We booked into the Top Tourist which is a very large park with lots of empty spots. Has some shade trees and a number of pull through sites. After lunch we went for a drive to explore Longreach. Got some information re the Stockman's Museum and the Qantas Museum before driving out to the Lily Pools. Stopped at a free camp on the way near the Thomson River. Quite good. The Lily Pools were somewhat difficult to find and not as good as they could have been because of high water levels. Looked like a lovely spot but couldn't get that close because of the flooding. We stopped by the Longreach Sale Yards on the way back to town.
Girls checked out the Arts and Crafts Gallery before we did a bit of shopping. The grocery store's shelves were almost bare so thankfully we weren't real short on supplies.
Sunday morning we had a big Bacon & Eggs breakfast with the Ransleys. We then walked to the Stockman's Museum to watch the 11am show. The show was not exactly what we expected as involved more talking and poetry than cowboy action which we had expected. I found it interesting still but we had all been expecting something different. The Bullock demonstration was quite good. Sandra had a near emergency during the show as she discovered a missing diamond in the anniversary ring I had given her several years ago. She was almost sick but as luck would have she looked down and saw it sparkling on a board under the fellow sitting beside her. She snatched it up and never told us until after the show was over.
We then toured the Museum for a few hours before heading home for a late lunch. The Museum is fantastic and the pass is good for two days so we will return again tomorrow. Too much to see in one go as several levels and so many stories to read about. A great display on the Royal Flying Doctor Service was one of the highlights.
Monday morning we were off early to the Qantas Founders Museum. We toured the museum for a few hours before our scheduled 11AM tour of the 707. The Museum was fantastic again with a number of great displays and wonderful stories about the birth of Qantas and the individuals that were behind it. The 707 tour was a replacement for the 747 tour which was unfortunately closed because it sank during the wet weather. We had heard a lot of good things about the 747 tour and hoped the replacement 707 tour would be a good substitute. Unfortunately it was not good at all and the first time in our year and 40000KM of travelling, that we felt truly ripped off. The plane was crowded, unlit, no power (air conditioned) and dirty. They crowded about 20 people into the plane and we couldn't even all fit in one area to hear the tour guide. I have written a complaint email to the Museum and have heard back from them already with further follow up promised by their CEO. I think they know that the tour is not up to standard, and hopefully they will take corrective action as the Museum is such a wonderful tourist site and the Qantas story so incredible. After the disappointing tour we did return to the museum where we spent another hour or so enjoying the displays and stories. The stories about how the 747 and 707 came to the museum were both fascinating!
We returned to the caravan park for lunch before returning to the Stockman's Hall of Fame for another few hours touring and learning about Australia's past. One of the interesting points is a number of unsung hero plaques describing the lives and accomplishments of ordinary people who did incredible things as they struggled to survive in a very harsh environment. One fellow who was a shearer had 12 sons and 8 daughters all of whom became involved in the sheep industry. We all felt enlightened but exhausted when we returned to our caravans. You could probably spend a week in the Hall of Fame to see and read everything. The Qantas Museum could easily take a few days as well to absorb everything. We really enjoyed our few days in Longreach and both of these tourist attractions are must sees for anyone travelling through central Queensland. I would however recommend skipping the plane tours until they have the 747 back in full operation.
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