Sunday, 30th May
Some overnight drizzle cleared to a damp but clear morning as we packed up for the journey to Mildura. The birds at the St Arnaud Caravan Park for lovely this morning, with magpies, wattle birds, parrots, galahs and cockatoos all contributing to the dawn chorus.
The Sunraysia Highway was good as far as the width and surface were concerned, but there were patches that made me, and Cat, think of a bad crossing on the Spirit. The cattle and sheep country very quickly gave way to grain cropping as the land flattened out and the paddocks became BIG! Even the large 8 wheel tractors looked like “normal” tractors. We passed through Donald, pop. 1700, which probably contained more grain silos than houses – as did all the other small towns in the region. Some “towns” were nothing but grain silos and a railway siding.
We stopped at a small town with an historical marker (this was the first one on our side of the road that we could pull off into) that turned out to be a very modern war memorial. We were followed off the road by a local, who just seemed to want a chat and he was over the moon about the inch of rain that had fallen in the previous week – just right for the grain crops recently planted.
The sun disappeared behind some rather ominous clouds, which did turn to rain about Ouyen, our lunch stop. The rain had virtually stopped by the time we arrived at Mildura, driving past lots of vineyards on the way. Some vines were bare, but others were still magnificently coloured – yellow, burnt orange and the most gorgeous deep red!
The Big 4 Mildura Deakin Caravan Park is a tourist park, quite a few sites are occupied, and is rather pretty with the vast majority of trees being claret and golden ash. This does have a down side – lots of yellow and red leaves dropping rapidly. The amenities block is very clean but could probably do with a bit of refurbishment – the bright purple floor tiles are a bit of a giveaway as far as age is concerned!!!
We had decided to visit the Mungo National Park tomorrow, having already done the winery and paddle steamer things, but when we visited the Information Centre to get directions, were disappointed to be told that all roads to the national park were closed because of the rain. It will have to wait for another visit.
Some overnight drizzle cleared to a damp but clear morning as we packed up for the journey to Mildura. The birds at the St Arnaud Caravan Park for lovely this morning, with magpies, wattle birds, parrots, galahs and cockatoos all contributing to the dawn chorus.
The Sunraysia Highway was good as far as the width and surface were concerned, but there were patches that made me, and Cat, think of a bad crossing on the Spirit. The cattle and sheep country very quickly gave way to grain cropping as the land flattened out and the paddocks became BIG! Even the large 8 wheel tractors looked like “normal” tractors. We passed through Donald, pop. 1700, which probably contained more grain silos than houses – as did all the other small towns in the region. Some “towns” were nothing but grain silos and a railway siding.
We stopped at a small town with an historical marker (this was the first one on our side of the road that we could pull off into) that turned out to be a very modern war memorial. We were followed off the road by a local, who just seemed to want a chat and he was over the moon about the inch of rain that had fallen in the previous week – just right for the grain crops recently planted.
The sun disappeared behind some rather ominous clouds, which did turn to rain about Ouyen, our lunch stop. The rain had virtually stopped by the time we arrived at Mildura, driving past lots of vineyards on the way. Some vines were bare, but others were still magnificently coloured – yellow, burnt orange and the most gorgeous deep red!
The Big 4 Mildura Deakin Caravan Park is a tourist park, quite a few sites are occupied, and is rather pretty with the vast majority of trees being claret and golden ash. This does have a down side – lots of yellow and red leaves dropping rapidly. The amenities block is very clean but could probably do with a bit of refurbishment – the bright purple floor tiles are a bit of a giveaway as far as age is concerned!!!
We had decided to visit the Mungo National Park tomorrow, having already done the winery and paddle steamer things, but when we visited the Information Centre to get directions, were disappointed to be told that all roads to the national park were closed because of the rain. It will have to wait for another visit.
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