The Riversleigh road is a much shorter way to Camooweal (at least 200km) and local advice was the road is okay even if it's gravel. Did not turn out to be quite true. The road was pretty rough after the Gregory river crossing. We got a flat tyre on the van and had to change it in the dust and sand, which we managed and pressed on. The road finally comes out on the Barkly Highway 117km west of Mt Isa and 70km east of Camooweal. Decided to head to the Isa to...

Lazy day. Laundry and stuff. J & C spent a lot of the day trying to fish in the creek. A and I sent for a swim at the end of the day and lay on the pontoon with the afternoon sun rippling on the giant bamboo.

Campfire breakfast toast was nice. It's very dusty here. I had difficulty breathing on the bus out to Riversleigh yesterday and you can smell dust on the air all around the campground. I've been pouring some water on the ground around the van to settle the dust a bit and a man drives around each day with a water truck to water the tracks and is very effective. But, all our clothes are dirty so it's laundry day. Drive out to Lawn Hill National Park this...

We arose early and took the tour to Riversleigh D Site - Mammal fossils. This area was an inland waterway about 25 million years ago. Due to the limey mud, it's very good at preserving bones. Once you know what you are looking for, they are everywhere! Giant birds, bigger than an emu, freshwater crocs 7m long, large snapping turtles, relatives of which still exist somewhere. Stomatolite fossils, the cyanobacteria that first made oxygen. Behind the limestone...

We arose early and took the tour to Riversleigh D Site - Mammal fossils. This area was an inland waterway about 25 million years ago. Due to the limey mud, it's very good at preserving bones. Once you know what you are looking for, they are everywhere! Giant birds, bigger than an emu, freshwater crocs 7m long, large snapping turtles, relatives of which still exist somewhere. Stomatolite fossils, the cyanobacteria that first made oxygen. Behind the limestone...