We took to the road again heading south.
We almost avoided Maryborough which is no place for a 5 tonne Winnebago. We did find cheap(ish) fuel, milk and the weekend papers. I also discovered that the welding of one of the hinge pins in the steps which was done in Innisfail in June had given way leaving a very unsafe situation.
On to Gympie to find a hardware store to buy the necessary bits, to jury rig a fix for the steps, to have lunch and to stop overnight in the Six Mile Creek Rest Area. This one is a bit noisy being right beside the highway but otherwise its OK.
We ran into two couples we had met before. We have obviously turned the corner from being newbies who know nobody on the road to seasoned travellers who meet people we know wherever we go. I hope we don't forget what being a newbie was like so that we can help others to turn the corner.
The other indication of our graduation is that we now know from experience what people mean by "Rollingstone", "Babinda", and "Calliope River". Around the campfire, people throw these into the conversation and one is overwhelmed with mysterious place names which just get put away for future reference. Even the geography can be mysterious as we had found at Babinda.