We woke to a misty, foggy day at Bald Rock NP campground. When I checked the Weatherzone app it said the temp was only 2.1 and felt like -3.3 and it certainly did feel like that. The forecast was for cloudy with a chance of showers, maximum of 10 and winds gusts of up to 35-55km/h. Not a great day to go hiking!

It had rained most of the night. Just a slow drizzly rain that made everything all wet. There was no dry wood to light a fire. We’d left our awning out and our chairs underneath to keep dry however I had woken in the middle of the night to the awning flapping and just knew I wouldn’t sleep again until I’d packed it away. So I rugged up and went out in the cold and packed the awning up. I went straight back to sleep after that. We had really good sleeps and I was happy to hear that the boys were snug and cozy in their swags in spite of the rain.

I met up with Katie and Maddie going for a walk around the campground and we decided to give the weather a chance to clear before we made any definite decisions about the hike to the summit. We did see some intrepid hikers at the day area preparing for a walk and watched them set off into the misty bush.

The campground at Bald Rock is set on a loop around a small hill. Each campsite site is gravelled and clearly marked with a sign showing the number of the site and the type of site it is ie. tent, caravan etc. There are two dunnies and a large picnic shelter with gas BBQ’s and a small shed with free wood. Each site has a great fire pit with two swingle bars, one with a BBQ plate and the other with a couple of hooks to hang billies and camp ovens. They are well made. You need to book your site via the NSW Parks website before setting up camp.

There is a day area with picnic tables and shelters just before the campground so day visitors don’t need to drive into the campground. Most of the walks start at the day area and there is plenty of good signage to show you the way.

The rest of the morning was a quiet one. The kids read and played in their van. Rich went back to his book, while I sorted photos and did some research about the next few places we are going. Katie brought her laptop over and got some school work done.

After lunch we packed our backpacks and set off on the Bungoona Walk. The Bungoona Walk meets up with the Summit Walk and we were hoping to make it all the way. It wasn’t raining but it was bitterly cold and windy as we set off. The mist had hung around all morning but had cleared a little. The track is a good one and as you get higher you come across steps and even crossing wide expanses of granite where white makers show the best route across.

We eventually came to the sign that showed we had met up with the Summit Walk. The usual way up and down is via the rock face but on a day like this one that would have been foolhardy. It would be very slippery and quite dangerous.

We continued on and it became more and more treacherous until we finally made it to a wide open area of rock just below the summit. It was blowing a gale and the rain had turned to sleet. The summit is 1277 metres above sea level and it really felt like it might snow any second. We all decided that was as far as we could go, it would be too dangerous to continue to the summit and there would be zero view anyway. On a clear day you can see into Queensland.

A spot between some huge boulders out of the wind was a good spot on the way back for a fruit break and a bit of a rest before we followed the track back the way we had come. 2 hours and 40 mins after we set off we arrived back where we started. It was still misty, windy and cold.

KT and the kids spent the rest of the afternoon in their van playing card games whilst Rich read his book lying on the bed in the moho. I made a batch of chocolate brownies and cooked a tuna mornay to have with rice for dinner. The lamb roast in the camp oven would have to wait until we could have a good fire again.

Sitting in the motorhome writing this I could hear the wind blowing fiercely through the tree tops above us. It was quite loud at times. The motorhome was a bit protected from the wind down below but the trees were really blowing about. The gusts came and went and it sounded a bit like pounding surf on a beach. I checked the temperature and Weatherzone said it was 8 degrees but felt like 2. Glad we were snug and warm inside. There was a couple of cars with rooftop tents that had arrived earlier in the day and I felt a bit sorry for them in the cold. They must be freezing!

What a glorious morning we woke to at Tenterfield. The sun was shining so it was a good morning to get some chores done. Even though we are on holiday and travelling the chores still need to be done. Katie’s little wall mounted washing machine was doing its thing shaking her little van as it washed. I got two loads of washing done too and we hung it all out on clotheslines under our awnings to dry in the sun and the light breeze.

The kids got busy filling the water tanks so we were full to go out to Bald Rock NP later that day.

Next was groceries and we all walked up to the Coles supermarket which is situated only one block away from the Showground campground. Ben and Maddie took their scooters so they could ride the pump track we’d spied on our walk the evening before. That kept them very busy while us grownups did the shopping.

Coles, Reject Shop, another bargain shop, the butcher and a liquor store were all visited and we set off back to the campground carrying all our supplies, picking up the kids and scooters on the way back. They’d had a great time on the pump track and skate park except Ben had a fall when he stacked it in a puddle. He limped home.

We unpacked the supplies and quickly packed up so we could head out of Tenterfield to Bald Rock. It’s only 27km. Along the way we spied the signage for Captain Thunderbolt’s Hideout and thought we’d better stop and have a look at that. There’s room to pull off the road for a few vehicles. There’s a large signboard that tells the story of the bushranger known as Captain Thunderbolt. Fred Ward was born in 1835 and in his early years was an excellent horseman. He was caught in a horse stealing racket, convicted and jailed for 4 years. He was arrested again and escaped from Cockatoo Island by swimming to freedom.

He became known as Captain Thunderbolt and roamed the Tenterfield region holding up travellers, inns, stores, stations and even the mailman. He never shot a single person though and had a good relationship with locals. He was eventually caught in Uralla in 1870 and shot by a Constable Walker.

The kids enjoyed exploring the tracks and caves where Thunderbolt and his gang would have camped and hidden from police. Ben thought it was a good place to hide with lots of escape routes.

Back in the car and our next stop was for another history lesson. This time it was for the WW2 Tank Traps. Again there was room for a few vehicles to pull off the side of the road and signboards told the story of the tank traps and why they were built in that spot.

During WW2 there was a fear that the Japanese would invade from the north so lines of defences were constructed. During the war some 10,000 troops were stationed in the Tenterfield area and the tanks traps were built. They were built in a narrow gorge and huge wooden pilings were built into the ground to stop the tanks. Kids were learning their history!

Back in the car and we arrived at Bald Rock National Park around lunch time and quickly found our allocated and booked sites and set up camp. The boys were able to get their swags down and set up. KT set up a clothesline to dry out their sheets and mattresses and Rich got a fire going. It was a challenge because all the free wood was wet. Luckily we carry a supply of wood and combining our dry wood with the wet wood finally got the fire going well. It became dark very early and was bitterly cold.

No Starlink at Bald Rock, not because Starlink doesn’t work there but because there was no clear line of sight to the sky. The trees are so tall and tower over us so there was no chance of fast internet. Luckily Rich and I have one bar of mobile service with Telstra and that is enough to get messages in and out and for Katie to logon to get some school work done.

It was KT’s turn to cook and we enjoyed steaming bowls of pasta bolognese whilst sitting around the campfire.

It was off to an early start leaving our great little camp at Spring Ridge by 8.30am. We had 385km to do. The distant hilltops were rising above a layer of fog.

It is a large cotton growing area around Spring Ridge and Caroona. Cotton had recently been harvested and many paddocks still had the huge bales waiting to be collected and taken to the cotton gin. Fluffy white cotton lined the sides of the road.

We just had to stop in Tamworth to check out another of Australia’s ‘big Things’, the Golden Guitar.

The big Golden Guitar is a replica of the original golden guitar which was designed as the trophy for the Australasian Country Music Awards when they began in 1973. It stands 12m tall and, just like the smaller original, has no strings. The originals were cast in bronze however this one is made from fibreglass. The big thing was unveiled by many times award winner Slim Dusty in 1988.

Next to the Golden Guitar is the Tamworth Visitors Centre and Cafe. I picked up some brochures for the areas would be going to over the next few weeks.

After a stop for a photo at the Golden Guitar we got back on the road and headed northwards. The New England Highway from Tamworth was very rough and full of pot holes. The rough road continued all the way to Guyra. It also started to drizzle down rain making the day rather gloomy.

We passed through Guyra, a little town between Armidale and Glen Innes, at 1330m above sea level and it really looked like it might snow. It was 6 degrees and drizzling. We were glad to be travelling along in our nice warm moho!

We arrived in the historic town of Glen Innes around 1pm and headed directly to the Australian Standing Stones. We’d been there before but this was a first for Katie and the kids. They went off to explore the stones while I got busy making toasties for everyone’s lunch.

The Stones celebrate the Celtic nations whose descendants came to Australia and many settled in the area. The first white settlers came to Glen Innes in 1838. Those from Scotland and Ireland developed grazing, dairy and mixed farming whilst those from Wales and Cornwall were often gold or tin miners. The Australian Standing Stones were officially dedicated in 1992.

Glen Innes is home to the Annual Celtic Festival held the first weekend in May each year at the Standing Stones and other venues around town. The Festival celebrates Celtic art, music and culture with a focus on a particular area each year. 2026 will be Scotland and 2027 will be Ireland and The Isle of Man. I think it would be a very fun festival to attend.

We had a bit of drama when Katie discovered a tick burying itself into Ben’s neck. How he picked up the tick we’ll never know but Katie was able to remove the offending insect. Ben seemed no worse for wear!

Back on the road northwards and after another 90km we made it to our final destination for the day, Tenterfield, where we’d booked a couple of powered sites at the Showground Campground. I’m glad we’d booked as they had saved two great drive-through sites for us. We were able to drive in opposite ways so our doors and awnings were facing each other. It was good to have power and water hookup and Katie quickly got her little washing machine working.

Katie had school work to do so after setting up the TV for Pa in our motorhome I set off with the kids to go for a walk. It was great to stretch the legs after being in the car since 8am. We wandered through the Showground and found a playground so the kids just had to have a play on that. Then we walked up to the town’s Main Street and along the footpath under the covered verandahs. Maddie and I thought many of the shops looked very interesting and worth a look tomorrow!

We wandered all the way to the Tenterfield Saddlery made famous by the Peter Allen song which he wrote about his grandfather who had been the saddler in Tenterfield for many years. Peter is a local lad who went on to have an international song and dance career. His most famous song would have to be ‘I Still Call Australia Home’.

On our walk we found a skate park and bike track that the kids were eager to try out the next day. We also found the Coles supermarket so we know where to go to get supplies before we head out to Bald Rock National Park. It drizzled rain the whole time we walked and when we arrived back an hour later is was still drizzling.

The boys have asked if they could sleep inside the motorhome due to the rain so Riley got the bed in the Luton and Ben got the blow up mattress on the table, which can be lowered to make a bed. It was cozy and warm inside as our new AC was working beautifully and is so quiet compared to our old clunky compressor one. There was plenty of room for all of us while the rain pattered down. The forecast is for clearing weather the next day and we had our fingers crossed the rain would stop.

After our flat tyre the day before our first job was to get new tyres. After we left Tullamore I called Dubbo Tyres & Batteries and left a message detailing what we needed. Although they are not usually open on Sunday we received a text message to say they’d be able to have a look at our motorhome the next morning. They also messaged later to let us know they had the right size tyres in stock. Great!

So we were up early and into town. First stop for fuel and a gas bottle. Oh and guess what happened again last night? You guessed it! The gas ran out and the beeping fridge woke us up about 1am from sound sleeps. That bloody Murphy!!

We arrived at Dubbo Tyres & Batteries to find we’d been bumped down the list by a B-Double that needed a tyre repair. Rich would wait with the motorhome while Katie, the kids and I went to Orana Mall for some retail therapy. We picked up a new TV for Katie’s caravan from JB HiFi, a 12V Smart TV with DVD player. Pretty snazzy!

We spent a couple of hours wandering the shops and picking up a few supplies from Woolies until Rich called to say the motorhome was nearly ready to go with 4 new tyres on the back.

We headed back to Dubbo Tyres & Batteries where we thanked the very obliging Jamie for his great work on a Sunday and let him know how much we appreciated him coming in to do the job. We finally got away from Dubbo at 12.30pm heading towards Tamworth.

Next stop was at Dunedoo for a lunch break and we pulled in to the huge rest area which is next to a lovely park with toilets, a playground, painted silos and a sculpture park. What a lovely spot for a break.

Dunedoo is a small town of 1,000 people situated at the intersection of the Golden Highway and the Castlereagh Highways. So many heavy transport vehicles use the large Rest Area for a short stop. Dunedoo is a funny name, especially when the slang word for toilet in Australia is dunny, however the name comes from a Wiradjuri word for ‘Swan’. Swans are common on the waterways in the area.

I enjoyed a walk around the park to have a good look at the silo art and the fabulous bird sculptures. Check them out!

Back on the road after a half hour break. It was lovely countryside with gentle rolling hills however the road was a bit ‘how ya goin’. It was quite narrow with lots of pot holes and the edges were quite broken away. With about 85km to go to get to Tamworth we decided to stop. We’d had enough driving for the day due to our late getaway from Dubbo.

We decided to camp at Spring Ridge Recreation Ground. It’s a donation camp where you can stay for up to 72 hours. There is a toilet block, hot showers and even power if you want it. You can camp anywhere around the outside of the white picket fenced cricket oval. It’s $10 per vehicle for unpowered and $15 for powered. There were a few campfire pits scattered about so we found a spot furthest from the road where a previous fire had been lit and set up camp. The boys set up their swags for the first time on the trip.

Riley and Richard cooked on our Biji-BBQ over the open fire and we sat around the fire and enjoyed perfectly cooked sausages and tiny meatballs with salad and fresh bread with butter followed by an ice cream. Perfect!

I’m very impressed with Liverpool Plains Shire Council and after looking up their website to find out more I found this:

The Liverpool Plains is traditionally a drive-through area, the gateway between the Hunter Valley and the New England Northwest. 

Abundant in beautiful scenery, fascinating history and man-made attractions, has led to an increase in stopovers with many visitors choosing to slow down and have a look around. Visitors can stay at one of six freedom camping areas in the villages surrounding Quirindi.  Each freedom camping area offers free hot showers, toilets, gas BBQ and plenty of space.  They are all pet-friendly 72 hour stay areas. The freedom camping areas in Willow Tree and Premer offer powered sites – in Willow Tree, it costs $15 per night, and in Premer there is a Lion’s Club donation box. 

All freedom camping areas are unmanned, but do have donation boxes at each site.  These funds are then used for the maintenance of each of these areas and your donations are very much appreciated by the outlying villages as well as your patronage in these communities. 

How fantastic of the council to encourage visitors to stay by providing these great little free/donation camps. I’m sure they will have noticed an increase in tourism dollars because of this. Well done Liverpool Plains Shire Council.

First day of our ‘big’ adventure and we only made it some 300km. Just as we were leaving the small town of Tullamore our Tyre Pressure Management System (TPMS) started beeping very loudly. Oh no! A flat tyre!

The TPMS was able to tell us it was the outside rear passenger tyre and the error message said ‘Rapid Air Loss’ accompanied by an ear-piercing alarm. The tyre was very quickly flat.

We were able to turn around and limp back into Tullamore where a very friendly bloke at the service station offered to help and called the local mechanic who obligingly came to help change the tyre.

One thing we learnt from this is to always check the nuts are not tightened too tight and are able to be undone by hand. The nuts were on so tight the fellow had to get his compressor rattle gun to undo them. We were just fortunate he had all the right gear.

The kids made use of the time to play in the very good playground opposite the servo and Katie had a snooze in her car.

We were finally able to get going about 4.30pm and headed straight to our cousins place just on the outskirts of Dubbo. We were all very glad to get there. What a long day!

The long awaited day finally arrived and we headed off for another ‘big’ adventure with our daughter Katie, and her three children, Riley, Ben & Maddie. As usual we were in our trusty motorhome and they were in their awesome Prado and little New Age caravan with the boys swags on the roof rack of the car.

We’d been planning this big trip for a long time and the general route will see us head from our home in the NSW Riverina northwards via Dubbo, Tamworth and Tenterfield. We’ve planned a couple of days at Bald Rock National Park so we can climb the big rock then we’ll head into Queensland. From there we’ll pass through Toowoomba to Dalby then on to Kingaroy and across to Maryborough the see the Mary Poppins museum.

From Maryborough we’ll head across to the coast to Hervey Bay then spend 10 days meandering up the Qld coast to arrive at Airlie Beach where we’ve booked a stay in the Big4 Whitsunday Resort. Whilst there we plan to see crocs, snorkel on the Great Barrier Reef and visit Whitehaven Beach. None of us have been along that stretch of the coast and were really looking forward to it.

After our stay at the gorgeous Airlie Beach we will head inland to follow the Dinosaur Trail. We’ll pass through Charters Towers, Hughenden, Richmond and Julia Creek. We may fit in a short stay at Porcupine Gorge if time allows.

From Julia Creek we’ll head south via the Walkabout Creek Hotel, the one made famous by the Crocodile Dundee movie, then on to Winton, Longreach and then to one of our favourite Aussie camp spots at Lara Wetlands. We’ll follow the road southwards via Charleville then head west to Eromanga, Thargomindah and back to Cunnamulla.

Then we’ll be on the home stretch to Bourke, Cobar, Lake Cargellico and home again in six weeks time. We’ll have done some 7,000km and will have seen a lot of countryside.

So on on bright, sunny, cold winter morning we set off, firstly to Katie’s house where they were all ready to go. We were off on another ‘big’ adventure.