Innamincka

Our first real stop on this tour was Innamincka, in South Australia.  That was after stopping in Broken Hill for fuel, but we only got to see the airport for 10 minutes so it doesn't count.

Innamincka doesn't have a lot going for it, as the resident population is about six people.  It used to be a Customs stop between South Australia and New South Wales way back in the day when there was a charge to be paid for crossing the border, but now it's just another stop on the way to Birdsville and through to central Australia.

This is the main street. The Innamincka Hotel (accommodation for $2 per night in the low season) and the trading post/general store/petrol station.

We had lunch at a home stay farm which was lovely.

After lunch we wandered down the road to the creek, which had flooded earlier in the year. Only in Australia do you see road signs like this:

This is Coopers Creek which flooded and cut the town off for several days.

Innamincka is essentially in a desert but the recent flooding is what allowed the grass to grow so green.

You can see the height the water reached on the tree - the brown mark to half way up shows the high water mark.

This is the original nursing home in Innamincka which has been restored and is now used as the park rangers station and as an information centre.

You would think from the blue sky and bright sunshine that it was very hot but actually it was cool enough to wear a jacket most of the day. In the summer though, the temperature regularly tops 40 deg C for days at a time.