Welcome to the penultimate blog in this saga.
Today was the first day of summer marked at Mirrool this morning by rain. As you may recall from yesterday we camped in the free camp adjacent the pub. The swag was put up in a covered bbq area to protect us from the rain. We went to bed about 10:30 after an evening in the pub. During the night there were strong winds and heavy showers which didn't bother us due to the roof over our heads. The only downside to the stop at Mirrool was the swarm of mosquitoes that took up residence under the swag awning, Fortunately they were unable to penetrate the insect mesh. We also found a couple of largish ground spiders in the sheets when packing up today however they appeared harmless.
We drove in the rain to Narrandera where we stopped for coffee. Susan visited the Shire chambers to put in a feedback form relating to the fact there is no parallel parking in or adjacent the main street which means reprobates with camper trailers park across the angle lines taking up six spaces. A couple of interesting items observed. A tiger moth in a display building with information documenting RAAF pilot training during WWII and the fact the local cricket oval actually has a turf wicket. I went and examined it observing it was laid with black clay and was a boggy mess from all the rain.
From then on the weather started to fine up as we headed west through the familiar passing parade of Sturt Highway towns. Hay where I decided to fit the insect screen to the front of the car to keep the grasshoppers under control. However we emptied the back of the car to retrieve it from the storage well and it wasn't there. I had a vague memory 147 days ago of putting it there and then moving it so it would be easier to get out, so we continued without it. I did take the opportunity to scrape the hoppers from the front of the car at Hay. As it turned out they weren't too bad as we headed through Balranald and onto Mildura although the front of the car is a bit of a mess.
On arriving at Mildura we considered driving onto Adelaide since the GPS said we would be home by 9:10pm. Commonsense prevailed and we are swagging it at the Big 4 park for the princely sum of $20. It is a nice park.
We finished the second of the talking books that we borrowed from the library in Cairns and I copied. The first was "Alice to nowhere" and the second "Laying down with lions". Both were very enjoyable and they certainly broke the monotony of the driving. In fact the km's seem to fly by.
In other incidental news I apologise if I have covered these in previous blogs,
Susan bought 3 pairs of reading glasses with her and has managed to lose or destroy all of them. A replacement pair purchased recently were rolled up in the swag a few days back. They were too hard retrieve while travelling so 2 more pairs were purchased. The day after the glasses were rolled up we managed to roll my water bottle up as well but did realise and manage to retrieve it. Laurel and Hardy are still on the road.
I managed to log on to the toll road site in Qld and check my account which I set up before we travelled through Brisbane. It worked and I owe them around $3.50 for using the motorway.
I have become a dedicated wearer of Crocs (the genuine ones) after swearing that I would never ever wear them.
Tomorrow we head for home with mixed feelings and little idea how we will feel when we get there. I have a hunch that after a day it will be like we have never been away. There is a lot to be done before we head out again so I am sure the days will fly by. After this trip we have a much better idea of what's important and what isn't and this will guide our preparation for the next outing.
Till tomorrow
Cheers Simon
Getting out of the swag. It's Bluff Rock not Bald Rock per the narration.
