Sorry for the swearing but although the sun was back out today it was still very cold. The thermometer struggled to reach 13 and the wind was icy. We were not to be deterred as we really ae quite cosy with the heater on in the caravan. Anyway we headed to a museum that I thought Rob would be interested in. “The Southern Cross” aka “The Shed” houses a replica plane of the Southern Cross and the Lady Southern Cross. Sir Charles Kingsford Smith in the Southern Cross visited Balranald when he was touring around Australia and the working replica plane was built and used for a TV mini-series about “Smithy”. Our local guide was extremely knowledgeable and we were amazed and impressed with all the other engineering feats built by locals over the years which were never patented. We saw the forerunner of air-conditioners, sleepers in trucks from the 1930’s, a round fridge and many other interesting pieces displayed in the museum. I didn’t realise that Burke and Wills were camped near Balranald during their expedition and the trunk of the tree with the camp number that had been carved into it, was proudly on display. Our guide spent over an hour with us! We had a coffee at the tourist information centre before going for a frog-hunting walk around the town. We returned to the van for lunch and then headed out to check out more of the town. I visited the cemetery and Rob checked out the golf course. From here I went for a “nature/history” walk. Balranald has produced small information boards for all the locals who served in the First and Second World Wars. They are located along all the main streets and special walking tracks. I did a nature walk through the “Lowbidgee Wetlands” and thoroughly enjoyed the combination of history and nature.
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