After an early pack up we headed to Cairns, this was much sooner than we had anticipated but we had seen and done all we wanted and could do at this stage at the cape. Scott is talking about going home from Cairns and Michelle, Trevor, Jock and I will decide what we will do next. We headed straight for the free camp that we had used before, oh my goodness it was busy and we rocked up in our filthy cars and vans and everyone else had very clean vans. If only they knew what we had done in the past weeks, i’d rather the dirty van with that under my belt than a clean van having stuck to main roads. We found a spot each and set up. We went out to dinner with Carol, this time for Greek and very nice it was too. Then we headed up the road to the RSL as the last game of the State of Origin was on and Jock and Trevor wanted to see it. We sat in the TV room in the only two seats left under the screen, I saw a beer on the table and an empty chair but thought maybe someone had gone to the loo. As it happens I was right, he came back to his seat and he was pissed as a fart. He could not quite make me out, I think he stood there thinking, “I am sure I didn’t pick up this old tart”. He sat down anyway but could not even hold on to his phone or see what was on his screen. Carol, Michelle and I got the giggles, he was so funny to watch. He finished his beer and went back to the bar, we thought he would not be served but he was and came back with a full glass. He lost most of it down his front. Every time he came back he stood wobbling staring at me and then his seat, maybe I actually looked good after so many schooners?? He kept us girls very entertained and sure enough still got served, which is highly illegal. Jock went to the manager and had a go at him, he did not seem too bothered apparently he is a regular, shame on you Cairns RSL.
Jock and Trevor enjoyed the game and we left to go back to camp dropping Carol at home on our way. When we got back to our camp I was blown away by what I saw……..a rooftop tent parked between our van and the van beside us, you would not have thought they could fit in there but they did. I was a bit grumpy and tired by now and made sure I was not quiet coming in. The joys of free camping! Most people are thoughtful on free camps but now and then their actions blow you away. Having just had a debate online with free campers I had to take some of my own advice, we do not know the reason for their actions and unless we are willing to ask we have to deal with it or go pay for a site where there are rules.
Next day Jock went on a fishing trip….YAY at last. Trevor rang a charter got him on one and paid a deposit knowing that would force Jock’s hand to go, Trevor said if he really did not want to pay for it he was prepared to pay for it so that Jock got to catch that fish. Jock jumped at the chance and dissapeared first thing in the morning. Michelle and I also got up early ish, we were running Scott in to Cairns to pick up his hire car so he could get on the road to home. Once he left Michelle and I had a few things to do in town and we wanted to find a couple of op shops but we did not get the time unfortunately once we had finished all the shopping it was time to get back to camp as I had someone visiting in the afternoon. Actually when I got back to camp Jenny was already there, Trevor had met her for me and was sitting outside our van chatting to her. Jenny and I had a great catch up, she just missed Jock, he arrived about 20 minutes after she had left. Jock looked very pleased with his day and had his catch in his hands. He needed to have at least one good fishing day out of this trip, all the time he had fished on this trip it was just an hour or so here and there, he needed the whole day to get his catch.
The fish were put away into the fridge ready to be eaten another day, probably tomorrow. We sat and chatted that night about where we would go. We had all wanted to go back to the springs at Innot springs so our plan was go there. Our original plan was to head down the coast and visit Jo and Lee on our way past then head out west. But with the news we were hearing about Covid we decided as we had not been among a lot of people we would keep it that way and stay away from the coast.
Douglas's Downunder 