Christmas on Top of the World!

We arrived in Canberra and were so blessed to be able to stay with our lovely cousins Debbie and Brett. We stashed the caravan in a side parking and for the first time in weeks did not sleep on wheels and had a bathroom near us..bliss. Thank you!!Canberra is a wonderful city, our Capital ..but first to Christmas.
We decided to do something completely different this year as I knew we would miss the family and togetherness which we have always had on Christmas day. So we decided to drive to the Snowy Mountains and climb Australia’s highest peak to have a toast to us all from there. The Australian Alps have many ski resorts and more snow than Switzerland in winter ( bigger area). The biggest rivers also have their source in these mountains, including the Murray, the Murrumbidgee and of course the Snowy River. The latter has been made into the biggest Hydro scheme in Australia hailed as one of the engineering wonders of the modern world. It is a complex infrastructure with 16 major dams, seven power stations (two underground), pumping stations, 145 kms of interconnected tunnels and 80 kms of aqueducts. To build this scheme in these wilderness mountains with unforgiving weather is a true marvel, and when you see the size of the tunnels and pipes (30ft inside) it is breathtaking.
We stayed in a caravan park overnight and on Christmas morning drove into the heart of the mountains to Thredbo which is a ski resort with multiple chair lifts etc in winter. We took the chair lift 500 odd meters to the top of the ridge, then hiked the 6 and half kms to the top of Mt Kosciuszko at 2229 meters. While that does not sound all that high, most of Australia is very flat and low, so these mountains rise abruptly from the plains and we could see 360 deg views of the mountains. The lower parts of the slopes had amazing wildflowers growing among the granite tors, looking truly like God’s Garden. However as we climbed higher there was only spongy alpine moss and grasses with patches of snow. Being at the top was an exhilarating experience, and we felt a real sense of achievement. Christmas lunch was smoked salmon sandwiches, fresh cherries, nuts, and a swig or two of Port! We got a real buzz from being able to phone Joe and Geoff from the peak to wish them Happy Christmas, because believe it or not there was a signal (intermittent but usable).We thought we would be one of the few people daft enough to do something like this on Christmas day, but there were quite a few other brave souls and the atmosphere was festive! The weather was a brisk 10 deg (less with wind-chill) but bright blue skies..magic! We felt for our Perth family who were sweating it out in a heat wave of 40 deg. The trip down was great with views all around us, and we also got a buzz from standing at the source of the Snowy River! I used Australia’s highest loo with views of Kosciusko. From the chairlift we could see for miles (and even saw a little echidna scuttling around below us). We drove back and had a spa at the caravan park which eased our muscles!
The next day we drove back to Canberra through the centre of the Great Dividing Range with wonderful views, hairpin bends, and saw the highest reservoir, the highest town in Australia ( Cabramurra), and some historic mountain huts straight out of “The Man from Snowy River”.
It was a wonderful and very different Christmas!

The Lakes, and the Croajingolong National Park

We headed east resolutely and aimed for the Lakes District. These are 3 huge inland fresh water lakes into which 5 rivers flow enroute to the sea. In actual fact they are really big lagoons, but are the biggest fresh water expanses of fresh water in the Australia, and support a huge fishing industry and tourism. As we passed a little town called Bairnsdale we stopped off at the Catholic Church of St Mary’s as we had been told that it was worth a visit. The church was not huge, and was about 150 yrs old and big for a small town with soaring ceilings and alcove over the altar. But what made it special were the frescos decorating the ceilings and walls. An Italian artist had come out to Australia after WW1 and during the depression had to find work. The local priest offered him a job to paint the ceiling of the church and this he did..the whole ceiling is covered with murals of saints, angels, scenes from the Bible etc. The Altar area had depictions of the judgement and heaven..very impressive. It was not the Sistine Chapel, but very inspiring none the less.
We drove by the main town of Lakes Entrance intending to stop further along the road and return the next day. However we decided it was too touristy and that we had seen what we needed to see and so pushed on towards the NSW border. The whole south eastern corner of Victoria is covered by National Park called the Croajingolong and is a wilderness coast. It covers a huge area and most of it has never been cleared or logged so is untouched. Only a few roads penetrate into the temperate rain forests to the coast, and the whole area is thick and wild. We stayed at a little fishing village called Bemm River where the river flows into a huge lagoon, and went for a walk into the forests on the few overgrown tracks to the river banks. We heard and saw lots of bird life, but not much fauna (most of the Australian wildlife is nocturnal) except for FLIES! We also drove to the beach past the lagoon on a rutted track and then had to scramble through thick overgrown bush to get to the beach which was utterly beautiful and completely deserted...it is called the 90 mile beach and you feel like you are the only person to ever have walked on it. We decided to try our hand at fishing for Bream in the river with what they told us was the local fish delicacy..sand worms. These sea creatures are dug out of the sand using a small prawn or cockle as temptation before they peep out and are nabbed by the experienced sand wormer. They look disgusting..small red/orange things with lots of wriggling legs and big mouths...ugh. Anyhow, the Bream were not that interested, but we had lots of fun anyway. As we sat on the banks in this isolated spot, every now and then a huge fish (18 inches plus long) which we were told were some kind of mullet would suddenly LEAP out of the water quite a height and then flop back into it with a huge splash. Not sure why, probably to catch the mossies and flies. This happened randomly every couple of min or so, and we had great fun trying to predict with the camera where the next splash would be. It rained most of the time, but we still managed to see quite a bit.
And so to Canberra.....

Gippsland: Tree Ferns, Scenery and Giant Earth worms!

Gippsland is the area east of Melbourne and is by far the most scenic, lovely countryside we have been in so far. The whole area was originally covered by Temperate Rain forest, and the hills and mountains had towering Mountain Ash, Myrtle Beech and tall tree ferns. The early settlers cleared a lot of the land for farming, and the area now looks like driving through Scotland with green hills, tree lined valleys, and fertile farms. The National Parks have preserved the original Forests which have rare and endangered species dating back to the Gondwanaland era. Every drive and corner is prettier than the last, and the weather cool and moist the way we love it. We stayed at a lovely campsite in Korumburra where we got a spot under two huge Oak Trees which must have been at least 100 years old. We were almost the only people in this delightful park which backed onto an arboretum, and little brook with nature walk. There were wombats in the park, and possums in the trees. We did some scenic drives along the Grand Ridge Road, and went to some galleries where the artist’s studio looked out onto the mountain ranges for inspiration! (lucky things..they had peacocks strutting around the lush gardens, huge trees..what a place.)An interesting fact about this area is that it is the only place in the world that you find Giant Earth Worms. These worms live in the boggy ground near river banks and grow from 80 cms to 2 meters and are about 2 cm wide..otherwise the same as other earth worms ( David Attenborough had a programme on them, and Bill Bryson mentions them in the Down Under ).Of course we did not see any ( but then do you see ordinary earth worms just lying around on the surface?) But the blurb said you would k know they were around by the slurping sound, like water going down a plug...So of course we walked around listening for the slurping sound!
After 4 days we tore ourselves away and drove down the coast towards Yarram where we came to the Tarra Bulga National Park which is my little bit of heaven. Huge trees, 1000 yr old Myrtle Beech, Towering Tree Ferns, birds everywhere..a precious remnant of the Temperate Rain forests that only exist now here, NZ and a bit in S. America. We could not believe that the campsite was on the bubbling Tarra River, and we were the only campers there! Every corner has moss, ferns and streams. There are colourful parrots in the trees and even the lyrebird ( heard but not seen).We could stay here for ages, but need to keep moving and find a spot for Christmas as we have not booked in anywhere and all the popular places will be booked out for the Christmas holiday period. We were originally hoping to make Sydney to be with our family Hanneke and Steve for Christmas, but that will be rushing too much.

The Spa Country

Goodbye to the Grampains as we drove into the area north of Melbourne known as the “Spa Country” because of the extensive Mineral Springs found in the mountains and forests of the area. We found the most idyllic campsite in the middle of a huge National Parks called the Lerderberg. It is a small hamlet called Blackwood and has the sweetest old cottages with pretty gardens..but the caravan Park is in a clearing surrounded by huge trees and forest on the banks of the river...the only sounds were the birds and gurgling of the river. We put up our annex (side tent) which we don’t do for short stops and our Sat disc and decided to stay for awhile. The reason they call it the Spa country is that the mineral springs that bubble up in various places are full of minerals and trace elements and are supposed to be therapeutic. As a result commerce has cashed in and made the region a hedonistic paradise for those wanting every kind of Health Spa experience from Massages to mud baths. As it happens our Blackwood has a mineral and Soda spring called “Soda Fountain” and we went and tried both. We could not believe it, the water had a sparkle and tasted just like the bottled soda water! Very pleasant, and quite a surprise. We added a little fruit juice and it was like those posh flavoured mineral waters. The area is also known for the mining boom which was so huge in the early 1800 that thousands of men from all over the world, incl China, California, and of course UK flooded in to try and make their fortunes. The area is riddled with old mine shafts and very historic buildings and towns..many of the little diggings and shafts we found while doing hikes in the forests. We drove into historic Ballarat where the famous Eureka Stockade took place (the miners revolted against the gov because of unfair taxation and laws) and so is regarded as the birthplace of the Aussie spirit of “fair go” and the trade unions. Ballarat is the second largest Victorian city and has grand Victorian buildings and gardens dating for the Gold Rush area and prosperity. It had a wonderful Art Gallery where they had some priceless paintings from all over the world and well known Australian artist. On Sunday we drove into Melbourne for the day and had a wonderful day going to the Craft Market, the famous Victoria St Market, and the National Art Gallery of Australia. The latter was awesome, floor after floor of famous paintings by Monet, Rembrandt, Constable, Turner and more. Eventually we could not absorb any more, so went to the markets where we got some real bargains as it was close of the weekend. We have loved this area of lush forests and deep gorges, and our 5 days here have been very restful.
From Spa Country we drove over the “top” of Melbourne and went into the Yarra Valley, which is a beautiful mountainous and forested area, also known for its wines. We stayed in Yarra Glen on the banks of the Yarra River where we saw amazing birds. Paul even thought he heard a platypus during the night (but it could have been a wombat). The Yarra River is the main river that runs through Melbourne. We could not get over how picturesque Victoria was even a close distance (80 kms) from Melbourne.

The Grampians

Colleen says “We are in Victoria now and what a difference in climate and scenery. As you cross the border it’s as if it’s a different country, fertile farms, big huge trees, lots of English trees planted in the towns like Oaks, Beech, and Elms. It is nice and cool and we are loving it. We stopped at a little town called Dunkeld which is in the foot of the Grampian Range of mountains. Even though it is just the Southern end they tower above us like a brooding Table Mountain covered in mist over the top. The little park is small, shaded, friendly and has thousands of birds, incl some I have not seen before. Flocks of Musk Lorikeets, King Parrots and Eastern Rosellas (all types of colourful parrots) and lots of kangaroos. We took a drive into the valley of the Grampians, Halls Gap, and did some of the spectacular lookouts and waterfalls (McKenzie Falls) in the area. Today we went into the little town of Hamilton, and saw their well designed Botanical Gardens and Art Gallery. I must say for a small town the Art Gallery is really a tourist attraction. Started by a generous bequest by a local farming family who were avid collectors of fine art, it is now a showpiece. Not only does it have original Mc Cubbin, Hans Heyson and the like, but notable overseas painters as well. There is also a huge collection of Paul Sandby who is considered a “father” of modern watercolour, and whose collection other than this is in Windsor Castle. We also drove to an extinct volcano called Mt Rouse which is in the Volcano valley where there are a few volcanoes from the Australian Volcanic era, and from the top one could see not only the other extinct/dormant volcanoes, but a wonderful view of the whole area.

Fleurieu Peninsular/Mighty Murray River

Thank you for your comments. Much appreciated and valued and makes us feel that we are connected to you all in the rest of the world! I know it seems that we have done the first part of the journey like a “bat out of hell”, but I guess partly the Nullarbor takes up a large part of it, and partly we have seen a lot of SA before. Also we were unfortunate to have a big heat wave for the first two weeks which was difficult for Colleen as she hates the heat and wilts. So hiking or staying in hot places was no go as she just wanted to head out to the cooler climate. We are now in Victoria -3/8 States/Territories of Aus and the weather is gorgeous - 20deg at 8.00pm, last night saw thousands of bats emerge from their cave after sunset, today toured a cave, tonight nestled against a mountain with cloud covering the top, birds roosting, hot shower, beer, prawns and nice drop of wine from the wine tour we did. The scenery is spectacular and there are lots of interesting places for us to see. We are now starting to get into it and our pace will slow dramatically. We are not really “desert “people, and while we can appreciate the rugged ranges and remote outback, we really want to be in the green and treed parts of the country. As Frank from London says 60% are grey nomads been on the road years on average and loving it 20% Overseas visitors in camper vans. Vans from ours to one as high (18ft) as ours is long from tow bar to back and 11 metres long made in Canada, one year old.

Colleen says “We decided to drive to a beachside caravan park in Adelaide in the hope of getting some sea breezes in this awful heat wave. We drove through the Clare Valley which is renowned for excellent wineries, but it was too hot to stop, and even the being right on the beach in Brighton gave no relief to the 37 deg. The next day we decided to do some admin things like our early vote (very efficient, they had the voting papers ready with candidates for our constituency right there ready..what a pleasure). We also had to do some things for our caravan (the gas struts on the pop top packed in..they quoted us a huge amount, but Paul is so clever he sourced a re- gas guy and did the whole job himself in two ticks).After a couple of days of doing things we had to, we just had to get out of the big city and somewhere quieter and cooler, so decided to go to the Fleurieu Peninsula, which is south East of Adelaide..What a discovery. Not only was it much cooler, it was So beautiful..lovely hills, valleys with huge trees, fields with crops and fat cows, vinyards and wineries, gorgeous old buildings dating back to 1820 (don’t laugh you poms..thats old for here!) and spectacular beaches with icing sugar sand which squeaks when you walk in it. Our caravan park was right on the beach, surrounded by wonderful views and bluffs, and everywhere we looked there were art galleries and historical sites. It was the Margaret River of Adelaide, and it was 23 degrees..I was a happy camper again! We took a drive around the Peninsular and stopped at Victor Harbour where there was a lovely little island which had a causeway across the sea which we had a Clydsdale horse tram ride across which was very interesting. There we saw seals and fairy penguins and wonderful granite rock formations with the southern ocean crashing into the bays. We were very taken with this whole area and every new turn brought a wonderful view. We only stayed 4 days cos would you believe it, it was “schoolies week” this weekend and this is the Dunsborough of Adelaide and was about to be invaded by schoolies ( the hundreds of school leavers who go away to celebrate the end of their school life by being totally wild for a week). We left the area sadly and stopped by a charming little village called Strathalbyn which was settled by Scottish immigrants in the 1800 and so all the names and character of the village was from that country ..ie Angus River. Lots of art galleries and gorgeous old buildings. The Fleurieu Pen ends at a place called Cape Jervis where you can take a Ferry to Kangaroo Island. It is the third largest island in Oz..Tasmania is the largest. It is 13 kms across the sea and is about 150 kms long. We toyed with the idea of going over, but in the end decided against it. The scenery was spectacular and there were seals, koalas, penguins etc..but frankly nothing we had not seen before.

Murray River
Colleen Says “We went to Murray Bridge which is a town with a huge bridge over the Mighty Murray..the biggest River in Australia and the fourth largest River system in the world according to the blurb. It is about 3 and half thousand kms long and its catchment area encompasses the Snowy River project and the Murrumbidgee and Darling rivers. It starts in the Vic Alps and its mouth is near Murray Bridge in a series of wetlands of international importance for migratory birds..the Coorong. It’s not a particularly wide river, but considering that it waters huge areas of farming lands, Adelaide, dams, weirs and all sorts its no wonder..and of course the awful drought that the area is having is having an impact. We were going to take a Paddle Wheel cruise but the area there is flat and marshy so we drove upriver instead to see some of the wonderful red cliffs as it meandered to the coast. You can hire a house boat from 2 people to 50 in various levels of luxury and people hire these and go for weeks upriver stopping at all the little historical towns along the way. But at every lookout there were dozens of houseboats chugging up and down the Red Gum lined river. I could see that it could be quite relaxing to just float along with the fishing line out the back. From there we drove through the limestone coast area which has extensive farms and vineyards all irrigated by extensive artesian wells. We came to a place called Naracoorte which has Limestone Caves which are World Heritage listed. The reason is that they have found extensive fossils in the areas caves which tell of the climate in the prehistoric areas as well as many animals that lived then, specifically Megafauna. ..ie gigantic kangaroos, wombats and koalas etc! They have a wonderful centre which recreates these animals in a lifelike tropical forest..huge wombat things that are as big as a baby elephant, marsupial hippos, giant goannas of several meters long with huge jaws and claws, and of course giant kangaroo type animals. VERY interesting and informative. There are series of limestone caves and guided walks ...also a bat cave which thousands of Bentwing bats emerge at sunset. We walked into the bush after sunset to see the bats emerge, and after waiting awhile watching kangaroos hopping around and the many parrots of the area roosting, the bats finally emerged in their thousands. Nearby the bat cave was a Bat Informative Centre where tourists could go during the day and view the bats in their cave with infra red light and get talks about them. As we walked past we noticed a light on, and peering around the door we saw a young zoologist looking at the bats with the powerful cameras in the cavern. We asked a few questions and he obligingly told us that the previous night he had seen a bat mother give birth and he was trying to find her again. As I watched the hundreds of bats flying around I thought what a hopeless job, but then he told us that it was extremely rare to see anything this, and it was a world first to have filmed an endangered bat being born..in fact in the scientific world it was a breakthrough and was going to be in the newspapers (local and international) the following week. He then replayed the video of it and we watched fascinated while the mother gave birth to this tiny bat which clung to her as she fluttered around , showing the new arrival to the interested “aunties” that gathered around.Talk about being in the right place at the right time! We also went on a Fossil Cave tour of 500 metres where they showed the actual fossils of these prehistoric Megafauna and where David Attenborough had filmed one of his series.
After this onto the Grampians in Vic. Only been gone for 3 weeks and cant believe how much ground we have covered and what we have done already.

Flinders Range

Flinders Range

Colleen says “We left Streaky Bay in South Australia and travelled all day across the top of the Eyre Peninsula..again, very arid and almost another Nullarbor...very hot. We were planning to stop a night at Port Augusta at the top of Spencer Gulf, but it was still hot and the place did not inspire us so we decided to push on to the Flinders Ranges a few hundred kms north..ie into the REAL outback! I know we should not have been surprised, but we are still astounded at how HUGE this place is..what looks like a hop and skip is many many miles..and when you see it on the map of Australia it is barely a freckle. The Flinders Ranges rise up from the flat, scrubby landscape into a surprisingly high and scenic mountain range which span from quite high in SA to down near the Adelaide Hills. The part we went to was called Wilpena Pound which is a huge circle of mountains which looks like a giant meteorite crash site or the centre of a huge extinct volcano. The middle bit is quite lush and the most amazingly beautiful huge trees called Red Gums grow there right along the creek beds..the subject of many famous paintings. There is a lovely resort there and the caravan park is natural with kangaroos, emus,goannas and lots of bird life wandering amongst the campers. It is part Drakensburg, part Magaliesburg in appearance..bright red Buffs with the wonderful colours of the Red Gums. We went on a walk/climb for 8 + kms to a lookout where you could see the whole Pound surrounding us. There are many hiking trails all around, but we won’t be doing anymore cos of the 37 deg heatwave!! Instead we took a drive on what turned out to be a dreadful road ( 4x4 track really) to the Brachina Gorge ( 100 kms round trip) where it has some of the oldest rock and fossils on the planet..over 640,000 million years old. These huge red folding cliffs were an awesome sight, and I believe there have been real breakthroughs in science from some of the fossil finds in that area (the missing link between amoeba and living creatures). But at one stage we were literally driving down a rocky river bed! Once again the heat did not help, but we managed to see some more scenic gorges before heading back to camp. We will leave tomorrow and head closer to Adelaide where we will probably stay for awhile.

To South Australia

Relaxing in South Australia

Colleen says “We crossed the Nullarbor and its tedious driving in about 2 and half days..Listening to music and Bill Bryson’s “Down Under” along the way. The petrol price in the middle was $1.80 per litre..Luckily we managed to eke it out to the slightly cheaper stations. Once again we stopped to marvel at the massive 90 meter high sheer cliffs of the Bight, with the endless blue ocean stretching across to the ant arctic, and crashing on the rocks below..awesome. We have stopped at Streaky Bay on the Eyre Peninsula for a few days rest..It’s been a long drive from Perth. It’s a pretty bay and a caravan park right on the beach...the water is only meters from our caravan and the pelicans strut around hoping for a feed from the fishermen. The park is almost full..all of us with grey hair! there are the most amazing rigs that must have cost thousands...high tech 4x4 with huge off road vans...funny to see two tiny grey podgy folk jump out, and then set up their laptops! There are also modest rigs with the couples who are retired and are now working at odd job to pay their way round the country. MOST seem to have been on the road for 18 months, 2 years or more, and are just taking their time going around the whole place. What a life! From here we are going to Port Augusta, and then to the Flinders Ranges, Wilpena Pound.”

Paul says ”The picture has some aspects of the Nullabor desert, Honour box, Road train passing us - 46 wheels and the Great Australian Bight”

1sT STOP

The Open Road

Colleen says “ We have been on the road for 4 days now. At first I was anxious and sad to be leaving my family and friends. Our first stop was to spend a night with Michelle in the little rural town of Toodjay where she has a small farm house on 5 acres. We were so impressed with all she had done is such a short time, chicken run, vegie garden, fruit trees with reticulation! We played with the children and collected eggs, helped her fix things and generally had a great time...we were sad to leave. The next day we travelled through the wheat belt and stopped over night at a small village called Lake King on the edge of a huge salt lake. The following day took us to the Southern Coast in the Fitzgerald World Biosphere and to Hopetoun where we stayed with Paul’s cousins and had a wonderful visit with them and Uncle Willie. Then we drove through Esperance where we bought a few fresh provisions to see us through the dreaded Nullabor...expensive, isolated and very barren. So far its been all go go go, but once we are on the “other side” of WA we will stop for a few days to enjoy some lovely bay. “
Paul Says “After 1st stop 1,600kms still to get to West Aus border – 4 days travel to get 1/3 across Aus Southern Coast. Tonight we stopped in Salmon Gums, little town where $10 night gets hot shower , free washing machine, Powered site, only 2 vans here, Thousands of stars and no other lights and two days to the WA border. We enjoyed a lovely dinner with Ron/Pete’s gift of Sauvignon, and Nib’s delicious crunchies. A great sunset over the Gums at Gods own restaurant – top table- a VERY Happy camper –Boy will I sleep well tonight. ” Had 1st challenge today car alarm/immobilizer fails – Freezer/ fridge full and stops for 1heart pumping hr – all fixed – back in the game and we move on with another new skill –isn’t live full of surprises ?”

Welcome!

Welcome to our site as we journey together around this beautiful country. We hope you enjoy our comments, photos and sharing in the excitement of our dream trip.