Cloncurry to Tennant Creek.

Hello from Tennant Creek. Yesterday we left Cloncurry and headed up through Mt Isa where my daughter taught for 3 years and lived their with her husband and our eldest Grandson. I have to say it was so weird being there and they weren't. The first thing you see when you drive into Mt Isa is the huge stack it is visible from all over town so I felt I just had to snap it for DD and Family. 

There are some pretty spots around "The Isa" as it is known and also a sign used to boast "Your not a real Aussie until you've been to "The Isa". One such pretty spot is the man made Lake Moondarra.

From Cloncurry onwards I have been struck by the absolute beauty of the masses of golden wattle bushes all along the roadside and stretching back into the landscape. My roadside photo is not to good. If you were ever in any doubt as to why our Country's national colours are green and gold wonder no longer.

I have done a little of the driving and yesterday I drove the 306 kms from Cloncurry to Camoweal and was quite proud of myself although I can admit to a few moments of abject terror when these huge suckers veered just a little too close to my side of the highway and they don't go slowly either. Some are as long as 53.5 metres.

Last evening we stayed at the Barkly Homestead which is 260 kms from Camoweal and in the Northern Territory. It is like an oasis in the middle of nowhere. My friend Kay had told me of the myriad of stars visible from this  part of the world and I have to say Kay my darling you were oh so right....awesome! It was bloody freezing but we didn't care we sat out in our chairs and gazed upwards. We had a late start this morning as we felt we had earned it and meandered on towards the Stuart Highway and Tennant Creek.

Approximately 15kms south we stopped to visit the the Old Telegraph Station. The line was over 3,000 miles long and took just under 2 years to construct. It was completed in 1872 and ran from Adelaide to Darwin. This station was one of a number built every 250kms along the line.

Boy was it warm here the jumper in this photo soon came off.

This was the workers homestead.

The old Telegraph building was the first building in the surrounding landscape and was built alongside the creek named after John Tennant.

We drove on into Tennant Creek and set up camp.

Time for a bit of relaxation and a quiet drink. We also went to the Battery Hill Museum which preserves relics from the regions pioneering and gold rush days and as they say there is one in every crowd and I am posting this photo to embarrass the children. I tried to talk him out of it.

See you next time folks....hope you're not bored yet.

Blessings Michelle xxx