10 Jan 10 - Warwick

By Lou: From the outset Craig was not happy with the sag in the vehicle from the weight of the trailer but we had been unable to get airbags fitted during our stay in Ipswich. After a week in Ipswich we were keen to get the show on the road and figured there'd be a Toyota service department somewhere on the road ahead. After all, that's one of the reasons we gave up our beloved Landrover. We looked at the map and for no logic more complicated than the fact that St George was bigger typeset than Warwick we rang ahead to St George and booked the car in to a Toyota service department. So from Ipswich we headed to Warwick and camped at Leslie Dam just out of town. Beautiful spot. Campfires allowed. Crack open the marshmallows, now we're camping! We were also impressed with the centre of Warwick. Lots of lovely trees and a shop to cater for every need without the Australia-wide brand names everywhere. Many moons ago, when Craig was working 3 jobs to pay an 18% mortgage, he used to deliver newspapers to Warwick from Ipswich in the wee hours of the morning. At the time he thought the newspaper building was in the centre of town so was pleasantly surprised this trip to discover the real hub of the city only one block away.

We moved on to St George and were a bit underwhelmed with the size of the town but the Toyota dealership were brilliant and the Pelican Rest Tourist Park was lovely. Had a lovely time at the local pool while work was done on the vehicle. Most of the few other occupants in the park were itinerant workers there for the fruit picking season.

By Craig: Warwick was certainly more than I remember. It was in fact a country town with a beautiful landscape and old-style window shopping. However, Leslie Dam was the first place I felt that I could start to relax. Although the vehicle needed some suspension adjustments I was confident that St George would provide the solution. Just taking a look at the sunset in the photo above reminds me that as our time closed at Leslie Dam I had the feeling that our trip had just started.