As far as the East is from the West

Esperance is the kind of place that would be amazing when the sun is shining. We spent a week huddled into the tent, sheltered against the battering wind and rain, and putting fallen tent poles back up at regular intervals. Daniel was working each day, so Karen and the kids managed as best they could, watching movies, reading books, and getting on each others nerves in the enclosed space. They did manage a few walks along the waterfront to see the resident Sealion that displayed himself every day, and performed if anyone looked like they might be fishing. Finally, Saturday rolled around and we enjoyed meeting up with Daniel’s cousin Catherine, Greg, their son Kyle, and friends Matthew and Nathan for breakfast. We had already packed up our tent in anticipation of travelling for the day. And then the sun came out!

As anticipated, Esperance is beautiful. We took a few photos and left to head for the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. The drive is 4,300km and we want to get there in time to spend Christmas with the family. It’s already the 11th of December, so time is running out. Daniel has lined up work on three properties across the Nullabor, so we set off for the first on the list.

We passed through Norseman and camped the first night at a free site along the 90 mile stretch. 90 Mile is the longest expanse of straight road in the country, so it was nice to break the drive up with an overnight stop. The next morning we introduced ourselves to Peter and Marg from Arubiddy Station, near Cocklebiddy. Whilst on the station Karen and kids mostly relaxed, reading books and playing around the buildings. We managed to get “Tour Guide Karen” to show us through the shearing shed, with all its fascinating machinery. Daniel completed the electrical job was in one and a half days, and we were on the way again. The next two jobs didn’t pan out. One property wasn’t ready for another week, and a roadhouse told us they didn’t need us when we walked in the door. So now it looks like we are going to make it with time to spare.

Sunset over Arubiddy Station	Moon rise over the shearing shed

We stopped overnight at another roadhouse, and then headed for Arno Bay. Daniel wanted to get some assistance from The Travelling Mechanic in servicing the Troopy. Arno Bay was another place that would be fantastic when the sun is shining (which it did as we were leaving). It was great to meet Robbie and Sharon and we would have liked to stay longer, but we are on a mission! A few days later, many of the caravans and vehicles were severely damaged when a freak hailstorm hit the area.

	< Cormornts queueing to get off the jetty as I approach. Along the GAB. ^ Nullabor means No Trees. Arno Bay Jetty. > Waves crashing on the jetty

On the way to Arno Bay, we blew another tyre, the new one that was just replaced in Perth. Aaaarrrggghhh! Fortunately Bridgestone agreed to replace the tyre AND tube under warranty, so after a quick lunch break (with Beth and Jason) in Port Augusta, we headed for Melrose. Here we spent the night camped in the showgrounds beside Mike and Sarah, and their seven children and four performing dogs. It was an excellent evening, and we forgot to take any photos, but the next morning the rush home continued.

Next stop was with Jodie in Merbein, near Mildura. We had met Jodie and her husband Andrew earlier in the year. Sadly, Andrew passed away from bowel cancer in October, and we thought it was time to visit again.  We all had a really enjoyable evening INDSIDE THE HOUSE! No camper set up and pack up. Meals cooked on a HUGE BBQ. Excellent company with Summer, storm and Beau (the kids). Most enjoyable, thanks Jodie.

The longest travelling day we’ve had on this trip was 740km from Nhulunbuy to Mataranka in the Northern Territory, so the next days agenda looked impossible. Dubbo is over 800km from our departure point, but Karen wants to visit the zoo for her birthday. We changed tactics for this part of the trip. Normally Daniel does most of the driving, but this time we alternated approximately two hours each, and made it safely, but tired, into Dubbo at 7:00pm. When Daniel went in to check into the Dubbo City Caravan Park, he contemplated setting up the tent and then getting dinner under way, and booked a six berth room instead. The kids (and Karen) were surprised, and delighted at this turn of events. The trailer was plugged into a power point to keep the fridge cold, and we enjoyed wandering around the Western Plains Zoo for the whole next day. Our last visit to the zoo was in 2006, and some things have changed since then, but others haven’t. We also enjoyed an award winning pie from the Village Dubbo Bakery for lunch that day.

On Guard, Meerkats		“Kiss me quick”
Hiding Cheetah	Click on this photo to blow it up, it looks great!	Siamang Apes
Clean your teeth time!	“Happy” really is!	“Catch me if you can”
When being chased by a Tiger, DO NOT climb a tree		New born baby
Otters are SO cute!	Bison	Mum and bub (awake for a change)

To vindicate Daniels cabin accommodation decision, it rained heavily that night, and we were tucked away warm and dry. And so was our tent! It was a week for breaking records, so we left at 6:30am the next morning with Maleny as our destination. At 940km away, there was much distance to travel!

There is not much to report about this part of the journey, we alternated drivers again, and made it into Maleny at 6:00pm that evening. Karen started to get excited when we drove through Toowoomba, and the kids were amazing: Not one call of “Are we there yet?” was heard. They enjoyed some Nintendo DS time (limited to a half hour each), read some books and played happily (mostly).

In 9 days we had crossed five time zones (our bodies are still adjusting to what time it is), and five states. It was an amazing journey, but one that we are not planning to repeat any time soon. 

DAMN TOURISTS!

One can hardly embark on a journey such as ours, without considering that there are some landmarks that you are expected to see. In fact, it almost becomes a rite of passage to your fellow travellers. “What do you mean, you haven’t seen such and such?” they exclaim. “Oh, you really must!” they insist.

It is with this in mind that we departed Wyee, and took a little drive through Sydney.

Into the city…….. yes, the city.

It is a picture worth a thousand words. A battered looking Troop Carrier, dragging a very large 4WD camper trailer behind it, wandering aimlessly around in Sydney City's busiest streets. We did get some looks! Most people tend to avoid getting too close to our car, because it looks like we really don’t care if we hit them or not, and they would probably come off the worse for wear; so city driving was really quite uneventful.

Having said that, we stopped at a set of lights, heading for the botanic gardens, when a bus pulled up immediately beside us at a red light. The bus driver opened his door and shouted out “Are you guys lost?” We maintained our composure, and informed him that “Yes, we were ok, we are following the direction on our GPS.” He assured us he could give better directions to get us out of the city faster. This very short encounter left us laughing hysterically. We are wondering whether Troopies aren’t allowed in Sydney, and nobody told us.

So we drove across the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and then down to The Rocks underneath the bridge for photos. After another jaunt back through the city, we parked in the Botanic Gardens and walked the perimeter to Mrs Macquaries Chair.

Whilst we don’t feel quite ready to move to Sydney, and would consider such a feeling impossible, we did enjoy our quick visit and left feeling very amused at the reactions of people in the streets as we drove past them.

Beach Camping, the best

As we left Sydney, we took the scenic route through Stanwell Park and along the coast road with its cliff-edge bridge built over the ocean. Just north of Woolongong, we found the Coledale Beach Camping Reserve. We paid the camping fee and located a site right on the beachfront. Literally. Walk out the front of the tent, across less than 2 metres of grass and down onto the sand. Excellent…..

Listening to the surf, smelling that salt air, feeling the cool breeze on your face, watching the waves roll in under the light of a full moon, what could possibly be better than this?

Knowing that we are headed for Halls Creek in Western Australia via the inland roads, and that we probably won’t see any ocean until sometime in August, has motivated us to follow the beach along the NSW coastline for as long as possible.

Our next stop was Pebbly Beach, just north of Batemans Bay. Another excellent spot, although the beach was a short walk away. We met another travelling family and all the kids soon became inseparable, playing together in the dunes and generally having lots of fun.

After packing up the next morning, we wandered down to the beach front for a final look, to be treated with the sight of a pod of 8 dolphins making their way along the length of the beach, rolling, tumbling and jumping along the way. We are constantly dazzled by natural wonders, and there is something therapeutic about experiences like this.

Wonderful stuff.

Slow, Slow, Slow……

It seems that we have spent a lot of time recently rushing about. Although we don’t particularly run to an itinery, we always seem to be in a hurry to get somewhere. So after spending 3 weeks slowly meandering down the Queensland coastline, and then two months stopped on the Sunshine Coast to replenish our finances, there seemed to be no particular hurry to get to Canberra for Easter with the Mann family, Daniel’s sister, Rebecca and her son Bodhi.

After a sad farewell to family members and friends on the Sunshine Coast, and two nights with Naomi and John in Brisbane, we were ready for the short journey to the Gold Coast for a quick lunch visit with Ashley and Janelle and their three children. That same afternoon we drove along the coastline to Pottsville, just south of Tweed Heads. Finally, we are in NSW after six months in Queensland! Not that we don’t LOVE Queensland, it’s just that we’ve been there for 6 months!

We stayed at the Big 4 Holiday Park, which was the same park Daniel and Karen stayed in back in October on their lofty jaunt to Sydney for the MOPS conference. The holiday park is an excellent spot to relax, and has many facilities for the kids to enjoy. We only managed to partake of the swimming pool, before we set off again to Nambucca Heads.

On the way, we stopped at Hastings Point, which is where Karen's parents took her on holidays as a child. This is the same spot, on the same point, where she had to pose for photos a few years ago. On our Sydney jaunt in October, we saw a pod of dolphins swimming along in the waves beneath this point, and some whales breaching in the bay. It was an amazing sight that brought back many fond memories for Karen, and we vowed to return sometime on the future. No such luck spotting whales or dolphins today though.

Wishing the children to experience more of what we had seen in October, we returned to the same caravan park in Nambucca Heads as well. This time we were rewarded with a campsite that had direct access to the beach, and excellent facilities. After setting up camp, we all went for a walk along the beach, enjoying the serenity. Up early enough the next morning, we partook of the sunset over the ocean, which was spectacular.

Daniel had made an arrangement to meet with MMM’s National Project Manager at Wyee, just south of Newcastle. We arranged to stay with Lyndon & Kelly (NSW managers for MMM) and their two kids. We camped in the backyard for the weekend, and apart from the rain on the last night, we had a fantastic time. What wonderful people that MMM attracts to its ranks! We also managed to meet with Peter and Lillian for afternoon tea, and despite having to cancel a possible fishing trip, we really enjoyed our short time together.

Lyndon took us for a look around the Lakes District that was a complete mystery to us, and we were surprised to find yet another magical place that we may not have discovered if left to our own devices. The kids all played together on the beach, and new friendships were forged. Perhaps we can assist Lyndon and his team with a project in the future.

It never ceases to amaze me, the diversity of the country that we are privileged to travel around. The many wonderful people and places we have been, the the new discoveries yet to be made along the way. What a wonderful journey thus far………..

More to come…… stay tuned!

The Snowies!!!

After spending 3 nights at Shannon’s Flat (on the Mann Clan’s Block) we headed off in convoy through the Snowy Mountains! At this point the Mann Family decided to extend their camping trip to a couple of days on the road with us, much to our collective delight.

What a beautiful country we live in.

Not far from Shannon’s Flat was the town of Adaminaby (known for it’s trout fishing!). The township had been moved to make way for Lake Eucumbene, the largest of the Snowy Mountain Hydro-Electric Scheme Lakes. So we went and had a sticky beak. Apparently, the roofs of the houses that got left behind when they relocated the town have been peaking through the top of the Lake. But with the Christmas rainfall the water level had risen considerably. It’s a pretty cool Lake. It holds 9 x as much water as Sydney Harbour.

From there we took our time winding our way through the Snowies, being mildly amused at the signs screaming warnings of Snow And Ice! And passing numerous lanes set aside solely for the use of applying snow chains to your vehicle! Not something us Queenslanders have ever encountered before.

We stopped for lunch in a small town nestled at the base of a very windy trek down the mountain called Talbingo, that none of us had ever heard of previously. This is where Miles Franklin was born. It seemed so random and took us all completely by surprise…the perfect place to stop for a snack, a run and a toilet break!

Back on the Mountainous roads again after picking up some sweet succulent black grapes in Tumut. We decided to press on through the townships of Batlow and Tumbarumba to camp on the banks of The Murray River at Towong, right on the border of Victoria and New South Wales. It was a large road-side campsite boasting one long drop toilet (that was hmmm interesting). There were numerous people swinging out into the Murray, and letting the swift flowing current drag them downstream. Great spot for teenagers but not so good for kids aged between 10 1/2 and 4!!! We decided this would be a one nighter!

Leisl did crack us up here. She was walking along with us and randomly came out with… “the winner of the smallest caravan in the world competition is….cha ching” (she pointed to a tiny A Frame caravan at this point)!!! Too funny.

Manning The Block

Andrew and Kristelle (our good friends from Canberra) have a 25 acre block of land 15 minutes from Adaminaby (near Cooma). With Christmas behind us, and family all moving on, we decided to spend a few days at their block, doing some bush camping and getting away from it all.

The front gate	The waterhole	That’s a nice tree
Another waterhole	The campsite	A bushy getaway

No mobile phone reception, no other people anywhere in sight, and with the campfire burning constantly, it was the perfect place for an after Christmas relax. We took the kids bikes off, and let them have the run of the place.

Our campsite	The dining area between the two campsites	The Manns’ campsite

We also had hot showers and toilet facilities set up, bush camping has never been more luxurious.

The toilet facility 1st class all the way!

The kids also noted some of the local wildlife (with great excitement), which caused the poor echidna to spend 2 days hiding out inside the rock.

Echidna	Skink? (almost 30 cm long)

	The kids found all sorts of activities to amuse themselves, besides riding their bikes almost constantly.They also discovered a small rock cave that they crawled through for hours.
Josie at entrance		Talitha at entrance
Eli coming out	Rosa and Connor helping each other	Someone need a hand?

We all had a fantastic few days, so much so, that the Mann family decided to join us for a few more days and we headed off to see more of NSW and Victoria together.

Father and Son moment	Eli and Rosa being cute	Connor in his new birthday rashy
Andrew DID actually get wet!	Karen and Kristelle being cute	Rosa in her new birthday rashy
Connor and Rosa still managed a birthday party	Happy Birthday Rosa	Happy Birthday Connor
Josie	Leisl	Karen and Kristelle still being cute

We all had a fantastic few days, so much so, that the Mann family decided to join us for a few more days and we headed off to see more of NSW and Victoria together.