Willows gemfields to Carnarvon gorge. 13.8.14

On the morning we left Willows, we photographed some of the gear made by a man who had been fossicking for about thirty years. He was very helpful and shared his knowledge generously.

It was very interesting to see the number of jade plants thriving in the dry earth where nothing much survived. The fossicking was a lot of fun and we enjoy it. We have met people from all over the country and all walks of life who spend the winter months up here fossicking and relaxing. There is a real community feeling amongst people who have come year after year and are happy to share their knowledge of stones and places where they are found.

After leaving Willows we ate Sapote in the car. It is a tropical fruit and has the appearance and texture of strap licorice and is sticky. It tastes a bit like licorice but sweeter with a hint coconut and sarsaparilla. It becomes quite glutenous as it is chewed. The fruit is a bit like a large pumpkin in shape. The woman I bought it from in the Mossman market had wonderful dried tropical fruits Her business email, if you'd like to try some is

springcreektropical@gmail.com

We also bought delicious dukkah and dried coconut from this lady.

We stayed the night just east of Springsure at Mt Zamia and Virgin rock rest area which had floodlights highlighting the rocks in the early evening. We lit a fire which attracted six near neighbours and had a pleasant happy hour chat before dinner, under the gum trees. ( Nanette and Ken made enough delicious apricot chicken for the four of us so we had a night off!) These free camps, which usually have toilet facilities, are great for travellers just wanting an overnight stop. Many travellers are self contained and and don't want to pay ever-increasing costs for facilities they don't need in crowded caravan parks.

I've noticed that the several Christmas Creek crossings we've made, have coloured tinsel decorating the signs. I wonder who stops to do that, and to incidentally brighten a traveller's day!

The travelling is faster now as we head south towards Carnavron Gorge. The way is tarred and fairly straight and tall gums line the road. There is still the odd 'Oversize' vehicle with a front runner escort to watch out for, but otherwise it's relaxing driving.

Now that we are pointed in the right direction, we are all experiencing the "sniff of home" syndrome.

We stopped for lunch at Fairbairn Dam and filled our water tanks with some difficulty because we didn't have the right fitting for the tap. The dam is enormous but a long way from full.