Seems like an age ago since the last update. Kept thinking that we had deleted one post as we seem to have completed quite a bit of travelling around since our last one, wishful thinking I suspect. More a matter of just being a bit lazy and not getting on the computer enough.
From our camp just out of Omeo at Hinnomunjie Bridge we travelled down to the coast and Bairnsdale. We have some friends who live near here at a place called Painesville so we thought we would catch up with them. As Painesville CP was booked out Bairnsdale was the next best option for us. After our little bit of free camping it was time to do washing and stock up with supplies again.
We didn’t get up to much while in Bairnsdale besides catching up with Dianne and Kerry and also driving down to Lakes Entrance for a day trip as well. While at Lakes Entrance we went on an afternoon cruise around the lakes that also included afternoon tea. The boat we went on was called the Lonsdale that had a very interesting history. It has operated as a ferry, fishing vessel around Flinders Island, sea slug fishing around Darwin, gun running to Timor and returning with drugs, being impounded by customs for several years and is now a tour cruiser. We were also amazed to see how many black swans were around the lakes as well. We must have seen many hundreds during the cruise. This was a really nice way to see the lakes and with a nice sunny day it made it even nicer. This is a very nice part of Victoria and very popular with the locals as well.
We had a nice relaxing time in Bairnsdale but it was time to move on and look at somewhere else. Our next trip was going back up into the high country again. We decided on a place called Rawson, they had a reasonably cheap caravan park that read quite well and there was a bit to see and do in the area. The caravan park in Rawson was excellent, you even get your own ensuite block with each site all for around $25.00 p/n. Not bad value. The setting is almost like you are in the middle of the high country and with lots of firewood around we were able to have a nice fire each night which added greatly to the atmosphere.
Not far from Rawson is the historic town of Walhalla. Walhalla was founded as a gold mining town in the 1860’s and only has around 20 permanent residents today. The town has some great old historic buildings and some reconstructed buildings that add a great feel to the town. Being situated in a valley with huge hills either side it is quite inspiring to walk around. You can do an underground mine tour if that’s in your to do list as well as a historic train ride which we did. The train ride goes for around 30 minutes from Walhalla to Thomson Station and starts its return journey after about a 30 minute stop. A great train ride a well worth it for the views along the way. There are also numerous walks in the area that you can take as well which we also completed on another trip back. This was the Poverty Point Bridge Walk, a short 8km trek along a well defined track that took in some excellent views of the Thomson River.
We also did a few walks and drives around Rawson. Not far from Rawson is Thomson Dam which is one of Victoria’s main water sources. We were surprised to see how low the water level was seeing as there are still flowing rivers in summer on this side of Australia. Also from Rawson we did a drive and walk to Mushroom Rocks which was well worth the drive. The walk itself was through some beautiful country that had some interesting fauna changes along the way. All in all Rawson was a great place to base ourselves for a week and we definitely had plenty to do in this time.
After Rawson we started to head back closer towards Melbourne and picked Warragul as the place for our next stop. Warragul made such an impact on us we didn’t even take one photo while we stayed there. It was a nice place but we just didn’t really do much while we were there.
From Warragul our plan was to try and stay closer in Melbourne and catch up with the Powys’s as it had been a while since our last visit and we were in the general area. Melbourne doesn’t seem to overly blessed with caravan parks and the ones that were reasonably close to John and Maria were all booked out. Maybe a business opportunity for someone there. We ended up staying out in Pakenham which left us with a 50km drive into Melbourne which ended up not being that bad. The Pakenham Caravan Park was situated on a very busy road that started from around 0600 in the morning to about 8pm at night. Even after that it was generally busy throughout the night. Not our best pick ever but the beauty of caravanning is that you know you will eventually be moving on so it was bearable for a few days. It was great to catch up with John and Maria for the day and to see them both well and enjoying life. As usual we drank to many coffee’s and ate to much so it was back to serious dieting afterwards. While in Pakenham we did do a day trip up to the Dandenong’s and a walk to Sherbrooke Falls. A enjoyable day out but only a trickle of water through the falls.
We weren’t sorry to be leaving Pakenham and from here we drove to a free camp area at a small place called Sebastian. Sebastian is around 20 km’s out of Bendigo and you camp on the old Recreation Reserve. It isn’t technically a free camp as they have a donation tin that you put in what you feel for use of the toilets and bins. There were seven of us in total at Sebastian and with plenty of room to spread out no one was to close to each other. A great spot to tour into Bendigo from and also very quiet which was very nice after Pakenham. We did a few tours around Bendigo and also a walk around the town centre that took in most of the historic buildings. The Bendigo Pottery was also a worthwhile tour as it is still in its original location and is Australia’s oldest working pottery. Also just out of Bendigo they are building The Great Stupa of Universal Compassion. A Stupa is large building of the Buddhist faith and the one they are building at Bendigo is of the same size and design as The Great Stupa of Gyantse in Tibet. Not quite finished yet but should be something when its finally completed. Bendigo Cathedral is one of Australia’s largest churches and the second tallest after Melbourne’s St Patrick’s Cathedral.
We had a great week around Bendigo and camping out on the reserve at Sebastian. With our water getting low and washing piling up we packed up and headed off to Maryborough. We are still trying to stay reasonably close to Melbourne so we can do the final inspection on Anika’s house which will now be ready on the 23rd March, so not much longer then we can head off towards South Australia. Maryborough is a nice town and we got a pretty good deal at the caravan park for three nights. Also time to do the blog update – hooray.
From Maryborough its some more free camping up near Ballarat way. Our old van was good for free camping but this new one with a bit extra water and a couple of electrical updates does make it a lot easier and a bit more enjoyable. Until the next update…………………..