We left our dusty, prickle infested bush campsite after the races and decided that a visit to Birdsville is best done away from race time! We headed to Innamincka with a stay at Cordello Downs boasting the largest shearing shed in the country. It was unlike any other shearing shed I have seen. The property is still a working cattle station and although we couldn't camp near it, we found a nice little bush camp a few kilometres down the road. It had been a long day's drive following plumes of dust from all the vehicles exiting Birdsville.

We were looking forward to getting to Innamincka and seeing all the sites we had missed in 2010 when we were forced to leave under the threat of rising floodwaters. How different the country appeared in dry conditions. We made it to the Dig Tree site and discovered we were quite a walk from the toilets, oh well, anything was better than the portaloos at Birdsville...

It was so hot and we were keen to have a bush shower or a jump in the Cooper. So, swim we did! It was surprisingly refreshing and we know why Burke & Wills spent so much time in the area, they were reluctant to navigate away from the Cooper.

We had booked a motel room in Innamincka for two nights as Vinnie was keen to charge the battery and try to get the fridge working again. Not to mention a soft bed, a shower and a toilet that you didn't have to get fully dressed and take a hike to. We were keen to celebrate his birthday at the pub as we'd had a memorable meal there when we visited three years ago. The restaurant did not disappoint and we had a lovely night together. Steve, Steph, Rob and Jan had travelled to other campsites around the region and returned to camp at the common for the birthday celebration.

The flies were a problem when camping and we decided we would head out to Coongie Lakes a day earlier and only stay one night instead of the planned two nights. We had heard the road was rough but didn't really know what to expect. After the Simpson tracks, we figured we'd seen the worst of rough roads. It was a 60km/hr road so we took our time and were agreeably surprised at the abundance of birdlife at the lake, it was a really special place and we found a great little camping spot on what we will call "Steve's Isthmus". Steve cooked damper and we enjoyed the sunset and sunrise, although we were a bit concerned with the grey clouds, our new "old tent" was not waterproof!

We left early the next morning, hoping to make Cameron Corner (our third corner) by nightfall. It was not to be. Steve and Steph had stopped a couple of times hearing a knocking sound in the back of the car, they couldn't find a problem until they felt a bump and Steve looked in his rear view mirror to see his rear wheel rolling off into the distance...

Fortunately they were travelling quite slowly and only scraped along the road for a few metres before they stopped. By the time we turned around and came back Steve was surveying the damage and Steph was thinking they were going to be stuck here for days. Vinnie and I headed into town, another 30km, to try to find a mechanic and ring NRMA, who quoted $3480 to send a rescue vehicle from Copley (6 hours away) to get the car to the nearest registered depot. Oh dear...or words to that effect. What to do. We could not contact Steve, no mobile service, so we had to make a decision. We called into what remotely appeared to be a mechanical repair shop and the owner sent a couple of blokes off to check the damage thinking they could remove the part, take it back to the depot and then return and reinstall. There were a few anxious hours waiting on the road, fortunately we were only passed by 5 vehicles.

Six hours later we were on the road again, we booked into the motel at Innamincka again and the others camped, grateful that it only cost $650 and the wheel was mended. Steve has an explanation of why he thinks it occurred but it was a bit technical for my wee brain so I wouldn't do it justice by explaining it here!

Our battery did not charge so we were again dependent on our friends for cold storage. It didn't really matter, we had little food that needed refrigeration, I was hanging out for fresh fruit & vegies!

We moved on to Cameron Corner and hoped we would make Tibooburra for two nights. We'd had enough excitement for the time being, we were ready for some downtime!