Ceduna to Dubbo, a long way

We came to a tiny town called Wirulla where the beconning signs read "Wirulla, town with a secret".  I went into the General Store (the only open door) and asked, what  is the secret? The answer came back..."I can't tell you, it's a secret". She did however suggest that we check out the town jetty a little way down the street.  Puzzled as it is an inland town, we found that a former CEO of the council and his mate had debated what the difference was between Wirulla and the coastal towns and decided that the coastal towns had a jetty, so they set about building one.

The next town along was Pochera where Peter had built a humpy from flattened kerosene tins and lived in it happily for many years before dying at the age of 84.

The next photo is of a silly galah, at the town of Kimba whose claim to fame is that it is half way across Australia. It doesn't want me to, and frankly, I don't blame it.  Will try again later.

We then travelled on to Port Augusta where we were to collect mail from the CMCA to change the Willie wagtail's bank account at their request.  Unfortunately they only told us days before our departure and all the signature holders on the account were us.  Despite best endeavours, the mail was not there to be collected so after Jan and I stamped our feet and said a few blue words we ignored it and drove on.  At this point we departed from Chris and Dianne who were heading into Victoria.  Jan and I drove on through the Lower Flinders Ranges to Peterborough and eventually Broken Hill.  At Peterborough after a wander around town, it was discovered that one of my tyres was quite flat and we were able to have a puncture repaired in town before moving on.  A nail had embedded in the tyre.  Fortunately it was noticed there and I didn't have to change it myself on the road. I am having problems uploading photos again so will close this post and start another.

 

Made it across the Nullarbor

Yes, we made it across the Nullarbor in good time, staying now at the Ceduna Caravan park where there are lovely hot showers, bliss.  Took above photos at the Eucla old Telegraph station including the wattle.  The windmills are at Penong.  Two old farmers in about 2002 decided to restore some windmills that had been superceded by solar pumps in the neighbouring farms.  They got so many that eventually the town set up a park where they could be displayed. The aim is to have one of each type of windmill that was ever erected in Australia.  Some of them are huge.

We are staying in Ceduna 2 nights and then head off to Port Augusta where we have to collect the CMCA mail at the post office and deal with the banking stuff.  Then Jan and I will head off to Broken Hill, Dianne to Victoria and Chris hasn't yet decided where she is going.

All having fun. Still on my first book if you can believe it. I normally go through about 3 in a week. It has proved very difficult to get photos on this blog so they may be sparse.  Love to all.

Well here we are, on the road again... left Perth Anzac day heading east with a group of mates all in our own camper vans, oh except one who is towing a small caravan. We are all travelling together to Port Augusta and then will separate and meet up again on our way home in about two months.  At Port Augusta, I will head off with Jan to Wagga Wagga where she is visiting her grandchildren and I will go on to Canberra to visit Pat and Colin and then onto Sydney to visit Harriet and Co.  Jan and I will join up again before we meet the others at Murray Bridge for us to travel the three South Australian peninsulars.

We spent our first night at Burracoppin and then travelled today to Norseman and tomorrow onto te Eyre Highway.

We did a slight deviation to see Westonia where Chris's father was from (one of the mates). Such a pretty town and well deserved recipient of the Tidy Towns awards for several years..  It has the remains of a gold mine in the main street.

I was amused to see the local tavern had decorated the front door to be a Dockers emblem.

Sydney to Canberra - from surf to snow!

Thomas had a last day play with Finn at the beach in Sydney

 

That was Saturday and by the next Thursday, he was playing in snow!

 

 

Since Tom's trip to europe in 2011, he has been obsessed with mountains and their prospect for snow.  When we went to the Blue Mountains with the Kettley/de Mars family, he kept asking about whether it snowed there and whether he might see any.  Alas although cold, no snow.  When we were driving to Canberra he was thrilled with the mountains we saw in the distance, asking all impossible questions that I was unable to answer except to say, "Look at the map".  I didn't know what they were called. When we arrived in Canberra, I knew they were the Brindabellas and the first question he asked Pat and Colin, our Canberra hosts was - does it snow here?

From then on, he constantly was consulting the maps, the internet, the weather etc and begged me to take him to the Snowy Mountains.  I resisted but finally relented and agreed to drive to Thredbo to stay overnight at a campspot about 8 km from the resort.  I kept saying that although the forecast was -3 it would not guarantee snow.  I have never been so cold in all my life.  My sleeping bag is rated to -10 and it was certainly colder than -3!  Upon arrival, there was no snow.  But soon after, hail appeared and rained down on us for about 20 minutes which worried me as I had no idea of how I was going to drive on icy roads - no chains, no experience of driving with chains etc.  He was disappointed that although it hailed there was no snow.  I told him it might snow overnight given how cold it was and YES! in the morning, there was snow on the peaks.

At first Tom was too reluctant to use the chair lift to go to the summit to see Kosciuskzo but finally after trying to walk up, agreed to do the chair lift.  We hired some snow boots and he was wearing various layers of clothes including a thermal top of mine under his shaggy jacket.  As you can see he was in seventh heaven.

We had a 24 hour pass for the Snowy Mountain National Park and so we departed by midday on Thursday.  Coming down the chair lift, it was still incredibly cold and there appeared to be more snow coming.

Canberra for me, was more than the trip to the snow.  It was the opportunity to catch up with friends of long ago and see some of the national monuments.

There were  no parliamentary sessions and I couldn't interest Tom in going to see the building, he wanted to see the Prime Minister in full flight but she was not available.

At the war memorial, the displays were fascinating. We found the Victoria Cross of Throssell from WW1 who was married to Catherine Susannah Pritchard whose house is now a writers retreat and is next door to Tom's cousins in Greenmount.  We experienced sound and light shows of the RAF in both world wars that were extremely well done, feeling like you were actually part of the battles the way in which they were executed.

Tom's picture above was with Weary Dunlop, a larger than life figure not just in bronze.

We finished off the week with a trip to Questacon and to the Australian Institute of Sport before Tom flew home last Friday.

I then took off for the coast at Batemans Bay and wound my way down the south coast of NSW which is so beautiful I feel I have been shortchanged by WA with its dry landscape.  I am presently in Victoria at a little town called Foster and my next blog will emanate from here.

Sydney

As forecast all arrived in Sydney - Myles and Thomas on Thursday 18th, with Myles returning home on the following Sunday.  Thomas and Myles went to the football at the SCG on Friday night and as both Harriet and Bill were working Friday, Myles, Thomas, Finn, Hannah and I went across to the City on the Manly ferry.  It was very windy and the sea was rough but the boys enjoyed it.  Hannah was a little nauseous but we managed.  We spent several hours walking around, looking at the Opera House and the entertainment at Circular Quay.

The top two photos are evidence that Tom's desires were met.  He wanted to see the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge.  The bottom one was completely unexpected and certainly not desired by Myles who is the nefarious looking character on the right wrapping the street entertainer up in chains.  The children wanted to watch this entertainer as he started his act.  He first of all did some impressive handstands and so forth, then he wriggled his body through the frame of a tennis racquet.  When he got stuck half way through, he came up to me and said "Mum, you bought the wrong size again!" much to the childrens' amusement.  Then when he wanted helpers to wrap him up in chains, padlock his hands behind his back etc he called for volunteers.  When he didnt get any, he chose the two biggest blokes in the audience, one of whom was extremely reluctant to be part of the act, but Myles was pressured to do so and so he did.  He did not enjoy the experience.  The whole show went on for ages and of course the entertainer succeeded in wriggling out of the fully padlocked chains and unpicked the handcuffs with a hairpin from a girl in the audience.

 

 

 

After Myles left on Sunday, we went for a picnic at Manly Dam which is a short walk through bushland near Harriet and Bill's house. This was the intrepid three who were stopping at this point for emergency supplies which were being managed by Hannah and maintained in her back pack.  They had been walking by then for about 4 minutes with about another 4 to go before arriving.  Bill drove around the block to get there carrying all the chairs, food, drinks etc.  We met other friends of the family who were there with their children and all had a great time.  Finn and Tom went fishing with no luck had, and Hannah and her friends found an area where clay abounded and they made lots of figures from clay.

 

Luckily I bought two computers with me, my little notebook and a laptop which is identical to the one that Hannah and Bill have.  The three children book time slots for them all to play a game and they get thoroughly engrossed in it for limited times allowed.  Hannah gets bored with the boys games and she ends up playing with patterns or one game which takes her shopping where she can buy all sorts of weird clothes.

I have tried to flip this photo but it wont work.  It is flipped in the original.  Hannah, Finn, Bill and I went to Luna Park on Wednesday when Harriet was at work.  It was what I would think pergatory would be like.  I have hated the Royal Show since I went when I was about 16 and havent been back and it was worse!

 

 

Anzac Day we took off early to the Blue Mountains and to Scenic World which is where you can catch a funicular up or down to the Valley at the bottom, ride a cable car up or down and also a sky train across the valley which was 270 metres below.  My vertigo has been somewhat numbed by the number of bridges and mountains I have driven around and it gave me no trouble at all.  It was very cold as can be seen by how rugged up everyone but Bill is.  He left his jumper at home!

 

Tomorrow, Tom and I head off to Canberra where it has been very cold of late and Tom is hoping for snow.  I dont think that 0 degrees at night is going to get him snow but we are still hoping for miracles.

Inverness to Glenn Innis and Yamba

The road through the Great Dividing Range was testing with its sharp bends and inclines but through truly beautiful country. The trouble was the road is so narrow that it was impossible to stop to take photos except at designated stopping areas.  This was one called Raspberry Lookout.

 

I was able to take this one from the van as I was stopped by roadworks where half the road had fallen off the mountain and so we had only one lane for a couple of kms.  You can see the lush growth of ferns, creepers and anything else that was growing.

 

This is a photo I wanted to put on my last blog of the little towns along the way.  Again, this is the Clarence River and the town was McLean.

 

My first sight of the Pacific Ocean.  I stayed with Lyn who I met at Blaze Aid in Yamba. She had left a week before me but invited me to stay with her on my journy.  Lyn's house was about 200 m from the Clarence River and she had been flooded out 5 times in 4 years. Each time it was designated a one hundred year flood. She was very fed up.  Lyn originally lived on the river bank but the council compulsorily acquired her house about 7 years ago due to flood risk and it was demolished.  She is a long way back now but says she has had more flooding than in the original house.

 

I am now in Sydney with Harriet, Bill, Hannah and Finn and will await the arrival of Myles and Thomas on Thursday evening.

En Route to Sydney

I have now arrived in Sydney and am able to get back on my blog.  I have not had sufficient internet cover for a few days and so have not been able to pass on my adventures.

After leaving Bingara, I moved onto my next overnight stay at Jackadgery Creek in New England on the road to Grafton. Again, I had a flowing river and animals to accompany me, albeit this time behind a fence.  A gorgeous morning with mist on the mountains followed.

 

 

Arriving in Grafton at about 8.30, I was desperate for a hair cut and while waiting for the shops to open, I took a walk along the levy bank. This is the Clarence River which had flooded twice earlier this year.  The levies were very high and I took this photo which includes a man rowing a boat leading a horse, and the bridge.  The bridge may not look very high here, but I almost passed out at the sight of it.  If you look closely, you will see that the cars are tiny spots on the top of the bridge, not within the engineering part of it.  The thought that I would have to cross it worried me enormously.

 

Having found a hairdresser who gave me a cut, I asked if there was any way to get across without going over this bridge.  She gave me a route which would take about an hour but was through pretty countryside and I decided that is what I would do.  She then asked me where I was headed, which was Yamba and she laughingly told me I didnt need to cross the bridge at all, just stay on the same side of the river for half an hour or so and I would get to Yamba.  I did just that.

 

I found lots of pretty sights along the river which is very wide, lots of fishing villages etc - prawns and fish are caught in the river and oysters seem to be farmed everywhere I went for the next few days.  I cant seem to upload the photos on this post, I will have to start again with a new one.