Monday 28th June

Adel's Grove to Normanton, Qld

Started the day with a call to home to  see what happened with mum at the hospital to fix up her skin tear last night. So glad big brother was there to be with her as she would be distressed and confused on her own. The usual 6 hour stint in emergency and returned her to her aged care home after midnight. Hence I unusually woke him when I rang at 8:30 this morning. Amazing that we had Optus coverage at this remote location.

Taking a photo is how you show the 'office' what you need to pay for!

Packed up camp at Adel's grove, filled up with fuel and headed off.

The road back to the Savannah Way

7050km on the clock since leaving home, and a long way to go.


Kms of termite mounds


Friendly locals

Alternative route to Dimadgee through the station and water crossings. A very strange route and we felt like we must have taken the wrong road a few times, but all well and interesting. No problems with passing through.

Our anticlockwise loop to Lawn Hill and back, coming out on Savannah Way near Doomadgee

Always nice to be sure you're headed the right way!

What we saw:

  • Big flocks of little birds including zebra finches.
  • Mob of those special wallabies
  • Lots of lovely spots to free camp along the way eg 17.3 km out from turn off of a lovely billabong.
  • Pee wee
  • Top knot pigeon
  • Tiny pigeons
  • Swarms off flocks off tiny birds to dodge.
  • Cattle Bos indicus including some really big bulls!
  • Huge flock budgies
  • Wallaroo?
  • Rainbow bee eater after tea break
  • Weather warming again 23c at 11am
  • Kapok flowering
  • Just before turning back onto main road flock of ibis and waterway with pelican and egret water lilies etc.
  • Horses
  • Galah
  • Cockatiel flock
  • Small wedge tail
  • Flocks of kites in thermals
  • Lots of single kite too


A  local with an impressive set of horns!


Morning tea stop

So many beautiful flowers

Exploring

Heading into Burketown

We made Burketown for lunch. It has the cleanest best appointed public toilets in ages! 

Where we've come from. Café behind Roy's left shoulder.

At the local café we ordered Barra burgers, chips and a chocolate milkshake for lunch. Roy happy with that, and they were yummy!!


Super yummy lunch!

After Burketown, what we saw:

  • Mum and Bub wallaroo.
  • Flock red tailed black cockatoos
  • Crow

    Leichardt Falls

We spotted a sign to Leichhardt falls which was currently actually a lagoon. It was practically on the road so worth a stop and look. It is a strange barren looking place to park but has a  lovely view down over the water. We could see a huge flock of corellas in a distant tree and a rainbow bee eater on a branch overlooking the water. It would actually be a good place to camp and there were several vans there already with the same idea. A whole big bus tour came in to look -  over a pretty rough track!

The 'good' road turned into dirt road here.

We saw:

  • Little wallabies
  • Big monitor on road
  • Flock of large birds, magpie geese, jabiru or brolgas. Dark against sun . Long legs and neck.


Heading for Normanton tonight

We found a lovely motel room in Normanton , chilled out for a while then had a pub dinner at the Albion Hotel. Nice to sleep in a proper bed and charge everything up.



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