THE MECHANICS HAVE STRANGE OUTFITS ROUND HERE

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We were packed up in record timing in the morning. We were soon on our way to Mission Beach. We were not really sure what to expect but we knew that it is a popular place that many people had talked about. When we arrived we were quite disappointed. The recent weather had churned up the sea and there was a lot of debris on the sand - including dead fish. It surprised us that on such a popular beach there was no hurry to clean it. We were told that South Mission Beach would be nicer, so we decided to give it a go. On the way there the road cut through the rain forest. There were signs telling us to be careful of the Cassowaries - a large endangered flightless bird . We had heard a lot about these birds and had also heard that there were some resident in this part of the forest. We were all keeping our eyes pealed when all of a sudden Kieran yelled “go back, go back I think I saw one!” We then spent the next 15 minutes driving backwards and forwards on the same stretch of road, but the Cassowary had gone back into hiding. We ate lunch at South Mission Beach, which was much nicer than Mission Beach. It was just a shame that there were so many jellyfish in the sand, which put us of walking.

Our plan now was to cover as many miles as possible. We had been hearing a lot about the floods for a while now and we were unsure if it would affect our travel. We had heard different things about the roads we needed to use, so we thought the best idea was to get as close as we could and get some local information. On our way we made a quick stop at a garage, but on our return to Hilda we noticed a trickle of coolant escaping. We had been expecting this to happen at some point as we now had two new pipes and one old one. We had no choice but to drive a little further down the road, find somewhere quiet and fix it once again.

We found a good rest area and put Hilda on the curb. We had just got everything out of the van and under the covered seating area the wind started to howl and the rain started. We had to keep everything as dry as we could and wait it out. Ten minutes later the rain was showing no sign of slowing. It was getting difficult to keep everything dry as the wind was blowing the rain into the shelter. Gemma and I decided to make a dash for it and sit in the van. As we sat there watching them discussing their options we wondered how we might pass the time, then Gemma suggested a glass of wine! As we sat sipping our wine in the comfort of Hilda we could see them outside deep in conversation. They were laughing one minute then the next something very odd happened…. Andy started taking off his shorts! “What on earth are you doing” I shouted through the window. “The rain is not going to stop, so I just have to get on with it” “But do you have to do it in your pants” I asked. “I can’t get to my clothes and I need something to wear to when Im finished” he said as he disappeared under the van in his pants to drain the coolant. As I peered through the window (laughing of course) I saw that where he was laying next to the curb there was a river of water flowing underneath him into his pants. As he emerged from under the van the rain started to ease. As he stood in the car park absolutely soaking wet - and of course in nothing but his pants, a police car pulled up, stopped and gave Andy a strange look, then pulled off again. Thankfully it seems that being in a lay-by in your pants is not an offence in Queensland! Sadly we were unable to sneak the camera out to get a picture. We were warned that if there was any attempt to take photos he would not fix the van!

After an eventful afternoon we only made it as far as Townsville. We found a good campsite on the seafront and cooked Thai Curry for dinner. We were all sat relaxing under the awning when the rain started again. Gemma was inside on the phone while the rest of us were considering another drink. As I was looking around I noticed that the awning looked a little strange above Kieran’s head. Slowly the realisation of what was happening came to me. “Watch out” I yelled, pointing above Kieran. He managed to put his hands up just in time to catch the awning coming down on his head with a huge pool of water in it. We then spent the next 15 minutes getting another soaking trying to rebuild the awning. It was made harder by the fact that we couldn’t stop laughing. I’m sure many neighbours were having a good laugh too! As we sat drying off under our newly secured awning Gemma emerged from the van totally oblivious to the crisis we had just averted - and dry! I think that there is a lesson to be learnt from this boys…. Maybe its not the best idea to rush the job just so that you can crack open a beer. Also if you have rushed the job, don’t stand there admiring your work unless you are absolutely sure it wont come back and bite you on the behind!

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