15 July 2011 - Black River Stadium, Queensland

Early evening and dinner is cooking in the gas oven. Chris is horrified by the smell of garlic that permeates the van; it was not evident on the packaging of the prepared meatloaf purchased at the supermarket. I, on the other hand, am looking forward to the vibrant flavours that this cooking suggests.

Outside ankle deep water lies all about, leaving our own particular camp site like a moated castle. Others are not quite so lucky, however all are caravans or motorhomes, so there is not too much suffering going on. The rain has abated a little and the thunder storm passed on south, so all is quiet for now.

The forecasted rain had not arrived this morning; the day suggested better weather altogether. Based on that premise, I did a load of washing, hung it under the awning, packed lunch and we were off for our day’s exploration.

There had been a little suspense in the camp. The caretaker came around to tell us that one of the bulls delivered last night was on the loose. I asked if he was particularly dangerous or just an average bull. He confirmed the latter so I was not too unduly concerned as I popped to and fro the camp amenities. Later it did occur to me that he was probably one of the beasts brought in for the rodeo taking place next month, and if so, probably of a feisty nature.

Lake Ross, or rather the Ross Dam, was the object of our attention, a short distance from the city, following the road up the river as you would expect, through outer suburbs which reached right to the dam. The lake is owned by NQ Water and provides up to 80% of Townsville’s water needs. The dam wall itself stretches 8.3 kilometres across the Ross River flood plan, covering 160,000 hectares and so has the added function of acting as flood control for the city. From the top of the wall the lake stretched for kilometres westward, up a rather uninspiring landscape. We walked along the bank, but only far enough to confirm that the path was monotonous, exposed to the sun, and apart from offering a few glimpses of turtles and cormorants, not of great interest. There is a motor launch that takes tourists out on the lake every Sunday, and is, according to our Perth friends, a very pleasant outing. When they told us of the trip, it never occurred to us that we would still be here on the weekend to take advantage of the cruise on offer.

We have extended our stay here yet again, for a further three days which will take us to a full week. When we first arrived, Joan explained that we could book in for a week and have the seventh night free. At the time, we were not entirely sure we wanted to stay beyond the first couple of nights given the distance from the city we were supposedly visiting. This morning when we paid for the next three nights, we did not expect that “up front” arrangement to kick in and so we were both pleased and surprised to receive that day’s discount. Let this stand as a promotional push for the Black River Stadium caravan park.

                                                         

We lingered at Lake Ross only to eat our lunch at the recreational area provided for the public by NQ Water, and then headed back in to town to find Firestone or Bridgestone Tyres. One of our front tyres had a leak. We called at one shopping centre in search of a phone book, to find the directory had been taken from the phone box. We then proceeded to another where we found both telephone kiosks were without directories, but found a post office. They had the Brisbane and Cairns directories, but not the one for Townsville. We laughed to imagine how any of our kids would have dealt with this dilemma: they would have pulled their iPod or iPads out of their pocket and googled an address for the said service provider. Alas we are still operating in the dinosaur age, seeking help from paper versions of the Yellow Pages. A little light bulb went off reminding us that help was closer at hand. TomTom was waiting in the cruiser to offer suggestions, and under the classification, “car repairs” we found a couple of tyre people close by. Kirwin Tyres & More were able to assist changing a leaky valve for no charge; and here is a plug for them! When in Townsville, be sure to check out Kirwin Tyres & More. (I sound like the Elliots in their Great Australian Doorstep)

From there we hunted out an outfit called Olbis who deal in on the road communication. We had been discussing the need for two way communication with Sandra and Peter here at the camp, with particular concern for that required once we get further outback when cellphones are rendered ineffective. We discussed options with the guy at Olbis, and more particularly the cost of having such a system installed. This was somewhat more than we imagined and will require some thought and debate. Those who know us will also know that we do not make decisions in haste. This together with the fact that we are not likely to stay too much longer here in Townsville, suggests we will not be proceeding with any such purchase any time soon.

From there we set off home, stopping briefly to buy the meat for dinner. Raindrops started to fall as we neared the camp and by the time we pulled in beside the caravan, the skies were wild with thunder and lightening and the rain had become heavier. No sooner were we in the door that the heavens opened up in earnest and we were glad we were safe inside watching the waters rise about us rather than being out in the deluge.

As per normal, my daily blog is composed in spaces of time rather than in one straight time slot, and so since I commenced this, the rain has not returned and dinner is over. I popped across to the rubbish bin a little earlier, in the dark and found a brown frog looking up at me from the base of the large metal bin. I looked again and he was gone. I returned to the van carefully watching for further wildlife lurking in the moat about our van.

And speaking of frogs, I do believe I omitted the story of Chris and the toilet frog. When we were at Finch Hatton, there were signs on the toilets requesting users to close the lid after use to keep any unwanted visitors out. Since then I have seen the same message in various forms, so obviously this is a frequent hazard of the region. At the Alligator Creek Roadhouse just south of Townsville, Chris opened the lid to use the toilet in the public amenities and there was a frog looking up at him. This “looking up at” us is obviously a manner the local frogs have been taught from birth. Chris quietly lowered the lid leaving the frog in peace and to surprise the next punter, and chose another booth.

I also omitted to mention the daily noise created by fighter jets taking off and flying over the city. They never fail to catch our intention no matter how absorbed we are with the other delights of this city.

The Australian Army maintains a very strong presence in the north of Australia. The Army's 3rd Brigade in Townsville is a high readiness brigade that has been deployed frequently at very short notice on combat operations outside mainland Australia. These include Somalia, Rwanda, Namibia, East Timor, Bougainville, Solomon Islands, Iraq and Afghanistan. In addition to the 3rd Brigade, a number of other major units are based in Townsville.

As with the Army, the Royal Australian Air Force also maintains a presence in Townsville. RAAF Base Townsville is located in the suburb of Garbutt and provides support to the Army units here. The base is also a high readiness Defence asset and is prepared to accept the full range of RAAF aircraft types as well as other international aircraft.

Townsville is also the staging point for the movement of personnel and materials to the remote parts of Northern Australia and many overseas locations.

This accounts for the fact that we have passed so much defense vehicular traffic on the Bruce Highway, and seen personnel in their absolutely hideous camouflage pyjamas shopping in various supermarkets up and down the coast.