Sights on Our Way to Cairns and Mossman.

On our way to Cairns we stopped off to visit Millstream Falls, the widest falls in Australia. We also saw a snake on the track but lukcily he was more interested in getting away from us. When we reached Mossman, we saw the sugarcane train making it's way through the the town.
Off again now.
Hugs, Jan Mac

Outback Queensland

From Longreach we traveled through Winton and roadside camped out of Hughenden. This area is well-known for dinosaur bones and gemstones but there's not much out there but lots of space and open country. We also visited Porcupine Gorge, just out of Hughenden and enjoyed the beautful scenery from the lookout. Hughenden also has a giant statue of a dinosaur. We've also been lucky enough to see lots of emus and kangaroos as well as wild goats on the road but the emus are the only ones slow enough for me to photograph.
  Hugs, Jan Mac

Longreach, Queensland

 We enjoyed some lovely warm weather of 29 degrees C when we stayed at Longreach and it was very welcome after our cold and wet winter in Victoria. Longreach is where the QANTAS airline originated and there is a very good museum detailing their history. The men loved it and spent two days there, seeing over planes and historical displays. I'd seen it beofre so i spent a couple of pleasant hours stitching my Insanity hexies. Once again we bush camped and we were able to use the CWA hot showers which are provided for a gold coin donation. There were lots of tourists around enjoying the warm weather and seeing the sights. There is an excellent Stockman's Hall of Fame which shows the history of the settlement of the outback cattle stations and they had a very tough life. We'd seen that previously so didn't make a return visit there this time.
 I also managed to finish another crocheted blanket for the homeless and posted it off as the need is great at this time fo the year. We're enjoying our travels and seeing outback Qld. Australia is a large country and there's also lots of wildlife to see on our travels. So far we've seen lots of kangaroos, emus and wedge tailed eagles as well as wild goats, and sheep and cattle.
  Thanks for stopping by.
Hugs, Jan Mac

Travelling Through NSW to Queensland.

 Our first night's camp was on the outskirts of Hillston in NSW and the sunset was spectacular. Being on the road gives us the time to appreciate the natural beauty around us. We've been enjoying bush camping every night as we are completely self-sufficient and enjoy being out on our own. We are traveling with two other frinds at the moment and meet up with my brother next week in Cooktown.
  Some of the road trains are very long and could have 3 trailers and carry huge loads. We stop at some of the small towns along the way and enjoy seeing the local historical places. Not much time for stitching yet but I hope to get some free time soon.
 Hugs, Jan Mac

Rushing.

DH has thankfully passed the kidney stone and we are leaving on our next trip tomorrow. It's been a big week with lots of stress and now we're rushing to get ready. It wouldn't matter if it was just us but we are traveling with other people and don't want to delay them. I did manage to stitch a few more pieces on my Insanity Quilt and will take it with me.
   We still have packing to do and had lots of visitors today so we would be better to have another day to get ready. It's going to be a rush and I hope we don't forget things so there are lists being checked as we pack. It will be good to be on the road and able to take our time and enjoy the journey. We are certainly looking forward to some much warmer weather as we travel up to Queensland.
 I'll update my blog if and when we get internet access.
Hugs, Jan Mac

Somethings Old, Something New.

 I've been getting things ready for our next trip as well as finishing off more night shifts. I'd love to take some applique with me but I haven't had time to do the prep. I did manage to finish the needle turn applique on another Chester County Criswell block and will hopefully have time to get another one done soon.
  We spent the night at the local hospital as DH's kidney stone was on the move again. The oral analgesic, although strong, wasn't working so he needed injections and also a CT. We won't be able to leave until the stone passes and as we were planning on leaving Sunday, it may mean we have to delay for a few days.

 This is another block for my Patchwork of the Crosses project. I have completed 6 now and I'm hand-piecing them, although I also have papers for these shapes and could use the English paper piecing method. I find it's a nice change to hand piece instead of stitching over papers as I have several other projects using papers.

 I also saw a really nice quilt using these honeycomb shapes and I'm using the leftovers from the Patchwork of the Crosses blocks. The pattern has different names but I have seen it as Kansas Dugout and it's another good way to use up scraps. The edges of the honeycombs are 1 inch and the neutral squares are also 1 inch in size along the edge. This will be a good project to take- along while we travel as well.
  Hopefully DH will soon be well again and we will be able to head for warmer weather up north.
Hugs, Jan Mac

Not Quite Quilting.

 There's been a bit of time to stitch some more hexies and my first Insanity Quilt is progressing nicely. I've joined 35 diamonds together and have made 49 diamonds of 158 needed. The totals for flowers, red borders and multi-coloured borders remain unchanged and I have stitched 289 of the required 5389 neutral hexies. I have stitched a total of 981 hexies of 10,339 which is 9.5% of the quilt. I'd better get busy stitching some more now.

 I also prepped another applique block for my Chester County Criswell Quilt and this is Block 21. I started it last night and it's more than half finished so I plan to start another one as soon as this one is done. I'm still behind and as I don't plan on taking the blocks with me on our next trip, I still have quite a few to catch up with before the next blocks are posted by Sharon of Two Bits Patches. Of course, if I make/find time to prep more blocks I could take them with me and get more done.

I also stitched new covers for cushions for our camper as we leave for cape York in 8 day's time. We are getting our supplies sorted and I have more night shifts to work first so I was pleased to have finished the two cushion covers as well as two curtains. I'll be able to make up the bed tomorrow and then will make out the menus and work out how much food to take. It's been very cold and wet here so we're looking forward to some warmer weather. It's been 8 years since our last trip there and we are going with 3 other vehicles this time so we are sure to have fun.
Hugs, Jan Mac