Waltzing Into Winton

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Tuesday 20th September - our attempts at a very early start didn’t quite work out and many people left before us. We didn’t get away until 8:30am – actually not bad for us but 8 o’clock would have been better. We had over 250 kilometers to travel and we wanted to arrive in Hughenden early enough to see a bit of the town. It has a connection with “dinosaurs” and a more recent history of sheep and cattle farming. We made pretty good progress and stopped at The Burra Lookout for our morning break. Progress continued to be good and we made Hughenden just after noon. We were familiar with the caravan park having stayed there before and booked a “drive through” site for just one night. That meant we didn’t have to unhitch but we did as we wanted to get some fuel (it’s always easier without the caravan on the back) and to see a bit of the town. So after we’d had our sandwiches for lunch we went looking for a petrol station. First though we called in at the Information Centre where there was also a Dinosaurs Museum. We asked about fuel prices (there are three garages in town but the caravan park man wasn’t very helpful in this regard) and the young lady recommended an independent garage saying “make sure you ask for a discount”!! Sure enough, just for asking for a discount, we got 4 cents per litre knocked off – how bizarre. After that we drove to the main park where there were lots of plaques set in large boulders to commemorate the lives of well known local people. There we found the sculptures of “Fish” which I had spotted in the town guidebook, although it hadn’t said where to find them. To get there we had to travel across a large bridge over the Flinders River, except there was no water. It was an absolutely dry, sandy river bed of about 50 meters width but photographs proved that, during the wet season, it becomes a raging torrent and Hughenden has been flooded often in the past – hard to believe when you see today’s bone dry conditions. Back in the town centre we found an under cover parking area (it was really hot so the shade was welcome) and strolled around the shops. We’d spotted a very nice looking café where I thought I would get an ice-cream before visiting the Dinosaur Museum/Flinders Discovery Centre. Graham didn’t fancy the museum so he bought a coffee and a cake and sat in the café with their daily paper to pass the time.

I paid my $5 and in I went through the doors of the museum. Directly the other side was ‘Hughie’ – a HUGE skeletal replica Muttaburrasaurus! He must have been about 20’ high and 30’ long but although he would have looked very frightening he was a big softie and mainly ate tough vegetation like cycads. There was a large collection of fossils, ammonites, moon rocks and crystals that were very impressive and there were the usual information posters and a section on the years when sheep were the main focus on the stations. I watched an interesting DVD about the area to finish off my tour and then found Graham back at the car. He had been reading an information board about the town’s heritage under a sculpture known as the ‘Federation Rotunda’. This is a very interesting construction made from old 20’ windmills brought from a local property. The information detailed the geology of this and other “remote” parts of Australia and especially the existence of endless supplies of water because of a huge Artesian Basin. It was the knowledge of the existence of this water that made sheep and cattle farming viable in areas that seemingly had no positive value whatsoever. Another board detailed how the water was obtained using artesian wells and windmills just like the ones from which the Federation Rotunda was constructed. We had been given details of other tourist attractions but they were mainly a little way out of town. So we contented ourselves with our town centre tour and made our way back to the caravan where we hitched up again ready for a swift departure in the morning. We were still undecided as to our next destination. We thought it would be Winton which is over 200 kilometers away but we found out earlier that the caravan park is fully booked – our intended visit clashes with a popular festival. Our reason for visiting Winton, apart from the fact that it’s on our way to Longreach and eventually Warwick, is that it’s generally accepted as the “Waltzing Matilda” town. Banjo Patterson is reputed to have written his famous Australian song in or near the town.

Wednesday, the 21st, is my sister Daphne’s birthday – Happy Birthday Daphne! This time last year we were all at my brother David’s house in Warwick so we celebrated there. We know that Daphne spent the evening at our nephew’s house in Box Hill with a host of other people so she will have had a good time.

Early on Wednesday we were up and about but, alas, not away as early as we would have liked. Another 8:30 start saw us heading for Winton with a little degree of trepidation. A few travellers had told us that the one caravan park we hoped to stay at in Winton was busy and had suggested several alternatives, all of which involved not having power. We’ve had a couple of nights before without power and managed well with our gas fridge and cooker and our electrically charged lantern so we were almost looking forward to trying it out again. Yesterday the caravan park had confirmed they were fully booked but we thought we’d call in anyway to see if they had had any cancellations. First, though, we had to negotiate the difficult drive which, by all accounts, has been a nightmare. Sure enough, major road works in many different locations resulted in a stop/start journey which took far longer than we had anticipated. At one point we travelled “off road” for about 5 kilometers on a track that was regularly watered to keep the dust down. Consequently, poor old Sweetie got absolutely plastered in mud. To make up time, we decided to do the 221 kilometers non-stop which meant we got to Winton soon after 11:30. We came across our first choice caravan park on the way into town and decided to enquire just in case a vacancy had developed. From the roadside it looked fairly packed but, yes, a couple of units had left earlier than planned so we and the unit which was parked next to us at Hughenden were both able to get in. They had left earlier than us but because we hadn’t stopped, we passed them while they were taking a break on the side of the road. Matilda Caravan Park was pretty dusty and the facilities were fairly basic but we had power, computer/phone signals, hot showers, TV reception and a reasonable sized site. Everywhere seemed like bedlam because of the bi-annual Winton Outback Festival, which we didn’t know about until yesterday, and not long after our arrival a coach-load of teenagers arrived and erected about 30 tents. So there would be a rush for the showers tonight and in the morning no doubt!

Even though Winton is a long way from the coast, the caravan park caters well for families, with a kiddies play area, an animal park and a nice pool. It means that kids are hurtling around everywhere and they’re not fussy where they go (including on one occasion with a pony in tow!!). We’ve had to erect an extra tarpaulin as a bit of a barricade to stop them careering through our awning. As John Williamson would sing – “We’re just sad old farts in caravan parks”!! After we’d settled in and had our sandwiches for lunch, we drove into Winton to see what the fuss was about. When we were planning our route we didn’t realise we would clash with the festival. We came to Winton to visit the Waltzing Matilda Centre – apparently the only museum in the world dedicated to a song. Throughout the day and for the rest of the week the Outback Festival is taking place with events like Bushman’s Egg Throwing Competition, Outback Sports (Broom Throwing, Swag Tossing), Whip-cracking and an Outback Ironman competition to name just a few. In addition there are dances, street parties with live entertainment and even a Faulty Towers dining experience. We were just too late to watch the cow-pat throwing competition, although we saw the after affects strewn along the main street! Also, unfortunately, we’ll miss the world famous Dunny Derby – one of the festival’s highlights which takes place on Saturday.

Today we just contented ourselves with visiting the Waltzing Matilda Centre and it is very, very impressive. The impact that the song has had throughout the world is astonishing and the centre makes a splendid presentation of the circumstances that are believed to have prompted the song to be written by A.B. (Banjo) Paterson in 1895. Why Paterson wrote those words has been the cause of much debate but the tune is also intriguing. Apparently he heard a melody being played on a zither and wrote words to fit the tune. If he hadn’t chanced to be staying at Dagworth near Winton at the same time as Christina Macpherson, who played the tune, this famous song may never have been penned. Our main interest was the story of the song but the centre is also linked to other heritage displays and we spent over two hours trying to take it all in and even then we didn’t see it all.

We strolled through the very centre of Winton where the streets had been cordoned off for festival activities. We found a café for a bit of light refreshment but most people, hundreds of them, were crowded in and around the hotel bars that lined the main street. Much alcohol was being consumed and much merriment taking place - and this was Wednesday afternoon!! We wondered what it will be like when the evening festivities get underway.

It was blisteringly hot by the time we got back to the caravan park but the good looking, though smallish, swimming pool was bursting at the seams so we just sat in the very shaded area by the caravan. After our showers and our evening meal, curiosity got the better of us and we drove the short distance back in to town to see what was going on. It was all surprisingly orderly and we felt quite comfortable wandering through the main area. There was still a lot of drinking going on and a band was playing on the main stage. But it was truly a family occasion with young kiddies, teenagers, older couples and really old fogeys like us (and even older) having a jolly good time. Cafes were still open and other food stalls were doing a roaring trade. It was still very hot so we contented ourselves with some ice-creams but tomorrow night we may consider foregoing our usual evening meal and eating out at the evening street party. Back at the caravan the park became surprisingly quiet although we could still make out the noise from the street party about a kilometre away.

Thursday morning was also surprisingly quiet – none of the boisterous early morning behaviour we were greeted with at Rollingstone - we were pleasantly surprised. It was already hot when we got up and the day promised to be the hottest we have encountered in the whole 12 months we’ve been in Aus. Darwin was uncomfortable because of its humidity but Winton is just plain hot. Nevertheless, we had a few things planned for the day and first we drove just along the road to “The Musical Fence”! This is made up of a considerable number of household and mechanical objects, mainly metallic, arranged so that they produce a sound. A frustrated drummer was playing away when we arrived and actually he was very good. Graham had his photo taken but couldn’t be persuaded to play anything – spoilsport! After that we drove about 20 kilometers, mainly on a gravel road, out to the Bladensburg National Park. It had boasted of creeks and swimming holes and so on, but that must be for the wet season. Today everywhere seemed bone dry and the anticipated swimming hole at a place called Engine Hole was no-where to be seen. We did what the literature had said though - we sat beneath the red river gums on the banks of the creek. We just had to imagine that there was water there and that soon we’d be going in for a dip. We ought to have known better - Graham has recently learnt a brilliant new song called “Dusty Diamantina” which is based on a drover’s life at a cattle station in this very area. A repeating line is “the rain never falls on the Dusty Diamantina” - how true that appears to be today.

Back in town we decided to visit the other two venues that our Waltzing Matilda Centre tickets gave us entry to. Even now, before midday, there were events going on in the main street and quite a lot of people milling around. We decided first to have an early lunch and nipped into the café at the Matilda centre for some delicious hot chicken wraps. Tea was complimentary on a “help yourself” basis – what a brilliant idea. We were even able to use teapots as, even though it was teabags, we think tea tastes much better from a teapot! After lunch our first port of call was The Royal Open Air Cinema and Opal Walk. It was brilliant – very much like the cinema in Broome but this one only operated occasionally. Seating was in deckchairs and this cinema boasted the biggest deckchair in the world. Unusually, very popular in its day, it also boasted a roller skating area just in front of the screen. The way in and out of the cinema was lined with cabinets displaying perhaps the main attraction to this area – opals. Winton was famous for them and nearby (in Aussie terms) Opalton was a hotbed for opal fossicking and about 600 people once lived there. Only about 20 miners still ply their trade in Opalton these days. Some of the opals on display in the cinema were beautiful. On the way to our next venue I spotted a sign for “Arno’s Wall”. This is a “gimmicky” thing which has attracted a lot of attention in Winton. The wall reaches two meters high and extends for over seventy meters. It is constructed mainly from concrete and rocks but is studded with anything and everything imaginable – including more than one kitchen sink! There are lawn mowers, wheel rims, vacuum cleaners, money tills, complete motor cycles, typewriters, bits of industrial machinery – you name it and you’ll probably find it in the wall – bizarre! We eventually found our final venue, the Corfield and Fitzmaurice Building, one of Australia’s most perfectly preserved old style general stores. In addition to many craft stalls, it had a separate display containing more opal mining and dinosaur information including a huge replica of a Carnosaur and leg bones of a gigantic Rhoetosaurus Brownei that was 12’ tall at the hip! The Carnosaur was part of a display of replica footprints of the worlds only recorded dinosaur stampede! The real fossilized footprints of about 200 stampeding dinosaurs can be seen at Lark Quarry which is 110 kms south of Winton – we decided that the replica was good enough for us!

Back at the caravan park Graham managed to find time for a cooling swim in the pool before we both had an early shower (to beat the mad rush later) and before making our way into town for some supper. Once again there was much merriment going on and a lone, female country singer was entertaining the crowds. She was good but it seems to be a trait in Aus for street-performers to use backing tapes which annoys Graham immensely. We found a café and had some crumbed fish and chips which, for just $8:50 each, was excellent value for money. The street scene wasn’t quite as rowdy as last night but a good time was being had by all.

A few people have told us that we should stay on in Winton over the coming weekend to experience more of the Outback Festival but at least we’ve had a flavour of it so we’ll be travelling on in the morning. The advice from one family in particular that ‘there was nothing of interest in Winton’ proved to be completely wrong and we were so pleased that we came this way.

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Photos

Banjo Paterson
Proudly stands outside the 'Waltzing Matilda Centre'

'Hughie' the Muttaburrasaurus
who I came face to face with at the Flinders Discovery Centre in Hughenden

Federation Rotunda - made from 20' windmills
In the centre of Hughenden - a very unusual feature

Andrew 'Banjo' Paterson
not an outback musician as I imagined but a Sydney solicitor! 'Banjo' was a racehorse!

Tents set up for the people on a coach tour
but these extra bodies put a terrible strain on the amenities!

Comments

[kangaroojack]

Hi Both, Great Pictures, safe travels. Kangaroojack