Heading Home The Long Way

Our van has spent two days at the Bushtracker factory in early September having two items replaced under warranty along with some extra items installed. We have also been experiencing a problem with our hot water system but a hot water and gas service soon rectified this annoying problem.

While the van was getting some much needed TLC then so were we. 
We stayed at the Rivershore Resort in one of there luxury safari tents with all the mod cons. The resort is a 15-minute drive from the factory and the restaurant serves breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Rivershore

Our Camec 4 kg washing machine decided to give up the ghost about a month ago and we have been experiencing problems with our DVD player.

You can imagine our surprise when we found out that the washing machine warranty was for two years and the Fusion DVD player for three years. So two brand new items fitted fornix. Talk about happy days.

We also installed two rear stabilizer legs along with a bike rack that fits behind our generator box. It was fitted by South East Stainless who are just down the road from the Bushtracker factory.

It was a shortish drive north to Cooroy, where we have spent three days camped near this lovely little town.

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

We left Cooroy on a Monday morning heading south along the AI or Bruce Highway as far as the Landsborough turnoff. This road runs parallel to the highway but is a much quieter option. From here we took the Peacheaster road that eventually joins the D'Aguilar Highway just north of Woodford.

From here we headed west on the D'Aguilar Highway through Kilcoy and onto Blackbutt for a brief 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 and the oldest operating woolshed in the world and was built in 1859. We camped down by Oakey Creek but at $22.50 we thought that was a bit rough, considering we used all our own facilities.

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

We passed by Thallon in June on our way to the Big Red Bash held 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 painted working silos in Australia. 

It was just wonderful to be heading off this morning without the strong winds we have been experiencing for the past two weeks. There was just a gentle breeze in the tops of the trees that continued for the rest of the day.

We steered ourselves south towards Mungindi. From just north of town, we headed south-west towards Collarenebri. On the way, we stopped off to see the One Ton Post beside the Barwon River 8 km west of 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 which divides New South Wales from Queensland along the 29th parallel. 

The first 40 odd kilometres towards Collarenebri and the last 15 kilometres before reaching town is bitumen. In between 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. But the drought has really taken hold of this area like so much of the country we have passed through on this holiday. Its 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 to much further towards Gum Flat Reserve on the Gwydir River. We have stayed here before and have another nice 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. Its 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 sort of handled the job of cutting firewood, we have replaced this with a Stihl battery operated chainsaw. While its not cheap it will definitely last much longer than the Ryobi product.

I cannot believe just how good this product is with its 12" blade and a lithium-ion battery that takes just an hour to charge and the battery is good for cutting 100 logs on a single charge. Just like a hot knife through butter. 

Our last night before returning home was spent at Cangai. Its 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 were we covered 10,905 kilometers. Our fuel average was 20.2 L/100 km and the Big Red Bash at Birdsville a definite standout.