Pumping the A1 Hwy

Hey Folks! I have been lax about posting the past couple days, but now I finally got some pictures uploaded! It is wet season here in Queensland (QLD) and despite that, we were lucky enough to have three days in a row that were filled with sunshine! Currently we are residing in Airlie Beach, waiting to start our job on Hayman Island, where all four of us girls will be housekeepers for the five star resort! We are excited to be working on a private island together for the next seven weeks! The following pictures are those from the past week leading up to now. After leaving Airlie Beach a week ago, we headed north to a town called Bowen and from there made a loop inland that took us south to Mackay. In Bowen, we stayed in a caravan park, which was also the home to a couple of wild peacocks, a couple bush turkeys and fresh mango trees! In the morning we woke up to torrential rains and it literally felt as though our tents were waterbeds! Wowza, I am quite certain this was the most rain I have seen in a long time, if ever. As we packed up camp, to our dismay, Ol' Gurl would not start up and we had to call a mechanic to give us a hand. He was able to fix it enough for us  to drive but we needed to bring her in a couple days later to get new point distributers. It was an easy fix and not too costly. So off we ventured, with wet tents and sleeping bags. Our end destination, not entirely sure but the first destination was Collinsville, a mining town that was inland, in hopes to escape the wet weather. Trust me when I say, Collinsville was not much to behold and we could've missed it had we all blinked at once :)

 Here we are on the A1 Hwy going through construction as the lollipop twisters directed us through. Although,  I am not sure if the bloke on the ground is actually doing much other than perhaps providing moral support!

 The BIG TOAD in Sarina, QLD. Here in Australia they have "big" things. Each town is unique and not all towns have them. This town was a toad. Tamaworth: a guitar. Bowen: a mango, Coffs Harbor: a banana. etc.....you get the idea!

 Hey folks......if you are driving and tired?! DO NOT TRY to drive if your as this sign warns...."Driver fatigue kills, rest if sleepy"

 This is the moon rise one night, as you can see the picture is blurry due to the fact that I do not have a tripod in which to keep my camera still! This is in Clairview, where we were spending the night. We were playing Phase Ten in the tent without the rain fly on (to keep ourselves from getting attacked by bugs) when all of a sudden the moon was on the horizon as a bright orange ball! It was gorgeous! BTW, the stars were also amazing and for those of you who are interested, we can see "Orion's belt" here in the Southern Hemisphere. Cool eh?

 At a park in Haypoint, QLD. Enjoying the evening reading, on wifi, chillaxin.

 Conway National Forest......we can't be sure, but we may have seen the eyes of a croc as they do inhabit this kind of water.

 Mr. Goana in the Conway Ntl Forest

 Hidaway Bay. We were on our way to Bowen, taking the back roads. 

 .....remnants of the ocean just liking the sand....

 This place a little bit reminded me of a fishing village, which it could be partially. I also think it is a place of second homes.

 We made it to Bowen, the home of the Big Mango. Bowen is one of the biggest mango harvest places in OZ. Although the season only last for about five weeks.

 Okay, could you imagine getting in your car and seeing this huge beetle like creature on your windshield?! After awhile, you start to get used to these kinds of bugs, but at first they are noticed for sure!

 Mr. Peacock at Horseshoe Bay Caravan Park. It was awesome, he totally was dancing around, shaking his feathers.....it was better than any peacock I've seen at the zoo!

 Fresh mangos off the trees right in the caravan park. Yummy and the best part is....they were free.

 Here is Mr. Peacock again, just checking out the kitchen area

 Horseshoe Bay from an overlook.

 Mia, Buff, and Bambs enjoying the view from the overlook.

 So, these ball like things kinda looked like cotton in the middle with this yellow and brown strips on the outside and I am not sure what they were, but I liked the looks of them!

 Murray Bay from the WWII overlook

 Don't you love it?! It's just one tree spread all about!

Here are some lovely red flowers! 

 A little lizard near the bathrooms, a typical scene in QLD.

Our tent trying to dry out after it has been soaked by the rain. Obviously, it is quite windy as well.

One of the lovely turquoise houses on stilts in Collinsville! Remember, Collinsville the the blink of an eye town. We ended up not staying there and just continued our way toward Mackay.

Here is one of the coal mines, or perhaps the only operational one at the moment.

 On the inland road, to try and avoid the rain....the clouds are mighty threatening!

 more of the same

 here we are with some pinkish/red pavement!

 After spending the night in Mackay, we headed out on and exploration to see then Eungella National Forest, the home of the platypus! This was a park that we stopped at along the way.

 This here is a common site in the forests, the strangling fig tree. The fig tree eventually strangles the host tree and uses its nutrients. The patterns are of the roots are awesome!

 A overlook at the top

This view overlooks the valley from which we came up through. The ocean is about 40- 60k away.

 Going back down the road of hairpin turns and 12% grade, it was beautiful! Oh and watch out for the  grids (cattle guards) as they really make a person slow down too because they are not so level with the road.

 We made it back to Airlie Beach, this is the four of us right before we went in for our interview. BTW, we got the job and are quite delighted!

Here is another view of Airlie Beach harbor. I love it! The water is so warm and turquoise, not quite the same as the glacier water at home, although I do love that too!

Thank you for joining the adventure! Check back later for new pictures and or stories.

To all of you, take care and see you next time :) Cheers