It was a very muggy night last night as the air con in the room was broken and we were unsuccessful in fixing it. My back was aching like hell when I got up, and I think it was caused by the horse riding according to the girls. They were experienced horse riders so their advice was probably correct. I think the mechanical bull pushed me over the edge as I kept going on it for more! Breakfast this morning was as of yesterday, although I ate lots of muesli with the beans and toast for some reason.
Today I opted to go out with some of the people working on the cattle ranch in the morning to see some of the things they get up to on a typical day. A short drive out into the outback over these rocky roads going up and down, we arrived at this water point which needed fixing. I had to take a back seat role here as the big guy who ran the place was doing the work. I played fetch with one of their dogs called 'Dog' instead.
My guide was determined to find me a snake this morning as we had a good chat about them over breakfast, where he even told me his friend once chopped one in half, and then went back for it an hour later and it was still alive and bit him! We were unfortunately unsuccessful but I still saw loads of wild kangaroos, a dingo, and of course lots of cattle!
Continuing through the outback, the next job was to collect wood, and despite not being trusted with the chainsaw, still played my part in collecting the wood. To make things interesting however, my guide decided he wanted to load this massive tree onto the truck we were travelling in! This involved using a chain one end, and a electrical tow the other, which came from the front. I controlled the electrical device whilst the other two guys I was with did all the heavy work. Like usual I was treated as the guest! When finally loaded I was told to sit on top of the log which was attached by two single loops of a chain either side. It was a very bumpy ride back home as it felt unstable. And every time he went over a hill I had to proper hold onto the car roof to avoid falling off!
When arriving back to the camp and unloading the logs into the wood pile which are used for the cooking, I went out for a little walk round the outside section looking at the vegetable garden, and the aquacktic centre which had things like chicken, geese and emus. Other animals out here were the likes of donkeys and goats. Upon returning to the camp after walking through the horse field and round the nearly constructed water hole, lunch was nearly ready. The girls also returned from their horse riding, which was too advanced for me!
Lunch was the same as yesterday which I took full advantage of being my last supper at Kroombit. Apparently the meals are all very similar each day using the locally produced meats and vegetables for food. Their cattle is apparently slaughtered by a butcher though as they get through so much meat at the farm!
After lunch through pure chance I was given the opportunity to prepare a duck, right from the first stage. Heading into the duck enclosure, my guide grabbed a duck and before I could blink he had broken its neck, twisted it about three times, and was left with two parts which were both still moving. He passed me the body which was headless and still frantically flapping, although he said it was simply just the nerve cells reacting to what had just happened. When bringing the ducks back to camp he hosed them down and plunged them into boiling hot water which loosens the pores where the feathers were. I then pulled off all the feathers, although I wasn't very good at getting all the fiddly bits. My guide then showed me where to cut the legs, anus and neck, from where I had to put my hand inside and gut the duck. It was then taken to the kitchen for further preparation!
I was told I was pretty good for my first go, I just needed spend more time plucking the little feathers. After cleaning myself up of all the blood on me, I went for another little walk, this time along the road to see the views. When returning I just relaxed in their bar area for the afternoon. I love how the place is literally a working cattle ranch and that everything is for real and not just put on for us. By about half 4 we left the farm after such an amazing experience ready for transfer back to Biloela.
On the coach from Biloela to Rockhampton they put on a film called the Sapphires which I had watched back home with my free cinema tickets, and it was well worth a second watch. By 7.45 I arrived back into Rockhampton and was picked up by the yha minibus which saved my legs walking back across town. I simply spent the evening relaxing from here, using their free WiFi and watching tv on the sofa to rest my aching back. It was also nice to air my feet out here as they were pretty well used throughout the farm stay. Before long I headed to bed, tempted to have a lie in due to the fact I have nothing major planned for tomorrow!
No comments:
Post a Comment