Hungerford to Bourke

Hungerford is on the Queensland/New South Wales border. There aren't many people, but there are a few bilbies (a nod to the conservation efforts in Currawinya National Park) and the Royal Mail Hotel, which was a staging post for Cobb & Co coaches.

There is also a gate in the wild dog fence, so it was really clear we were crossing into NSW.

The road was one where the vegetation changed regularly so I started taking photos out the front windscreen. There wasn't much traffic, and there were plenty of photo stops along the way.

Red Kangaroo

Black-breasted Buzzard (immature)

We stopped so Dad could take a photo of this old car and Dazz noticed some Pink Cockatoos in the trees. He disappeared for quite a long time, but it was definitely worth having to wait for him to come back.

Pink Cockatoo (Major Mitchell Cockatoo)

After all our stopping we eventually got to Fords Bridge late in the afternoon.

The next morning we were on bitumen as we came in to Bourke.

Bourke was our starting point for The Darling River Run. The Darling River was a significant transport route in the late 19th Century with paddle steamers and barges transporting wool and produce downstream and bringing supplies back upstream.

The North Bourke Bridge

The Old Bourke Wharf

The mural on the water tower celebrates Percy Hobson who was the first Indigenous athlete to win a medal at the Commonwealth Games in 1962.

Currawinya National Park

We started off with a quick stop at the Paroo River just outside Eulo before airing down the tyres and collecting some firewood at the end of the bitumen.

There were a couple of stops along the road for Central Bearded Dragons.

We had lunch at the Old Caiwarro Homestead and took a few photos of the ruins.

The Pumphole

Corni Paroo Waterhole 

We continued to see emus along the road, including this family with chicks.

We chose Ourimperee Waterhole as our campsite for three nights and used it as a base to explore the park.

Pied Stilts

Black-fronted Dotterel 

Emus - downy young

Brown Treecreeper

We drove out to The Granites the following morning. As we were leaving the camp Dazz spotted a Pink (Major Mitchell) Cockatoo, so jumped out for a photo.

We didn't take many photos of The Granites since we had done that on our last trip (see here for the photos).

As Dazz and Dad were taking photos of birds in a tree Mum called out 'Emus' - they were wandering towards Dazz! Unfortunately the sun wasn't at a great angle for photos. Once they noticed us all they turned around and walked away from us.

Pink (Major Mitchell) Cockatoo

Little Corella

Later that afternoon we went up to the Currawinya Woolshed. On our way up Dazz noticed what he thought was a small snake on the road, so of course we stopped for a photo. When he saw the shape of it he knew it wasn't a brown snake, and it was very docile, allowing Dad to go "full wildlife photographer"!

Burton's Legless Lizard

While Dad took photos inside Dazz chased a Crested Bellbird that we could hear (but was unsuccessful in getting a good photo).

Singing Honeyeater

Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater 

The next day we packed our lunches for the drive out to the lakes. Once again we were waylaid by a snake on the road. Dazz noticed it too late to stop, so made sure the wheels straddled it well, but unfortunately it obviously tried to make a dash for the side of the road and went under the rear wheels. This time we initially thought it was a baby brown snake, but it was barely able to move. I found a long branch to turn it up the right way so we could get a photo and identify it.

Ringed Brown Snake 

We walked part of the way to Lake Wyara, the large salt lake. Last time we saw an Orange Chat and flocks of Budgerigars, but it was much quieter this time. We heard Fairy-wrens and I caught a glimpse of a Variegated one, but they were mostly too fast for photos. Dazz only managed one blurry one of a White-winged Fairy Wren.

There were, however, a pair of Emus that came over the sand dune and wandered towards us before crossing the track and going on their way. Once again, the sun was on the wrong side for great photos.

With the lack of birds and the edge of the lake still a long way away, Dad and Mum decided we'd gone far enough so we took some photos of flowers on our way back.

Lake Numalla is fresh water and we were hoping for more birds. Plenty of Fairy Martins flew out of their nests when we parked next to the shelter shed, but none slowed down enough for a photo!

Zebra Finch

Chestnut-rumped Thornbill 

We came through the trees and suddenly we were at the water's edge. The level was a lot higher than last time! The ranger happened to be there and said that there had been a lot more birds earlier in the winter, but they had probably all moved out towards Lake Eyre, since it was a good season there.

Eurasian Coots

The road once again proved to be a good place for reptiles.

Shingleback

Even though we were disappointed not to see more birds, we still enjoyed our time in the park.