Day one of an eighteen day trip in the eco pod, our first extended trip. Travelling south west from Toowoomba. Travelling through country traditionally owned by the Kamilaroi people, just want to acknowledge their continuing connection to the land and pay respect to their elders, past, present and emerging, all to often we forget to acknowledge the history of this country and pay respect to the traditional owners.
Stopped briefly in Millmerran, then continued on through Goondiwindi, just a brief stop for lunch at a roadhouse then on to Moree for the night. Saw a small group of wild emu just past Millmerran but failed to get photos, thinking that for sure we would see more, we didn’t, the moral of that story is you should always stop and appreciate the moment, not just rush past thinking the moment will come again, because sometimes it doesn’t, and cliched as it is, sometimes you really should stop and smell the roses, or, in this case, stop and admire the wildlife when you see it.
Moree, Australia’s answer to the European spa town. Sitting on top of the great artesian basin, super heated mineral water bursts out of deep bores, giving the town something more than agriculture to sustain it. It is beautifully situated on the Mehi river, with nice parks and gentle walks along the river. The town has some nice architecture which rewards a stroll around town. We only stopped over night in Moree and the truth is I spent most of the time in the hot pools at the Gwydir Thermal Pools caravan park, which was an awesome place to stay, hated tearing myself away from the hot pools. 
Found myself sitting in the warmth surrounded by European voices, Gwydir park felt more like little Budapest, than western New South Wales. Was the experience rejuvenating? Well it certainly felt relaxing, the fountain of youth it may not be, but it is well worth the visit for the chill out factor, and the park was excellent, with a good cafe on site. Aside from the four hot spring pools at varying degrees of temperature, there was a cool, 25m lap pool, the kids tended to stay in the lap pool while the oldies hung out in the 37º and the 39º pools but there were also two 34º pools. The park really had everything you needed, but Moree does have a massive artisan aquatic centre and the Moree baths had a significant role in 20th C Australian history, being a focal point for Australia’s own freedom rides and protest over discrimination and segregation in rural Australia. Today you can check out first nation history and art in a number of locations in Moree, like here at Yaamaganu Gallery .
Moree also had a couple of interesting street art murals for the street art enthusiast, check out the street art page.
Gum trees and Galaxies 