After two massive stints in sweltering heat, we decided to get up super early to beat the hottest temps, which made a big difference. We were really in the bush now. The view from the beast changed the further west we went.

We stopped in at a few little country towns on the way, to make sure we caught as many memorable sights as we could. Check out this amazing artwork in a little town called Barcaldine. It’s titled “The Tree of Knowledge” and it is dedicated to all the pioneering men and women of the west who played a leading role in the union movement.

While in Longreach we checked out the Stockman’s Hall of Fame. This is a massive museum dedicated to our Australian pioneering history. There were so many incredible things to see here that it would be impossible to list them all. It took us over half a day to get through the whole museum. We were literally chased out the door at closing time in order to see everything. The girls had a great time imagining life in the olden days.

One of the highlights for this stop was attending the little country church on Sunday. I could have cried to hear worship again! It was beautiful. These guys use Hillsong backing tracks, but still do an amazing job. We met lots of colourful people, including Kevin (formerly Mad Dog Mudford) and Dee Mudford. It so happened that these guys were staying at the same caravan park as us, so we got to hang out for an evening with these incredibly inspirational folks! This was definitely a God-thing.

The day we left Longreach we stopped in to the School of Long Distance Education (formerly the School of the Air). This was so brilliant. We got to go on a tour of the facility and see teachers in action. What a strange ‘classroom’ they have. Holed up in sound-proof booths with a headset and a computer, they are a special breed! It was fantastic for the girls to see a map and get an appreciation for the distances involved for some of these families. The area these guys cover is bigger than Victoria and Tasmania combined!