building is nearby, but unsafe).

Also, the Grave sites of We of the Never Never are here. Very interesting.


Lovely, Natural, Shady Campgrounds ...

.... and lovely, natural facilities !!!

Roper River Fish, Fish & More Fishing

What great bait sized barra Lance has been catching! Or, is this actually Cathy holding her catch?

Anyway... most of the photos Mum & Dad have been sending us are now of fish.

But at least Lance is having fun. And Cathy's have peace & quiet - oh, & lots of fish for dinners!

Cathy, We're Staying ...

NOT A BAD SIZED BARRA!

Yes, Lance & Cathy made it to the Roper Bar. It was very pretty & Cathy was looking forward to not driving & staying still for a few days.

However, "some big mouthed camper told your father it was better fishing further up the river", as unhappy Cathy put it.

Therefore, it was off again, along a very bumpy, dusty, dirt road for a further 40 km's.
And no, that's NOT an off-road caravan they have. But a good fisherman requires dedication.

They have now stopped & are camped along the Roper River with about 30 other caravans - very pretty & right on the river. Cathy was a little worried when Lance took Scruffy out fishing with him in the small tinny, with a Croc Sign at the Boat Ramp!

On the first day, Lance caught this beautiful sized Barra - oh, what fun!
And Yes, suddenly they would be staying here for the next 2 weeks minimum.

"Who really needs to see the rest of N.T. - I'm sure it's all much the same", assured Lance.

Cathy is enjoying relaxing with some craft, reading & NOT DRIVING. Their friends, Mick & Marianne were expected to arrive & stay with them for a little while now.

LIS & ANT'S COUNTDOWN...

Only 3 weeks today ... 21 sleeps ... How unprepared we suddenly feel!

Bush Camping Begins

Lance & Cathy have now been on the road for a whole week of this momentous trip.


OUTDOOR BATHROOM FACILITIES ...
They have been enjoying their new, mobile, all-occasions, all-business, outdoor bathroom facilities. This is true bush camping! (With a brand new Jayco Poptop Caravan that is!)

THE FLIES...

Morning Tea on Wednesday was at a well known rest stop called Barkleys Homestead. However, Mum's phonecall was very interrupted - not by electronic interference, but by THE FLIES! She advised us to make sure we bring our Mosquito & Fly Veils (for over the head). Not very attractive, but everyone was wearing them - even one lady in a bright pink one! (Country Fashion!!!)


Mum's comment was that the only saving grace regarding their outdoor hole- in- the- ground toilet was ....
"AT LEAST IT DISTRACTED THE FLIES FROM YOUR FACE FOR A SHORT WHILE"!!!!

Anthony has still not recovered from this image!! And he's also a little worried.


THE DUST ...
Mum & Dad ended up giving the Camooweal Caves a miss, as they were advised by another nomad that the road into them was so bad that it started tearing up their tyres.
Also, Mum & Dad didn't know what they were seeing off in the distance, and thought it must be a bad storm headed their way. Eventually they worked out that a big road train was headed out of the Caves Road, and the dust blowing everywhere was just phenomenal!!

Mum's advice was to make sure that the boys in particular don't bring any white clothes - the RED DIRT IS EVERYWHERE!

DETOUR NORTH ...

From Barkley's Homestead, Mum & Dad turned North (instead of travelling via the Three Ways). They headed for Cape Crawford for a few days of rest & relaxation - where they were out of mobile range (or so they told us kids). This place was not so good for the fishing, but for the Cheribun (check out the photo) - they're just like Mini-lobsters - very tasty!

On Sunday, (today), they were headed back to the main highway to Daly Waters Caravan Park, then detouring East again towards the Roper Bar.

STILL COUNTING DOWN ...

Ant & I are now at the stage of trying to do any small jobs that we can think of, including "spare tools kit", making sure insurance is up to date & definately covers us around Australia! (Not that we think we'll need it or anything!) Our housesitter, Jen, has been over for the final rundown, & friends are actually inviting us to quite a few "Last Suppers" - should we be worrying???

ONLY 3 weeks & 6 days to go now - but who's counting?