21 June 2021 - St George to Roma

Day 12. 21 June 2021

St George to Roma 195 Km

Another fresh start to the day (5 feeling like 3deg), clear blue sky, sunny and no wind. 
We packed and left St George for our relatively short 195km drive at 0930, heading north along the Carnarvon Highway to Roma. The road from St George for the first 100 km was flat and wide, becoming narrower, bumpier and more undulating as we neared Roma. Traffic was quiet all day, but there were a lot of dead kangaroos along the way. Despite the recent rains and green pastures, we also came across a few herds of cattle grazing along the roadside - in the long paddock. Cactus trees and bottle trees were also prominent along the way. First stop was in Surat located on the Balonne River. Here we spent about 1.5hrs wandering along the riverwalk and through the very small town. Surat has a few nice old buildings worth seeing, including the Old Post Office, the 1929 Shire Hall and the rundown old Astor Picture Theatre. The main attraction in Surat, however, is the Cobb & Co Changing Station Museum on the original site of the Cobb & Co Store where coach travellers and goods were dropped off in Surat. This was a very good museum and well worth a visit if ever passing through.  Early afternoon, we arrived in Roma at the Big Rig Tourist Park, which in contrast to our previous stays, is overpriced and staff are less than hospitable. A short walk from the park along the nearby Bungil Creek walkway leads past an endless number of Bottle Trees including the largest in Roma which has a massive 9.5m girth. Walking through the Main Street of town, there are many lovely old heritage buildings to be seen, but we have two days for that. Back to the park to catch up with Tony and Marg who we met in Lightning Ridge and stayed with us at the Kamarooka in St George. We are staying in Roma for 3 nights, and they are heading west to Charleville tomorrow. Another lovely day that went far too quick. 

Post Office

 This stone outside the Post Office commemorates the last run of Cobb & Co in Australia on 14 Aug 1924

A country town corner grocery Store 

Freedom Tree in the Memorial Park has photographs of people from Surat who have served in various conflicts

The Balonne River

Cobb & Co Changing Station Museum on the original site of the Cobb & Co Store




Cobb & Co Changing Station Museum - Wool Press in background

Cobb & Co Changing Station Museum

Cobb & Co Changing Station Museum

Cobb & Co Changing Station Museum

Cobb & Co Changing Station Museum


Surat Memorial Park


The old Astor Picture Theatre

The Council Hall

Bottle Trees in Roma - There a lots of them

As I was corrected today - they are Bottle Trees; NOT Boab or Baobab which only grow in West Australia, Madagascar and Africa, and are not related to the Australian Bottle Tree.
 
This is the largest Bottle Tree in Roma - 9.5m girth

Old Roma State School, now a council building 


St Pauls Anglican Church Roma



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