Friday 15th July 2011 Wooliana

Our day didn’t start off well with some news about a friend, who has just found out the he has prostate cancer. We know that there’s nothing we can do this far away but to let him and his family know that we are thinking of them. Texting isn’t the same as talking with someone but texting was all we could do because the connection would drop in and out.

Our plan for today was to check out the local area so every few minutes I checked our mobile phone connection because I wanted to ring our friends.  There’s an indigenous community not far from Wooliana and we did get a strong signal there but we had to leave a message as the line was busy. We know you’re following the blog – hugs to both of you.

red dust Wooliana road

On the dirt road out of Wooliana, most of the leaves of any vegetation growing on the side of the road I covered with thick, red dust. The plants must ‘like’ any rainfall; I don’t know how they manage to photosynthesise. Many of them look like they’re dying and mistletoe weaves its malicious way into many of the trees. Being a parasite, it mimics its host but in doing so, it kills the plant that it’s feeding from.

black cockatoos

Driving slowly, we both noticed a flock of large black birds feeding on the grass.  At first we thought they were crows but looking closely at them we were excited to see they were red-tailed black cockatoos. We’ve seen the odd one or two but never this many. It was pretty cool. I usually have the camera ready but as we approached, they were startled and some flew off.  They flew off again as another car travelled from the other end of the road. We stopped and waited for the dust to settle and I got out and walked very slowly back down the road as there were a few cockatoos back in the grass. There must have been something that was appetising for them. I managed to snap off a few shots before they flew away. Compared to corellas and galahs, they appear to be quite a large bird but they aren’t as raucous as sulphur-crested cockatoos.

The indigenous community is a neat town with housing, an air strip, supermarket, church, other services and an arts centre although we didn’t find that. There are times when you feel that you are intruding even though some communities welcome visitors. We waved but didn’t get any waves back and we understand that respect in some indigenous cultures is to avoid eye contact.  I don’t know how I’d feel if people drove past my home as part of a tourist “attraction”.

Phil and Colleen, our next door neighbours in the CP, told us to check out the Daly River pub. We drove into what was a caravan park, shop and pub. It didn’t look too flash or welcoming so we decided to drive on. Apparently, the old manager thought his lease was to be renewed by the indigenous elders who own much of the land up here. He’d bought materials that were going to be used for improvements to the hotel but the decision by the elders was not unanimous so the building didn’t go ahead. Meanwhile, the wet season with floods happened and most of the building materials were washed out to sea.

We headed off to see the famous (or infamous) Daly River Crossing.  A couple of cars were parked nearby and they checked us out waiting to see if we were going to cross. We didn’t. It was difficult to accurately judge the depth and the river was flowing fast.  Another vehicle arrived and the same thing happened; people stood anticipating a crossing but those people decided to stay on our side of the river.

Daly River Crossing

We were there for a while chatting with the other tourists. I made a couple of phone calls and was glad that I could chat with Jennifer for a while. She started a new job this week so I wanted to know how she was going. She loves it! There lots of high level thinking and stimulation rather that chasing funding and solving daily crises.  Working at the Don Dunstan Foundation sounds as though it’s going be a positive experience for Jennifer.

While I was having a chat on the phone, a couple of larger vehicles approached from the other side of the river and they were going to cross. Very exciting as last week two vehicles were swept off the crossing. Apart from worrying about floating off the crossing, there’s also the added danger of salt water crocodiles that live in this part of the river. Both made smooth going which was a relief for everyone watching.  Robert said that had we attempted to cross, the level of the river was enough for us to have floated off. Good decision to stay where we were.

Daly River crossing

The swimming pool here looks beautiful. It’s surrounded by tall palms and it’s sparkling. It’s so bloody cold though. There’s a huge cover extended over the top of it which probably stops leaves and other things falling in but it also stops the sun from heating it up. We sat on the side with our legs dangling in the cold water and that cooled us off just nicely. A few brave people did take the plunge and they said that once you’re in, it’s lovely. We trusted them but didn’t share the experience. Most of the pools up here are very cold.

We’ve been very fortunate to be camped next to some lovely people as we travel from place to place and Phil and Colleen fit that description really well. They’re from Coffin Bay in SA although Phil’s father, grandfather and great grandfather were all born in Semaphore. Once again, it’s a small world. We think that a couple of boys at LeFevre are probably related to him.

We’ve spent a few hours over the last two days getting to know each other and it seems like we’ve known each other much longer. That happens sometimes; you just hit it off. We’ve exchanged phone numbers and email addresses so that we can keep in touch.

Merv joined us for a drink this afternoon and gave a very strong warning about protecting ourselves from mossie bites up here because in the tropics, infections can prove dangerous as well as inconvenient when you’re on holidays. I’ve got to stop scratching!!!!! Might have to buy some long, light pants and long sleeved shirts when we get to Darwin. He was telling us that some mossies have even bitten through material.  I HATE all of these biting bugs!!!!! Colleen and Phil have both had bad experiences with mossies and midges and their recipe is 1/3 baby oil, 1/3 cup Rid, 1/3 Dettol (or tea tree oil). Have Rid and tea tree oil but no baby oil. That’s on the shopping list.