Clowning Around NZ & Australia: OZ Blog#11 Ravenshoe, Yungaburra Market day, Atherton Mens Shed.

We were keen to get to the tablelands because I knew of the Yungaburra Market being so good from when I last visited it when house sitting near Yungaburra. We stopped briefly in Ravenshoe, this hotel at the top of the town states it’s Queensland’s Highest Pub.

This hairdressers shop was a weird and wonderfull mix of art and wacky trendy things to buy!

Once again we struck it very lucky being able to park up on a friend’s farmlet and settled into this interesting area!

We were struck by the extreme change in the country from the sparse, dry and dusty land of the outback to the green lush and colder country of the tablelands. It felt like being back in NZ, with the hills being so much like Rosedale.

The cattle come and say hi.

These dark red cows with the white nose are a breed called DroughtMaster.

Ah the magic of having a fire to cook on, to stare into, and to warm the body - simply divine.

For all of the week the weather was pretty much like this, but brightened up lower down (we are at 1000m) if we went into Atherton or thereabouts.

Saturday morning and off we went to the market at Yungaburra.

Man it was buzzing, heaps of people and most of the stalls were really good quality.

Most of my time was spent looking instead of busking - next month will be different!

Hows this for ingenuity - a wheelbarrow tyre water pump.

Sculptures from old shovels and spades and other tools of a forgotten age (nearly).

Pick up here, put down there - sometimes life just overflows.

After the market we explored the town further, here is the Mad Hatters Cafe.

When I walked in wearing my juggling hat I was welcomed with open arms (literally),

So I’ve gotta go back and show off my other hats.

Don’t ya just love the Aussies, Mate!

I visited the Atherton Mens Shed, an interesting place in the old railway station building.

Only around 65 guys in this shed, maybe 50 of them are active and visit regularly.

The metals division.

This is Merv who showed me around on the first visit.

An impressive table saw purchased with grant money.

And the wood store. This Shed breaks down a lot of pine pallets and other nicer Queensland woods, and this stuff is under lock and key.

The Fronius Grey box and below it the battery for the whole rooftop bank of solar panels which generate all of this Shed’s power requirements.

They have many 3ph machines as well and apparently don’t run short of power. They are open every weekday from 8.30am to 12.30pm, so they are not using power for long periods of time.

I decided to join the Shed as I will be in this area for the next two months after Christine heads home to get back to her gardening and gym and volunteering at the RDA.

This was a special smoko for Fritz aged 85, who is cutting his birthday cake. I chatted to him afterwards and found out he came out from Germany in 1956 and spent all his life self-employed as a diesel mechanic trained by Bosch. Three years ago he survived a major accident when the blade of his hovercraft came off and hit him in the face. His words were: ”I’m a survivor”.