Sunrise at Fishermans Beach

Setting Off from Victoria: Delays and Mechanical Challenges

It was a windy, rainy day in July, and finally, I was on the way to Queensland to escape the winter in my Fiat Avan Ovation, called The Elephant, with my Cavalier King Charles, Moritz, by my side. The trip had already been delayed by three weeks due to a broken cool water pump. Thankfully, this happened within 30 kilometres of a town and not in the middle of nowhere, so I was able to call roadside assistance for a tow. A new water pump was ordered and eventually installed, reducing my trip budget severely.  

I made it to Hillston in New South Wales on the first day, where I stayed with other grey nomads at a free parking spot. At midnight, two huge cattle trucks turned up, resulting in rumbling feet and mooing through the night. It robbed us of sleep. Especially when, 15 minutes later, a refrigerated truck joined the group with its motor running. There was no escape from the noise. In the morning, I noticed that three of the other grey nomads had left during the night. 

Breaking Down in the Middle of Nowhere

The sun shone, and my spirits lifted, but not for long. After driving 100 kilometres towards Cobar, a peep and a red light on the dashboard suddenly alerted me to a problem. This time, it was in the middle of nowhere, and the long road was empty. 

I stopped immediately as I had learned my lesson before. A check of the water level showed there was none at all. I had enough drinking water in containers with me, but could I just pour it in? Apart from some goats, there was no one to ask, so I had a cuppa and waited. Finally, a 4X4 with a lady driver came, and seeing that I was one too, stopped to help. She called her hubby who confirmed that, yes, I could top the radiator up with any sort of water. So I did every 40 or 50 kilometres from there, escorted by some other caravanners who had pulled up to assist. 

Finally, I made it to Cobar, where the mechanic from NRMA had a look, and luckily, the motor seemed to be alright. However, there was no escape from this problem as it was a Saturday, so I had to wait until Monday to drop The Elephant off at the NRMA garage.

Hedi's vehicle got towed back to Horsham within 30km into her trip

 Ongoing Repairs 

By now, the sun had left, and it was a cold and windy day. As I was travelling with my dog, I couldn’t sit inside any cafes, and not even the ladies of the local library had mercy on us. After eight hours of shivering in the streets, I was able to get my vehicle back. The verdict? The gasket hadn’t been sealed properly, and a bolt had loosened. Another bill to be paid. I stayed the night again at the caravan park, and then, feeling happy and optimistic, I was back on the road. All was going well until lunchtime in Brewarrina when I checked the water level again. It had dropped halfway down from maximum to minimum. 

Checking the water every few hours and topping it up once a day, I managed to make the 1,260 kilometres to Emu Park in Queensland before the booked time – staying on the way at St George, Taroom and Mt Morgan caravan parks. I had cancelled all my other planned and booked caravan parks on the way previously and hoped to stay there on my way home. 

After waiting a few days to get my vehicle checked at the ‘Blue Shed’ just outside Emu Park, I was told that four bolts were very loose. I needed another new water pump and a new gasket as well as a new connection hose. A new battery was also recommended. Consulting my previous mechanics, who warned me that I might be getting ripped off, I wasn’t happy, but I had no choice. So, all was ordered, and I started enjoying my holiday as there was nothing else I could do.

Emu Park has a very nice dog-friendly beach. All the other dogs were nice and had fun socialising with each other; Moritz was very happy. He ran into the waves, fetched his ball and rolled in the sand, and together, we went on long walks and made new friends. I had truly escaped the winter. I wore shorts and T-shirts, enjoying the sunshine.

Challenges from Emu Park’s Flying Fox Colony

However, there was no escape from a big problem in this area: Flying foxes! My guess of 300 was soon updated to ten times as many. At the start, I observed these amazing creatures socialising. They sounded like aliens, communicating in their different screeching and squawking sounds. But not for long. After sunset, the whole colony of flying foxes (with wingspans of up to one metre) flew off for feeding, turning the sky black. For at least ten minutes, one needed to have an umbrella or wait inside their vehicle until all of the estimated 3,000 creatures were well on their way into the distance. 

There was, however, no escape for my vehicle, which was now covered in sticky yellowish-black spots.  While I did what everybody did – cleaned the sides daily with warm, soapy water – I didn’t want to know what the top looked like. My site was right under overhanging branches of the favourite roosting bushes of these aliens. Although I tried to move forward a bit, their droppings always managed to hit The Elephant. One morning, I woke up and didn’t see much through the skylight at all. It was covered with yellow dots. 

There was not only no escape from the dirt but also no escape from the incredible noise when the flying foxes came back just before sunrise, disturbing my beauty sleep around 5.00 am. They were chatting and screeching and calling out to their family members, or so I was told. When the first rays of the sun appeared, the creatures found their roosting branches and hanging upside down, covered their eyes and bodies against the sun with their fancy winged arms, yet still chatting.

As I had to wait for the spare parts to arrive for longer than I had booked my site for, I had to move to another site – this time (luckily) without branches above. I borrowed a ladder and scrubbed the back of my Elephant. It took me two hours. 

Trying to fix the leak

 Final Repairs and a Successful Return Journey

After nearly four weeks in all, I got the call from the mechanic at the Blue Shed, two kilometres out of town, to bring my vehicle in. He said he would try to fix it in one day. And he did! This time, a genuine water pump was installed, along with a genuine gasket, a new piece of hose, and a new battery too. Another big bill I couldn’t escape from, but the mechanic at the Blue Shed did a really good job as I made it home safely again later, all the way to Victoria, without losing one drop of water.

Emu Park: A Beautiful Stop with a Few Challenges

In all, I liked that little town of Emu Park – the beaches and walkways, the Bell Park, the few well-stocked shops, the friendly cafes, the heated public swimming pool – and all within walking distance. However, if the council can’t come up with a solution to moving the flying foxes to another area and out of the caravan park, I, and other grey nomads I talked to, won’t be keen to come back. 

Maybe the trick would be to chase the creatures away with something akin to their own ‘weapons’. Perhaps a sticky, stinky spray applied with drones, which makes the flying foxes depart from the area but of course, without killing fauna and flora? Then, I would like to escape the Victorian winter next year and would probably be back again.

Good luck!

Stopped in the middle of nowhere 

Category: Features
Written: Fri 01 Nov 2024
Printed: November, 2024
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