The "Hot Lap" Exploring Australia

[p1michaud]

Time had a way of getting away from you especially when you are travelling. We finally have a bit of wifi so I can update this thread. There have been lots of lessons, changes but thankfully we had a back up plan, good friends to lend us a hand and the willingness to change. Probably the most significant changes have been a change of living quarters from the Kimberly Kamper to a Kedron caravan. The location of the trailer also necessitated a change of direction from our original route. We are now going South to North West. A teaser photo for now.

 

[p1michaud]

 

[p1michaud]

I'll have to backtrack a bit later on when wifi is better, but here 's a bit of an update. We left Brisbane, meandered south to Cessnock where we had an issue with our trailer batteries and the weather was not being cooperative. Thanks to my wonderful wife's efforts we secured a dog and house sitting job. This allowed us to review our strategy and travel plans. We did learn that thing don't always go to plan but if you leave enough flexibility the trip can continue.
We had to backtrack to Brisbane to organise the upgrade in trailers but that allowed us to reconnect with friends as well as organise ourselves. We found a well cared for used Kedron caravan (trailer) with many tasteful upgrades including a rather large solar panel array with good batteries and electrics. The previous owner was an Electrical Engineer and he spent lots of energy and money making sure the electrics were up to scratch. Since Brisbane we made our way North via Biloela our previous home for the last 5 years before pushing further North to Mackay, Townsville, Charters Towers en route to Hughenden where we began our Australian Dinosaur education. We are now camped just outside of Winton QLD. The days have been filled with historic hotels, dinosaur bones, Waltzing Matilda song and Dinosaur stampedes! Great little town with interesting people camped along side of us.

 

[p1michaud]

Now it's time to look at our route options. My little helper is pointing out some potential destinations based on our reading to date...

 

[p1michaud]

Stayed at an interesting place last night. This pub was made famous by a film featuring the Australian outback. Anyone care to guess?

 

[PKDreamers]

... Walkabout Creek Hotel ??..

 

[p1michaud]

Great guess. The whole concept of six degrees of separation came into play for this visit. The new owners are from the same town where we have lived for the last 5 years and I worked with their new owners relatives. We enjoyed a chat to discover the history of the pub and changes since the movie was shot. Did you know that the pub has been relocated since the original movie was shot ? Just down the road as the highway has changed.

 

[Rumpig]

Did you know that the pub has been relocated since the original movie was shot ? Just down the road as the highway has changed.

i thought they moved it to the highway for better exposure to the travelling public as it was a touch out of the way originally? atleast that's what i was told many years ago the first time i visted there. I hope they have jazzed the place up some since our last visit there 2 years ago, it was looking pretty plain back then as the below pic will show. Personally i prefer the Blue Heeler Hotel down the road a touch at Kynuna, it has more character and much more history to it then the Walkabout Creek Hotel IMHO.
so where are you heading for now out of curiosity?

 

[p1michaud]

Yes that is what I tried to explain, the pub was moved to keep it on the main highway as it changed from when the pub was originally built. All for exposure. It's unfortunate that interesting building and the reputation has gone downhill in recent years. The previous publican had been there for 27 years, a bit too long. The be owners are putting time and money into the place so people don't just stop in for a beer and photos. We stayed there for the night. The amenities were nice, clean and good quality water. We also offered some suggestions regarding putting up some history about the pub and movie series so people can learn about it all.
We are en route to Lawn Hill National Park for 5 nights. Currently in Cloncurry to resupply.

 

[Rumpig]

enjoy Lawn Hill, it's a very beautiful place. be sure and hire a canoe / kayak to paddle up the gorge in whilst you're there.
If you do the Indarri Falls loop walk whilst there, be aware there isn't much shade up on top of the escarpment on the clockwise walk back from the falls, so take plenty of water and hats (the walk from the car park area to Indarri Falls in a clockwise direction is easy going). It probably won't be such an issue for you at this time of the year, but when we did the walk in September it was very hot up on the escarpment with the lack of shade. We did the walk with young kids along with us, most of it is fairly easy going, but at the end is a steep section to walk down, so keep a good eye on any young ones if you have them. The loop walk is well worth doing IMHO

HERE'S WHAT YOU CAN SEE ON THE LOOP WALK (i have plenty of other pics i could post, but it's your thread so will leave it for you to post some up, once you've finshed your trip there)

 

[p1michaud]

Thanks for the tips. We have a 7 month old daughter with us so the family walks will have to be shorter. Weather has been warmer than usual, mid 30's mid day.

 

[PKDreamers]

You guys staying at Lawn Hill or Adels Grove?
Adels was no where near as dusty as Lawn Hill when we where there a few years ago.
As Rumpig said hire a canoe and paddle up the gorge it is so pretty.

Also have a look at Riversleigh fossil site it is well worth the look.

 

[p1michaud]

We are booked in at Lawn Hill. We are also going to have a look at Adels.

 

[p1michaud]

Completed two of the walks so far. Just spectacular and the water is beautifully refreshing after a hike in this weather. This place has wifi, good and bad...

 

[p1michaud]

Time for a bit of backtracking to our departure from Brisbane in March...

Every journey has it’s challenges. When you depend on a motorized vehicle for your travels, sooner or later you have to fix something. We were one day out on our journey, just North of Brisbane QLD when my wife said. What’s that noise from the front of the Landcruiser as she was standing outside with the windows down… The sound was: click, click click coming from the passenger side wheel on full turn. I was pretty sure that it was a CV. Strange as I had got to the effort of disassembling, cleaning, inspecting, greasing and rebooting both of them approximately 12 months ago. Did I miss something?



One of the benefits of online forums and ExPo in particular is that you get the chance to meet lots of like minded individuals. Back in 2008 when I was discussing our move to Brisbane Australia, I received a PM from an ExPo member to put me in contact with his Aussie cousin, Andrew, also a 4WD fanatic but even better a LandCruiser nut! Andrew invited me to hit some of the local tracks on a 40 Series run and I got to meet Ray another LandCruiser aficionado, the real important bit here is that Ray is a qualified mechanic and thankfully I managed to keep in touch with Ray over the years. This chance meeting would pay off. I rang Ray and booked in to his garage for some diagnosis and repairs.



Can you remember the days when you pulled into a service station and the owner came out to greet you? He fills up your gas tank, helps out if you need to put a bit of air in your tires and is generally up for a chat as long as it’s about fishing, the weather or any mechanical issues you are experiencing with your vehicle. Well that’s exactly what Hendra Motors is all about. It was like stepping back in time.

The offending CV being inspected for damage. There was a bit of pitting but nothing major.

All good thanks a big thanks to Ray and Abboud at Hendra motors.

If you are ever in Brisbane and need mechanical repairs, give them a call and tell them Pierre sent you. I’m confident that they will take care of you without mention of my name…