Chapter 8 - Hervey Bay - Part 2

Day 52 – Friday 26 July – Hervey Bay 

The day started warm and overcast, being 19 degrees at 9 am. There was no wind.

A beach walk was overdue, so we did. It was quite spooky as we found it difficult to see the horizon. However the walk beside the rocks and the mangroves was pleasant. Shirley was able to get wet shoes and socks, thanks to the rising tide reaching the foreshore trees/plants.

Pialba Beach - Where the Water Reaches the Sky

Shirley on Pialba Beach

On the way back to camp we stocked up on provisions for homemade pizza for dinner. There was a nearby mural worth a photo.

Mural at Pialba Woolworths

Homemade pizza

Around 4 pm we visited new friends from last night - Debbie and Tim - for a pleasant two hour 'happy hour' session. It was a pleasant way to spend twilight time.

Back at camp, pizzas were prepared and cooked in the Weber. They were pretty good.

It was time to relax, so we did.

Just after dark a huge 'cauldron' of bats flew overhead. There must have been thousands of them. They made quite a noise as they flew past.

Day 53 – Saturday 27 July – Hervey Bay 

Apart from the widespread cloud, and the lack of a cool breeze, today was a repeat of last Saturday. Sleep in, Pier Markets on foot, then a drive to Torquay Markets. Our fruit bowl is restocked.

As it was high tide our after-lunch walk became a pier walk instead of a beach walk. It was a popular spot for those keen on fishing. One guy caught a shark - maybe 500 mm long.

Then was saw an excellent sized fish - maybe a snapper - about 600 mm long. Little fish were common place. Birds expecting a free lunch were also in abundance. One pelican nearly mistook Shirley's white hair for his preferred sitting position. He was close enough for us to feel the wind from its wings.

Big fish, little fish, scrounger

A Pelican that nearly sat on Shirley

Our walk was rewarded with an ice-cream.

Dinner was roast chicken.

Day 54 – Sunday 28 July – Childers Festival

After a few overnight drops of rain the day started cloudy. But it was already 17 degrees at 8am.

Today was Childers Festival day. We just hoped that the weather held.

By 10 am we were in Childers. Over the next five hours we walked 5 km and listened to 2.5 hours of music. First it was the 1970's rock group Dragon, then a group we first saw in 2018 at the Tamworth Music Festival - Murphy's Pigs. They are a Celtic band and very easy to listen to. 

We sat about 75 metres from Dragon and that was close enough. However we got much closer to Murphy's Pigs.

Above - Our view of the stage and a close up of the Dragon lead singer
Below - Murphy's Pigs - Live and on the big screen

We also visited a couple of food stalls, and a coffee stall. The cool breeze made for a chilly afternoon.

We were back at camp by 4 pm where we relaxed inside - thanks to the chilly wind. Spaghetti for dinner. I did have time to sneak down to Scarness for a sunset photo. Not a good sunset, but a great cloud formation.

Sunset at Scarness

Day 55 – Monday 29 July – Hervey Bay

After a chilly night it was a chilly morning - sunny with a cold wind. The idea of a sunrise photo was abandoned.

It was one of those days when we struggled to do anything of note. We did score a street walk and a beach walk.

Pialba Beach

I conjured up some snags and veggies for dinner.

Day 56 – Tuesday 30 July – Hervey Bay

I braved the 4 degrees to head to the beach at 6 am. It was worth the effort.

Sun rising over the Urangan Pier at 6:30 am

Later I found out that Hervey Bay officially dropped to -1 overnight.

Shirley duly surfaced, and around 10:30 am I drove her to the hairdresser. While she was there I visited the marina fresh fish outlet and bought one kg of fresh raw King Prawns. 

Left - In Shop                   Right - Half kg shelled for dinner

Shirley later emerged - happier. 😊

We had an early lunch (cheese & bacon sausage rolls) and headed to the beach before the tide came in too far. The beach was sheltered from the wind and it was pleasant. Our walk extended to both sides of the pier.

Shirley making up for missing the sunrise (pier) photo

Not much happened for the rest of the afternoon apart from defrosting the fridge (Shirley) and shelling half of the prawns (Chris).

BBQ Prawns and
Sweet Potato Wedges

Dinner was BBQ prawns with a bit of salad, and some sweet-potato wedges. It was superb.

Day 57 – Wednesday 31 July – Hervey Bay

Another lovely day started slowly before we headed off to the Wednesday market. However, for some reason the market was not on today, so we bought our fruit & veggies elsewhere.

That was it for the day. Rest and relaxation. There was an ice-cream in there somewhere.

BBQ chicken and veggies for dinner. Olympics to follow.

Day 58 – Thursday 1 August – Hervey Bay

A new month, another cloudless morning. Another slow start. Another load of washing on the line - by 9am. The sheets had to wait for Shirley to get out of bed. The towels had to wait for her to get out of the shower.

We did a touch of shopping, including some pork ribs that were destined for dinner.

A ham roll for a late lunch before a walk along the Scarness beach. It just so happened that the end of the 2 km walk was at Enzo's On The Beach - an excellent spot for a smoothie and a milkshake.

Enzo's - A good spot for a drink overlooking the beach

Back to camp and pork ribs for dinner (sometime later), cooked in the Weber with potato wedges and zucchini. They were superb.

Day 59 – Friday 2 August – Hervey Bay

Yet another sunny day. It was our last opportunity for a casual breakfast at Hervey Bay (Howard Market tomorrow, depart HB Sunday) so we had a BBQ start to the day - bacon, egg, tomato, mushroom, sourdough toast & coffee/tea.

Tomorrow will be a busy day so a few pack-up jobs came next - after our exercises of course. The Weber was packed away, as were the awning privacy screens.

A neighbour complained about bat droppings on his car, and the damage it can do to the duco. I checked out the top of our awning and realised that some of the bats must have needed to 'dump fuel' as they flew over our caravan. I have another cleaning job to do - but that is normal for a decent stint in one place.

After lunch and some relaxation our last Hervey Bay beach walk (this trip) took place, from Scarness to Torquay. The weather was magnificent, 21 degrees with a gentle breeze - but enough breeze to move Shirley's hat from head to water.

Shirley head down, wet hat in hand, approaching Torquay Pier

Once back at camp I weakened and washed the top of the awning.

Dinner was a magnificent porterhouse steak, purchased from the butcher we found last year. 

Then relaxation, and more Olympics.

Day 60 – Saturday 3 August – Hervey Bay

It was maybe the best start to the day, of our stay in Hervey Bay. We were soon in the car and off to the Howard markets - the scene of happy memories from last year. It was again the scene for more happy memories, which resulted in two empty wallets (cash not wanted at Howard markets).

Luckily the coffee shop took plastic cards.

Shirley had found two places to investigate, in Lenthalls Dam and Wongi Waterhole. So off we went. It was a slow trek as the road was gravel and often in very poor condition. However, the end result was worth it.

Lenthalls Dam, a super spot for camping, fishing and doing nothing

The road into Wongi Waterhole

Some superb paperbark trees at Wongi Waterhole

Some reflections at Wongi Waterhole

A Willy Wagtail looking serious

The 140 km round trip had us back at camp around 2pm for a late lunch. It was then time for a few more pack-up jobs.

We decided on a sunset photo on the way to a Chinese dinner. However we did not budget on road detours caused by festivities for the annual Whale Festival. We arrived just in time to get the following photo. 

Sunset at Point Vernon, with the sun competing with the clouds

The chinese dinner was excellent.

This chapter is now complete (apart from maybe a couple of late edits).
Tomorrow we head to Maroochydore.

Last updated at 7:20 pm Saturday 3 August 2024

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Chapter 7 - Hervey Bay - Part 1

Day 43 – Wednesday 17 July – Hervey Bay 

A new chapter. A new town - Hervey Bay. A new day, after a chilly night. The day started without a cloud in the sky. There was no rush to do anything. So we didn't.

Our first activity was to visit the Wednesday market. It was such a low key event that we kept walking and headed straight ahead onto the Urangan Pier. There were plenty of birds to give the camera a workout.

Australian Darter

Two Pelicans

Whiskered tern

It was time for a coffee, then a relax, then lunch.

Although it was to be a quiet day, we needed to visit (in order) Bunnings, Dan Murphy's, Coles and the windscreen replacement business.

Back at camp I took a photo of a kennel and a dog - in our 'dog friendly' caravan park. However, a closer look shows that the kennel is a cardboard box, and the dog is plastic. The 'pretend' dog even has a water bowl. It's an interesting world.

A dog that is not a dog

I decided to move the caravan about three metres south as I had messed up yesterday. I blamed tiredness. Maybe it was laziness. Who cares, the caravan was on the wrong part of our site. So it was moved. Shirley agreed. We were both happy that it was moved. We now had more sun to sit in.

I shelled and cleaned our prawns and Shirley turned them into an excellent dinner.

Raw prawns about to be cooked

Day 44 – Thursday 18 July – Hervey Bay 

The washing was on the line before 8 am and I was getting a new windscreen at 8:30 am. Shirley slept on. Seventy minutes later I was headed back to camp with a new windscreen. Shirley was up.

The rest of the morning was just that - rest.

After lunch we went for a 5 km beach walk, heading north-west and west from Urangan pier to Shelly Beach. It was around 18 degrees with a cool easterly breeze.

Shelly Beach looking West

Around 5:30 pm Ray, Gill, Shirley and I headed off to the 'Bayswater Bar & Grill' for dinner - on foot. It was effectively a goodbye dinner, and was 'steak night'. Ray had steak, Shirley had barramundi, Gill had chook and I had a 'Supreme Pizza' - and it was. The food was excellent.

Supreme Pizza at the Bayswater Bar & Grill

It was down to 12 degrees as we walked home, so we were glad to have our jackets.

Day 45 – Friday 19 July – Hervey Bay 

We said goodbye to Ray & Gill after nearly five weeks (mostly) together. We have had a lot of laughs. They are headed towards home - we are not.

Cooked breakfast. Exercises. Coffee. The day was underway, which did not mean much - as we did not do much. Maybe a couple of jobs.

We had two walks, one along the beach and one to the Urangan Pier to get a sunset photo. Maybe a total of 4 km. 

The Australian Darter was on the same pole on the pier.

Sunset photo from Urangan Pier

Dinner was a relaxed affair.

Day 46 – Saturday 20 July – Hervey Bay 

It was chilly over night, but the day started with a heavy dew, full sun and no clouds. By 9 am it was 15 degrees. It was time to walk 500 metres to the 'Urangan Pier' market. We bought some fruit and veggies.

Urangan Pier Market

After a coffee we drove to the Torquay Market. After a stroll around Shirley suggested that I listen to some live music while she 'looked around'. Some time later she appeared with a bag with some clothes.

We admired a local mosaic.

Torquay Mosaic 

Back at camp I gave the car a freshen up and removed some of the salt air off the duco. A vacuum inside also removed some of the local sand and grass.

Fleeing Crab

After lunch we had a beach walk. It was our best day, weather wise, since arriving in Hervey Bay. We watched a small crab trying to hide. He gave up. We walked away.

We moved inside as the sun was setting and it got cooler.

Day 47 – Sunday 21 July – Hervey Bay 

Another slowish start to the day. Shirley found another market, this time the Sunday Nikenbah Markets - so off we went. It was the biggest market of the trip to date. 

It was too early for 'German Sausage' so on we pressed. However, Darryl's Donut's won us over.

As soon as we had finished our donuts Shirley spotted the same lady who sold her some clothes yesterday. Funny about that............. 

She was situated next to the "Legalise Cannabis" party stall. On her other side she had the man with a zillion different spices. Talk about conflicting smells, german sausages, donuts, spices and cannabis!

Left - Clothes   Right - Cannabis

Home we went. Home is where we stayed, as it was too breezy for a beach walk.

I caught up with computer stuff. Shirley caught up with knitting commitments.

Dinner was hamburgers, some veggies that needed to be cooked and (last minute) home made BBQ flat bread. It was pretty good.

Burger, seven veggies and flat bread

Day 48 – Monday 22 July – Hervey Bay 

Today provided the best weather for our stay so far in Hervey Bay. We used suntan cream before our walk from Torquay beach to Scarness Beach. 

Shirley enjoying Torquay Beach

After lunch it was time for reading, sudoku and knitting (not me) before a another walk and an ice-cream. The tide was nearly out beyond the Urangan Pier, which is 868 metres long.

Urangan Pier near Low Tide

Snags for dinner, with five veggies & gravy.

Day 49 – Tuesday 23 July – Hervey Bay 

Another lovely day in Hervey Bay. Another slow start, but we were ready for a walk by 9:15 am. Today it was to the Marina - a round trip of 5.5 km. It would have been shorter if Shirley had not left her sunglasses in the (coffee & smoothie) Cafe - requiring us to retrace our steps.

Anyway the view and the smoothie & coffee were all excellent.

Pondering where to store our boat

We had lunch and I pondered the email advising that our gas account back home had been terminated as we have swapped suppliers. The email was legit, the swapping of suppliers was a Furphy. A very long email was then generated and sent.

Around 4:30 pm we headed 12 km north-west to Point Vernon, for a sunset photo. It was worth the effort.

Sunset at Point Vernon

A BBQ pork chop was an excellent dinner.

Day 50 – Wednesday 24 July – Hervey Bay 

It was our first day in Hervey Bay with clouds forecast in the morning, so I was on the beach at 6:05 am. My phone said that it was 13 degrees. There was no wind, and the tide was out and coming in. I chatted to two other early birds, one of whom nearly lost his camera bag to the incoming tide.

The clouds made the trip worthwhile.

Sunrise beside Urangan Pier

A shower of rain curtailed our photo session, but it had stopped by the time I headed back to camp. The Wednesday market was being set-up but there were no breakfast attractions for me. 😌

Ninety minutes later Shirley and I walked back to the market to stock up on some fruit and veggies. Our preferred supplier threw in some snow peas, a few limes and a selection of apples that were sort of past their 'use by' date. However, they were good enough to be peeled, sliced and cooked.

After a coffee we headed off to the Botanic Gardens, which impressed us last year - specially the Orchid House. The Orchid House was again impressive as the few examples below testify.

A sample of the Orchids on Display

One of our favourite Hervey Bay bakeries provided a pie for lunch.

After lunch I converted half of the stewed apples into apple muffins - in the Weber. They were Ok.

Apple Muffins

An entrant in the "Interesting Sign" Section - on a caravan
Maybe say it out loud

It was time for reading & sudoku. Shirley made an excellent chicken stir-fry.

Day 51 – Thursday 25 July – Hervey Bay 

We decided to go for a drive and checkout some coastal towns south of here. We first visited the Maryborough Markets and bought a pretzel.

We then visited (in turn) Boonooroo, Taun, Poona and Maaroom. All are fishing villages, with lots of mangroves along their coast. As such there is very little in the category of 'walking beaches'.

Beach & Mangroves at Poona

A cafe was found in Poona that provided excellent coffee.

On our way back to camp we again visited the Maryborough Markets and bought two Bratwurst sausages. An excellent lunch. It was a round trip of around 180 km.

We relaxed in readiness for our 'Christmas In July' dinner at the caravan park.

Around 4 pm we headed to the 'Christmas In July assembly area' with chairs, table, drinks etc - and raffle tickets - and (of course) Christmas trappings on our clothes and table - not to mention a red hat. 

Shirley in festive spirit

Soon after the live music kicked off. It went until 7:30 - off and on. The duo was very good and were the MCs for the night.

There were raffles. I won one - a "3-way cigarette lighter with USB charger".

There were three quality auctions that raised over $1200. 

There was a "meat on the spit" dinner. It was superb, and was followed up by plum pudding for dessert. We met some great people and had a great night. We had a lot of laughs.

Pork, Ham, Chicken & Veggies

One aim of the event was to raise money for the "Dunga Derby", which is a major local fundraising event to support the Rally for A Cause Charity in their efforts to support local Fraser Coast families with life-limiting medical conditions in need of financial and/or practical assistance.

The night raised $3600. It was attended by an estimated 110 people.

This chapter is now complete (apart from some minor edits).

Last updated at 9:25 am Friday 26 July 2024

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Chapter 6 - Townsville

Day 35 – Tuesday 9 July - Yeppoon to Bloomsbury - 450 km

It was time to head north for a week or so - to Townsville. We drove out of the Capricorn Palms Holiday Park around 8:15 and reached the Bruce Highway around 40 minutes later. The day was sunny and clear.

Marlborough was our spot for morning tea - as has happened a few times before. Just after noon we stopped at Ilbilbie and made a corn beef sandwich.

By now we were into sugarcane country and clouds had appeared.

Sugarcane & Clouds

By 1:30 pm we were in Mackay picking up a wheelchair (long story, more later) and diesel. Our sights were set on Jolimont Caravan Park around 40 km further north. It was soon established that Jolimont Caravan Park was dilapidated and very wet. We kept going.

Around 450 km into our trip we pulled into the carpark beside the Bloomsbury BP service station, with numerous other travellers. As we were having a coffee a goods train went by. Not really happy about that.

Our camp at Bloomsbury

A walk was in order, so off to the service station we went - for an ice-cream. The Bloomsbury BP service station also has a well-stocked supermarket, a bottle shop, fresh meat, fast food, garden supplies, rural supplies, fresh flowers, fresh fruit and Veggies, plumbing supplies and heaps of other stuff. It is amazing.

Hawkeye Shirley spotted a couple of pretty-well camouflaged Curlews.

Camouflaged Curlew

We relaxed and pretended that we could not hear the traffic. A second goods train trundled past.

A third goods train went past as Shirley cooked chicken schnitzels and veggies. Two more trains were heard over night.

Day 36 – Wednesday 10 July - Bloomsbury to Townsville - 294 km

Maybe it was Karma, maybe bad luck, or just poor judgement. However if you camp overnight in a parking area frequented by big trucks, maybe be prepared for a 'truckie' who needs to provide power to a refrigerated van (while he/she sleeps) or a recalcitrant traveller who (for some reason) needs to run a generator overnight.

Proserpine Vanilla slice

Whatever the reason Shirley and I both had sleepless nights, such that I was dressed by 6:20 am and had the kettle on soon after. Fried egg on toast was just after that. The monotonous rumble of some form of generator caused us to be on the road by 7:30 am.

It was some relief a while later as Shirley came out of the Proserpine Bakery with some magnificent morning tea, as in a vanilla slice and a lamington.

Not long after that we arrived at Bowen - a tomato area. Although we had to do a U turn we scored a superb 1.5 kg bag of Roma tomatoes for $5.

Bowen Roma Tomatoes

We crossed the Burdekin bridge and set sail for Townsville, arriving at the discovery Park around 11:30 am.

The Burdekin Bridge - always worth a photo

Camp was established - in 26-degree heat - then lunch, then some shopping (excellent Mission Beach bananas for $3 per kg), then some relaxation.

I drew the short straw and cooked some bolognaise sauce for dinner. It was pretty good. It was 21 degrees at 8 pm. My book and bed beckoned.

Day 37 – Thursday 11 July - Townsville

It was a quiet night and great for sleeping - a huge contrast to the previous night. It was 17 degrees at 7 am as I headed to the shower. Shirley slept on.

We relaxed, then relaxed, then went for a drive. The navigator suggested that we drive up 'Castle Hill Lookout', so we did. The views were impressive.

View 1 from Castle Hill to the Northeast, Magnetic Island in the background

View 2 from Castle Hill to the East

View 3 from Castle Hill, looking south 

We then headed to The Strand and walked along beside the beaches.

Above - The pool beside the beach
Below - Maybe a tropical setting?

It was time for lunch and more relaxation so back to camp we went. Not much happened until a guy wandered in and asked for a corkscrew to remove the cork from a lovely bottle of USA red. It was an excellent drop, a Zinfandel grape.

Dinner was BBQ pork chops, again excellent.

Day 38 – Friday 12 July - Townsville

Despite the hive of activity around the park, we were both able to have a sleep in and I did not get to the shower until nearly 8 am.

I placed a couple of our Bowen tomatoes on the BBQ and sliced some sourdough bread. They ended up being well cooked as another park resident arrived and wanted to know all about the towing capacity of our Isuzu. She and her husband are on the land near Wagga and are about to retire from the farm.

Tomatoes on sourdough toast, with great coffee, is a good way to start the day.

After a couple of jobs, some exercises, and a coffee we headed up the very winding road to Mt Stuart Lookout (584 metres above sea level), where we were able to see the majority of Townsville to the east. There was a huge tower with workers doing a cleaning and painting job (not my preferred idea of a job).

Above - Townsville to the east of Mt Stuart Lookout
Below - A workman with a paint roller a long way from terra firma

It was then time for 'street art' which seemed to be situated in a part of Townsville that is dominated by lanes and one-way streets. The following is a few photos of what we saw. As you would expect, each of these commissioned paintings has some deep and meaningful background to it. 

Next stop was "Ingham's Seafood" for something for dinner. Maybe a bit of crustacean to go with the Red Throat Emperor.

Our Tiger Prawns, a couple going with the Red Throat Emperor on the BBQ

The Red Throat Emperor, with a couple of prawns and chips, made a superb dinner. 

Around 8 pm we headed out to the airport to pick up (daughter) Jodi and (grandson) Jack. Jack is here for the university Open Day tomorrow. As they were staying in a room near our caravan we settled outside our caravan, then ate (prawns, crisps, cheese), drank and talked. As the noise got louder near 10 pm we called it a day.

Day 39 – Saturday 13 July - JCU & Townsville

Another day in paradise started overcast and humid. The clouds soon dissipated.

I had an early shower and cooked myself some bacon and eggs. Around 8:30 am I served three generations of the family bacon and eggs (for two) and pancakes (for one).

Jodi, Jack and Shirley enjoying breakfast in the Townsville sunshine

Soon after Jodi, Jack and I headed off to the Open Day at James Cook university. Over the next four hours I wheeled Jodi about 6 km around the university, Jack helped a bit - but he was in research mode.

We headed back to camp, picked up Shirley and took the visitors on a "Cook's" tour of Townsville - the beach being the main focus.

Fish and chips for dinner - a fine piece of mackerel.

We dropped the visitors at the airport at 7:20, went home, and crashed.

Day 40 – Sunday 14 July - Townsville to Mackay - 390 km

Our reason for being in Townsville had come to a satisfactory end so we turned around and headed south, along the same path that we travelled a few days ago. We were both up early and departed our camp round 7:40 am. We had 1114 km to travel in three days.

We bypassed the market in Bowen in favour of our preferred Bakery in Proserpine. Our disappointment was extreme when we realised that the Proserpine Bakery is closed on the Sabbath. No 'Ned Kelly' pie. No vanilla slice.

Lunch was a sandwich at Bloomsbury - the site of a sleepless night last Tuesday.

Camp was established in Mackay soon after 1:30. Although we had a slight head wind all day it was pretty good driving conditions.

View from our caravan at North Mackay

To me, water means birds, and I was right. The closer to sunset it got, the more birds were posing for photos. The following is a selection...........

Above: Magpie Lark & (dancing) Willy Wagtail
Below: Maybe White Breasted Robins
Bottom: Pied Cormorant (sitting) & Eastern Great Egret (in flight)

There were also plenty of Ibis and various ducks in and on the water. Soon after the above photos the sun set, and it was time to move inside away from the mozzies. Dinner was a burger and veggies, followed by a fruit salad that was dominated by tropical fruit.

Day 41 – Monday 15 July – Mackay to Calliope – 448 km

Transit day two (of three) started casually with a departure of 8:15 am. We dropped the wheelchair off at 8:30  and headed south.

We bypassed Sarina and stopped somewhere for a cuppa out of the thermos, around 9:45 am. Lunch was a rice cake (or two) in a park at Carmilla. Onwards we pressed.

Civilization came in the form of a Rockhampton shopping complex where ‘Jamaica Blue’ provided a superb coffee and a blueberry muffin.

Our camp around 3:15 pm was at the (north) Calliope free camp – an excellent spot off the road. We went for a walk to an over the ‘Old Bruce Highway’ bridge and counted around 75 caravans and motor-homes. As the sun dropped it was time to head indoors and check the photos and discuss today.

Shirley had pre-prepared curried sausages and rice.

Above - White Faced Heron

Below -  ‘Old Bruce Highway’ Bridge across the Calliope River

Day 42 – Tuesday 16 July – Calliope to Hervey Bay – 294 km

It was 6 degrees outside and 8 degrees inside the caravan, as I turned on the diesel heater at 5:30 am. By the time I ventured outside for a sunrise photo, at 6:40 am, it was 6 degrees outside and 15 degrees inside. Shirley slept on, or pretended to.

‘Old Bruce Highway’ Bridge across the Calliope River - at Sunrise

We departed around 7:50 am. It was not long before we found the 'donut man' and purchased some fresh jam donuts - and coffee. It seemed to be a short time later that we pulled up in front of one of our favourite (and we have many) bakeries in "Gin Gin". It was too early for a pie (on top of donuts) so we bought lunch early (to eat later).

We had a walk around Childers and then set sail on the last leg of the drive from Townsville. We had a long stop at a road work project, where I counted 175 vehicles waiting for their turn to cross the same bit of road from the opposite direction.

We established camp in Hervey Bay around 1:30 pm. It was a slow setup as the driver was pretty weary.

Ray and Gill arrived some time later with some raw prawns and whiting fillets. The whiting became dinner.

This chapter is now complete - apart from a couple of later edits.

At the time of arrival in Hervey Bay our average spend was $34 per day on diesel and $41 per day on accommodation. One is about to decrease, the other will increase.

Tomorrow we start the Hervey Bay chapter.
Last updated at 7:30 pm on Tuesday 16 July 2024

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