We left Sarina at 8:20am, ready for another long'ish day on the road. It was made even longer by the endless stream of road works along the way. The road from Sarina to Mackay was probably the best all day (the ultimate being the Mackay bypass road). It is good to see our taxes being put to good use though.
First stop of the day was at Calen to photograph the Big Thongs, which eluded us for a while but eventually located behind the Calen Hotel. There was not much else to see at Calen, so we moved along quickly. Mornos was had at Whitsunday Gold Coffee which has a small animal farm and an extensive aviary attached. A funny for the day was when Wendy was talking to a Sulphur crested cockatoo, and after he said "Hello" back, she asked him, "Are you a pretty boy?" and she heard a rather hearty chuckle. She looked around to see who it was and there was no-one there apart from another bird. So, she asked the cocky again, "Are you a pretty boy?", only to be laughed at again. If you had been there it would have made you cackle, because the laugh from the other bird was like "Are you for real, he's not a pretty boy, I am!" We had a good laugh at this whilst enjoying our coffees and eats.
Lunch was enjoyed at Bowen on the Catalina Flying Boat hard stand looking out over Port Denison. A flock of begging seagulls ensured that there were no scraps left laying around from motorists stopping for their lunch.
Second last stop for the day was at Gumlu to take a picture of the Big Pumpkin. Wendy decided that since we've already photographed a number of BIG things, we may as well continue. Next to the pumpkin was a watermelon, written up as the Big Watermelon, but was not very big nor was it very photogenic; moving right along.
We made it to our destination, Discovery Park Ayr at 3:15pm, which, all things considered (roadworks, and stoppages, stops for photos and meal breaks) was a pretty good run. We have drive through sites (#14 and #15) which are normally too narrow to allow awnings to be deployed except if you are travelling with a friend and can park opposite ways so awnings can be used effectively.
After Happy Hour we retreated to our van for dinner, a bit of TV and bed.
The Café we had lunch at yesterday
Street lighting at Sarina
Some more fauna at the Sarina Palms CP
The Big Thongs at Calen
Calen Hotel
Goats and others at Whitsunday Gold Coffee
The cocky Wendy was talking to (didn't take a picture of the laughing bird)
Other birds at Whitsunday Gold Coffee
Whitsunday Gold Coffee
Pigs doing what pigs like to do after a meal
The Big Mango, and Greg, at Bowen
Lunch at Bowen on the Catalina Hard Standing
The pub at Bowen we dined at in 2018
The Big Pumpkin at Gumlu
We got a smiley face at the roadworks for obeying the speed limit
The Burdekin Bridge over the Burdekin River between Home Hill and Ayr
