Coffee and breakfast. Then we had a visit from an interesting gentleman who works closely with Penny and Eric at the farm. His name is Cowboy. We were immediately inclined to like him based on his easygoing, friendly, open, tell it like it is nature. Oh and his language! Wonderful turns of phrase, most of which could not be repeated in polite company! We had a fascinating conversation with lots of tales of his life in this part of Australia. We are looking forward to him taking us on a “grand tour” of his farmland tomorrow morning.
After breakfast, Penny drove us to see Walloman Falls, which is the longest single-drop waterfall in Australia. It took about an hour and a half to get there, which allowed Toby a well needed nap. The falls were spectacular, as was the rest of the scenery. We had a picnic lunch and a compulsory beer, before heading a little further down the road to find a spot for a swim.
We stopped by the river briefly and watched lots of turtles swimming by. I don’t think I’ve ever seen them in the wild before. We were still looking for a spot to swim in the river, but nobody else was swimming there and so Penny was concerned about crocodiles! We drove a little further to a campsite and followed a woodland trail to an open spot on the river where Penny was happy for us to swim. Apparently it was too open and too full of rapids for crocs to live there. The waster was cool and refreshing. Toby enjoyed splashing.
Back at the car, we changed into dry clothes and had a drink before returning to the farm. It still takes me by surprise that the sun sets so early here. Eric told us that, due to the proximity to the equator, the sunset only varies by a few hours between summer and winter. The scenery is stunning here too. The valleys are so flat, but surrounded by mountains. And the distances between towns are so vast; it’s really hard to get your head around! And it is very green, even in the dry season.
Driving between huge sugar cane fields is interesting and Penny is a really good at explaining how the process works. It is currently cutting season so huge tractors are cutting the cane and loading into the trains which run on narrow gauge tracks that crisscross the area. Then the cane is taken to the cane mills where steam is used to extract the sugar. The sugar is purified into various grades, the most purified being white sugar. A side product of the purification process is molasses that is used for animal feed and the remaining husks from the cane are piled up and burnt to make the steam. Very sustainable process. Interestingly, most of the sugar is exported and yesterday we saw a 6km long jetty that allows the boats to be loaded with sugar for export.
We stopped on the way back for a beer in the local pub on the seafront. I really do like this Australian beer! Penny had a few errands to do at the farm and we watched the sunset. Then there were steaks and local fish for tea. Then an early night for all.
