After the clamour and chaos of the Tambo chicken races we travelled to the wonderfully serene and relaxing Lara Wetlands, 28 kilometres from Barcaldine, the birthplace of the Australian labor movement and the Australian Labor Party.
Once we turned off the road at the entrance to the property there was still a further 13 km to drive along a red sand track to reach the cattle farm homestead and the bush camping grounds.
As we drove through the gate to the camping area our first impressions were that the place looked eerie and barren.
As we drew nearer we could see that the dead ghost gums rising out of the shallow water of the tranquil, mirror-still billabong were far from lifeless! The place was teeming with a massive array of birdlife and the ghostly gum trees provided the perfect roosting spot.
By the time we had set up camp, we had already seen quite a number of birds of various species and had even been visited by some ducks!
Another of Lara’s attractions is that the wetlands are fed by a century-old artesian bore which bubbles up with deliciously warm thermal mineral water into a spacious pool.
It was cool and cloudy the day we arrived but Cathy and Peter couldn’t pass up the opportunity of jumping into the soft and balmy water without delay.
Later we joined the communal camp fire where we were served freshly baked damper – smothered with home-made honey – and Billy tea (traditional Australian bush tea brewed over a campfire inside a metal container known as a “billy”).
Chatting to some of the volunteers who were serving the food we learned that many of them were guests who had come for a short time and either stayed for much longer or who had come back the following year to live and work there. Some had come back year after year and we could understand why – the place has a wonderful atmosphere and it is a bird watcher’s paradise.
That evening we were entranced by the glowing orange and pink reflections on the billabong as the sun set.
That first evening I saw my first ever Brolga (A tall, stately crane known for its elaborate spring courtship dances.)
The photos didn’t come out very well because I took them when it was almost dark but we saw more the following day and I was thrilled to see them again and get some better shots.
That same day we saw more fascinating wildlife- in the form of a very dark brown python which I’m guessing was a non-venomous Australian Water Python.
This handsome and glossy two metre + snake wriggled its way through both our campsites, rested for a while under our van and then meandered its way across the grass with two plovers performing an elaborate dance in an attempt to lead it away from their eggs or young.
Our second day at Tara was clear and quite hot and I was easily persuaded to try out the thermal pool. It was deliciously warm and bathing in the mineralised water made our skin feel wonderfully soft.
There were some walking tracks which we enjoyed exploring and saw a different kind of bird life including a stunning green and turquoise parrot which I think was a Cloncurry Ring Neck parrot.
We were enjoying our stay so much that we decided to stay an extra night and we were glad we did as we had a wonderful day and a great evening with gorgeous light and a full moon shining down on us.
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