A long weekend on the farm

We headed to my dad’s farm for the Cairns Show long weekend.  Kibbim and Seffy have no idea about real city shows.  They only know Frog Gully, the TI equivalent of the Cairns Show held in the last week of July on a small plot of land opposite the sewerage plant, called Frog Gully.  We always know when Frog Gully (the show) is about to start because the council slash the metre high grass at Frog Gully (the location).

     I love Frog Gully because of its simplicity. There are usually a couple of rides, a stall where you shoot things to win stuffed toys, a stall where you knock down ducks down to win stuffed toys and a jumping castle.  There are a few food stalls selling the Dagwood Dogs, Fairy Floss and bucket of hot chips.  One night is enough for the kids and for our wallets.

     I wasn’t entertaining even an hour at the Cairns Show. 

     Holy Cross school had a pupil free day on the Thursday which gave us a four-day weekend.  Where else to spend four days than my dad’s farm at Minbum, half way between Millaa Milla and Malanda on the Atherton Tablelands.  

     First, we stopped at Atherton to buy some warm clothes from Vinnies.

     Then we headed to the farm: 125 acres of rolling paddocks and 2.5 km of the meandering Dirran Creek full of platypus and lined with rainforest.  My challenge is always to spot tree kangaroos which were plentiful before Cyclone Larry.  In June this year, I saw my first three since Larry. 

     The farm in July is freezing and often wet and muddy.  I call this region the Atherton Scarflands because a scarf is necessary to keep out the biting wind. 

I think polar fleece and a parka would also help.

The weather doesn’t worry Seffy and Kibby who seem immune to the icy clime. 

As soon as we arrived, they rushed to the cattle yards. 

     They were desperate to see their friend, Coco, a brindle Brahman cow.  She was destined for the abattoir in November last year until Kibby and Seffy visited.  Coco started following them around.  Naturally, they patted and fed her and eventually gave her a name. The advantage of being given a name is that you must die a natural death on the farm (this means you don't end up as mince or T-bone).

Making dinner: Some headway on the shoe issue.  Lost some ground on the shirt even though it’s freesing inside at night on the farm.

     I slept till eight each morning, pinned to the bed by five layers of blankets.  I woke to a babble of voices in the kitchen as breakfast was being prepared.

       There is a lot a lot to do on the farm, even when it is raining.

A win on the shirt and shoes.  

     The heavy cloud strips the landscape of vibrant colour and there is ‘mizzle’, a cross between mist and drizzle for which this area is famous. Sometimes the rain at Minbun can become a little overwhelming.  That’s when we whack the bikes in brother, Stephen’s ute and drive to hopefully drier and slightly warmer climes, the Atherton mountain bike track. 

"Shoo, cows.  Off the track."

     We rode the 6.8km Ridgy Didge track, 3.4 km of which was up hill.  Naturally, Kibbim and Sutchy took off, hungry for speed and the challenge of not falling down a steep ravine while negotiating rocks, tree trunks and mud.  Seffy found it a bit tough at times on the uphill bit. 

     We had a few tears and declarations of ‘never riding again.’  It was a good thing we were 1 km from the summit because promises of financial treats along with fish and chips and pies on the way home got her going and then it was downhill all the way.

     On the way home, I made the mistake of driving past the Majestic Theatre in Malanda and Seffy spotted the poster advertising Despicable Me 2 on at 5 pm in an hour.  I was not armed with an arsenal of excuses to get out of driving back to town.

     Sitting through 1.5 hours of animated characters performing superhuman feats and talking in silly voices was the most tortuous experience of my life. The best bits were catching Seffy’s giant grin in the glow of the screen and the Barry White and Village People numbers. I spent a lot of time admiring the old theatre with a tongue and groove ceiling and wooden archways.  I especially loved the canvas deck chairs.  It was the best value - $28 for an adult, a student and a child!

     Driving back to the farm along the highway past the massive B-Doubles (at 7 pm!) in the dark and the mizzle (which reflected the headlights) constituted my most terrifying experience. I managed it at 70 km/hour.  I've never done 70 km/hour on TI.  Should have gone to the Cairns Show.  Tomorrow, I'll need a day off driving to recover.