YEEHA!!

Mark came home yesterday arvo & said that his working days here have stopped for now!........Oh boy i am happy, lets go!!
He then informs me though, that there may be more work in the future.......Bugger the work we need to get up the top now!
As i haven't been able to find any, my days here are getting very boring, there is only so much.........Walking, shopping, talking, blogging, cleaning & scouring jobs one can do!
So now it is time to really plan the big one!!!!!!
Our neighbour, who is a real character! A single 50 odd year old woman, who has worked on the mines all her life & been everywhere & done everything!....Great to talk too very funny & down to earth, when she left mark said... "She is a different bit of work"
We liked her!!!
She told us not to go up the telegraph track unless we can afford to buy a new truck after it!.......What the??

Hahaha! what a funny photo she looks like she has been squashed already!

I don't think so it took us too much to get this one right!
Why i asked?...Because of the roughness of it & the river crossings are deep & unpredictable! I piped up....And not to mention, Crocodiles I wont be the one to test those waters!
Anyway after she left i said to Husband...We really don't need to be hero's the development road will be just as much fun & at least we know we wont loose our car or our LIVES!!!


Anyway the boss is coming around today for morning tea, so we will see what he has to say before i get too excited!
I say Sunday sees us on our merry way?
To be continued.........

Living Life in a 16ft Caravan!

So far so good, we have had very few problems with the van & it has held up pretty well, especially on some of Qld's crappy roads!!.....The Bruce Hwy, parts of that are a joke & it's more like a skinny old track!!!
The worst problem we have found so far was the bed! 
We decided to use our self inflating camping mattress on it, Mark is one for getting 2 or better still 3 uses from 1 item!

We put a great big fat egg shell mattress on it also, for added comfort!......Not!!

The first week of our trip & this was just not working, we tossed & turned & found it really uncomfortable, & both our backs aching! So we decided to buy a lambswool mattress cover to go over it all. 
Now 3 months later & i can say it is much better than it was, but i am still not 100% happy with it, Mark thinks it is good & his back is better!

Another problem with the bed, it is up against the wall, which i understand it couldn't of gone anywhere else, as we have limited space!

Well guess who has the wall side!....Yep that's right!
So I had no alternative but to change the rules slightly!.......Toilet time in the middle of the night, & when Husband gets out i roll over & get off the wall & that's where i stay!....Oooh yeah, i can stretch out a bit now at least until its my turn to get out!

Mark accepted this adjustment pretty well, i think because he prefers peace, than listening to me whinge!!!.....Good Boy!

Husband Fixing the Abode!!

One great part of caravaning life, would have to be the housework!

I would say it would probably take me at the most 3/4 hour to completely clean the van!

At home, i always had a spare room full of crap, in the caravan there is definitely no room for crap & i have found if you don't have everything in its place it just doesn't work & chucking clutter is the only way!

Our fridge too i love it, you wouldn't believe how much food it holds, & it is so easy to get too! We have had a few probs with it, but touch wood it is purring along & keeping everything cold beautifully!

As for room to move, well i am good at ducking out of the road quickly!
Mark usually gets up before me & he makes the cuppas, so i keep out of his road at this time!!!
Usually we work well together in our compromised living environment!
If we do have an argument or disagreement, there is no holding grudges or staying cranky with one another, you have to build a bridge & get over it quickly!! 

Most of our time we spend outside, especially as this weather is just delightfully warm, at the moment!

We have an awning & a shade screen which Mark bought from two lesbians on the cheap second hand!

It is great & the screen is fantastic for privacy, we decided not to buy an annex, as we can use our oz tent, which can be modified to hook on to the awning,

(Therefore.... Marks 2 uses for 1 item trick comes into play again!)
The only thing we do need though is an end wall for it, to stop the wind, it can be placed on either end, i suggested a clear plastic wall, that way we wont loose our view!!

We are also going to buy a tele to hook on the outside of the van!
Handy to watch....Football, Cricket, Car Racing, Fishing Shows, Caravaning Shows, 4x4 Shows &....... Hang on, maybe this is not such a good idea after all!!




This is the best thing we have ever done & everyday is a new experience!
If we don't like our neighbour hood we just hook her up & move on to greener pastures!

             Not for a minute do I take this for granted & every day I give thanks for this

                                                      Beautiful Life We Are Living!

                                                

Work & Play!

Well here we are again, & it's time to work!

Since leaving Yeppoon,

We are having trouble picking up jobs at the same time, well actually we havent even worked
 since leaving there!!!
 In Bowen i could of started straight away in the nursing home around the corner form our park!

Mark had trouble finding anything!

Now we are in townsville, i cant find anything!

 Mark started with a builder in town & looks set for a couple of months work, which will then see us 

heading to this

 Long Awaited & Highly Anticipated 

Top End of Australia!!

I have been everywhere here & i cant believe they are not in need of aged care nurses!!!

 I also have applied in the corner shops around the area.

I called into Pips home made pie shop up the road the other day & asked if she had any positions going, she said no sorry, i replied that's okay & started walking out the door, she called me back & said oh wait i may have something come back on Friday...........So first thing Friday morn i go back up to Pip's place,
 & it turns out pips daughter is in town & she is going to be doing the job!

 Now that is the Pips!!

Mark just rang me before & said that a builder back in Bowen wants him to start work!
He is a week too late!

We are having a bit of trouble getting this timing right!
Oh well!

 No dramas it will all fall into place!!

That i am sure of!!!!

Meanwhile i am just enjoying this great spot here,

Townsville is very different!

I caught the bus yesterday to go into town & do some shopping, i got into the city mall & then had to get on another bus out to the shopping centre as there is very limited shopping in the city, it's more businesses!

Lots of Indigenous people up here also & cops, oh my god they are everywhere & just
cruise around the streets.

They even cruise through our caravan park!

I love this park the amenities are brand new, & the site we have is huge, pretty & private, 

We are not on top of anyone else,which is usually the case in caravan parks!

We are lucky!

Townsville is on level 1 water restrictions which means you can only use a sprinkler on odd days!

Far out i said to mark i cant remember the last time we used a sprinkler back home, would have to be
years ago! We couldnt even use a hose, our dams are that dry!!

People walk around with cozzies on & towels over their shoulders either heading up to the pool for a swim, or maybe across the road to the beach for a dip!

Unbelievable climate, when i use to think winter, i would imagine it was freezing everywhere!

Well not here in Nth Queensland!

They certainly don't need daylight saving up here either!

It doesn't get dark till after 6pm in the evening!

Everyday, when the weather forecast comes on, i think it is a recorded message as the guy says.....
Today's forecast is going to be 27 degrees.

It is 27 degrees everyday!

Well as it is now the weekend,

I feel Husband should get the rods rigged up & we head off tomorrow to do some
Serious Fishing!!!
Enough of this mucking around pretend stuff!
I am going to have to take control & hall in the biggies,

 cause i think husband has lost his knack!

I have yet to see him catch a
Big Fish!

 I have only heard about the ones that got away!

It's time for a challenge Husband.........Who will be the first to get something over 60cm ????

Shazza is going for the Barra!

Step back in time to unspoilt.......Beautiful Bowen!

Bowen is also Famous for its

                                                Many Murals Around Town!

Bowen is Qld's oldest town & its main crops are tomatoes, followed by capsicums & it's famous mangoes!  When Bowen was first settled the farmers planted orange orchards, but in the early years they were wiped out by a cyclone, so as to keep their losses to a minimum, they needed to plant quick growing crops & tomatoes & capsicums were the perfect choice!

The elements set the the scene for Bowen's future!

                     

Tomato Pickers

                                        

Bowen was certainly worth the week we spent there, we did plan on a longer stay, but the work front was not happening, even though i had the chance of starting in a nursing home around the corner. The building trade was struggling, the story was the same from builders we spoke too, plenty of work coming up but nothing at the present!! Crop picking was also very slow!

Friends of ours we met there, who were also travelling oz, got jobs capsicum picking & forklift driving, they supplied us with heaps of capsicums!
I think i will stuff some!.... Now that sounds good!

In that week, Bowen made news headlines!
Some vengeful idiot, decided to put pesticide in to the watering system of one of the biggest tomato seedling growers in Australia, therefore killing something like about 11 million seedlings! Apparently it is not the first time! The price of tomatoes is set to rise now in the near future, because of the shortage!
All thanks a total wanker!......... Poor Farmers!!
The other news was 5 Asians went for a walk around Coral Bay & 1 went missing the search rescue helicopter hovered around all that arvo & then back up again at first light......We heard on the radio the next day that they had found his body floating in the ocean!

Coral Bay is a picture! So much coral lining the beach, even if it is dead & not that colourful.

To have Great Barrier Reef Coral under foot!........Was very special to us & a sight to beheld!!

                                                     

Coral Bay is also a nudie beach!..........Now that would be uncomfortable!

Now to the famous Mango....... Trees here, i have never seen so many in all my life, they are incredible & already laden with perfect shaped baby mangoes!!!

To me there is no other mango like a

Bowen Mango!

Every Christmas dad would buy me my very own box of Bowen Mangoes as an extra special prezzie!!!

That i will never forget & also the way we peeled them back in the old days, there was none of this cutting in to fancy chunks & staying clean, we just ripped the skin off & got stuck into that unforgettable yummy tasting flesh!.........Wow what a mess!

Time now to say goodbye to Beautiful Bowen & to our new friends Steve & Lyn!

Townsville here we come, let's hope this time we can both pick up some work in unison?......Fingers Crossed!

 

P.s Ok this is a woman thing, but i must add it!

Shopping in Bowen.......Or should i say lack of it!  

Well it's not happening there yet, the shops shut at 12 midday on Saturday & they don't re-open till Monday morning, & the variety is just not up to my westfield standards!
That is not a bad thing, it is just not my thing!!
I much preferred Airlee for my shopping day out fix!!

Cheers till next time!

   

NEWSFLASH!....................Craig Lowndes is staying in our caravan park in townsville, ready for the V8 supercars this weekend!!..........What time is happy hour Craigy?

Finding Our Feet!

We have been on the road for just over 2 months now!

Our Adventures have not really begun yet!!

We cant wait to get up to the tip & then head inland & outback, that's when

i think all the action will start!

We have really just been taking it easy, as we are still finding our feet!!

We are so new to this lifestyle, & so far this has been more like one big on going

Tropical Paradise Holiday!!

Over looking the

Great Barrier Reef!

The more people we talk too, the similar the stories are!

We know one thing we need to get to the tip of Aus before the wet season starts in

November, so better still would be September!

Apparently the more people on the Telegraph Track (that's the 4x4 track to the tip)

the more it gets chewed up & more difficult to pass!

Yesterday we were talking to this couple we met here in the park & they have been there before & were telling us some of the water crossings are pretty deep & need to be walked.

We do that anyway, far out, we even walk through & test

The Piddly Puddly Ones!

Mark & I were discussing our trek up there the other week & I said, so when we

go up the telegraph track, he corrected me & said the experts ( that is the caravan magazine mob ) say it is better to come back down the telegraph track & go up

via the Development Road (which is a graded dirt road )

Well I said i would rather go up the bommy one & back down the good one......My theory is because you are excited to get to the top & it's all fun & adventures!!!

On the way back you just want to get to your next destination comfortably!!

Well that's the way i was thinking!

Well now it appears that the people we have spoken to do it my way!

Whacko Sharon, you are right.......Wow this is new!!!!

Even if their theory is not the same as mine........Who cares!

One bloke we were talking to said that the steep hill climbs are easier to go up than to come down!...Sounds logical!

Well now, that brings me to the sleeping arrangements once up there??

We have our oz tent but, that is not croc proof, so i think i will be sleeping in

the back of the truck????

Husband says dont be so ridiculous!

I say........ We will see about that!

Well, with so much money going out & none coming in!

It is time to pick up some more work & then hopefully, very soon we will be off to the tip!!!

That is our Plans & We are Excited!

Bye for Now......Enjoy!