Wills and King

On our day off, we took a drive to a couple of local attractions. First stop was King's Marker. This is the place where they found John King, the sole survivor of the four men from the ill-fated Burke and Wills expedition who reached the Gulf of Carpentaria. The expedition was the first to cross Australia from south to north, finding a route across the continent from the settled areas of Victoria to the Gulf of Carpentaria. King survived with the help of the Aboriginals.

About 7km away, we visited Wills Grave. William John Wills was an English surveyor who also trained for a while as a surgeon. He was the second-in-command of the Burke and Wills expedition. He died alone after he was too weak to continue with Burke and King.

Dust Dust Dust

We experienced our first dust storm today. The morning started off really hot. Then the wind hit and started gusting by mid-morning. At times, visibility was no more than a few meters but that could be an illusion on my part when I could hardly keep my eyes opened! Having to run in and out in my housekeeping duty, I was handed a pair of eyewear and disposable mask. One would think I was handling hazardous linens!

Storm approaching

TJ meanwhile, had the task of unloading the delivery. I was told he had to take cover behind the forklift when a big windy gust blew up the dust.

TJ securing the door

The day ended with a sprinkle of rain, just enough to stain and smear everything red! Gotta work to earn my keeps, I guess.

Coongie Lake

On our day off, we went to Coongie Lake, about 2 hour drive from the hotel. Coongie Lake is part of a freshwater wetland system in north-eastern South Australia, which includes lakes, channels, billabongs, shallow floodplains, deltas, and interdune swamps.

It was my first time doing 4wd driving including going over sandy dunes. The lake is shallow, up to just a bit over the ankle. We saw a wild pig in the distance and loads of ducks, pelicans and birds.  There were plenty of mussels in the muddy ground, which we were told are edible. To date, we have yet to try it.

The Roster

Unlike our previous jobs, we get assigned various areas and jobs here, hence our title, 'All-rounder.' The roster is set weekly where we get the schedule of our assigned  jobs and time. We have been on housekeeping, "dixie-bashing", as TJ calls it, bar, breakfast and outdoor yard.

 I now have a new-found skill, folding hospital corner when making the bed.