C2c lap blanket

 I took away some wool and finished squares to put together. I grabbed some other bits and pieces of wool and took them as well, just in case I finished the squares. Well, I did finish and started on a blanket.

The wool I grabbed was all bought from op shops so it is a very cheap, to me, blanket, more like a lap rug as it is not very big. I crocheted until the end of the pinky mauve one and then decreased, didnt have a tape measure with me.

I love the c2c as it makes its a nice square just by the stitches. I rarely have pink in my stash as I prefer blues but I think the pink and grey looks pretty good.

It is 80cms by 80, the last corner was done with blue and white 4 ply together that I picked up while away. I bought just about all the wool that op shop had and it was an armful as I didnt have a bag with me, luckily they had bagged most of it. Think there will be enough for another two blankets at a cost of $10, bonus!

I want to make the next ones at least a metre square probably 120 square would be a good size.

Home sweet home.

 We arrived home around lunchtime. We knew it was forecast to rain Friday morning and we woke to some drops. We had put everything inside the night before. We packed up quickly and went to Maccas for breakfast.

The rain got heavier as we got closer to home. We were able to set the camper up in the backyard. So far the car has been unpacked and washing started.

The weather was great all the time that we were away, now its cold and wet, I had to find some socks to wear.

Maryborough

 We were staying at a farm stay north of the city and wanted to go south to a boat ramp. While doing this we noticed that some streets were closed due to market day. We decided to go back there for lunch, it was only 10am.

Parking was an issue when we came back and by the time we parked and walked to Adelaide street the market was being packed up. We went to a cafe and ordered lunch, then I wandered to the town hall. To my surprise, I saw the town crier dragging a small artillery gun and Mary Poppins. She took a phone call so I chattered to the town crier.

Apparently every Thursday they hold markets, close the main road. These two were in full costumes and the gun is fired at 1pm.

Gin Gin

 We pulled in here on the way up for morning tea and discovered that in the town centre, there were parks for caravanners on both sides of the road. Brilliant. Parklands, seating, kids playgrounds and toilets in the middle. 

Obviously some one was thinking and there were heaps of people pulled in there and of course buying coffee or eats. 

We aimed for Gin Gin on our way home and decided to buy lunch and drinks. Had to queue at the bakery to be served. We had the choice of a cafe or the bakery and Warren choose the bakery, he was about eight in line so I left him to it and wandered off up the road to find the only cache in Gin Gin.

Pasties and a shared doughnut went down rather well and we arrived at the picnic table at about the same time.

Bit hard to tell from the photo but great spot to stop.

Our car is the red one with the through traffic continuing past.

Mt Larcom

 West of Gladstone on the highway is Mt Larcom, again a tiny place, at least it did have a pub, supermarket and a cafe.

We travelled along the roads to Gladstone and discovered the two biggest instrudries in the area, coal and every thing that goes with it and Orica, which we did not know what they did. Good old google. The company manufactures explosives for mining and road construction. How would have thought.

Toilets at Mt Larcom township, the pies we had for lunch were good.

Greenhill.

 A very tiny little place on the coast. Lovely caravan park but poor mobile and tv reception. The cp had activities during the week but not on the weekend when we were there.

There was however four caches, one a mystery with a difference, we needed water for that one. A nice walk of about 300 m from the van. It was an easy find but then we had to work out how to open it. Someone had said they had been there for an hour. It looked like an electric jug with a collar and we both had the same thought, did the collar turn or twist. It did! Inside was another solid looking canister, we poured the water in and the canister rose up so we were able to grab it and pull it out. Signed log and we were off to the beach to  find the second one. 

Back to the camp site and a drive into town, got within 500m and it was a 4wd road only in. We walked, the cache descprition did suggest keeping an eye out for crocs. Lots of 4wds at the end of tge road as it was a boat launch place into a creek that then went out to the sea.

Next one took much longer, again a walk to the beach. There were rocks and Warren said he would go up. I was happy to leave it.

I walked on further and found an easier way up without going up the rocks.

It had not be found for several months and I calked it quits but someone said he would have one more look.  Yep, he got it. 

Wolfgang monument

 From Sapphire to Sarina, we went through only two towns, Rubyvale, 7 kms up yhe road and then Clermont about 20 minutes further on. 

I had seen that there was a cache at Wolfgang monument about 160 kms away, seemed an ideal spot for coffee. No facilities there except table and seats. It was at the top of a rise and we could see for miles. 

The blurb was interesting and gave info regarding the property, owners and the like. In 1946 it had been surrended to Government to grow food for Britain. What the? Didnt they realise how far away England was? It said the same on one of the plaques, still sounded like bull....... to me. It is now a mine, mining coal.

Anyway we enjoyed our coffee, found the cache and continued with me driving. An hour up the road, a vehicle with a flashing came towards me, usually they said wide load but this had something different. I slowed not sure what to expect, nothing happened, I had moved to the extreme left of tge road, then a cop car came with a red baton motioning me over. I pulled right off the road and stopped. Ten minutes before this massive vehicle came towards us, it was a bucket and covered both sides of the road.

The bucket heading for the mines.

Rubyvale

 Rubyvale is up the road from Sapphire, seven kilometres in fact. I had seen an advert for a strudel hut in Rubyvale. Sounded like a good place to check out after we had walked the wetlands.

We saw camels just off the road on the way, it was the main highway through the towns, several kilometres are common ground and cattle horses and camels are free to roam as they wish, they also have right of way.

Waiting for our strudel, parrots came to drink at the fountain.

This was the strudel, we both chose cherry with cream and ice cream and were brought out complientry glasses of port.

The tables were slabs of hardwood, highly polished.

Between the two towns is the Tropic of Capricorn, not often that obe sees this so just gad to take a photo. There was a cache of the same name hiding in the bushes 100 metres or so out that we had found the day before.

Sapphire wetlands

 Very dry here but it was an interesting walk. More photos than any thing else.

Gates to the wetlands.

Bird hide

Sapphire bush camp

 It is a caravan park but set in bushland and Warren selected to have a gravel site rather than a slab which means we are down and around the back. 

I have further to go to the toilets, that me 2, Wazza 5 out of seven, its also up a hill, like walking from the creek on our road up to the house, thankfully it is not quite as far.

We do have a "balconey" out the back which gets the sun in the morning.

Birdbrain.

 We are at a bush camp in Sapphire and every evening at 5pm, they feed the birds and wallabies.

We went up last night and heres some photos that I took. When I showed Warren the photo, he suggested the caption of bird brain.

Fog!

 My goodness, thats a change. Forecast was rain and we had geared up to stay another night if it was raining in the morning, it wasnt so we packed up, we had 447kms to travel to get to Sapphire.

We did get some rain, not when I was driving which is very unusual.

Lake Awoonga

 I think thats how its spelt. Warren finds all these camps that we stay at and they are usually a little out of the way. He uses Wikicamps and goes off other peoples comments regarding what they are like.

This camp was about eight or nine ks off the main road and not far from Gladstone where we spent a day, not doing too much but we had never been there before. Nothing outstanding about Gladstone except that it was hilly.

We went to the lookouts when we got back.

This pair was just watching us, not flighty at all. When we came back around, we saw that they both had joeys.

First time we had had to stop fir a train in ages, we had travelled alongside it fir awhile then it went inland. It was full of cattle.

Hervey Bay

 We drove into Hervey Bay to discover a big thing, there is over 50 big things in Queensland. The one we were looking for was a large whale. There was a "statue" of the head and shoulders of the whale, very impressive looking. Unfortunately I didnt take a photo as we thought we would be returning the same way but our journey took us a different direction.

Colourful turtles in the park.

The ANZAC  memorial in another part of the park.

 

Packing the camper

 After dinner at Hogs Breathe, that is a weird name for a restaurant, I had nachos. Ages since I have made or eaten those as Warren cant eat corn chips. Buggar it! I guess I could do it for myself and make him something different but I have had my fix for awhile. Home reasonably early to see Warren footy team in front so we watched the rest of the game.

We didnt have far to go the next day so werent in that much of a hurry to leave.

Got away ay 10.40am, lunch at our usual spot, when we have stopped there before, its been for morning tea.

I took over the driving then, many trips before when I drive, it starts to rain but this time it was roadworks! Didnt have to stop but the speeds changed from 100 to 60 and back again, getting into a nice groove and then more speed changes. I reckon there were about a dozen times it changed. 

We turned towards the coast and I was thinking of settling down with a hot chocolate to watch whatever footy was going to be shown and realised we had not packed the TV. Disaster! Last time we took the tv but no remote. Have often said while we are away that we should make a packing list but never done it. 

Warren had rung the caravan park that he had picked and secured the last spot. It was at Toogoom, apparently it is pronounced Tagoom. 

  We were a block away from the beach.

Returning home.

 We had to be at the station ready for a 8.36am departure. Discovered that we could book an Uber for a certain time. Joly collected us at 7.20 and we were able to change our desindation to our home station rather than Brisbane.

We were supplied with three meals but after an early start, I went to the gallery to get morning tea. I took a plastic bag with me but they had a better solution.

A flat piece of plastic with cuts in it, they placed one cup in the middle, second one on top and grabbed the two outside cuts which made the handles. Brilliant.

Panels at Townsville station.

Time for bed and this is whatnthey look like made up. Warren was too hot under his doona so he used his own light blanket.

Barra!

 We stumbled into the pub on the corner. No, we had not been drinking but I think the pub had unless it was its age.

It was over a hundred years old with small steps into each area, nit sure if that was in the original structure or if it had been added to over the years.

I indulged and ordered the grilled barramundi and a beer. No light xxxx, had go make do with Cascade, the only light beer that they sold. Cascade is a Tassie beer that I had had before.

Back on the train at 3.30, I didnt take any photos of the station, my bad, as it is one if the prettiest station I have seen with lots of hanging baskets of ferns and other greenery. 

The train took one hour and forty minutes to get back to Cairns, very slow and very scenic. There were at least two areas where the line is the only thing suspended between the hills. At one stage it stopped so people could take photos.

Crocs, fish and turtles

 Once in Kuranda, they were butterfly and bird worlds to see, plus markets and aborginal dance. We had done those before and didnt need anything at the markets so we opted for a trip down the river.

Us on the boat, it wasnt full so we could sit on the outter seats.

Feeding the fish and turtles on the other bank, there had been a cassory over there as we set out but I didnt see it. We were under the cable cars. Nice leisurely trip up river to tge dam wall and return. We did see two crocs, they are freshwater crocs, longer and thinner snouts than the saltwaters. Freshies dont eat people as their mouths dont open wide enough. 

Kuranda

 Its up in the hills from Cairns, very windy road to get there or there is the train or cable car, called sky rail.

We visited a few years ago by bus from Pt Douglas, started working out exactly when, still not sure but I was still working as a public servant. I retired from PS in 1996 so at least 25 years since we were last there.

Sky rail wasnt an option then. Not really me, being suspended metres up on a flipping cable but I knew Warren was keen so I gritted my teeth and said yes.

Warren suggestted it would be better to go up by cable car and down by train.

This is the take off, six to a car but we had one to ourselves. It rumbled or shuddered a bit everytime we past a pole. I wasnt that keen on that even though I knew that it was going to happen. Besides the start there were two other stations where we needed to get out, walk a little and then rejoin. Took about 40 minutes all up. The rain forest when we git out was incredible and great scenery.

Botanical Gardens

 We took the bus to the gardens, fronted up with our bus passes but they were not accepted here, luckily I had a $5 note tucked in the back of my phone, it was $3 for both of us.

As we got off the bus, a lady invited us to follow her into the gardens, she was a volunteer and she got maps and brochures for us.