Driving to Alice - again

I have discussed the drive to Alice in a previous post.  I still have though quite a few more pics from the 3000km drive.  probably this post and then one more as we have the Devils Marbles to fit in. 

These pics cover driving around Mt Isa and the Barkley Tablelands. 

Mt Isa is quite a large place compared to the other towns you drive through on the way to Alice.  It is quite a site as you enter town and can see the large smoke stacks and lots of heavy plant and equipment relating to the mining industry.

The Barkley tablelands cover a huge area and are flat and well grassed.  They run from western QLD well into the NT.  This stretch of road was sometimes a bit boring but still interesting in its vast nothingness that you don’t see in many places in the world anymore.

Driving into The Isa.  Smoke stacks in the distance.

A good view of one of the stacks, right in the centre of town on the main road.  You can go left back down to Boulia or right to Camooweal where we were going.

This bad photo through a dirty, sunny windscreen was to show ‘Mansworld’.  This is the shop in Mt Isa where you go if you are a MAN.  I dropped in and bought myself all new outfits so i would fit in.

This is a long straight road, with red dirt and some trees in the distance.

2 Brolgas flying away.  I had just spotted a pair of these massive cranes on the side of the road when we saw these 2 standing in the middle of the highway.  We slowed down and i tried to get a pic of them but only managed them flying away through the side window. 

Entering the Territory.  They don’t give you much warning, a microsleep and you miss it.

A rarely seen speed limit in Australia.  It’s quite helpful as the roads are generally quite good and there are long distances of nothing to cover.

There are kangaroos about apparently.  At least you can see them coming from about 20 kms here.

Flat and grassy

A tree, very exciting on this stretch.

There were lots of swallows and black kites flying around the road on this stretch.  Every now and then a young or genetically disadvantaged one would try to out run our car.  We found this one wedged in the radiator at a toilet stop.

Driving to Alice - again

Barellan Point Wildlife

While we were staying at Corinne’s parent’s house at Barellan point in Brisbane we managed to capture some pictures of the local wildlife. 

We saw the toads earlier in the blog which we caught at night.  Here are some of the prettier inhabitants.

Female Brush tailed possum.  I know its a female because we could see the young one in its pouch.  This possum spends the day sleeping in the shed and then comes out at night gets a bit of fruit and jumps about on the tin roof.  There are quite a few possums around the area.

Climbing back up to go to bed for the day.  Ten minutes later this possum was passed out on its back with its front leg hanging over the metalwork.

Scaly breasted lorikeet.  These guys are nectar and blossom eaters and are very common all along the East coast of Australia.

Rainbow lorikeet peeping out from behind a branch.

Green Tree Frog, sitting on the pool fence, croaking – a lot.

Possum coming out at night in the palms, waiting for a bit of fruit.

Barellan Point Wildlife

Artie

So, Onwards with more blogging.  I am still at work, its still Saturday and 9pm is a long way off.  Its good to be able to catch up with editing photos and blogging.  I already have lots of pictures and stories about Alice so i can get these older pics out of the way and move onto Alice.
Artie or Arthur is our Nephew.  He is Denise and Adam’s first child.  Denise is Corinne’s sister.  When we came back form the the UK a few weeks ago it was only the second time we had seen little Artie.  He is much bigger though as last time when we saw him he was really small and non moving.
Artie is now 17-18 months old (I got that off Denise’s blog) and is really getting about and having some fun.  He is a cute little blond haired kid and seems to be quite happy most of the time.  He is obsessed with possums, the shed and Grumps (gramps). 
We spent some time with him around the pool which he really loves and is quite fearless in.  I promised Denise that I would get some of these pics onto the blog so here they are.

No fear of the head going under the water or walking off the edge into the pool.

The Cheesy Artie smile

Artie

Bob–The super cat

I am at work at the moment.  I have been here since 12pm.  It is Saturday and it is quite quiet.  I have another 3 hours and 40 minutes before i can go home and then i am on call all night. 

So i have decided to have a big afternoon of blogging, assuming nothing changes. 

Bob is our cat and we acquired him about 5 years ago as a young stray.  He was a very, very friendly little kitten and loved to share his love with both of us.  We had him for a year before we moved to the UK. 

Corinne’s parents have been looking after him ever since.  So he is now about 5 years old and will soon be moving out to the farm with us in July.  We asked the parents if they wanted to keep him, but they said they want to be free and easy, just in case they want to take off on a holiday, trip or whatever.

So, Bob is the biggest cat either of us have really ever seen and as vets we see a lot of cats.  He is about 7-7.5kgs and not overweight.  I have seen much heavier cats but they have been mostly fat and not cat. 

Bob or Bossy as he is sometimes called is very well behaved (mostly) and comes when called.  He loves a pat and also likes to lie on your chest and stare at you and schmoose you from about 1 cm away.  Lately he has taken to waking up Corinne’s parents every morning at 4:30am.  He is obviously in charge and so his servants oblige him. 

I have some pictures of him when we were in Barellan point a few weeks ago.  The weather was hot and humid and Bob spent a lot of time trying to cool himself on the cooler tiles.

Bob–The super cat

Drive to Alice. Tambo to Alice

Hello,

Below is an email i sent my friends and decided that it was also a good summary of our drive to Alice.  I will put in photos from our trip onwards from Tambo to Alice.

We have driven the 3000kms to Alice Springs form Brisbane.  The roads were fine and there was no sign of any flooding of any sort except the odd pothole but that is reasonably normal.  There were many road hazard signs and slow down signs for seemingly no reason.  Finally when we did come across a bit of road that was half washed away and had a creek flowing over it, there was no sign.  We hit it harder than we should have but then what do you do when no one tells you there is a creek flowing across a washed out road.  That was in the Northern Territory (NT). 

Everything has been amazingly green.  All the grass is long and green and the trees are greens and it all contrasts very nicely with the red earth and the blue, blue skies. 

We stayed in Tambo, Cloncurry and Tennant Creek on the way.  Tambo was nice, Cloncurry was alright and Tennant creek was a hole.  We had a pub meal both nights in tambo and Cloncurry which were great, and a few cold beers.  In Tennant creek (NT) we started to encounter a lot of natives, particularly on the street, lying on the street, screaming at each other and wandering aimlessly.  All the businesses had metal grates on the windows and the place shut down at sunset.  We were forced to eat at the motel buffet.  $25 for a choice of boiled vegies, shepherds pie, beef curry or lamb casserole.  Definitely filling but not worth $25.  The town was full of miners and workmen who ate heartily. 

We have already seen lots of cool wildlife.

• Kangaroos – only 1 has jumped out in front of us and another was waiting on the edge of the bitumen for its chance, the others have been further off the road.
• Emus, lots
• Bustards, lots (google it.)
• Brolgas – awesome big birds, maybe 10.  really amazing to see such large beautiful birds.  A couple were standing in the middle of the road, we slowed to get a pic but i only got them flying away.
• Zebra finches, lots, everywhere.
• Budgerigars, lots
• Whistling kites
• wedge tail eagles
• Peaceful doves, including the one i found today wedged in the radiator
• Diamond Doves
• swallows, again one we found at a toilet stop wedged in the bullbar
• echidna – squashed
• goannas, running across the road, no real big ones yet
• mallee ringnecks, augathella
• Port lincoln Parrots, everywhere around Alice
• Galahs – tonnes of them
• Multitudes of other birds i can’t recognise yet.

We drove out to Simpsons Gap last night in the West Macdonald Ranges.  Beautiful spot, especially at sunset, will put some pics on the blog. 

Tomorrow we start work, we have Wednesday off (Australia Day) which will be great and then work through straight till next Tuesday.  Then we have 6 days off.  We are gonna drive to Uluru (450kms) then probably stay somewhere in the west macs for another 2 nights, like Ormiston gorge or palm valley in Finke Nat. Park.

One of the many pubs in Barcaldine.  We stopped here for a snack and a break.  Barcaldine looked to be a great little town, well kept, lots of pubs etc.  We might try and stay here on the way back in June.

The tree of knowledge memorial, an amazing eye sore in town. 

Another good looking pub in Barcaldine

A very long straight road, i think this is near Camooweal.

The pathfinder, complemented by a flat green and blue background

Red dirt

I think this is a whistling kite, we saw these everywhere, all along the road.

4 trailer Road Train crossing the bridge at Cloncurry.  This truck is about 54 metres long and carrying mining ore, we think.

The central Hotel in Cloncurry, we had dinner here, Rissoles and Chips – tres bon

The post office Hotel in Cloncurry, a less attractive hotel but still full of cold beer.

The end of the day in Cloncurry

The Leichardt Hotel, full of beer, that’s about it.

Chinaman creek dam, with mount leviathan in the back.  Cloncurry

Corinne looking good at Chinaman creek dam

We found this sign at Chinaman creek dam, Corinne was unimpressed

Panorama of Mary Ann Dam just outside of Tennant Creek, quite a nice spot.

Drive to Alice. Tambo to Alice

Tambo

We stayed the night in Tambo at the Tambo Mill Motel.  Tambo was quite a nice little country town, wide streets, great Bottle trees and lots of old buildings that have been well preserved.  We had dinner in the pub – a great Chicken parmi and a few cold beers. 

We were treated to a beautiful sunset both from outside the pub and also our motel. 

We set off the next day at around 630am for Cloncurry.

Tambo Shire hall

The post office.

The Court house and library

The Barcoo River, a good famous outback Qld river

You gotta keep your guns in your holster until you get past this sign.

A large bottle tree in town.  There are a lot of Bottle trees in western Qld.  They are cool trees that come from Western Australia originally (i think).

We had dinner here, a nice Parmi.

Looking west from the Carrangarra Hotel, Tambo.

Sunset from the Tambo Mill Hotel.

Tambo