Miles

30 June 2018 - Miles

Miles parkrun was how we started the day – a beautiful tree lined course along Dogwood Creek.  www.parkrun.com.au/miles/

After breakfast, we headed to Miles Historical Village and Museum.  This was a fantastic set up with all the buildings a town would have complete with all the internal fittings.  These gave a real insight into life in a previous era.

www.ourwesterndowns.com/miles-historical-village-museum
   

The late afternoon was spent exploring Possum Park – twenty underground bunkers for WW2 explosives.  These were very well disguised in the hillside and varied in width from twenty to sixty feet.  Some of these have been converted to accommodation and are quite special. There is also a TAA Viscount undergoing restoration and conversion to accommodation.  An old troop train has been setup as a library, television and games room.  After dinner, we once again enjoyed a campfire with fellow campers and the hosts.  
www.possumpark.com.au

Surat, Glenmorgan and Myall Park Botanic Gardens

29 June 2018 - Surat, Glenmorgan and Myall Park Botanic Gardens

This morning we were surrounded by very thick fog – this lasted until almost 11am when we suddenly popped out from underneath it.  Our first destination was south to Surat, to the Cobb and Co Changing Station.  This was the last stop of the last Cobb and Co coach run.  The local council has converted this into a fantastic historical display touching on most aspects of life, a combination of information boards and objects on display.  My favourites were the Cobb and Co store and the wool press.  

Heading East, we reached Glenmorgan.  We pottered around Monty’s Garage Vintage Car Museum.  This had an amazing collection of old cars, some of which have been restored; as well as all sorts of parts, original workshop and old-style petrol pumps.
http://www.ourwesterndowns.com/montys-garage-vintage-car-museum

Myall Park Botanic Garden was our picnic spot for lunch. We spent a couple of hours exploring the gardens which house a great variety of native plants. This is where the “Robyn Gordon” and “Sandra Gordon” grevilleas first appeared.  We were able to see the parent plant types as well as the original “Robyn Gordon” plant, from which all others have been propagated.
https://myallparkbotanicgarden.com/

Then onwards north to Miles, and 20km beyond to Possum Park, where we are camped for the next two nights.
www.possumpark.com.au

Mitchell and Surrounds

28 June 2018 - Mitchell and Surrounds

Mitchell was our destination today.  We spent more than an hour in and out of the Great Artesian Spa.  There were two pools, one at 40 degrees Celsius and one at 19 degrees Celsius.  It was recommended that we stay in the hot pool no more than fifteen minutes at a time before getting out and cooling off or switching to the cooler pool.  I love the way my body feels after soaking in Artesian water.  

https://www.greatartesianspa.com/

Our picnic spot for lunch was Major Mitchell’s campsite on the Maranoa River north of Mitchell.  This was a quiet beautiful spot.  Hayden and I spent some time in the creek bed looking at interesting rocks.  I found a piece of petrified wood, an unusually layered rock and a rock that had been used for tooling.  

We also headed south from Mitchell toward St George, to the Kenniff monuments; the traditional stone and plaque as well as an artist’s interpretation of the Kenniff brothers’ capture.  Apparently, their capture marked the end of the Australian bushranger era.  

On our journey between Roma and Mitchell we saw a drover’s camp and a large mob of Black Angus cattle (hundreds) being walked toward Mitchell using a combination of horseback and quad bikes.  This evening we watched clay target shooting practice at the gun club.

more of Roma

27 June 2018 - more of Roma

A rainy day, so a lazy morning.  This afternoon we visited Maranoa Council Chambers to see the 3D clay mural.  This was mounted vertically on the wall, for some reason I had expected it to be horizontal.  There was an accompanying commentary and spotlighting to explain the various features.  Across the road was the RSL with some vehicles and guns on display.  Next stop was Roma’s biggest bottle tree.  It has a huge circumference, approximately 6 men’s arm spans, and it is still growing! The last tourist spot for today was the Lenroy Slab Hut – three bedrooms for two adults and their nine children.  In the late afternoon we saw drovers on horseback and working dogs moving a mob of cattle through the paddocks beyond the gun club.

Exploring Roma

 26 June 2018 - Exploring Roma

Roma Saleyards were our first destination today.  The saleyards are owned by the Maranoa Council and they provide free tours for the public.  The guide (prime Geoff, as opposed to the leaner store Geoff) provided a lot of information about the beef industry and auction process.  Cattle are auctioned a pen at a time, and a price determined per kilogram live weight, generally $2-3/kg.  The cattle are then herded through the gated yards to be weighed and the final price determined.  Most cattle are bid on by agents on instruction and hence they are experts at judging weight by eye.  I was surprised to learn that it was possible to bid subject to certain beasts being removed from the lot.  We spent two hours at the saleyards and Hayden would have happily stayed much longer.

http://www.mymaranoa.org.au/business/saleyards

St Paul’s Anglican Church was out next stop – it was beautiful!  The ceiling was all wood and the walls built of locally made grey brick.  There is an impressive pipe organ, though unfortunately the church no longer has an organist to play it.  The church has fifty beautifully decorated windows, eleven leadlight (made of panels of tinted glass) and thirty-nine stained glass (painted glass joined with lead; these can have a lot more detail such as proper faces). 
https://www.churchesaustralia.org/list-of-churches/denominations/anglican/directory/2618-st-pauland%2339%3Bs-anglican-church

This afternoon we drove around the Hospital Hill Heritage Walk, which showed the first sites in Australia where an indication of oil and gas reserves were found.  In the evening we attended the Big Rig Oil and Gas Night Show – this was a short film, cleverly integrated with lighting of stage props: tents, campfires and rigs.
https://www.australias.guide/qld/attraction-tour/the-big-rig-night-show/

Jimbour Station and Kogan Power Station

25 June 2018 - Jimbour Station and Kogan Power Station 

This morning I spent photographing Oakey Creek and experimenting with a meal in the slow cooker. 

 We then drove to Jimbour Station and explored their truly beautiful gardens. 
https://jimbour.com/

The next stop was Kogan Power Station viewing platform – which wasn’t a platform at all, but a spot outside the fence where we able to look at the outside of the coal power plant.  Then on to Roma.  We are staying at the Roma Gun Club.  I really liked this spot – friendly, clean bathrooms and peaceful spot out of town but close enough to be convenient.
https://www.romagunclub.com.au/caravan--camping