Hello again and this time from Adelaide – or just out a little bit in McClaren Vale.  We have had roughly a 12 day trip from Canberra to get here.  The trip from Canberra was pretty relaxing and we were able to travel around 240 km’s per day so it wasn’t to stressful.

From Canberra we travelled to Wagga Wagga and stayed for three days at the Wagga Beach CP.  I was a bit surprised that they had a “beach caravan park” in Wagga but they did.  It was on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River and there was like a beach on the banks of the river.  With the grass area around it was well set up for locals and visitors.  I was very surprised as to how cold the river was to swim in, it did make your skin feel funny when you dived in and the current was a lot stronger than I was expecting.  Wagga is a nice place but there didn’t seem to be a lot to do that we could find so it was just going to be a lot of reading and spoiling princess.  The main street was very picturesque with lots of trees and wide footpaths. They had a pretty good aviation display that I found interesting as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After we had exhausted ourselves in Wagga Wagga it was on the road to Hay.  We decided to do some free camping in Hay as the area was beside the river and only about a kilometre out of town.  The camp is excellent and would be one of the best free camp areas we have stayed in.  The area is huge and at this time of year we had a multitude of spots to pick from and set up camp.  There were even toilets there and a grass area with bbq’s that were very popular with the locals on the weekend.  It would seem that the accessory to have when living in Hay is a ski boat as this was very popular.   The difference between Hay and wagga in water temperature was huge.  The Murrumbidgee at Hay is a lot warmer with a lot less water flow.  You also can feel the yabbies having little pecks at your feet when your standing in the water.

We did visit the Shear Outback centre they have set up in Hay.  This was set up as a history of shearing in outback Australia.  Not sure if they have picked a winner here with this one.  Shearing is not all that exciting and you can only display so many shearing combs, shearing implements etc before it starts to get a bit boring.  It feels like they have tried to do something similar to the Stockman’s Hall of Fame in Longreach but it really doesn’t live up to anything and the $20 fee to get in is probably double what it should be.

The old gaol in Hay was well worth the visit.  This old building has been very well maintained and the displays inside we quite well organised.  The only charge for entry to this display was an honesty box at the front, it was a good thing for Hay that Kaye was with me.

One thing we did see that was unexpected was while walking along the river one afternoon  to look at some river art displays and seeing an attractive young girl looking around the base of a tree.  When we got near her and asked if everything was OK she pointed to a 2 metre python on the ground and then told us it was her pet and they were travelling around.  Every day she takes the snake out for some outdoor activities so it doesn’t get to cramped up in the travel box.

 

 

 

 

 

 

After Hay we drove onto Ouyen for a night stopover.  As it was starting to heat up a bit we thought a night with the air conditioner on would be nice.   Ouyen is a place that describes itself as being in the middle of nowhere and that’s a pretty good description.  Not long after getting there it got very overcast and then we had a huge dust storm.  It tried to rain but all it did was make everything look dirtier than it already was.

We decided to eat out at the local club which ended up being a nice meal and we did manage to chat to some of the locals as well.  Ouyen also is home to the biggest root in Australia, apparently.  I thought I had seen  and met some big ones before this but there it was on display, the biggest mallee root in Australia.

After Ouyen it was off to Wellington for a few days.  This was making Kaye happier as we were getting into some wine country and so the planning was being done to do a bit of travelling and tasting.  Just before Wellington we had to cross the Murray River by punt.  This was a bit different and added a bit of interest to the trip.

While at Wellington we did a day trip to Old Tailem Town.  This was a great display and a walk back in time into an old town set up around the turn of the 20th century.  There were around twelve streets set up with buildings and displays.  There was even a house made of cow dung that was something to see.  The pub at Wellington is also a great place to have a drink, watch the river and forget about the share market for a while. They also do good meals so if your ever in the area we can recommend the stop.

Our wine tasting took us touring through the Langhorne Creek Region.  This was an easy drive around with some very good wineries as well.  I actually got to do some tasting myself this time and Kaye offered to do the driving so taste away and buy away I did.  What a day!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was a nice 12 days to get to Adelaide so we are hoping that the bike riding will be as good as we hope.  There are also a lot of wineries where we are staying so I don’t think we will get to bored if TDU isn’t up to scratch……….

Well its a Happy 2016 to everyone from Canberra.   After a nice time at Murramarang CP we ventured the drive over “The Clyde” to Canberra.  This was a real test of the car pulling around three tonne up a very long ascent with a lot of hair pin bends and trying to accelerate as well.  Needless to say we did make it, though at a couple points I did feel we might have bitten off more than we could handle.

After conquering “The Clyde” the run into Canberra was a nice easy drive with not too much traffic on the road.  We arrived at Jade’s around lunchtime and that’s when the next challenge awaited us.  The spot we were going to reverse the van into was very tight with only about 75mm of clearance on either side to reverse past while turning into the area we were going to park up.  After some discussion and being told by two experts, Kaye and Jade, we worked out a plan and started.  It was one of those times when you just commit to doing something, take your time and work it out a bit as you go.  In the end after only about 15 minutes we had the van in place with lots of millimetres to spare.  Then it was settling in for a 4 week stay and enjoying the festive season.

The little street section that Jade and Gordo live in is a cul-de-sac off the main street and every house in the street does Christmas lights.  Little did we know that we were going to be part of the work team each night setting up lights and putting them away.  After a few nights Jade had us very proficient and were a well drilled team that worked like clockwork.  The effect in the street was very striking and the amount of visitors coming to the street was pretty mind blowing.  I would estimate that on Christmas Eve there would have been over 5000 people in the street during the course of the night looking at the lights.  They even have a DJ in the street as well as a small shop set up in one of the carports selling coffees and gelatos.  It was something that you had to see.

 

 

Canberra is one of those places were there is a lot to see and do.  With the National  Art Gallery, War Memorial, Mint, National Portrait Gallery and many others among the main attractions we successfully managed to see and visit exactly none.  As we had been to Canberra a few times before and seen most of them we didn’t feel inclined to rush off and see them again.  We were lucky enough to score some tickets to go and see The Illusionist’s.  Gordo managed to get us into the Canberra Theatre and we saw a great show that was very entertaining.

We also managed to walk up Mt Taylor a couple of times.  This was just behind Jade’s house so it was easy to walk there and then go up the path.  The views from here are really good and I was surprised to see how popular it was with the locals to walk or run up if your that way inclined.

 

Christmas day was very nice and relaxing.  Renae flew over to join us for a week and Gordo’s mum and dad, Dee and Alan were there to share it with us.  The look on both Declan and Lachlan’s faces on Christmas morning when they saw all the presents under the tree was pretty special.  After the unwrapping of all the presents we set up to prepare for a nice Christmas lunch and enjoy the day.

 

 

 

On Boxing Day Kaye, Renae and myself headed off over to the coast for a couple of days.  We were lucky enough to be able to score a camping spot in the small coastal town of Dalmeny for two nights.  The drive from Canberra was pretty good with not to much traffic on the roads.  As we were going to be camping we were staying in the roof top tent and going to put the annexe up for the first time and Renae was going to use the small camp bed.  The plan was a good one but the weather was not the best.  It started raining not long after we arrived and we all had one of the wettest Boxing Days for a long long time.  As the first day was getting more and more washed out we bought lunch and went out for tea at night as it was just to wet to do anything in our small camp set up.  Lucky for us all the next day was quite sunny so it was good to be able to dry out everything a bit and sit outside.

The camp ground at Dalmeny was in a great spot with shops and ocean all just across the street.  The only down side was it was on a hill so when we set up our tent and annexe we were on quite a slope which made sleeping, cooking etc sometimes a bit challenging, but as with all things you make do and in the end we all had a good time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After we got back to Canberra from Dalmeny we took Renae to the airport and she flew back to WA for work.  It was good to be able to spend some time with Renae and we really enjoyed the catch up.  Seeing in the New Year was a very quiet night for us.  As Gordo was away with work we just stayed at home with Jade and watched the fireworks in Sydney.

The next big thing for us all was Declan’s fourth birthday. Declan was very adamant that he didn’t want a party so it was a Macca’s lunch with family.  Dee and Alan drove down from Sydney for the birthday as well and it was good to catch up with them again.  After lunch a few of them headed off with Declan to see a movie while the rest of us went home and took it easy.

 

 

 

 

Well after over a month in Canberra it is time to let Jade and Gordo get on with life without us two hanging around and get back on the road.  We had a great time in Canberra and it was sad to say goodbye but travel we must.  After a few goodbyes and praying that we could get the van out of the yard we are on the road again heading towards Adelaide to look at the Tour Downunder.  We have given ourselves 12 days to get to Adelaide so we will be able to have a good look around on our way there.

All the best for 2016 and until next time keep safe………..