The Road Trip – #6 Condoblin to Narromine

We waved farewell to our hosts from the front of their house. This is not a typical Condoblin front garden. This is the garden of a fanatical proponent of the family of Saltbushes which are members of a worldwide family of plants (Chenopodiaceae – chenopods) that are common in deserts and salty environments. At the bottom of this post I have added a few references for anyone who is interested.

Condoblin was right on 750 km from Melbourne and the 800 mark was more dry open land with a welcome sign of rain, which unfortunately would linger for a while but then shrivel in the heat and come to nought.

 

50 km further along and we come to Tullamore. Irish heritage but alas no Whiskey distillery in sight. Tullamore has a population only about 200 but an old grain silo – sans spider – and a more modern long flat grain storage shed hidden a little way along the railway line.

There used to be a passenger rail service but the advent of the modern car has seen the decay of the old station and platform.

The ubiquitous road trains now cart much of the load that used to be carried by train.

And as I walked away from the train above another pulled up.

This is rice hay that is used for cattle feed after the rice has been stripped. The bloke driving was from a farm about 200 km farther up the road. He had just come from 300 km away and purchased all this hay for his own stock.

Another 50 km and we are 900 from Melbourne. The ground is still red, the clouds in the sky will not water this paddock of oats but hopefully some will come soon.

If the rain doesn’t come the oats will probably be cut and baled for fodder. Although this will provide the farmer with some income – perhaps not enough to cover the cost of planting the crop in the first place.

This is a White-winged Chough.In size it is a little smaller than the Little Crow which is smaller than the Australian Raven. The wings only show white underneath when the bird flies.

Sixteen km on and I must show you the next town. If I didn’t stop sometimes between the compulsory 50 km marks you might not believe that there are any towns in inland Australia.

Narromine has a population of about 3800 and is a favourite location for gliding. It is located on the Macquarie River. In the floods of April 1990, the river peaked at a record 15.93 metres (52.3 ft).

And a large accumulation of grain silos of a more modern iteration.

I will stop here, because I’ll have a lot to say when we get to Gilgandra in about 80 km.

References about Saltbush only some of many;

https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/plants/field-crops-and-pastures/pastures/saltbush

https://wildfoodgirl.com/2014/orache-lambs-quarters/

http://tasteaustralia.biz/bushfood/saltbush/