Mildura

Since our cruise did not leave until 11am we once again supported the local economy with retail therapy and drinks at McCafe (Wayne forced Phil to have an iced chocolate - he is a bad influence!!). We then headed to Mildura Wharf to board the P.S. Melbourne for a 2 hour cruise. Usually this cruise includes going through Lock 11 since the river level below the weir is normally 4 metres lower than that of the lock. However, since the water below the weir (which has been removed from the river - yes that is correct, they actually remove the weir from the river) is now 4metres higher than normal, we cruised downstream for the first time since 1996 without going through the lock.

The river level is clearly very high as we cruised past beautiful scenery, houseboats, old paddlesteamers (the Avoca is still used for functions and it was built in 1877), and very attractive homes. On the NSW side of the Murray people can own land right to the waters edge but on the Victorian side there is a 30m buffer zone which allows public access to the river.

This device provides the weir engineers with data regarding river flow, clarity and temperature of the water. In December 2010 they determined that the flow was such that they had to remove the weir from to river to avoid even worse flooding upstream. It is anticipated that the weir will return some time in March when the water level returns to a manageable level. 

After the cruise we went to the Trentham Estate winery on the banks of the Murray River for wine tasting (it was pleasing to the palate so we felt compelled to support the NSW side of the economy!!) and a very enjoyable lunch. It was then time to re-fuel and return home for a swim and happy hour.

We are hoping that it is a little cooler to-night so that sleeping is more comfortable. 

Tomorrow we set off for Swan Hill.

Horsham to Mildura

It rained steadily through the night but we woke to a beautiful day. We set off from Horsham for the 310km drive to Mildura - arrived about 1pm, set up, booked our cruise for tomorrow, supported the Mildura economy and drove through the town to the Murray. Lock 11 (photo) is not operating - the level of the water in the lock is slightly lower than that of the Murray - at the moment the weir is not in place, we guess because of the volume of water coming through.

The river is almost lapping at the top of the banks - it is a real picture.

And then back home for a swim - it is 6:30pm and still very hot. The air-conditioner is working overtime.

We are here for two nights.

Warrnambool to Portland to Horsham

The morning tea stop was at Portland. This is the site of the first settlement in Victoria - by Henty in 1834. This is the only deep-water harbour between Melbourne and Adelaide - it is a very pretty place and deserves more time than we can afford on this trip.

On leaving Portland we travelled about 5km along the Horsham road to a serious road accident which would block the highway for some hours - so we turned around and took a 1 hour detour. We travelled through Hamilton to Cherrypool (photo) about 50 km south of Horsham for lunch and then set off for our overnight at Horsham.

The drive from Portland was relatively uninteresting through country which is clearly in drought. Just South of Horsham the locusts started to become a problem so radiator guards (photo) were a necessity.

After cleaning our cars and caravans of splattered locusts here we are - enjoying happy hour again - this is exhausting but somebody has to do it!

PS. Young people pitched their tent next to Wayne and greeted him as 'Old Timer'. Thank goodness I am Phil the Younger.

Apollo Bay to Warrnambool

We woke to a brilliant sunrise over Apollo Bay with a heavily overcast sky and set off along the GOR.

This is really a stunning drive. We stopped at every lookout and each time the view was magnificent - the above photos are some of the twelve apostles which can be viewed from various vantage points near the 12 Apostles Centre. Victoria Parks have constructed a tunnel under the road and then a series of boardwalks to various lookouts. Magnificent!

And more magnificent coastal scenery. Here we met a couple from Dresden (in the old East Germany) out here to visit their daughter who lives in Melbourne. They could not believe how beautiful Australia is - they have four weeks to see the country and they were going to really pack it in - everyone in Germany mentions Ayers Rock as a 'must see'. This is a dream come true for them as they thought they would never be permitted to leave East Germany - thank heavens that wall came down!

And then the Grotto above.

We then set off for Warrnambool where we are booked for one night - happy hour was once again very enjoyable.

Apollo Bay and the Otway National Park

To-day we left our vans overlooking Apollo Bay to explore the area.

We turned off the Great Ocean Road onto the Cape Otway road to view the lighthouse but on the way we saw a man up a tree - why ?? He was photographing a koala with its baby - so we stopped and saw more koalas than we have ever seen - they were quite active, grabbing for leaves and actually watching us - people after us saw them walking across the road! It was quite special until the man up the tree tried to take Wayne's car (their car was the same colour - he went to the wrong one!)

We then continued to Cape Otway to view the lighthouse cottages, the Telegraph Station, the World War 2 bunker, radar station and then to the top of the lighthouse. Our walk included the aboriginal cultural display.

We then re-joined the Great Ocean Road through Glenaire, Lavers Hill and into the National Park and rainforest. Our first stop was at the Triplet Falls - this involved a loop walk through a magnificent rainforest - beautiful ferns, mountain ash hundreds of years old which were enormous trees reaching tens of metres above us. We then came upon the Triplet Falls and they were spectacular.

The Hopetoun Falls were next on the list and here we met three Dutch fellows out here for twelve months - we gave them a map.

 

We continued on Binns Road back to the GOR to Apollo Bay for a visit to the Marina, Fish shop, beach and then some shopping. (Wayne forced me to buy a Magnum!)
Back home for happy hour and Wayne cooking a lamb roast - please do not worry about us, we are fine!

Ballarat to Apollo Bay

Someone commented that Ballarat is the coldest city in Victoria - probably correct.

Whilst it was a little chilly when we left Ballarat (jeans) the day steadily improved as we drove through Geelong to Barwon Heads (Seachange fame) for morning tea and a stroll on to the jetty to take in the view of the heads and the river.

We left the highway for a detour to Bells Beach - it really is a beautiful spot and a good surf was being enjoyed by a number of surfers.

We rejoined the main road and continued through Torquay, the beautiful Anglesea and then on to Airey's Inlet. By this time the weather was beautiful and we all changed into shorts for our walk to the lighthouse and a leisurely lunch under our umbrella - a cold beer was very welcome.

We passed under the Memorial Arch signifying the start of the Great Ocean Road which was built by the diggers following the First World War in honour of the fallen and also to give returned diggers a job. This was a toll road from 1929-1936. We continued on the Great Ocean Road with many stops - some to take in the breathtaking views and others because of extensive roadworks following rock slides. We all thought that Lorne was really beautiful and if there is time we will return.
Next stop was Pisces Resort for two nights - this is a magnificent park overlooking Apollo Bay. The amenities are excellent with soothing piped music as you sit and ponder or stand and think.
Happy hour was spent planning tomorrows activities.

Ballarat

Monday night we went to Sovereign Hill for the show - the above photo is of the first stop-off point where we were introduced to some of the history of the gold fields. During the night we had about four stop-offs, one of which included an amazing 'Sound and Light' show about the Eureka Stockade which took place here in the 1850's. It was all very interesting and enjoyable and very cold (what happened to Summer?).

We began Tuesday with a drive around the CBD to view some of the old buildings, then to Black Hill for a view of the city - this is the largest city in Victoria outside Melbourne. Next we visited the Botanical Gardens - they were quite beautiful - especially the begonias.  We went on the Prime Ministers walk which was a trip down memory lane with the busts of all our Prime Ministers (our current Prime Ministers bust is not yet in place!). Next we had some retail therapy, determined to assist the local economy. We were grateful that Wayne took us on a (mis) guided tour of the city.

We then drove to Lake Wendouree which, in the recent past, was completely dry, but is now lapping the surrounding pathway. Morning tea was enjoyed at 'Pipers by the Lake'.

We have heard the terrible news of the earthquake in NZ - Wayne has contacted his family and all are safe - thank goodness! We send our best wishes to our much loved friends 'across the ditch'.

Lyn's brother Lance and his wife Dell are currently touring south of Christchurch - we trust they are also OK

Bairnsdale to Ballarat

We left Bairnsdale in beautiful sunshine with Wayne in his shorts and tee-shirt. As we were driving along it soon became obvious that Wayne was going to have to change into something much warmer as it dropped to 11 degrees. We drove through rain and heavy winds to our morning tea stop. We had to detour through Morwell as the Freeway has subsided due to mining and the floods. We figure that Victorians should be reminded that this is SUMMER!! The detour eventually put us back on the Freeway and it was an easy drive around Melbourne and onto the Ballarat road - much less stressful than going through Sydney. We stopped near a Roadhouse for our lunch. (photo above)

Arrived here around 2:30, set up for our two night stay and had our happy hour. It is quite chilly! We might just use our electric blanket to-night?

We are booked into the 9pm 'Blood on the Southern Cross' show at Sovereign Hill to-night.

Pambula Beach to Eden to Wallagaraugh to Bairnsdale

Saturday we set off from Pambula beach and headed for the Eden Whaling Museum. This is perched high above Twofold Bay and is very interesting - describes 'Old Tom' and his killer whale pod as they herded the bigger whales in to the bay for the slaughter. To-day happened to be the 80th anniversary of the opening of the museum so a function was planned for later that day.

we continued on to Mallacoota where we enjoyed lunch on the foreshore of Mallacoota Inlet.

Just out of Mallacoota we left the Highway for 8km along a dirt road to the property of Tony and Julie (friends of Jennie and Wayne) at Wallagaraugh. The view was magnificent, complete with emus, kangaroos and wetlands. Afternoon tea was followed by an enjoyable walk through the property - to the river, the fruit/vegetable garden and the house. We had no power or phone coverage so we could not up-date the blog - sorry about that!! We were then entertained for dinner - a most enjoyable day!

Sunday we reluctantly set off from Wallagaraugh to our morning tea stop just out of Orbost - we rang Big 4 at Bairnsdale and booked our overnight stay

We set up our vans at Bairnsdale, washed the cars and vans and set off for Paynesville on the Gippsland Lakes

where we find a huge Marina - coffee at the Fishermans Wharf overlooking the boats and waterway was very enjoyable.

We then drove back to Lakes Entrance for the view and dinner at the 'Awesome' Fish and Chips shop. By this stage the day had deteriorated, heavy wind and overcast. Tomorrow we set off for Ballarat - our sites are booked.

Narooma to Pambula Beach

To-day we welcome Dorothy and Donnelle from NZ to our blog.

Rained heavily last night and weather not too bright all day. We set off from Narooma along the coast road through Wallaga Lakes to Bermagui (photo), Merimbula, Tathra, Tura and then to the Big 4 at Pambula Beach. We set up our vans, had morning tea then drove to Bega - lunch at the Cheese Factory/Museum and then returned to our camp site via Kameruka and Candelo.

Meet our afternoon visitors, note they are very hungry, but no scraps for them. These Kangaroos roam wild in this caravan park. They are very friendly and hop right up to the caravan door.

This lovely beach is only a 30 second stroll from our caravan site. What a great sight to see first thing in the morning. Magnificent!

Will we, won't we?? There is a happy hour planned in the guest lounge to-night at 6pm - all we have to take are our wine glasses! We decided to go!

The Management provided cheese, biscuits, dips, water melon, sausage rolls, small pies, hot chips, soft drink and wine and to top it all off we met a delightful couple from the Central Coast (Geoff & Jill) to share our evening. A great experience!

This is a wonderful park, excellent amenities, resort pool, indoor heated pool, games rooms, kangaroos in the park - outstanding!