Wild Guy

 

I once went bush waking (with a friend) through Guy Fawkes National Park. We camped at Marengo Creek near where it joins Guy Fawkes River in New South Wales : 30.125211 degrees South, 152.301443 degrees West.

I went for a swim in the creek in a large basin. The circular hole was made made by a fallen tree when its roots lifted from the earth. As I cooled off in the water up to my neck, small fish swam up and began to nibble at my skin - it was a strange tickling sensation and very enjoyable.

Caravan Improvements #5

 The first thing I broke on my caravan - within 2 hours of owing it - was the ventilation hatch winder handle. Of course it was plastic. I looked up the web site and saw that it was a prominently displayed spare part - obviously these things broke all the time.

So I made my own wooden handle by modifying a wooden knob for drawers from my local hardware warehouse [ Bunnings ]. The larger diameter of the wooden knob made the ventilation hatch easier to open and close.

Cylinder Beach

Cylinder Beach,  Stradbroke Island is peaceful. For the past few days I have been fortunate to be camped between a lone guitar player and a guitar/banjo duo. So relaxing.

Caravan Imprvements #4

Non slip tape on the metal checkplate plate improves grip.

Great Radio

 

My favourite radio. 

Accurate digital tuning.

Sensitive reception - from Brisbane I can receive all the Australian 50kW AM transmitters. Some I have to wait till late at night.

Good sound - from the 100mm speaker.

Extended battery life - from 4x D cells.

I used this radio when travelling as I can remove it from the RF interference in the caravan power systems.

Caravan Improvements #3

 

I added a gas fuse between the gas bottle and the caravan appliances. It can also be used to detect gas leaks.

Caravan Improvements #2

 

Simple but effective - a level glued to the frame. But I did make a mistake - when the frame is level the bench inside the caravan is not quite level so I must compensate.

Caravan Improvements #1

 I have made several improvements to my caravan.

The original jockey wheel was solid rubber - the rubber split under load the first time I used it. Maybe the rubber was perished.

The replacement jockey wheel is steel with a rubber rim - it can withstand a larger load. The crank motion in the vertical plane is easier to operate than the original in the horizontal plane. The wheel diameter is larger so it is easier to push around. It can also lift higher than the original.

If it works...

When on holiday, the caravan mixer tap became stiff and was difficult to turn on and off. Armed with my plumbing tools I prepared to disassemble the tap and investigate the cause. I turned off the water pump. I turned on the tap to release the pressure and turned it off again - it was easy to operate. I checked again with the water pump on -it was working fine.

I put my tools away. There is an engineering rule I learned as as a student - If it works don't fix it.

Holiday Home

 

A'van Cruiser

This was our home for five weeks. The walls and roof fold to make a trailer. We think of it as a luxury tent.

Garage length - 5200mm

Interior Length - 3615mm 

Interior width - 2000mm

Maximum gross mass - 1205kg

To correctly calculate the tyre pressure for a caravan see - https://www.gnschassis.com.au/tyre-pressure-calculator/

Services - water tank, cooktop,  microwave, fridge/freezer, hot water, air conditioning, water pump, radio/CD player, 240V socket, outlets, 12V socket outlets, lighting.

Energy sources - 

1) 240V 15 amp mains power for everything except cooktop

2) Photovoltaic panel and battery - for water pump, radio/CD player, 240V socket, outlets, 12V socket outlets, lighting

3) LPG (2x4kg) - for cooktop, fridge/freezer, hot water.

Mold or cast

 

 Dinosaur footprint made 95 million years ago.

At Lark Quarry -90 minute drive from Winton- there is an array of dinosaur tracks showing a predator chasing a multitude of smaller prey.

When I look at this photo now I see a raised cast but in fact the claw marks are depressions in stone. My mind sometimes defaults to see bumps where there are dents. In looking at moon photos I have seen mesas where others see craters.

Telecommunications country wide

 When I crossed the Great Dividing Range into western Queensland I soon found that my mobile telephone no longer worked. It is such a common problem that the tourist information centre I visited had maps on hand to explain it all - only Telstra works outback. Only Telstra SIM cards are sold at the shops.

Years ago I had transferred my number from Telstra to Belong (a discount brand from Telstra) in order to get more data at a reasonable price. I had thought that Belong - being owned by Telstra would work. I was wrong. 

In the meantime Telstra now includes a enough data for my purposes in its plans (not a huge amount) so I have switched back.

DRCS mast at Larks Quarry

Early in my career I was a member of the team that automated outback communications with the Digital Radio Concentrator System. I enjoyed seeing the tall masts in remote places.

The ways of Queensland

The highways of Queensland are given interesting names. In the last 5 weeks we have travelled on Warrego Way, Leichhardt Way, Pacific Coast Way, Overlanders Way, Matilda way, Great Inland Way, and Australia's Country Way.

Take me home country roads...

 

Heading home on the Australian Country Way - after 5 weeks in outback Queensland it's time to head home.

Wilderness no more

Carnarvon Gorge is very popular with very many walkers hiking along the trail each day. It is not a lonely experience. There is little chance of seing wild animals with so many people around.

The rocky formations are spectacular. But the plants are still recovering from the last bushfire. The Xanthorrea are just small grassy tufts. And the Banksia are all skinny twigs with no flowers.

The saddest thing was 20th century initials and dates carved through the aboriginal rock art. The people viewing the the art were all very respectful.

Towers of Stone

Someone at Takarakka camping ground at the entrance to Carnarvon Gorge is obsessed with balancing rocks. The are everywhere particularly in the river bed. I even found where some had been glued - surely cheating.

Making towers stops the stones from being shelter to plants and invertebrates. 

Just like staying home

When some people go bush they bring their home comforts with them.

Other people make do with less when they travel.

Booming chimes

In Barcaldine giant wooden chimes sound over the Tree of Knowledge -

We swear by the Southern Cross to stand truly by each other and fight to defend our rights and liberties.

Apart from that it's pretty good

This quote on the wall of the Stockman Hall of Fame is a wry summary of the outback - the flies, and the bulldust, and the empty bellies, .and the rain that can soak your bones to a chill.

Golden lies

This text is from the Waltzing Matilda museum.

A true text would read -

A consortium of wealthy Victorian pastoralists stole aboriginal lands around Winton and prospered ....