We had planned to stay four nights at Carnarvon Gorge but given our lack of planning, we now had 2 extra days up our sleeve. This actually worked out well because our little side trip to do the ‘Dinosaur Trail’ meant a few longs days of driving which could now be broken up into shorter days.
We found a place called Lara Station on Wiki Camps and decided to stay 2 nights to allow us a day to stop and relax. Lara is a homestead and station that also is home to a wetland. The owners have fenced in the wetland and converted it to a bush camp site. The wetland lake was dotted with caravans on our arrival late in the day. This part of Queensland is home to many grey nomads this time of year.
The campsite is rustic but well set out. Donkey hot water showers and flushing toilets are dotted around the lake and he site also has a thermal pool, playground, cold pool (which is more like a dam) and there are free kayaks to paddle on the lake (which is only knee deep).
There was also plenty of birdlife enjoying the wetlands.
Our rest day was spent playing, swimming, kayaking, reading and playing games. The thermal pool is about 38 degrees and left us all feeling relaxed and ready for a sleep. They provide fire drums and there is loads of super dry wood around the place which meant the evening fire was a cracker and Izzy made us her ‘waffle cone delight’ dessert which was a hit.