DAY 99 – Kimba – Port Pirie

Good Morning Kimba!
 
Low 7°c (45°F) – High 19°c (66°F)
245km
 
Well the traffic noise didn’t keep us awake, but the late arrivals last night – at least their two dogs – certainly did.  Apparently both dogs slept outside the caravan and around 2.00am they both started barking furiously.  It’s all well and good to have guard dogs by your van, but gee it’s disturbing to the other campers if they are barking for no good reason which appeared to be the case in this instance.  Then again around 6.30am off they went again.  That was the end of sleep for me and I ended up getting up while trying not to wake Shane.
 
After getting ready to move on again, and being the last to leave the park, we stopped in Kimba to take a couple of shots of the local icons including the big Galah an 8m (26 ft) tall sculpture that has had a bit of work since we last passed through here.  In the past he had been looking a bit tatty but has had some patching up and a new decorative paint job. There is also some silo art here on the huge silo towers in town.  Kimba is a rural service town which as at the 2016 census, had a population of 629.  The galah sits beside the highway, marking halfway between the east and west coasts of Australia.
 
The word "kimba" is derived from the local Aboriginal word for "bushfire", and the District Council of Kimba's emblem reflects this in the form of a burning bush. Two properties in the Kimba district were nominated in 2017 for a proposed National Radioactive Waste Management Facility, to store low-level and intermediate-level nuclear waste. A Kimba town vote demonstrated support for further investigation of the prospect, resulting in a vote of 396 to 294 in favour.
 
On 1 February 2020 federal resources minister, Matt Canavan, announced that 160 hectares (400 acres) of property, 20 km (12 mi) west of Kimba, would provide the location to permanently store low-level waste.  The facility would also temporarily store intermediate-level waste from Lucas Heights nuclear reactor, until a suitable permanent site was found.  The federal government is allocating a A$31 million community development package to boost the skills of local businesses and workers to build and run the dump. The facility would cost A$200 million, and create 45 jobs during construction and 25 ongoing jobs.  Let’s hope “Kimba” doesn’t live up to its name once this little project is in place.
 
We were now back into familiar territory as we have been through Port Augusta and around the Eyre Peninsula on previous holidays and sadly as we made our way through to Port Augusta we passed the turnoff which takes traffic north on the Stuart Highway.  As tempting as it was to turn left and start our trip again, we continued on in the opposite direction.  It also means we’ve officially completed a figure 8 of Australia, even though it has taken 3 trips over 6 years to cover it and had us recalling some of the great memories of all three adventures.
 
Our destination in Port Pirie today was a caravan park that we have stayed at many times, Port Pirie Beach, and we were fortunate to obtain a site with a view over the water.  We’ve captured many lovely photos in this spot before.  By the time we were set up, the sun was shining and there was a light breeze and I had the bright idea to do a bit of washing, in particular the bath towels which were really in need of refreshment.  Shane had headed out to pick up fresh fruit and vegetables, leaving me to get some laundry done and an opportunity for Kitty to spend some time outside in the sun.  By the time Shane returned the heavens had opened and while I had rescued Kitty’s dog bed, blanket and the washing, the outdoor mat was now soaking wet.  I should have known better really as the weather can close in VERY quickly here – and it didn’t disappoint today – leaving me with 2 quite wet bath towels and a selection of men’s and ladies underwear requiring the caravan Chinese laundry to be set up again to get them dry. 
 
It was around this time too that the infernal infected tooth, having not had any antibiotics to keep it subdued for a day and a half, decided to make its presence known with the gum getting quite red and a little swollen again.  I put in a call to the dentist to make an appointment and Shane and I decided, despite wanting to continue with our holiday plans, it was probably best to head home keeping medical services close by in the event of this happening again, and get the issue resolved.  We’ll stay in Port Pirie tomorrow to see how it progresses and then make our way back.  It was disappointing but not knowing what to expect, I think we’ll both be more comfortable knowing we have everything we need at home, and there is plenty to get done once we get back to fill in the last 2 weeks of my leave from work.
 
Sadly no photos worth having of our water view due to the rain and wind that prevailed into the evening.