This Adventurous Age

May 17, 2021
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2008 Travels May 28

WEDNESDAY 28 MAY HOME TO LAKES ENTRANCE 325kms

We spent much of the previous two days packing the van and Truck. With the crowded house, and all the earlier building and renovation works, the travel gear had been well moved around, and took some sorting out again. At least, this would only be a short trip, compared to our usual treks, so we did not need to take as much. But I packed more winter clothing than was our norm!

We were so looking forward to the break from home and a quiet change!

After breakfast, hitched up the van and parked the rig out on the road. John then lopped some overhanging branches from the neighbour’s trees – so the van parking area would be clear when we got home again.

We pulled away about 10.15am – pretty good, considering. It seemed a very long time since we’d last been out with the van!

Took the “back” route to Gippsland, through Wandin, Yellingbo, Cockatoo, to Pakenham – winding, but little traffic and easy enough. Also much prettier than the alternative of using the roads closer to Melbourne, through the outer suburbs.

We had a good run through the industrial Latrobe Valley, with its long time focus on coal mining and electricity generation. As always, the smokestacks of the power plants were in evidence from the highway.

Pulled off the road near Morwell and ate our pre-packed lunch. Then, continued on, through Sale with its several corners to be negotiated, Bairnsdale and on to Lakes Entrance.

It had been grey, misty and chilly when we left home, and the drive through the back of the Dandenongs to Pakenham showed mist lying in the bottoms of the valleys and shrouding the hilltops. But this had started to clear by the time we reached the Latrobe Valley, and it was quite pleasant for the rest of the day, with the sun appearing from behind light cloud, for much of the time.

The highway east paralleled the Great Dividing Range – a distant purple off to our left. It crossed some of the main rivers that flow down from those mountains – the Thompson as we approached Sale, the Avon at Stratford – no prizes for guessing that association! The bridge over the Mitchell River at Bairnsdale gave us a lovely view down the stream, with some small boats moored at points along the banks. Then there was the Tambo at the hamlet of Swan Reach.

The approach to Lakes Entrance is down quite a steep little hill. I have always loved the view that one gets of the town and the lake, as the road winds down to sea level.

**The approach to Lakes Entrance (Google)**

We booked into the Big 4 Waters Edge Caravan Park for the night. It cost $25.20, after discount. The park was quite adequate for our needs, with modern and clean amenities. It was not a very large park and had several annual sites with permanent structures on them. At this time of year, it was not very busy and we were able to use two sites to stay hitched up.

Best of all, the park was within walking distance to the shops, and just across the road from the waters of the lake inlet.

After the minimal set up for a one night stay, we walked to the main part of town, as far as the floating restaurant and fish sales boat, moored across from the shops. There, we bought a half dozen oysters – for John’s entree tonight – and some flathead tails. We have always found the seafood prices here quite reasonable, and of course the daily catch sold was totally fresh.

Our fish dinner was lovely. I fried some potato rounds, and just dredged the flathead with flour and pan fried it.

The night was chilly and we did not stay up late.

May 13, 2021
by wendyviney 1 Comment

2008 Travels January to May

2008 – JANUARY TO MAY

Over our many years of travel, we have experienced plenty of times when things did not work out as planned, but in the overall array of these, 2008 was an absolute doozy. The whole damned year didn’t happen as we thought it would…..

Towards the end of last year’s trip, we were mentally mapping out a three month jaunt to some of the loveliest coastal parts of WA, with a few side explorations thrown in. The Dampier Peninsula, north of Broome, specifically a stay at the laid back and scenic Middle Lagoon. Barn Hill and Eighty Mile Beach revisited. Some exploration of the area north of Kalgoorlie – or maybe even the deferred trip across the desert, from Newman to Alice Springs. Nice set of ideas, but……

**Middle Lagoon – Dampier Peninsula, north of Broome**

In late 2007, son with marital woes moved back home. With him came his 5 year old daughter and 18 month old son – not full time, else I wouldn’t still be sane enough to write this, but every second weekend, and a couple of nights in between.

As well, we still had M occupying one of the back bedrooms. Suddenly, our spacious home was not so spacious. Items like portacot, high chair, nappy container appeared…….and toys……lots of toys!

Son’s need for support, both when the children were here and in terms of general company at home, made an extended trip unwise, so we reluctantly cancelled our wonderful housesitters. They were easily able to find a replacement booking, and promised us five months or so next year. We had to be optimistic and think there would be a next year – in travel terms!

Almost as soon as we returned in 2007, and amid the demands of the new bowls season, John made a start on the projects that he’d been germinating whilst we travelled.

**Pre-projects: old BBQ fireplace, steps behind it, and yucky pool beyond**

The pizza oven was built and in conjunction with that, there was remodelling of part of the front garden, taking out the old sleeper wall that had formed one edge of the driveway, and also housed a massive European wasp nest. This was replaced with a wall of the same edging used in the renovation around the pool, with the creation also of a grassed ramp up onto the higher lawn level – allowing for easier movement of heavy tools to the back yard and John’s shed, and also for extra parking on that lawn. Suddenly, we had four resident vehicles…..

The pool was, as we had expected, a major project. The thick, green water was deemed beyond remediation, by a pool company. A septic tank cleaner, with a large truck and a very long hose, emptied it. In the midst of Melbourne’s drought induced water restrictions, much negotiation ensued with the local water authority, to eventually be allowed to refill the pool. There were conservation trade offs required: we had to install a water tank, buy a solar blanket for pool, install water saving shower heads and toilet cisterns…..The latter items led to a full renovation of the main bathroom, and then our ensuite. What was that about “life” and “easy”?

As part of all these changes, we decided that the filter and pump installation for the pool needed to be moved, from right outside the bedroom of the now rented granny flat, to the other end of the pool. The pool predated both our purchase of the house in 1991, and the building of the flat for my father, after we moved in. Dad had a degree of industrial deafness and did not mind the noise from the pool operation nearby. But after his death we had the flat tenanted. No issue, whilst the pool was non-operational, but now…..Thus ensued digging up of some of the slate that surrounded the pool, to relay the plumbing. So, to make it uniform, the whole lot was re-done, and the garden walls on two sides stone edged – with the products we’d seen in Bendigo at the end of the 2007 trip.

**Surrounds not yet finished, but pool ready for swimming again – after a decade as a duck pond!**

John enjoyed building the pizza oven. He found the slate laying really hard work that taxed him to his 67 year old limits. But that didn’t stop him from doing much of the bathroom renovations himself!

The pool apparatus was so old and long unused that it all needed replacing – nice new salt chlorinator, and an automated control system that would make it simpler for house sitters to maintain the pool.

All this because M bought John a book on pizza ovens, in Tennant Creek, last year!

**New pizza oven, steps to back yard, and slate surrounds….**

After all this work, it would have been a bloody sight cheaper to go travelling in 2008. In fact, we could have left the van behind and stayed in upmarket accommodation and still come out ahead, financially.

M jetted off to the USA for a while, then found some other friends to join for an Australian trip, for a few months.

Winter set in with a vengeance – we were not used to these. In fact, we’d only experienced one Melbourne winter in the last decade!

John’s daughter and family returned to Canberra from her recent three year posting to Brussels, complete with his second grandson, born in 2005, while she was on post. The family had acquired – as so many Canberrans do – a weekender holiday house on the NSW south coast, at Durras.

By May, we were feeling a real need for a break away and a respite from “caring”. John wanted to see the Durras place, as well as the family. The south coast of NSW seemed – fractionally – more attractive than Canberra, with winter rapidly setting in. So, plans – albeit somewhat vague – were made, to meet up at the holiday house…..

May 11, 2021
by wendyviney 3 Comments

2007 Travels September 30

SUNDAY 30 SEPTEMBER BENDIGO TO HOME 225kms

We took our time getting organized and away.

I was dreading trying to link up Truck and van on the backwards sloping driveway. John would have to be really accurate in his backing – meaning me in directing same! The van had to stay chocked so there was no capacity for moving it in any direction to “fine tune” the match up. If John backed a little too far van would be pushed back on chocks. Much potential for things to go wrong – and with an audience!

In the event it all went beautifully. John did a perfect backing display, especially considering that for the last little bit he was trying to move Truck back a cm at a time! Much relief!

The way home was the usual – Heathcote, Seymour, Yea, Lilydale.

We got the van backed into its parking bay – uphill this time – and unhitched.

Our sitters had prepared a hot lunch to welcome us home, which we enjoyed with them. What a lovely thoughtful gesture. They were such pleasant people and very organized, thoughtful and efficient house minders. The place was immaculate. No wonder they were in such demand, and booked up so far ahead. We were lucky to have managed to book them again, for next year – but three months was all they could manage for us, between other bookings.

After lunch, they departed and we were left to make a start on the unpacking and van cleaning.

The house always seemed so huge, after months in the van.

Statistics for 2007 trip:

* Kms travelled: 17,702kms

* Cost of diesel: $3851.89

* Dearest diesel: $2.29cpl Kalumburu

* Cheapest diesel: $1.25cpl Bendigo

* Accommodation cost: $3199.15

* Accommodation discounts gained: $46.25

* Dearest accommodation per night: 36.50 – Broome

* Cheapest paid accommodation per night: $6.60 – NT National Parks

* Number of different places stayed at: 42

***************

May 11, 2021
by wendyviney 2 Comments

2007 Travels September 29

SATURDAY 29 SEPTEMBER BENDIGO

Daughter and I went shopping in the morning. I bought some T shirts that were on sale, and a couple of windcheaters.

The Grand Final was watched – on their big screen TV – in the afternoon. In this sport-focussed family, an event like this was an occasion to be marked with drinks and snacks through the afternoon. John thoroughly enjoyed himself.

It was our final night, for this trip, in the van.

Although I had enjoyed the time spent with family here, overall, it was a pity that the trip had concluded in a fairly negative way, for me, with the focus on long days and sports viewing. It tended to cloud the great times that had come before.

May 9, 2021
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2007 Travels September 28

FRIDAY 28 SEPTEMBER BENDIGO

We had another early wake up visit from grandson, and a snuggle session in bed. Mornings here were cold, so even the young chap was content to keep warm under the doona.

The idea of building that wood fired pizza oven in our yard had been quietly simmering away in John’s mind, ever since Tennant Creek – or earlier. A more urgent domestic undertaking was the renovation of our swimming pool, that had been a well visited duck pond since 1998, when we naively entrusted its upkeep to son, while we went travelling. It had become very green! Grandchildren would certainly appreciate being able to actually swim in it.

So – John was thinking of combining swimming pool reclamation, with re-laying the slate pool surround, with building his oven. Why not undertake three projects at once?

To that end, we took grandson to visit a Bendigo place that had a massive display of different types of pavers and stone wall materials. We found some retaining wall blocks and capping stones for same, that would be ideal for renovated garden bed walls around the pool area.

Grandson was surprisingly interested in the stone displays. He probably had never seen anything like this before! Some proved to be just the right height for grandson sitting, whilst grandad browsed. A bit low and undignified for grandma though.

As a reward, and because this could be a possible future project too, we also visited the nearby cubby house factory. That was a big hit!

Met up with the boy’s mother, in the town centre, for lunch.

Then it was back to base, for afternoon naps for the two males.

Fish and chips all round, for tea.

May 7, 2021
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2007 Travels September 27

THURSDAY 27 SEPTEMBER BENDIGO

Grandson was knocking on the van door at 7.30am. He’d been up, had his breakfast, and mum was about to leave for work, so it was over to us. The boy was happy to snuggle up in bed with us for a little while, but then we had to stir ourselves to face the day.

I had forgotten how much energy it takes to keep up with an active and enthusiastic four-year-old! We had to come up with some ideas to keep him busy and interested – and that we could cope with.

Grandson just loved travelling around in the “Grandad’s Truck”. I guess to someone his size it looked huge! For the two someones of our size, it was an intellectual challenge to fit the boy’s car seat into Truck. I could not believe how much of a hassle it was. When my kids were little, one did not need an advanced qualification in engineering to take them to the shops!

We visited a shopping centre and walked around for a while looking at shops. The boy and Grandad scored icecreams each. We tried a visit to the Art Gallery – thought we might introduce some different aesthetics into his life, since he was an enthusiastic generator of art works that graced our fridge, my study walls and his fridge at home. But it was not really his thing – fair enough.

The walk in Rosalind Park, and the climb up to the top of the big poppet head tower, was much more to his liking. We valiantly battled up the several flights of steps – that thing is high! I appreciated the views over the city, but all grandson was interested in, was going back down again! We probably could have amused him by repeated trips up and down the Tower, but we were not up to it, although I am sure he would have been.

The playground at Lake Weeroona was definitely to his liking – and ours, because all we had to do was watch him – one at a time, whilst the other sat it out……

Fortunately, the afternoon nap still happened for the four year old. Grandad needed one too!

Throughout the trip, I had regularly dispatched postcards to the boy. After his nap, out came the collection, all faithfully kept, and we had to tell him the story of each one, and read them to him afresh. Obviously it had been worth making the effort to send them.

I, for one, was very happy to welcome his mum home from work, and hand over duty to her!

May 5, 2021
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2007 Travels September 26

WEDNESDAY 26 SEPTEMBER RENMARK TO BENDIGO 425kms

The early morning light on the Murray River was interesting.

After all the horrendous driving stages of the time just gone, done to fit in with the TV football schedule, we now found ourselves with a few days to spare before our house sitters’ time was due to end, and they would expect us home, on 30th.

John could think of nothing he wanted to do, to fill in the time, except he was adamant that it should not involve National Parks or walking! We had previously spent time in the Riverland and around Mildura. So we decided to go on to Bendigo and visit with daughter and family there. At least we would be able to give grandson a couple of days’ break from child care – and John would have some enthusiastic company – and a good TV picture – for watching the AFL Grand Final on Saturday!

So, it was on through to Mildura and down the Calder Highway, to Bendigo.

Refuelled at Red Cliffs – $1.38cpl and again on the outskirts of Bendigo – $1.25cpl.

We parked the rig in daughter’s driveway. With some trepidation, due to its slope. The wheel chocks were reinforced with stacks of bricks, before van was detached from Truck!

No more caravan park fees for this trip!

Grandson was thrilled to see us, when he and his mum arrived home. She had not told him we were coming, so it was a great surprise for him.

Bendigo was cold, after the places we had been! I had to burrow under the bed and drag out the little fan heater from storage, to warm the van up in the evening.

May 3, 2021
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2007 Travels September 25

TUESDAY 25 SEPTEMBER PORT AUGUSTA TO RENMARK 450kms

Back to the early starts in the morning…..

On the road again. We went the same way as we had on Sunday – east through the hills and winding roads of the Horrocks Pass to Wilmington, then through Orroroo, Peterborough, Burra. This was a familiar route for us, so it was just a matter of covering the distance.

The wind turbines that had sprouted in recent years, along the ridges through here, provided something extra to look at. I don’t think they enhance the scenery, though.

John decided not to stay at Morgan, where we had sometimes overnighted before, but to press on to Renmark. However, we did stop to eat our packed lunch at Morgan.

Refuelled in Renmark, before finding the caravan park. $1.29cpl.

At the Riverfront Caravan Park, we went on to a site that fronted on to the Murray River. After discount, paid $27.

The site was scenic – a pleasant change and the nicest we’d had since leaving Eighty Mile Beach. The Murray River was quite full.

After the basic set up for a one night stay, I walked into the town, for some exercise. John didn’t feel like the exertion, and stayed at the van.

We had not long been set up when we were visited by a hopeful – and friendly – pelican. He did not stay around long, after I told him there would be no handouts at our van.

The sunset reflections on the river were wonderful.

May 1, 2021
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2007 Travels September 24

MONDAY 24 SEPTEMBER PORT AUGUSTA

A proper sleep in this morning….

Today was John’s birthday.

After breakfast, went to the main shopping complex, so I could buy the makings for a birthday meal of his choice – a roast chicken dinner.

Topped up the fuel again, after yesterday’s drive – we’d done about 120kms. Went to the other major brand servo on the main highway and found the fuel was cheaper – $1.35cpl.

John played computer games for much of the rest of the day.

The roast chicken, vegies and gravy turned out well, “roasted” in the electric frypan.

After tea, watched the Brownlow Medal Award count on TV – the reason we had stayed put these couple of days here.

April 29, 2021
by wendyviney 2 Comments

2007 Travels September 23

SUNDAY 23 SEPTEMBER PORT AUGUSTA

For the first time in a week, we were not moving on today, so there was no alarm waking us up at some horribly early hour. I got to sleep in – until all of 8am!

John had agreed, yesterday, that since there was no football on today, we could have an outing of my choice. My preference was to go walking at Alligator Gorge, in the Mt Remarkable National Park, east of Port Augusta. Many, many years ago, whilst still uni students, M and I had hitch hiked from Melbourne to Adelaide, and from there joined a group of phys ed students who were doing a two day hike in the Mambray Creek section in the south of this National Park, but I had never visited the northern part.

Refuelled on the way out of town, at one of the servos favoured by truck drivers. $1.37cpl.

We had to take the very familiar Horrocks Pass road to Wilmington, then the Alligator Gorge road to our destination, the Terraces and Narrows Circuit walk – a bit over 3kms.

From the car park, we descended down some steep steps to the creek level, then turned roughly north, to walk along Alligator Creek to the Terraces.

**Going down into the Gorge – little indication here of the sights to come…**

The creek was incised into a gorge, mostly not all that deep, compared to, say, those of Karijini, but still interesting with red rock walls.

The track was rocky and rough until we reached the Terraces.

The Terraces were, as the name suggested, broad flat “steps” in the creek valley. It was a tranquil place, with varied plant growth.

**A longer walk followed the creek from here, up onto the ridge beyond**

We had passed section of grass trees.

After spending some time looking at rock pools – there was a trickle of water in the creek – and just sitting enjoying the spot, we retraced the way, past the steps we’d come down, and on along the creek.

Here the gorge was deeper, and in parts overhung the path below.

The Narrows was a section of the gorge where the rock walls really closed in, forming a cleft that was only just wide enough for a person to walk through.

**Approaching the entrance to The Narrows**

This was not a place one would want to be in a heavy rain storm – I felt that it could be subject to flash floods at such times. It was actually quite a spooky section, I thought.

This short walk was really quite dramatic, with much contrast in the nature of the Gorge. It was quite a little gem, and a walk I’d like to do again, if we ever came back this way. Given that it was a weekend, it was surprising that we saw no other people walking, although there were a handful picnicking up top at the carpark area.

**A contrasting section – smooth track and grass underfoot**

What comes down, in this case, must go up again…..after passing through the Narrows, a track climbed steeply – including up lots more steps – to the Blue Gum Flat car park. From there, we followed the road back to our parking area, and Truck.

**Almost to the path that would take us up the cliffs again….**

This had been a most enjoyable short walk. It was so good to get some exercise after the week of sitting in the vehicle. The weather was just right for this sort of walk – not too hot.

John was not in a particularly good mood, and not interested in any more exploring, so it was back to camp for the rest of the day. Computer games for John, reading and sewing for me.