With a long weekend upon us we were keen to get back to Dingo Dell it had been nearly 2 years we think since we had been in for a working bee. We were happily committed to the 4x4 Masters Competition on Saturday so we decided to fit it all in and head to Dingo Dell Sunday to make the most of the weekend. David and Liz also joined in for the 1 night stay as did Troy, Mel, Elise, Jessica and Stefan.
We had a very relaxed start to the day leaving Redfern at a comfortable 9am for a Sunday morning picking up David and Liz from their house to join the convoy. We were to meet Troy and crew close to 10.30am but as we got through the mountains he informed us he was running later than expected so we pushed on. The weather forecast was very average but I decided to work on my new theory called Myall Lakes where you drive all the way to camp in the rain it rains for the first night and then you end up with a fantastic weekend. David was a little dubious you could say as we got closer the patches of blue were few and far between but I tried to remain positive.
Tim had kindly sent through a map and simply directions to get to camp and with a little help of the GPS we tackled the track fairly blind but confident and hey if we got lost Tim would be fined even more. As it turns out it was a very simple map to follow and the basic directions were all that was necessary as it is a easy track to find and camp to find.
Just as we turned onto the trail we stopped for a coffee that Liz had pre-made and it went down very nicely with a few delicious honey biscuits. From here it was about 30min to camp. The track was VERY wet and VERY slippery in parts. The rodeo with its little lift did it with ease we only at times lost minimal traction while the XL7 also followed behind at times rubbing its tummy on the slippery ground. The rain had stopped but the tracks were just so soaked. About half way in we spoke with Darren who had gone for a drive up the opposite hill to us and they also were on their way back to camp. We crossed the Kowmung river and made the final 3km track into camp easily while picking our lines in a few spots.
It was so wonderful to be at camp and yep the sun was out. We timed it wonderfully that the rest of the group had just arrived back. We enjoyed lunch caught up with mates and warmed by the fire. Just on dusk Tim played a very moving tribute to our Anzac’s that is one of those moments you just had to be there to witness. Ah then came the cooking of the shared Lamb roast. The Steeles, Smiths, Hammo and Martins had joined forces to cook a nice piece or 2 or Lamb and roast vegies to share for the evening meal. I prepared the vegies and then let Tim and Dazza do the cooking. Well to say it was an enjoyable meal is an understatement. It is almost one of the best camp roasts we have had. We all managed to sit around a big table inside the awning of our camper out of the wind and cold and just let ourselves be engulfed by all the fabulous flavours and wonderful company.
It was a cold night and it was going to get colder the fire continued to grow and we had nice warmers placed under our seats to ensure we stayed very comfortable. Tim then cooked a fantastic beer bread and it was enjoyed by all. Slowly people set off to bed with Tim proving he knew how to do it in style.
The cold morning proved too cool for some who slept in late or like me just refused to get out till it warmed up, the overnight temp had dropped to -2. Another beautiful day was delivered and unfortunately pack up had to happen. We left camp just after 12.30 and headed to Kanangra Walls for lunch. After our farewells we made our way to the Blue Mountains car park and slowly crawled our way through it to get home not too late. Dingo Dell is a great trip with a fairly easy drive in the dry and a very slippery drive in the wet.
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