Broken Hill, NSW - Renmark, S.A. 13/2/12 - 27/2/12



Map of our route from Lightning Ridge, Nth NSW through to Mildura, NW Victoria. You will need to enlarge to see the detail.

After travelling through towns which were established by the mining industry we now enter the riverland region, where vineyards and orchards are the main industry.



WENTWORTH




After leaving Broken Hill we spent 3 nights at a couple of rest areas on our way to Wentworth arriving on 16th February.  The caravan park here, was right next to the Darling River so the river was our new front yard only a few meters from our door. We intended to stay here 1 night but as it was such a lovely place we extended it another 2 nights. Well worth it.

Wentworth is located at the junction of Australia's two great rivers, the Darling and the Murray. Capt Charles Sturt, the explorer, arrived at this point where the caravan park is located, on 23rd January 1830. He hoisted the Union Jack amongst the great river red gums. He may have even pitched his tent at the caravan park (maybe on our site). Huge river red gums are very impressive and many are hundreds of years old. Most of them were felled by European settlement for building boats but they made good fuel for the steam engines that powered the paddle steamers which ran up and down the rivers in the 1800 - early 1900's.

Wentworth houses the paddle steamer 'PS Ruby' , built 1907 which has been restored to working order. This is a fairly small township, with only a few shops.

We visited the Perry Sand Hills a few kilometers out of Wentworth. These are big sand dunes where we both enjoyed having fun (they weren't quite as big as what we expected, compared to N.Z. ones). The sand was scorching hot, hence shoes had to be worn. A couple of huge gum trees have been half buried by the shifting sands. These sand hills have been used in filming desert scenes.

River Red Gum tree 1/2 buried

Where's Wally?

Riding our bikes around, we went to the area where the Darling and Murray Rivers meet and ended up getting sharp thorns in our tyres when we attempted to ride down a track which follows the narrow neck of land between the two rivers. (Not a good idea) Carol's bike had one puncture, but Nigel's had 6 in the front tyre and 2 in the rear. So the next day was spent finding,

Junction of the Darling and Murray Rivers

repairing and removing those nasty thorns. We will think twice now before riding on bush tracks.

The caravan park had a couple of spare kayaks lying around so we took them out and paddled for a couple of hours around the rivers, going from the Darling into the Murray. Had to stop when Carol developed a blister. Great fun though as it gave us a different perspective from the river.

MILDURA - 19th February

Mildura was our next stop, 33kms from Wentworth, where we stayed for 4 nights at the Buronga Caravan Park across the other side of the Murray River in NSW. We felt we were almost home as Mildura is in Victoria and we could listen to Neil Mitchell on Melbourne's 3AW radio station.  We had a lovely grassy site, a bit more upmarket than what we have been used to. Again it was right on the river.

Mildura Campground

Houseboats on the Murray River

There were a lot of houseboats on the river, many of them waiting to be hired. Weather has been great, around 30 deg and no rain since we Lightning Ridge, weeks ago. On Tuesday, 21st Feb, we celebrated Shrove Tuesday (pancake day) by indulging in several pancakes smothered with passionfruit and cream. Yum Yum!!!!

'Lovely pancakes'

We decided to buy a double kayak while here. We wanted to get one before leaving Melbourne but weren't sure if we would use it. The roof racks were left on the car just in case we found something. As our kayaking up in Wentworth was a lot of fun we realised we probably would make use of one on the many rivers, creeks and lakes we came across on our travels. The kayak was bought from a manufacturer who specialises in building fibreglass boats. It was a good deal as paddles came with it. Also while here, we bought some good lightweight walking boots for hikes we plan to do during our journey.

While biking around the river, unfortunately, Carol came off her bike. She was looking at the scenery and rode straight into a metre high wooden post that had been stupidly cemented right in the middle of the track. Not very visible and placed around a corner. We couldn't see what purpose it served as it wasn't at the beginning of the path. She went over the handle bars and ended up in the scrub right by a tree. Fortunately we were wearing our helmets as she hit her head. The only injuries she had was a grazed and bruised knee and a sprained wrist which she has had strapped up and is getting more stronger every day. It certainly could have been a lot worse. We were able to ride back to the park but I think she was still in shock. She will be more cautious from now on and keep her eyes on the track in front of her. Sorry, no photo on this one.


RENMARK

We left the pleasant City of Mildura on Thursday 23rd Feb and headed west to Renmark, just over the border into South Australia. Before crossing the border we had to stop at the fruit fly check point and have the car and caravan searched for any fruit and vegetables we had with us. We knew this was coming up so we spent 3 hours cooking up all our fruit and veges so they didn't go to waste. Hence we had vege patties, mashed potatoes and apple and pear crumble for the last 4 nights. At least we haven't had to think about what to have for dinner. We would be fined $600 is anything was found.

Renmark is another Murray River port. Quite a nice town (even has Target) and as like the other ports has lots of houseboats sitting on the river. There was a great free camping spot here, right next to the river, at Plushs Bend. It was so picturesque and also had a flushing toilet that we stayed there for 5 nights. Unfortunately, being a free camping spot we had no power, so we sweltered in the heat with 4 days being between 36-38 deg each day, getting down to 25-30 deg at night, with no breeze to cool down. Our little 12v fan was worked overtime even though it just moved hot air around.

Nigel standing on a sandbank in Murray River (cooling off)

One thing the hot weather made us do, was to go swimming in the muddy brown Murray River. Carol wouldn't normally have gone for a swim in the muddy river but found it not too bad. It was one way to cool off even going in before bed. We befriended a lovely couple while here, Bob and Judy and dog, Jack. Also, we met a young French boy, probably in his twenties, who was living in his car while working at the orchards picking oranges during the day. His car was all he had. Imagine it in the heat we experienced. He had been staying here since January and was saving to travel around Australia. We met two young French girls doing the same thing but they only stayed one night. They were in search of harvesting work and were finding it hard.

maiden voyage

It was here that our kayak had it's maiden voyage, minus the breaking of the champagne bottle over the bow. It held us well and up to expectations with the two of us paddling in unison. We think we will get much enjoyment from this little craft in the coming months. Carol did her best, even though she couldn't put full force through the water because of her injured wrist. On a 38 deg day, we must have been mad to ride our bikes into the town but we needed to recharge our computer, so headed straight for the Information Centre, where we knew it would be cool and air-conditioned. On our return we stopped at MacDonalds for a well needed milkshake which was welcome and sipped very slowly.  A swim in the river was also enjoyed on getting back.

Campsite from river (true colour)

Looking down river

We had our first view of a koala in the wild just up from our caravan. So much better seeing them out of enclosures. They camouflage very well in the gum trees. (Would have liked to have photo of koala  but it was deleted by mistake). A change in the temperature came on our second to last night and dropped to the low 20s, with welcome rain (our first rain for 5 weeks). What a great relief as we became very tired of the continual heat and not being able to cool down. We thought we would have been having these temperatures up in Northern NSW but have experienced them down south in South Australia.


Our last night here we enjoyed a lovely calm serene evening eating our meal under the awning. Nigel took advantage of it by taking the kayak out on his own to enjoy the peace out on the River. It is now 27th February.

Lovely view at sunset looking up river

We have had excellent word back from home that things are going really well and Mike is doing a fantastic job looking after the property and everything for us. It was even mentioned the pool was sparkling and our cat is being looked after very well (maybe too well, as one day all 4 people fed him and he obviously didn't complain).

From here we will be travelling through the Riverland area following the Murray River and branching off to experience the Barossa Valley which is well known for it's wineries and from there, probably heading over to the Yorke Peninsular bypassing Adelaide, (as we have been there before), and then on to the Flinders Ranges.

TO BE CONTINUED

Bourke to Broken Hill 2/2/12 - 13/2/12

COBAR

From Bourke we travelled 160kms south to Cobar, another mining town. Copper, lead, silver and gold was mined here and dates back to the 1870s, when copper was first discovered. Mining is still being done today in an open cut gold mine.

Looking down into open cut mine

Miner's Memorial,
cobar

When we left  Cobar we travelled 65kms west towards Wilcannia and stopped for the night at a rest area beside the highway

Fantastic rest area

We were now in the red dirt area (as can be seen in the photo). Lots of places to choose from at this rest area. Quite a popular stop for people overnight. It was here we met Ron, a 78 yr old man, who was travelling around the country by himself. I think he was quite happy to have our company. We didn't have radio, mobile phone or computer connections (plus no electricity), so it was very quiet and peaceful, with nothing much to do but read and relax. While here we got up at 3.30am to see the brilliant starry night. As there were no lights or moon that night, the sky was spectacular. We decided to stay here 2 nights. Why not, as there is no time schedule.

The weather from Bourke onwards has been beautiful not too hot 25-30 deg, blue skies and cooling off at night.

We moved from this rest area to another one 142kms up the road. It had a lovely childrens playground there  (would have loved this when we were travelling with our children for years up to the Gold Coast). These areas seem to be fairly well maintained even though they are a couple of hundred kms from the nearest town. Stayed here a night before moving on to White Cliffs. Ron, our new friend, was going there also, so we travelled together. We went via Wilcannia, a place we were advised not to stay at. Wilcannia was a bustling, thriving inland port on the Darling River back in the late 1800's, early 1900's. The township used to have 15 hotels and a population of 3,000. It is now a small, mainly aboriginal, town with remnants of it's past still standing.

WHITE CLIFFS

From Wilcannia we drove 100kms north to White Cliffs. The caravan park was empty when we arrived and with a $15 fee per night was good value. It was clean and tidy, with a swimming pool next door, which was welcome, as it was very hot (silver coin donation). Wonderful!!

White Cliffs caravan park (empty)

Carol had an interesting experience with a green frog the first night there. After using the toilet and flushing she was shocked to see a little frog trying to cling hold of the inside of the bowl to stop being washed down with the flush, but was quite relieved to see it disappear down the toilet. She flushed the toilet again to make sure it had gone for good. It must have been under the rim of the toilet all along. The next morning an inspection was made and there he was sitting on top of the toilet seat. Consequently that toilet wasn't used again. The next day, Nigel found it in the mens toilet block.

Underground house dug out into side of hill

Underground opal shop

White Cliffs is a town quite different to anywhere we have been to before. It is another opal mining town but unusual as most of it's inhabitants live undergound in the remains of old mines, called dugouts. A few opal shops, motel and art galleries are also underground. Because of the fierce, summer temperatures, which made surface living unbearable, people made their homes underground where the temperature remains at a constant 22-25 deg.

There are about 50,000 mine diggings which give the area a lunar like appearance. Here we did some fossicking, hoping to find the big one and make it rich. Carol gave up after 5 mins and started walking back while Ron and Nigel found a few interesting rocks which amounted to nothing. What a shame!!!

Fossicking        

Inside one of mines

Mine diggings

We had a really interesting tour of the underground motel, 34 rooms. Many people stay in this motel just for the experience. It is very quiet and cool. Even though Carol is a bit claustrophic, she didn't feel enclosed. It certainly was different, as no windows of course. Each room has a ventilaltion shaft going up to the surface.

Motel bedroom

Ventilation shaft (not drop toilet)

It was certainly worth a side trip up to White Cliffs.. We think it is called White Cliffs as there are 3 small hills surrounding the township and they have white stonelike cliffs on them.

Top of hill above the motel

This time of the year, there are only about 80 people in the town, which goes up to about 200 in the Winter season. The primary school has about 10 children. We spent 2 days here and only one other caravan arrived in that time. We realise that we are travelling out-of-season as all the caravan parks are fairly empty and there is no need to book ahead. Most people travel through this part of the country between March to October because generally the temperature is quite high outside of this time. We haven't had this experience at all, even though we were expecting it, and not looking forward to it. As we have kept saying and other people who live in the areas, that the weather we have been having is most unusual at this time of the year, and it is looking so green. Normally, it is dry and very dusty, with lots of dust storms. Not this year, though.

After leaving White Cliffs, we stopped at another rest area for a couple of nights, also without any power. We wanted to delay getting to Broken Hill too soon as it was Nigel's 60th birthday on Saturday, 11th February. At this rest area there was even separate ladies and gents pit toilets. There seems to be a new system they are using so they are a lot more people friendly. Quite a number of caravans stopped here also.


rest area from hill across the road (isolated)



toilet (ladies and gents)












Before arriving in Broken Hill, we passed through the Fruit Fly Zone and had to dump any fruit or veges we had not used. We were told we would be checked and fined if any were found. We thought this wouldn't happen until we went through the border to South Australia, but found there is quite a big zone area beforehand.  This was all new to us.

BROKEN HILL

We found Broken Hill a fascinating place, full of history, centered around it's mining hereitage. We rode our bikes all around Broken Hill. We visited places of interest.

The Silver City Mint and Art Centre is home to 'The Big Picture', the world's largest acrylic painting on canvas 12m x 100m, which forms a circle around the walls of a large room. You view this by walking out on to a platform into the middle and you are surrounded by various outback scenes particular to the area. It took 2 years to paint. Unfortunately we were unable to take photos in here. This is where Nigel got his first 'Seniors' discount as we mentioned it was his 60th birthday the next day.

Slag Heap in background with Cafe and Memorial on top

Site of 1st BHP office

Honey I shrunk the parents (The Big Seat)

BHP (Broken Hill Proprietory Ltd) originated in Broken Hill back in 1885 mining iron ore. We rode our bikes around the huge slag heap and visited the place where the first BHP office was located. Only remnants of a chimney still stand today. On top of the slag heap is now a cafe and memorial to over 800 miners killed while working in the mines from the 1800's up to the present day.



sculptures on top of hill

Another special attraction was visiting the Living Desert Sculptures at sunset, located on a hill a few kilometers out of the City. The evening was perfectly calm and warm. It was quite special being there at twilight. Ron came with us and enjoyed the evening.

famous sculpture with sun setting through it

Saturday, 11th February, was a special day as it was Nigel's 60th birthday. The day started with a special cooked breakfast. Later we drove to Silverton, a fairly isolated small town 25kms out of Broken Hill. (Less chance of anyone springing a surprise party). Silverton grew up in the late 1800's due to mining. Today it is more like a ghost town with only 50 inhabitants, but it is very popular with the tourists who come to visit as it has become famous through being featured in more than 100 films and commercials, i.e. 'A Town like Alice', 'Priscilla Queen of the Desert', 'Mad Max II'.

We had a great birthday lunch at the Cafe there, which is also like a museum. It houses lots of historic memorabilia. The food was superb and at such a reasonable price. Worth going out there for that alone. To end the day we went to a picnic area at a reservoir and enjoyed a lovely birthday picnic tea, celebrating with a bottle of wine Nigel was given by some clients of his and was told to open it in Silverton. It was a lovely evening and a nice way to finish the day. Viewed the Mundi Mundi plains which were so flat you could see the horizon in a 180 deg span.  

When will he grow up

Icon of Silverton used in films and commercials

On our way back we did see some wild life, a camel, (these are used for camel rides in Silverton during the peak season), emus and a live snake on the road. It didn't want to move and we weren't too keen to get out and coax it off the road. Hopefully it survived.







Sunday morning we visited the Salvation Army at Broken Hill which was the birth place of Arthur Gullidge (famous composer) who was captured, along with his military bandsmen, by the Japanese. On the way to Japan, the ship they were being transported on, was torpedoed by an American warship and was sunk with all lives lost.

Broken Hill Caravan park

On our last day in Broken Hill we said farewell to Ron as were going in different directions. We might bump into him again somewhere down the track as we are both heading to Western Australia.                                                                                         

Our next destination is Wentworth/Mildura and then into South Australia (Murray River region). We are really enjoying the travelling and having a lot of fun. Time is going very fast. 

                                            

TO BE CONTINUED (hopefully not too long)

Lightning Ridge to Bourke NSW 30/1/12 - 2/2/12

Leaving Lightning Ridge we came across this plaque which indicated how Lightning Ridge apparently got it's name. We have read other versions of how the name came about, but we thought this one sounded quite good.

On leaving Lightning Ridge we only travelled 10 kms down the road before stopping for the night at a rest area beside the road as the weather was pretty bad (lots of rain) and we weren't sure if the roads were open or not due to flooding. It was here that we met "Willy not Nelson" and his wife who stopped to change a wheel and were on their way home from singing at the Country and Western Festival at Tamworth. Apparently he is well known in this area. A bit of a character!!!

Brewarrina camp site

50m pool in Brewarrina (not a good photo)

Next day we travelled to a small town "Brewarrina", but the caravan park was closed due to upgrading and was the only one in the area. Fortunately, Carol spoke to one of the guys working there and he allowed us to stay there the night, at no cost, and we had the facilities of water, electricity, showers and toilets. We were very relieved to be able to stay there even if it was a bit run down. Only ones again. As a bonus the caravan park was right next door to a beautiful olympic 50m swimming pool, with an entrance fee of $2 each. As it was a very hot day (one of the few days we need to put our air conditioner on), it was most welcome.  On driving through these small, very run down towns, we noticed they all seem to have  nice big 50m outdoor swimming pools, with hardly anyone in them.
Not very much to see in Brewarrina except the fish traps at the weir on the river which were constructed by the Aborigines thousands of years ago to catch fish as they swam up the river.

Brewarrina Weir

These towns are often deserted and the roads and streets are empty. Most of the shops and pubs/hotels are closed or derelict. The shops that are open seem to have shutters or bars on them for security reasons which reminded us of some of the pacific islands we have been to. In the 1800's early 1900's these towns were booming with gold, silver and opal mining but populations declined as supplies ran out and people had to move away.

"Mosquitoes" .  These little insects plagued us, especially Carol, who comes out in large red bumps, once bitten. She found relief by rubbing vegemite into the bite. One morning Nigel woke up and asked her if she was 'a happy little vegemite', to which she replied "yes, why?" Because you smell like one!". We had a good laugh. A nightly routine is hunting for the mozzies around the inside of the caravan with a torch and eliminating them before going to bed. While in Carol found a recipe from a pharmasist which we made up and it seems very successful in keeping them away.

Tuesday, 31st January took us west from Brewarrina to Bourke (Back o' Bourke). It rained very heavy during the night so we were hoping there would be no flooding on the roads, but there was no problem. The distance we travelled was a little over 100 kms and the road was practically deserted.

The caravan park at Bourke was in complete contrast to the one we had just left. We stayed a couple of nights at Kidman's camp which was recommended to us. More upmarket than we are used to but a beautiful spot and apart from one other caravan and a tent we had the whole place to ourselves.

As the camp was 7 kms north of Bourke, we rode our bikes into the town to explore.

No where to go

Kidmans Camp pool (2 pools)

The Darling River is running quite high and will be higher when the flood waters from Queensland arrive in a few weeks. Again Bourke seemed to be deserted of people and vehicles. We expected Bourke to be bigger but only has a population of 2,200.

Bourke was a bustling river port in the late  1800s as wool was transported down the Darling and Murray Rivers to Adelaide where it was shipped off to other parts of the world. 

North Burke Bridge

A lift bridge still exists from this era. There is a paddlesteamer here which takes tourists up and down the river but unfortunately because the river was so high it was unable to pass under the electricity cables.

Back o' Bourke Gallery (Jenny Greentree)

Near the Caravan park is an art gallery, owned by a lovely Christian lady, Jenny Greentree (appropriate name), whose art work features Australian artback scenes. Her work in pastels is just superb and the colours are amazing, influenced by her love of creation.


The next part of our journey takes us to Cobar, White Cliffs and then on to Broken Hill.  To be continued: