Another day in paradise - Roma

Yes, another day in paradise, blue skies and very warm days, temperature around 26 degrees.

Now I know that people in the northern hemisphere are sweltering in a heat wave, but it is winter time here, and leaving the cold behind down south has been good for the soul.    Also outback Australia is very dry and dusty, other than when there is a down pour of rain, and then it is mud, and more mud.

Roma's largest bottle tree.

A close up of  the trunk, which has a circumference of  9.62 m, a height of 15 m and a crown of 23 m, this tree is certainly a big one.

This morning we drove 16 km out of town to visit a nursery, called Moorelands Bush Nursery.   The land around is dry and dusty, with a gravel road leading to the nursery.    Walter was very dubious about this trip.   Who would want to build a plant nursery away out there.

We arrived to find twenty cars in the car park, and a busy cafe serving coffee, cake and brunch (eggs and bacon rolls).    Sadly we already had our coffee.    We spent a pleasant hour looking around the plant nursery.

Walter standing at the front entrance.

                                       

The Murray family who run the nursery are now the seventh generation of Murray's who have lived here since 1898.   They mainly produce premium Angus beef cattle, however in 2014 they decided to diversify by opening a plant and tree nursery on their property.    As well as the cafe, they also use the venue for weddings and parties.

There were plenty of sculptures for sale, as well as plants..

A beautiful arbour, with Walter posing in the centre of it.

More sculptures.

And plenty of healthy bedding plants.   

I can now understand why people have more plants and lawns around their houses here, compared to St George, who did not appear to have any plant nurseries.    There are in fact two plant nurseries here, who also stock the necessary soils and fertilisers.   

I had a little mishap when parking the car at the nursery.   Unfortunately I backed the car into this small, thin bottle tree and removed a bit of its bark.   Thankfully it will survive.   Luckily it was not the old tractor behind the tree.   Not sure what I was trying to do!   There was plenty of room.

The Big Rig!   It is 40 metres high with a lift that goes to the top, which saves having to walk up the steps.

I decided not to venture up, even if there was a lift.   Just too high and flimsy looking.  There is a museum there also, so perhaps I might give that a go tomorrow.

Apparently Roma is the birthplace of Australia's oil and gas industry, as natural gas was first struck by accident in 1900 when they were drilling for water. Roma then became known for its oil and gas strikes during the 1920s.  

The slab hut was built by hand in 1893 and housed a family of 11.

The work room which led into the kitchen.

The one bedroom.   How did they all manage to sleep in one bed!

I also spent an hour and a fortune doing a big shop in Woolworth's supermarket, which was very busy with people loading up the extra large shopping trolleys.  Shopping for the week or month or ?.   What with the extra large trolleys and people stopping to talk to friends it was quite a feat to navigate the aisles.

Another day of exploring tomorrow.

Roma - a bustling town

St George is a genteel town, whereas Roma is a bustling town, full of energy and activity.   It has a population of around 7000 people.   Roma was named after the wife of Sir George Bowan, Queensland's first Governor, around 1867.

The original people who lived here were the Mandandanji who lived here for thousands of years before European settlers came to the area.    They managed and lived off the dry woodland and grassland plains, and maintained a deep connection with the local landscape and water sources.

Roma is part of the wider area of Maranoa, which is also a river west of Roma, and which also flows into the Darling/Murray River basin.

The Bungil Creek which runs through the town is part of the Balonne River catchment area.   This creek can rise quickly and cause local flooding, and in 2010, 2011 and 2012 there was considerable widespread flooding from the creek.

The narrow bridge over the creek.

The beautiful park that runs along the side of the creek. 

                                          

The primary underground water resource in southern and inland Queensland is the Great Artesian Basin.   It is one of the largest ground water basins in the world and provides fresh water to Roma, Charleville, Toowoomba as well as for agriculture and stock.   And I can imagine the cotton farms tap into this water source too.

The underground water resource also lies under parts of the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales and it naturally rises up in many springs.  The problem is the underground water is a finite resource and much has been wasted over the years with poorly constructed bores, for example, and can become salty.  Since 2019 there has been a tighter management of the underground water usage.

Other interesting aspects of all the underground water are the thermal springs that abound in various areas, with a large number of them around including Moree, Lightening Ridge, St George and Cunnumulla, to name just a few.   Unfortunately we forgot to bring our swim suits, although we have been to the pool in Lightning Ridge which was a little too hot for comfort.

The bottle tree, native to this area, abounds in Roma, and I believe more than 2000 were planted along the streets.    93 of them were planted between 1918 and 1920 to honour the soldiers killed in World War 1.

I find them fascinating.

Walter enjoyed his lunch outside the bakery.  A hamburger for him and a quiche and salad for me.  He is not having a post lunch nap in this photograph!   

The main street of Roma, which was bustling earlier on, but quiet after lunch.   Walter bought a pair of tracksuit bottoms and a pair of shorts, and I found a lovely jumper for $20.   Then I bought two blouses in Vinnies (charity shop).    The temperature today reached 25 degrees and we mostly had winter gear with us.

I don't think this is a hotel anymore, but it is a lovely old building.

Golders clothing store, where Walter bought his shorts, and I resisted buying a blouse for $100.    This shop had all the country style clothing you may need here, all very pricey but also of a very high standard.  Lots of hats and boots.

And tomorrow looks to be another lovely sunny day here.

A drive in the countryside - St George

Yesterday we decided to drive along the edge of the dammed river, where there was mostly bush and small  pastures, a couple of vineyards and two very large cotton plantations.  

But first, two photographs taken on my early morning walk with Piper. 

The beautiful reflections on the river water.

The metal statue of a ram outside the motel.   The curls of wool were made with old horse shoes, and the curls on the head were made with chains.   I could not work out the rest of the metal used in the statue.  An impressive statue.

This photograph was taken late in the afternoon.    One should never take photos when looking directly into the sun, unless you are clever or change the settings.   I did neither.   If you look closely you can see a road train, consisting of a cab and three trailers.

                                         

But back to our drive yesterday.  At first the road running beside the river was bitumen, but after a while it became a gravel road, well maintained, and with plenty of dead kangaroos on the side of the road, and in many cases in the middle of the road.   I made sure I carefully drove around them, not wanting to end up with kangaroo meat sticking to the car.    I did feel sorry for them though.   Obviously this road has many large vehicles using it, and travelling at speed.   It was also a 'no through road'.

And no wonder, as the huge dams and cotton fields eventually appeared, and finally we reached a sign which stated that you could not drive any further unless you had prior permission, 'for bio security reasons'.

So we stopped, turned around and took a few photographs.  

A cotton field, with balls of cotton in the foreground.    Crops are planted in September, and harvested about April.    Sometimes other crops, such as peas are grown during April to September.    

I consulted Google, as you do, and every article was positive about growing cotton.    Apparently the crop uses no more water than an orchard, the genetically modified crops do not need huge amounts of chemicals, each farm is given an allowance of water, and most cotton farms are family run.    

Most farms use flood irrigation methods, so the furrows below are filled with water.

Interestingly most of the cotton farms are not visible from main roads, but their infrastructure is immense.  Enormous dams with long deep channels, filled with water,  running for kilometres.  The machinery to put the infrastructure into each farm, most cost a fortune, which is why, I think they are owned by huge corporations.

This trench was very deep, however there was not much water in it.     

Another deep canal.    All the water comes from the Balonne River or rainwater (does not rain often).   We drove through Dirranbandi on the way to St George and apparently Cubbie Station is the largest single irrigated property and cotton farm in the Southern Hemisphere, spanning roughly 93,000 to 96,000 hectares with nearly 20,000 to 22,000 hectares developed for active irrigation.   This huge property operates as CS Agriculture with the majority ownership held by Shandong Ruyi.   All sounds very much a foreign owned corporation.   The Balonne River was but a tickle in Dirranbandi. 

These areas are extremely dry, with very little rainfall.    Cotton growing also involves the vast clearing of scrub, which is there for a very good reason.

The Balonne River on the other side of the weir, is at this point a trickle of water, but it fills out further down the river.

A beautiful old Queenslander homestead, with lovely gardens and threes.   

We all love wearing cotton clothes, and use cotton linen, but until recently I have never really thought much about how and where it is grown.   And the long term effects it may have on the environment.    India and China are the main buyers of Australia's cotton, however, they are also the main growers of cotton.  

I find it interesting but scary.  

Another day in paradise

The caravan park we are staying in is called Kamarooka Tourist Park.   It is on the main street of St George with easy access to the shops and the river.  And I would say one of the best caravan parks we have stayed in, in Australia.

The caravan park is very small, so there is not much room between caravans and motorhomes.   However, it does not seem to matter, and in fact it makes for a friendlier environment.   People speak to each other,  and more than just a greeting.    Of course the owners are very friendly and thoughtful about visitors' comforts so this adds to the friendliness.

There are plenty of trees, although the grass is very brown at this time of year.

Our little spot.

The pool and barbeque area, with the fire pit out of sight on the right.    The fire is lit every afternoon at 4.30 and most evenings there are people circling it until well into the evening.   We have not done so yet, as we have an early dinner, and then we find we are ready to settle down to read, or in my case, write a blog.

There are quite a number of self contained cabins.   The little tractor with its three carts loaded up with fresh linen and cleaning equipment.

The ablution blocks are full of pictures, and ornaments.   But the best parts are the doors on the shower cubicles and the soft bathmats.   The clean bath mat goes into the cubicle with you, and afterwards left in the laundry basket to be washed and dried in readiness for the next night.    Luxury plus.   

Walter's disabled/family bathroom has a penguin  theme.   Very cute.

The facilities are spotless.

There is a cafe, and the coffee is excellent.   Even the decaf coffee has its own coffee grinder.    Of course this is our go to place every morning.

And the best part.   This is one of the cheaper camping sites we have stayed in, at $40 per night.

On my walk this morning I saw a garden bed of large cacti.   While I would not want them in my garden they did look very cute.

So two more nights here and then it is off up north, only another two hundred kilometres but a different town to see.

Out and about in St George

Another photo of the Balonne River, which is very beautiful, although probably not on the other side of the weir.    The river would be a shallow stream at this time of year.   It does not rain much at any time, but never in the winter.   Most of the river water comes from the Great Dividing Range, starting as the Condamine River.

There is a concrete path that runs along the side of the river for about two kilometres, plus a couple of bridges over potential creeks.   

                                          

Piper having a lovely time chasing after a ball, which is her favourite game.   At the weekend we used the sports field behind the caravan park, even though the sign said it belonged to St Patrick's School, which is on the opposite side of the road.   I ignored the sign which said no one allowed on the field and used it anyway, as did other people.

A typical Queenslander, built of wood and high off the ground in order to let the air flow underneath the house.  Many of the houses needed a coat of paint but not this one.   There are plenty of well established trees in the town, but the grass is mostly dry and there are hardly any plants.   The result of a dry climate and summer temperatures that are mostly in the high 30s and 40s.   

The wooden courthouse.

On Sunday we visited a winery, although as we are now both non alcoholic drinkers it was probably a bit of a wasted trip in that respect.   However we went for the food, which we heard was pretty good.   We both ordered a frittata with salad, followed by ice cream.

And yes one of the staff commented on the fact we were drinking soft drinks at a winery.

The vines looking very dry.   Luckily it was winter time so no growth but they must take a lot of water during the summer time.    They also grow table grapes too.

The name of the winery was called Riversaands winery if you ever see one of their bottles in a bottle shop.  As we did not try it, we don't know what it was like!     A bus tour arrived for a wine tasting experience.   I should have asked them.

We sat under the verandah with a lovely view of the garden.   See the photo above.

Another lovely day spent in warm balmy weather.

Cruising on the Balonne River

Today at 4 p.m. we went for a two hour cruise on the Balonne River, St George.    We are staying here for six nights as it is such a lovely town.

The temperature today reached 22 degrees.   Warm and sunny after a slightly cold night.

A very leisurely journey, although Piper hated every minute of it, the sounds of the motor (put putting) and the vibrations were not to her liking at all.

When the wind dropped the reflections were very good.

Our boat (the flat-bottomed boat on the trailer) being launched on the river.   There were ten passengers!   This was not quite the boat we expected to see, rather something a bit more substantial.   It did have a toilet in one corner, a portaloo in a tiny room.  

However it turned out to be a very relaxing two hours, with plenty of information from the driver.  

The river is dammed, otherwise it would be just a small stream at this time of the year, which is the dry season.

The weir (dam) in the distance which also includes a bridge for vehicles too.

The weir was built in 1956 and the water is used for the town of St George as well as for irrigating vineyards, crops and the cotton crops.     The latter is water greedy as the cotton requires the fields to be flooded which takes much water, and of course the run off has pesticides and fertilisers in it.   The driver of the boat was very negative about cotton growing in Australia, as are most people, except for the huge corporations that grow it, plus the government too.   We all love our cotton clothes but no one thinks about the damage cotton growing does to the environment, especially in the ultra dry areas in Australia.

Most of the land alongside the river is crown land which means that it is free for people to use as they wish, which is lovely for those people that like to camp, fish or go boating.    However, the people who have built houses on the areas that have been developed also have the right to use their river frontages as they wish.   One or two people have dug out small harbours for their boats. 

                                         

There were three sets of irrigation pipes for irrigating vineyards.     

One of the very large houses being built along the river edge.   It has three sections to it, the middle one being the kitchen and dining area.

By the time we returned we had a view of the sunset over the water.    It was not a brilliant red sunset but very beautiful all the same.

We also went to a winery today, no wine for us, but we had a lovely lunch.   More about that tomorrow.