28 September. Not much to report today. It has been raining all day. In the morning we waited for bees in Solanum mauritianum but the rain kept them away. After a while, and without hope that the sky would clear, we decide to leave and start our drive back south. It is a long way to Brisbane (about 1,000 km from here), and perhaps we will have better luck with the weather tomorrow.
We stop in Finch Hatton gorge, at the base of Mount Dalrymple, which at 1,260m above sea level is one of Queensland’s tallest mountains. The vegetation is amazing and we reach a pool in the river called the Ring of Fire. An ominous board suggests caution while exploring the boulders around the gorge. Others have died while miscalculating the risks of navigating the slippery rocks and cold pools. Daniel, unfazed jumps in the water and explores a small waterfall. The name Ring of Fire comes from a plant that produces red flowers in a crown-shaped structure. Sadly is not flowering at the moment. We explore the trail a bit more and keep driving south.
It has continued to rain into the evening. The night surprises us while approaching the campground for tonight, which is located in a working farm south of Rockhampton. We are glad to pull over at last, as thick rain and fast trucks along the Bruce Highway make for a scary combination. In the campground, we eat an early dinner and go to bed. The camp kitchen has some very interesting decorations, and people here seem to like quite a bit Ned Kelly, the infamous outlaw.
