Winton Home of Dinosaurs and Waltzing Matilda

Winton - home of Dinosaurs and Waltzing Matilda and the  wilting great southern Red Elephant who is passing through.  Well we left Karumba and headed south it was a big days drive of over 400km.  We stopped at the famous Bourke and Wills roadhouse for yummy pies for lunch.  We have had three pies on this trip and all agreed that the Bourke and Wills pies where the best.  We then drove onto Cloncurry just for an overnight stop and then the next morning on the road early for Winton.  Since leaving the east coast we have had temperatures in the mid to high 30's.  Was totally not expecting such high temperatures and we are all suffering.

Bourke and HIlls Roadhouse

We are definitely in the outback, the land is flat dry grass, spindly trees if any, Emu's and Kangaroos can spotted from the car windows.  Roadtrains are making their mark, they were scary and exciting at first but now they are just exciting.  We have scene one with 4 carriages,if that is what you call them.  The land although flat and dry does change slightly with the colour of the dirt , rocks and anthills.

Winton is a little town it has 3 claims to fame one being is it's where qantas was dreamed up and the first board meeting was held.  Second it's where AB Paterson penned Waltzing Matilda and it was sung for the first time in the Gregory Hotel of Winton.  The third is this is a place where Dinosaurs bones have been found.

AB Paterson and Waltzing Matilda Winton

Setting up his Swaggie Camp

So we went to the Waltzing Matilda,that was very good and made you feel proud to be an Aussie.  So we learnt all about Banjo Patterson, Waltzing Matilda, Swaggies and a whole lot about Wintons history.  The kids got a great education on Swaggies and squatters and troopers and a jolly jumbuck.  Why do people not say Jolly anymore?  I think we should all start using Jolly, go on use it today!  It so JOLLY hot and dusty here in the outback!

Dinosaur Vertabrate half revealed

Onto the Dinosaurs.  Well what a great time we had.  I think a certain pink person in the family might be keen to be a digger upperer of dinosaur bones.  First we got to see the two Dinosaurs they have semi  dug up and put together.  Banjo and Matilda  what an amazing site to see real fossilised dinosaur bones and compare then to a cows bones and our bones.  We then walked over to the Lab were they work on uncovering the bones.  We were shown how they are removed from the site, wrapped up and protected.  Then they are either painstakingly put back together,or, the dirt and rocks surrounded the bones are carefully removed.  You would really need a lot of patience.  Our two guides were young and had studied either geology or palentology and they were so passionate and enthusiastic.

Fossilized Dinosaur Bones

At the front of our park in Winton was a small farm of animals we had fluffy chooks and their chickens a wooly sheep, fuzzy llama and three kid goats.  Grace and James spent a lot time making friends with the animals.  Our site backed onto a horse paddock, they also made one specially horsey friend.  As we left this morning James who is always a little scared of animals called over his shoulder "good bye horsey, I love you."

James and his Horsey