Yet their time in Queensland was opened with the most unexpected warmth.

On August 17, Ms Heard will donate her almost-30-year-old plait to become a cancer wig.

A fact she shared with many of the locals and fellow travellers they met during their journey.

"We told people about it, why we needed to be back in Junee instead of spending the whole winter in Queensland where it's warm," Ms Heard said.

"People just put their hands in their pockets and started giving us all they could."

As more conversations opened around the state, the two women became aware of just how common cancer has become.

"It was very humbling, we didn't meet anyone who hadn't been touched by it. They told us stories of their mothers, their fathers or even themselves," Ms Barlett said.

Together they ended up raising $1000 just on the back of their word-of-mouth, with one hotel owner pitching in up to half of that grand total.

"I would just be talking in a bar, and people would just get up and give me a donation," Ms Heard said.

"It doesn't matter whether it's five dollars or $5000, everything helps."

At another point of the trip, at Nindigully Pub, a gentleman was moved to emotion by the story of Ms Heard's imminent sacrifice.

"He was just a traveller, and when we told him he welled up. He started crying, it was obviously very raw for him. He put his hand in his pocket and pulled out $100, said, 'we've got to do something to cure it'," Ms Bartlett recalled.

Months of preparation are nearing completion, with the big day nearing.

Now that it is on the horizon, Ms Heard admits she's feeling the nerves rise.

"The plait's been with me for a long time, it'll be different without it," she said.

Ms Heard wished to extend her personal invitation to the entire Junee community - male or female - to join the 'country ho-down' theme celebrations at the Athenium Theatre on August 17.

To coincide with this year's cancer charity fundraiser, Junee's recreational centre has also begun staging a pink week during its Les Mills exercise classes.

The brainchild of health and fitness co-ordinator Jenny Read, prospective class attendees have been invited to wear pink and donate a gold coin to the cause.

"We just wanted to support breast cancer research, mainly because a fair percentage of our classes are made up of females," Ms Read said.