We had been told from as far away as Undara that the Bakery pies were good, I am not a judge of pies because I don't eat them but Richard, a pie conosseur from way back, gave them the thumbs up.
We then headed off in a south-westerly direction towards a place called Lawn Hill Gorge, we had been told by numerous travellers that it was a beautiful spot.
We passed through Normanton again and continued on, we couldn't believe our eyes when the temperature gague in the car reached a high of 48 degrees....
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| Thank Goodness for Air Con |
We stopped a couple of times for road works and then to fill up at the Burke and Wills Roadhouse, it made us realize just what a mammoth expedition those two men and their crew undertook all those years ago....
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| The Burke & Wills Roadhouse |
As the towns and trees grew more sparse, the termite hills grew bigger, at one stage there was an entire plain for as far as the eye could see, full of ant hills....
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| Termite hills for as far as the eye could see |
We finally hit a dirt road which felt like 77 kilometres of forever but it was well worth the journey. The campsite at Adels Grove part of the Lawn Hill National Park was beautiful, shaded by tree canopies with the gorge running beside the campsite.
The water looked so inviting in 45 degrees, that we had barely set up camp before we had all stripped off and jumped into the crystal clear spring water. It was the only way to cool down in the stifling heat.
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| Ready for a cool down |
It was still 40 degrees at 7 o'clock in the evening.
Dinner was some Karumba prawns and a veggie bake before we retired to bed, hot and bothered.
It was a long while before anyone managed to cool down enough to get to sleep.
A couple of feral cats, the place is teeming with wildlife, ensured our sleep was short lived.
Tuesday the 9th of October, the boys were up bright and early after putting the crab nets in the night before. We heard Harry's heart pounding louder than his feet when he raced back to tell us that there was a snake in one of the nets.
Richard decided he should get up to check it out and the consensus later, after talking to the park managers, was that it was a file snake (non venomous) which was enjoying the one yabby that the boys had caught in their net.
Richard and I then went for a walk up to a lookout at Adels Grove, before getting back to the caravan to inflate the kayaks and head to Lawn Hill Gorge for a paddle.
Adels Grove was originally gazetted as a miners homestead lease but in 1920 a man by the name of Albert de Lestang took up the property as an experimental Botanical Garden (hence the name Adels from his initials)
By 1939 he'd planted more than 1000 species of exotic native plants, shrubs and trees and supplied botanical gardens around the world with the seeds from his outback nursery. A fire went through and destroyed all of his hard work in the 50s and Albert died not long after, heartbroken.
Today only a few species of those native plants survive.... I thought the story was worth telling.
Back to Lawn Hill Gorge... What an unexpected oasis, just when we thought we were in the middle of the desert, there it was.
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| Richard & Nina share a kayak |
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| The boys and I in the other |
Fed by underground freshwater springs with its sandstone cliffs, emerald waters and lush vegetation, it was like we had stepped onto a Hollywood movie set...
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| Lawn Hill Gorge |
We had to keep stopping in our kayaks just to take in the beauty and we had to jump in for a cool down when we saw three waterfalls...
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| More of the gorge |
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| Richard and I by a waterfall |
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| Richard and the kids cool down |
It was truly like we'd stumbled upon a piece of hidden paradise. We seem to keep doing that in this country, just when you think nothing else can take your breath away... It does once again, and we are left in awe.
After our cool down, we contined down the gorge until we hit a dead end when several creeks met. We had lunch there while the kids looked at the fresh water fish life from the shore.
We then headed back the way we had come, still marveling at this beauty of it all and stopping to watch and listen to the wildlife along the way.
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| Another cool off at the end of the gorge |
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| The boys and I with the amazing view behind us |
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| Chook and Richard have some special Daddy/ Daughter time |
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| A darter bird poses for a photo |
We stopped for another quick dip in the waterfalls where Richard lost his good sunnies so we left the kayaks at the gorge with the plan to head back for an early morning paddle the next day with our goggles and snorkels, to see if we could find the sunnies.
The kids had another swim in the water hole back at the campsite while Richard and I set about fixing the fridge which has been playing up... It too is probably feeling the heat like us.
All fixed thanks to Handy Manny (Richard) we then joined the kids in the watering hole for a cool down on another 40 plus degree day.
We later went up to the reception and bar area at Adels Grove for a cold drink and a chat to some of the other tourists before heading back for dinner and another hot sleepless night of tossing and turning.
Wednesday the 10th of October and we woke around 8, very slow after another hot night.
The kids went to pull their crab nets with no little surprises to speak of.
We packed a few water bottles and headed back to the gorge.
This time the kids shared a kayak, while Richard and I took the other. It was more relaxing for me today, with Richard doing all the hard work, so I laid back and took photos.
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| Nina works hard, directing her big brothers |
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| The kids |
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| from afar |
It wasn't long before we saw our first fresh water croc, much nicer than their salty man eating cousins....
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| A fresh water croc |
Fresh water crocs are herbivores so they are less aggressive and much smaller than salty's...this fella was also nice enough to sit still while I took some photos.
We continued on until we reached the waterfalls again and everyone put on their goggles and snorkels in search of Richard's sunnies...
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| The beautiful waterfalls |
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| The kids snorkelling for Richard's sunglasses |
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| A pretty picture |
But no luck... Instead Richard leaves a piece of himself behind, in Lawn Hill Gorge.
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| Heading back |
In the carpark, the only place where there was mobile reception, we made a few calls home to check in. As we sat there we couldn't believe our eyes as the mercury hit the half a century mark....
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| A mercury record for us |
Afternoon, back at the camp site and the fridge decided that it could no longer function in these hot conditions, it had stopped again. I had to salvage what I could so in 50 degree heat I was cooking pasta sauce and making rissoles so we didn't lose our mince.
We all got changed and walked up to the reception area to catch a tour bus which would show us around the area.
Nina's little friend Charli, whose parents own Adels Grove, came along for the ride with her dad who drove the bus.
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| Charli & Nina |
His name is Rod and he is a dead ringer for Uncle Barry, except he doesn't drink.
The bus took us to the top of a hill called Harry's Hill, where Rod told us about the area, it's significant mines, pastoral leases etc. it really gave us a perspective on just how much of a glistening gem this gorge is, nestled in the desert.
We were hoping to watch the sunset from the hill but with dark clouds looming in the distance there was no hope. The view was beautiful regardless...
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| The sun tries to set for us |
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| Nina, Charli & Harry with two cathedral termite mounds |
So instead, the kids recited The Man From Iron Bark to a rousing applause...
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| The kids recite a poem on Harry's Hill |
We returned back and headed to the caravan to have dinner, it was 7:30 and still in the 40s, that was until the first drop of rain fell... It brought the kids out of their hot bed and the mercury down almost instantaneously. We all sat in the rain in our undies in the middle of a thunderstorm to cool down, what a sight!! I didn't think that imagery required any photos :-)
The temperature must have dropped 15 degrees within minutes, at last we would be able to sleep. That was until the wind began to blow and pine throngs and huge branches started falling to the ground all night long. It became another sleepless night as Richard and I both sat upright each time we heard a branch crack, hoping the caravan wouldn't be in the firing line.
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