Day 82 Tuesday Aug 26^th 2014 Carnarvon Gorge to Moura

Yet another perfect morning and time to pack up and leave this beautiful place. Oh dear, we’ve got pork fat splatters over the window, yuk.

We stop at Rolleston for fuel and a dump point as these weren’t available at the Gorge. We find that our bathroom door has jumped out of the lock and off the slider as it also did on the way into the Gorge. The medicine drawer being more artistic, has managed to throw its contents across the bathroom floor.

We turn south east onto the Dawson Highway it is a much narrower road and we’re intrigued by the sign “Keep to the centre unless passing.” It is about 26 degrees and a cloudless sky.

The Dawson River Rest Area near Moura (pronounced Mowra) is spacious and beside the wide river. The river view spots are taken but we’re quite happy under shady trees. The road is so quiet as to not be a problem. There are about thirty vans here and the facilities are good, it is a donation site. The river is home to pelicans and bum breathing turtles. Yep, the sign says that they have gill like organs in their bums allowing them to stay under water for weeks. The things you learn out here.

Gerri, the lady next to us is practising her new ukulele, so we three girls pull our chairs together and have a bit of a jam session. Another camper drops by for a chat and we learn that although he’s from Gladstone on the coast, he is the owner of the Burke and Wills Roadhouse (between Normanton and Cloncurry). We tell him that his sausage rolls are pretty good.

Towing Kms: 251Kms

2021 Note: ‘Pork fat splatters’, caravanning life is very different to home life. When we are on a powered site we cook on a hotplate that sits on a fold out table under the bedroom window. Due to the ingenious use of space in caravans this is sometimes not ideal and other times really handy. Handy? Well, because of these unusual layouts some folks can actually watch TV from the toilet. Now that’s cool.