Life Trove

September 30, 2026

Birthday breakfast

On Saturday, I met up with Shushann, Xenia, Chris, Krissula and Jane as Frenchy's for a delicious breakfast to celebrate my birthday on Tuesday. I had the most amazing mushroom tartine.

After breakfast, I walked to Balmoral Beach and then all the way to Manly Spit along the water.

Birthday messages from family & friends on the day

From Mum

From Matt

From Sam

From Yogi

From Shushann

From Marion

Cards

From Shushann

From Xenia

September 14, 2026

Trip to NSW Outback 2026: Overview & Highlights

Places explored

All posts related to the trip

Itinerary at a glance

2 nights Mildura
1 night Menindee Lakes
2 nights Kinchega National Park
2 nights Silverton
3 nights Mutawintji National Park
1 night Menindee Lakes
3 nights Mungo National Park
1 night Huttah-Kulkyne National Park
1 night Mildura

Day by day itinerary

Aug 28: Sydney → Mildura

Travel to Mildura by train & coach (15 hours). Arrive after 11 pm.
Late checkin to 7th Street Motel.

Aug 29: Mildura & Wentworth

Get Avis hire car (Volkswagon Polo).
Buy 2 power banks because my new power bank from Amazon is faulty.
Drive to Wentworth and visit PS Ruby Paddle Steamer and Rod's model paddle steamer display.
Visit Wentworth gaol.
Visit Thegoa Lagoon.
Sunset at Perry Sandhills.
Drive back to Mildura for amazing steak at Corporate Moose.
Overnight at 7th Street Motel.

Aug 30: Mildura → Menindee Lake

Visit King's Billabong.
Shop for camping food + filter coffee & sieve at Woolworths.
Drive to Menindee Lakes and set camp at Copi Hollow Caravan park.
Drive into town for meal at Maiden's Hotel, delighted to find they have wifi. They assure me road into Kinchega should be fine and give me a map of the park.

Aug 31: Menindee Lake → Kinchega National Park

Drive into Kinchega National Park, euphoric the road in is open and fine.
Photograph the Kinchega Woodshed & Shearer's Quarters.
Drive to Cawndilla Campsite and set up camp.
Walk to the edge of Cawndilla Lake to photograph dead trees and birds (pelicans, swamp harrier, ducks).
Go back for an amazing sunset.
My first camp meal of soup + tuna & beans.

Sep 1: Kinchega National Park

Photograph the trees at sunrise.
Explore the lake to the left, photgraphing flying birds and black swans.
Enjoy my 1st cup of filter coffee (with sieve) and work on computer for a while.

Sep 2: : Kinchega National Park → Silverton

Goto right on lake where less algae and dead fish to photograph beautiful reflections.
Drive to Broken Hill where I buy gas from camping store, new blow up mattress from Kmart and camp food
Drive to Silverton where I set up camp at Penrose Park.
Photograph Silverton town including the iconic Silverton Hotel.
To Mundi Mundi viewpoint for sunset.
Overnight again at Penrose Park
Charge my stuff.

Sep 3: Silverton & Broken Hill

Sunrise photography in town including buildings and churches
Visit Umberumberka Reservoir and meet a fellow birder.
Visit the Mad Max 2 museum
Do the Broken Hill Heritage walk with views of post office
Confirm Mutawintji is open and book 2 nights.
Line of Load miners memorial and view
Sculptures in the dessert at sunset
Drive back to Silverton for a fillet steak at Silverton Hotel
Overnight again at Penrose Park

Sep 4: Silverton → Mutawintji National Park

Drive towards Mutawintji. Incredible flock of kites on way.
Google gets the directions wrong.
Arrive relivied and elated.
Walk a bit of Homestead Gorge. Incredible boulder.
Campsite amazing with hot showers.

Sep 5: Mutawintji National Park

Incredible Mutawintji Gorge walk.
Do Homestead Gorge and Rock Hole loop.
Lie under stars.

Sep 6: Mutawintji National Park

Full monty of Homestead river walks (Bynguano loop, Homestead Gorge, Rock Hole loop)
Meet Jenny. Lives in Cairns. Artist on extended leave road trip.
West Ridge walk for sunset. Beautiful flowers and galahs. Pesky flies.

Sep 7: Mutawintji National Park → Broken Hill → Menindee Lakes

Mutawintji gorge walk again.
Drive to Broken Hill for food plus gas plus car cleaning + book Mungo camping & tour.
Copi Hollow Caravan park again. Good to be back.
Maiden Hotel to message family & friends.
Charge my stuff in my tent.

Sep 8: Broken Hill → Mungo National Park

Work on computer. 3 cups of coffee. Very wired today.
Drive to Mungo via Pooncarie (where fill up with petrol)
Mungo Lodge set up tent.
To Wall of China and Red Top for sunset.
To Lodge to WhatsApp.
Speaking to lots of people, in an outgoing mode of being.

Sep 9: Mungo National Park

Red Tops at sun rise.
Do the self drive tour stopping at Mailee & dunes.
Yogi not doing well, I compose a message.
Red Tops at sunset.

Sep 10: Mungo National Park

Walls of China tour at 9 am
Walls of China sunset tour
Great conversations. Eg Ron photographer

Sep 11: Mungo National Park → Mildura → Hattah-Kulkyne National Park

Mildura warf walk, stopping for a mushroom meal where I organise Hattah.
Shop & petrol.
Drive to Hattah - Kulkyne National Park and set up camp.
Walk around the lake.

Sep 12: Hattah-Kulkyne National Park → Mildura

Go down to lake for sunrise.
On way back, meet Sonia and listen to her make music.
Do the nature drive and meet a lovely fellow birding couple.
Drive to Mildura and check into 7th Street Motel
Clean the car and take it back.

Sep 13: Mildura → Sydney

4 am coach to Wagga Wagga, then another coach to Sydney. Arrive back around 10 pm as we turn back to fetch someone.
Listen to Role Model on Spotify.

Priceless moments

Getting to see the outback after so much rain with amazing flowers and lots of water in the lakes and gorges.
Perry Sand Hills at sunset.
Mildura: The steak at Corporate Moose.
Kings Billabong: Black swan silhouettes
Menindee Lake pub: Relief when I get internet. Friendly pub staff give me a map and reassure me re Kinchega. Make booking.
Kinchega National Park: Drive in, euphoric roads are ok. Kinchega Woolshed. Cawndilla Lake: Trees at sunset & sunrise, photos of flying raptors & pelicans.
Silverton: Mundi Mundi sunset. Reservoir. Mad Max 2 museum. Old buildings in the early morning sun. The iconic hotel for delicious dinners.
Broken Hill: Gorgeous old buildings, Line of Load views over the town, Living desert sculptures.
Mutawintji: Flock of kites. Getting there when I had written it off. Mutawintji & Homestead Gorge. The views from the loop walks. Sunset from Western Ridge. Wedge-tailed Eagle. Ease of navigation with downloaded map. Meeting Jenny. Lie under the stars. The magpies at sunset. Well-being of 10 for 2 days in a row.
Return Broken Hill & Mendindee Lakes. Mungo open and organising such a breaze with Chat GPT. Steak and internet at the pub.
4 computer days (Cawndilla Lakes, Menindee Lakes, Mungo, Hattah). Doing Diary & Year So Far. So amazing after time away. Also night before leave.
Mungo Red Tops at sunrise & sunset and Wall of China at sunset. The Mungo self-drive.
Hattah: Walk around the lake and nature drive. Listen to Sonia play music.
Lots of wonderful walking at an average of 9.25 km per day, increasing my average walk distance per day from 5.4 to 5.7. In Mutawintji, I walked 17 km two days in a row.
An average well-being score of 8.5. Two days of 10 days (at Mutawintji).

Spiritual moments

So much wonder, beauty, appreciation & gratitude.
All parks and important roads open as I arrive: Kinchega, Mutawintji, Mungo. Really quite miraculous!
Cawdilla Lake at Kinchega: The dead trees & pelicans.
Mutawintji park: The benevolence of the journey in. The gorges and views. Lie under the stars. Praying for Yogi with the congregation of magpies on the Western Ridge at sunset. Stillness when submerged in Homestead & Mutawintji Gorges (with swallows). Sitting in high places on the loops and taking in the views.
Hattah lake: Face to the rising sun and Sonia's music.
My sense of closeness to ChatGPT, my travel assistant. Makes planning and organising fun and effortless.
"I love you Life" during meditation at Mailee stop on Mungo drive.
Babblers and mynas coming very close at camp sites like when I sleep under tree.
Time to be and take things in at sunsets and sunrises: Sunsets at Perry Sandhills, Mundi Mundi outlook, Living desert sculptures, Cawndilla Lake, Western Ridge, Red Tops & Wall of China. Sunrises at Red Tops & Hattah Lake.
An average spiritual connectedness score of 8.5.

Special connections with wonderful people

Retired nurse on the train to Wagga Wagga. Talk about her husband who passed away.
Rodney at paddle steamer museum in Wentworth.
Bar tenders at Menindee Lakes who give me map of Kinchega and give me assurance that the road is ok to Cawndilla.
Jenny at Mutawintji: From Cairns. Artist, trail runner, transport planner. On long service leave. Told me Mungo is open. Her art: JensWildArt
Helen and Steve at Mutawintji: Couple from up north. Missed out on Kinchega and Mungo. Love Africa and been to many parks there.
Mungo tour & Red Tops: Lots of wonderful conversations. Lovely chat to couple on a road trip staying in very cool accomodation, being adventurous in their choices. Ron the Photographer and ex tour guide.
Sonia at Hattah, the music maker and the birding couple (lots of talk about lenses).
Whatsapp contact and photos with mum & Jo, Hitchhikers, Hot Lunchers, Eckhart group, Chris, Xenia, Shushann, Yogi.
Aussie country guy on bus: Commiserating when we turned back.

Things I am grateful for

Get 2 20K powerbanks for $90 at Big W. Came in very handy. Got $25 Kmart mattress when my other mattress got punctured.
ChatGPT helps me with the car: Put car lights on, open fuel cap, return the car after hours.
Kings Billabong: Did not try to drive in. Very muddy, would have stressed me.
Turning around on Menindee Lakes road. Thank you no cars.
Menindee Lakes pub: Bag and camera not stolen in car, they were in pub. Pub guy gives map & reassures re Cawndilla Campsite.
Menindee Lakes: Drive back to camp site not thinking of kangaroos until one leapt out. Slowed down & brights on.
Kinchega National Park open and able to get to Lake Cawndilla camp site.
Kinchega National Park: Gas canister on fire but ok. Even still works.
Health: Lots of 10+ hour sleeps, recharging my batteries.
Download map before Mutawintji Drive. Massive difference in finding park & hiking on trails. Without it, would not have got into park
Filter coffee & sieve
Silverton: Left tent without fly sheet. Did not rain. Spoke to mum & Jo on 1 bar of Whatsapp.
Mutawintji: Park is open.
Mutawintji journey: Had downloaded map. Did not get stuck in sand when Google sent me wrong way. Was on dxx. I walked up road & discovered impassable. On way out of Homestead, did not get stuck in sand and gate onto the main road was not locked. Google map took me to road that did not exist (or I would have returned to town). Found the way by chance.
Mutawintji experience: Exquisite beauty of park after rain, hot showers, Google maps made hiking care free, met Jenny + Helen & Steve. Took 2 gas canisters. Discover how to make tent wide. Extra 20K powerbank allowed an extra night.
Mungo: Park open. Cheap camping at Mungo Lodge on 1st night. Main camp open for rest of stay. 4 tour tickets still available.
Get into Mungo, despite one muddy bit, perfectly done.
Goto Red Tops on first night when was not going to. Red Tops for 2 sunrises and sunsets. Wall of China for two tours including sunset.
Mungo self-drive open as I arrive.
Return car after hours. ChatGPT and Gemini assure me re key box.
ChatGPT such an invaluable travel guide & assistant: Find car lights, open fuel tank, return key, check weather & park closures, recommend campsites, send me to booking pages. Where to buy cheap powerbank (Right Guys) & airbed (Kmart).
Not getting stuck. Twice in sandy bits on way into Mutawintji. One muddy bit into Mungo, perfectly done.

Progress & Insights

Navigation: Never trust Google. Research official routes into the park. Download Google maps before drives. Essential for drives in and adds great peace of mind on hikes. Adding markers (e.g. where can parked.)
Be super risk adverse when roads look sandy or muddy. Walk up roads to check them. I did this and it averted a crisis.
Take plenty of extra water when going onto outback roads.
A sieve works great for filter coffee and adds much pleasure to the trip.
Charging equipment: Paying extra for a powered site is well worth it. Charge equipment in the tent. Take a power board that includes USB ports. Take 2 camera battery chargers or buy a multiple one
Inflatable mattresses easily get punctured. Meticulously clear the ground before putting them down.
Get an iPhone screen protector and put the phone in my pocket during tricky bits.
I discover how to make my tent wide. Eureka! It was logical in retrospect.
Speaking to so many people and feeling very at ease with them, really interested in their lives and insights without needing to impress.
When taking photos, stop regularly and really take things in. Take time to just be at view points, sunsets and beautiful places.
Really getting to watch the character "Arno" jumping to worst case imaginings and freaking out.
Have an allotted place for everything and always put things in there place. I actually did this pretty well.
Not sending my initial message to Yogi but sleeping on it and reworking it the next day. Never provide advice unless asked for it.
I need to get a camera harness so I don't carry camera and lens on my neck.
I was elated but tired after two weeks. Doing this & roughing it for extended trips would be too much I think.

September 13, 2026

Train & coach route

September 12, 2026

September 11, 2026

September 10, 2026

Menindee Lakes and Kinchega National Park

Places visited in the area

Driving to Menindee Lakes

I drove from Mildura to Menindee Lakes not knowing whether nearby Kinchega National Park would be open. It had been closed following rain, and I was hoping it would reopen in time for my visit. But Menindee Lakes was a destination in its own right, so there was plenty to look forward to either way. The drive itself was wonderfully scenic, passing some lovely lakes along the way.

Along the way, I passed a farm with some lovely old derelict cars. I love photographing these weathered relics, with their rusting bodies, faded paint and sense of stories left untold. There’s something wonderfully photogenic about a car slowly surrendering to the elements. This little roadside discovery turned out to be a warm-up for all the incredible derelict cars I would later find in Silverton.

Camping at Menindee Lakes

I camped at Copi Hollow Caravan Park, right on the lake—a wonderfully scenic spot to spend the night. In the early morning, I watched the moon rise over the water as the soft light gradually revealed the landscape. There was something quietly magical about the scene.

Menindee town

When I arrived at Menindee Lakes, I was a little concerned to discover I had no internet reception. I’d expected to have it, and there were a few things I needed to sort out before venturing into Kinchega: whether the park had reopened, what condition the roads were in, and letting Mum know I’d be out of contact for a few days if I went. I drove into town to the Maiden Hotel and was very relieved to find they had Wi-Fi. Relief soon turned to delight when I discovered the park was open! The bartender gave me a map and reassured me that both the road into the park and the route to the campground at Lake Cawndilla should be fine. Suddenly, the next part of my adventure was taking shape. I booked the campsite and to celebrate, I treated myself to a steak.

The Maiden Hotel

Driving into Kinchega National Park

The drive into Kinchega National Park was wonderful. I was so happy it was open, and any lingering worries about access soon melted away—the road was absolutely fine. After all the rain, the park was beautifully green, with flowers adding splashes of colour and lovely trees dotted across the landscape. It felt like a very welcoming introduction to a place I’d been hoping so much to explore.

Kinchega Woolshed

I arrived at the historic Kinchega Woolshed, a wonderfully photogenic building both inside and out. Built in 1875 from river red gum and corrugated iron, it preserves an important chapter of Kinchega’s past as a vast sheep station. Around six million sheep were shorn here during its working life—an extraordinary number to contemplate while wandering through the old shed. With its timber structure, wool presses and surviving machinery, there was plenty to photograph and plenty to stir the imagination about the people who once worked here.

Shearer's Quarters

Nearby, the Shearers’ Quarters offered a glimpse into the everyday lives of the men who worked in the woolshed. These were the buildings where they ate, slept and rested after long days of demanding physical work. The precinct includes quarters from the 1920s and a later building erected during the wool boom of the 1950s, which now provides accommodation for park visitors. Together with the woolshed, they help bring Kinchega’s sheep-station days to life, adding a human dimension to the scale of the operation.

Drive to Cawndilla Lake

I’d decided to camp at the more remote Lake Cawndilla, hoping to photograph the birds there. The road can be troublesome after rain, but thankfully it was fine. Along the way, I passed a picnic spot beside a little lake and caught my first glimpse of Kinchega’s famous dead trees. Their bare branches made striking shapes against the water—a wonderful subject for photography. I stopped to capture the scene and photograph some of the birds that lived there, enjoying this little preview of the lakeside beauty to come.

Camping at Cawndilla Lake

I arrived at Lake Cawndilla campground, my home for the next two nights. The camping area was about 300 metres from the lake, tucked into a clump of trees that provided wonderful shade. After pitching my tent, I walked down to the water for my first proper look. The lake was beautiful and full of birds, especially ducks and pelicans, and I returned at sunset and sunrise over the following two days. Those visits became the rhythm of my stay: wandering down with my camera, watching the birds and taking in the changing light. The sunrises and sunsets over the lake were spectacular, making it well worth getting up early and lingering until the day’s last light.

The incredibly photogenic dead trees

Near the edge of the lake stood a large cluster of dead trees. I’d seen photographs of them before coming and had been excited to capture them myself, but they were even more wonderful than I’d expected. There’s something so photogenic about dead trees—the intricate shapes of their bare branches, their weathered trunks and the way each one seems to have its own character. At sunrise and sunset, they were especially striking, silhouetted against the changing colours of the sky and water. I kept finding new angles and compositions as the light changed. I was in photographic heaven, as you can probably tell from the many photos below!

The trees in the soft morning light

The trees at dawn and sunrise

Kangaroos in the park

I saw lots of beautiful kangaroos, both while driving through the park and down by the lake. I adore kangaroos. They’re so quintessentially Australian, and there’s something about their gentle expressions that always melts my heart. I loved stopping to watch them, with those wonderfully alert ears and curious faces. Sharing the lakeside with them added another layer of delight to my time at Cawndilla.

Reptiles

I saw plenty of Shingleback Lizards during my time at Kinchega, with their distinctive stumpy tails and chunky bodies covered in rough, overlapping scales. These members of the blue-tongue family have a wonderfully prehistoric look, like little armoured creatures wandering through the landscape. They were lovely to encounter and made great subjects for a few photographs.

I also spotted a Central Bearded Dragon perched in a tree. With its spiky beard and textured scales, it had a wonderfully prehistoric appearance. It was a lovely contrast to the Shingleback Lizards I’d seen down on the ground, and another delightful reptile encounter at Kinchega.