Station Life

The day begins, usually with bright sunshine pouring through the caravan windows. But on this particular morning the trees were shrouded in mist.

Morning mist - view from the caravan

Then breakfast, though we're not usually sitting at the table together - this must have been a weekend.

John and Judy having breakfast

Mornings are spent working hard in the school room.

Wambiana school room

Sophia exercising her vocal skills for an audience of teachers on one of the school visits.

Sophia singing

Connor's horse riding lesson, under the guidance of his grandfather, John.

Connor riding

Wambiana Station is building up its camel herd to help contain Parkinsonia aculeata, a species of perennial flowering tree in the pea family. Parkinsonia was introduced into Australia about 1900 as a shade tree, it is now considered an invasive pest.

Camels employed to control Parkinsonia

The calf, Rainbow, and the lamb were 'an item'. They roamed the house area at will, appearing outside the caravan at odd times. With the end of school groups the calf has gone to join the herd, we are wondering what lies in store for the lamb?

The calf and the lamb form an inseparable pair

No, this wasn't a prank by one of the Lyons boys, the silly lamb managed to get its head in the coffee tin quite unaided. Surprisingly it didn't go into a panic, it bleated and waited for rescue.

Lamb hiding

Wambiana Station is on a high point beside the Campaspe River, which is a little bit dry at this time of year. The Campaspe flows into the Cape River, and thence to Lake Dalrymple where it joins the Burdekin River on its journey to the sea near Ayr (south of Townsville).

Campaspe River

The "main" road past Wambiana crosses the Campaspe on this 'grid type bridge'.

Grid bridge across the Campaspe River

The Wambiana Lagoon is a lovely place to relax with a cup of tea or a drink at the end of the day.

John and Judy at the lagoon

On another occasion Thomas caught a turtle in the lagoon, getting very wet in the process.

Thomas catches a turtle in the lagoon

Hugh and Sophia taking a dip in the lagoon.

Hugh and Sophia in the lagoon

Little Dude, the lovely black labrador, on the hunt, with our caravan in the background.

Little Dude in his element

The caravan is parked on the east side of 'The Lodge' so is sheltered from the afternoon sun.

Caravan in front of 'The Lodge' at sunset

And so to bed ... Little Dude often spends the night on one of our outdoor chairs. Thus neglecting his night duty of patrolling the lawn to see off the kangaroo rats who make a serious mess of the lawn by digging up and eating the nut grass.

Little Dude off duty