Camooweal

Wednesday 23rd July –  Driving from Mount Isa to Camooweal we were about 90km along the road, about half way when we saw up ahead what looked like some vehicles stopped in the road ahead, we slowed down and were horrified to find a 4WD and caravan overturned at the side of the road.

 

We stopped and jumped out, it had clearly only just happened as one lady was on the phone to the police and there were 2 guys on top of the car trying to get the passenger out.  They were an older couple and from what we could see they weren’t hurt but they were clearly shaken!  They were travelling with another couple in a caravan parked just ahead who were looking after them.

 

We spoke to a European couple in a 4WD, they had been next to us at Mount Isa, seems the couple in the caravan  were overtaking them, they were really close to their vehicle as they overtook,  then the caravan started to sway and they braked to pull back just as the car and caravan flipped.  It would have been a really scary thing to witness and be involved in, they were both a bit shaken too!

We didn’t stay once we knew everything was in control and nobody was hurt, it shook us up a bit and made you realise how easily something like this can happen.

We weren’t far down the road before a warning light came up on the car, fuel filter required maintenance!  We’d only just had it serviced in Mount Isa!  Grrr…. We carried on to Camooweal without trouble, not quite sure where we are going to get it looked at and there is NO WAY I am going back to Mount Isa!

We rolled in to Camooweal, it’a a tiny little town, just the 1 street really, there is a caravan park but we’d heard the free camp down by the billabong is really nice, so we drove on to find that.  Wow what a top spot!  We parked up right by the Billabong, perfect!

Our free camp beside the Billabong in Camooweal – fab spot!

 

One of our favourite camping spots!

 

As it had been a fairly short drive today we were parked up by lunchtime and had the afternoon free to explore Camooweal.  There is a Drovers  Camp in Camooweal which is a kind of museum run by volunteers, mostly old Drovers so we got out the bikes and cycled there.  We were just in time for a guided tour by a lovely old fella.  He explained what driving was all about and showed us lots of old treasures and artefacts.  It was an interesting hour, we all learnt a bit and have a new admiration for the drovers, it was clearly a tough life.

This old rodeo bull, now stuffed is in the Drovers Camp Museum and was used for many years at Rodeo’s with this backdrop to take people’s photo’s.

 

Before heading back to the van we stopped in for a beer at the Camooweal pub and an ice-cream for Maddy.

View out the caravan door

 

These Pelicans were fascinating, they moved along the Billabong in a group of about 20 and every 20 seconds or so they all tipped their heads in to the water at the same time to catch some fish, they all bobbed back up together then paddled on a bit further!  I have never seen that before!

 

 This is a Rainbow Bee Eater! – Lots of beautiful birds here, twitchers paradise!

 

Great spot for a fire too, we collected a few twigs and lit a very small fire, just enough to toast a few marshmallows.

Camooweal Billabong

 

Thursday 24th July – While Drew packed up the van I took 45 minutes out to go for a walk along the Billabong before we left.  It’s such a lovely spot here, you could easily stay here for a few nights and just chill out and relax.  It was just a 1 night stop for us though as today we are heading to Tennant Creek to see if we can get this warning light on the car looked at.