Up, up and away! We left Home Hill at 445am in the hope that Stella would stay asleep. No, she was as excited as we were and sat quietly in the back seat as we drove south, watching the break of a new day as the sun lay hidden but the orange and pink glow on the horizon spoke of a glorious sunrise to beckon us on our adventure. We arrived in Proserpine by 7am and pulled in by the side of the road to make coffee and brekky. Janelle was excited to see an early bird Pharmacy she could include in her blog. Check it out...
Back on the road and we had some items to buy in Mackay before meeting up with good friends Paddy and Ali and their boys Cooper and Sam. Thanks guys for the book for Stella and for making amazing piklets with jam and cream and nice coffee (so good after being on the road). Stella made a new friend in Cooper and he was very helpful in making masks together. It was great seeing you guys again and meeting each others kids. Looking forward to it again next time in Cairns!
Hay Point and Sarina
Before getting to our first actual camp site Janelle wanted to see her Ayr pharmacy buddy Lisa at Hay Point north of Mackay. We then did some last minute shopping at Sarina before the last 100km's to Clairview.
Clairview
Finally, after an epic 5am - 3pm day we arrived at the BarraCrab Caravan Park in Clairview. Zane saw this van park months ago and just wanted to go here because of the name! It was a great spot, right on the beach with plenty of shaded spots and green grassy ground. After 5 mins of picking the right tree to set under we got to work.
Take off the bikes and the bike carrier, undo the tie downs, take off the cover to the camper, take out all the gear loaded under the cover, set up the tarp, reverse the trailer under, set up the tables, hangers, storage units, luggage, portacot, all while trying entertain an 18 month old baby... Maybe we have too much gear? This took about 2 hours before we even started to prepare dinner. It all seemed overwhelming that this was going to be us for the next 6 months! We managed to get Stella fed and vegetarian chilli in the Billyboil so we could go to the bar and have a well deserved beverage at happy hour. Beautiful view from the Clairview deck and a very welcome seabreeze to cool down the hot day. The little 12v fans worked a treat and we all slept OK on night 1 in the camper.
Happy Birthday to sisters Sahra, Gianna and Gabrielle!
The following morning wake up calls from the local birds had Stella up at 530am and ready for action. Janelle will take a little convincing that this means wake up time. Papa Doc and Anne dropped in for morning tea on their epic road trip from Tville to Bargara Beach in 13 hours. We had our first success with the BabyQ and made a yummy Banana Cake for morning tea that wasn't burnt much on the bottom.
To try and escape the heat we drove to St Lawrence for a look and called into the Clairview service station. Petrol $1.37 a litre!
Back at the BarraCrab we cooked up an Amatriciana sauce in the Billyboil and took Stella for a cruise on the bikes. Happy hour on the deck with some live music from Roy Pidgeon (Phil Emmanuel was playing the following night) and there was a great sunset while watching the waves on the beach.
Small world - we met another Cairns couple who were road tripping to Tasmania. We had friends in common and agreed to meet again in Launceston.
Yes the Fettuccine Amatriciana was amazing!
Wake up, pack up and hit the road by 9am for Rockhampton and Emu Park.
Take off the bikes and the bike carrier, undo the tie downs, take off the cover to the camper, take out all the gear loaded under the cover, set up the tarp, reverse the trailer under, set up the tables, hangers, storage units, luggage, portacot, all while trying entertain an 18 month old baby... Maybe we have too much gear? This took about 2 hours before we even started to prepare dinner. It all seemed overwhelming that this was going to be us for the next 6 months! We managed to get Stella fed and vegetarian chilli in the Billyboil so we could go to the bar and have a well deserved beverage at happy hour. Beautiful view from the Clairview deck and a very welcome seabreeze to cool down the hot day. The little 12v fans worked a treat and we all slept OK on night 1 in the camper.
Happy Birthday to sisters Sahra, Gianna and Gabrielle!
The following morning wake up calls from the local birds had Stella up at 530am and ready for action. Janelle will take a little convincing that this means wake up time. Papa Doc and Anne dropped in for morning tea on their epic road trip from Tville to Bargara Beach in 13 hours. We had our first success with the BabyQ and made a yummy Banana Cake for morning tea that wasn't burnt much on the bottom.
To try and escape the heat we drove to St Lawrence for a look and called into the Clairview service station. Petrol $1.37 a litre!
Back at the BarraCrab we cooked up an Amatriciana sauce in the Billyboil and took Stella for a cruise on the bikes. Happy hour on the deck with some live music from Roy Pidgeon (Phil Emmanuel was playing the following night) and there was a great sunset while watching the waves on the beach.
Small world - we met another Cairns couple who were road tripping to Tasmania. We had friends in common and agreed to meet again in Launceston.
Yes the Fettuccine Amatriciana was amazing!
Wake up, pack up and hit the road by 9am for Rockhampton and Emu Park.