'Wherarwee' in Oz: Log 13-04 Hay

After the ralley finished we headed out the next day for Mildura where Liz had a dentist appointment re the toothache that had plagued her for the past 2 weeks & had grown steadily worse. She had to have 4 back teeth removed & her mouth stitched. The appointment was fairly late & by the time we left the dentist it was about 7:00 PM. WE headed for the nearest rest area at King s Billabong. It was pitch black when we arrived, Liz took a couple of pain killers then went to bed. Lulu & I did a quick recon, saw that there were several other motorhomes there then turned in as well. Next morning we found ourselves on the bank of a vast & scenic lake.

After breakfast (a milkshake for Liz) we returned to Robinvale where we returned to the golf club & our friends, as the weather turned foul we ended up staying 4 more days.

Hay was our next destination, stopping at Balranald for morning tea & a delicious country baker pie (first this trip), a quick look around town (it’s only a couple of blocks long), & then on to Hay. Another lovely little town & our friends stopped at the carpark for long vehicles right in the middle of town. Another stroll around, bought some provisions & settled for the night. We went to the local club for dinner that night catching the courtesy bus, the driver had to pick up other motorhomers who were staying at a rest stop on the bank of the Murrumbidgee River. There must have been 40 RV’s parked there. When we returned to our spot in the carpark later that night I said that I would like to spend the next night by the river but our friends said they would stay where they were so next morning we parted company say that we would meet up at Wagga Wagga.

It is so nice at Sandy Point reserve that we have decided to stay a couple of nights here where we still are. On Sat. arvo a large herd of cattle arrived on the far bank & proceeded into the river to refresh themselves, their enjoyment was obvious as they bellowed at the top of their lungs, we couldn’t see what was happening from our parking spot but a short walk brought us directly opposite them. It was unbelievable to see so many cattle milling about in the river so I turned around & went back for my camera. Lulu wanted to come so I grabbed her lead & returned with her. By the time I got back the cattle dogs had jumped in & rounded most of them up. Seeing the dogs swimming in the river, barking & controlling them was great. Today, Sunday has been very quiet with a lot of the motorhomes departing for Wagga & there only about 10 of us left.

Chatting to a council worker this morning he said the Hay was slowly dying with 500 less inhabitants the census than the previous one & that the council had opened up several K’s of the river bank as rest areas to encourage tourism in the town & last week, immediately after the rally, there would have been 80 motorhomes parked along the river.