MEMBER TRIP REPORT
The 4 of us had our final night out in Mt Isa as Noel was due to fly home in the morning and the 3 of us continued our trip to Cairns . It was sad to say good bye and we all vowed that we would meet up in Melbourne again . Sadly this has not happened to date due to the extended lockdown in Melbourne . Such is life ! Noel did get home OK . Still it ’ s very frustrating especially as we all have things we want to do .
Two days later we were leaving Mt Isa and heading towards Karumba on the Gulf . After one night at the Burke and Wills roadhouse we had just started driving and 3 warning lights flashed on our car , including one mentioning an engine problem . Bruce and I arranged to have our car assessed at Mt Isa that afternoon and Alan would wait at the roadhouse until we knew what was happening ( This was the second visit to a Mitsubishi dealer and by this stage our car was a bit unpopular ). We were lucky to have a temporary fix done that afternoon and after a mad drive to Cloncurry for the night . We were able to meet Alan at the roadhouse for a late morning start . Later that day we visited the Burke and Wills camp 119 ( the last camp they made before heading back to Innaminka and the remainder of their party , which they sadly never saw again ) and then onto Karumba in the Gulf . Great to watch a tropical sunset from the pub over a feed of Barramundi and contemplate our early explorers in this unique environment .
Two days later we were leaving Karumba and were back on the Savanna way heading to Mt Surprise . We stayed at the Bedrock Caravan Park which was a real Oasis . They had a singer the first night and the owner picked up the guitar on the second night and we had a sing along around the campfire . We also did an amazing tour of the Undara Lava tubes with a very informative guide walking through several sections . Really spectacular and helped to understand some of the geology of this ancient land .
From Mt surprise we headed to Chillagoe , passing through the interesting old town of Irvinebank where we met an interesting local character who showed us his collection of artifacts and restored Fords dating back to the Model A Ford ( and many ex-army vehicles that he had found in the bush nearby ). Chillagoe is a small town with a big history of tin mining as well as one local who had a very impressive old car collection . We were mainly there to further explore the limestone caves and managed to go on 2 tours and see the spectacular formations as well as get some relief from the heat . Excellent !
Our last night in Chillagoe was celebrated with dinner at the pub with Alan as we reminisced and said good – bye . Our trip was complete , not in the way we had expected but with many adventures . Alan was heading to Cairns and we were heading to Cooktown before seeing the Mitsubishi dealer in Cairns where we were booked for a service and also to try and finally fix our handbrake fault .