Took off just before lunch, hoping all the traffic had all tried to get away in the morning. Packed up the boat with all the gear and took off. Was a bit of traffic, but not too much . Worst was just before the airport. Just under 3 hours and made it to the camp grounds.
Looked really busy as I drove in. We were in the 'back paddock' which I think is the overflow area. Works for us as it was far less crowded. Went to set up my tent to discover 4 of the poles has snapped. One was already gone, was hoping it would last a few more trips. Still, a few water hose clamps and duct tape should see it through the week of storms coming...
It was a day of lazing about and swimming in the creek. Just downstream of the main swimming hole was a good little rapid section, not deep but more than enough sit in and let it wash away the world's troubles.
Lukes twins enjoyed the river too as did Callum, though he was worried his plastic boats would float away. He also enjoyed the deer visiting us near camp. There was even an 8 pointer amoungst them.
Back at camp was hot, even in the shade, but the creek was a short stroll away to cool off again. Enjoyed the twins, even if they did discover that my beard made a good handle. Some more friends arrived with their kids who also enjoyed the young twins and the swimming hole.
Most days were filled with oppressive heat broken only by dips in the water. The park itself, possibly because of the deer, also was a prime spot for Bush flies. They were everywhere and anytime during the day I would have had 20+ enjoying the sweat off my back... No point killing them, as their carcass would only serve to attract more flies. The spiders must have loved it though, all day buffet every day.
One of the reasons for camping up here is because of Borumba dam. Beautiful dam to ski on, but unfortunately the bank wasn't great to setup on. What use to be grass was replaced by rock, gravel and concrete. Apparently for erosion protection, sure made skiing from the bank a lot harder. One of my favourite activities as a kid was also walking over the impressive Dam wall and looking down at the spillway and river below. Sadly this was now all fenced off, razor wire and everything. It's sad that good lookout spots are blocked off. Was it safety related? Did someone do something stupid to call for a response? There was often some graffiti, but nothing we saw that would provoke a complete denial of access.
Despite the bank we still got the boat in for a Ski. Sadly it was short lived, what seemed to be an electrical problem caused the boat to fail to start. This was later identified as several issues (including replacing the oil pump and cracked thermostats, faulty starter motor) which lead to the failure. B.O.A.T. Bring Out Another Thousand... Still we were able to get a few runs in, all the kids got a go which was great and I managed to fit two skis in before the problem presented itself. Was good to be out on the water.
Back to camp in the afternoon for me while others went for a bit of explore in their 4wds. Some nice forestry trails around here to meander down. At one point they also happened to bump into my other brother Thomas, near the Conondale NP. He and his partner were out and about doing their own exploring.
Another group turned up later in the day and before even getting any gear out of their cars had the bush doof going. They were a bit away from my tent, but even in the bustle of the afternoon having to listen to someone else's idea of 'music' wasn't fun. They played well into the night before Jill mentioned that loud music now would equal screaming kids next to their tent the next day.
More swimming planned for a day. There's a creek section, pretty shallow rapids leading into bigger swimming pools. It was one of my favourite things to do up here as a kid, and while the nostalgic memories were definitely more glamorous I enjoyed revisiting it. Many a floatie was scrapped over the top of rocks on the way down, but no punctures.
When we reached the swimming hole there was a good Tarzan swing/Jumping tree which we gave a go. There was a young girl 1/2 way up the tree that was hesitating, desping a probably 15+ strong crowd encouraging her to give it a go... well some of the more impatient kids were telling her to either go or get out of the way. I climbed past and out onto a rather springy trunk to eventually plummet into the water. Eventually she followed suit from one of the lower branches to the applause of others. After the first drop she went straight back up and without hesitation dropped again.
New years eve started with a trip to Noosa for an ocean swim. A bit of conflake weed floating around but as soon as you got past that it was great water. After drying off we started heading to the Apollonian Hotel for lunch. Rod was feeling unwell so they opted to skip lunch and head back to camp. The hotel does a roast lunch, with quite a few trimmins. I can remember the first time I ate there it was a feast. Piled up plates, actual full pig roast in plain sight behind the servers. These days it left me a little wanting. They moved the cooking area away out of sight and as for the portions... I felt like buying a second plates worth... Still tasted great, but definitely a shadow of past offerings.
Back at camp a few cans and bottles were opened to begin the night. The Deer park put on a disco, with flashing lights and the usual music you'd expect for a general crowd. Seemed pretty popular and attracted a lot more of the older crowd than I expected. I took a peek but, while it's certainly grown since PCT days, my beer belly wasn't quite big enough to fit in with the crowd.
Walking around camp the next day was a little quieter than normal. Swimming hole was still full, but a more relaxing soak than the splash fest of previous days. They had a small playground, full of equipment that probably wouldn't pass any kind of safety inspection, looked fun. They also had a 9 hole mini-golf course!
The day after was a rather quick pack-up plus a nice swim to cool off again before heading home. Before I could go home though I took the boat over to the mechanic to leave it in his care. hen I got home I barely unpacked (just wet gear and food) before deciding to leave the remainder until the next day.
Time to start researching a new Car-Camping tent, been a while since I have looked at car-camping gear. Any suggestions? Something easy.
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