Me with my sister Lyn and mum Yvonne doing the tourist thing outside the Birdsville Pub. Photo by Evan.
I can't believe it's been so long since I last posted, it's been very busy here. There's been school holidays and the main tourist season is kicking in, making hours in the Bakery much longer, plus we've had visitors! My sister Lyn and mum Yvonne drove up from Smithtown, just north of Port Macquarie, a huge 2,000 km (each way!) drive, and a week later Evan's mum Carroll and our good friend Cathy flew in from Canberra and Sydney, respectively.
We've really enjoyed having family and friend(s) here, and being able to show them around — it's hard to explain what it is about Birdsville that makes it such an interesting place to be, its not just the scenery but the whole atmosphere. To quote Cathy, who emailed after she returned to Sydney, she had "Big Skies and Sunsets in my head for days afterwards".
We did the usual touristy things like the sunset champagne on Big Red and the Dingo Caves, beers at the pub and of course, coffee and pies (and pizza) at the Bakery. Lyn was lucky enough to be able to go on a plane flight to see from the air what a difference the rain has made to the place, and we went for picnic lunch to the Andrewilla Waterhole with Cathy and Carroll, about 80 kms down the Inside Track, a very beautiful drive through sand dunes with wildflowers all around. Just walking around and taking in the vast open spaces and quiet is an experience in itself, and there's no shortage of those.
PS Its VERY cold here at the moment — and I thought Birdsville was supposed to be hot ...
Sunset viewing with the tourists at Big Red. Note clothing — its freezing!
Over Birdsville — the billabong has lots of water in it at the moment.
About 100 km north of Birdsville.
The floodwaters surround a dam.
Pizza round the fire at the Bakery — the warmest place in town. Photo by Cathy.
Lunch at Andrewilla Waterhole with Cathy and Carroll.
We found the lasers! We'll be back for sailing when the weather's warmer.
Near Andrewilla — wildflowers everywhere.
Cathy and Carroll heading off on the Macair plane. That blur near the back of the plane is a fly.
I was wondering where you'd got to! I find this blog a fascinating read and I'm hanging out to hear what you think of the temperature as it warms up in a month or so :-)
ReplyDeleteHi Michelle,
ReplyDeleteA bit slow responding - wow, what a chance to see such a spectacular change to the scenery after the wet. Great photos and the sunsets are wonderful. It was cold everywhere this winter, even here in Noosa, but did think of you out there too. Glad you found the Lasers! Now you can race one another when it warms up.
love
Barb