Sunday, February 18, 2024

Home, Sweet Home

What an epic journey it has been that has taken us across six Australian States in nine months covering well in excess of 20,000 kms. Along the way we traded our beloved fifth wheel for a motorhome that will hopefully see us out for the rest of our lives with lots more smaller journeys planned for the future.

Since my last post, almost a month ago (sorry!) we had slowed down considerably and were also covering areas and places that we knew like the back of our hand. After Byron Bay we headed to Tweed Heads for a few days to make the transition from van to motorhome.  While we were there we caught up with my forever friend Lynn and her daughter Trina and also Marco and Suzie.  Marco kindly offered to take the Landcruiser back to his place at Gundiah, and later to Palm Cove. I was very grateful for this, as I wasn't very confident driving it back to Palm Cove!


Our next stop was Toowoomba where we had booked into our favourite caravan park for six days.  This gave us ample time to spend with my mum and also to shop a few items for the motorhome - things like seat covers and matting plus a couple of minor maintenance items.  So far so good with the Winnie!  While we were in Toowoomba we visited two of my aunties (mums sisters) on two separate days.  It was lovely to catch up with them but quite tiring for mum (and for us!)


After Toowoomba it was an overnight trip to Leyburn to catch up with the Reids that is always a lot of fun and always a talk fest.  Their lives are quite busy but they are planning a trip with their van to South Australia later in the year.  We loved South Australia so we were able to give them the heads up on some must see places in South Australia.  It is a state that we would definitely want to revisit at some stage.

Next stop was Gundiah where we enjoyed three nights with Marco and Suzie at "Evergreen".  Philip was able to get his cattle fix as Marco had cattle to pick up from a neighbours place and he was also re-locating young cattle from "Eureka" (another small block they own) to "Evergreen".  We also squeezed in a trip to Hervey Bay where we enjoyed a Tapas lunch at one of the local restaurants.  I love Hervey Bay with its coastal atmosphere but also a very busy regional town these days with all the services.

We said our goodbyes to Marco and Suzie but not for long as we plan on a trip back down to them before the five month warranty on the Winnebago expires.  We are going to caretake "Evergreen" for them while they go camping.  It will also be a good opportunity to spend a little more time with mum at Toowoomba.

Tannum Sands was our next stop and it is another place that we always enjoy returning too.  As always, as soon as we had set up camp, we took a long walk, this time along the Tannum Sands esplanade.  It is a beautiful walk and the bbq tables were packed with people celebrating various things on a sunny Sunday afternoon.  We would have stayed another night but home is calling.

Cape Palmerston was a place that we had always wanted to stay and I am so glad that we made the effort this trip.  It is just a short distance off the highway but well worth the drive as the caravan park here is one of the best we have ever stayed.  All sites are drive through and completely private with the use of hedges and trees between sites.  It is just a short walk through to the beach where we enjoyed a very long walk for a couple of hours.  It was low tide and the beach was crawling with soldier crabs.  We have never seen so many of these little crabs in any other place we have visited and you had to be very careful not to stand on the little critters.  The beach is flat to walk on and we covered five kilometres but you could walk in either direction for many more kilometres.






Next morning we got an early start as our destination was Alva Beach, just a short drive from Ayr.  There is not a lot at Alva Beach but we love the van park here (park wherever you want!) and the walk to the beach is also pleasant.  There had been a very wild storm pass through this area recently and council were still in the process of cleaning up.  It is a huge task.


The next day our final destination before Palm Cove was Kurrimine Beach.  This is another of those magical places that you want to return to asap.  Like most of these beaches, there is not a lot to do except go for long walks and this place has the perfect beachside pathway the runs the whole length of Kurrimine.  We were staying at the King Reef Resort caravan park that also has a restaurant and wonderful beer garden.  After our walk we pulled up chairs in the beer garden and enjoyed refreshing and cold beers. Perfect.  We know that we are back in the tropics though as the humidity is stifling and thank goodness for air-conditioning.......



So here we are back in Palm Cove.  We parked the Winnie at the Palm Cove caravan park for two nights as it was so much easier to unpack when we only had to take our gear two blocks.  I don't know why we hadn't thought of this before. The Winnebago is now clean inside and out and back in the storage shed at Port Douglas, at least for a little while!  I have been enjoying some of the walks around Palm Cove that are, I think, some of the best in Australia and I was also pleased to see a lot of familiar faces on the walks. It's good to be home.....



Saturday, January 27, 2024

Gundaroo, Bathurst, Denman, Kempsey & Byron Bay, NSW

We have slowed down considerably in the past 10 days and it has been a time where we have been lucky enough to catch up with friends and family.  Lots of socialising!  We left Batemans Bay just a week ago and drove the 150k or so up and over the great dividing range to Gundaroo.  The least said about that drive the best.  Although the road is in good condition, it is both steep and winding with lots of hairpin corners.  Not the best road for towing a caravan!  But we made it in good time to Gundaroo.  We had told Philips brother that we would not be at their place until mid afternoon and that gave us ample time to stop for lunch at "Grazing".  This restaurant has a well deserved reputation for fine dining and it is amazing that they have set up the restaurant inside the old Royal Hotel at Gundaroo and done a beautiful job of restoring the old building.  Gundaroo is just 30 minutes drive from Canberra so the restaurant is popular with Canberrean's. Once we were seated, the menu was explained to us.  We had a choice of a set menu of either two or three courses (we chose two) and there were also a couple of specials that could be added to the meals.  We chose the Duck Liver Paté as our extra and the addition of the apple sauce was a nice sweet touch.  The complimentary Olive Oil & Balsamic was also delicious.




For our first course I ordered the Kingfish Sashimi while Philip chose the Quail.  Both dishes were outstanding and my sashimi was very fresh, which is never guaranteed but is also a must when you are dealing with raw fish.

Our second course choices were Crispy Pork for Philip and Lamb for me.  Both dishes, again, were faultless and the perfect size for me.

Our bellies were certainly full to the brim as we left the restaurant and headed out to "Big Ezi" - Philips brothers place that is around 10km outside Gundaroo.  It might only have been a short driving distance but it is one of the worst gravel roads imaginable.  However it was great to be able to spend two nights here and it was a bit of a talk fest over numerous glasses of wine and some delicious home-cooked meals.  We managed a couple of walks around the property that is about 120 acres.  It is quite beautiful.
We said goodbye to the family on Monday and made our way to Bathurst, a town we have always wanted to visit.  It was Philips birthday that was very low key however I did make him an improvised chocolate birthday cake......
On our second day at Bathurst we drove the short distance to Mount Panorama, the home of the Bathurst 2000 car race.  We drove one lap of the race track before making our way to the museum that holds a myriad of vehicles from cars to motorbikes to drag cars and everything in between.  Everything there has been raced at Bathurst at one time or another.  It was very interesting.


The Bathurst Showgrounds was our camp for the two days that we were here and it was perfect because directly behind us was a terrific walking track that we walked twice on our stay.  The original highway road bridge has been replaced so the old bridge is now a pedestrian bridge that you have to cross to reach the other side of the walking track.
On Wednesday we were back on the road and headed to Denman where we stayed with friends.  We took the long route via Mudgee and it was a lovely drive over fairly flat country that made a nice change from the big mountains we have been driving over the past couple of days.  We arrived at Michael-Lee and Tim's place mid afternoon and it was once again a bit of a talk fest.  They piled us into the car late in the afternoon to take us for a drive around the property.  We loved it.  As well as cropping they run a cattle fattening enterprise and we loved seeing the new state of the art cattle yards that do not require anyone to be in the yards with the cattle.  All gates are opened automatically using an hydraulic system. 
It was late in the evening before we sat down to a delicious roast pork meal with the family and another friend who conjured up Profiteroles for dessert!  We were all laughing at each other as we dived into them with our hands and all of us had chocolate from one end of our faces to the other.  Completely forgot to get photos.....
Next morning we were once again on the road.  After talking with Tim we decided to head down the coast towards Newcastle and get on the M1.  We skirt around all towns going this way and Philip commented that he loves freeway driving.  He can sit in the left lane and drive at his own pace while cars can easily go around him.  I tend to agree.  The only downside to freeway driving is that it can become a bit boring.  Time to crank up the music!
Thursday night was spent at Kempsey.  The only place we could get in was another Showgrounds but beggars can't be choosers.  We never ventured outside the van on our overnight stay.  The temperature soured to around 40 degrees so we cranked up the Air-Con and were very content to stay inside.
Friday we headed to Byron Bay that is where we are now.  It is very busy here on the Australia Day week-end but we are staying at the Sun Villas Caravan park again and we asked to be put right down the back of the park where the sites are large, green and shaded.  We have been for some long walks since arriving.  First day was a beach walk and today we walked to the Byron Bay Lighthouse that is exactly 9km with a huge amount of stairs.  Today is very warm and we were grateful that we made the decision to walk early in the morning.  Storms are predicted for this evening so I just pray that they are not wild ones!


Tomorrow we once again pack up the van and head to Tweed Heads, a short 80km drive.  We will be busy in Tweed as we have to wash the van both inside and pack up as much as we can in readiness to hand it over on Monday and drive away in our (not so new) motorhome.  Excited!

Friday, January 19, 2024

Batemans Bay, New South Wales

This week in Batemans Bay has seen us taking long walks along the beach, doing a couple of scenic drives, eating delicious and healthy meals and watching the tennis!  The weather has not been kind to us with most days being cloudy and showery.  This hasn't worried us unduly because in the whole time we have been away (since April) we have hardly seen a drop of rain.   

Today is our last day here in Batemans Bay and as luck would have it the sun is shining without a single cloud in the blue sky :-)

One of our walks was quite a long one into the town centre - I think around 7km return.  The pathways, as they have been everywhere on our travels, are numerous and usually wide enough for both pedestrians and cyclists so Philip has also enjoyed a few rides around Batemans Bay.  There are interesting  sculptures right along the walkway that runs along side the Clyde River.  


One of our beach walks took us up to Observation Point that would have given us magnificent views over Batemans Bay and further out to the Pacific Ocean but the clouds had other ideas.  We passed a shelter that some clever person/s had built on the beach.  It was one of the best I have ever seen!


On Tuesday we had the car serviced and the courtesy car dropped us off in the city centre where we found a restaurant that served breakfast.  It was the basic eggs and bacon but it sure does taste better when someone else cooks it for you......

Yesterday we drove the coast road from Batemans Bay to Moruya.  This is a designated scenic drive that ducks in and out of many coastal townships that all have magnificent beaches and headlands.  We stopped at Guerrilla Bay and walked the track to Burrewarra Point.  The return walk was easy and took us through Banksia forest and heath vegetation.  The views up and down the coast were breathtaking even on a cloudy day.  We were promised a lighthouse on this walk and when we reached it we both burst out laughing.  It was probably the smallest and ugliest lighthouse we have seen on our journey!



We drove through Tomakin, Mossy Point and Broulee stopping at every scenic lookout.  Many people were out and about but not a lot were swimming apart from a few surfers braving the cold waters.  


Our turn-around point was Moruya where we drove out to Moruya heads and the breakwater wall.  We didn't walk it though as it was starting to rain lightly and neither of us wanted to end up with summer colds!
Our last stop for the day was the lovely village of Mogo.  It is a very popular town with all its trendy shops and many eateries and we had trouble finding a park along the busy Main Street.  We eventually found a spot and walked the short distance to a nearby cafe where we both enjoyed hamburgers for lunch.  I forgot the photo but I can assure you my Beef Patty with caramelised onion, lettuce, tomato and shredded beetroot on Turkish Bread was absolute perfection.  My mouth is salivating just thinking about it!

Tomorrow we leave the coast and head to Gundaroo to have a couple of nights with Philips brother.  We are looking forward to catching up as we haven't seen them in almost two years.  Should be fun.....

Friday, January 12, 2024

Eden, New South Wales

And here we are in New South Wales!  It really does feel like the home run now that we are heading north.  Still a long way to go though :-)

We have just spent three nights in Eden and it is a lovely town on the southern coast of New South Wales.  The walks around the town have been on our agenda, many of them boardwalks.  Across the road from our caravan park is a path that takes you to Lake Curalo and if you continue walking around the lake you end up at Aslings Beach.  It is a gorgeous beach and we did dip our toes in the water but it was still very cold.  Well, too cold for us at any rate, but there were many who were enjoying the ocean.



Yesterday we self drove the "Killer Whale Trail".  The first stop is the Eden Killer Whale Museum that is chock full of interesting reading surrounding the whale industry at the turn of the century.  It is also home to one of the only Orca (killer whale) skeletons in the world.  His name was Old Tom.  Old Tom was quite the legend as he "herded" the humpback whales into Twofold Bay where the whalers in their small boats would harpoon the whale and take it back to shore to obtain the blubber that was rendered down to obtain oil.  A very sad part of our history indeed.  


The next place to visit was the Rotary Lookout that had magnificent views over Eden and out to sea where it is the perfect place to whale watch when the giants are migrating to and from Antartica.
Davidsons Whaling Station was next place on the list and it sits on Kiah Inlet at Twofold bay.  The Davidson family home is still standing and for more than three generations were Australia's longest operating shore-based whaling station.  The "try works" where the whales were slaughtered made me feel very sad.

From Davidson Whaling Station it is a short drive to Ben Boyd Tower.  Standing impressively on the headland, this imposing sandstone tower was built in the 1840's.  Originally designed to be a lighthouse,  it was never approved for such use, but did become a key lookout point for whalers to spot passing whales.


Today we drove north of Eden to The Pinnacles.  This is quite a remarkable place where millions of years of weathering and erosion have left behind the coloured spires of red clay and white sand.  The photo from drone footage taken from a website (thank you) shows clearly the great hollow that has been carved out.


So that has been our time in Eden.  The van park is practically deserted and we have no neighbours anywhere near us.  I think our next stop tomorrow, Batemans Bay, will be a little different.