In the distance are the horses being herded by a dog at the Stoney Creek Farmstay

Stoney Creek Farmstay is a small working horse ranch.

Stoney Creek Farmstay

I just spent the last four days at a farmstay in Eton, which is a small town outside of Mackay. Four days of no other travellers. Just me, four cattle dogs, 15 horses, 3 calves, and a great family. A farmstay is where city slickers pay countryfolk to live on their property and experience country life. Yeah, it sounds like a scam, but it was a great experience. Their ranch, Dunbarra, is very self sufficient. 700 acres in valley, with a waterfall and creek, and forests and grazing pastures, and solar power. The only utilities they pay is telephone. I got to ride horses and joined them in bringing in the horses and taking them out to graze (with a pickup truck and a cattle dog). Dude, I could be a cowboy. The cabin I lived in didn't have a waterheater so it meant cold showers, which wasn't bad especially when it got up to 104 F. No air conditioning.
These folks have built their own house from modest beginnings (read: tin shack). Now it's a beautiful home with wood and stone, but only after years for work. A couple of the days were absolutely perfect for riding: a breeze, overcast skies, and a little sprinkle of rain. As you crest a ridge with the wind blowing, seeing the green trees and grazing lands, it really is a perfect moment. Pick your theme song: City Slickers or Bonanza. It's awwwwesome. Watching the horses gallop away, being herded by the dog is great. Man, I could spend a month here working with the horses. But that's not to be.
I was going to go down to Rainbow Beach to go to Fraser Island today, but I didn't book a week ahead, so now I have a few days to spend between here and there. I'm headed to Rockhampton today. It's the beef capital of Queensland, or Australia. I'm going to see if I can get into a bar fight there. riiiiight. Actually, from there, I'm going to go to the Great Keppel Island and spend a couple days there. After that, I will probably go to Bundaberg, where they make an awesome rum. It's really sweet like sugar cane, which is a perfect drink for me. You're supposed to be able to see sea turtles hatch near there. Oh, and there's a rum factory tour you can take too. Hmm...
After that, I'll go to Rainbow Beach where I'll meet up with some random people and rent a 4wd to go to Fraser Island, the largest sand island in the world. That'll be during Christmas. Woohoo!
Oh yeah, more on the Whitsundays...
I met some awesome people during our two days on the boat. I also saw a couple sea turtles. One was during the day dive, and one was during the night dive. It is a freaky thing to be swimming in a murky soup with 2 meters visibility, and have a huge sea turtle (a meter across) swim around you. The four of us that were diving, kept it in our lights, as it cruised around us. This is not the sort of thing I would have done with only one other person. It's like walking through an abandoned house in the middle of the night with a flashlight. Pretty exhilirating, but scary as heck.
I also ditched Bernie, the dude from the UK who, may I say, was FREAKING ME OUT. I'll leave it at that. But it's great to be travelling alone again. Rock on!

Whitsunday Island crew and guests for the after trip party.

I've seen that face before. Partying with new friends from the Whitsunday Island trip.

Looking sunburnt after the Whitsunday's trip in Airlie Beach.

Sunsetting on the Whitsunday Islands.

The "New Horizon" was pretty packed with some 32 passengers. The weather was hot and we cramped up top in the evening for drinks and conversation. I slept up top both evenings because the air conditioning was broken. It was comfortable out at night.

The Whitsunday Islands are 74 islands off the coast from Airlie Beach. This is a prime sailing area. Charter boats leave everyday for 3-day trips out there. The islands are magnificent with reefs for diving and pristine beaches.

Back from the Whitsundays

I got back from the Whitsunday Islands this afternoon. It was amazing. There are about 74 islands off the coast of Airlie Beach. There are a lot of boats going out for 3days/2night trips everyday, some of them America's
Cup challengers converted to charter boats. I took a 74-foot schooner out with about 32 people. We mostly motor-sailed; the seas were choppy and the winds about 15-20 knots. They fed us like kings, and I got to dive three more times, including a night dive which was kind of like walking through the woods at night with a few of your friends when you were about five years old; it was pretty spooky. I slept on the deck both nights because it was stuffy in the berths below decks. The stars were amazing, and the breeze was good. I didn't have a blanket or anything, just my shirt and swimming trunks.
I think I'll be headed for Mackay tomorrow.