26^th May 2012

The rain has gone but it is still cold.  We drove out to Brindabella Nursery Rose Gardens to see the gardens that weren’t exactly at its best but still colourful. 

We returned to the caravan for lunch and then left Foxy at home and visited the Cobb & Co Museum which is an excellent display of carriages of all shapes and size.  It also has a blacksmith school for interested folk to learn the skills of wrought iron work and a workshop actively making wooden wagon wheels and carriages.  From there we intended going to the Japanese Gardens attached to the University, but diverted for another photo opportunity at Picnic Point Lookout as it is a brighter day. 


 This achieved we departed for the Japanese Gardens which are really delightful but still not as good as the one in Dubbo.  There was an array of autumn colour from the deciduous trees and plenty of reflections in the Lake with its numerous bridges and Bonsai trees.

27^TH May 2012

Down to 3 degrees last night but we survived to enjoy a warm pleasant day with a drive to the infamous Wivenhoe Dam via Esk.  We stopped off at the Hampton Visitor centre for more information on the Dam and also stopped off at a Gus Beutels Lookout on the way.  We stopped at a park and had our picnic lunch in Esk after driving through the town to see if it had anything special to take a photo of but nothing showed. The Dam has picnic areas on both sides but neither offer descent views of the Dam wall or the slipway, and the view across the lake was very ordinary.  There was a sign to the slipway viewing area but it was barricaded off, so we assume it was damaged during the January floods. The dam is unlike the usual concave concrete wall as it is a rock embankment 2.3 metres long with concrete spillways through it.  It is designed to hold 1.16million megalitres of water for urban use and then has the capacity to hold a further 1.42 million megalitres of flood water to as a measure to stop Brisbane flooding.  Further upstream is Somerset Dam that also holds back flood water which has a controlled release to Wivenhoe Dam which has controlled release to maintain the Brisbane River. The Dam was completed 1984 as a result of previous floods and had been successful until the excessive rain during the 28 days prior to 6^th January which came close to the dam level which has built-in fuses that break out and let water through when the water reaches that height.   After that the wall is designed to collapse which would be interesting from a distance.  The trip to the Dam was not really worth the effort, or fuel, but was a pleasant drive circuitous drive through the Lockyer valley.  It also gave Foxy a short walk at both the Lookout and the Dam, which were both ‘No Dog’ areas so she enjoyed them all the more.

28th May 2012

On odd occasions, and only at night, the flick type tap on our kitchen sink leaks water across the work surface so Barry removed it and inspected the seals which appear to be okay but are nearly 3 years old and therefore must be worn to some extent.  We visited a Reece plumbing shop in the hope of acquiring a seal kit but being a no-name brand they couldn’t sensibly match it.  It was no pointless contacting Jayco as they change their fittings according to where they can find the best prices to keep their costs done. Consequently we bought a new tap that we know we can replace the seals in, which also has a slightly shorter swivel spout that is less intrusive over the sink.  We also bought a pair of braided hose extenders so Barry has re-routed the inlet hoses and moved the filter that goes to the drinks tap so that it and the inlet and outlet hose are all in one group which has provide much more storage space in the under sink cupboard.

29^th May 2012

We drove to the State Rose Gardens in Newtown Park which was not the best time for viewing roses but the general layout was good and still provoked a few photos as some of the roses were bravely hanging on.  We followed this up with the recommended heritage walk around the Newtown suburb which frankly was just a 40 minute walk past a lot of old houses.  The ones of note according to the literature were the ones in the worst state of repair with several that should be demolished.  We continued with a recommended drive to view more points of interest which also amounted to very little as most of the houses were in the middle of huge land blocks and screened by foliage so gave up and returned to the showgrounds.

31^st May 2012

We took a longer drive today to Dalby because the Navman was having a bad hair day but we did make it via a nondescript route through the middle of nothing.   We stopped in Dalby for more information from the Visitor Centre and then walked around the surrounding park and water feature before continuing on to the Bunya Mountains via Bell.  The road through the mountain national park was quite narrow and very twisty and steep inn places. And we eventually arrived at a parking area that offered a variety of walks with one offering several waterfalls.  We had Foxy with us so we didn’t do any of them plus the threat of rain was a put off as well but we have decided to move to the Kingeroy area when we leave Toowoomba and return for the Bunya Mountain Waterfall trip from there without Foxy.  We also decided to drive on to Perseverance Dam and Cressbrook Lake before heading home which would save another long trip.  The Dam was nothing to write about and the Lake only offered boating and picnic facilities which were not going to be used today because of the miserable weather.   The down side to this was the $2.50 per car entry fee for a quick look around, but during that time we did get some photos of kangaroos and deer which we have not seen in the wild before

1^st June 2012

This morning Barry walked up to one of the many venues within the showgrounds and took photos of numerous old motorbikes that apparently belonged to a collector whose family knew nothing about it.  Since his death they have found these bikes under cover in a shed and have put them up for auction in the showgrounds.  We both attended the auction towards its end and heard one bike sell for $35,000 and then watched the prize pickings sell for $160,000.  It was an Indian motorcycle that was successfully used to break the world land speed record in 1914 for under 1000cc sized engines.  It used a ‘V’ twin cylinder engine with 4 valves per cylinder, which in those days was a major engineering feat, and held the record for 40 years.  A plastic box about the size of a milk crate that was half full of Indian motorcycle literature sold for $750.

2^nd June 2012

The rain has returned along with some wind but the showground has provided some local entertainment with a model train exhibition that kept us occupied for more than 1.5 hours.  There was at least a dozen displays by both individuals and clubs and covered several rail gauges with some displays using several simultaneously  in mock mine sites, etc.  Our only complaint was that most of it depicted USA or UK scenarios rather than an Australian flavour.  The most impressive display that covered the largest area and also had the biggest gauge was created completely with Lego, and therefore the most colourful, and appealing to the kids.  There was also a small active display of Fair equipment, rather than trains, created with Meccano which also had a plea for more Meccano at any price as it is hard to find these days.   Some displays were replicas of specific railway stations along with same scale cars and buildings and one really clever display was of a London underground station.  Our estimate is that many of the displays would have cost many thousands of dollars to build, but most serious hobbies cost a fair bit of money.  Many of the train engines cost in excess of $200, then there is the cost of the carriages, track, trees, cars and buildings and the boards and trestles to build it on, and the space to do it.  One sideshow attraction that really impressed us was a guy drawing pictures on pieces of Pine wood by burning it on with a soldering iron and then sealing it with 2 pack epoxy resin.  Whilst it looked easy it would need a steady hand and lots of practise to achieve the shading that creates the sense of perspective, just as you would with a pencil, and it probably helps if you are naturally artistic.   We had intended walking around the city centre to photograph some of the attractive buildings but the weather has put a stop to that idea.

3^rd June 2012

We were supposed to move out today but this morning’s weather is no better than yesterday so have decided to enjoy the wet conditions here rather than somewhere else.  In the afternoon the weather improved well enough to take the city centre walk that we missed out on yesterday, which included the better architecture and parks.

4^th June 2012

The weather is now better than was forecast so we moved on to Kingaroy with a photo stop at Nanango and on to the small township of  Kumbia where we intended stopping for the night at a freebee park but when we arrived it was full and so was the local caravan park.  We backtracked 17km to another freebee place beside a river and settled for the night.  In the morning we returned to Kumbia which was now almost empty and set up the camp.  We then headed off to do the promised walk in the Bunya Mountains and called in at the resort/restaurant for lunch.   We chatted with some other people whilst eating our lunch and were told about an interesting church in Bell and when we returned to the car we decided visit this church instead of doing the walk as the temperature was very cold with a bitter wind.  It had been 3 degrees overnight.  On the way we stopped to admire the scenery a few times either at lookouts or simply by stopping in the road, and included one stop to try and capture a photo of a wedge tailed eagle in flight but without success.  When we arrived at Kumbia we realised it was the same place we had stopped at for lunch on our previous trip to the mountains but we hadn’t visited the church despite being impressed with the building as a funeral was in progress.  The building looks very similar to many small country churches but has been painted yellow and attracts attention and the inside has been decorated with biblical murals between the windows and behind the altar and present a beautiful visual delight even to non-believers like Barry.  There is also a really beautiful biblical garden attached to the church.

6^th June 2012

Last night the temperature was much better at 4 degrees plus the wind has gone so there is less chill factor.  We went back to the Bunya Mountains for a second attack at one or some of the walks despite finding on arrival that despite the warmer weather the mountain tops were still within the clouds making things a bit damp.  We tackled the Barkers Creek Lookout circuit which took us to the base of Paradise Falls and then on to the base of Little Falls followed by Big Falls and Barkers Lookout, the last two being a waste of time as the falls was a long way away across the other side of the valley, and the small amount of water that came over the falls made it hard to spot, and the lookout offered nothing.  There wasn’t a lot of water at any of the falls as being at the top of the mountain there isn’t much catchment area for them, and none were really long drops other than Big Falls, but they all had their individual appeal.   We also passed a few small un-named falls on the remaining circuit back to the car.  After that 5.2km walk we drove to the picnic area and had our lunch before setting off on the Scenic Circuit which took us to Tim Shea’s Falls and on to Pine Gorge Lookout which had a Power Station in the distance, and then on to Festoon Falls which was on a short offshoot track.  We then finished the 4km circuit back to the car and another cuppa before heading home. 

7^th June 2012

We packed up and headed in the general direction of Monto and eventually camped at Coominglah range rest area which is nothing special but free.

8^th June 2012

We moved on to Biloela with the intention of heading towards Rockhampton to join the Bruce Highway to Sarina to meet up with Mark and Jeane again before heading to the Atherton Tablelands again.  However, at Biloela we changed direction and made for Emerald but stopped at Rolleston as that is the nearest dog friendly Caravan Park to the Carnarvon Gorge despite being 100km away.

9^th June 2012

Because of the national park problem foxy was left at home whilst we drove to the Carnarvon Gorge and walked to the Moss Garden which is quite a picturesque area including a small waterfall.  To get there we had to cross the river via stepping stones twice and a third time to get back to the main track to continue on to Ward’s Canyon.  To get to this canyon required crossing the river on stepping stones another two times and several more kilometres but was well worth the effort.  The canyon is very beautiful and narrow with a small stream running through it to a small waterfall on the way in.  The return journey naturally required the two river crossings, plus the final crossing before reaching the carpark area.  The overall walk was about 10kms including quite a few steps both up and down.  The Carnarvon Gorge should be nearly as high on peoples’ agendas as the Karijini Gorges despite the remoteness of both and if possible spend about 3 days to see all there is.

10^th June 2012

We returned to Carnarvon Gorge to check out Baloon Cave which is really only an overhang with some interesting rock colouring and a small area of aboriginal art.  We moved on to Mickey Creek Gorge which is an off shoot prior to actually getting into Carnarvon Gorge which also has its own offshoot Warrumbah Gorge.  We walked along Mickey Creek Gorge as far as we could go, including several creek crossings, which was quite a way after the official track ended but it wasn’t particularly good.   We backtracked to the offshoot Gorge and again the official track ended within 600 metres but we continued on for quite a way with more water crossings until we came to the bit we really wanted to see.  Here the gorge became very narrow and difficult to pass along a narrow ledge whilst negotiating a bulging piece of rock from the side wall.  Barry’s legs wouldn’t fold up sufficiently to allow him to get past but Merry managed to progress for quite a way into the narrowing gorge until she could almost touch both sides simultaneously.   On our return to the car we headed homeward but stopped at a campsite with a restaurant for a late lunch but the pathetic lack of service and extreme pricing decided us to leave and go home for an early dinner.

11^th June 2012

Having given Carnarvon Gorge a pretty good going over, although the is more to see if you can walk the extra distance which really requires a stay at the campground or resort so you have the extra time to allow it.  We couldn’t do that because they don’t take dogs so we had to travel 100km each way from Rolleston which makes the amount of walking too short to reach the far end of the gorge.  With going back for a second trip to the offshoot gorges we were using up a lot of fuel but we got to see  a fair bit and managed about twelve stepping stone crossing without incident.  There were also three creek crossings to negotiate in order to get there and adding to the excitement and just after the first one is the remains of an American Dakota that crashed on the way from Darwin to Brisbane in an electrical storm killing 5 Americans and 14 Australian army and air force personnel.  We packed up and moved on to Emerald for a night prior to what should be the final push to Mark and Jeanne’s in Sarina.  We took a stroll round Emerald town centre to photograph the ‘Art work’ and railway station before strolling around the very ordinary Botanic Gardens alongside the river which is currently at a high level and fast flowing.

12^th June 2012

We started out on our push to Sarina with travel stop at the small town of Capella which was brought about by the memorial statue of the Light Horse brigade ‘emu’ Squad, so named because of the emu feather in their hats.  It has two large backing plates of steel with Horse riders cut out to let the light through, both slightly curved around the main 3 dimensional life size figure of horse and man standing together, all within a well kept circular garden which in turn was part of the park walk through the town.  Our next lunch stop was in a roadside rest area alongside a coal mine entrance before driving of the Sarina Range to Sarina and our destination for the day.  We could see immediately that Mark and Jeane have made some very significant improvements to their property with fencing across the vegie patch several more flower beds all edge with large diameter rope from the tugs that Mark works on.  Mark’s father had visited and built a small pond at the front of the house which attracts the birds.