Crowdy Bay National Park

We have just returned home after five days away, camping at one of our favourite spots.
With the nearing completion of the dual carriageway on the Pacific Highway south of Coffs Harbour, our travel times have now significantly shortened. Our stress levels have also decreased since we no longer need to drive on poor-quality, poorly maintained roads.
Crowdy Bay National Park is situated roughly 44 km south of Port Macquarie and has been a favourite of ours since our first visit in 2006.
Leaving the highway at Kew, it’s just 7 km until you pass through Laureiton, before turning south towards the national park boundary. To reach Diamond Head, where fees are payable, involves 10 km of well-maintained dirt road with only minor corrugations.
There are numerous campgrounds here, but we favour Kylies Beach campground. It has fewer facilities than some others, offering just a drop toilet, cold shower, and non-potable water.

It's named after Australian author Kylie Tennant, who lived in Laureiton, and whose writing retreat hut still exists not far from the campground.

 

It's a lovely campground, free from those dreaded bollards, and features large, open grassy areas for camping. 

Being just 200 metres back from the beach, it offers much-needed protection in case the weather turns nasty.

Each afternoon, the kangaroos come out to feed, and if you're lucky, you might see the resident koalas in the gum trees that surround the campsite.

All available services are situated just 13 km north at the town of Laureiton.
 
We only camp here on weekdays because we find it too busy on weekends, especially during school holidays or over the Easter period. 

DJI Mavic Pro 2

I was genuinely surprised at how quickly my Mavic Pro drone sold. It was just a matter of hours after I listed it on a Drone Facebook group.
 
Why was I selling such a good drone? 
Well, I'm upgrading to the latest model from DJI.
 
The new drone comes in two versions: the Mavic Pro 2 and the Mavic Zoom 2, both of which are significantly improved over the original.
 
When I asked at the Camera House here in Coffs Harbour, they were sold out. They suggested that I purchase online and have it shipped to my home rather than going to the store.
 
This way, I could skip the queue of people already waiting for stock. More importantly, with a second price hike looming since the drone’s launch in August, I’d also avoided that increase.
 
I decided on the Mavic Pro, which features a larger image sensor, as DJI has partnered with Hasselblad. 
Hasselblad has been in operation since 1941, and its Swedish design is renowned worldwide. 
The sensor is four times larger than the original, which significantly improves the quality and colour performance.

The larger sensor results in an increased ISO setting from 3200 to 12800, and the megapixel count rises from 12 to 20, allowing for even more stunning photos.
 
The original drone, with its fixed aperture, has been replaced with an adjustable one ranging from f/2.8 to f/11, providing greater control for handling different lighting conditions.
 
Many additional differences exist between the old and new models, including an increase in colour profile from 16 million to over 1 billion colours. Hyperlapse is also now included.
 
Another key feature is the introduction of omnidirectional obstacle sensing. Sensors are now placed in the front, rear, sides, and underneath, whereas the original only had forward sensing.
 
It now supports 4K HDR, and the drone can be connected directly to a 4K TV to view footage with accurate colour tones and contrast.
 
Flight time per battery, transmission distance (up to 8 km), and speed have all been improved. I only ever fly within line of sight. 
The top speed is now 72 kph in sports mode, and it boasts low-noise flight technology, making it much quieter than the original.
 
I also purchased a Fly More Kit, which includes two sets of props, a car charger, two additional batteries, and a charging hub that can connect all the batteries. Buying the kit instead of individual items saves over $400.00.

Unfortunately, the price has also risen significantly with the introduction of this new drone and its added features.

Heading Home The Long Way

Our van spent two days at the Bushtracker factory in early September, where two items were replaced under warranty and additional items were installed. We also experienced an issue with our hot water system, but a hot water and gas service soon resolved this troublesome problem.

 

While the van was receiving some much-needed TLC, we took a break.

We stayed at the Rivershore Resort in one of their luxury safari tents equipped with all the modern comforts. The resort is a 15-minute drive from the factory, and the restaurant offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Rivershore

Our Camec 4 kg washing machine stopped working about a month ago, and we've been having issues with our DVD player.
 
You can imagine our surprise when we discovered that the washing machine had a two-year warranty, while the Fusion DVD player was covered for three years. Two brand-new items were fitted for free. Talk about happy days.
 
We also installed two rear stabiliser legs along with a bike rack that fits behind our generator box. It was fitted by South East Stainless, which is located just down the road from the Bushtracker factory.

It was a short drive north to Cooroy, where we spent three days camping near this charming little town.

 

The Cooroy RV stop is for fully self-contained vans with no power available and requires all water to be stored on board. It's lovely and quiet, with a dump point 100 metres away and fresh town water. At $10 per night, it suits us perfectly.

We left Cooroy on a Monday morning, heading south along the Bruce Highway as far as the Landsborough turnoff. This road runs parallel to the highway, offering a quieter alternative. From here, we took Peacheaster Road, which eventually joins the D'Aguilar Highway just north of Woodford.
 
From there, we headed west on the D'Aguilar Highway through Kilcoy and onwards to Blackbutt for a quick stop at the bakery before turning south at Yarraman. We briefly followed the New England Highway through Cooyar and Wutul before heading cross-country on minor roads to spend the night at the Jondaryan Woolshed.
 
The woolshed is heritage-listed, the oldest operating woolshed in the world, built in 1859. We camped by Oakey Creek, but at $22.50, we thought that was a bit much, considering we used all our own facilities.

A quick stop outside the Nindigully Pub for a coffee break before heading south to camp at Thallon. 

We passed through Thallon in June while heading to the Big Red Bash at Birdsville in July, but we are staying here for the evening to photograph the art on the nearby silos.

 

These silos are the first to be painted in Queensland and the first operational silos in Australia to be painted. 

It was wonderful to head off this morning without the strong winds we've experienced for the past two weeks. There was just a gentle breeze at the tops of the trees that continued throughout the day.

 

We steered south towards Mungindi. From just north of the town, we headed south-west towards Collarenebri. Along the way, we stopped to see the One Ton Post beside the Barwon River, 8 km west of the town.

 

This post is the largest survey peg in Australia and was erected by John B Cameron in 1881. Cameron's Corner, where the three states meet, was named after him. It marks the eastern end of the 700 km long fence that divides New South Wales from Queensland along the 29th parallel. 

The first 40-odd kilometres towards Collarenebri and the last 15 kilometres before reaching the town are bitumen. In between, it is quite a good dirt road with few corrugations, but most of this is covered with quite deep bulldust.
 
Our plan was to camp on the Barwon River west of town for three days. However, the drought has really taken hold of this area, as has much of the country we have passed through on this holiday. It's very depressing passing by properties where the cattle and sheep are being fed because the paddocks have no grass, just dirt.
 
From Moree, it wasn't too much further towards Gum Flat Reserve on the Gwydir River. We have stayed here before and have another lovely site along the river. There is an eco-toilet and rubbish bins.

After reading threads by other Bushtracker owners, we decided to purchase a Snow Peak fire pit from Drifta. It is made in Japan from marine 316 stainless steel. The frame that sits over the pit can be adjusted in height to suit different heat levels. After just a week of use, we both agree that it was money well spent. Snow Peak

While our Ryobi reciprocating saw was somewhat suited for cutting firewood, we have replaced it with a Stihl battery-operated chainsaw. Although it's not cheap, it will certainly last much longer than the Ryobi tool. I can't believe just how good this product is, with its 12-inch blade and a lithium-ion battery that takes only an hour to charge, and the battery can cut 100 logs on a single charge. It cuts like a hot knife through butter. 

Our last night before returning home was spent at Cangai. It’s a free camp on the Mann River west of Grafton, and there are no facilities here, but the water from the river is suitable for our non-potable tanks.

We arrived home after three months away, where we covered 10,905 kilometres. Our fuel average was 20.2 L/100 km and the Big Red Bash at Birdsville a definite standout.

Carnarvon Gorge National Park

We have spent the past three days camping at Sandstone Park. It's a new camping site located approximately 6 km from the Carnarvon Gorge Visitor Centre, at the beginning of the gorge walking tracks. There are 41 very large sites offering 360-degree views of the surrounding countryside.
 
There are no powered sites available here; the only facilities include portaloos scattered throughout the site, a dump point, and fire pits located at each site. They have also removed the unnecessary rule of retaining greywater, allowing it to flow onto the ground where it is badly needed. Daily fees are currently $23 per site.

This new tourist venture is located on Bandana Station, which covers 43,000 acres and borders the national park. The station is now organic and typically has about 2200 cattle.
 
This is our third visit to Carnarvon Gorge, with our last trip in August 1997. At that time, camping was permitted throughout the year in the national park, but it has now been restricted to school holiday periods.
 
On our second day, we walked as far as Cathedral Gorge, which involved crossing Carnarvon Creek a total of forty times.

 

The return distance to the visitor centre is 18.2 kilometres. Of course, there are many interesting sites that branch off the main track, which increases this distance by quite a few more kilometres.

Some of the side trips include sites like Wards Canyon, which is a very steep climb that really gets the blood flowing with its hundred-odd steps, ultimately leading into a side gorge that shelters the world's largest fern, the king fern.

Then there is the Moss Garden, where water constantly drips from the sandstone to support the mosses and ferns that thrive here.

The amphitheatre is a 60-metre-high chamber carved out by running water over thousands of years.

On our final day, we paid what we believed was a very reasonable $165 for three of us to enjoy a twenty-minute flight over 'Bandana Station' and Molleyamber Gorge.