Left for Daly Waters, nice 3-hour drive. What a great spot, nice camp site and great locals and souvenirs. We went to the pub for dinner in our Black & White outfits. Food, entertainment and service were superb – our thanks to the management and staff. Wayne gave a sermon to the crowd about the history of Foxtrot Papa Inc. as an organisation and where we had been and were headed. We were advised that the cooks served the most meals ever from the barbie (160) for a night. After dinner Andrea (the Foxtrot Tart) was auctioned off. With Craig as the auctioneer, bidding was intense but eventually she sold for $27 (cheaply in Andrew’s opinion). A biker group (BOAB) then offered a 1-hour ride on one of their Harley Davidson bikes as an auction prize. Bidding was hot, mostly amongst our wheelies. Eventually Rachelle, Joy and Mick each got one. Andrea and Pam then went around with our donations tin for the Royal Flying Doctors to a very generous group of people.
With yet another warm fuzzy memory in our hearts, we left Katherine to head for the famous and fun-tastic Daly Waters where we had the privilege of camping at the grounds behind the Daly Waters Pub. Arriving there early afternoon, the group nestled into relax mode as we sat getting earthed beneath the company of the gum trees and enjoying both the solitude & friends of fellow travellers and the warmth of the locals. It wasn’t long before the inner child in all of us came out to play as we gathered with glee to get ready for another party themed as the Black & White night. The joy and giggles shared amongst the group as the make-up, wigs, cardboard, garbage bags, newspapers and tape were thrown together with creative magic, certainly reflected the friendship and bonds that have grown so affectionately over the course of the journey.
The pub welcomed us with open arms, delicious food and hilarious entertainment – it was only just the start of a memorable night! Wayne made us proud by giving an honourable speech to share with the public on the principles behind Foxtrot Papa. Following the humbled cheers in the roar of the crowd, Craig led the next part of the evening with an auction to raise money for the Royal Flying Doctors. With compliments of Andrew, (dressed as our resident ‘Andrea!), he enthusiastically volunteered to auction ‘herself’ off for a hug and kiss on the cheek for the grand prize winner with the highest bid! Personally I think Andrew got more out of the hug than he did about the well-earned $27 he raised! On ya Andrea! You go girlfriend! Just when we thought it couldn’t get any better, the B.O.A.B. Bikies that were living life to the fullest with us at the pub, generously contributed a free ride on their Harley as a part of our auction. Oh the jubilation that stirred the wheelies delight when the bidding got started!! It was a hungry and enthusiastic wrestle for the bid between the wheelies when it was bounteously declared by the inaugural B.O.A.B.’s that they would give away 3 rides instead! Raising $95.00 a piece, Joy, Rachelle and Mic celebrated with the biggest smiles I’ve ever seen! Thank you with all our Love beautiful people of the B.O.A.B.’s!
I don’t think any of us slept that night as we crawled out of our swags even before a single bird sang ‘good morning world’! None of us will ever forget the opportunity life blessed us with that day.
