Saturday 11th August
We kept out of sight as the funeral went
ahead and after a morning of emailing at school, James offered us the use of
the school Troupie 4WD for the afternoon. We set off, picnic packed, to find a
PPP (perfect picnic place). On route we
passed some enormous ant hills which are very common in this area. They are a
feat of engineering design and stand tall and strong for years.
We stopped at the airport to admire the new
‘terminal’. David had previously taken a
family to the airport to farewell one of the students as she left for boarding
school. There is no option but to go to
boarding school at a secondary level. For some children it is a positive
experience and may be a chance to escape a tough family life, but for others it
is a traumatic separation from loved ones.
For the family David had driven to the airstrip it was a tearful
goodbye.
We continued our drive enjoying the flock
of Red-tailed Black Cockatoos that flew above us crossing the road, and we stopped
to look at an abandoned car, which was still on the road. There are many of
them on the outback roads. If a car can’t be fixed it is just abandoned where
it has stopped.
Finally the PPP !! David removed a snake’s
skin from where we were about to sit while I kept an eye on the very large
roaming steer (with BIG horns) which was eyeing us off a short distance
away. We didn’t venture too close to the
river, just in case there was a croc lurking beneath the surface. It was SO
peaceful. The sun was warm and the five cormorants drying their wings on a
branch were entertaining to watch.
Later in the afternoon we returned the
Troupie to the school, fed the chooks, and I was just (I thought) settling in
for a good read when David reminded me of our daily walk.
Life has taught me that when you least feel
like doing something it always pays to make the effort. Later you are always
pleased that you participated. So, a little reluctantly, I set off for our
afternoon walk. We headed west along the main road out of town, with the
setting sun brightly shining into our eyes. Suddenly the silhouette of three
horses galloping, came toward us from the horizon with dust flying behind them.
It looked like they were racing. The Borroloola Rodeo (nearest town) is next
weekend, and these cowboys were in full flight. It was fantastic to watch. They
even had a dog running along with them, dodging the horses’ flying hooves. It certainly was worth making the effort just
to see that!…but wait, there’s more. Within minutes a ute carrying huge rolls
of hay stopped beside us. “Need some calf therapy?” Bill called. We were onto
the back of the ute in a flash and within minutes, were pulling apart a huge
roll of hay and feeding a large herd of gorgeous calves in a paddock further up
the road. Back onto the ute, and we drove around the fence line checking it,
then headed back to town to get more hay.
Off we went again, driving through the massive paddocks, along endless
fence lines, across dry river beds…. holding on tight. It can be bumpy standing
on the back of a ute. Finally we reached the bull paddock and rolled off the
large round bale of hay. Within moments, from nowhere, come a herd of enormous
bulls. Some of them butted heads as they worked out their pecking (not sure
that’s the best word) order. Dust flew thickly. The sun had set and it was
almost dark. The bulls are massive and worth thousands of dollars each and I
felt a little concerned that I seemed to be in the middle of them all. I headed
for the ute and jumped in ready for the drive home….. I will never miss another
afternoon walk. You never know what might happen.
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