26 April 2011 - Rivergums Caravan Park, Goondiwindi, Queensland

As I start to write this, rain is falling on the caravan roof and darkness has closed around us even earlier than normal. We have passed another quiet day waiting for a gap in the extensive public holiday spate that is causing life to be put on hold.

Goondiwindi's Botanic Gardens

This morning we headed out to the Botanic Garden of the Western Woodlands, 25 hectares planted out in trees and plants native to the Darling Basin established in 1988, encompassing a small lake around an even smaller island. The park is very different from any other botanic gardens we have visited, a large grassed area with groups of various eucalypts, acacias , palms and a multitude of other trees with wonderful names like Coolibah Belah, Black Box, River Gums, Chincilla White Gum, Leopardwood, Yapunyah Myall, Lignum, Poplar Box Forest Gum, Blue Gum Carbeen, and on and on. We enjoyed our lunch sitting under the covered amphitheatre area, listening to the chirping of unidentified birds, and watched by arrogant magpies.

The Natural Heritage Water Park

The sun was shining brightly, in a huge open blue sky. We drove a circuit of the town, across a rather dubious mud track that caused Chris to query my navigation, and through the more industrial and commercial part of the town, across to the Natural Heritage Water Park. Covering an area of 210 hectares of parkland, this park features a 3.3 kilometre circuit for skiing and other water sports, a large barbeque and picnic area, and walks along and through the re-vegetated woodlands, natural and artificial wetlands. We walked along the edge of the “lagoon” which we believe to be the remnant of the original McIntyre River bed, however that remains unconfirmed because the geological history of this park was not made clear to us by way of interpretative panels or brochures.

Packed in like sardines

Our camp is full tonight with us all packed in like sardines. The last party to come in arrived in a 36 foot (or larger) bus, which is squeezed in close to us. I suspect that all parties are not entirely impressed with the arrangements here, however once booked and paid ….

We do believe we will head away from this camp tomorrow irrespective of how the day pans out. There are two other camps in town, so we do have options.

The weather forecast for tomorrow promises further showers, with minimum and maximum temperatures of 12 and 25 degrees respectively; much more pleasant than those experienced further south.