TRIP to CANNING STOCK ROUTE Day 7

18 June 2012

STAGE 1 Jindabyne to Curtin Springs  DAY 7

BLINMAN

A very cold night last night. We only surfaced when the sun melted the ice off the windows. Our fridge temperature had gone crazy according to the temperature gauge. We knew it was incorrect as everything was very cold. So we decided to change the batteries in the thermometer unit. We visited the general store to get the batteries and then visited the café gallery. The gallery was fabulous. Some stunning work.

Hubby then went on a tour of the Blinman copper mine. I didn’t feel like going underground so just chilled out.

Afte lunch we went for a drive to see Glass Gorge and Parachilna Gorge. The tree trunks are just so interesting. Some look so different when viewed from different angles.  As we walked along the gorge this was the view of the tree.

After we passed it it was a very different view of the same tree.

You can feel the power of the water that gushes down these gorges when it rains.

We finally caught up with our nephew and his partner at the pub on their return. We had a lovely long night catching up.

TRIP to CANNING STOCK ROUTE Day 6

17 June 2012

STAGE 1 Jindabyne to Curtin Springs  DAY 6

BEETALOO VALLEY - BLINMAN

A leasurely start this morning.

Last time we were here our friends had just acquired a 1923 Gray with the intention of restoring it. Look at the difference now.

He had also restored an old hundred year old engine and was working on fine tuning it. It needed a bit of coaxing to get it started.

Mid morning we were on our way again. Now we were heading for Blinman to surprise hubby’s nephew who moved there earlier in the year. The old stone buildings in this part of SA are just so beautiful. We stopped at Qorn for lunch and visited the Outback Colours Art Gallery. Some stunning landscapes were on display.

We stopped at both Huck’s and Stoke’s Hill Lookouts along the way. At Blinman we called in at the pub to find out where our nephew lived only to find out he was out of town for the night. So we decided to stay and catch up with him the following day when they got back from Pt Augusta. He has lovely acerage just out of town so we camped there for the night after dinner at the pub. There is an old ruin on the block. We later learnt that he was going to restore it.

Everyone is very friendly here. It is the highest town in SA at 650m. The town population is 22 and it survives on tourism. Phones don’t work here nor does internet unless you have satellite connection. No wonder my sister-in-law told us to go to the pub to make contact with her son.

TRIP to CANNING STOCK ROUTE Day 5

16 June 2012

STAGE 1 Jindabyne to Curtin Springs  DAY 5

ADELAIDE- BEETALOO VALLEY

We dropped the water in the water tanks in the morning and

I went off to do some more food shopping. In the meantime hubby found that the waterpump needed replacing. Luckily it was not too late so we were able to source a new one quickly and my brother and hubby quickly had the task done.

After a lovely lunch we said goodbye and headed for Beetaoo Valley to visit friends. All our recent trips to the outback seem to start with the same route – Adelaide, Beetaloo Valeey and then on to the trip.

It was lovely to catch up with old friends.

Again a lovely evening.

TRIP to CANNING STOCK ROUTE Days 3-4

14 – 15 June 2012

STAGE 1 Jindabyne to Curtin Springs  DAYS 3-4

CANBERRA – ADELAIDE

We travelled along a road well travelled by us. A lot of road repairs along the way. It is shocking that there are so many cotton farmers now between Wagga and Balranald. Cotton littered the sides of the road.

Haven’t seen so much water along this part of the road for many, many years.

A few littles glitches discovered aong the way. Couldn’t lock the driver’s door, our radio would not send, the water in the tank was off - undrinkable.

We shared the driving and made good time to Adelaide. We overnighted at Managatang Traveller’s Rest Area. A rather noisy place as a train arrived during the night and kept shunting backwards and forwards forever. Surprisingly we felt that we had a good nights sleep, despite the noise, when we got up in the morning.

On reaching Adelaide our priority was to get the wiring fixed for the radio. This was done very promptly. Then onto the accordion shop to get a new accordion for hubby, the locksmith and Mac 1.

We soon caught up with family members. In the evening we stocked up at the Adelaide markets before dining at a favourite Chinese Restaurant close to the markets. We had an absolutely lovely evening catching up until late.

TRIP to CANNING STOCK ROUTE DAYS 1-2

12-13  June 2012

STAGE 1 Jindabyne to Curtin Springs  DAYS 1-2

JINDABYNE – CANBERRA

This trip has been in the pipeline since some time late 2010. Oka 306 put a note on the Oka website saying they were planning a trip along the Canning Stock Route in 2013 and invited others to join in. We jumped at the opportunity as we wanted to do this track but knew we would never do it on our own. Originally about 17 put their hands up for the trip. We will see when we get to Wiluna how many will really be doing it.

Finally we are packed and ready. So mid afternoon on a cold (8C) overcast day we locked the doors and were on our way. A friend will be staying in the house looking after our lovely dog

It was overcast when we left home. After Cooma the weather was awful – drizzly, low cloud and cold.

First stop was Canberra – two hours away. We decided to start the trip a bit differently this time. A day at the galleries and theatre.

It was drizzly part of the way to Canberra and cold. The first night was spent with our youngest son’s family. Our youngest granddaughter (2 ½ years old) decided to give us a photo of herself after I mentioned that I forgot to print a recent family photo to put up in our Oka for the trip.

Started the next day with some last minute shopping, cup of coffee and then a visit to the exhibition ‘Travelling Along the Silk Road” at the National Museum of Australia. What a stunning exhibition. This museum puts on absolutely fabulous exhibitions. This one excelled just as others have in the past. The way it was put together took you on a journey along the Silk Road. Just a pity you couldn’t experience the smells of the spices as you could hear the sounds, see the sights, and get a feel for the journey. I learnt just so much by going to see it. Amongst the things that struck me was that paper was first made in China in 50BC and that they started to use it for writing by 100AD. However, it was not till 1100-1200 that paper was made in Europe by Islamic craftsmen living in Spain. I was also intrigued by the comment that artists in Baghdad viewed words as shapes not just sounds.

Then after lunch and a seminar by Dixon Advisory we went to the National Gallery to see two exhibitions. Eugene von Gerard’s “Nature Reveared” exhibition demonstrated his exquisite attention to detail in recording landscapes. They were just beautiful. His pencil drawings were just wonderful. Wish I could record places visited like him.

The 2^nd exhibition “unDisclosed” showcased 20 leading Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander contemporary artists. What a powerful exhibition. Just loved it. Then after a break we went out for dinner before going to see “Nutcracker on Ice”. Although the storyline was not strong in this production the skating was just amazing.

What a great day we had !  Just a pity that the weather was miserable.