Days 63-69 Broken Hill and the road back home

Days 63-69 Broken Hill and the road back home

We arrived in Broken Hill and were reminded by the signs that it was the home of Pro Hart. Of course we were going to go and check out his gallery. From our childhood we remember the infamous advert with Pro splashing food on the carpet and creating one of his dragonflies.

His gallery was impressive, with his studio still set up how he left it when he died with a dragonfly picture still to be completed. It is three storeys high and paintings everywhere! There are two original Rembrandt paintings in the entry. Such great and amazing paintings by Pro with so much variation to the next one. It was definitely one of my highlights of this trip.

We also visited an old disused silver mine and were able to travel underground exploring the tunnels and seeing how they extracted it over a hundred years ago. We were well equipped with safety hats and headlights. It was an amazing experience.

After the mine we drove a short distance up the road to Silverton where Mad Max 2 was filmed. It's a tiny town.

Next it was back on the road to Kimba. Which as stated by the sign there it is halfway across Australia. As you can see we are definitely on our way back home.

After a night stop over in Kimba we travelled to Border Village just inside the South Australia border and our last stop was a night in Coolgardie.

Finally we made it home on thursday, one day early. the girls were so relieved and marvelled at the space in our house after being confined in a caravan for two and a half months.

Well I must say I would definitely do this trip again, in a heart beat. We had such a great time and really started to enjoy each others company a lot more. We have learnt so many things about our country and the special places it holds.

Thank you for taking time to read our blog and following our adventure east and back. Of course there may be more trips to come but not for a couple of years.

Bye for now,
 
Christen xxx

Days 62-63 - Cobar

Days 62-63 - Cobar

Well we arrived in Cobar to stay one night. Lulled into a false sense of security with all the great caravan parks we have stayed at our bikes were stolen as we didn’t lock them up. Yep, some bored brats took mine and Jades bikes. Thank goodness they left the girls bikes. The caravan park manager was very apologetic and claimed it had never happened before as there is only one way in. Obviously that doesn’t stop thieving criminals! Oh well thank goodness Jade had his very expensive bike insured…

The only touring of Cobar we did was looking for our bikes. Sadly we weren’t likely to find them lying on the road. We put in a police report and gave details. I seriously doubt the person riding Jade’s bike is anywhere near tall enough to ride it and will look like a total idiot. But I can’t be too bitter by wishing them falls and spills with bleeding sores and burning palms because we were silly enough not to lock them up.

So we had to get back on the road and head for Broken Hill with a short stop in Wilcannia for lunch.

Days 59-62 – Dubbo

Days 59-62 – Dubbo

Dubbo was a surprise. We ended up staying 3 nights at the Big 4. It was great and we met up with some lovely people and the girls made a lot of friends. We first went to the Taronga Western Plains Zoo. You can drive your car around the whole zoo and get out and walk to the animals, then hop back in and drive to the next lot. The fencing is designed so you don’t feel like there is a cage or anything between you and the animals. We all loved it. We even organised to feed the giraffes, which was Lily’s favourite thing to do. They had 4 baby giraffes and 8 adults. There was so many animals at the zoo including gibbons, elephants, all types of antelopes, lions, tigers and even more animals, too many to list, and it is definitely a must visit place if you are ever that way. Chloe loved the meerkats (there was two meerkat babies as well) and the lemurs. I think she could watch them for hours. Emma loved to watch to monkeys and took lots of photos of them climbing and playing (secretly I think she’s our little monkey and can relate).

So we decided the next day to go to Parkes to see ‘THE DISH’ from the movie with the same name. The dish was used to transmit satellite images of the first walk on the moon in 1969 by Neil Armstrong and crew. It was interesting but not exciting and the girls didn’t have patience to watch long movies about the dish and its functionality. The actual town of Parkes was lovely, you need to travel a little further to get there because the dish is in the middle of nowhere.

Now its back on the road again. We stopped in Nyngan for lunch and back in the car to Cobar.

Days 56-59 – Woodenbong and Tamworth

Days 56-59 – Woodenbong and Tamworth

Was great to catch up with Aunty Sandra and meet husband Ian in Yowie Country, better know as Woodenbong. We were all spoilt by them and hardly had to feed ourselves. The girls had a swim in the local pool and it was off to Tamworth. Sadly Tamworth really didn’t have any appeal to us. The caravan park was one of the most expensive we have been to and it only had a small childs playground. We did however see the Golden Guitar.

Next stop, Dubbo.

Days 49-56 Brisbane (Helensvale)

 Days 49-56 Brisbane (Helensvale)

OMG! It's a Condor!

 Finally we arrived in Helensvale just outside of Brisbane. It was late so was a quick setup and feed and then to bed. The next day we got to check out our surroundings a lot more. We went to Australia Zoo and the girls tried Bindi’s Bootcamp, listened carefully to the Tiger show and the Otter show and we were all in awe of the main show in the ‘Crocoseum’. It started with a variety of birds, budgies, pink and grey galahs, parrots and macaws flying above and around the stadium and audience. They played Thunderstruck by ACDC while they all flew around it was incredible. The next animal in the show shocked everyone. They told us about this bird which sounded huge and then said it was a condor and on cue this massive bird flew in to the arena. We were totally blown away with how massive it was. It’s wingspan was approximately 3 metres (1 metre longer than Jade is tall). WOW! It would break your arm if it tried to land on it.

Next was the scary alligator (cue Jaws music). The alligator turned out to be a ‘harmless’ 2ft long alligator but with definite predator instincts. Now for the star attraction, a massive crocodile that proved that a little bit of splashing in the water made this animal swim extremely fast and stealthily to snap you up. The keepers never took their eyes off him. A very impressive display and very informative and spellbinding.


Family

Sunday arrived and it was time for family catch up. We caught up with Sarah (Jade’s cousin) and three of her children who were all roughly the same age as ours. The girls all got along so well with second cousins, which made for a great day and so much fun. Unfortunately Sarah’s oldest was out spending the day with his Auntie Ellie and having a great time.

Monday, I got to catch up with a friend I worked with a long time ago and was lucky enough to see last year. This time was different I finally got to see where Suzanne and Ian (who was currently working away) were living and the amazing renovations they have done to their beautiful house, thinking of everything and achieving amazing results. They really think of everything! It was so great to see her, I could have talked for days but alas time is so precious. We did however get the opportunity to also go out to dinner with her which added that extra bit of time.

We also went to Skypoint and rode the very fast elevator to the top, 77 floors in 45 seconds = FAST. Great 360 degree view from the top and all the different landmarks.

Emma in pole position for the first ride we went on.
 So so so FAST!!!!

Tuesday – DREAMWORLD DAY!!! Finally a chance to have some fun on crazy rides and meet characters. First stop was Wiggly World, we had to watch the Dorothy show and sing some Wiggles songs and then do the Big Car ride and the rosy Tea cup ride. Then it was off to the fun (I would use scary, but the girls thought fun was more descriptive) rides. First Lily wanted to go on a motorbike ride which looked tame…… It replicated the speed at which motor GP riders ride but you didn’t have any control of it and it was a rollercoaster. Needless to say I tried smiling and keeping my screaming to a low surprised sound when it took off so fast. I thought Lily would fly out (she was safely locked in, it’s just you know, a mother’s worry) but she starts laughing going “Wheee” while I just wished it would stop. We ended up going again and again and again after spending 3 days mixing between Dreamworld and Whitewater World next door.

I have since found my daughters are adrenalin thrill seekers and they love nothing more than going at top speed and feeling like they are going to fly out of something. A lot of the rides gave you that feeling so we spend lots of time going on them all. Jade went on the Giant Drop which makes your stomach drop as you watch it drop down, but he loved it. We also visited Dreamworks where there was Shrek rides and Madagascar rides. It was endless. As it wasn’t school holidays no queue was long so waits were short. There was so much to do and see and definitely required a return visit.

The stomach dropping waterslide

The next day we spent at Whitewater World. Well, what can I say, hmm I can say I have never ever been on waterslides this full on and breathtaking (literally!). Again I took Lily up a long flight of stairs thinking we were taking the more sedate tube ride as the rider only had to be 100cm. Was I WRONG! After a second of floating along, no that’s wrong, flying along is a better description, the tunnel suddenly drops down, I mean like standing on the roof of an office building and looking down type of drop. Holy Shit! So we are falling and that’s when I start screaming like a girl not even worrying about my 5 year old in the FRONT SEAT! The slide also pushed us back up hills with bursts of air and then sent you down two more drops. Man I got off that ride and didn’t know whether to laugh or cry and then I remembered to check Lily and that she didn’t go into shock. Ha! Of course she didn’t she wanted to do it again. My fear wore off given the amount of times I climbed stairs and went down the scariest slides, however I still couldn’t stop screaming, those drops just do that to you…. OK?!?! It was a great day, trying out all the slides. Jade even tried the Wedgie, given its names because you are placed in an enclosed tube and the floor drops out from under you and you hurtle down this tube that is not big enough to sit in let alone lift your head up while you are lying down. Jade landed at the end with a face I can only describe as shock and exhilaration. And then he said he could do it again! After we got tired of climbing the stairs and headed back the ‘dry rides’ at Dreamworld. Emma decided that this was when she was going on the big rollercoaster which had upside down loops and was taking dad with her. She loved it so much she took Jade back on it the next day. 

Thursday we went to Brisbane City and Southbank, it was pleasant but not what we thought, Not really much to do there on a weekday, so we headed to the Gold Coast, Surfers Paradise, so the girls could get hair beads put in and buy a few things.

Friday we decided to head back to Whitewater world and Dreamworld. At the end of the day we were completed stuffed. We slept really well!

I would definitely recommend Dreamworld and Whitewater World as a place for a family to go, it caters to everyone.

On Saturday we were very lucky to meet Jade’s Aunty Gladys, who recently found out she was a member of Jade’s family after being adopted as a newborn and never knew. Sadly all the family but Gladys have died, so she was unable to meet her parents or siblings to find out more. It was lovely to meet her and her family and now Jade has more family he can add, including four more boy cousins. Gladys also found and invited Jade’s Grandma’s brother and his wife, Ron, whose into his 90’s, could fill in some gaps in the family. They have a beautiful Queenslander home and were the best of hosts.

Now we are off to Woodenbong to catch up with Jade’s Aunty Sandra!

Days 46-49 Yamba and Days 49-51 Yamba again

Burning off the sugar cane

Days 46-49 Yamba


Fun in the water park

Another few relaxing days fishing and swimming in the great water playground and pool. We watched sugar cane being burned off and learnt that they do it to to get rid of the dry foliage, so when it comes to collection and production it reduces the cost of culling the waste (as it was burned off). It was an amazing sight. We had a dinner a couple of times at the Yamba Shore Tavern right on the river. It was sooo relaxing.


Scattering Grandad's ashes at the cabin site

We also made a trip to Rappville where Jade’s dad built a log cabin before Jade was born. His dad always spoke fondly of this time as his most treasured memories. The reason for this trip was not only to show the girls where their dad was born and lived when he was little but to scatter Jade’s dad’s ashes which we have had at home (since Chloe was 2 weeks old, when he died) and they have been waiting for this time when the girls were grown an able to share this experience at a place most treasured. Unfortunately the log cabin had been bulldozed a number of years ago but the creek still ran and the location still had the water tank, now burned to a melted reminder. The owner was happy to let us explore the block and try to find any reminders. The last time Jade and I visited was 17 years ago when the log cabin still stood. The shed to the side still contained Jade’s cot and his mum’s sewing machine and a message on the door from Jade’s dad to his mum. The owner remembered when we had visited it then and remembered those items but they had all been destroyed. We also visited the Casino Hospital where Jade was born!
So goodbye Yamba now we are off to Woodenbong..... OOOPPPPSSS!!! No we're not, the car broke down outside of Yamba. We have now been put up courtesy of Mitsubishi for 3 days in Yamba at a different caravan park (for a different scenery) with a hire car. Now we wait....

Days 49-51

and wait and wait. It took two and a half days to fix the car. So we chilled out and relaxed. We really had no choice because it decided to rain all  night and day. So the girls did what kids do best and went swimming and racing on the water slides. Kids are crazy! The rest of the time was spent  reading books and playing with new friends.

Finally on Friday we got the call that the car was fixed and we could get on our way to Brisbane! So off we go!

Days 41-46 Bonny Hills and Port Macquarie

Days 41-46 Bonny Hills and Port Macquarie

What a relaxing week we had here. Twenty kilometres south of Port Macquarie, right on the beach, the Bonny Hills Big 4 park caters directly to children (also it was the last school holiday week when we arrived) with a giant pillow, water park, movie night on comfy couches, go carts and more swimming pools.

The girls hardly spent any time at the caravan. Everyone, but me, had a couple of surf lessons. Thanks to my cankle I got to watch or wade in the surf, I was so disappointed because it was something I really wanted to try. Maybe when we get back to Perth, any takers? Jade took Emma for a mountain bike ride which she loved and made up for the crappy part of her birthday.

After surfing we found the best pie shop….organic pies, they were so good after two hour surf lessons!!  Because it was the last week of NSW school holidays we decided to just relax and do whatever the girls felt like. It was really a great week. By the time we left the park it was just about empty as the holidays here were ending.

Next its off to Yamba!

 

Days 34 – 41 Sydney (September/October 2012)

Days 34 – 41 Sydney (September/October 2012)

Well! I’m not impressed with Sydney’s roads. The congestion is continuous and the quality of the roads are poor. A 7km trip takes you half an hour in the car. It also ensured that we needed to have another new tyre and one repaired. So we have resorted to catching the train more. The train system is quite thorough and gets you where you need to go quickly.

So we stayed at Lane Cove Caravan Park in Macquarie Park about 10kms out of Sydney. First day visit was to the city to find the block Jade’s dad built a log cabin on. He found it so it was a great start. The girls and I stopped in Hyde Park and enjoyed the street buskers. One man who was making good use of the fact it is school holidays here, was creating bubble art! Of course what child could resist the temptation of bubble popping only to be told not to destroy the huge bubbles so we could all enjoy them longer. The girls were entertained for an hour and he definitely deserve his large donation.

Ferry trip Sydney

Next was a hop on hop off trip, you could get on the ferry hop off and another would be back in 45 minutes. We got to see some of the sights without having to visit them like the Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge (which we travelled back and forth on every day), Shark Island, Fort Dennison and Watson Bay, where we stopped and enjoyed the sunshine while the girls played on the beach and playground.

Bondi

 Right… now… the important stuff. It was my 37th birthday on the 27th September. What a fantastic day it was, presents, cards, kisses and cuddles from my favourite people. We had morning tea out and about, a visit to Bondi Beach so the girls could swim (and a bit of hunky lifeguard spotting) and I soaked in some sun. A lovely seafood lunch, then off to get a much needed haircut and then whisked off to Manly via a ferry for dinner and icecream. An absolutely perfect day! Thank you my little family, I feel very cherished.

Friday was Luna Park day. Very disappointed. We were hoping for a big show place but really it is an overpriced side show alley with a few rides. Most probably better priced when you spend all day there and you are about 12. You would definitely get your moneys worth. Sadly on the way there I badly sprained my ankle which resulted in slow progress everywhere and my ankle turning into a balloon. That night was a catch up with my cousin Tam. It was so great to see her, it’s been awhile. Lots of catching up and then home before I couldn’t walk any further.

Saturday was hospital visiting day to check that I hadn’t broken anything and then resting for the rest of the day and a nature walk at night run by the caravan park as it government owned at adjacent to the National Park.

Harbour Bridge

On Sunday we caught up with Jade’s cousin Racheal and her family at Sydney ‘The Rocks’ markets. It was so great to see them all. It’s been 9 years since we last saw Racheal and 16 years since we have seen her husband and son (who was only 2 weeks old when we saw him last!). We had lovely time catching up with them. We spent an hour or so at the markets and then back to their place for a yummy barbeque.

Emma's Birthday

Now back to the important stuff again! Emma’s Birthday!!!!! It was on Monday and she turned 8. Emma got lots of presents including a remote control car, books, camera and other things. We took her to a horse trail ride called Valley View Park in North Richmond where she could sit on the horse and control it herself. She did a great job and wanted to spend all day there learning how to ride. Chloe was a bit worried to start but was fine once she got going. Lily had a Shetland pony and Jade walked her. However the pony didn’t like Jade and tried to push him off the path. Lily had a ball, like Emma. After, much to Emma’s disappointment, we went to visit the 3 sisters in the Blue Mountains. BIG MISTAKE! Although the view was breathtaking, it took an hour to get there and two hours to get back because of roadworks and made Emma quite upset that we took her somewhere she didn’t want to go on her birthday. So we promised to make it up to her the next day. We then had chinese food for dinner as Emma wanted fried rice (her favourite). Once home Emma and Dad went to a carpark and gave the remote control car a good run. Emma felt better and is looking forward to her ‘make up’ treat.

 Tuesday is moving on day. Off to Bonny Hills to their amazing child orientated caravan park and Port Macquarie!

Day 30 -34 Canberra

Days 30-34 Canberra

We stayed at the Epic Caravan Park which is also the local trots field. It was a highlight for Emma being able to watch the trots from the caravan.

Simpson and his donkey

Fighter pilot clothing

Fighter pilot clothing

We visited the Police Memorial and Jade noted too many people he knew and then off to the War Memorial. Even though it has list of names on the walls. Underneath is a never ending tunnel of displays and interactive sections. The place was huge! We spent quite a few hours there. It was really impressive and a must see for anyone going to Canberra. There are iron crafted dioramas of battlefields, huge planes, movies, clothing the girls could try on to feel what it was like to be a pilot in the second war. Each war had its own section. The artefacts were endless from each war and soldiers, right up until present day. We still didn't see it all.

How can you go to Canberra and not visit Parliament House. The girls got bored very quickly although it is very interesting to see where all the decisions are made about legislation..... oh wait now I see why they were bored. So we went to the top and had a look over Canberra. It was a lovely view. We also visited the Mint and the girls got to make their own coin and watch how money is made. They have viewing windows all around the factory!

So excited about Parliament

A bit windy!

We finally found the winding road that took us to the telstra tower. It was a very windy night and even windier at the top. Emma found this out when she could only walk in one direction (away from the wind) really fast and all her hair stood on end. You can see all of Canberra and it was magical at night.






Getting a feel for future occupation

Next stop was the Deep Space Station. We were hoping to hear the whispers from space, but we weren't allowed in that section :-(. We learnt all about space travel and saw a rock from the moon, we learned how planets were formed and how endless the universe is.

So,I always thought Canberra had a coast, ha, no wonder I didn't do well in Geography. Even I have learnt something on this trip!





Next stop is Sydney!

Day 25-30 Mansfield, Mt Buller, Bonnie Doon, Glenrowan and Wodonga (17-22 September 2012)

Day 25-30 Mansfield, Mt Buller, Bonnie Doon, Glenrowan and Wodonga (17-22 September 2012)

We stayed at the Mansfield Holiday Park and loved the serene farm surrounding. There were huge draught horses, cows, sheep, swans (who even had 1 egg hatch before we left), rabbits and water hens.

The SNOW!!! We went to Mt Buller on our first full day and went tobogganing. Such a great time was had that Jade and the girls decided to try snowboarding the next day. So the next day it was back up the winding road to the top of the hill. A 2 hour lesson and they were off. The girls seemed to be naturals at it, with Lily showing us how it was done with ease. Emma picked it up quick and wanted to tackle the big slopes. Chloe managed to learn how to do it backwards (she thought it was easier!). Jade managed to snow board down the hill without too much effort as well. I played it safe and watched and carried, better to have one of us unbroken to drive to the hospital!

On our moving on day, we visited Bonnie Doon, made famous by the Australian movie The Castle. We took a photo of the actual house used and agreed with Darryl Kerrigan– “Hows the serenity? So much serenity”. LOL!

Next stop was Glenrowan, famous for Ned Kelly’s last stand against the police. The town has definitely monopolised on it, everything is named after the Kelly family. We saw the authentically copied house of Kate Kelly who was Ned’s sister, a gun carried by Ned (we also saw some firearms at the Library from the actual stand off), the site where it happened (where the Inn used to be, before being burnt down by the police to draw out the remaining gang members) and the still standing train station where the Police Special came in. It all happened at close range.

Off to Wodonga, right on the border of Victoria and New South Wales. First thing, Jade jump on his bike and rode to NSW. Too easy! Of course mountain biking in the bush would mean you don’t see a lot of people, but two men came over a hill in the middle of nowhere and asked Jade if he had a phone as there was a car on fire, hmm I wonder who lit it!???!!. Of course he said no and called the police and firefighters straight after (when they disappeared, no need to get mugged in the bush) to report it! He attracts this stuff!!! 
In Wodonga/Albury we checked out the Doll Museum, Beechworth Honey, massive playgrounds, the weir and travelled across the border a few times.

Next off to Canberra!



 

Day 17-25 Melbourne

Day 17-25 Melbourne

Wow! What can’t I say about Melbourne, we squeezed so much into a week and still didn’t see everything we wanted to.

We stayed at Dandenong Caravan Park which was 30minutes out of Melbourne. So we chalked up some Toll fees. It was nothing flash but enough to just base ourselves as we spent a lot of time travelling, visiting and sight seeing. Our first visit was to a DFO and went shopping. The girls enjoyed it and started to get into looking for bargains and things they would love to have. But after a few hours they ran out of steam. I think I could have kept going for a few more! Jade was over it before we started, but ended up finding some shoes to add to his already large (excuse the pun) collection.

Next we visited Jade’s sister Lilly, her boyfriend Clinton and friend Lakita. It was so good to see them and the girls were wrapped they finally got to catch up with their Aunty.



The huge whale skeleton at the entrance to the Museum

The next day we went to the Museum. It was impressive, Perth Museum has nothing on Melbourne, so many displays and interactive stations, Emma had to stop and look and read everything! Chloe loved the rocks and crystals and learning about how they were formed. Once Emma saw Pharlap (yes the actual taxidermy one) she was in love. Lily was thoroughly impressed by the huge whale skeleton in the entrance. We then had lunch and walked down Bourke Street Mall. We also had our first Melbourne tram ride on the free city circle.



The girls in front of 'The Block' 2012 

The next day we caught up with my sister Kealy, first stop was 'The Block' 2012, we have watched it every year and here was our chance to see it. We went to lunch in St Kilda and discovered the hidden St Kilda Adventure Playground. It was amazing and huge! The playground was started more than 30 years ago in the vacant lot with refuse and items from home. Over time the Council adopted it and helped fund bigger and better improvements but always with the help from local children. The playground is an ever changing space with kids given free will to create and imagine, including craft activities and school holiday programs, a must see for anyone in the area.  We then went to find the penguins that come into the groyne to nest for the night along with the water rats. Both are protected species. It’s been too long between catch ups with my sister so this was a great day!


Friday! The girls spent the afternoon with Aunty Lilly and Clinton at the Melbourne Zoo. They had a great time. The favourites were the seals, emus, peacock, bears, lions and tigers. Jade and I spent the afternoon exploring Melbourne city and doing a bit of shopping.



Ned Kelly's actual armour at National Library

Saturday! Food shopping in the morning in Dandenong - Jade was shoved and elbowed by older Italian women vying for the best fruit and veg at the market. We visited the Victoria State Library so we could see first hand the Ned Kelly armour and read and see all the interesting facts about what happened to him. (We visit Glenrowan where it all happened too but that's another story for next week!) Then off to Aunty Lilly’s again for babysitting and we were off to dinner and the football (West Coast Eagles vs Collingwood Magpies – Semi Final). It took a bit to find a bar along the way that didn’t serve exotic tapas such as lamb brains, jellyfish and other unusual dishes. We finally find one that served Turkish bread with dip and salt and pepper squid. We found most places in Melbourne serve alcohol including bars, pubs, cafés and IGA’s. You couldn’t take more than a couple of steps before you came to another café or bar, they were everywhere! Next off to the footy, my second AFL footy game ever! I consider myself quite sport illiterate but even I thought it was a great game and that it was a shame West Coast lost. We had seats behind the goal posts and the man next was an avid Eagles fan because he made sure I was leaving with only 50% of my hearing every time the players didn’t follow his very loud instructions. He was nearly in a fetal position by the end of it, it affected him so much!

Footy game and my bad photo of Eagles warming up

Sunday was a rest day to relax and play. Monday is moving on day. We are off to Mansfield (Man from Snowy River country) and the snow!

Days 14-17



Days 14 -17 – Port Fairy



Koala!

Emma getting a close up look

Whale watching and very cold

We have thoroughly enjoyed out stay in this coastal town. It is picturesque where ever you go. I was previously known as Belfast and it gives the impression that the real Belfast would look very similar. The town is surrounded by farms and stone fences and small Irish pubs in surrounding towns. You can easily see whales frolicking and playing close to shore along the coastal. The Big 4 caravan park has been very rewarding. The girls had a couple of visits to the heated pool and played table tennis for ages. The staff have been extremely kind and generous with us, given free DVD’s to watch and free activities to keep the girls entertained when it rained and they even cooked everyone at the park free pancakes for breakfast on Sunday! Port Fairy is 30 minutes from Warnambool which we also visited. The weather was the worst on that day and really made it hard to go anywhere. But we still got to see it and watch the wild ocean. On the way there we stopped at Tower Hill and climbed to the top, a very steep walk, on the way we saw a lot of wallabies. We then stopped at the Worn Gundidj Visitor Centre, which had koalas walking around and climbing eucalypts, rabbits and many emus which were a highlight for Emma, our resident animal lover. In between it all the girls have enjoyed milkshakes and lollies and hot chocolates, all the good things small towns have to offer. We even attended the local Saturday market here which had the best macaroons and other treats and trinkets. Yum!

 

Loch Ard Gorge

Next we were off to Apollo Bay. We started along the Great Ocean Road and got about half way before deciding to go straight to Dandenong as our caravan suffered a blown tyre which we changed for the spare which was bald so we didn’t want to risk any further journey away from repair places. We stopped in Colac which was a lot larger than what I thought and had 1 tyre replaced. We have now arrived in Dandenong and will be staying for a week and enjoying the sights, sounds and smells of Melbourne and its surrounds.

Days 13-14 Mt Gambier

Days 13-14 - Mt Gambier



The Jumping Pillow!

The Blue Lake

What a beautiful place! We stayed at a caravan park right across from The Blue Lake. Unfortunately the stormed had kicked in the day before and continued the whole time we were at Mt Gambier, very blowy and wet. The Blue Lake was once an active volcano thousands of years ago. You can see the whole circumference from the lookout and the water is an amazing blue!



Wombat/Koala bigger than Jade

Cave exploration

We visited the Naracoorte caves (about 1hr from Mt Gambier) and had a personal tour (we were the only ones there because of the weather) of the Alexandra cave and learnt how the caves, stalactites and stalagmites were formed. The girls seemed to know a lot about them already. We visited their active (robotic) display which showed the animals that were found in the caves. They had excavated the bones and recreated how the animal looked when alive. One animal which looked like a wombat crossed with a koala and was taller than Jade.

The really bad weather kept us in the caravan for the rest of the time and when at its windiest felt like it was going to blow away at night.

Days 7-9 and Days 9-13

Days 7-9



Port Pirie



We arrived at Port Pirie. I didn’t like it, but the girls loved the playground! We tried fishing but didn’t get any nibbles or fish. Jade tried to go for a mountain bike ride (a 125km round trip to get there) and then have his chain snap 2 pedal strokes into it. He tells me he had a big tantrum and threw stuff around, then got over it and came home defeated. His back is finally on the road to recovery and now he is trying to get rid of the headaches and migraines that came with it. Two nights were spent here and I wished them over quickly.

Days 9-13

The first day at the beach

Then we were on our way to Adelaide. I precariously drove the caravan through peak hour through Adelaide’s skinny streets. Phew! We made it to Brighton Caravan Park (17km out of the City) and stayed 3 nights, right on the beach. The weather was so glorious on Sunday the kids donned their bathers and jumped into the ocean. They played in the ocean and the playground till dinner time (every afternoon), glad to be out of the car. The next day we went to Haigh’s chocolate factory near the City. The yummy smell of chocolate was distracting, you couldn’t stand there and not have some. We did the tour and were able to try some of their yummy treats.

 



Tram ride



The next day we went into the City via the tram from Glenelg which was just up the road from Brighton and spent time sorting medical bills from Emma’s surgery the day before we left and Jade’s op a few weeks before. Then we shopped in Rundle Mall, the Adelaide Central markets and The Myer Centre. The girls were very satisfied with their purchases and couldn’t wait to get back to play with them and of course jump back in the ocean!





POST IT NOTE art in a cafe in Adelaide



Our last night was wild and woolly! The storm came on quickly and the wind tried to blow the caravan over. We have been using the rubber jigsaw mats outside the door of the caravan to step on and wipe feet but they were missing when I got up. The rain didn’t let up all night and by the morning, we decided to pack quickly, our tent neighbours advised they had “checked the radar” and it was going to get worse. Jade did all the outside packing in the rain and I did the inside. Done within an hour! The best time yet! Only to have the sun shining about 30 minutes later!!!! Back to the jigsaw mats, when I did get up I looked outside to discover 2 of the mats over near the rocks just before the beach. Three more were scattered on the grass area and 1 missing and just before we left I decided to do one last check on the rocks at the waters edge, because there was no beach anymore thanks to the stormy weather. To my surprise the last mat had been blown out and back in further down the beach. Phew, all mats safely back and we are now on our way to Mt Gambier before heading to Warnambool and then Melbourne.





Not your average flutist. Busker in Adelaide

We really enjoyed our stay in Adelaide and surrounds, the caravan park was great, a little more expensive than others, but worth it, one downside was the toilet block close to us was closed “for winter maintenance”. I pointed out it was no longer winter and could they be opened but advised they were supposed to have been inspected while the owners were away but no one had bothered to organise it. So we walked to the other side of the park, we all got a workout!



 

Day 5-7

Streaky Bay is a great and relaxing little seaside town. We stayed at the Foreshore Caravan Park, which has a good playground and was right on the bay.

The girls made friends very quickly and spent all their free time playing with them.

On the first day when the tide went out you could walk out a long way as the bay is very shallow. Emma found a starfish left behind.

We took the tourist loop which took us to the blowholes that didn't blow even though it was wild and woolly weather. A short walk from the blowholes took you to the whistles which were whistling loudly. Also on the drive we stopped at a rocky and steep look out where we saw a large group of sea lions that inhabit the rocks. There were 30 or more sea lions swimming and enjoying the sun. We also visited the haystacks which are rock formations formed by more than 30,000 years of erosion. The land used to be level at the top of the rocks!

On the last day we visited the shark display. In 1990 a man caught a 5 ½ metre shark. At the time it was the largest shark caught on a rod and reel in the world. The display is a replica of the actual shark.

Day 7 we hopped in the car and spent the day driving to Port Pirie.