Here We Go Again - Chapter 70 - Lake Argyle to Kununurra

The sun beats me up this morning and I miss what must have been yet another landscape or reds, oranges against the blackness of the cliffs as the dark changes to light in the transition from night to day.

The day is sticky and the heat threatens a high of well into the thirties.

There is news of a new addition to Robyn’s side of the family. A new baby boy, born to one of her nieces, arrived during the night. In these Covid times only the grandmother has been allowed to visit, leaving the grandfather, Robyn’s brother to spread the news. He, like me, is not hugely into the details that the womenfolk like to share on occasions like this. He is proud as punch at the arrival, but that’s it.  Robyn is quickly onto the phone looking to extract every morsel of information about the new one and the health of the mother etc etc.

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Sufficient Information extracted, she shares with Rose, who equally hangs off every morsel.

We are, though, bugging out and need to be on the road by 10.00am ladies. You cannot spend a titillating hour everytime a new piece of news comes to hand. Having said that, Silver Leader, apparently ready to leave (and we are in the Cruiser about to pull out) decides he needs a shower. Robyn has more time to mull over the news, because now pictures are starting to emerge through the airwaves, to my phone, remembering hers still does not operate thanks to Telstra’s efforts to date.

So its off to Kununurra. A place last time we travelled we were warned about. We spent a few lovely days there and expect no less this time. We are booked into the same park as last time against a serene lake covered in water lilies and lily walking birds. 

Arrival means lining up the street. Silver Leader and I remain with the vehicles as the girls deal with the site fees. Booking in seems ot take an inordinate amount of time. Even more so this time than usual but not because the girls are in charge (and may be side tracked into any form of trinket shop) but the number of vans ahead of us waiting to be let in.

Whilst we wait an attendant wanders up and down the line checking everyone is OK. He does not dally long as it is hot and he simply nods then returns to his shaded area or moves the front van through the boom gate and beckons everyone else forward. The one time an extended discussion takes place, the subject is the line, proposably 6 long at the moment and stretching back to the street, last week was well and truly back the highway. He talks of the chaos and disappointment he had to deliver, turning many vans away.

There are other parks in Kununurra but our experience here last time has drawn us back.

As luck would have it our sites are adjacent again and only one line from the grassed area to the lake. Demand has seen management “pack them in” a little and there seems to be less room to manoeuvre that last time. The gate attendant last time would have been the one to usher us to our spots and assist in the positioning of the vans. But he is busy coping with the apparently ever increasing line of demand for sites. Thankfully we have booked or the powered sites may have been simply a spot on the grass as many of our neighbours are situated.

Our drive in, passes a van where small children are obviously camped. There is a stack of lego forming a tower to the sky (well up to about half a metre). It begs a picture and a sledge to Forbsy about what home schooling looks like.

Silver Leader has a moment. Several really as he attempts to position his van into position. He is in and out of the Cruiser remonstrating with himself at his inabilities. I leave him alone to his thoughts. My attempt (note the singular) is assisted by the resident across the way. He moves his vehicle to allow me a straight run at the site. A luxury not afforded Silver Leader, especially when his obstacle is a lovely ghost gum and not a moveable vehicle.

We want to get ready for the next leg, the one into El Questro plus the free camping into Broome, so once the setting up is complete, its off to the supermarket for provisions. Kununurra is a tidy town. The rodeo was on last night and rather than seeming like it is recovering, the only idea something had happened was the electronic signs still advertising the event.

Back in the park and with the internet, I go to “work”. I have a webinar to present in a couple of weeks and the marketing needs to be created for the promotion in the run up period. 4 videos using a program called Doodly and several face to camera videos are shot. The Doodly videos are uploaded direct to our Google drive, the face to camera ones sent to our staff for editing. Once completed the staff will trickle them and the Doodly videos out in a targeted marketing structure.

The marketing of our last webinar had many issues. The raw material had been created and prepared as it will be this time but there were breakdowns in communication, culminating in no, or mixed messages being created. We laughed it off at the time but we want to ensure the professional nature of our offering is supported by the webinar and its marketing. I have produced a detailed procedure and it has been now distributed to all concerned, staff and outside contractors alike.

The proof will be  in the pudding as they say. Success can be measured in this case by at least in this case, by there only being one meeting for the registrants to attend. The debacle of differing links sent, meant we had some people trying to join via one platform and others another. My purpose in life as far as it affects this business, is to see this not happen again.

This is a big park. Big enough that management afford entertainment at night. Not that the entertainment of Silver Leader trying to manoeuvre their van into place did not cause much merriment and once his heckles had been soothed Silver Leader joined in on the mirth. There is an area not far from the leaving boom gate, near the pool where a grassed area serves as seating place for enjoying the musician. 

There is a boab tree here, mocked up to look like a prison tree. The musician for the night may have played better from there. The crowd dwindles very quickly after his first set.