Somewhere to Rochester – “Poo Jack”

Day 4 Wednesday 20/11/2024 Moora to Ayson’s Reserve, Elmore, 9 – hot

We have a slow start as we aren’t in any hurry. It’s calm here and we are camped in a sea of yellow grass.

Barely a kilometre down the road and Elle pulls up remembering that she hasn’t turned the gas off. VeeWee spots our kitchen window open and her own blind still closed. There we are on the side of the road, all dashing and flapping. One wonders how we ever manage to make it around this fair continent.

It’s a short drive across to Ayson’s Reserve on the Campaspe River at Elmore. This park used to be the site of the Elmore Field Days (a seriously big deal in the farming game) until the event became too big and demanded updated facilities and an airstrip. Ayson’s is now a pleasant riverside stopover. The camp is reasonably busy when we arrive and we drive in circles for quite some time before settling on a quiet riverfront spot. Once more, we really do need to be told by ‘some grumpy old bugger in authority’ where to camp. It would save the dithering.

Although the weather is warming rapidly there is a cool breeze in the shade. The galahs and corellas provide constant entertainment, dipping and wheeling over the river and chattering loudly. But that’s not the only entertainment. A woman drops by to say g’day. She carries an electric cattle prod and, on her shoulder sits a cockatoo. She’s had ‘Jack’ for 16 years, since he was a chick. When dogs are around Jack barks and his Mum keeps them at bay with a sharp zap of the cattle prod. Jack poops on command and by the look of the back of her T shirt, without command as well. Off they go with a wing flap and a cheery “Bye” from Jack.