August 2^nd ..DAY 47

 A day of blue skies and aqua seas. The coast between Yeppoon and Emus Park was really pretty with Great Keppel Island forming a backdrop. No wonder it is a popular tourist area. The Marina was full of boats and yachts. Many yachts were enjoying the light breeze on the bay.We returned to the Bruce Highway and headed south and then west and missing Gladstone which has a busy port. The country west was again very dry.

 Dominating our trip was the rail line which was constantly busy with freight trains either carrying ship containers or coal wagons.
To find a camp site for this evening proved rather challenging..why? We were again tempted by FREE campsites only to be disappointed by the crowds of vans, tents, camper trailers and big rigs. Mid afternoon we made the decision the head for the Kroombit Tops National Park. It proved to be quite a drive but the road had a well graded gravel surface. It was steep and windy as we crossed the Calliope Range. We arrived after 4.45 pm. It was very much cooler as we are quite high on the range. John was delighted that we could light a camp fire..'real camping'!The funniest thing we saw today was a locked gate across a rail line as well as warning signs about trains..we envisaged the train driver having to stop, get down from the engine and open the gate!! how silly.

While we have been following the busy coastal roads we have found regular roadside fish stalls. They sell a large variety of frozen fish which has been caught wild off the nearby coast.Tonight John cooked Barramundi over the campfire..The two pieces were so large that we will have fish again tonight but in a stir fry.

Gated rail line and warning sign!!

  An interesting point! Buller's Calliope Winery, in Rutherglen, Victoria, was named after the first Buller family ancester who came to Australia on the Ship 'Calliope'.