Ancient Landscapes - Mungo National Park, NSW

Day 5

Fascinated after watching a documentary recently about the discovery of Mungo Man and Mungo Woman (believed to be roughly 40,000 years old), and the vast ancient landscapes so rich in Aboriginal history, we made our way to Mungo National Park this morning, at the heart of the Willandra Lakes UNESCO World Heritage Listed area.

Izzy was excited to finally get some decent dirt roads to drive on and performed exceptionally.

Mungo is one of those places that feels almost otherworldly — a lunar-like sweep of dried‑up lake beds, wind‑sculpted dunes and ancient earth shaped over tens of thousands of years. The most striking feature is the famous Walls of China, a 35km stretch of eroded sand and clay lunettes rising up to 30–40 metres high along the edge of the old Lake Mungo shoreline. Chinese workers in the 1890s nicknamed the formations after the Great Wall back home, and the name stuck. We could see them in the distance and then drove the 10km from the visitor centre to see them up close and personal – amazing!!

It’s hard to believe that these vast dust bowls were once thriving wetlands. Archaeologists have uncovered stone tools, grinding stones, a stone axe head, middens, and traces of ancient hearths — some dating back over 50,000 years. And of course, the most extraordinary finds of all were Mungo Man and Mungo Woman, whose burials represent the oldest known ritual ceremonial site anywhere in the world. Standing on that pale, wind‑carved landscape, it’s impossible not to feel the weight and wonder of deep time. More info about Mungo NP can be found here.

Unfortunately, parts of the park were still closed due to recent flooding, so we could only go as far as the Walls of China and couldn’t camp inside Mungo as planned. In true guideline‑following fashion, we adapted — or in Guideline #4 terms, we ‘just did it’ — and continued on to Pooncarie.

For a very reasonable $10, we set up camp right on the Darling River — the next river in our growing Australian river‑camping collection. The campsite was about a kilometre out of town, so we decided it was time to give the bikes their first outing. We pedalled into town to pay our camping fee at the pub, and naturally it would have been poor community spirit not to stay for a beer and a cider.

Pooncarie offered a few unexpected delights — most notably the golf course, where a mob of sheep were busily grazing the fairways, doing an excellent job of keeping the greens trimmed. Only in the outback.

Back at the river, we enjoyed another peaceful evening, watching flocks of cockatoos swoop down to drink. Beautiful, if slightly deafening. A gentle end to our day.

River R & R - Yanga National Park, NSW

Day 4

Being good educators, we have discussed and negotiated guidelines for our gap‑year journey. They started out as rules, but we quickly decided 'guidelines' felt more appropriate. This list is still a work in progress, but so far we have:

1. We are not in a hurry.
2. No more than three driving days before a lay day (weather dependent).
3. Four o’clock is stop‑driving time (beer/wine o’clock).
4. Just do it! (Yes, we know this one is already taken, but we’re appropriating it anyway).
5. As far as possible, always choose the road less travelled.

Today we are proudly adhering to Guideline #2 with a lay day by the river — perfect. I started with a run under the curious gaze of kangaroos, and the cooler temperatures were a blessing. 

Then we decided to christen the kayak with a paddle on Yanga Lake, setting in at Regatta Beach. We’d seen all the pictures of happy, splashy, smiling people enjoying aquatic fun and thought, that could be us too.

It could not.

When we arrived, the lake was deserted except for a very large warning sign announcing a red alert for toxic blue‑green algae. Contact with the water should be avoided. Sad faces all round 😞

We took a walk along the banks instead — still some wonderful birdlife despite the algae — and then headed back to camp (avoiding a not entirely friendly shingleback lizard out for a stroll). From there we heroically resigned ourselves to reading, napping, chatting and eating.

A big, comfortable tick for Guideline #2.

Bridges, plains, sheep and frogs - Goolgowi to Balranald via Hay, NSW

 

Day 3

So hot yesterday and last night, so it was a relief to wake to overcast skies and a few degrees’ worth of mercy. Within an hour we’d reached the banks of the Murrumbidgee River near Carrathool. The Murrumbidgee is the second-longest river in Australia, and its name — Murrumbidgee or Marrambidya — comes from the local Wiradjuri language, meaning “big water”.

Carrathool’s claim to fame is its heritage‑listed timber truss bridge, a 115.5m structure with a rare Bascule‑type lift span that once allowed boats to pass underneath. It remained in working order until 2019. Standing beside it is impressive — the river gums along the banks are enormous, ancient-looking guardians of the waterway.

Onwards to Hay, which was pretty sleepy at lunchtime on a Sunday, but we managed to fill the water tanks, buy some hardware and groceries, and read up on the local sheep scene. I especially liked the sculpture of Mrs McGrath and her sheep — and the accompanying story. Susan McGrath was a legendary figure in the 1920s and ’30s droving industry. Using her pet sheep as a leader, she helped move mobs of up to 10,000 sheep across the Hay bridge before handing them back to the drovers. I’m not sure of the story behind the other sculpture of a sheep reading a book, but it made me smile.

The drive in and out of Hay was spectacular — the Hay Plains really do stretch on forever.

We arrived in Balranald in light drizzle and found more sculptures, this time of frogs. Why frogs? Because the endangered Southern Bell Frog — also known as the Growling Grass Frog — lives in the semi‑permanent wetlands of the Balranald Shire. It’s meant to be a large, handsome frog: bright green with speckles of gold, bronze and black. Sadly, we didn’t spot one in person, so we made do with the many sculptures created by a local artist.

We also discovered a swinging bridge and a nature walk along the river not far from the main street. A mysterious sign had us confused at first — until we found some exercise equipment and decided to dutifully follow its instructions.

Camp for the night was in Yanga National Park — a perfect riverside spot with no one else around. When the rain set in, we hunkered down inside Izzy and watched TV. Absolute luxury.

The hard launch - Cowra to Goolgowi, NSW

Day 2

As much as Stephen is in denial, a big part of this trip is about parkrun adventuring — so it seemed fitting to start the parkrun tour with Cowra parkrun. Held in the Cowra Peace Precinct, this small event (88 participants) was friendly, hilly, and hot. I enjoyed the views and the artwork on the water towers… then we headed back into town to buy the chairs.

Yes. We bought the chairs. The whole package — chair, padding, head cushion, footstool and drinks pocket. Will we regret the extravagance? Probably not. These chairs are likely to be our most-used items for the entire trip. Jack kindly stored our old ones in his garage for eventual return to Sydney.

Still no set destination for today — just a general direction and more time getting used to the truck. 

We passed through Weethalle and saw our first silo art. Painted in 2017 by artist Heesco Khosnaran; the murals pay tribute to the region’s agricultural heritage: a shearer, a grain farmer and a flock of sheep. The silos are massive — 21 metres high, 31 metres across, and capable of holding 2400 tonnes of grain.

More art appeared in the tiny town of Caragabal (pop. 174), with a beautiful bird mural showing local native species and highlighting the region’s biodiversity. Small country towns have such character — quirky houses, local pride, and events like the annual sheep races and camp oven cook-offs. Sadly, we missed both… perhaps a reason to return.

By 4 o’clock — traditionally “beer o’clock” — we like to be off the road and relaxing. A bush camp near Goolgowi became home for the night. This was the hard launch: first outdoor kitchen setup, first proper meal, first shower, first use of lights and air conditioning (it’s still very hot).

Everything worked beautifully. Day 2 - a success!