Monday 1st July Leeton, Hay, Cotton and Birds

We had an easy drive from Balranald to Leeton arriving around lunchtime. We set up, did some shopping, had lunch and then decided to visit the Tourist Information Centre. We had decided to visit Leeton because it was on the ABC program, Back Roads and seemed like a very interesting town due to many reasons. The town has large numbers of immigrants and refugees, who have been welcomed into the town. As well as this, the town is known for its Art deco architecture. The woman at the information centre was extremely helpful. (We spent nearly 1 hour talking to her.) She said that we should stay for another couple of weeks to enjoy the Art Deco Festival which will be on from the 12^th to 14^th July. I don’t think Rob would agree to that somehow! We left the centre with many, many possible activities of things we could do while staying here. We decided to visit the nearby Fivebough Wetlands to stretch our legs. We were enjoying the walk but had only seen groups of kangaroos before we discovered a bird viewing shelter overlooking a wetland area full of water and birds. Here we met a lovely local birdwatcher called Anne and she was able to tell us much about the area and the birds which visit. She was soon joined by another keen birdwatcher, Paul, who just happened to be the retired Mayor of Leeton. He was very friendly too and was extremely happy that I had remembered him featuring in the Back Roads TV program. He said that his main focus now he is retired, is help the refugees settle into the town and that keeps him very busy. He said he is very proud of the town and what it offers to people who have come from all over the world and some horrific situations.