BIRD ATTACKS AND PARADISE

We're in Cloncurry today, having started on the way south and heading home, though we won't reach it for several weeks yet, still lots to see.


In the past few days we've been almost to the Northern Territory border, visiting Adel's Grove and Lawn Hill National Park, just about due north of Camooweal.  Lawn Hill is a little bit of paradise, with a deep gorge, deep river, and wonderful colours.  We canoed up to a little waterfall, through sheer red cliffs on emerald green water, with lush riverside growth including tall palm trees and many other trees, lots of birdlife and freshwater crocodiles- we saw one of them sunbaking by the side of the stream.  they say you can swim there, but we didn't!  


On the way to Adel's Grove, which is 10 kms north of the national park, on the same creek, we were besieged by birds of all types.First a peaceful dove stood on the road in between the wheels, refusing to fly away with its friends.  If it stayed still while the car and the caravan passed over it, it was fine, but we couldn't tell if it did stay still.   


Some miles further on we found ourselves racing an emu, who wanted to cross immediately in front.  At the very last second he did an about turn, actually falling over from his sudden movement, and the car and caravan passed him safely.  He probably had sore knees as a result.  We've never seen one at such close quarters before, just inches away!


Next it was a big kite.  A number of birds were gathered round some roadkill, as they do out here.  The bigger birds are always the last to fly away (wedge-tailed eagles are the worst, they leave it till the last second). This one took off to the left but in trying to gain height he turned back in front of the car and we thought the windscreen would hit him.  At the last moment he cleared the top of the car, but the caravan's quite a bit higher so there was still some concern, but apparently he made it.


Last close call (on a 75 kilometre stretch of road) was a flock of budgerigars, one of whom misjudged the timing and was almost hit.  Luckily on the second half of our trip the birds were behaving themselves and we had no more near things.


The birdlife at Adel's Grove is amazing, there are birds there we'd never seen before. In the last few weeks we've added about a hundred new birds to our mental  list of birds sighted.


Prior to this, we've been staying at Leichardt Lagoon, 25kms east of Normanton.  This is a beautiful spot with wonderful sunsets and dozens of different birds including brolgas.  On the way to Karumba for the day, we saw about 50 brolgas in a field, and hundreds of little wallabies.  We did a sunset croc-spotting cruise, spying some 7 or 8 of the big salties, our first in the wild.  (We've seen a number of freshies, but they're supposed to be harmless and though it's impressive to see them, it's not the same as seeing salties.)


We spent a night camping at the Burke and Wills Roadhouse, which is located at the intersection of the Burke development road and the Wills development road.  About halfway between Normanton and Cloncurry, it's the turnoff for Gregory Downs and Adel's Grove.  It has surprisingly good amenities and as the only place on the road is very busy.  We bought a meal which turned out to be huge, and watched the "locals" come in for a drink - young people, male and female, from the properties around. They all wear big Akubras which they forget to remove, even while sitting at the bar.  Reminded me of McLeod's daughters.


All the staff in these outback places are foreign, mainly backpackers, many of them English or Irish but also many from European countries. The outback businesses could not get on without them, it appears.


Tomorrow we're off to Mt Isa for a few days.  We both need a haircut and haven't been able to find anyone to do it.  Hopefully tomorrow we'll be successful, and we won't look like shaggy dogs anymore.