Having revived ourselves with caffeine, we left Blackbutt and drove down the range, through the intriguing little town of Moore and on to Toogoolawah. Although the op shop was shut, and we were too early for the town's jacarandas, we did a quick run through town so I could show the others the red back spider on the roof of the local community radio station. I think it needs to be better publicised as one of Toogoolawah's tourist attractions. There are matching spider shaped seats on the lawn.
Then on to the lovely caravan park at Esk that nestles below the mountain overlooking the town. One this we hadn't counted on were the mozzies that swarmed at sunset. There was also a problem with the park not supplying the extra bedding we required for the trundle bed in our cabin, but we managed. We had planned to have a pub dinner but the nearest one was closed for renovation and we didn't fancy the walk in the dark to the farther one, so we grazed on the snack food we still had. Jan had bought a wonderful colander during the day with words instead of normal holes, so I used it to unleash my inner Pastafarian (between mozzie slaps).
Esk used to have three op shops but the Blue Care one closed in 2015. We chose the cafe next to Vinnies for breakfast, so that one couldn't close without us noticing. The cafe had a Kransky Sisters signed tea towel on the wall, so Esk's most famous daughters had been there in the past. We ate breakfast accompanied by a blue-faced honey-eater who was tucking into the leftovers on the next table, and then Vinnes opened its door. It is a small, cramped shop, but it had good things and there I found my buy of the trip, a tall, heavy glass LSA International vase, that really pleases me. While I was sitting outside waiting for the others, I googled it out of curiosity and found one for sale online for £20. I paid $5 for mine.
We resisted the lure of the amazing Esk antique shop, waved to Elvis who was standing on the back of a truck in the main street and headed for the Helping Hands shop which is hidden down a side street. It consists of two huge tin sheds, one containing furniture and large stuff and the other everything else. It is the only op shop I have even been in that has a large yellow plane hanging from the ceiling. The clothes were really cheap, and here Jan finally succeeded in her search for huckaback tablecloths for a friend. The furniture in the other shed was more pricey, but we found one of the most beautiful objects of the whole trip here. It will set you back $1000.
The Lifeline at Murgon was packed with stuff, although none of the clothes I tried on fitted me. Then it was across the road to the smaller Blue Nurses shop, again with no luck. The snack bar next door was advertising sweet potato scallops but Jo wouldn't let me buy one. Hopefully Wondai would be better.
Vinnes there wasn't for me, so while Jo and Jan were trying on things, I popped down the road to Wondai's wonderful Collectibles shop. Here you can buy a ticket to the Beatles Festival Hall concert in Melbourne, or a Beatles powder compact for $850. Oh for $850 dollars to spare. Another treasure was a 1960s Coke can for $85.
However, the big find for me was one of those slider games that used to come in our show bags in the 1960s. You have to slide the numbers into the correct order with only one spare space available. My brother and I used to have races to see who could complete theirs first. I brought it home and gave it to Peter, but not before I solved it myself first, and then jumbled it up again.
Kingaroy was next, where we did their most excellent Vinnies (I bought enamel earrings) and the two big shops in the main street, Lifeline and the Salvos from memory. We all have our favourite items that can be found in every op shop, such as knitting needles (Jo), and food steamers (me). The trend we noticed on this trip is that just about every op shop carries at least one Irish Coffee glass. Here's a pair from Kingaroy.
After lunch in a cafe, it was on to Nanango, which has a spotless Endeavour shop on one side of the main street and a crazy Community op shop on the other. This was crammed with stuff, and staffed by an extremely happy woman who turned up the radio whenever something good came one. I was grooving in the dressing room. We declared this the friendliest shop of our trip. It also contained my absolutely favourite misspelt sign of the whole journey.
I had a boyfriend once who said in his lifetime, he wished to eat a banana in Banana and a mango in Nanango. This is for you, Andrew! (I have already done the banana, about five years ago.)
Next stop Yarraman which has a small Vinnies where I found a long patchwork skirt and a second pair of brand-new shoes. The Red Cross at Blackbutt was the last shop for the day as we realised we would not make it to Toogoolawah before closing time. The bakery is directly across the road so we popped in for a relaxing coffee. It would have the best cabinet full of sweeties I have seen outside Melbourne. And there's a nice gallery right next door.
Then on to the lovely caravan park at Esk that nestles below the mountain overlooking the town. One this we hadn't counted on were the mozzies that swarmed at sunset. There was also a problem with the park not supplying the extra bedding we required for the trundle bed in our cabin, but we managed. We had planned to have a pub dinner but the nearest one was closed for renovation and we didn't fancy the walk in the dark to the farther one, so we grazed on the snack food we still had. Jan had bought a wonderful colander during the day with words instead of normal holes, so I used it to unleash my inner Pastafarian (between mozzie slaps).
Esk used to have three op shops but the Blue Care one closed in 2015. We chose the cafe next to Vinnies for breakfast, so that one couldn't close without us noticing. The cafe had a Kransky Sisters signed tea towel on the wall, so Esk's most famous daughters had been there in the past. We ate breakfast accompanied by a blue-faced honey-eater who was tucking into the leftovers on the next table, and then Vinnes opened its door. It is a small, cramped shop, but it had good things and there I found my buy of the trip, a tall, heavy glass LSA International vase, that really pleases me. While I was sitting outside waiting for the others, I googled it out of curiosity and found one for sale online for £20. I paid $5 for mine.
We resisted the lure of the amazing Esk antique shop, waved to Elvis who was standing on the back of a truck in the main street and headed for the Helping Hands shop which is hidden down a side street. It consists of two huge tin sheds, one containing furniture and large stuff and the other everything else. It is the only op shop I have even been in that has a large yellow plane hanging from the ceiling. The clothes were really cheap, and here Jan finally succeeded in her search for huckaback tablecloths for a friend. The furniture in the other shed was more pricey, but we found one of the most beautiful objects of the whole trip here. It will set you back $1000.
