From Mt. Morgan it is a short trip into Rockhampton where, of course you cross the Tropic of Capricorn. Ah! here we are in the tropics, sunny skies, balmy nights, gentle breezes, comfortable living, right! Little did we know what lay ahead in the weather department, but right now in Rocky it is very warm and humid and the sanctuary of the air conditioned shopping centre whilst we re-stocked was a great relief. This was just a brief stop to re-fuel and re-stock before heading north to our first coastal camp at St. Lawrence. The very small village of St. Lawrence lies a few kilometres east of the highway near the mouth of a tidal estuary and it, like a number of others, provides a great stopover for budget conscious travellers. The local recreation grounds provide ample room, hot showers and flushing toilets, all cleaned daily. There is also plentiful potable water and all they ask is a small donation. As well as a donation we also spent some money in the general store, something we would encourage all visitors to do as a way of ensuring facilities like these remain available.
After 2 restful nights at St. Lawrence, enjoying the company of our fellow travellers we again headed north to our next stop at another free camping area at Carmila Beach about half way between Rockhampton and Mackay. This camp is right on the beach and you set up literally just metres from the sand of the beach. We had all intentions of staying at least 2 nights but this is where the weather changed. Overnight downpours and gusty winds persisted into the morning leaving us with little choice but to move on. The hope was that we might drive out of the bad weather but this was not to be and the rain and wind would be with us for the next week at least.
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