Footprints in the Sand. Visits in the Night.

Dear Adventurous Reader,

Sometimes you hope to see something special when camping, it is a little cherry on top of a nice cake. Some places you choose to camp at because people have said that there is a great chance of seeing some special wildlife.

We have decided to drive to a National Park with a chance of seeing dingos. The camping ground is within our given driving range for the day, along the coast and the descriptions of the empty beaches sound fantastic.

There are three camp sites to choose from along a stretch of road running through this National Park. Each sounds a little different from the other and despite the additional driving we choose to look at each of them before selecting a place for the night.

We return to the first place we scouted. It is less crowded than the others, even though there is a class of year 9 students camped there for the night.

The camp ground is covered with a canopy of leaves, grown from tall trees. There is not much undergrowth, leaving us many places to pitch our tent. The kids all climb out of the car to stretch their legs and discover sand dunes along the edge of the bush.

A site close by the small path leading to the dunes is selected as our camp. We would discover later this spot was not a good choice, but for now it was perfect.

Dunes

A short path leads to massive sand dunes that tower above us all. The boys race up the steep incline of yellow sand, up to the top and look down at us below, yelling and waving. They disappear over the ridge and a short while later return to run down, leaping and rolling until they get to the bottom. They dust themselves off, trying to get the damp, sticky sand from their clothes, and climb up again.

They come back after a long walk, talking of dingo’s foot prints showing in the sand. Elijah excitedly tells us how he found them, "Dingoes! Dingoes!"

When the night falls around us, after dinner, we venture off into the vast sand dunes to see what we can find. A torch and some hand holding are not enough to comfort the little Lads, who, with all the excitement of finding dingo footprints, are quite sure they are hiding everywhere.

We retreat to the tent, get ready for bed and await the morning, when adventure in the sand dunes should be a little more desirable.

The Great Australian Bogan

We have seen kangaroos, thorny devils, eagles and now we encounter another Australian animal, The Wild Australian Bogan. They travel in packs with cubes of cheap beer tucked away in the tail end of their ute. Arriving at campsites after work has finished for the week, when the sun is down, they setup their tents with a beer in one hand - or if not in hand then not far away.

They will complain if the beer is out of reach or not within three paces. Citing another Bogan as having taken their beer.

You can tell the leader because the others will quieten down when he starts to talk and allow him to interrupt while they are mid-sentence. The leader will curse the most when he talks, as a verbal sign of his authority. Often times it will be his car they arrive in.

Their language is fowl. The use of adverbs would make Stephen King cry and usually begins with an "F". Very rarely will an adverb or adjective not be a curse word. Oftentimes the landscape of their speech is dotted with other curse words that, if spoken in public, would make babies cry.

And so, after 11pm our campsite is visited by the most common variety of Australian Bogan. They arrive and setup camp and talk. They talk and talk, all through the night.

Their discussion is loud enough to wake me up at various points and, instead of drifting off to sleep with the sound of waves, wind, or rain, I slowly drift off to drunken discussions about their home, or work, or topics I quickly forget. It is terrible.  When the sun has risen, while the boys are stuck inside the tent because of the rain outside, we hear them talking. Foul language flowing freely. Finally, when all the words have been said and we emerge from the tent, they fall silent. The soberness of morning has struck and they go gingerly about their business, occasionally calling on the only "mate" who has slept, with adverbs to try and wake him.

Sand Jumping

In the morning we pack up the tent between the rain drops. It started raining sometime before sunrise and we are kept inside the tent waiting for it to pass. Since the rain is not going to stop just for us, we get to work and have the tent away and the car packed early, leaving breakfast until we get onto the road.  With the rain drizzling we head once more for the sand dunes. The sand is damp and looks solid on the surface, but it is not. Sometimes your ankle disappears below the sand when taking a step.

Elijah runs across the surface of the sand, beating three of his brothers to the tree-covered mound we set as a destination. He laughs and does a little victory dance. Joash almost drops to the ground in disappointment but we turn towards the hills where the footprints were discovered yesterday.

Ezekiel tries to get his bearings. Nathanael points to a small hill. Levi runs and looks at the ground. The three of them, all at once, tell me this is the spot where they found the footprints. "Dad. It was right here." Zeke searches, "Oh! There's some more!"

The intrigued all gather around him. Yes; in the sand are some dingo footprints. They must have been out in the night. We look all around to see if there are any about. They are an enigma, but at least we have found traces of them, unlike the cassowary.

The rain starts to fall, heavier than the occasional drop. I marshal the troops to head back, but the dunes look like far too much fun to leave in haste. So, as the rain falls, we jump from small hills like it is a long-jump competition, each taking a turn. We choose a flightpath, run, and then jump over the edge, falling and rolling in the damp sand.

By the time we get back to the car, sand is in our clothes, we are wet - water is dripping from our hair - and we need to clean ourselves up. Cleaning is difficult when all that is provided at the free-camp is a drop toilet. We do our best, knowing how dirty the car already is and then squeeze into the car for the next day of travel.

The Wind Howls

Dear Adventurous Reader,

Tonight we are camped on the edge of Australia's eastern coast and the wind is blowing very strongly from the east. Our tent is close to trees that provide some shelter from the wind that is trying to push our tent over. We have anchored the tent with some of the cliff's rocks to keep the pegs in the ground.

It is our first night of camping in wind. We have had crushing rain at Babinda and dusty air at Coober Pedy, but most other places we have camped have been without too many issues. Tonight however, we fight the wind.

It is a wonderful place. We drove down a sealed road off the main highway, passing through a small town. The boys watched for kangaroos along the roadside as the road got narrower, before we turned off onto a short unsealed road. The trees are not as tall by the beach, more bushes between grass and sand.

The campsites are sectioned off with big logs and long, thin grass. A wind break of bushes is alongside the red cliffs that stretch down to the deserted beach below. The sand is soft and yellow, running to the horizon up north with unseen towns along the coast. Southwards, however, you can see the lights of a small coastal town twinkling in the weathered dusk.

We found our campsite along the cliffs, behind the wind-break-bushes. The wind pushed the tent to a lean. We had to be quick to get the fly over and anchor in the ropes, using the cliff rocks which we brought up from the beach, as added weight. Still, the strength of the wind pushes everything about, shaking the tent.

During the night the waves crash against the cliffs, like a rolling thunder that never ceases. And drifting off to sleep, with the sound of the waves breaking, safe inside our tent, is relaxing.

The wind has stopped when we wake in the morning. The sound of crashing waves continues, yet now it is more peaceful. Zeke and Levi watch some kangaroos boxing, as the sun is still close to the horizon, choosing to wake at an early hour. The boys explore, climbing trees and finding shallow caves carved into the red rocks on the beach below. They continue to collect bottle caps and smooth rocks.

The sun is bright after breakfast. Encouraged by a good night sleep Jacqui takes the boys who are game enough to the beach for a swim. Strong waves knock them under the sea water and they rise with grins of their faces and start body surfing towards the shore.

Adeline runs into the water grabbing great handfuls of sand and carrying them back onto the shore. She too, is knocked over by a sudden, small wave and after a cuddle is happy to play again.

Camping has encouraged us to find hidden places, instead of taking two days to drive 1,600kms we are stopping and seeing more of Australia. Redcliff is one place we regret not staying at longer, though we will stop here next time with enough provisions to be there for a few days. I will hope that we are set up before the wind begins.

Deep, Dark Storm Blue

Blue. Deep, dark storm blue are the colour of the clouds as they roll into the hills. They pass by, cutting the top of the hills and threatening to rain heavier than the Titanic. They move ominously through the sky as we peer through the car windows wondering where we will camp tonight.

The road still lays before us. It is sad to leave a place like the Wet Tropics of Queensland. There trees stand tall, the water falls over rocks, that although they have been there since creation, seem purpose built to be used as water slides. Jacqui and the boys have loved every second playing in the warm, clear river water.

We stayed an extra day near Townsville to visit one last natural water slide. Trying to hold out a little longer before our drive south. It was the threat of rain that made us hurry to move and what has been keeping us going homeward - however reluctantly.

Rockhampton

The lure of discussing fast food drive us further than a free camping site and into a disappointing evening.

There was a free camp north of Rockhampton on the highway. We stopped for a break, hindsight would have told us to stay the entire night. But we continued the drive south to Rockhampton, opting for a fast food dinner as a morale booster for some tired boys. I will remember nothing good of that meal, I could not finish it because it was so terrible.

To add to the meal we had to find a place to stay for the night. At 20:00 hours. I would guess there is a kind of caravan park collusion going on, because each unpowered camp site was between 22-30 dollars and each additional person was $10, regardless of age. That is a very expensive camp site for us and being late it is not a great offer. We rung around but everywhere was the same cost.

We drove down to a suburb and despite the sign on the door saying "Ring, and we'll get you in." We were turned away, from a caravan park at 8:45 at night, "Sorry, but we're closed up for the night." He said and went back inside.

We drove back to Rockhampton and found a park that would take us. $80 a night for an unpowered, single tent site. I know we have a lot of children, but we are not going to use $80 worth of their equipment in the 12 hours we will be there. I am sure this will be the topic of another rant.

Rockhampton may be a nice town but I will not remember it as one. If I was to use a visual metaphor to describe the town it would be; a crudely drawn penis on the inside of an unclean toilet stall.

The Monsoon is Coming

The end of the dry season is a marvellous time to be in the north. The rivers aren't yet running fast, so there are plenty of places to swim and explore smooth rocks as watersides. The weather is a fantastic 30 degrees with nice cool breezes in the evening to cool the tent down. There are many sightings of cane trains pulled heavy loads along the road.

Heading south was a sad time. The mountains that lead up towards the tablelands slowly faded to hills that rolled closer towards the horizon. The trees became less dense and less green, slowly edging into the yellow, long grass that surrounds much of the Mackay to Rockhampton region.

Yet, it was the coming of the wet season that made us move south. For four days we travelled, watching the deep, dark blue clouds roll over the hills. Each day wishing a storm would not be where we decided to camp, we did not see rain until the small town of Miriam Vale where we stopped for lunch. The plan was to head toward the beach for a few nights, but the thunder and lightning made us travel inland, toward Toowoomba.

I think we need to be a little more prepared to stay in the rain. Our tent handles it fine but we have little space to handle a day in the rain, the last time we were caught we took the train to Kuranda.

So we pitched our tent below a car port and enjoyed the wonderful company of family we do not get to see very often. The road has taken us to many places and it lead us to relax with family, it was unexpected and enjoyable. It didn't rain in Toowoomba, even though we were protected below the car port.

People are the Most Colourful Thing on the Road

Dear Adventurous Reader,

We met The Germans again. As I write they are playing a board game with the older boys, in a camp kitchen, during some downtime in Cairns. The last time the boys hung out the The Germans was in Coober Pedy, playing Uno with the Miller boys.

It is funny the people you meet on the road. There is always a story to tell to someone who passes by. An introduction is an opportunity to tell your experience and to hear theirs.

"We come from the south. We have driven a long way. Yes that is our car. It overheated in the outback." I say, explaining our trip. We all have stories to share of the adventures we've had. We talk for a while, sharing places to stay or things that we've done.

I have spoken to many Germans in the northern parts of Australia.

We met Dmitiji and a few of his traveling companions in Mission Beach. He said Australia is "happy making". The sun, the beach and the friendly Australians make for an enjoyable experience. They are all looking for work so they can extend their visas. I have emailed with him since to see how he is going: they are changing their plans, as often happens on the road.

I chatted to three Germans down at Josephine Falls about the fear of traveling Australia, where every animal wants to kill you.

We met a nice Chezc couple in Townsville. He suggested a few spots to stay at as we head south. They are well travelled and look like they could go deep into the outback with their setup. We complained about how expensive Australia is, actually that is a great topic with all travellers and we talked of the wonderful places they had seen.

There was a couple from Bundaberg whom we met at Coober Pedy. They wrote a poem about Hannah's knee injury. We met them again in Alice Spring and shared a meal and they told stories with the Millers until the stars were out.

While we were waiting for the Millers in Babinda a bus arrived. The couple got out and slowly managed to park their bus amongst the trees. The kids from the bus popped their heads out and our boys disappeared and played Uno in the bus. We missed saying goodbye because of the rain, but we met them again just out of Townsville and we stopped another night there because they arrived.

We watched a fire burn across the Bruce Highway while near Townsville with a couple who have been on the road since the start of the year. Their three kids in a caravan had seen most of Australia's coast inside 12 month and they were wondering how much time they would need to see it all. Their kids had a ball with our boys, playing many games of tag on the playground. We even had them helping with our dishes so our boys could go play tag faster.

Simon, Daniel and Andrè whom we met in Coober Pedy, have become known as "The Germans". They started talking to the boys in the camp kitchen, and then along with the Miller Lads played a few games of Uno.

The following day we left and didn't make it to Uluru, we stopped in Marla instead. They went onwards to Darwin while we were tracking back down to Uluru. They met us again while we were unwinding in Cairns, stopping by to wait for friends who were traveling.

They boys played Spy Alley with them. I am unsure if it was the rules in English, or the rules spoken by three very excited Aussie lads that confused the German guys, but they managed to suffer the confusion and play a full game. I think Andrè came out the winner. I found out via email later that they enjoyed the game.

A Long Way

We have traveled a long way and it is the people with shared experience that really bring travel alive. Everyone we have met have their stories to tell, everyone we have met have shaped our travel in some way, a kind direction, time with the boys, playing or a lengthy chat. Ron assembled a set of leads to charge my laptop from the car battery, which was fantastic. The people we met have been so kind to us.

I am glad to have them in our tale because they have helped us in some way. The road seems to come alive if you take the time to have a chat with strangers, there is no guessing what will happen in the future, or if you will meet again in some strange or quiet place.

From Mission Beach to Bluewater

Dear Adventurous Reader,

The water is flowing gently. The ambient noise is now familiar, gentle breeze in the trees, cicadas chirping in the trees, a quick rush of a small lizard into the bushes and the slow moving water, easing gently over rocks.

The only noise that upsets the tranquility is the boys swimming in the water. Splashing and encouraging each other to go on further, past what is comfortable.

The butterflies float through the trees. The illusive cassowary is still unseen by any of us. The parks up here are marvellous and warm and the sweat drips from your brow as we make our way back to the start of the walk for some lunch.

Mission Beach

Jacqui had wanted to stay in Mission Beach, it had been something she did 20 years ago with her family and the picture she painted made it sound wonderful. So we stopped into the the same caravan park and stayed two nights.

The park was a park. Nothing fancy, except the swimming pool which is an attraction to the boys and Jacqui. The tent was barely put up and their bathers were on and they made a line straight to the pool.

I used the time to do some work.

That evening I chatted for a long time to a man from Holland. We talked about the cost of living in Australia, about work, about his travels around Australia - he said he saw a cassowary - and about anything in between.

An discussion on the road is fantastic to have, talking experiences and hardships and it feels like you have made a friend. In the end you part ways, each to your own adventures to see the sun rise and set in different places. You shared an experience and a long talk and all that remains is the memory.

The next night I talked to Dmitrij for a few hours. Again we talked travel, work, life in Germany. He was traveling with friends looking for work to extend their visa. Every day he valued being here, as it was without the stress of life in Germany. We exchanged email addresses and someday we may meet again.

We head south

We have stayed up this way for twelve days. Long slow travel is nice and relaxing. It has been kind to our little people who do not struggle to get into the car seat as much. It has been kind to the older boys who are beginnings to enjoy sitting next to each other again.

We drive down to a planned rest area. It was only 200 kilometers and it was an easy drive. Having driven more than 6,500kms doing 200 seems easy. Most of us rest in the car, some stay awake and play. We stopped for a slushie.

Bluewater. A nice name, a place with nice reviews on WikiCamps and a recommendation from a couple we chatted to at Babinda. It was an excellent place to stop, cold showers out the back of a toilet block, a large playground for the kids to run around on. No crocodiles, from what we could see - although they had been spotted here previously.

We met a family who have been on the road since the 2nd January. They are heading home, southwards. The boys play on the park, they are loud and run until everyone is tired which took a long time to happen. Adeline joins them on the playground, yelling if we took her away to wait for someone to watch her.

Meeting other families on the road has been a highlight for us all. New friends. New adventures. But it is extra special if they have kids too, our boys will run and play and yell and plot together. Everything they were doing with the Millers, but now with new friends.

Crystal Cascades

Dear Adventurous Reader,

While we were up in the Tropical North we visited a number of natural waterfalls with running rivers and deep, lush rainforest. One of the places we visited was Crystal Cascades, a beautiful rainforest area out of Cairns.

Finding the Others

There is a narrow, worn concrete staircase leading down to a swimming area. I could hear the boys while walking the path above, splashing, swimming and yelling. I walked down the steps, carefully watching my footing; although the steps were concrete they were not well spaced nor easy to descend.

They boys had found a few spots along the river where they could use the rocks as a natural water slide, following the rush of water down each level of well worn river rocks and beautiful water falls. Their yells of delight filled the air.

As I got to the bottom of the steps I was greeted with becoming calls to watch as they conquered the water falls. "Dad! Watch this!" Levi pushed off from the water fall, with his snorkeling mask over his eyes, sliding down the smooth rock into the crystal clear pool below.

The other boys followed.

The little boys snooped between rocks in search of beer caps, their new favourite treasure to find when we stop. There is no shortage of beer caps in Australia, due to the abundant beer, beer drinkers and responsibility to littering that those two things produce. Four X is the most frequent, one day they may find something more special.

I had been working. Sitting beside the running river. It was time to work, so I braved the march flies, found a lovely rock and did some work for the afternoon. It was pleasant to sit against the stones and tap on my keyboard. The sound was wonderful.

Time to Swim

The only problem with me working is that Jacqui doesn't get to swim. She spends her time juggling Adeline and the little lads as they potter between the rocks and brave to fast rushing water. My battery ran out, so did my work so by the time that I found everyone else, upstream, Jacqui was looking forward to a swim.

Toes in the water in a calm spot, Jacqui has been taking her time easing herself into the water and it is not very cold up here. Finally she pushed off and found a nice deep spot to go under. It wasn't long after that the boys urged her to follow them down the natural water slides.

This is one of the reasons why it has been difficult to drive away from the Tropical areas. Lush rainforest, rushing waters and waterfalls, rock slides and wonderful afternoons beneath the glorious green. It was difficult to leave and even more difficult to think about now we are south.

Green Island

Dear Adventurous Reader,

It would appear that I get travel sick. My weak inner ears fail at determining balance when on a boat, I even felt close to seeing some of my breakfast. I am not sure if I turned green, but a I felt it.

Everyone else traveled fine as we took a catamaran over the lumpy waves out to Green Island. A nice, peaceful island about an hour out of Cairns, by boat.

The sand is yellow and the water is a nice turquoise blue, with white peaks forming by the steady wind. There is a resort somewhere behind the rainforest that has grown from the island cay. This is the only island that is on the Great Barrier Reef that has a rainforest on it.

We walk the boardwalk through the trees to find a nice snorkeling location and let the fight begin to find who will be first to use the snorkels.

The boys swim in the warm sun, in the wonderful waters of the Great Barrier Reef. I sat in the shade, watching the Buff Banded Rail fight over the food scraps; they are a small ground-bird hell bent on taking food scraps and biscuits that may be in your hand. One leapt toward my face to try and absconder a biscuit I was snacking on.

Jacqui, Levi and Zeke went for a long dive, spotting fish and a little bit of grey coral. The rest of us took a walk along the boardwalk, past the crocodile house, through the forest.

Glass Bottomed

Below the waters, under the glass bottom boat the fish swam in great numbers. Flowing in and out between rocks and coral. Huge clams sat on the bottom of the sea bed. Small fish of electric blue, swam together with huge fish of black with yellow fins. They all had names that I cannot recollect.

Spaghetti coral waved as the wind blew above the surface. The small boat rocked back and forth and we all looked below, peering through the glass in the bottom of the boat. It was not as pretty as Vanuatu, but it was pretty amazing - like with the desert, it helps if you look long enough to see the creatures that make there homes where we do not.

The guides at the rear of the boat threw some food into the water, bringing fish and seagulls to the surface. Large tropical fish took the food in a frenzy which we couldn't see, the seagulls squawked and took what they could - we were not sure who got the most food out of the fighting animals.

Return Journey

A strong wind and rough waves made for a lumpy ride home. The boat rising and falling as the waves moved below, sometimes taking a leap from the water and crashing back down. I sat at the rear of the boat while Jacqui and the children got a tour of the wheel-house.

"Roughest seas we have had for a while." The skipper said.

They got back to the seats at the front of the catamaran in time for Adeline to vomit from the sea-sickness. They all joined a very unhappy father, who had tried to sleep, at the rear of the boat for the rest of the way home.

Sea sick, or not, we all enjoyed some expensive and all-to-greasy fish and chips for dinner on the Cairns waterfront. Soon the dark clouds rolled in and we drove back down to our free camp to retire and recuperate.

Come So Far, Seen So Much

Dear Adventurous Reader,

We have spent the past few days in Cairns not doing much at all. We put our feet back on the ground, found our bearings and let our hair down. In other words we: Stopped traveling from place to place so quickly, caught up with work and washing and went for a swim everyday.

Come So Far

Only after seeing the map did we realise how far we had traveled. Three weeks, as fast as the car would take us, up through the middle of Australia. 6,200kms of open road and adventure. We saw two states we haven't been in before, been as far west and north than any of us have been in our lives and driven a longer distance inside three weeks than we normally do in three months. Whirlwind.

Seen So Much

The road is open. The road is long. We are tired. We have seen so much but there is still more. We are a long way from home and the longer we stay here the more refreshed we are and the more enjoyable our travels should be.

So we stop. We swim. We refresh.