31st January 2009 - Cairns, Qld

Well I have to admit that last night was one of the stranger nights I have had on the road. Max has flown to Brisbane to attend the funeral of his grandmother, so we have returned from the Daintree to camp again in a Cairns caravan park. Sleeping soundly at 11pm, the caravan park in a hush around me, the night was broken by the piercing sound of our Landcruiser's horn...... What???? strange indeed.
 
Shocked awake, confused, I'm thinking to myself what the hell is that?
At first I thought it was our battery system, somehow gone into some sort of electrical meltdown, but after a dash to the side of the tent I realised the sound was coming from the car. The rain must have short circuited the horn's wiring or some such bizarre mystery.
 
The rain is hammering down and all the neighbourhood can hear is our car horn blasting through the night. I'm crapping myself trying not to wake up absolutely everyone. I dash back inside to grab the keys and open the car door. I'm slamming on the steering wheel, trying to unjam the horn.....all this in my underwear. The horn blasts on and I'm thumping the steering wheel......anything just to make it shutup!
 
Eventually I'm thinking I'll have to pop the bonnet and try to disconnect the horn manually. I slam the door and half a second later the noise magically stops!
My heart is beating so hard and part of me just stands there in the rain waiting for it to start up again. I wait but nothing happens....ahhhhhh the relief. 
 
The kids slept through the whole thing......like I said very, very bizarre!!
 
 
 
( We have updated the photo album with some new pics for those who are interested )

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23rd January 2009 - Cairns, Qld

As I pattered my way precariously through ankle deep water on the way to the toilet block, I noticed a woman stumbling around in the downpour, restling with a tarp, some ropes and steel poles. A comical sight I must admit, but my heart did go out to her especially since I'd seen her doing the same thing two hours before. I had my umbrella in hand of course and although we had had gallons of rain, it was still pelting down.
 
My first thought was 'gee, what if she'd been camped here last week' the rain coming from the sky would have been the least of her problems. Her rock show was right where the swollen river had risen to and could possibly rise to again. Anyway to foreign tourists who speak little english it is always harder to explain these things. After all she was wearing her middle aged, floral bathers around in the rain so I guess she was prepared. Yes, I helped her of course and within no time we had a dodgey little silver shelter erected for her bits and pieces. Ahhhh the fun and games of caravan parks.
 
The other thing we have been restling with is the concept of afternoon sleeps. The heat of the day does a good job of making the camper trailer a virtual no-go zone during the hours of 8am and 4pm. Little baby brains don't cope so well with going without sleep but trying to convince them that the hothouse is a good place to lay down their heads is even harder. We have overcome this problem with a couple of cheap fans which blow their invisible magic over them and Ella at least can snatch an hour or two sleep.
 
We just celebrated Jake and Ella's 4th and 2nd birthdays.... yes, they are a week apart. The Landcruiser is virtually over flowing with new toys and things. I see an eradication program is on the cards.

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13th January 2009 - Cairns, Qld

Toady we seem to have arrived out the other side of a monsoonal trough (in other words a cyclone that is not really a cyclone) that has kindly dropped 520mm of rain on us over 4 days. 320mm in one 24hr period.......mmmmmm wet you say. Our trusty campertrailer has stood up to the test and even after having 4-5 inches of water running under the tent and unmentionable amounts falling on top, the canvas has not failed us.
 
Our thongs and rubber matting tried to escape on us numerous times, swept along by the river forming under and around our camp as the rain fell. Nearby Freshwater creek that borders the caravan park put on a spectacular show swelling to three times its' height and width to engulf all the low lying areas. The camp kitchen did not fare very well as it became part of the river, the barbecue's silver heads barely visible above the flood waters.
 
In addition to the record rainfall, yesterdays king tide of 3.8 metres created an added worry for anybody close to the river. With a huddle of other residents we watched anxiously as the time of high tide came and went, pushing the flood waters back up the river. The highest tide of the year could not have come at a worse time.
 
However as quickly as the river rose it receeded, taking with it most of the water threatening camps and caravans. A comfy 30 degress made the whole episode very pleasant. Quite funny to think we recieved the equivalent of Lethbridge's annual rainfall in less than 24hrs. Ha....the irony.
 
Today the sun has returned and we are all drying out. The plants and trees are happy and the local kookaburras are again up to no good. Too smart for their own good those birds.
Max is our washer woman and has whacked all the damp bedding through the washing machine (wet from humidity not rain). I now have Jake's birthday to think about this weekend, he turns 4....... pool party anyone?

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