23º 33’ 13.2” S 145º 17’ 03.8” E
Another long day and I’m now resting at Barcaldine (pronounced bar-col-don) for the night. It is the home of the famous Tree of Knowledge, where unionism in Australia began.The road from St George to Mitchell this morning was very, very quiet. My GPS told me to continue for 205kms, and in that time I passed three cars and a tractor. Yep, pretty lonely. Then from Mitchell I was travelling along the major highway through the Central West. I guess I passed a car every five minutes or so.
I’m getting pretty good at over taking road trains! It turns out that the back few trailers can wobble around a fair bit, which is a bit scary. You’ve just gotta make sure you’ve got a big, long, straight stretch of road. But that’s not a problem, as this photo shows.
It’s still very green up here, and very different to what I was expecting. I’m not sure if I’ll get the red Outback experience, as I think it’s rained all over.
The good news is that I’m now past halfway there! This sign was the first time I saw Mt Isa on the board, from Barcaldine I think it’s around 740kms. I managed to get on the road by 7am, and got here around 3.30pm, so I’ll try to do that again. I was considering going a bit further, but I was feeling a bit tired and I can drive the same distance again tomorrow.
I also went through the dingo fence (not sure if I’m now in or out!), which was interesting. In case you can’t make it out, the sign says it is 6,500kms long!And Blackall, where I stopped for lunch, is the home of the famed Black Stump. This is not the Black Stump, but some petrified wood that’s a memorial. The original Black Stump was used to help first survey Queensland as a reference point.
Speaking of lunch, I discovered that asking for a garden salad in the fish and chips shop is yet another way to show that one is not from these here parts.So I guess at this point I’m officially beyond the Black Stump…
I went for a very nice walk along the Balonne River this afternoon at St George. It's a really nice, wide, very brown river. Very peaceful, apart from the occasional water skier. 
Of course, all that water means that cotton is a big industry out here. Apparently so much that they felt the need to remind people by etching it into the footpath. I know it's clichéd, but the people I've talked to have been really friendly. I've also discovered that the best way to make your self known as a New South Welshman is to order a schooner of New in a pub. I know now it's all about pots of XXXX. It's those little things one needs to learn...
On a final note, St George seems to be in a weird media market, as the TV has ads for the Northern Territory, Queensland and New South Wales. Weird.
I got a GPS thingy before I left, and so I can tell you that my GPS coordinates are 28º 02' 01.9" S 148º 35' 13.3" E. If you copy and past into Google you can see where I am.
I had planned a blog entry around a photo I was going to take of the "Welcome to Queensland" sign that I envisaged. One small problem... there was no sign or any acknowledgment whatsoever where I crossed at Mungindi.
No dramas on the road today, just hot and boring! The road was very quiet once I turned off the Newell Highway at Moree. I guess I might have passed a car every 50kms or so.
I left Newcastle at 7am, after packing a few final things. I think I forgot my thongs though! They would be very handy because I think I may be developing an ingrown toe nail, as it's very sore and a bit swollen. It's a pretty damn inconvenient time to be developing one if that's what it is! I realise that's probably a pretty weird thing to post on a blog, but hey, role with it.
Pretty tired, but okay, and the car is thus far going fine!
UPDATE: I found my thongs in the car so my toe is now living a life of luxury!
I'm going to take three days to drive to Mount Isa, around 700-750kms a day.
This is the way I'm gonna go:
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I'm leaving Newcastle on the 10th of January, and aiming to make it to St George, hometown of Barnaby Joyce, on the first night. That'll be 750kms.
The second night I'm going to aim for Barcaldine (I'm not sure how to pronounce this town, can anyone help?), which will be 723kms.
The last day will be 742 kms, and take me all the way to Mount Isa.
That's a total of 2215kms over three days! A long, long way...
I've worked out (I think) how to get an email feed for this blog. There's a box on the right, if you type in your email address and hit subscribe, you'll get an email every time I post a blog entry!
I mean, I know it's unlikely many people care enough about my blog, but Rah (and maybe Mum and Dad) I hope you'll find it useful!
And Blogger also offers a RSS feed for those of you who use that.
I've decided to fire up the ole' blog because I'm moving to Mount Isa in Outback Queensland!
I've accepted a cadetship at the North West Star which is a Monday to Friday daily paper. There are three other journalists in the newsroom, so I'll definitely be thrown in the deep end. This is a good thing, though! It means I will have to cover a wide range of stuff, and I will get opportunities that I wouldn't get in a well resourced metro newsroom.
So, where is Mount Isa, I here you ask? In the middle of no where, as this map will show you!
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It's roughly the same latitude as Townsville, but something like a 10 hour drive inland. To put it another way, it take two hours to fly to Brisbane in a 737.
So right now I'm packing up my stuff in Carrington. I'm only taking one car load of stuff, so everything that doesn't fit is being sold, given away, thrown out or stored in Mum and Dad's shed in Moss Vale.
It's a pretty big change, and I'm both excited and nervous.
I'll try to update this once a week or so. I've worked out how to post from my mobile phone, so I might even try to post something from the road (if there's service!).
This is the Tree of Knowledge.
A few years ago the Tree was poisoned (Joh Bjelke-Peterson’s ghost lives on in Queensland – it’s not a reflection on the decline in union membership) and so the local council has constructed a huge monument.
I remember seeing a news story about how the locals were outraged because it was so big and out of character. It is a bit weird and it doesn't really fit the rest of the town, but I like it.
