2nd & 3rd July


Finally, new territory for us both. We left Longreach at our normal harried 10am, the road was long, straight and clear of traffic, gotta love it when a plan comes together. Not long on the road and the country changed to rolling hills, nothing dramatic but very pleasant for views and interest. It is a 175klm drive, about perfect for a days caravanning We stopped a few times for the view, and a light lunch on the roadside.  


 With jump-ups and rocky ranges appearing on the horizon we reached Winton about 2pm and headed to the information centre to get the local lowdown. There were several options for our camp, including a free-camp on a billabong about 3klm SE of Winton. We were attracted to a great looking pub on a corner in the main street, Tattersalls, which boasts it's own caravan park across the road....with grassy sites (somewhat a rarity here). The vouchers for free wines and beer with dinner helped the choice as well.

Winton is about the best place we have seen for the feeling of the town, it's broad treelined main street, character of the buildings and the friendliness of the people. After settling in we walked back to the Info Centre and did the Museum and Art Gallery tour which was fantastic. We also bought a ticket to the Dinosaur Trail...4 displays, 2 near Winton, 1 at Richmond and 1 at Hughenden. The walk in town drew Roscoe to Winton General Merchants and here he bought a new Akubra to replace his old one, lost at Yaraka Gymkhana. The Richmond's love to support local business.

 Day 2 we visited the Dinosaur park which is about 20klm form town on a jump-up (small plateau, +-up to 200mt high and often no bigger than a football field). The drive up is spectacular, and on a pretty rough gravel road. Here we found a beautiful mud-brick building housing a great display of large dinosaurs. There is also a laboratory supported by volunteers who are working on freeing the dinosaurs from the rock.

Dinosaur Park took us about 3-4 hours, so once we finished we just went exploring some gravel tracks south of town and found a nice spot on a winding creek for a drink and sit for a while. Dinner at Tattersalls that evening was excellent. We sat out on the sidewalk and enjoyed the ambience and a local entertainer with a great repertoire of 70-80's songs.