Fortunately the heat had dissipated throughout the night and it had even come over a little chilly – cool enough to pull the blankets over ourselves, anyway. Yet the cool night was no precursor to the day ahead and by 8:30, once we were set to travel again, we were back on the road and grateful for the air-conditioned comfort.
The only stop we made before our final destination was the NT/QLD border. Apart from the road signs that delineated the state mark there was little else to gauge that we had left Queensland and were now in the Land of the Never Never. However, it wasn’t long before the landscape changed as the trees fell away to reveal dusty, dry plains and the speed limit increased to a maximum 130kph – not that that was going to affect us any.
About 1pm we arrived at Barclay Homestead, a gorgeous oasis in the desert. It offered generous sites with big shady trees and a refreshing pool that beckoned us to test the waters. So, once unpacked we were in within a second, only beaten by four Army truck drivers who were hauling equipment from Townsville to Darwin.
The rest of the day was quite relaxing with occasional dips sprinkled into the afternoon and generally basking in the shade as we kept out of the glaring sun. We even met another traveller, Richard, who had taken a week off to drive a $1-per-day camper from Darwin to Cairns. Happy Hour was spent sharing travel stories with him as we exchanged sights to see and road conditions that lurked ahead of our individual trips.
Hi Deb
If you are going to go through Cue get a picture of you all standing on the Corner of Stewart and Robinson Sts. Also if you go down Dowley St past the Masonic Hall you should come across a tin house with a tin fence out the front. That is where I lived with my family as a kid. Take a pic. As you pass through Tuckanurra you will see a sign to Kar Bar station where Stewart and I were lost.
Be careful of the road trains.
Love Dad.
I’m still following you all the way round and loving it by proxy…
Have never, ever seen a view like that with just nothing all the way to the horizon. Amazing. Makes Europe feel as if we should all be suffering from claustrophobia.
have fun.
Sue
Cheers Sue. It’s great to have to reading along. We’ve met so many wonderful European tourists along our trek and learning about your part of the world, and the comparisons with ours, has been truly insightful and enthralling.
The NT (Northern Territory) is amazingly diverse in its landscape and it was never dull. We truly loved it.
Hi family, I re-read your latest blog, and try to imagine how you all are. I lived in dusty country along with the heat And cold, nevertheless I love tthis country. Must be honest though there were times that I longed for our beautiful south west. What stories you will have to tell. Looking forward to see you all again.
Love Gran.
Hi Gran, it’s so nice that you are following our journey. Yes we are hot, but we are enjoying the chance to swim everywhere. I guess it’s not so bad when you don’t have to work! We think we may actually head home down the inland road so will pass through Cue.
Hope you have a lovely Christmas.
Love Deb