Gismo Queen and her King

Ewingar to Stanthorpe - Monday 11th July 2022

 beautiful sunny morning in Ewingar greeted us, although the fog was down in the valley. We did comment that the weather had been much better this trip than our last couple of visits. A most enjoyable fry up for breakfast again (had to eat the last of the meat which Courtney had kindly bought for us), a lovely hot shower now possible since they bought a water jacket for their wood heater/cooker very recently, before we were packed and ready to head off. Goodbyes weren’t so bad as they are coming to visit us in November.

It was a much easier drive up the hill to Tenterfield than our usual caravan towing efforts so we arrived at lunchtime. The first two best Googled places for coffee were closed - it’s Monday, of course! - so we found the third and enjoyed their homemade goodies although the coffee still wasn’t great.

Then we started heading for Stanthorpe, which we passed through last year on our trip north. It is one of the coldest places in Queensland - in fact, the current temperatures are very similar to home!! Friends from home are here at the moment, staying in a caravan park so we thought we’d catch up with them. Turns out they are staying just out of town but had found a brewery to try for dinner tonight. We stopped in to see them on the way to Stanthorpe but they were out and about. Just to prove what a small world it is, we got talking to the caravan park manager who had moved here from Tassie! His wife was born in Kings Meadows and they both went to school in Launnie. This sort of thing happens in Tiny Tassie or Little Launnie, but not as far away as Stanthorpe!!

A little more research showed us that the Brewery Michael had found had cabins so we thought we’d stay there, which means I wouldn’t have to drive anywhere after dinner! By the time we arrived, there was only one cabin available due to a cancellation. It was meant to be!! We have a lovely little wooden cabin with a wood heater which makes it cosy and warm. You can’t miss we are in the Granite Belt as there are giant granite boulders everywhere, including these huge ones behind our cabin.

We spent a quiet afternoon in our cabin and had invited Karen and Michael to join us here for a drink before dinner. They arrived while Greg was in the shower and we caught up on their travels while we enjoyed a drink in the very warm cabin thanks to the super efficient wood heater! We walked over to the restaurant and it was very busy! Michael said he had tried to book and was told they were full - I booked when I checked in and I suspect they prioritised us because we are staying here. Michael and I tried some of their beers via a small tasting paddle. This came with the three course meal so we all chose our dishes and enjoyed them very much. We had a lot of laughs, great conversation and yummy food. It was a really good night so we are super appreciative that Michael suggested this place!!

posted by Tracey @ 6:30 pm