Photos updated to 6/1/2012

Map and Data of Trip 2011-12

Left home about 11am, weather was hot. A bit of delay near the top of Cunningham's Gap with roadworks. Spent most of the time trying to work out where we would stay without going too much out of our way. 4 days to get to Melbourne, so we can't afford too many diversions. Decided to head down the New England Hwy from Warwick, stopped at Dalveen and a little park (overnight stop) Camps 6 book says 12hrs, but the gardener said a day or two was OK. Might stay next time. Went through Tenterfield, a lovely town, lovely mature trees, pin oaks, willows, poplars (I like natives but exotics are just so lovely, especially on hot days) Watch for the fixed speed camera coming down the hill where the limit is 50km - luckily we'd been through previously. Checked out another free stop at the Bluff Rock, bit slopy. As it was getting near 5.30pm (6.30pm EST) we decided to stay where we had stayed a year or so ago. Beardy Creek, a few kms north of Glen Innes. Nice, large grassed area - this time the toilet didn't smell. There had been a lot of rain over the last 24hrs in the area and the choice of non-soggy spots was limited, but we found a solid spot and enjoyed a looooong sunset. Being on the high plateau, it got cold very quickly but at least we were out of the hot, humid weather.

Photos 13/12/2011

Lovely morning, still a bit nippy, but we are on the New England plataeu. Went into Glen Innes to get fuel and also went to the park we have been to many times. Really lovely town, lots of green space and trees. Headed west to go towards Delungra (on the Gwydir Hwy), then to Bingara and across to the Newell to Narrabri. However, road from Bingara to Narrabri was closed due to recent flood damage, so had to divert back towards Tamworth and Gunnedah. Wouldn't have been happy to end up back on the New England, but we were able to travel across to Gunnedah and had one flood crossing at a causeway (on Oxley Hwy) and all was good. But we could see where the floods had been in many places. De Ja Vu, this happened another year where NSW had copped the floods just before we went down to Melbourne. As we travelled along that road we only then realised we had travelled that road before - only this year in August. It was only when we saw a picnic and toilet spot that we had stopped at last time that we realised. Another senior moment? Got fuel at Gunnedah, travelled through Coonabarabran and arrived at Mendooran. It has also had heavy rain in the last few days, but the ground was solid. Had another fridge 'malfunction'. Geoff's fault this time. He had got chocolate out at Coonabaraban and forgot to lock the fridge. K & G will laugh - the trifle fell into the plastic container, so that's the end of that. Also found the container of beetroot under the table - lid still in tact, phew. Had a shower, cold of course and ate dinner outside - had pork in the curry pasta tonight. Another long sunset, among the Eucalypts, gentle breeze and cockies squarking - this is Australia.

Photos 14/12/2011

Coolish morning, some sun, blew last night but subsided by dawn. Wind was blowing strongly from north-east so a little bit of a tail-wind. Headed for Dubbo and past a tow truck and car stopped on other side of the road and a little car nose first into the forest off the road. All seemed to be talking and calm. As we continued towards Dubbo, we passed an ambulance, a police car, 2 fire trucks and two emergency vehicles (green and yellow stripes) heading in the direction of the 'incident', so I hope it was just the locals getting excited about an 'incident' and that no-body was really hurt. Stopped at Dubbo, shopped and fuelled, then stopped again at Forbes for lunch and MORE shopping - don't get excited, we forgot to buy fruit. Along the way, two trucks overtook so we sat behind them for about 100km. Yesterday, we had been getting around 17ltr/100 kms, but we were getting around 10 behind the trucks with their slip streaming (took a photo getting 5.4ltrs/100kms!!), but was down a slight incline, lead truck was hauling another 2 prime movers and really high and the one in front of us was a sheep truck, high again in more than one way. Needless to say we had it on recycle the whole way. As went through towns we could hear a dog barking in the back of the sheep truck. Arrived at Barmedman to see the mineral pool, looks like a local swimming pool except the bottom is dirt. $10pn unpwrd, toilets at the pool, dirt ground, some shade, no other facilities. Was going to stay but moved on to Ariah Park at the rec reserve. $10 pn power and shower, good value, huge grassed area, some afternoon shade only, next to the oval and behind the local pool. Free if you don't use showers and power. Lots of mossies but no water around. Geoff is cooking (heating) pasties on the bbq in the camp kitchen.

Photos 15/12/2011

Woke to a nice morning. Headed towards Wagga Wagga, stopped to get gas and fuel, took the well travelled road past the Rock, Henty, Culcairne etc. and thought we'd stay at a free stop just 10km east of Albury. But alas it was closed, at least the toilets were a pile of concrete rubble and there were piles of dirt all throughout so there was very little access to the wide area which had been the overnight stay. It started to drizzle so we moved on to the Hume Freeway, deciding where we would go next. Very few trucks on the hwy surprisingly. Ended up stopping at Major's Creek, just a little west from Avenel (before Seymour heading south). After being bamboozled by road works we found the right road. Passed lovely vineyards, as this place was a Mitchelltown. Eventually found the spot, very, very dusty, it had been flooded previously, but the creek was beautiful. Geoff took out our new blow-up kayak for a spin and it performed well, not sure about Geoff's performance, but he was very tired when he got back. It has got hotter as we moved south and the afternoon and even were particularly warm, I'd guess in the low 30's. Two other camps only, an adult family with two tents not far from us and a group of young guys at the other end. Thought some local yahoos had arrived, but as the night wore on everything was quiet.

Photos 16/12/2011

Came back out of the camping area and hoped that the ricketty bridge we crossed coming in would hold us - but all was OK, we saw a sign '8t limit'. Travelled back heading south past many horse studs and on to the Hume Freeway again. Turned off at the new Kalkallo turn off and amazed at how much housing development/proposed development estates are on the road on the Kalkallo road and all along Mickelham road.

Photos 17/12/2011

Sunday 18th December - Went to Ray's 60th surprise party. A good time had by all.

Monday 19th December - Aunty Gwen and Aunty Lois

Tuesday 20th December - Car Service

Wednesday 21st December - Connor to Gellibrand Homestead (today?) shopping?

Thursday 22nd December - Ray, Joh, Dave, Trish at Excelsior Hotel, pick up Kristi

Friday 23rd December - Commercial Hotel, South Morang, Dave, Trish and all the family, with Kristi

Saturday 24th December - Shopping with Kristi?, Lyn and Tom to Chris and Sue's

Sunday 25th December - Christmas Day at Diane and Micks, then Chris and Sue's, big storm

Monday 26th December - to Mary and Jim's with Lyn, Tom, Kristi

Tuesday 27th December - to Steven and Jacquies, set up trampoline and mowing and saw Mary and Jim's new house

Wednesday 28th December - Kristi's birthday, to Steven and Jacquies for Renesmee's birthday, late breakfast, shopping at Aldi, Kristi to city with Lyn and Tom.

Thurdsay 29th, December - Back to Chris and Sue's, around 25 degrees

Friday 30th, December - at Chris and Sue's, washing, kids to the park, about 33 degrees

Photos 18/12/2011

Photos 20/12/2011

Photos 22/12/2011

Photos 22/12/2011-2

Photos 23/12/2011

Photos 24/12/2011

Photos 25/12/2011 Christmas Day

photos 26/12/2011

Photos 27/12/2011

Photos 28/12/2011

Photos 29/12/2011

Photos 30/12/2011

Left Melbourne, Michael and Val's at Murrindindi, out to Community Hall after dinner for New Year's Eve. Around 36 degrees.

Photos 31/12/2011

Had a drive in the CFA truck with Michael to Murrindindi Reserve and through the bushfire area - 3 years after Black Saturday. Saw the spot where it all started which eventually took out Marysville (they now think it was powerlines down on metal fence which ignited grass). Headed for Ray and Joh's in the afternoon (at Bonnie Doon next to Lake Eildon). Went for a sail and a swim off the yacht. Out for dinner with Ray, Joh, Michael, Val, Stewart at Molesworth Hotel, billabong at back of hotel, it was very peaceful but hot, hot, around 38 degrees.

Photos 1/1/2012

Ray took us for a ski boat ride to Lake Eildon dam wall. Who said I couldn't swim back to shore? Then the 4 of us went sailing and swam in the afternoon - was around 39 degrees.

Photos 2/1/2012

Stopped at Polly McQuinn's weir, cooled off in the rock pools, lots of tannin in the water. Turns out it is not an overnight camp so left and headed north on the Hume Freeway. Stopped to get fuel at Benalla (Caltex/Woolies) and Aldi. Went to Oxley (On Mytleford/Glenrowan Road east of Wangaratta). Stan Allen Reserve beside King River, long stretch, grassed area, flush toilets over bridge at park, shade, two other vans. It was 40 degrees so Geoff and I went for a dip in the smallish river which was clearer than those rock pools.

Photos 3/1/2012

Woke to cooler temperature and a spinkle of rain then cleared to a very warm but nice day. Decided to stay one more night (Camps 6 says 20hrs max, but no sign at the rest area. Caught up with emails and generally sat around. Our exercise was walking to the toilets across the bridge - 420 steps (furthest so far on our trips) but nice, flush, vanity basin, clean. Oh, yes Geoff bought a potato cake ($1, on par with Brisbane - we're not in Gladstone Park any more toto). No other vans came in today but we feel safe being very close to the town. Locals came and went for fishing and a swim during the day. The Rail Trail bike and walking track which covers most of Victoria, comes straight through the park, so lots of cyclists passing all day. Geoff was able to get out the inflatable kayak and paddled up the King River for about 1-2km before a felled tree across the river stopped him. Later in the day the local CFA guys arrived, with trucks, to do an exercise (an older guy said don't worry it's just an exercise). I called it squirting in the river and having fun. The road noise is fairly loud even though the park is just off the road - main road from Wangaratta.

Photos 4/1/2012

A much more comfortable sleep last night. Woke to another beautiful day. Geoff gave me my 'Certificate of Competency' for preparing the van for departure all by myself. This had been a very nice stopover, treed and overlooking the King River. Worked our way to Myrtleford where we pulled over to decide if we'd go into a park to see an historic mill. As we did, we Collected the edge of the sign pointing to the mill, quickly backed up (on to the roadway) scraping backwards as well to make sure we did a good job. The sign was unscathed, but we lost a little paint from the awning structure. Went to the supermarket where my dishwashing detergent fell off the checkout belt and spilt on the floor. After locals helping me pick up my groceries and helping to clean up, We took our groceries and made a hasty retreat out of Myrtleford before we did any more damage. Stopped in at Tallangatta for a squiz and then headed for another free stop, 9km sth on the Omeo Hwy, next to the Mitta Mitta river - Pig Point Reserve. This is a camping reserve so no time limit. Lovely spot. 4 other vans, camper vans, 2 tents with a mix of older couples and small families. Grassy with shade, but we found a poplar for shade (instead of the huge Eucalypts) for safety, although the limbs of the Eucalyts had been removed or managed well. Easy access to the Mitta Mitta river, around knee deep, but strong current and rocky bottom - very little mud. I talked Geoff into going in as the water was nice. I was on a roll after all the swims lately and I didn't want to pass this one up. Probably not ideal for our inflatable kayak, Geoff would probably end up in Lake Hume.

Photos 5/1/2012

The morning was windy but sunny and felt a little cooler today. Set off in the direction of Corryong (home of Man from Snowy River) and stopped to look at Old Tallangatta (the drowned town when Lake Hume was made), looked at another free-stop and a picnic area, then up to a lookout for our first view of Mt. Kosciuszko in the far distance (so many levels of mountain peaks). Continued on to Tintandra for our first caravan park stop - Clearwater on the Upper Murray - $20 pwr site, some shade, basic facilities, camp kitchen - nothing much gets cleaned very often. The camp behind us had the radio on with country music, so it was time to head back the 200mtrs towards the Murray, Geoff inflated the kayak and we did our first tandem paddle up the Murray - we had planned to paddle up to its source, some 60km upsteam and 5000ft up the mountain to see why the Murray goes so straight along that part of the Vic/NSW border :), but the rapids 100mts upsteam stopped us, so we paddled up and down and through them a few times, then got tired. The edge was muddy, not like the Mitta Mitta. Back to the caravan park for housekeeping tasks and a rest. Today turned out hot, probably mid-30's. The older couples beside and behind us (Country music man), sat together and talked waffle for a couple of hours and then went to bed. Peace at last.

Photos 6/1/2012

Woken suddenly this morning by …horror of horrors….LIVE COUNTRY MUSIC!!!!!!!. The old gent in the next caravan to us sang his heart out (seemed as loudly as he could) and strummed his guitar just as loudly. We dropped into the country market in town and then went to Corryong for fuel. Whilst there we saw the grave of the Man from Snowy River, Jack Riley, legend has it he's the one Banjo spoke of. Then we headed off to see Mt. Kosciuszko. We think we saw it about 8 times as we wove through mountain terrain along the Alpine Way, till we got to Thredbo, stopping on the way to check out camping spots. We did get to see where the Murray river first emerges from the mountains to its first touch of civilisation at Tom Groggin camp so we've done both ends of the Murray now. Whilst at Tom Groggin camp I got talking to a guy who turns out is a Pole living in NZ who is a guide for a Russian couple taking them on tour. He said he didn't know much about this area and was under the impression there were no snakes up this high…der it's Australian bush where we were. He said he'd done his research and there were no safety warnings about snakes or insects in the mountains. He's taking them on a 5hr walk to the top of Kosciusko tomorrow and then driving to Syndey and be there my 7pm. I don't think he realises it will take him about 2hrs to get the mountain to even start the walk. We drove 250kms today, no walking, and we didn't get back to our van near the bottom of the mountain until 8.30pm. It was further than I thought it would be. We also saw along the way the Murray 1 and 2 power stations which are part of the Snowy River Hydroelectric Scheme. Found another camp spot on the way back, not far from the main road and on the Murray. Chockers with campers but would be nice outside peak times. It had been a long day, had dinner late to the tune of the four oldies sitting around talking waffle again until peace fell over the camp once again. (Don't get me wrong, waffle is OK, as long as it is your waffle and not someone else's whom you don't even know, almost outside your back door).

Photos 7/1/2012 Lot of them so they will take a while to load

As we packed up today we noticed our Country Music fan was dressed in a white shirt, black bow tie and black pants. Perhaps he is a famous country and western singer, off to do a jig. We could hear the 4 keeping track of time and then upped and went. It was probably him who played the guitar yesterday morning and I blamed the wrong neighbour. Anyway, we headed north towards Tumut, stopped at the Southern Cloud memorial lookout and saw where it went down in 1931 (not found until 1958) and got our last glimpse of Kosciuszko. We were sure this time, as we had diagrams to show us. Moved on to look at a few camps on the way. Paddys River flats, very grassed, large area, perimeter trees, beside Paddys River, flush loos, and paper towel. Heaps of vans. Paddys River falls were beautiful, camping area gravel, didn't check out the loos. Then we got to Henry Angel Flats by the Burra River. Huge area, grassed, trees. It was so nice we decided to stay tonight even though we'd only done 50kms. It has sheltered bbqs, powerpoints, flush loos and hot water. It is also where the Hume and Hovell walk runs through. This walk goes from Yass to Albury and tracks part of Hume and Hovells expedition from Syndey to Melbourne. After eventually finding the track, we walked about 3km along the creek which was very nice. It's basically a sheep track on private property, but there are signs every now and then to say it is the track and there was a box to say there were brochures, but there were no brochures. The vegetation was mainly willows and other such that you'd find along a quaint little creek with various birdlife. There were quite a few plum trees, some with plums (a bit sour) and an apple tree with fruit (a bit sour). It is an old alluvial gold mining area where they had shored up the banks with granite many years ago and even cut a tunnel through the rock to serve as a tailrace for sluicing. They say it would probably have been just a swampy area when Hume and Hovell walked through. We tried our luck with panning for gold, panning with hands that is. There was lots of Mica so the sand in the shallows glistened brightly, alas no gold. It started to rain a little as we headed back and we had one other shower when cooking dinner and then just stayed cloudy for the rest of the day. It was comfortable weather, not cold and not hot. There were about 6 vans and about 4 tent camps.

It was cooler last night and cool this morning with a brisk breeze. The creek beside our van was bubbling along nicely and the sun shone and the little birds were chirping and were tempted to stay another night, it was one of the best stops we'd had, but moved on anyway. Stopped at Tumbarumba for bread, then went through Batlow (famous for apples), up to a steep lookout, had lunch, then moved on to Tumut. The Tumut River was flowing very strongly, perhaps some water had been released from the power station or dam. Bought veges and goodies, got fuel and decided to go 18kms south to Blowering Reservoir (within the Kosciuszko National Park), we think part of the Snowy Hydro Scheme. Log Bridge Creek camp road in is sealed, internal camp roads are gravel, hilly, with a drop loo, nice glimpses of the lake. We finally found a flat spot (the one and only I think) to get the van level, right next to the loo and a grassy spot near the back door. There were two other vans, both on different roads so about 200-300mtrs away. So we were alone but not alone. Boaties came and went during the day to launch their boats. The wind died down a bit and it was a nice sunset with the kangaroos gathering for dinner.

We decided to stay another night as it was quiet and we wanted to just chill out a little. I did some housekeeping in the van and some reading and Geoff got on to his U3A course. The time really went quickly. Later in the afternoon we went for a walk along the other shoreline and took heaps of photos. We ate one blackberry each, trusting they hadn't been sprayed (and as at writing we are both still alive). Decided to have an easy dinner tonight, pasta packet, but the cupboard was bare (did we eat it on the way down? - neither of us could remember that far back), but our trusty stand-by was hiding under the seat - a can of Mild Curry Stew which saved the day. It was another pleasant day in the mid to high-20s with a coolish breeze and another colourful sunset.

It was very windy this morning so we were not tempted to stay another day. Packed up between light rain showers and spectacular cloud covering the nearby mountains/hills then said good-bye to the kangaroos. Went 4km south to check out the Pines Campground and then headed back towards Tumut. Stopped in at the Blowering Dam wall and got some water (brown would you believe). I hope the rest of the water in the dam is not that bad. What we got from the waters edge at the camp was clearer than that. Got back to Tumut, shopped and talked to a guy who pulled up with his van behind ours in the street. Turns out he lives along the road we were taking so we new it was OK for vans. Went to the loos, got some real water and headed out of Tumut, only to be behind this guy who'd also just pulled out. We new the road was steep going down as he slowed up quite a lot before the descent. We then gave him a wave as he pulled into his front gates - nice property he had too. This was a beautiful road and followed the Tumut River on and off. By this time the wind was howling, luckily from the west. The road finally brought us out on to the Hume Hwy a few kms east of Gundagi, the wind was still very strong so we had a good tail-wind. The BOM said Wagga Wagga had 50km winds and I think that's what we had also. Anyway, decided to stop for lunch and there was a rest area at Jugiong, which we turned off the highway for. Turns out it is also at the showgrounds, a huge area on the Murrumbidgee River and there were vans there. As it was already 3pm (we had a late start), we decided to stay the night. The wind howled all afternoon. It was about 400 steps to the flush loos and bbqs. By 8pm the wind had died down.

The morning was sunny and still. Can't believe how it has changed so dramatically from the strong winds we had yesterday. A last minute check found that the road north of Goulburn (where we were to head for) was not really suitable for caravans, so headed directly north of Jugiong, aiming for Cowra to get fuel. Went via Harden where we got groceries. First impressions was old, rundown buildings of yesteryear, but the town had beautiful gardens/pool/cricket ground complex, lush green grass and rose gardens, etc. Continued on to Boorowa which was also a pretty town, with obvious history. From there we decided to take the alternate scenic road to Cowra. Road needed a little repair, but was OK. Stopped at a free stop for lunch at Darby's Falls, small shaded area next to the Lachlan River. Met Ken and Len (his wife) there who'd been on the road for 4 years. I couldn't see any falls, but it was the town's name so there much be falls somewhere. Moved on to Cowra, found an ALDI (Geoff's yoghurt fix at last) and went to the lookout which we are sure we'd been to before but couldn't recall. We had previously visited the Cowra Internment Camp - or what was left of it and the Japanese Memorial, so didn't do that again. Got fuel and headed for Carcoar Dam. It is surprisingly lovely. I thought it would be a treeless hill leading down to a lake, but there are lovely exotic trees, pinoaks and those trees with the bright green leaves (Mary will know), lovely green grass, amenities block (about 15 steps) is tiled with cold showers and is a free camp. The lake is lovely and blue and the bare hills behind the lake has about 6 wind turbines to make things more interesting. At last a windless lake to try out the kayak. We walked down to the bank only to read a sign saying Blue/Green Algae, no swimming, no canoeing, no fishing, no dogs drinking……. Anyway it's a lovely location so we'll stay here tomorrow night and check out the Wind turbine info and see the dam. Hopefully, it may get warmer (it's been in the low 20's but a perfect day). Tonight has got cold very quickly, we are about 2,792ft above sea level.

We were all thinking of Mum today on her birthday. It was quite cold last night, but a beautiful morning with the sun reflecting off the lake. Got talking to a local, John, who gave us some info on the stops ahead and said the signs for the blue/green algae were 15 years old so the kayaking was on again. We again spoke with Audrey and Ian, an older couple next to us in a kombi van. Ended up talking for a good hour before they left. They had said to watch for power boats and skiers and she said they couldn't rescue us if anything happened as they can't swim. They were about 75-80. They were such a lovely couple and she was a dear soul. Did some more washing and then went kayaking. One boat on the lake and we paddled up to the barrier buoys near the dam wall. It was partly cloudy so it was not too hot. It was very pleasant and we agreed that the kayak, even though it's a blow-up one and not too navigable in the wind or flow, has been a success for our purposes. Got back, had lunch and then walked 2km around the road to the dam wall. It was fun trying to have a shower with the cold water from the shower rose and the lovely hot water we had with our solar shower, but I managed OK. It's actually luxury to some of the places we stop where there is no water (we bring our own), drop loos we share with the spiders (or the swallows as at Blowering Dam) (usually the loos are small metal water tanks with doors (but that's the fun of it anyway). Geoff's computer had finally died today and so he pulled out the CD drive, the memory and then the hard drive with no luck. Geoff was ready to put the hard drive into my computer but first read up on the internet where one post said it may be a screen connection problem, so he closed the computer, pushed down firmly on the back of the screen and, hey presto, it started and has been fine all day…..he quickly copied essentials to his portable hard drive and we now wait with bated breath for when it crashes permanently. Geoff's sort of hoping it will so he can get a new computer. We may stay another night in case it's hard to get somewhere else being Saturday. A good place to stop, tiled and laminex amenities with flush loos, spiders only on the lights, tiled showers and drinking water from tanks, beautiful lake, lovely trees, shady spot, birds singing, sunny warm day - fingers crossed it will be so tomorrow.

Very windy this morning so we are lucky we got our paddle in yesterday. The wind got stronger during the day. Late morning a thunderstorm cell went through and it rained for about 20 minutes then cleared. The weather developed all around us and we could see the lightening and hear the thunder over the hills towards Bathurst, but we were lucky and had sunshine most of the day. As it was a bit of a chill-out day today we only walked to the display area for the Wind Farm Turbines and Geoff took about 40-50 photos of time-lapse clouds and wind turbines. The wind got stronger. There were about 30 cars here for the day, at the lake's edge, with their boats, etc. In the evening, most camped out and lit fires which sent the smoke directly into the camping area. Today we ran out of van battery power so need to do something for next trip, 3 days seems to be our limit at the moment. Another cold night tonight.

Wind was still blowing this morning and partly cloudy. Set off towards Blayney with a roaring head-wind and realised there were a couple of gold-mining towns we had by-passed (next time). Stopped at Bathurst for fuel and the info centre and then headed for Sofala and our destination, Ilford. Sofala is the last remaining gold mining town to still exist. We wandered down the streets, it was lovely to see the old buildings (obviously classified by the National Trust). After being stuck behind a bus which could only manage 40km per hour on the uphill sections of the hills, we finally arrived at Ilford where there was a free camp (Audrey and Ian from Carcoar Dam said they were staying here). Arrived and found the camp. Beside the hall, across the road from the rural fire building and I think that's it for Ilford. One other camp arrived. A Swiss couple and their child on a 1 year Aussie trek. He's a photogapher and is being sponsored by a number of photographic companys such as Canon, etc. The wind blew all day and rained intermittently. Armed with my newly acquired travel brochures, I think I found more of what we missed than what we saw (ah, next time). Geoff is having withdrawal symptoms of not having a computer, but his phone is keeping him company (he can read his U3A material, track our path, look up the internet [when we have a signal] and play my favourite music play list, update the latest Oziexplorer software for Android phones, check the weather, receive emails and write up our shopping list, so he is still really 'plugged' in so to speak.

It was still windy and cloudy when we woke. Packed up and said good-bye to the Swiss couple. Headed north to Kandos, a town that has some old buildings (1919), but most were built during the 30's due to the cement quarry and works being established, which still exist today. Most community buildings are in the classic style or Art Deco and of course most are made of cement. Stopped at the museum but it was closed. A couple of kms further on is Rylestone, an old gold mining town with lots of very old and well maintained buildings with the main street full of plain trees. Moved on towards Mudgee and went through a valley where there had been huge trees up-rooted entirely or broken in half about 3 or 4 metres up the huge trunk. We realised it was part of the storm we saw over towards Bathurst two days ago. We again realised how lucky were were. Arrived at Mudgee, Geoff bought 12v double adapter (our other one was on the blink), then we got our fix of Aldi and had lunch by the Cudgegong river. We then headed north towards the Goulburn River Reserve The Drips. We knew it was only suitable for small vehicles, but it was a rough unpaved road into a small parking area. Took one road and saw a big puddle and hump so backed out, then another and had to back out as it was a dead-end (the old couple in the van at the end of the road thought they had guests for dinner). Found a flat spot nearer the road and walked down. I was determined to do this walk to The Drips. Walked down, found the hump was flat on the other side. Met the couple in the van near the picnic area and went for the walk which was well worth it. Alongside the Goulburn River (not too far from its source), sandy, stony and large boulders, with overhanging cliffs. The Drips (about 1.5km downstream) was a huge overhang of rock, dripping down constantly creating a damp ferny environment, with maidenhair and other ferns. It was well worth the walk. Got back and two day visitor cars had gone so we moved the van, got through the puddle OK and set up overlooking the river and not too far from the other van (again safety in numbers). Downside was a dead kangaroo near the car park, really really smelt bad where we had first parked. In the evening when the wind died down a little and changed, we continued to get wafts of dead kangaroo every now and again. The other surprise was a peacock wandering around, obviously used to people but don't know where it belongs. We are in the middle of a forest, no towns around.

Had a good night sleep, almost silent and almost no road noise overnight. A very pleasant outlook in the morning, blue sky, filtered sunlight through the trees, river bubbling along and the peacock looking for breakfast. On our way out we again saw the dead kangaroo, much more deflated and bonier than yesterday from the thousands of maggots - not a pretty sight, but nature sure has a way. Took the road to Scone, stopping on the way at the free stop near Cassilis - would be good stopover for 1 night on the way to somewhere (clean drop loos, sheltered tables, huge paved area and gravelled area behind). Stopped at Scone for fuel and stopped at Burning Mountain Nature Reserve 23 kms north. Walked 4.5kms return trip, very steep up to the top of Burning Mountain. A coal seam which has been burning/smouldering 30m underground for 6,000 years (progressing 1m south each year). You could feel the heat underfoot and burning hot air from little holes in the ground and on the edge of the cliff you could see the heat shimmering upwards. Where there was red clay it had turned to red brick and the colour turned from white to red, depending on what mineral was there. Very impressive and we had driven past this way many times and didn't know it was there. Made the hike up worthwhile. It was also a free camp, flush loos, water, but we decided to head for Walladabah free stop. We didn't realise it until we were almost there, that we had checked this one out last year. Huge green grassed area, flush loos, next to Quirindi Creek (but can't see the water) but also next to the highway, some shade but we didn't get any this time. There would be at least 23 vans here. Many people we spoke to were heading to Tamworth for the Country Music Festival which starts in two days - and we are heading that way, ehhhh country music again. I suppose we are in the country. Today was lovely, hot as we were climbing Burning Mountain, very warm setting up the camp, but nice in the shade, now cooled down quite a bit now that it's dark. Travel overall today, undulating to hilly most of the way, very pretty countryside, hills and small mountains in the background.

Opened my Orange and Lemon marmalde I had bought from John in another van (he has fruit trees at home and makes juice and jams and chutneys and gives them away and when travelling he sells them to other grey nomads (by the way it was excellent). Before leaving we went through the First Fleet Memorial Gardens where they have the names of all who sailed in the first and second fleets, sailors, officers and their families and convicts and their families. The first fleet had great success, very few deaths on the voyage (145 pounds had been allocated for the care of each convict). When the second fleet was organised the contract went to the lowest bidder, only 45 pounds had been allocated and whatever provisions were left over after the voyage, they could sell. As little funds were allocated, no care was taken to look after the convicts and every incentive to let them die so more provisions could be sold and the contractors did not have military auditing like the first fleet. Some of the stories relayed were awful, e.g. many convicts shackled for most of the trip and in waist deep water. There was some outcry by others not associated with the voyage, but no-one was ever held accountable - graft and corruption and greed are very old indeed. Geoff asked the cleaning lady of the amenities how the town felt about the huge number of vans gathered each night at the stop. She said they have more problem with the First Fleet Gardens because some of the townsfolk “have two heads”, so I guess they don't like their surnames up there with the convicts? Anyway, we topped up with water and headed for Chaffey Dam (Bowling Alley Point Rec area). Had seen it before. Cound a nice spot right on the water's edge and went for a paddle. The kayak had a little trouble with the wind but it was fun. It was 430 steps to the amenities (longest distance so far), up-hill on a rough, dusty road, dodging cow dung and cows, but the loos flush and they have showers also ($2 per person to use the recreation area, plus $1 for hot shower - bargain). Geoff went for another paddle later in the day, he'd paddle out and let the wind drift him back again. There is a 'stock free' area for camping, but other than that the cattle just wander along eating, weeing and pooing wherever they want. They will keep their distance if you stand your ground. Next van up, June and Glenn were out, so the cows were grazing under the awning and sniffing at their van door. Had dinner and watched the sunset over the lake and talked to John and Cath for some time. The wind died down during the night and I was woken by one cow, obviously miffed at us camping on their dinner, mooing his/her head off, running past our van and disappearing along the bank somewhere.

Decided to say another night as we are settled and have the lake today to paddle and if we go to another lake, it is getting closer to the week-end when all the speed boats arrive. There was no wind in the morning so had a quick breakfast and headed out and paddle around a few corners to the dam. It was very pleasant and thankful for the exercise. Did about 4kms and a little later after we got back, the wind cropped up again, so we got in at the right time. Chatted with June and Glenn for about an hour, had lunch and relaxed for the rest of the day. Geoff went for another paddle, into the wind, and then just drifted back to shore a few times. A local guy and his 6 year old son camped where John and Cath had been. First time camping together, except for the last camping trip which lasted 10 minutes. I've never seen a 6yo sit as long as he did, in the chair with a fishing line, but I think he liked the cows the best. Dad didn't know much about camp fires, more smoke than flame. Came our way for a while, but I think he gave up eventually.

Woke to another still morning and sunny day. Man and son tried again to light and fire and smoked everyone out this time. They packed up and went and Lyn and Eric moved in with their van. We spoke for about 45mins and then left. It was a nice stay, even with the cows. During the two days we saw this huge fish jump out of the water on many occasions. When the campers left, Lyn said there was a big fish dead on the shore. I guess lighting fires wasn't the only thing this guy didn't know about. I'm assuming he caught the fish (by accident) and didn't know what to do with it, or perhaps he didn't have a decent fire to cook with. Anyway, we passed Woolomin where we had stayed before. We wanted to avoid Tamworth as it would have been chockers even to get through on the roads, mind you if we had a place to stay it would have been nice to wander through the town, however, I believe from many people the Music Festival is well worth going to, the whole of Tamworth is alive and the festival is world renowned. So close but yet so far. Our map said there was a windy, made, fairly major country road which was an alternative to the New England Highway for a bit. So we headed for that, but as we turned in it was gravel and gravel for 20kms, about 15-20 cattle grids, heaps of cows on the road. It was a beautiful drive, scenery-wise, but not in a caravan. It only services the farms in that area. We finally got to a sealed road and checked out another stop then moved on. Stopped at a little place just off the highway, Bendemeer, behind the showgrounds in a park-like environment, huge exotic shady trees and green grass, beside a little river. Very pleasant, but the hwy was close enough to create noise overnight. Horse floats came and went.

It was cold last night (we are getting higher up on the New England tablelands). The grass this morning was white with dew, looked like frost. The people came in their horse float to pick up their horse and the 'boys' from the town started to arrive to prepare for their rodeo in February with metal gratey things and such that cowboys usually put up for rodeos. Hit the road and turned 6kms west of Uralla for the Fossicking Area. It is also an overnight camp. Busy, dusty, small picnic area, pretty rockey creek with a sandy beach. Lots of Mica again, but we know it wasn't gold as it floated. Headed for Armidale for fuel and some shopping. Armidale is such a beautiful place, very English with cathedrals, heaps of old churches, old buildings, a mall, a Centro Shopping centre and designer shops. It doesn't give you the cowboy feel of Bathurst or Tamworth. Drove out past the Uni of New England to the Dumaresq Dam. A very pretty spot. Huge, green grassy picnic area, small dam (used to be town water supply, now recreational), camp area is on the outside area, mostly grassy, not a huge but room for 10 or so vans, little shade. Picnicers were families and some young people playing ball games, looked like uni people. No power boats allowed so it will be good to get the kayak out if the wind dies down a little. Geoff forgot for the second time to cook his chips on Friday so he cooked them today. Oh and yes, he bought his potato cake (because we were shopping and that's his treat).

Last night was quite cold. We had hoped the wind would die down, but it was still just as windy this morning. We went for a walk around the dam - 3.5km and picked wildflowers (well I did anyway). Track was well trodden but narrow so very long grass brushed up against us up to our waists all the way - so much for putting insect repellent all over our feet and legs only (as you may recall I am super sensitive about ticks). Surprisingly we didn't see any snakes, definitely snake country and a sign at the END of the track told us to watch out for snakes!!. Had lunch, then Geoff decided the wind was not going to ease up any so he blew up the kayak and carried it down to the lake, just in time for the first rain of the day. So back with the kayak to the van. Waited 10 minutes and took the kayak down again. So he eventually got his paddle on the lake amongst many more rain showers. He looked like a drowned rat, but he was happy and I got in some more reading. No power to the BBQ's today as the guy fixing the water pump this morning must have left off the power-hmmmm. The wind didn't let up until around 7.30pm and a hint of sunshine came out just before it set. Forecast for tomorrow is much the same, so thinking of heading home tomorrow instead of staying one last night somewhere.

The wind increased early in the morning and as we finished packing to go, the rain set in. It was still cold and I was rugged up with warm cardigan and jacket. Stopped in at the Mother of Ducks Lagoon at Guyra, a vast expanse of wetlands and also a free stop overlooking the golf course. Park-like with flush loos and shade from lots of medium trees. At the back of the town main street. The windy blew fiercely so we moved on through the town looking for the Potato and Lamb festival, but all was quiet. As we were about to get back on to the highway, there it was, the festival. A row of tents like a market, jewellry, camping stuff, clothes, craft, laughing clowns, leadlight and food - of course there was everything lamb, oh yes and one stall selling potatoes. It was a nice little set-up, attracting the highway goers - and train tickets for $2, but no train in sight. The line is abandoned, but I guess they have a train revival group. It was freezing and very windy. Guyra is the highest town on the New England tablelands, so I guess it was to be expected. Moved on north, diverted via Ben Lomand to see the heritage listed train station and back on to the highway to Glen Innes. Stopped to get bread and had lunch by their beautiful park. The weather felt a little warmer. Next stop was Tenterfield where we stopped to look at the oldest Cork tree in Australia, planted in 1861 (not as old as the oldest oak tree in Australia at Parramatta - 1812 which I saw on one of my Sydney trips, but still very impressive). There is a lot of old architecture and we saw the building where Henry Parkes gave his famous speech in 1889 which sparked the Federation push. The weather was not so cold and off came the rug-ups. We headed east along the Bruxner Hwy towards Casino. Beautiful country, ups and downs, saw a huge waterfall in the distance hill/escarpment and stopped at Crooked Creek rest area in the Girard State Forest. We walked a few hundred metres to check it out, but as it was raining now and the road unmade WE decided we wouldn't drive down. Continued east and the rain came and went until we reached the West of the Range rest area, which is just a rest area off the road. One combi van already there (a lady who had hit a Wallaby earlier in the day and lost half her bull-bar). It was just a circular road with a loo in the middle, so just after finding a relative flat spot another van came in - again safety in numbers. They live on Atherton Tableland and just picked up their van from Lismore (down the road). Anyway, the weather was warmer and quite humid by now, having come down from 4,500ft to around 500ft. Then the heavens opened up and rained continuously but not cold at all. We were safe on grass next to a sealed road on the top of a rise, so no flooding possibility. I still couldn't convince Geoff we were better off here than in the State Forest camp (but it was really nice). This is our last night so not too concerned about the weather. We've had one rainy day and other than a few very windy days, the weather has been really good.

It had rained well into the night and it was not cold. Great not to have to lump extra bedding on. A car came in at 2am and left around 6.30am. We packed up as it was drizzling, just in time for the rain to start again. The road down to Casino was beautiful, some ups and downs through the range, but lovely. The rain and mist and low cloud over the mountain tops made it look even better. Got to Casino and got fuel. Dashed into the tourist info office with our raincoats on as it was pouring down. Walked down to the river and walked across the low walking bridge. Didn't see any platypus, but I think they would all have been curled up in their burrows as the river was flowing very fast. Got wet, got back in the car and went to another spot on the river where all we saw were dragon lizards everywhere. It said there was a platypus pool, but we couldn't see that either. As it was still pouring we didn't venture much further this time either. Headed towards Lismore, took the alternate road, then missed a turn so took the alternate, alternate road which, again, was very pretty with just enough range climbing to make it interesting. Joined the highway about 5 kms out of Lismore and came up to a policeman and car, directing traffic on to the service road next to the airport. There had been a serious two-car accident, looked like it may have been a head-on, one car almost completely demolished on one side at the front and side, including the cabin, the other smashed in at the front corner. Emergency Services were still there and even after we had been waiting a while to get back on to the highway another police rescue car headed that way. I think things were very grim at the scene. It brings you back to reality and the dangers of driving. Stopped at the Lismore info centre, went for a brief walk but it was still a litte wet so left. Took the road to Bangalow which is a beautiful drive, passing quaint villages and then on to the Pacific Highway. Took the Brunswick Heads exit to see some ocean before our trip finished. It was still pouring so we couldn't even get out of the car to walk over the rise to see the ocean. Parked elsewhere and Geoff went into the van to have lunch and I stayed put, I had got wet enough. Continued on north, rejoining the Pacific Highway, stopping at a great look-out, but all was grey and misty with the rain and had relatively heavy rain the whole way home.

Mostly beautiful weather, a couple of scorchers (38 and 40 degrees), some windy days and only two days of rain at the end. Stopped a little longer to take in places we had merely passed by previously and discovered a few more interesting places. Met some lovely people again, too many to mention then all. Got to take our new blow-up kayak out on three lakes/dams. Got home the night Brisbane was inundated with heavy rain, but we were home, safe, with running water and only 8 steps to the loo..