The hot muggy weather that is typical of the tropics greeted us again this morning as we unfurled the annex canvas. We have only erected the entire annex up once before, and it showed, as we struggled to successfully set it up. What in theory should be an easy task of sliding a few bits of canvas onto the matching awning tracks turned into an hour long hard fought battle to get it all lined up and pegged out. It was easier than I recall though, so I’m sure we’ll have it down pat within a couple of months.

By the time we were done, we were drenched in sweat, but elated at our efforts, and we have now effectively doubled our living space for the time we are here in Townsville. It’s quite relaxing sitting out beneath the canvas roof, with a nice breeze flowing through the large open windows. Alvin and Bethany love it, because it gives them plenty of space to lounge around, without being confined to the van.

With the annex all strung up, we got ourselves tidied up and ready to go into town for a look around. Being that there doesn’t appear to be any written rules about not leaving your dogs in the van at this park, I let Bec talk me into locking them in the van for the day again. I am concerned that if they misbehave, they will get us kicked out of the park. To ward off the chances of such an outcome, we took them for a jog around the park before we left. It certainly left me breathless and wishing I was heading back to bed, so I hope it works for the dogs just as well.

In town, we drove around in circles as Shazza tried to direct us to the information centre. It ended up being human error, when we realized that the address we had inputted into the GPS was the wrong address. Well, no. It was the right address, it just wasn’t for the information centre. We at least got a bit of a look at the city centre, before finally parking ‘The Beast’ and walking the final few hundred metres to the right locale. Armed with a bundle of brochures and a head full of information, courtesy of the friendly staff, we then looked about for somewhere to get a bit to eat.

We ended up in a café that looked quite busy, which is always a good sign when in a strange land. If the locals are game enough to eat here, it can’t be too bad. As it turned out, the food was good, but given the time it took them to prepare a couple of grilled chicken sandwiches, you would be forgiven for thinking that they were sourcing fresh chickens especially for us.

As we ate, we had a view across town of the dominating peak of Castle Hill. An orange, craggy topped peak, almost right in the middle of town, it is apparently called a hill due to its height being only slightly too demure to be classified as a mountain. After a bit of research, I have concluded that this claim is rooted more in advertising spin than in truth, but it sure makes for a good story.

In any case, sensational 360^o views are promised to be had from the lookout at the zenith, so following lunch we made our way up. There are multiple walking tracks to choose from, which can be trod to reach the 386 metre apex, each varying in degree of difficulty, but we relented and took the winding 2.9Km path that allowed us to navigate our way up with ease, and in the comfort of ‘The Beast’. You surely didn’t think we were going to exercise on a recently filled stomach now did you?

Worth the walk?

Hell yeah.

No more walking for me.

Even from the uppermost car park, the best views still required a short walk, including the ascension of a step series of stairs. The resulting view was indeed worth the effort as we looked out across the city centre, Rowes and Cleveland Bays and out to Magnetic Island sitting tranquilly a mere 6km off of the coast. We spent quite some time atop the mount, I mean hill, before slipping in behind the wheel of ‘The Beast’ for an easy ‘run’ back down to ground level.

Back down, we went in search of a caravan dealer, whose website indicated that they have a well stocked spare parts store. Still in search of a switch for the fridge, I am thinking that Townsville will be the largest town we see for some time, so it’s fingers crossed that I can source it here. I was seemingly out of luck, when I got nothing more than a blank stare from the bloke who was introduced as being the spare parts guru. I tried to explain what it was that I was after, before whipping out my phone and showing him the photos of the gadget that was the object of my desire. He had no idea what it was, and certainly didn’t have any such trinket in stock. Thankfully, despite him not knowing anything about them, he made some phone calls to his supplier and can have one here by the end of the week, for less than what I would have paid for it in Melbourne. What sensational service. I just have to wait for his call now, which I pray comes before we strike camp and move on to our next destination. As I waited for confirmation that my part would be delivered, Bec was scouring the yard, finding what she described as our next caravan. Only $90,000.00 I had to agree that it was a very nice van, but given that we didn’t care too much for the interior colour scheme, we had to pass up the offer.

As luck would have it, directly across the road was Donohues, a massive cowboy emporium, stocked with all manner of attire for cowboys and aspiring cowboys alike. To my shock, Bec even picked out a new hat for me, which was ornately adorned with elaborate leather scroll work on the underside of the brim.  I tried it on, but Bec decided it didn’t quite suit me, an assessment I was inclined to agree with.

We had to get a move on then, as with our grocery shopping still to be completed, we had been out for a considerable length of time, and we were beginning to worry about the welfare of the dogs. It’s been a hot day, so we did leave the air conditioner running to keep them cool, not to mention the TV to keep them company, but they’ve still been locked indoors for the entire time. When we returned to the caravan park, we found the dogs to be very excited to see us, but certainly none the worse for their time alone. Invigoratingly, the van was also still in one piece, hadn’t been towed by disgruntled campers out of the park, and no one said anything untoward to us, so we can only guess that the babies were well behaved during our absence. As a reward, we took them for another sprint about the park, which they thoroughly enjoyed, before we all kicked back and relaxed for the rest of the evening.

Until next time, stay safe, have fun and don’t forget to write.