Elvis, 'The Dish' and singing apes - just some of the unique experiences we had in regional NSW

Goobang National Park & Bumberry Dam - near Parkes and Dubbo, NSW.

Friday 15th - Thursday 21st April

We have all enjoyed a change of scenery and the unexpected experiences we've had in this part of NSW. We were fortunate enough to be in the area for the annual Parkes Elvis Festival (where we spent a day listening to outstanding singers and gawking at the costumes of many of the revellers), we had an incredible time at the Taronga Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo and we marvelled at the vastness of the galaxy at the Parkes Observatory ('The Dish'). 

We have free camped the whole time, so, after the zoo, we stopped off at the pool in Dubbo for a much needed shower!

It has been a great week, lots of adventures and unique experiences, interspersed with Easter and the consumption of a lot of chocolate!

On our first afternoon at Goobang National Park we did the Burrabadine Peak walk and were lucky enough to see several wedged tailed eagles whilst we enjoyed the scenic views.

It was a steep, rocky 45minute climb, so we were all hot by the time we made it to the top

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On Saturday we decided to explore the local area. Our first stop was Peak Hill and an old open cut gold mine.

All the old machinery from the mine was there to look at (and climb in).

We weren't expecting anything this big, it was quite impressive.

Then we headed towards Parkes to visit the CSIRO Parkes Observatory (made famous in the movie 'The Dish').

We watched three mini 3D movies where we got some background information on the 'dish' and we learnt some incredible facts about the size of other planets/stars in galaxy and the recent discoveries in space. We also learnt about exoplanets and the possibility of other planets outside of our solar system sustaining some sort of lifeform. It was super interesting. We're all looking at the night sky in a very different way now.

There was a dish like this on either side of the garden area. When you whispered into it, the person at the other dish could hear. Daniel tested it by saying 'If you can hear this I will buy you an ice-cream' (it worked!).

  

The obligatory 'I am holding up the dish' photo!

Freshening up in Bogan Weir (yes there is a river, town and weir called Bogan!).

In the afternoon on Easter Sunday we went to a nearby river to freshen up (and get the kids away from their chocolate for a few hours!). They spent most of the time catching yabbies and little fish.

On the way back to camp we checked out another lookout in the National Park and we were rewarded with an aerial display from several eagles.

On Easter Monday we went to Taronga Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo (less than an hour from where we were camping). It was a fabulous day. It is a really big zoo with a wide range of animals and it is designed both for maximum comfort for the inhabitants and maximum viewing opportunities for the visitors. You can drive, cycle or walk the 5km loop. We walked and got to see so much. It ended up being about 7km by the time we did all the side tracks, and it was a warm day, so we were all grateful for a swim and shower at the Dubbo pools afterwards.

The zebras were so close, only separated from us by a large ditch.

Emilia's cute footage of a young zebra

The newly born Greater One Horned Rhino - Hari.

Hari's mum having a moment to herself!

The White-handed Gibbons put on a show for us, swinging and doing flips!

One of our favourite animals (and one none of us had ever seen before) were the Siamang Apes. We heard them before we saw them! Apparently they all have unique sounds that they make to mark their territory. It was so incredible to watch as the male ape sucked air into the section on his throat then let it go at particular intervals to make specific sounds. The female added to the 'music' and the result reminded us of beatboxing. It was an awesome sight.

The male ape at the crescendo of the 'song'.

A giant (and very old) Galapagos Tortoise

The meerkats were very amusing to watch. A girl dangled her hat into the enclosure and they quickly grabbed it and began playing (while she cried and told her parents it fell off her head!).

We left Goobang National Park on Tuesday and headed towards a free camp we'd been told about near Parkes: Bumberry Dam. We just needed somewhere free to stay to wait for the Elvis festival, but it ended up being a really nice spot. We did a walk and bike ride around the dam that afternoon and thankfully made it back before a mega storm hit. We awoke to blue skies on Wednesday though, and Emilia and I spent the day in Parkes (doing our blogs and grocery shopping) whilst Daniel and Jackson enjoyed fishing off the dam wall and catching redfin. On Thursday we spent the day in Parkes at the annual Elvis Festival. We wandered up and down main street listening to all the buskers, went to a car show and a photography exhibition. Wespent most of the day listening to many different singers that graced the main stage at the heart of the festival. Everyone really got into the spirit of the festival and some of the costumes, especially the ladies dresses, were very impressive (as was the rock and roll dancing).

The free camp at Bumberry Dam

The kids enjoyed the bike tracks around the dam.

This is ShElvis - Australia's only female Elvis tribute artist - she was even recently inducted into the International Elvis Tribute Artist Hall of Fame. She sounded very much like Elvis!

The theme of this year's festival was the Elvis movie 'Speedway'. At the car show they had the go-kart Elvis rode in the movie.

The car show also featured some of Peter Brock's race cars