Thursday 15 August 2013 – Coonabarabran to Goondiwindi

Second time around – I’ve just written up today and deleted it, can’t find it or recover it, so here I go again.

Today has been a beautiful day with clear blue sky, though the breeze was a bit chilly if you happened to be out in it.  But if, like us, you were mostly behind glass driving, then it got quite warm.  We woke this morning at about 7am, and had the van packed down, hooked on to the car, had checked that the lights, etc were all working – and I was just about to step into the car at about 9am when it suddenly hit me – I was still wearing my slippers (yes – Moe moccas!).  I told Grant, unlocked the van and started to scramble into it, thinking to myself where would I start to unpack.  Grant had obviously realised, too, that to get my shoes out (safely stowed in a cupboard beneath the couch) I would first of all take out all the stuff that sits on the floor of the van while we are driving – outside table, 2 chairs, large plastic garbag full of folded awning, ground mat, fishing rods, plastic stool, then move the microwave which sits on the floor in front of the ‘shoe cupboard’ – and then of course put it all back.  So he said to me ‘Just wear your slippers’.  So I reluctantly got into the car, deciding that I wouldn’t get out of the car where I could be seen.

First town we came to today was Narrabri, after driving through the Pilliga Forest – commonly known as the Pilliga scrub – which covers an area of around 3000 square km.  Obviously we didn’t drive through all of it, but what we did see is pretty dense, medium height and – yes – scrubby!  We stopped at Narrabri and gave the car her daily drink before moving on to Moree.  This leg of the day showed quite a different scene – again extensive wheat and canola crops, stretching into the distance.  And each little township you pass through has one obvious thing in common – huge silos for storing the wheat and canola seed.

Moree itself is quite a good sized town – its major industry being cotton growing, and its big tourist attraction being the fact that it is in an area known for its artesian water – and the resultant warm healing spas which seem to have popped up throughout the town.  We didn’t buy a cotton shirt, nor did we have a warm natural spa – the slippers would have had to be revealed!

One of the features of today’s drive was the lengthy stops we had on two or three occasions where roadworks were underway.  There were stop lights, enabling traffic from only one direction through at a time, and the affected lengths of each stop were about a kilometre, so as the majority of the traffic is either road trains or cars with caravans, the stops were quite lengthy.

A few minutes out of Moree we stopped at a roadside rest spot for lunch after which I took over the driving.  I managed to avoid any hold ups for roadworks, but had hazards of my own – a big herd of cattle grazing on each side of the road over a distance of about a kilometre.  They were just casually wandering on the gravel verge of the road then heading across as the mood took them.  At first I stopped to wait, then realised that we could sit there all night if I did that, so I crept along at snail’s pace, and Grant wound his window down and politely asked them to please get off the road!

And I drove all the way to Queensland (which from there was about 70km), arriving at Goondiwindi at about 2.30 this arvo. 

After setting up the van, a bit of lunch, and a change of footwear, we went off to explore the town.  Goondiwindi is very neat and clean, lovely garden beds and some nice old buildings.  But of course one of the major attractions is the statue erected in recognition of Goondiwindi’s most famous citizen – Gunsynd.  It is quite impressive and sits in a nice park on the banks of the Mcintyre River which forms part of the border between Qld and NSW.  

And right nearby is the historic Border Bridge crossing the river.  The bridge was built in 1914 and following that time was a major hub for the freight which crossed the border.  

And as Customs tax had to be paid on the freight, the Customs House was situated adjacent to the bridge.  The Customs House itself was built much earlier than the bridge, probably in the 1850’s, and constructed from pit sawn timber.  In 1859, when customs duties (an early word for tax) was introduced on trade between the colonies, this building was used for the purpose.  It is now a museum, and exhibits tell this story and remind the visitor that until 1901, passing between the states was like going to another country.

We also saw the Art Deco Council Chambers, and the architecture of the recently renovated Victoria Hotel is the most striking building you’d see in a month of Sundays.  I’m baffled as to giving the style a name, but it is certainly eye-catching.

So after topping up on bread and fruit we came back to the van, had a chat to the lady in the next van, had a cuppa and settled in for the evening.

Tomorrow we make for Nanango, so more information about that when we know any more than that!