Retirement 1991-1999

Retirement

In July of 1991 I retired from work and Brodie and I rented our home out in Highbury to Brodie's son Lindsay and we headed off to Alice Springs in our caravan, we spent 5 weeks in the Alice  done all the touristy things like going to Ayres Rock  The Olgas  all the well known spots in the McDonnell Ranges both East and West and on the way back to Adelaide we spent some time at Mintabie Opal Fields and also Coober Pedy. We called into a beautiful spot at Quorn called Warren Gorge after we came back from the Birdsville races. The races was quite an experience there is normally a couple of hundred people in this little town and it swells to something like 3000 for the races, half of them determined to get as drunk as they can for the entire period of the 3 days but a real experience that I would not have missed for anything . We returned back to our caravan at Hawker via Inamincka and in coming this way we went through Cordillo Downs Station which in the shearing industry is well known for the history that is attached to it.

 The shearers back in the late 1800's and early 1900's used to ride their push bikes from the rail siding at Farina 600km's to Cordillo Downs and in those days times were that tough that they could very easily get the sack and have to push all the way back again in a very short stretch of time, the shearing shed is now being restored which is great to hear as it appears that the powers that be recognize the importance of this piece of our heritage.

In October of that year we went back to Adelaide and spent some time at the Fort Largs Caravan Park where my grandson Tyler fell out of a tree and broke his arm. From here we went up to Mannum and parked our caravan on brother Graham's block at Bolto Reserve for about 6 weeks until it was time to go to Tassy.

After Xmas we went down to Foster in the south of Gippsland and stayed at a caravan park there until the 27th Jan when we went over to Tasmania on the Spewcat (not the ship's real name) which is a cataraman a very nice ship but as the sea between Victoria and Tas is notorious for being rough there have been a lot of passengers get very sick on her and so the ship earnt a reputation and so was called the Spewcat, We landed at Georgetown and was I glad to get off ,when we lined up to drive on board at Welshpool we found out that we could not take ANY fruit or vegetables over with us and as I was aghast at the thought of wasting all the fruit I gorged myself on grapes, well as Brodie said later I looked nearly as green as the grapes on the ship going over and although at the time I said that I was feeling OK I can now say that I was on the edge of being very sick.

We went around the top of Tassie as far as Wynyard saw all the beautiful country around Davenport, Sheffield, Burnie and went for a long walk in the Cradle Mountain N.P. From there we went down to Strachan, around to Queenstown and then up to Lake St Clair where we stayed with Ann Longmore and her husband Richard Dacks who runs the camping grounds at Lake St Clair, they took us for a trip up the lake about 20 km's to where the walkers who do the walk from Cradle Mtn to Lake St Clair terminate their trek, it was a very good trip.

We then went around to Mt Field N.P and took a day trip to Strathgordon where a really big hydro scheme is situated. Beautiful scenery in Mt Field the waterfalls are really spectacular. From here, in to Hobart and then down to the southern most point of Tassie through the Huon Valley really beautiful country down through here. Back to Hobart and then over to Pt Arthur ,really enjoyed it here the day was beautiful and got some terrific video. Maria Island was our next destination was a little disappointed in

this trip was not an awful lot to see but you cannot win them all. From here it was up to Launceston done all the old station homesteads in the area and then up to Georgetown to catch the Cat back to the mainland. We spent just on 3 weeks in Tasmania.

Before we left for Tasmania we bought a F100 4WD from Mark and Wendy, Brodie’s Daughter and her husband, as we wanted to do the Gibb River Road in the Kimberley's and also the Cape York trip we knew that our 2 wheel drive would not be suitable and as Mark had to get rid of the F100 and we knew it was in good order we bought it off of him

We arrived back in Adelaide about the last week in February and left for our big around Australia trip on the 5th March, fairly hot time of the year for going over the Nullabor but as we wanted to be in Kunanurra the first week in June and as we wanted to see a lot of the bottom of W.A and also the Hammersley Ranges we had no option but to go when we did , as it turned out we only had two days around the 38 degrees so it was not too bad .Turned off at Noresman and went down to Esperance and then around to Wave Rock which was a little bit of a disappointment and then over to Narrogin where friends of Brodie's have been since 1982, stayed with them for a week then went down to Shannon National Park at Manjimup, stayed here for a fortnight before heading over through to Augusta, Bunbury, Busselton, Collie and then up to Perth.

After spending a few days in Perth we went up to a camping area on the beach at Coronation Beach which is 20ks north of Geraldton, spent a couple of weeks here fitting the solar to the van and just generally doing nothing except enjoy the very nice area.

Our next stop was Carnarvon, quite a nice town and we stayed 4 days ,it does not take long to see the sights of Carnavon believe me. From here we went up the coast to Monkey Mia to see the dolphins a bit of a disappointment, there was only about 5 came in while we were there but at least we can say we went to Monkey Mia.

From here we went to a very nice freebie called Cleaverville Beach which is 30 kms north of Karratha , I learnt to do a spot of fishing here but we had to leave after about a week the sand flies were eating Brodie alive so we headed down to Millstream Chichester National Park which is in between Dampier and Mt Tom Price, a really nice little spot where we spent 3 days , on leaving here we went on into Tom Price but owing to our timing being out we were not able to do a tour of the mine, all tours were cancelled for some reason or other so we just done the town and lookouts. A very nice town owned by Hammersley Iron and they really look after their workers there is not much they go without in the way of creature comforts We then went around to Wittenoon visiting Hammersley Gorge on the way, a really beautiful spot with some magnificent swimming pools in the gorge, every gorge, range, waterfall, and river  in Australia are different no matter what some people may say and the beauty of the Hammersley Ranges are no exception.

Wittenoon Gorge was our next port of call spectacular scenery in here but unfortunately it has been the scene of one of Australia's greatest mistakes, this is the site of the asbestos mines which has caused premature death in scores of men and women, including people who never worked in the mines but who handled the end product and breathed in the dust ending up with asbestosis of the lungs, the gorge is now closed to all tourists such is the fear of the Govt to people breathing in the dust from the tailings heaps.

Further in we visited Dales, Hancock and all the other gorges spending 3 days camped in the National Park camping grounds ,all I can say is to anybody doing a trip through the West DO NOT miss the Hammersley's.

Next stop was the Degrey River which is 80kms north of Port Headland, stayed here for 3 days and then moved on to Cape Keraudrin which is east of the Pardoo Roadhouse about 10kms,very nice freebie here stayed for about a week before heading off to Broome where we booked into a caravan park for a couple of nights, not very impressed with Broome, when we were here in 1983 it was not very commercialized but now the town is all modernized none of the old buildings in the Chinatown section are left now which is a shame it really had character in those days,there are still some interesting places to visit Malcolm Douglas has a wild life park and Cable Beach is a magnificent stretch of beach and the climate in the winter is fantastic.

From here moved on to Fitzroy Crossing and went on the Geicke Gorge Cruise which is run by the National Parks, there is only one word to describe the scenery and that is superb, don't miss it!! Stayed here for 2 days and then proceeded to Mary's Pool which is a camping area in between Fitzroy crossing and Halls Creek, it is on the Mary River and we had a 2 week layoff here, we were due to meet some friends from Adelaide in Kunnunara on the 5th June and we were running a couple of weeks early and as there was plenty of water in the river and we had our own shower and toilet in the caravan and also solar power this seemed to be as good as a spot as any.

Towards the end of May we moved up and had a look at Wyndam and all the attractions around there which really are not very many of but you have to go and see for yourself one thing we learnt early in our travels was listen to what people tell you but always remember that what they think is not worth seeing may not be your impression of it so my advice is go and then you can draw your own conclusions. Arrived in Kunnunarra on the 3rd of June and booked in to the Kona C/Park for 3 weeks. On the 6th June we all left to do the Gibb River Rd which runs from the Wyndham /Kunnunarra Rd through to Derby some 6ookm's, this was a most enjoyable trip and we saw some of the most beautiful scenery in Australia, we visited Drysdale Stn, Kalumburu, the Mitchell Plateau and the Mitchell Falls( these are the MOST spectacular in Australia in my view) Mt Barnett and Manning Gorge, Leonard Gorge, Bells Gorge and Windjana Gorge. From here we turned off the Gibb River Rd and went down to Tunnel Creek and around to Fitzroy Crossing, heading now for the Bungle Bungle Ranges which is off the main Highway about 60kms between Halls Creek and Turkey Creek. A most spectacular sight is what you are rewarded with if you take a helicopter flight over the Bungle Bungles which is what we did and it is a memory that will stay in my mind forever cost $130 but worth every cent of it .Incidentally we camped in a tent for this trip.

Back to Kunnunarra and we headed off to Darwin, we were due to meet Diane there on the 6th July so there was no time to spend doing anything else. Stayed at the Lee Point Caravan Park at Causarina for two weeks and were fortunate to be able to get a site alongside an old shearing mate of mine and business partner from Naracoorte Graham Dayman and his wife Ailsa. Done all the touristy things in Darwin and took Diane out to the Adelaide River and went on the Jumping Crocodile Cruise which was a unforgettable trip which we all thoroughly enjoyed.

Leaving Diane here we headed off to Queennsland down the Main South Rd to Three Ways and across to Cammoweal where we turned off the main rd and took the beef road up to Gregory Downs heading for Lawn Hill National Park. At the time we had a 25 foot caravan and pulling it a 1984 Ford F100 4wheel drive a good combination and we had no trouble on this road even though the bulldust holes were quite bad. A magic spot here at the Gregory River, it is possible to camp in the river bed and a more peaceful camping spot would be hard to find, stayed here for two days and then we went out to Lawn Hill N/P and another fantastic spot one that you could go back to time and again After leaving Lawn Hill we proceeded on to Normanton which is on the Gulf of Carpenteria but as we were not impressed with the place we went on to Croydon and stayed there overnight moving on to Cairns the next day where we booked into a c/park for a week. We intended to go up to Cape York and as we were not travelling with anybody we were very pleased to see a notice on the notice board in the park from a couple wanting some company on the trip up the Cape, well we rang him and organised to go with him and would you believe it another couple in the park were also looking for travelling companions so we ended up with 6 people in the party, two of them John and Jenny Coventry from Sydney we are still friends with.

We left the caravans in storage at the park and on the 5th Aug we headed off up to Cape York via Cape Tribulation to Cooktown where we stayed for two nights ,From here it was across to Laura  and then up through Lakefield N/P to Musgrave then on to Cohen, to Wiepa and then across to the Wenlock River on the old telegraph line road to Cape York, well this 160kms along the old line is what the trip to Cape York is all about, it is one of the last places in Australia that has not been developed for tourism and this track is the same as it was 60 years ago some of the creeks had a fair bit of water in them and we had to put a tarp across the front of the F100 to stop the water from drowning the engine, it was a great experience and one that I will remember forever, some of the creeks have some funny names like Gunshot and Cannibal just to name a couple, stayed a couple of days at Indian Head Falls swimming and just relaxing before heading into Bamaga.We had the Jardine River to cross yet which is about as wide as the River Murray at Mannum and this was quite a hairy experience as the River is quite famous for its saltwater crocodiles and there have been a few people taken here over the years so all the way over I was thinking about having to get out into the river if the vehicle stalled, well it didn't and believe me there were a couple of very relieved people on board when we reached the other side.

Into Bamaga and booked into the camping grounds for 3 days, turned out to be nearly a week as I found that we had a bad oil leak in the diff and had to wait for a new seal to come up from Cairns, as it turned out when it did come it was the wrong one and as the mechanic had already pulled the old one out and as it got damaged in the process it did not go back in too well ,it was actually leaking worse when I left Bamaga to return than when we arrived there. Took a trip over to Thursday Island not all that taken with the place but everybody who goes to Cape York has to go to Thursday Island so we were not going to be different. Another day we drove up to the tip of the Cape which is the Northern most point of Australia and done the tourist drive around the historical points of interest up there.

Finally we are heading back down again and as we are nearing Indian Head Falls We could hear an awful scraping noise and on pulling up we found that the near side back wheel nuts had worked loose and the wheel was just about due to fall off. Changed the wheel and drove very quietly into the camping ground which was about 5 kms away, when we got there we found that we had quite a problem the rim was buggered the holes were elongated and 3 of the studs were nearly to the stage of breaking off they had been worn away that much. Had to pull the rim off and as the studs were on the axle and not the brake drum I was able to cut them off with the angle

grinder which I always carry and using 3- 12 volt batteries hooked together to make 36 volts I was able to weld some bolts on, which between the three of us we managed to find, very lucky we had the gear to do the repair job because it was a long way to anywhere to get somebody to come out to fix it.

Came the rest of the way back down the Cape on the Development Road to the Wenlock River and from there down to Cohen where we were forced to stay for a few days, after we left Indian Head falls I noticed a grinding in the front driver side front wheel which turned out to be a wheel bearing on the way out so we had to wait there until a new bearing could be sent up from Cairns.

After this was fixed we headed off to Laura and the Quinkan Aboriginal Galleries south of the town about 20 kms. If you ever you get the chance to go here go, because these would be the best aboriginal art sites I have ever seen and I am very critical of most of it. We then headed across to the start of the Cape Tribulation Road to get on to the start of the C.R.E.B. track, C.R.E.B. stands for Cairns Regional Electricity Board and this road if you can call it that goes through some of the most pristine and unspoilt rain forest in Far North Queensland. The track was dozed in a reasonably straight line from Daintree to Cooktown to enable them to put a power line connecting the two locations and as you can imagine the road is fairly hairy in some places straight up the side of mountains and just as steep coming down the other side. The big problems started shortly after we commenced the track, it started to rain and as the road was of a clay nature on the top became extremely  slippery and we ended up sliding down these mountains and believe me very dangerous, so when one of the vehicles slid into a bank and where it happened was one of the few places where we could set up a camp we decided to stop and wait  until the rain stopped, well this ended up being 2 days before we were able to move again fortunately we had plenty of food so we just sat it out. Looking back on it, it was a great experience but at the time it seemed to be anything but a great experience.

We picked up our caravans at Pt Douglas and headed for the Palmerston National Park where we spent a few days and then on down Rollingstone and Balgal Beach where we spent about 3 weeks.

Had a patch of bad luck here, we decided that as we liked camping in the freebie camping areas a 12 volt TV would be handy so we left the caravan in a parking area at Mt Low just north of Townsville and went in to Townsville to do our shopping and buy one. Well 5 hours we returned to the caravan and I unlocked the door and went inside, as I did so I glanced into the front room of the van and there seemed to be something missing and it was the TV so I said to Brodie "What did you do with the TV"--  always blame your partner if something is wrong--, to which she replied thinking I was talking about the new one we had bought  "In the ute get it yourself" and walked into the van, looked into the front room and said "we have been robbed", I had not noticed but everything was gone from the front room, TV, Video, Stereo, and we found after that all Brodies jewelry was taken. All in all we lost about $2000 worth and we had no insurance on our contents, we asked for it to happen though, we left the big window open on the side of the van which was not able to be seen by anybody and they just pulled the screen off and helped themselves. We are a bit more security conscious nowadays.

From Townsville we went down to Seaforth which is just north of Mackay, we spent 2 weeks here in a caravan park right on the seafront, nice spot. We then moved down to Carmilla Beach south of Mackay for a week then onto Calliope south of Rockhampton where there is a freebie which is right on the River a beautiful area and one where every year that we go to Queensland we end up at for at least a week.