THE RIVERSIDE PARK AT NYNGAN IS WELL NAMED (13-14 APRIL 2017)

Although we had originally planned a three night stay in Nyngan, we cut this short. What with the noise in the park and the fact that the town itself did little for us, we decided to move on to Gulargambone a day early, but that's for later.

I should make it clear a this point that we had no problems with the Riverside Caravan Park. It offers much to many, just not to us over Easter. But true to my blog history, let me take you on a tour of this large, and in many ways, delightful park before we move on to a quick hop around Nyngan itself.

As I have mentioned earlier, the park is well named, It is indeed 'riverside'. This shot taken 

from the nearby road bridge shows the stretch of the Bogan River which flows along the boundary of the park. 

And as we suspected earlier, and later saw, it does host speed boats which prowl and growl back and forth,

as well as other more sedate and eco friendly craft which progressed along the river in a far less intrusive manner.

So let's begin our tour at the riverside area of the park before it became the mini-city that it did. The so called jewels, the absolute riverside sites, had very limited appeal to us,

but were clearly much favoured by others.

Had we chosen this area of the park, the wide sweep of good grass and the shade of the trees along the boundary fence would have been much more to our liking.

Services are limited in this part of the park and sites are very much 'first in best dressed'. There seemed to be little, if any, site delineation, something which we have previously seen end in tears as latecomers try to muscle in on spots already well occupied. Not our scene at all.

Those in this section are provided with a head, but this is all pretty basic.

A kiddies playground can also be found down here which to us was another indication of what can be expected here when things are busy.....just another addition to the noise level! 

At the far end of this grassed area which later became 'tent city',

stands the park entertainment centre.

Here the open sided building

encloses a rustic bar

which we strongly suspect has been very appropriately named.

We were told by a couple of the several backpackers who seem to make up the entire compliment of park staff that it is not uncommon for this venue to host weddings, engagements and other collective functions.  What with cabin accommodation nearby and very few neighbours to annoy, we could see the merit in making this spot party central for a big bash. In fact a group did just that on our second night here when again we congratulated ourselves on having made sure we were some distance away.

During the day this party shed takes on a different role as the base for water operations. The group making the most of this noisy brute had spread their accoutrements far and wide across the benches and tables.  This seems to be accepted practice here.

Immediately next to the bar the park owners have maintained their chosen theme of displays of 'old stuff'. Here it is a couple of old horse drawn vehicles, a steam traction engine and an old wool press.

We soon learnt that this is a park which caters for large groups, of the self-contained variety or those who swarm into the plethora of park cabins. 

And for those with foresight (and a booking, obviously), they are well catered for. Whilst it is not readily apparent, the sign on the roof of this BBQ area denotes it as 'Group Booking Shelter 2',

whilst this larger version caters for the gatherings who can identify themselves as 'Group 1'. We have no idea what might happen if others usurp the facilities here. A sharp encounter, I suspect.

What a commercially smart idea these sheds are to encourage large gatherings to make the park their home for a celebration.

As I mentioned previously, for those without caravans etc, there are oodles of cabins, both large and small. Some overlook the newer sections of the park,

whilst others provide a far more pleasant vista.

There is even a group of dongas for those who are more budget conscious.

In this section of the park, the most distant from the river, in addition to the large drive-thru sites such as that we were occupying, those with a penchant for their own private facilities can pull in next to one of en suite buildings.

For the rest of us this much larger building houses the main camp ablutions, and, like much of this park, they too are 'different'.....

....a bit like shearers' quarters really, and I suspect that may have been the intention in the design where the shower cubicles are surrounded by galvanised iron and the floor boards have 'breezy' gaps between them.

The toilet cubicles, in which the facilities are new and modern, all face out onto the park (we all know what you are doing!) but it is the men's urinal which is unique......












.........no door, just a curtain to screen contributors from the passing parade. What does one do to maintain some sense of decorum on a windy day, I wondered?

There is another BBQ facility in this section of the park, complete with something we are beginning to see more often, a pizza oven,something I have yet to try.










And as a final point of difference, the Riverside Caravan Park might well be renamed the Riverside Zoo.












Fergus is a big brute, and I had no hesitation in keeping a wary eye on him, as he was doing the same to me.













His mate Cecil is a decidedly docile dromedary.










I suspect the only thing which brought him to his feet was the prospect of food. 'Sarah' and 'Buster' were nowhere to be seen....Cecil obviously decided to see if he could take advantage of their absence as he posed expectantly in their enclosure.










But if the Percherons were missing in action, the same could not be said for the park guinea fowl which strutted imperiously throughout their domain, oblivious to everything other than what they could get into their beaks.



As I said from the outset, this is a park with a difference, several differences. And it is a very appealing place, just not over Easter.