FRIDAY 26 AUGUST     PUNGALINA

I was up early to do the final breakfast for the two Japanese and see them off on their long drive back to Darwin.

They appeared to have had a great time. They certainly caught plenty of fish – and went back with heaps of photos to prove it.

Their comments:

* This was the most wonderful experience of my life in Australia. Fishing paradise Pungalina. Thank you very much for the 5 star hospitality. Thank you, O, John and Wendy. We love you. We will come back!

The mail plane came. We were up at the house to meet it – in the absence of anyone else there.

I did the usual decommission of the camp, and washing.

Camp food sharing fridge with house food

O eventually returned with the truck supplies. I occupied much of the rest of the day dealing with same. Each order received was always checked off against both the original order, and the invoices, and that took quite a bit of time. As always, there were discrepancies – 4 loaves of sliced bread received, instead of the eight ordered, one bottle of cream instead of four. No bacon. No bag of laundry powder.

I was eventually able to get started on a big clean up of the camp – the washing and tent cleaning from the last eight days. I had missed having the back up of A at the house to help with the work. And we certainly missed W’s presence, now the Daihatsu brakes had gone, and the old Hilux had given up going too.

Hilux dead

Some Victorian friends of O had been staying, up at the house. I wasn’t sure when they had arrived, but they left today. They had done a little work on starting the foundations for the new house. But O had not had much time to devote to them though. Their comments in the guest book:

* Thanks mate, a wonderful experience, wonderful country and great company. Hopefully it won’t be so long until the next visit.

* Words just can’t describe this breathtaking location. Best of luck on the house and see you next year.

John refuelled Truck, as usual, from diesel drum at the house. Had done 456kms. Somehow, it kept mounting up.

WEDNESDAY 24 AUGUST     PUNGALINA

Worked 9am to 9pm.

The country around our camp was really dry and some trees were dropping leaves

Again, the men slept late, had a very light breakfast, then went off to fish, with only smoko stuff to fish until late afternoon. They wanted dinner at 7pm.

I made a zucchini slice and prepped for dinner.

The late tea was barra fillets, with French fries, coleslaw, pineapple salad, followed by fresh fruit salad. The men were really happy to be eating some of their fish catch – that was their preference.

After dinner was cleared up, and the men had retired for another early night, I assembled  lunches for tomorrow – for the two fishermen, O and John. The plan was to go to the coast – right to the sea.

I packed zucchini slice, eight rounds of ham and cheese sandwiches, cakes, biscuits, muesli bars, fruit, drinks. Made sure that O’s smoko box was well stocked with tea and coffee, mugs, long life milk.

TUESDAY 23 AUGUST     PUNGALINA

We worked 9am till 10pm.

Breakfast was not required, as the guests had a real sleep in.

I cooked hedgehog, a date loaf, and Anzac biscuits.

Served the men cold meats and salad plate – kind of brunch timing. To fit in with fishing demands, it was decided that they would have the first part of their evening meal at 4pm, head out fishing, then have dessert as supper when they returned.

The marinated beef went on to roast at 11am! This felt really strange.

I was able to get up to the house to fax off the mail plane order – only a handful of items needed.

At 4pm I served them the standard roast beef meal. They then went off with O fishing.

They came back late from fishing, with more sooty grunter and some barramundi. O was happy – it was always a bit tense for him when there were fishing guests, until they actually caught some. But this place always delivered.

Billycart transporting the fushermen

Supper was apricot cream dessert, with cheeses and hedgehog slice.

They did not linger around after supper. They appeared to have had a very enjoyable day.

John was amazed at the fishing gear they had brought with them. Really serious stuff – thousands of dollars worth of reels alone!

SUNDAY 21 AUGUST     PUNGALINA

Usual breakfasts. No cooked component.

The guests departed through the morning.

Their comments in the guest book:

* A heavenly haven. Thank you for a great explore of your station.

* Thanks for a wonderful stay. Fantastic experience.

I did a little cleaning up of the camp. Stripped sheets from a couple of tents, did the washing, made them up fresh, for guests due in tomorrow. Closed up the other tents until I had time to tackle those.

A and W were to leave tomorrow, so I made a farewell tea at camp and we all ate together. Made Asian style fish, from a big queenfish that had been in the freezer, French fries, salads, with a trifle to follow.

Their little dog, despite my early fears, had survived and thrived, without being eaten by a python or a dingo. Though I wasn’t sure that she would ever return to her white colour again! She had changed a lot, from the clean and clipped pampered pooch. She seemed to have become an honorary dingo, at least around the house area, though A kept a close eye on her and she did not go off wandering with them. I think she had a ball!

W would leave much of the machinery in much better order than when he came, though there was always more to do, and he would be missed about the place.

O would have his house all to himself again, which we hoped might make him seem happier than he had of late. I think when one was used to solitude for much of the time, the regular presence of even pleasant and easy going people became wearing.

SATURDAY 20 AUGUST     PUNGALINA

Worked 6.30am to 9.30pm.

Usual breakfasts – but cooked bacon and eggs for the two men.

The two tour ladies decided to stay an extra night, instead of leaving today.

O planned to have the guests out for a full day. The two men would be out doing their investigations. So I packed sandwich lunches for all, and well as goodies for two smokos to go too.

I was able to have a fairly well paced day, with no guests in camp – as well as a leisurely shower! Had to do a run up to the house to collect foods from the freezer.

Defrosted French sticks from the freezer and turned them into garlic bread for tea. Made a mango cheesecake, coleslaw and a pineapple salad.

Tea was chilled zucchini soup with garlic bread. There were BBQ’d sausages and meat patties that I’d made earlier, two-potato chippies baked in the oven, the salads, with the cheesecake to follow.

The camp fire session finished a bit earlier tonight.

FRIDAY 19 AUGUST     PUNGALINA

Worked 6.30am till 10.30pm.

I set out the usual breakfast arrangements. No one wanted cooked food, so I was pleased. The group was all out for morning smoko, so I sent out with them Anzac biscuits, coffee and fruit cakes, and muesli bars.

Mail plane day – A and W dealt with that. A brought my supplies down to camp.

After cleaning up from breakfast, I made a batch of Cornies biscuits, a bean salad, a batch of orange and poppyseed muffins, and prepared salad and meat lunch plates, using cold roast beef and tinned ham as the meats.

As the weather was hotting up, I thought the guests would need somewhat lighter meals than earlier in the season. I followed the salad plates with melon slices and the usual apple/orange offerings.

The group came back for a later lunch. On such days, I prepared a lunch plate for O too, though sometimes he would just drop the guests off and go back to the house – for a break?

Today, after lunch, he had to take the two men out to look at possible Leichhardt localities. They took their own vehicle, following the way he led them. He trusted them to be able to find their own way back, when ready. The other four guests had a lazy afternoon at camp, some of it spent sitting in the creek.

The oasis of the camp

Late in the afternoon, O returned and collected them, plus nibbles and eskies of drinks that I had prepared during the afternoon, to go to the Escarpment for pre-dinner drinks and to watch the sunset.

Through the afternoon, I finalized the soup by adding cream, prepared steaks with peppercorns, prepped potatoes, made a green salad, made a fruit salad, whipped cream. Made curried zucchini soup.

When I knew in advance that O planned an Escarpment sunset watch, with consequent late dinner time, the meal and its timing could be adjusted to suit. But it was not easy when he made such a decision at the last minute, as sometimes happened, and something was cooking for dinner that would not be enhanced by cooking for an extra hour, or more!

Tonight’s dinner was chilled carrot soup with heated pre-bake rolls (I had a couple of packs in the freezer); brandy pepper steaks, baked potato with sour cream, green salad, followed by fresh fruit salad and cream.

There was another late camp fire session. John and I were finding talking to the journalist really interesting, given John’s link to the Leichhardt saga.

THURSDAY 18 AUGUST     PUNGALINA

Worked 7am to 10.30pm.

The couple arrived early, having flown in. So morning tea was needed after their arrival – just a defrosted coffee cake from the freezer, and a batch of freshly made scones.

After they were settled in, O took them off sightseeing.

Through the morning, I hard boiled eggs, made potato salad, made the aforementioned scones, marinated chunks of beef for tonight’s roast, cooked a batch of Anzac biscuits. Made up four plates of salad and cold meats for lunch, using defrosted cooked chicken breasts, from freezer, and tinned ham.

We  settled in the tour two, who drove in and arrived late morning.

There was a rather funny event whilst John was showing them around the camp. They were really hot, so waded into the camp creek, to cool off a bit, without first asking if that was alright – which, of course, it normally would be.  One of the women was about knee deep, when John said in a very loud and stern voice: “Get out of the creek, NOW”. She turned to look at him, and he repeated it. She waded out, clearly wondering what she had done wrong – whereupon, John pointed out the large black headed python that was swimming up to where she had been. He hadn’t wanted to scare her, in the water in case she panicked and froze. She forgave him!

Pool where the python was swimming

Served lunch. Organized afternoon smokos to go out with O and the guests for another round of sight seeing. Cleaned up from lunch. Made pannacottas and a batch of carrot soup.

I put the meat on to roast at 2pm. It always needed long, slow, roasting to tenderize it as much as possible. Made Yorkshire Pudding batter. Prepared the vegies and put them on to cook at 5pm.

Set up the dining tent for seven. O would eat with the guests.

The journalist men arrived, in their own vehicle,  and John settled them in.

I prepared the usual array of pre-dinner nibbles.

Served tea of roast beef and Yorkshire Pudding muffins, roast onions, potatoes, pumpkin, peas and gravy, followed by pannacottas with berry sauce. Coffee and cheeses were had around the camp fire.

With three diverse groups, previously unknown to each other, conversation was lively and interesting.