Ballarat to Adelaide - (Part 4 of Brisbane to Alice Springs)

Ballarat to Colac

28/11/2014

Well the plan for leaving early went right out the window, not because we slept in but driving our motorhome one has to have zero alcohol in the system and having a headache indicates there is some remaining in the system so we waited for some time before driving.

We are heading to Colac to see Nancy's daughter Ange (Angela) and her partner Alison but we are taking a detour to Geelong  to visit Nancy's sister Marion who lives near there. We had lunch with Marion then headed for Colac. Ange works for Fisheries and helps coordinated environmental works on the inland lakes, she lives on a farm where she rents a cottage. Ange met us in Colac and gave us directions to her place.

(Nancy and sister Marion)

(Traffic in Geelong, photo by Nancy)

(What makes you think this could be a chicken farm? Photo by Nancy)

Unfortunately I could feel a cold coming on with burning sensation in the back of the throat and nose, I started pumping vitamin 'C' and Panadol into me but I think it was coming anyway.

We had the weekend with Ange and Alison having a BBQ dinner the first night and on the next day they took us for a drive around the lakes some being fresh water and some salt, Ange works with the Aboriginal people that have told her some of their dreamtime stories, it is very interesting. We had lunch at an old country pub and it was great.

(Ange and Alison's place)

(Parked in front of Ange's shed, Nancy had washing day)

(Ange and Alison's neighbour, an Echidna)

(Stock holding yards)

(The lakes at Colac area)

(Incredible views from the hills)

(Alison, Nancy and Ange)

We had a great weekend thanks girls..

Colac to Port Fairy

01/12/2014

It had rained during the night and there was still some drizzle about as we headed off after saying our goodbyes to the girls. Ange warned us about the winding and slippery road  that can be hazardous in these conditions many tourists have come to grief on this road. Local knowledge is always helpful it does not matter how experienced one is.

(Not the best of days)

(Misty view, photo by Nancy)

It was a very hilly and winding road with the added drizzle and fog to contend with, it was good to get down to the Great Ocean Road where the weather had cleared although still cloudy making it a bit of a dull day.

The Great Ocean Road is worth the drive naturally it would be better on a sunny day which we did not have so next time we hope we have some sun. The main attractions are the Twelve Apostles , well there used to be twelve but a couple have collapsed due to sea and wind erosion, drive a bit further and you have The Arch, London Bridge, and Bay of Islands.

(The Twelve Apostles, well not exactly a few have fallen due to erosion by sea and weather)

(Gibsons Steps, the steps lead to a beach)

(Apparently there has been a few accidents from tourist flying in and hiring a car just to do the Great Ocean Road)

(London Bridge, yes Australia has one also built by Mother Nature)

(The Arch)

(Walk down to the Grotto)

(The Grotto)

(Nancy by the Grotto)

(One of the many bikes)

Websites.  http://www.visitgreatoceanroad.org.au/media/34776/great_ocean_road_touring_map_2012.pdf

http://www.visitvictoria.com/Regions/Great-Ocean-Road/Things-to-do/Nature-and-wildlife/Beaches-and-coastlines/Coastal-attractions

As we drove along this road there were many cycle riders we found out that they are a group riding from Sumatra to Sydney. We continued to drive along the road to Port Fairy. We sailed into this place when we circumnavigated Australia and I loved the place, plenty of historic homes and boasts the oldest pub in Victoria, commonly known as the 'Stump' officially known as the Caledonian Hotel. WE booked in at the Southcombe Caravan Park   Port Ferry  which had only opened today it only opens during the summer months. It is a very nice park very clean and plenty of room.

(Plenty of room in the caravan park.

(The Caledonian Hotel known as the Stump)

(Some of the lovely old homes)

(The main street)

(Port Fairy it is really something to sail into this port.)

We walked into town which is only about 10 - 15 minute walk, we walked down to the docks and then into town and of course had to have a beer at the Stump.

Port Fairy to Kingston

02/12/2014

We got underway after breakfast and headed for Kingston to catch up with old sailing mate Leigh, we did try to ring him but the deaf old bastard would have the radio blaring if he is working in his shed. The country is also very dry around these parts Leigh lives in Kingston but has a farm out of town so we hoped he would be home when we got there.

(Parked in Leigh's driveway, the shed ahead has his 13.5 metre ketch, a motor boat that he is working on and fishing boat and a camper trailer he is building, Photo by Nancy).

We arrived at Leigh's and he was standing by his house just come down from his huge shed, he did not hear us. I got out of the vehicle and yelled out g'day. He was surprised and pleased to see us as we was him. Leigh is a great sailor he has circumnavigated the world over a 13 year period in the ketch he took 12 years to build, he has no trade qualifications but he is an incredible tradesman, carpentry, fitting and turning, welding and fibreglass work he is amazing. His knowledge helped us greatly when we sailed the Pacific together. Like us his sailing days are just about over, his ketch is in the big shed he has on the block next to his house, this is a 13.5 metre ketch and it takes up about a third of the floor space in his shed. Also in his shed is a motor boat that he is working on for a friend and behind that is a fishing boat that he is doing up for himself and on the other side of the shed is a camper trailer that he is building, he also works the farm. He is 71 years young and can't be slowed down. The unfortunate part is that Leigh is lonely, he would like female company but in the past sailing days he always set his sights to high and was looking too hard for his ideal woman which he never found.

We had a good night with him, we supplied the vegies and he cooked his famous roast chicken, having a couple of beers whilst all was cooking and a nice bottle of red with dinner.

(Visit to the Dump Point in Kingston before heading off. photo by Nancy)

Kingston to Adelaide

03/12/2014

We left Kingston after breakfast and headed for Adelaide via Mt Gambier and Murray Bridge, the roads have changed since my last journey through these areas which was back in 1994. Like most places in Australia the highways bypass the townships, this is good for traffic and not having bottlenecks through business districts but it is not good for local businesses, many businesses have closed due to this and the other thing we see is on the highways close to the towns there are major fuel companies set up like Shell, BP and Caltex and along with these are McDonalds, KFC and Subway or alike businesses which we all know are attached to Coles and Woolworths and we wonder why there is little work in small communities.

 (Some of the buildings along the way, photo by Nancy)

(Old house, photo by Nancy

(Salt lake opposite side of the road from Parnka Point)

(Met this little fella on the road going into Parnka Point, Stumpy Tail Lizard, photo by Nancy)

 (Three views from Parnka Point inside Coorong National Park)

Well we arrived in Adelaide traffic and found our way to West Beach and booked into the Adelaide Shores Caravan Park which is right next to the beach, very nice large park with everything children would love as far as the playgrounds they have there.

(Sunset at West Beach)

(Looking along the beach to Glenelg)

We had a nice quiet night after watching the sunset at the beach.

Cheers

Dubbo to Ballarat - (Part 3 of Brisbane to Alice Springs)

20/11/2014

Had a great time with the family in Dubbo but it was time for the next visit to family at Cobar.

(Macquarie Street, Dubbo' main street)

(Below are two of Nancy's daughts and their families)

(Amanda and Clint)

(Kai, Bridie and Piper)

(Jack and Piper in the new pool)

(Martin, Jack and Cassandra)

The inland roads of Australia are long and straight and to drive safely regular stops are required or change of drivers to ensure you arrive at your destination, modern vehicles do not help because you hardly have to drive them . They are quiet, comfortable and with auto gears, soft suspension, power steering and cruise control all you have to really do is steer and that can be done by one finger. No wonder there are so many accidents with speed and fatigue or is it boredom? Not saying I would like to go back to the old cars that had more rigid suspension and strong arm steering that you had to work hard to keep the car on the road in a straight line, those days you had to work at driving and of course they did not have the speeds of modern cars.

(The start of the long roads)

(Emu's and their chicks, not a good thing to hit on the road, if you want to take photos do it from inside the car Emu's are very protective of their young and they can rip you open with their sharp claw)

(There are many old farm buildings out bush, properties sold and many to China)

On the way to Cobar we pass through towns of Narromine, Trangie, Nevertire and Nyngan. These areas are basically farm country grain growing and pastoral and at the moment the land is very dry. These areas are familiar grounds to me having worked for the NSW Rural Fire Service I ended up being the manager of Wellington, Dubbo and Narromine, having over 1500 volunteers, 57 brigades and 7 paid staff. In 1990 just after I started working with the then Bush Fire Brigades as a Deputy Fire Control Officer, we got involved with floods and flood rescue with the April rains, first Dubbo flooded affecting many buildings and people trying to cross swollen creeks, (I don't know why people do this). This was followed by the Nyngan Floods and the evacuation of Nyngan after the levy banks breached. After the flood waters subsided we then went back to Nyngan to help people with the recovery. Nyngan residents were sent out in groups by buses arriving at 0800 hours each day and had to leave by 1600 hours this was to prevent looting and keep some law and order. The volunteers and myself slept on camp stretchers in the Nevertire silos and we would arrive in Nyngan each day with the residents to help clean their homes it was a very sad affair.

(Trangie township)

(Neveritre Silos that we camped in during the Nyngan cleanup)

(Nevertire, it does have a pub)

(Long and straight)

There are a number of towns in this country built where levy banks are required to protect the township from floods I suppose that early settles set up the townships near water for supply. Nyngan is a aboriginal word meaning long water.

(The old mine at Cobar)

(Cobar's main street)

(Cobar mines, we on a viewing platform on a communication tower hill)

(Looking across the top of the mine the Township of Cobar in the background.)

We had a rest at Nyngan before going on to Cobar  on arriving at Cobar we went to Carla and Corey's house and set up the motorhome in the front of their house on the gravel front yard. Carla and Corey are getting ready to move over to Maitland way where they have bought a block of land to build a house. We had fun with the three grandchildren during our few days stay even with temperature of up to 45⁰ C.

 (Nancy's daughter Carla and husband Corey)

(Clockwise- Bella (8), Olivia (7) and Dad Corey, Corey rounding up son Edward (6) and Carla)

(Carla doing a few jumps)

Cobar is a mining town with a number of operational mines in the area the country is more grazing than grain growing and the area has an abundance of wild goats which along with the kangaroos compete with cattle for the vegetation.

Cobar to Ballarat via Hay and Echuca

24/11/2014

On the road again off to see Kerrin and Mark at Ballarat a bit of a zigzag drive from where we started. The roads are long and straight and we will travel the Hay Plains to and from Hay. On these roads you can see for many kilometres, night driving across these areas you can often wonder if the headlights you see in the distance is a stationary car or one going backwards it takes ages before you actually pass each other. People have actually seen a Min Min Light in these areas, I actually saw one in the 70's when I was driving the Hay Plains, I was driving to Adelaide from Sydney to go and see my family and this orange light appeared in front of me but in the paddock adjacent to the road, the light remained at the same distance no matter how fast I went and after quite a long time just vanished. No I was not going mad, these phenomena's do happen and you can read about it through the following website.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fata_Morgana_%28mirage%29

All we had to contend with is sheep, cattle, goats and emus on the road which at the speed we travel these days is not a problem. We drive at speeds of 85 to 90 kilometres an hour, this makes for easy driving better fuel consumption and probably only adds around 30 minutes to the day's journey.

 (There are plenty of wild goats around these parts)

 (Loan emu putting in the big strides)

 (Kangaroos are about in the day as well as night )

(Sheep are good for their wool and meat and the only time their brains are used is when served up cooked on a plate. I have seen it when one sheep has jumped in front of a train trying to get out the way a number of others followed it, they will do the same in front of a car.)

(Drovers camp)

 (Roadside stop for a cuppa and stretch the legs)

(Not sure what this is the plaque has been stolen)

(Apostil Birds getting a drink from a tray, we topped the water up for them before leaving)

 (Fruit fly control, if you are carrying fruit you have to eat it or drop it into this unit, which is the same as the toilet a long drop.)

(The toilet at the roadside stop)

(Wanganella Post Office Cafe, this place had been closed for sometime a couple are now renovating the place but still sell a nice coffee, the plumber at his vehicle told us about this cemetery a short drive along a track) 

(A Lot of the graves have been destroyed could have been through floods in the area.)

We arrived in Hay and headed for Hay Plains Holiday Park, a very nice park and nice people, this is located on the southern end of town just across the Murrumbidgee River, Hay had earlier a good downpour of rain and we had to watch where we drove of the roads.

We had a long drive and I was tonguing for a beer so I suggested to Nancy that we go over to the Hay Hotel conveniently located just across the road, I did not have to twist her arm. It is a very nice pub and the owners are nice people , we ended up staying for about three beers.

 (Township of Hay)

(The Murrumbidgee River at Hay)

After returning to the vehicle we had a shower the everyone had a good shower of rain, it poured down, the land really needs it. I cooked dinner in the camp kitchen  and we had a quiet night watching a movie.

25/11/2014

(At a roadside stop on the Hay Plains)

We left Hay reasonably early and headed for Echuca one of my favourite places on the Murray River it has the old charm of the early river days with the paddle steamers that take tourists up and down the river. The docks with the steam driven wood turning equipment. We booked into Echuca Holiday Park, a very nice park just a short walk from the main street and the dock. It has been some years since I have been here and it looks like it has geared up more for tourism. Like most I think they have spoilt it a little especially around the dock area, the wood turning and steam engines used to be in full view as you walked passed, now it is fully enclosed and you have to walk inside a building and pay entrance fees to see it all, it may be the sign of the times with vandals that has caused this I am not sure but I think it would attract more people if it was open. There are plenty of restaurants and cafes around the place if not near the dock in the main street. I was a little disappointed the restaurant on the dock next to the woodturning is closed down and the building is empty, it was a great place to go day or night with the river in view and the steam boat activity.

(Echuca near the waterfront, Murray River)

(The steam machinery and wood turning and timber dressing)

We had lunch at the Echuca Hotel, very good service and meals and the owners are the same people that we met at the Hay Hotel, they own both hotels.

On our return to the park we stopped by the swimming pool in the park and there in the pool were mum and dad duck with seven little ones having a swim in the pool. There are ducks wondering and sleeping all over the park and there were a few others on the wading pool. Ducks have it rough around here.

(Ducks on the pond, the ducks in and getting out of the swimming pool)

(Just a note, "Ducks on the pond" was often said by blokes in the pub or on a work site when women were entering, it was a way of telling blokes to watch their language, no one seems to worry these days, in some cases some women can make a bloke blush.)

Echuca is a very popular place in the height of the tourist season there are house boat hiring and some paddle steamers do overnight trips.

 ('Emmylou' setting off)

 ('Pride of the Murray' I think this one is diesel these days)

('Emmylou' alongside and another steamer on the slips for maintenance)

(Houseboats some for hire)

26/11/2014

We set out from Echuca early and headed for Ballarat we had booked a site at the Eureka Stockade Caravan Park so we are heading there.

(We found this place in Daylesford what a great place for coffee or a meal)

The drive was quite pleasant going through some attractive places and away from major highways. Entering Ballarat it was instant city traffic , Ballarat also has tramways in the centre of the road not that we saw any. We found the caravan park and settled in and later in the afternoon daughter Kerrin came around followed by her husband Mark.

Kerrin left us her little car to drive around in so we could see some of the sights the next day. Ballarat originally a major gold mining town and famous for the Eureka Stockade has quite a lot of history.

27/11/2014

 (Ballarat Gold Museum)

We had a drive around Ballarat and went to the museum which was very interesting after our trip around we went back to the park and got ready to go to Kerrin and Mark's for dinner.

(A Good night with Kerrin and Mark, great dinner good wine, probably too much wine)

What a night we had, Kerrin and Mark cooked roast ducks, yes plural. Kerrin cooked one in the oven and Mark cooked the other in the Weber, yes the competition was on in a fun way of course. Mark's brother and sister-in-law  was also there for dinner and we had a great night. Truth be known it may have been too good a night, I won't say how much wine I drank or should I say we all drank, but I think I had the wobbly boots on when going home. I know one thing though Ballarat was cold that night which I believe is no surprise, it usually is. We shared a cab home with Mark's brother.

We had a great night.

Cheers