Evil Oddie

I slept pretty well apart from the guy across the way snoring and the locals that live across the street from the Caravan Park playing ACDC at 1am in the morning - BLARING!!

We got up early-ish as we had to get to Undara before 10:30 for our tour.  Innot Hot Springs is approx one and a quarter hours drive (without a car towing a trailer / caravan).  There was quite a heavy dew the night before and it was overcast, so we had to pack up a wetish camp.

In the car park at Undara, we set up the awning to dry out.  Glen chamiosed the tent a couple of times before it got packed away and it was mostly dry.

I raced in to get a cuppa.  I didn’t have time to have a cuppa at Innot.

I thought that it would be a long 2 hour tour at Undara, but it went really quickly.  One thing we both got over really quickly was a couple of kids.  I think they were a bit too young - maybe 2 or 3 (they still had dummies).  Every time our guide was saying something interesting, these kids just chucked tanties.  I think that they were twins.  I said to Glen that if we do any trips with kids, that we will wait until they are a little bit older so they understand that they need to be quiet and respect other people.  These twins were just little brats and if they were my kids, they would’ve copped a smacking!!!

Undara

Damien was our guide and he was awesome.  He talked in basic english so we could understand and he didn’t get bogged down with crap that we didn’t really need to know.

Undara Lava Tubes

I’ll be honest and say that I wasn’t very keen on going to Undara.  Mostly because it just looks like a cave and I’ve seen caves before.  I enjoyed the story of Undara, but it wasn’t anything new.   Not $45 worth in my opinion.   Well we’ve done it now so it’s another thing off the list.

After the tour, we decided to hot foot it to Townsville.   Glen was really tired, so I drove.  The back way to Townsville has only got maybe one lane of bitumen and the road trains do not budge off the bitumen.  It’s scary!  You’ve pretty much got to pull off the road and stop so they can pass.

The back road to Townsville

The photo above is where we stopped for lunch.  We were maybe on the side of the road for about 30 minutes and only one car passed us.  It was like the road went on forever.

Coming into Townsville

We booked  a room on Wotif as soon as we were coming into Townsville.  We’re at Hotel M on Palmer Street.  It’s awesome.  It’s fairly new  accommodation and we got upgraded and we’re on Level 9.  There’s kitchen facilities and the king size bed is really comfortable.  I slept like a log.

There’s a washing machine and dryer in our room too!  I had bags and bags of dirty clothes, so I’ve done a couple of loads while we’ve been here.  The view is fantastic and we had Benny’s Hotwok for dinner last night.   I had the Yellow Curry and it was great.  Glen even enjoyed his too!

Glen and I really like Townsville.   The  two times we’ve been now, we’ve both said to each other how much we like Townsville.  I can’t imagine how hot it it here in Summer though!

We had French Toast and Bacon for breakfast. We had an early swim after that and the boys started boy type things. Alex and

I did our washing by hand. we read our books and fluffed around camp.

A really nice day just relaxing and swimming. I washed Alex’s hair with the soap today too. Now we’re both bogan style.

We had Rissoles and veges for dinner and the night was cooler than the night before.

We had Scrambled Eggs with Toast made from the bread made yesterday.  We were all a bit cranky and over the bogans the night before.  When we got up, we didn’t care how much noise we made around the bogans (they camped behind our tent).  We headed for Weipa on the Penninsula Developmental Road.  Parts of the Penninsula Development Road are fabulous and we could go really fast.

We got into to Weipa at about lunch time.  Scott, Luke & Glen went to go and get and air filter for the GU.  Garry and Ristan went looking for internet access for Ristan to submit a recommendation.  Alex and I went to the shopping centre to get some more bread, milk and other stuff.  Before we started the shopping, Alex and I needed to use the amenities.  We were following an Aboriginal lady and honestly, I could’ve got drunk just standing next to her.

Total for the group $91.07 and there wasn’t that much shopping.  I got a bottle of Cab Sav to share with Garry as we are the red drinkers out of the group and I had been drinking his on the trip up so far.

We walked past a takeaway store and saw pies, wedges, chips, cake and other assorted goodies.  We decided that we were going to buy lunch.  Glen got a pie and I got wedges with sour cream and sweet chilli sauce. We got 40L on diesel at the BP $1.44 per litre.

Waiting for the bridge to open at Weipa

Dog hanging out with the Challenger at Weipa

Luke’s boss had told him about this fantastic camping spot called Pennefather.  We had to go and book and pay at the Camping Ground at Weipa.  The bridge at Weipa was getting works completed and was only open at certain times, so we had to wait until it was open before we could go make camp.

Our convoy got stuck behind some slow going vehicles so the trip was long and dusty.  We took the Pennefather turn off and unfortunately, that’s the way the other cars went too.  The road in was shocking!  It went from a bad dusty road to a very soft sand road.  The GU and the Challenger got stuckish in one spot on the road in the soft sand.  The beach sand was the worst beach we have ever driven on.  As soon as you stopped, you were up to the chassis in soft sand.  A couple of guys that were already camping there stopped to have a chat.  They told us about an inland track to the campsite that Scott and Glen had found.

GU stuckish on the way to Pennefather

If you are really into fishing and want to stay there for a week, then this is for you.  People wanting a nice campsite, Pennefather is not for you.  They had massive thorns - one went through my thong and lodged itself in my big toe - ouch!  Other turn offs were: lots of mozzies, midgies and it was hot.  Even after the beautiful sunset and the rusty shelter, we would not go back.

Camp at Pennefather

Sunset at Pennefather

We had Roast Chicken & veges for dinner.

Injuries & Ouchies:

Oddie - Thorn stuck in her toe (and then another in her finger)

We left Palm Cove at approx 8:30am heading north to eventually start the CREB Track.  We stopped at Daintree for Garry to get some breakfast (tomato & cheese toasted sandwich) and a P stop.

Daintree

We weren’t sure how to get to the CREB Track so we drove around Daintree several times and discovered that our Navman was correct.  It started down an No Through Road.

Dog at one of the Water Crossings

Dog Keeping an Eye on the CREB Track

We got to the start of the CREB Track and there was a “CLOSED” sign on the track.  The boys decided seeing we were up here, we were going to do the CREB Track even if it was closed.  The girls were not so keen (hello - closed for a reason).  So all the reading and the 4wd Monthly DVD was correct; it is quite difficult.  There were creek crossings, steep decents and ascents, drop offs, slippery bits and  - the reason why it was closed.

We ran into Ergon Energy guys decommisioning the lines.  The lines were supposed to be already decommissioned and down by mid July (oopsy running a bit late boys? Probably due to all the people coming through the closed signs).

The first crew were not impressed when we came across them.  They radioed the other guys to let them know that we were coming.  The guy told Scott that if the Ranger caught us, we were risking a $1500 fine per car.  FARK!  Glen and I reasoned that that was pretty much a fare for both of us to New Zealand and could be labelled as a holiday expense - LOL.  We had to wait until the guys had moved all their cars and tools off the road so we could pass.

The second crew were a lot nicer.  They actually saw us coming so a guy came down to let us know what they were doing and asked us to wait until they’d got the lines down and then they’d move out of the way.  It was pretty cool watching them decommissioning the line.  At one point, they asked for someone to help hold the line down so we could drive over them, so I got out to hold the line.  The guy started making jokes ’send a woman to get the job done’ etc, and he told me that we’re not the only ones that have come through the “CLOSED” sign.

Ergon Guys

We got to the end of the CREB Track and saw the sign for the Roaring Meg Falls.  We had booked the site annd had permission from EPA but still had to call the local elders to get permission to enter.  Of course, we didn’t have phone coverage, so we had to drive until we did.  Luke got coverage first and he called and got permission.  Men are not allowed at the Falls and we had to respect the land.  Can do.

The Roaring Megs Campsite was a lot better than I expected it was going to be. They had a toilet and wooden table and chairs.  Alex and I went for a walk to the Falls and there was a sign to say that no photography was allowed - doh!  Seeing the boys weren’t allowed, they’d asked us to take photos.  We kept walking and a tree had fallen across the track.  We didn’t want to clamber through all the branches and there was a steep cliff on the other side, so couldn’t go around.  We couldn’t hear the falls so turned back.

No Photos Allowed

We started cooking dinner (Camp oven Quiche with Potato Salad and Garden salad), when another car turned up.  Luke said he didn’t think they had all the proper approvals to be there as we had all 3 campsites booked.  The car was full of 3 guys and all of them went to the Falls.  We tried talking to them and they were just weird.

There was an animal of some kind hanging around the camp.  Luke said it looked like a possum with no tail but that was from a distance.  I didn’t sleep much because I could hear this animal walking around our tent.

Our Camp

Injuries & Ouchies:

Hilux - Hole in air hose
Garry - Toothache
Luke - Ankle - existing before trip

You know who the Swine Flu Carrier was…

Ok - it’s been a while since I’ve done a post…

What’s happened in the past month or so…

My Birthday - I got a Wii Fit… I’m porking it on though as my gym membership ran out and I’m procrastinating.  I miss playing indoor soccer with the guys from my old work **cry**…

Rental House -  The tenants absolutely trashed the house.  I’m talking there was probably one wall that didn’t have a hole or needed replastering.  We’ve had to put in a new kitchen, bathroom, wardrobe doors, new internal doors had to be installed because they were broken or ‘missing’.

Sick - I am currently working from home as I have a chest infection and both ears have infections… Triple whammy!! I hate being sick and can’t stand doing nothing. Hence why I’ve got my work lappy at home and am processing accounts payable… How sad…

Melbourne Trip -  Last weekend, I went to Melbourne for a bit of a girls weekend.  Went with Seraya.  Top chic really.  She had to work Thursday & Friday, so I went shopping.  I started to feel ill on Friday (see above - yes I’ve been sick for a week now - Grrrrr) so we didn’t really do much on Saturday / Sunday because I couldn’t find the energy to do anything.

Visitors -  Glen’s sister’s came over from NZ in the first week of October.  We just hung out at our place and ate heaps of food (see item one re: porking it on!)

There’s probably heaps else that’s happened (work wise) but I’m not going to rave on about it here.  Talk soon, I’ve got heaps still happening…

The new owner picked up my old Nissan Pulsar GTiR the night before last. It was both a sad and happy moment.

I don’t think I will ever buy another grey import. It took us a month to get the road worthy. I should highlight that there wasn’t anything drastically wrong with the car; it was about sourcing parts. It needed a new shockie. We had to wait a week and a half just for it to get here. Then it went missing while being freighted up. So we had to order another set. I personally don’t think they went “missing”. I think that someone went ‘Holy crap! These are good shockies, they’ll go great in my car or I could get a fair bit of money for them on Ebay.’ The guy who fitted the shockies showed me his invoice. The wholesale price for these were like $600.

The other thing that needed to get fixed was an oil leak. It was just a seal. It had to get ordered from Melbourne. It is less than a $20 part. It took a week to get here and to get the seal on, they had to drop the gearbox. I am really happy that the car is fixed and the new owner is happy. Poor guy, he had to wait a month for a car that he was really excited about.

The next car that we need to sell is the Nissan 300ZX.

On the weekend, Glen was supposed to be going up to Landcruiser Mountain Park, so I had organised to go take some photos. I had a plan for Saturday - go to the Ipswich Information Centre (I wanted details on old queenslander houses in the area), walk around a couple of parks to get photos of unsuspecting people, get some photos of St Mary’s Church and get some groceries on the way home.

Mother Nature must hate me. I went to 3 different places and got attacked by Magpies. Let’s just say it is not fun getting attacked and its even harder to take photos during the episode. After the 3rd attack, I threw a bit of a tanty and decided to go home.

Last weekend, the Patrol club had its yearly get together at Landcruiser Mountain Park.  Glen had been looking forward to it for quite some time.  Glen has been looking for more people that are on his level (my words, not his) in regards to wanting to go out and driver skill.  I don’t really think that Glen has much to do with the guys from this club other than doing posts on their forum.

Anyway, Jason (otherwise known as “Jim” or “Crazy Jim”) was the only other person from the usual group to go with us.  Jim was planning to stay for the weekend, but his wife got sick so he could only go for the day.  So we went up convoy and when we got there, we just drove up to guys that had Patrol’s in the camping area and Jim started talking to some of them.  These guys really didn’t have a clue.  They didn’t know what (UHF) channel the rest of the club were on or where the other guys headed.  It was like getting blood out of a stone.

 So Glen & I set up our tent and Jim helped unpack the Ute.  I have to say that seeing us set up our tent is quite funny.   Seeing we only do it probably 3 or 4 times a year, we seem to forget how to do it.  Although Jim has watched us do it before.  I think he laughs at us every time.

Once the tent was up and we got all the excess crap out of the Ute, we were off around the park.  They had closed off a lot of the tracks for regeneration (it had been raining quite heavily, so I think they didn’t want 4wd nuts chewing up the tracks).   We found a group of Patrol people and they were too busy talking crap and drinking (alcohol - so much for QLD road rules applying in the park).  One of the guys (and his mate) that was in this group was keen for some driving so he tagged along with us.

 Jim, Glen & the other guy (I can’t remember names - oopsy) headed for the extreme tracks.  Jim and Glen got up one of the extreme tracks and then the other guy had a go.  He ripped the tyre of the rim - which was pretty cool - and the guys got it back on.  The funny bit was he got about another 10 meters or so and then staked the tyre.  Glen towed him up the rest of the way. 

We went for a night run, which was my first one and that was pretty cool.  After the night run, we put the roast & veges in the camp oven and waited for it to cook.  I think it will be the last time that we do this cause it took to long.  After dinner, Jim went home.  It just isnt the same without Jim.   He’s just great company on a trip… He makes me laugh without even trying…  I understand why Glen and Jim get along so well.

We didn’t sleep much, there was a choir of snoring in the camping area.  At one point during the night, Glen and I were just lying there laughing at all the different snoring that was happening.  Of course we had a go at mimicking them.  All I got was a sore throat from trying.

On Sunday, the other guy that went driving with us went home early too.  So it was just Glen and I.  There was a WE Rock Challenge on, so we went and checked that out.  It was great to watch. Carnage everywhere.  On the track that we decided to watch, only 2 cars out of the lot made it with out rolling it or breaking.  I got heaps of photos with my newly leart skills. I’ll put some up shortly.  I really enjoyed just me and Glen sitting there watching it and talking about what was happening and making jokes.  One of the best days we’ve spent together.

All in all a good weekend when I thought it was going to be boring. 

Glen asked me where I’d like to go for dinner for my birthday (a couple of weeks ago) and I chose Woodlands of Marburg.  My parents also came down for my birthday and also Father’s Day, so they came to Woodlands also.

I called Woodlands to book in and asked if we could get there early to have a look around.  I also wanted to take some photos for my essay.

When we got there, the sun was setting and there wasn’t enough light to take good photos.  So we went for a wander around.  Allan (sp?) who is the Curator & F&B Manager came up to us and took us on a tour.   They were opening new accommodation and we went through 2 of the rooms - absolutely beautiful.  He gave us some background history of Woodlands and he then got another staff member to take us on a tour of the mansion.  What a beautiful  house and the owners have really embraced the opportunity of bringing Woodlands back to its former glory (and the financial gains too).

I was a bit scared about the 11 ghosts that still reside in the Mansion.  I especially liked the story about the maid that was pushed down the main stairs but her body had been dragged out onto the front lawn to make it look as if she jumped.  Firstly, she shouldn’t have been on the main stairs (servants have to use their own stairs). The main reason she got bumped off was SHE WAS PREGNANT TO THE MASTER.

Getting back on track now. The food at was also fantastic.  Glen had the Beef & Lobster, Mum & Dad had the Fish and I had a Vegetable Wellington.  Mum and I shared a bottle of Woodlands own sweet red (you can’t buy from the cellar door yet - bummer).

It was a fantastic night and the highlight of my birthday.  Mum and Dad were talking about going back there just for a weekend of relaxation… Have to get in quick though - I think The Great Outdoors are going there so it’s only a matter of time before it’s “the in thing”.