I spoke way too soon...

So our bags were packed, portacot was in, cars were fueled up, and kids had big smiles on their faces ready to go to the swim camp in Bedourie when we saw the smoke. 'No way! we were so close to making it out!' We drove up to the neighbours, on whose property the fire currently is, and who were also driving to the camp with us, worked out that there was no way we could go. Then drove home and piled out of the car again. 'Sorry kids theres more fires'. Al has disappeared off into the smoke again, to be seen again hopefully unsinged who know when. The kids and I and our neighbours will try in the morning to head to town. The clouds are building again though so maybe it will rain and put the fire out. Maybe then the rivers will be up too high to cross to go to town...These fires are a lot closer to both our houses, and in areas of high fuel loads, so this time we are all praying for rain.

Emu hamburgers

A poor emu got its leg stuck in a fence and broke it the other day. Al dispatched it and brought it home in pieces. We minced it up today (you should have seen the drumstick). Pulling off the odd feather brought back memories of a rooster cull in Tasy... They were yummy hamburgers and supposedly very lean, high in protein and iron, so all good. It would be easy to grab another, but they are too lovely, and native for that matter. All you have to do if you do ever want to get near one (to take a photo maybe), when you spot an emu, is run around for a moment then fall on to your back, waving your arms and legs in the air as much as you can. I like to add the odd stick up of a leg or head to keep them interested. Being curious creatures, they'll saunter up as a group, heads outstretched, trying to work out what on earth is going on. They can get really close, until their strong legs look a bit too close for comfort anyway.

Wet storms after cup day

Before cup day come the dry storms, then you get the bad fires. After cup day come the wet storms, the fires burn hot, but go out with the rain. This has proven true to the day for us. Fires were massacring Ethabuka, shooting flames up 100m in the air and turning forests to red dust. Then came Melbourne Cup day, the fires subsided, and everyone went home. The next big storm (all the fires have been started by lightning strikes), hit us fast and hard. We were so exhausted we couldn't even contemplate more fire, but true to form, this storm brought rain with it. The sky was ablaze with lightning, thuder roared and crackled, reclaiming this space as it's own. Living creatures crouched down and trembled, we watched transfixed. Well, Al watched, I have a problem with lightning, I am fascinated by it and can't look away, but am just ready to dodge it if it hits. I can't help it, but if I'm in the open I can't seem to keep my feet still and dart around like Golem. So the rain turned the dust to mud, put out the fires the lightning started and turned our roads to mush. If there is any more rain tonight we won't be able to get to the week long swim camp in town tomorrow, or anything else for a while either...hmm how much food do we have here?

a gentle breeze

Out to the East is a spectacular apricot pink thunder cloud, stretching across the gibber plain and glowing in the last of the suns rays. Above me as I swing gently in the hammock is a big bright white moon, instantly silhouetting two ducks flying by. As I crane my neck behind me, past the vivid red flame tree bursting with flower, the orange orb of a sun has its last glance at the desert as it slips behind the horizon. It's a moment in life that I was discussing with a beautiful friend just the other day. Amidst the fire, carnage, heat and outrageous hours we have all been working out here, comes a moment in life, so special that you wouldn't give it up for the world. Just like parenthood. Despite the mountain of dishes, the awaiting schoolwork, the endless chases after a toddler, there comes just one moment of "we built a flying plane submarine that is going to a magic land where we are going to science the snakes". That is enough to remind me that despite all the crap that makes me cry, I wouldn't give it up, any of it, for anything. I just glanced up to see a black shouldered kite hovering in the slate grey blue sky, quivering its wings frantically to hold itself in place as it held its prey in its gaze. Diving down. it swooped, but missed, then wheeled around, off to bed for the night, to make way for the owls and nightjars which will soon be out.

what happened to the smallest goanna in the world?

Well, here I am, sitting alone in a house (with 3 small children) in far Western Queensland. Dust storm blowing up a gale outside, lightning strikes predicted, all the fire crews down at Ethabuka, hours away...The fires were contained on Cravens yesterday, and we were all heading off to camp the night at a perrenial waterhole on Ethabuka, for a meeting. Happy to be out of the house and with the promise of checking pitfall traps and fish traps, the kids dusted off their bathers and excitedly piled in the car. A 4 car convoy led us over many, many dunes, until arriving finally at the ratcatcher camp (otherwise known as esteemed scientists.) They were able to display the smallest goanna in the world to the kids, which looked much like an Aboriginal painting it was so decorated and beautiful. We then approached the house, where we needed to check on a small fire approaching from the South. The small fire was by now a horizon filled with smokestacks, piled up in great mushroom clouds bursting with explosive heat. The kids and I just as rapidly got back in the car, and got the *#*##*#* out of there. 'Sorry kids, now we have to travel over 50 or so sand dunes and a couple more hours back again....this time mostly airborne'. So the fire now has raced with massive gusts past the homestead down there, no-one is hurt, but many many many hectares of just recovering arid zone are now torched. It's fast approaching the neighbours, after cutting a clear swathe through the property. At times like this, in this weather, all people can do is stand and stare as it goes past, and feel as insignificant in this landscape as we truly are....

crispy kangaroos

Alright I'll through some stats at you, just 'cos everyone loves them?

Our neighbours to the North have lost about 250000 acres, to the West have lost nearly 1 million, the property to their west lost over 1 million acres. Our neighbours to the South have lost most of their back paddock, which is about 300 000 acres in total. The entire Simpson desert National park in Qld bordering Ethabuka has been burnt. There are currently fires alight on Cravens Peak burning the NW section. Crews were out all through last night backburning. It hasn't come too close to our homestead yet luckily, and hopefully there won't be more lightning strikes....Tasmania's looking pretty good right now!

wasp faces and sand lessons

'Did you know that wasps have such scary faces and legs because they lived a long time ago with the dinosaurs? I know 'cos Asha told me so.' This is words of wisdom from Clay this morning in our school lesson. He is coming along in leaps and bounds as he sits alongside Asha in our school lessons. He has really picked up on the reptiles here. His attention span is probably typical for a 4 year old, but he will sit and study the reptile ID book for ages, entranced with working out which snakes live in 'our' desert. Quite often there is a photo of a reptile which was taken on one of the reserves here. We did school this morning up on the dunes. We spotted a sandy goanna on the way and Clay and I got close enough to touch it. He was so excited to see it wiggle as it ran away. Up on the dune we looked at different patterns, the dunes in the distance, wind ripples on the sand. Then Asha proudly spotted a snake track, moving right across in front of us. Luckily the kids learnt how to tell if it had moved through before or after us, and it was before. We checked out some cool bugs and rocks with a magnifying glass, picked some flowers for the new Field officer arriving today, then went back to the car as we were all starting to sweat. It was about 9am, and too hot to enjoy being outside. We then went back to the house and made posters of what we'd seen. Don't get stars in your eyes though, most of my days for the last month have been very long and in 4 walls as Al has been out chasing fires...and they're still burning....