Undara Rock and Blues Festival 2024

The five nights that we have just spent at Undara Lava Tubes for the annual Rock and Blues Festival was one of the most enjoyable times we have ever had.  We danced, sang, laughed, ate and drank our way through three days of festival music.  The line-up of artists was exceptional and the festival team have to be congratulated for the huge effort they put into making this weekend enjoyable for all.  I think the thing that we loved the most about the weekend was that the vast majority of people were our age so even if we are not terribly good at shaking the tail feathers, no one is judging because they are just too busy enjoying themselves.

Of course it helps to have the company of good friends.  Jane, Micheal, Philip and I could sit and talk for hours but then also respected the quiet down time that we all needed after a late night or two.  Jane had pre-pared some delicious meals and I contributed where I could.  It worked well.  Micheal enjoys a campfire so two of the five nights we were able to immerse ourselves in the smoky orange flicker of fire with the smell of the bush, that only a campfire can bring.  Perfection.

We hiked for two of the mornings.  The first hike was a very long one called the Bush Walk.  I wouldn't recommend it.  We walked for around 6km along an only just visible path through very thick spear grass.  If anyone has ever had the experience of spear grass let me tell you it is not pleasant.  The barbs from the grass penetrate right into clothing and can make for a very uncomfortable walk.  We stopped numerous times to pick them out of our clothing.  When we finally left the spear grass behind we were then confronted with a swamp!  By the time we got back to camp our shoes were very squishy with water.

A far better walk that we did twice was much shorter, around 2km, but it took you to the top of the bluff above Undara Central.  Looking out from the bluff towards the camping area there is not a vehicle/caravan/camper to be seen because each and very site has an abundance of shady trees. It makes for a very pleasant camp.  The only downside was the Khaki Weed that has inundated the camping area. We used to call this invasive weed "prickles".  They get into everything and as we packed up our camp we made sure that we were not carrying any of the weed with us.

Our next stop is Charters Towers where we will stock up on a bit of fruit and veg and will try to find the Mosaic mural that has been making news. It is 80 metres long and 7 metres tall.  I don't think we will have any trouble finding it!

Anzac Day at Undara Lava Tubes

 We made certain that we arrived at Undara a day early so that we could attend the Dawn Anzac Service.  Legacy host the service and the speech given by the president of Legacy Cairns Branch was very moving.  I loved the ending of the speech when we were left with the words "War is both Stupid and Costly".  How true this is. At the moment we have wars raging in the Middle East and Ukraine where we are seeing the senseless loss of lives. I think women should rule the world.  I could almost guarantee the end of war worldwide as we are, after all, the  "Peace-makers"......

After the service we made our way back to the main lodge where we enjoyed Bacon & Egg Rolls for breakfast.  

On the road again.....

We are going to be travelling around Queensland for the next 6-7 weeks.  First stop for us will be Undara Lava Tubes where the annual Rock and Blues Festival is being held.  We will be camping with friends for the five days  and we are really looking forward to it.  There is nothing like dancing to good music!

Preparation to get the Winnebago ready has been full on.  First there was the decal to be replaced.  Our poor Winnie has never been under cover so the decal was peeling on both sides of the motorhome.  I am so much in love with the new look that has made the Winnebago look almost new.

We also decided on our last trip in the Winnie that we needed to tow my little Suzuki behind the motorhome.  A lot of folks don't worry about towing a vehicle but it means that if you want to go shopping or sightseeing you have to pack up the motorhome each and every time.  Philip found a company that made a "tow dolly" and after a long and anxious wait it finally turned up a week before we were to leave.  We are very happy with it.

We also had a GPS fitted inside the cabin of the motorhome.  It really is a must have when you are travelling.  There is nothing worse than getting lost and coming to a dead end where you can barely turn around and believe me, we have been in that situation more than once.

So folks, stay tuned over the coming weeks as I update the blog with our whereabouts.

As time goes by..........

 How crazy and busy our life has been over the past two months and now we are back on the road again in our Winnebago, but more about that in the next post.  

It has been great being home at Paringa and catching up with our friends both in Cairns and Port Douglas.  Our little group that we have nicknamed Olgetta Connisseurs, (Olgetta means all together in Pidgin English) decide on a different restaurant to eat at once a fortnight and we have eaten some really great food at Elgreko in Palm Cove and Bayleaf in Cairns North.  

Philip and I celebrated 46 years of marriage at NuNu Restaurant in Palm Cove on the 25th March.  NuNu never disappoints both for ambience and food.  An added bonus was the full moon rising over the Coral Sea.

Easter this year was busy with the Olgetta group coming together at our place for Good Friday where I baked a whole side of Salmon and accompanied that with a simple salad and homemade bread.  The lemon tarts, that Jane made, were a perfect end to our meal and the little easter bunnies atop each tart reminded us that it was Easter.  

On Easter Sunday we drove to my cousin Susie’s place north of Mossman for a delicious lunch of steak and salad and another delightful dessert of chocolate mousse topped with a Chocolate Easter Bunny. It really isn’t Easter with chocolate is it……

We have stayed in Port Douglas a few times in the past couple of weeks and it was a treat to catch up with our friends Rod and Ange.  We dined at the Mexican Restaurant one night and the next evening we ate at the local Vietnamese Restaurant.  We topped off the week-end with tickets to the local Clink Theatre for a production of My Fair Lady.  It brought back wonderful memories and we all hummed and clapped along to the songs that we know and loved.  

Other places in Port that we enjoyed were cocktails at Barbardos and pub grub at the Tin Shed where we watched the boats coming back to the marina on sunset.  Of course Flagstaff Hill walk is always on the agenda and the weather was picture perfect.

I was given some sourdough starter on our last travel and after a few disasters (I totally underestimated the growth of the starter after you feed it and had my benchtops covered in the goo many times) I think I have now mastered the feeding technique and have been rewarded with some delicious recipes.  My favourite has been the sourdough crackers and the focaccia.  The lemon cake that looked fabulous as it came out of the oven was way too dry and ended up being used in a trifle. We have also eaten quite a few pizzas over the past month or so as the pizza bases, using discard sourdough starter, are the best I have ever eaten.  Thin and crispy the way we like a base.

I have been spending some quality time with the "girls" since we have been home with lots of coffee/lunch dates.  They have taken me to places that I never knew existed.  The view from the Food House Cafe on the top floor of Crystalbrook was spectacular.

Last Saturday the “girls” had a day out on the Tablelands where we played tourists for the day visiting all the sites including the waterfall circuit at Millaa and ending with a walk into Millstream Falls followed by a delicious café lunch at Ravenshoe.  There is something very satisfying spending time with your girlfriends!

So that is the last few months in a nutshell and although it has been hectic it has also been a lot of fun.  I'll leave you with this photo of our apartment building that has just been repainted.  It looks so lovely and has brought the 1980's building into the 21st century......