Day Two: Chinchilla to Cunnamulla or thereabouts.
We woke following a fitful night’s sleep assisted from our slumber by the six o’clock workers heading out of town at about five. Our position, beside the stunning weir complete with its now nearly frozen old Pelicans coincided with the natural gear change from forth to fifth for a Landcruiser under hard acceleration.
Peter headed off to the weir again to take some more images, hoping the morning light may spin some magic. Try as he might, this icon of the outback kept her secrets well hidden amongst the pelican poo and rotting timber, lapped by smelly water.
At about eightish we clambered aboard Puma and headed southwest towards Meandarra. After a short while we pulled left, waited for a road train to pass, executed a U-turn, and headed back to the road that headed southwest towards Meandarra!
Nothing much eventuated that required us to rip out a post card and post it back home, although two roos sprinted across a little too close for comfort. As we drew breath and got back up to speed, their lone cousin, having seen the game, decided he would set the bar just that bit higher. He came from the right at ridiculous speed. He landed directly in front of the Landrover bonnet badge. Just when all reasonable assessment had him dead to rights, he lost footing, fell to his right side, and executed the most magnificent untouched slide into third base and headed for home.
St George appeared at about the time our bellies were screaming for lunch. We ate our fare beside the beautiful Ballone River adjacent to immaculately manicured park lands. We tried to contact Telstra……………..
Onwards we marched toward Cunnamulla. We had some thoughts of making good ground and getting to Barringun by days end. Reality was the kilometres worn on slowly. Roads were not conducive to good averages and the distant cousins to the earlier roos decided to come have a look at Puma and Gstring pass by. Not to be outdone, their mates from the coat of arms turned up in all their feathered glory to keep us on edge.
Ultimately, we ended the day intact at Jobs Gate rest area, a decent weeks walk south of Cunnamulla. We arrived late, ate early, and fought another twelve rounds with Telstra, losing on a technical knockout as one bar of coverage just didn’t cut it.
Some brief conversations with fellow travellers revealed most were Victorians. Collectively they were escaping, COVID, the cold and the mouse plague. We feigned a genuine look of understanding, but quietly chuckled within for who in their right mind would live down there? Things will be quiet for a couple of days now as we will be off grid till Broken Hill.