Day Nineteen - Wednesday 8th April - Farina/ Leigh Creek to Quorn Problems solved so heading south

Miracles do happen! The much-needed tyre arrived on time at Copley and was fitted in no time at all. So Jude and Graeme did a quick trip to take in the wonders of Farina whilst Liz, Ewan and I went to inspect the Farina Cemetery.

It would be hard to find a more desolate bleak place for a Cemetery: a few kilometres out of town on a bare hillside with only rocks for company. But then I guess the residents wouldn't notice. The list of graves emphasised the challenges of living in such a remote place: many of the graves were for children and babies.It seemed that the Restoration Group had placed white crosses on many graves and delineated them with rocks, otherwise they would have been eroded away altogether. Those people with more ornate graves and metal fences really stood out on the bare landscape although the metal had also eroded. We headed towards Copley to meet Jude and Graeme for lunch. On the way we stopped for a quick look at a place very significant for First Nations people, not just locally but from far afield. The Ochre Cliffs have been providing First Nations people with coloured ochres for many thousands of years. The vibrant colours on these special cliffs were quite a contrast to the rocky mountains around. Yellow, red, orange, yellow and white ochre provided many choices. The ochres are used for ceremonies, decorating tools and baskets, and for medicinal purposes so they are important.

We all enjoyed more pasties and pies for lunch before heading for the Caravan Park at Quorn a couple of hundred kilometres away. I had to drive as Ewan was looking weary. The decision was that it was better if I drove (carefully!) rather than risk Ewan falling asleep! I was not happy as I hadn't driven towing a caravan before, and I don't use cruise control so not good and definitely not fun at all. Although the roads are very straight and there is hardly any traffic, I still don't like it. Despite my reluctance to drive we arrived at Quorn safely and found the caravan Park. It was a bit like Fort Knox: a boom gate only able to be accessed by a code, amenities which require a different code, barbed wire on the external fences and lighting on the external fences which remained on all night! We couldn't quite work out what terrible events they were defending themselves from, but it was a very clean and well-kept spot for one night. At sunset we wandered across the Railway lines to view some silo art with a difference. Every night all sorts of animations, travelogues, films and art are projected on to two tall silos in the middle of town. It was very entertaining sitting in our camping chairs watching the very big screen ie silos, until the cold set in. We watched part of a clever collage presentation about the local CWA members providing refreshments to trains full of soldiers headed to Darwin, before being shipped out to New Guinea and other warfronts. Some days they had 50 trains per day passing through. Then we learned all about the Pitchi Ritchi Railway which was completely derelict until the tracks and trains were restored by keen locals and volunteers. After many years of hard work it's first steam train travelled from Quorn to Summit in 1974. And it's still a going concern. There's a few grandchildren who would enjoy a trip I'm sure. Unfortunately my camera found it a bit challenging to photograph the silos in action!

It's a bit unclear whether Quorn is pronounced Q-warn or Corn. We're still not sure as we hear both! Back to Fort Knox for a raging campfire, a chat with a fellow traveller and chipotle chicken for dinner. your contented and well-fed correspondent Dianne