Day 32 - Euroa - Thursday 30th May 2024
Friendship - so important to us in all aspects of our life, including travel. In our travels, we have been fortunate to meet some wonderful people who remain friends to this day. We have also been fortunate to have some wonderful friends to travel with. This camping trip was no exception, with Neill and Jude rearranging a few things to be able to spend 2 1/2 weeks caravanning with us. We said a sad but deeply appreciative farewell to them today. And then in a gesture of true friendship, my dear friend Lisa who has been my best friend for almost 40 years, came to camp with us for our last night. One night. In the rain. After a 2 1/2 hour drive. Because that’s what friends do.
We had a quiet day in Euroa, after a slightly disturbed night with the tree next to us dropping random nuts or seeds on the roof. We also got really hot in the night - oh, the irony as we travel south!! So we took it slowly this morning and enjoyed the mild weather ahead of the rain we knew was coming. We went out to a local bakery for lunch and bought a selection of sweet goodies in anticipation of the visitors we were expecting to arrive this afternoon. Little did we expect they would all arrive together! Neill and Jude and the girls arrived first - the girls had got over their initial shyness from last night and were a lot of fun. Then Clare popped in on her way back from a work event. The Smeg coffee machine was getting a workout! Then just as the first few drops of rain fell, Lisa and Paul drove in. More coffees were made, more sweet things eaten, Lisa and Paul had a quick catch up with Neill and Jude, more fun was had with the girls before they left. It was really raining by this stage and the wind had eased but it wasn’t too cold. So the four of us settled in for drinks and nibbles under our awning almost out of the rain. Despite our best intentions for a night around the campfire, the rain wasn’t going to let that happen so we went to the pub for dinner - second night in a row for us at the Seven Creeks Hotel. We enjoyed a delicious dinner and then sat in couches in front of an open fire - almost like a campfire! What matters is that we are together.
Day 31 - Ariah Park (NSW) to Euroa (VIC) - Wednesday 29 May 2024
Happy 40th Birthday, Clare!! For the second time this trip, we have gatecrashed a significant birthday celebration! Fortunately, we both really like both people (the 70th birthday person and the 40th birthday person) and it was a great excuse to wear my champagne glass earrings!
It was a cold morning in Ariah Park this morning so thankfully we had the heater running all night. On the road by 9am as we had 374km to cover today. We took the back roads which is always more interesting and has a lot less traffic. Morning tea was at The Rock, a quaint small town with a saddle shaped rock overhanging the town. We stopped at the recreation ground which was surrounded by a white picket fence, reminding us of our wedding venue. The sun was shining so we felt virtuous to still be wearing shorts! Back on the road, through some more small towns via back roads, we stopped for fuel and lunch in Howlong. The bakery was a satisfactory destination for lunch and from there it was a pretty easy drive once we hit the Hume Freeway.
Neill and Jude peeled off just before Euroa and we continued into the caravan park where we have booked for two nights, including a special visit tomorrow. It was nice to get out of the car and we have a lovely site right on the river so we got all set up before afternoon tea.
To celebrate Clare’s birthday, we joined the family for a lovely dinner at the Seven Creeks Hotel. It was wonderful to see the girls - 4YO Chloe has been a favourite of mine ever since they came to visit us in Tassie and I must admit, it’s nice to have a little fan. We will see her again tomorrow. A lovely end to the day, although also highlighting that we are very close to the end of our trip :-(
Day 30 - Dubbo to Ariah Park - Tuesday 28th May 2024
How good was that gas heater last night?! It must have got down to about zero but we were toasty warm in our van, even if I did worry serval times in the night that we were going to run out of gas (and I didn’t fancy going outside in subzero temperatures to change the gas bottle!).
The day dawned with brilliant sunshine so we decided to brave shorts again, figuring this might be our last chance this trip. We were on the road by 9am and it was easy driving today. Elevenses was in a roadside rest area just outside of Parkes, coincidentally where we camped a night back in 2012 in our Jayco Discovery! We got fuel in West Wyalong and had lunch there in a park. 40 minutes later we pulled into this fabulous camp.
Set up by the local community to try and encourage people to visit their town, it has power (if you go and get a key for power box from the pub in town), water, fire pots, firewood, an attractive setting in amongst the football, netball and golf venues. We got the fire going early - we still had firewood from Narrabri but also used some of theirs. We did walk into town to buy milk. Apparently Ariah Park is known as the town of “wowsers, bowsers and peppercorn trees”. The town has many heritage buildings, most of the shop ones are empty but have decorated shop windows at least. There are indeed some heritage fuel bowsers along the main street and plenty of peppercorn trees but I don’t know about the wowsers. We felt a bit guilty that we only spent $18 in the local store and resolved that next time we would have a meal in the pub.
Back to camp to a roaring campfire, drinks and nibbles and then a delicious corned beef prepared by Jude in the DreamPot. The immediate area came alive when the footy oval lights came on and plenty of people arrived - for footy training! And it was even AFL! Apparently plenty of successful AFL players have come from here (Just up the road in Mirrool is the annual “Kick the footy over the grain siloes” event! Anyway, footy training was over by 8pm and we settled in to our fire and music, enjoying our sort-of last travelling night on the road.
Day 29 - Narrabri to Dubbo - Monday 27th May 2024
Another beautiful morning on the banks on the Namoi River. We took it slowly this morning as we had decided we wouldn’t leave until after elevenses. Because it is truly lovely to enjoy our coffees in the sun on the riverbank!
We were on the road just after 10:30am and it was easy driving down the Newell Highway. Arriving into Coonabarabran just after 12pm, our lunch destination was Feathers Cafe right near the designated caravan parking (we do like towns that provide this separately - Launceston really needs to do this). It was a delicious lunch. Back on the road for cheaper fuel in Gilgandra, so that was our next stop. Then Dubbo by 3:30pm with a quick stop at the Stihl shop for a new chainsaw chain - the new electric chainsaw has had a good workout this trip!
And so we pulled into Red Earth Estate winery before 4pm. We have now been here so many times, including on the way up this trip! Obviously not with a caravan then so we only stopped for lunch (See Day 3). The camping out the back is pretty basic and unfortunately we were a bit late today to be located vine-side but given how cold it is going to be tonight, we figured we wouldn’t be sitting outside anyway. We had our coffee in the last rays of the sun before ordering our dumplings for dinner. This meant an early dinner (takeaway pick up was at 5:45pm!) which we enjoyed in Cafe Phoenix. I even set the table and picked some flowers for the dining table. As always, the dumplings were delicious. We then spent some time planning our final travel night destination before calling it an early night.
Day 28 - Narrabri - Sunday 26th May 2024
So much to do while camping - cooking, collecting and cutting wood, descaling the coffee machine, dishes, cleaning - we were so busy today.
I woke early and so dropped the bottom blind in order to watch the sunrise but it was a bit cloudy. Still nice to watch the early morning bird traffic on the river. Eventually it was late enough to wake Greg and have our morning cuppa in bed. Then it was time for the Sunday morning fry up - Neill and I shared duties and we all enjoyed a combination of eggs, bacon, toast/muffins, hash browns, baked beans and mushrooms. Delicious.
Fortified, Neill and I set off on firewood collection. We found many appropriate limbs so cut them to length and dragged them back to camp. That was hot and sweaty work - so much so we were tempted to jump in the river to cool off!
Then there were all the domestic duties, including the need to descale the coffee machine!Thank goodness Jude brought the necessary bits and pieces - not something I had thought of! But its now on the list!
Eventually there was some quiet time on the river banks to read. Such gorgeous weather. For our further entertainment, Neill decided to try his luck fishing. Imagine everyone’s delight when he caught something in the first 10 minutes! And then imagine our disappointment when we all found out it was carp!!!
We had lit the fire at lunchtime in order to make good coals as we were having a roast in the camp oven tonight. By 5ish the coals were perfect and so the lamb went in one camp oven and the vegies in the other. By 7pm, we were serving roast lamb with gravy and/or mint sauce, roast potato, carrot and pumpkin (Courtney and Andrew, the pumpkins still keep on giving!!!), steamed cauliflower with white sauce. Who says you can’t eat well camping?! We did have a go at the people (in various online camping groups) who feel the need to pre cook and pre prepare their meals - for us, half the fun is cooking either on a fire or at least outdoors. And you should absolutely be ale to east as well as we do at home.
Day 27 - Yarrowford to Narrabri - Saturday 25th May 2024
We’ve done a lot of circles on this trip and today was another one - back to Narrabri after a cross country jaunt to pick up the Newell again. This time, instead of Brian’s mid city motor inn, we are camped on the banks of the Namoi river on a private farm stay just 5km from Narrabri. A real gem.
Up reasonably early although it wasn’t as cold as expected or anticipated (we had left the heater on 12C overnight just in case) and we were on the road just after 9am. Stopped for fuel in Glen Innes and then headed west towards Inverell, a part of NSW we are not familiar with. As we drove into Inverell, quite a historic Scottish feeling town, both Greg and I were trying to remember the TV show that was filmed here - and we eventually remembered A Place to Call Home! We stopped beside the river in town for elevenses before heading out the Killarney Gap Road (yes, our Scottish theme changed to Irish!!). It was quite a beautiful drive through valley and over hills. We stopped for lunch in a gravel pit (we thought you’d be proud, Julie!) which was very close to a glacial area that would have been interesting to stop at but they said bigger caravans wouldn’t fit in. Onwards to Narrabri where we arrived just after 2:30pm. Out to the farm stay - called Shanty on the Namoi - where we set up camp right on the river bank and where we could collect firewood. It’s a beautiful spot. Jude made scones for afternoon tea which we enjoyed in the warm sunshine before collecting firewood and getting the fire going. Watching the moon rise over the river was quite a highlight, as was our fire and dinner.
Day 26 - Brooms Head to Yarrowford - Friday 24th May 2024
From sea level to 1100m elevation; from waves to autumnal trees; from 23C to 4C here overnight - what a difference 227km makes!!
We were up early for the pack up as there was lots to do, and we expected that getting out would require some manouvring. But it wasn’t too bad and we were on the road by 9:30am. Back to Grafton where we stopped for early elevenses before we started the climb up the Gibraltar Ranges along the Gwydir Highway. Quite a pretty drive but it required plenty of concentration. We stopped for lunch at Heffron’s Lookout and that meant most of the climbing was behind us. It was just after 2pm as we approached Glen Innes and shortcut the town to head to our camp spot on the New England Highway. Greg and I have eyed this rest area/campsite many a time up and down the highway but we’re alway too close to Andrew’s to consider stopping here.
We set up and lit the campfire nice and early, given the forecast 4C tonight (starting to prep us for Tassie). Coffee then wine and nibbles in front of the fire, with music blasting from our caravan speakers - we didn’t notice the cold at all! Here we are very close to the NSW version of Stonehenge, so this free camp has its version out the front.
Dinner of garlic prawns in front of the toasty campfire - a great night and none of us were cold!
Day 25 - Brooms Head - Thursday 23 May 2024
Idyllic! This place has been just perfect during our stay. Sunny, warm, beautiful, sparkly seas and we think we are in the best position in this park. Mostly protected from the wind, the best views and pretty good sunshine (apart from when it goes behind the odd Norfolk Pine).
We started the day with a great fry up for breakfast - after the obligatory cuppa in bed listening to the waves crash. Then Jude and I got some washing on while Neill went fishing. By elevenses we had finished our jobs but Neill still hadn’t caught a fish - much to his frustration as they were leaping around bim. So we went for a walk up to the headland where there was an impressive lookout. But it sure was windy up there! We took the long way home to get our steps up and stopped to order our fish and chips for lunch from the Snack Shack on the way back. They were very much enjoyed while watching the tide turn.
The afternoon was occupied with reading, chasing the sun, bringing the washing in, and for Neill, more fishing. This time he actually did catch five fish - unfortunately all under size. I went on a kindling hunt and lit the fire early enough to ensure it was warm before sunset. Some tenters arrived and tried to set up opposite us and when Neill went over to warn them that we were leaving the next morning and would need to drive onto their site in order to get out (these are fairly small sites), there was some rude attitude in return. A call to the park office remedied the situation and our new “friends” relocated.
Nibbles and wine as the sun went down before a delicious risotto dinner from Jude and we watched the full moon play hide and seek behind some clouds.
Oh, and I found out today why this place is called Brooms Head. Apparently there was a shipwreck off the coast here and some people (either survivors or search party) hunting for them found a fresh water spring here and placed a broom in the ground to mark the source of fresh water.
Editor’s note - formatting
Unfortunately I spilt some water on my laptop recently so I am now having to update the blog on my iPad. This doe not allow as much freedom in layout and formatting. So please excuse the higgeldy piggedly photos amongst my words.
Day 24 - Grafton to Brooms Head - Wednesday 22nd May 2024
The waves are crashing just metres from our van, the view of the ocean is uninterrupted, the weather is divine - it really doesn’t get much better than this!
We had a reasonably slow wake up in Grafton. It was so quiet in our free camp that when I woke in the middle of the night, I thought we were still at Andrew’s!! Neill was trying from 8am to ring the caravan park we had our eye on for tonight so he provided regular updates. At about 10ish, we moved across the park to fill up with water, and then headed into South Grafton to do a bit of grocery shopping. We were back at the vans for elevenses but moved into the sun and it was really starting to warmup. Our last stop was for fuel and then we headed out on the old highway. Driving along with sugarcane on both sides of the road, I did hum to myself the Paul Kelly song “To her door” with the line “riding through the cane” because that’s what we were doing. It was actually a pretty drive with not much traffic so quite pleasant.
We arrived into Brooms Head on lunchtime and found two unpowered sites practically on the beach. Unfortunately one was occupied when we got here so we had to wait for them to move - and I had quite the line up of inpatient cars behind me! Never mind, we got ourselves set up and bought our lunch as a treat from the Snack Shack just 20m from our site. We really enjoyed that in the sun, listening to and watching the waves crash.
Neill, Jude and I went for a lovely walk along the beach. This is truly a stunning location. Back to camp in time for afternoon tea (with some of our return journey having to be along the path as the tide was coming in) and then I got dinner on, using the camp oven as a slow cooker. It was delicious a few bours later - pork chops with potatoes (and pumpkin!) in a creamy garlic sauce sitting around our campfire. It really doesn’t get much better than this.
Day 23 - Ewingar to Grafton - Tuesday 21st May 2024
Today was a work day for Tracey, So I was up early, and turned the gas heater on early to warm the van up before I had my shower. I even out make up on as those online meeting cameras are very unforgiving!
I got Greg his breakfast before I walked to “work”. I noticed the horses had been down to visit overnight as there were hoofprints on our track. Didn’t see or hear them though. A quick final catch up with Courtney before I got online for my VNT Board meeting. Neill very generously brought me elevenses at about 10:30am which got the dogs very excited. Jamie showed his head via my online camera a few times! But Neill’s visit got them more excited than any of that!! The meeting finished at a out 12:30pm so I walked home to find that most of the pack up had been done. We had a quick lunch in the sun before attempting to get out. Neill and Jude had to get out first and there was a bit of wheel spinning with a few attempts in different directions before they were out. We navigated well and manouvred out with no dramas, stopping to pick up the firewood Neill had cut along the track.
Out on the road, we headed south for the 121km drive to Grafton. It was a windy road, but much improved since Greg and I did it last (and we have done it a few times over the years). We pulled into Grafton just after 4pm into a rather nice free camp. Time for coffees, a quick walk and dinner in Cafe Bushtracker along with some trip planning for the next few days.
Day 22 - Ewingar - Monday 20th May 2024
Waking early this morning, I snuck a peek out the window (before turning the heater on) to discover quite a foggy morning. It looked rather mystical through the trees.
After the heater warmed things up and the coffee machine was fired up, the sun started to burn off the fog. However, we enjoyed a rather slow morning in our vans. I kickstarted the coals in the fire into a good campfire because we needed good coals to be able to make pumpkin soup in the camp oven. I cut up a lot of pumpkin and once the fire was suitably warm, got the onion, garlic and pumpkin cooking. We had elevenses while it cooked and decided that damper would go nicely with the soup. Andrew and the boys (dogs) came to visit and then Andrew brought Courtney back (sans dogs) for soup. It was very delicious but the sun was so warm by this stage that we didn’t really need a hearty warming soup. I actually retreated to the shade to enjoy my lunch.
After lunch, Neill, Jude and I went for a walk and managed 3km before this creek crossing blocked our walk. Back in time for afternoon tea before we dressed for dinner as we were heading up to the main house. To much amusement, as we got into Andrew and Courtney’s house, the “kids” were straight on their devices catching up after a few days off line. I chatted with Andrew and Courtney in the kitchen before we enjoyed a very yummy vegan curry with home made naan bread.
Day 21 - Ewingar - Sunday 19th May 2024
Now, this is camping! Absolute peace and quiet with abundant bird life and bush surrounding us, a roaring camp fire, brilliant sunshine with not a cloud in the sky - and oh, how we kept busy today! (Although when I write it down, you’ll wonder what we did all day).
We awoke to a cool morning, so the gas heater was turned on to warm up the van. I had to get moving though as a fry up breakfast was on the menu and I had said 9am. So while I finished my morning coffee in the filtered sun through the trees, i fired up the outdoor kitchen for eggs, bacon and baked beans (turns out, I had forgotten the hash browns at the supermarket). We enjoyed a delicious breakfast as the day warmed up. The fire was resurrected (not a bad effort given how much rain there was) amd we started our jobs. Firewood to cut, a bit of weeding and tidying up around the campfire, foot stools (cut logs on their ends) to position and all that before elevenses! Andrew and Courtney came to visit just as the coffee was being poured but they were on their way to lunch with friends so didn’t stay long. Then there was more firewood to cut (the new electric Stihl chainsaw is going really well!), clothes line to string up to air the towels, before I needed to wash my hair. Being the first wash since a colour and knowing that lots of red would still come out, I wasnt keen to do this in my sparkling white shower. Conveniently, Neill and Jude have an outdoor shower (with hot water!) so I donned my bathers and washed my hair in the sun. It was pretty warm by this stage anyway but the hot water was very nice. Then in a true team effort, we made scones and enjoyed them with jam and whipped cream. Neill, Jude and I did go for a walk after that as we had spied some self seeded pumpkins from some of Andrew’s compost and we wanted to add one to dinner. We also thought tomorrow’s menu could include pumpkin soup for lunch!
As the sun strated to drop behind the trees and we layered up in front of our roaring campfire, we cracked open the celebratory bottle of champagne Sunland had given us with the van and enjoyed nibbles with it. Andrw and Courtney came to join us for dinner which we all enjoyed around the fire. As I said, this is camping!
Day 20 - Burpengary East (QLD) to Ewingar (NSW) - Saturday 18th May 2024
An even earlier start as we all planned to depart at 9am for our various destinations- Garry and Julie heading north and us heading south to my brother.
With a bit of manoeuvring, we were out of our campsite right on 9am and said our farewells. Our drive through Brisbane and Gold Coast was trouble free and we were pleased to stop in Tweed Heads for elevenses.
A bir further down the road and we turned off to head west, aiming for lunch and fuel stop in Lismore. Finding a suitable servo (that can fit us in) took a bit of time. Andrew had warned me that finding lunch spots in Lismore can be tricky but we settled on the Coffee Club in Lismore Square and were very impressed with the quality of the food. However, time was ticking on and we still had two hours to go so we hit the road again. Some distance down the Bruxner Highway we turned south down the Clarence Way and observed some pretty black clouds in our direction. Ten minutes later, the heavens opened - the hailstones were the size of macadamia nuts, there was thunder, lightning and then rain. Our first thought was for the new bits and pieces on the roof of our caravan - what was going to get damaged?! We must have driven through it as by the time we turned off the Clarence Way, it had eased to a light rain. But as we descended to cross the Clarence River, the rushing water was lapping the sides of the bridge and water was spurting up between the bridge boards!! We made it across and headed up to Andrew’s, arriving just on dark. Setting up is always tricky here as it is quite a hilly and involves some digging out on one side. We got the Phoenix set up reasonably quickly as it started to rain again but the Bushtracker took a bit longer. Andrew had very kindly lit a campfire for us but the rain was settling in and it became apparent we wouldn’t be sitting around it. Jude was on dinner duty so after farewelling Andrew for the night, we all piled into Cafe Bushtracker for dinner. We are confident the rain will pass and the sun will be out tomorrow!!
Day 19 - Diddlibah to Burpengary East (again x 2) - Friday 17 May 2024
For a caravan park, this is pretty civilised and not too noisy. We slept well, and woke on time for departure preparations ahead of the 10am designated time.
In planning the surprise, Julie had suggested they had a day or two spare and they could spend some more time with us. She suggested we all have another night at Diddlibah but not being caravan park people - and knowing how much Garry liked sitting around a campfire - we suggested the bush camp we had come from - Wescloud Lodge at Burpengary East. It is quite special that you can park in the bush, have campfires and certainly feel like you are away from it all, but be within 40km of Brisbane! So we traipsed back down the motorway and were back on site within the hour.
Finding a suitable bush site away from everyone else and that could fit our three rather large vans was slightly trickier but we are all pretty good at manoeuvring into place so we were all sitting under our awning having our elevenses half an hour after arrival. There was the odd sprinkle of rain but the sun came out in between and we lit the fire. There was more chatting, lunch, another tour of the brand new caravan and then Neill, Jude and I went grocery shopping. We timed it pretty badly as return time turned out to be in peak hour traffic so it took us a lot longer to return than it did to get there. But we weren’t too worried; the fire was lit, Julie was preparing dinner so we didn’t have too much to do.
Such a pleasant evening around the fire, with music blaring from our external caravan speakers. I had also hooked up the TV to the outside brackets as the mighty Blues were playing Neill’s Swans. We kept the volume off but the TV is so large we could see it from the fire - fair to say I stopped watching after awhile....
A lovely way to end our shared time with Garry and Julie - and that was a delicious prawn risotto dinner they made - followed by chocolate self saucing pudding no less!
Day 18 - Burpengary East to Diddlibah - Thursday 16th May 2024
SURPRISE, Happy Birthday, Garry!!!
A couple of months ago when we were doing trip planning with Neill and Jude, they mentioned it was Garry’s 70th birthday but that they didn’t think they would be in the same place on the day. Jude and Greg both suggested we could make it happen so over the last two months, we have secretly been planning this surprise for Garry. And it went to a tee!! We left camp this morning just before 10am, stopped for elevenses at the Banana Bender Hotel and checked into the caravan park right on 12pm. The reception staff were all in on the surprise so they supported us to drive around to our camp sites, park up and walk over to surprise Garry. He clearly had no idea - the look on his face as he worked out who had just arrived was priceless!
We set up our vans on our sites before settling in the afternoon for a good old chinwag. There was birthday cake, swimming and a hairdressing appointment for me. Check out how seriously Jude took my hair colouring, donning a bright orange mine tour suit!
The swimming afternoon was super fun. Thankfully the pool was heated because it wasn’t super warm, but we shared a lot of laughs as we all attempted the water slide.
After hair and swimming we all got ready for dinner, as we were heading to the caravan park’s restaurant. Cocktails, seafood and lots more laughs saw us wrap up the day of surprises. So much fun!
Day 17 - Burpengary East - Wednesday 15 May 2024
A lovely day of rest - the sun was shining, the weather was beautiful so we had a very relaxing day. The excitement and anticipation was building as we waited for Neill and Jude to arrive. The fire was lit nice and early, afternoon tea was ready and by the time they arrived, I was on hand to manoeuvre the Bushtracker into position. It was so lovely to catch up and let Neill and Jude have a restful evening. There was a tour of the new caravan, some firewood collection, and then a good old catch up in front of the campfire.
Day 16 - Caboolture to Burpengary East (again!) via Sunland - Tuesday 14th May 2024
Up early for the very short drive practically across the road to Sunland for the first service. We unhitched, explained a few things, saw a few people and were out of there again by 9:30am. We had written ourselves a list of jobs, things to buy, places to go, so we filled in our time until we got the call to say it was ready.
Pleasingly, the very minor little items we had on our list for them to fix/rectify were all completed and the van was given a clean bill of health - even the brakes, after yesterday’s drama.
Back to this pleasant campsite so close by (given we really didn’t know how late we would be leaving Sunland today) and we are tucked up in the bush by ourselves. We had a lovely campfire tonight although it certainly wasn’t cold and enjoyed a pleasant evening in front of it.
Day 16 - Blackbutt to Caboolture - Monday 13th May 2024
It was a cool morning in Blackbutt today - something we're not used to! We have been sleeping with windows open and sometimes even the fans on because it has been so mild and humid! So this morning gave us an opportunity to try the new gas heater. Which heats really well as it turns out - so much so that we fell asleep again and woke boiling hot!
A short drive today, although a bit of a scare along the way. Coming down the Blackbutt Range, the caravan brakes starting smoking! After the terrible issue with the bearings on our old van at Gympie a few years ago, I have been paranoid about overheating the wheels. So I really did start to panic today. We got down the hill and managed to find somewhere safe to pull over (not easy on a narrow road with no verges). It smelled terrible so we let it cool down, and then Greg jacked up the van and checked the wheel. It didn't appear to be the bearings (and nor should it be on a new van!) so we concluded that the car's trailer brakes were set too high. This van has disc brakes so they work really well and probably didn't need too much "help".
A couple more stops along the way to check (with no more problems) and we got into Caboolture at lunchtime. Straight to the showgrounds where we were again surprised to see it so full. We could get in today, but not on a powered site. I was going to do a load of washing in our machine and one in theirs so no drama, I just did both in theirs.
So in between washing and a bit of housekeeping, we had a quiet afternoon in the sun. At sunset, we had some visitors - other Sunlandians who are also here because they too are heading into Sunland in the morning! We had a lovely chat before dinner in the van. We'll need an early night to get up earlier than we have in weeks tomorrow!
Day 15 - Taabinga to Blackbutt - Sunday 12th May 2024
Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers we know. We rang Greg's mum mid morning to wish her a happy day - my treat, as mother of two fur children, was to stay in bed for a really long time today!
So we had a slow morning in the van. The clouds cleared and the sun came out so we enjoyed our elevenses outside, being the only ones left in camp. Our two neighbours had left - one much earlier (before we were even awake!). We were on the road by 12ish, not a problem as we were not travelling far today. Back to Kingaroy as Greg wanted to visit the Peanut Van, a true icon of the area that has been here for many years. We stocked up on some interestingly flavoured peanuts!
Down the road to Blackbutt for Greg to take his trip down memory lane, having lived and worked here over the years. We went straight to the Showgrounds to set up and down came the rain! It was heavy! I found the umbrella, and then our raincoats which were essential to unhitch the van. By the time we had set up, the sun was back out again. Gotta love Queensland weather.
Lunch at the Blackbutt Bakery - as you have to! It's an incredibly good bakery! And then out to the farm where Greg spent so much time. His old mate Andy was having a cookup in the shed so we settled in for a chat. I also enjoyed play and cuddles with his new puppy, a now very much loved member of the family since Andy's wife passed away last year. Said puppy - whose name is Bundy - and I went for a lovely walk through the property which is looking very lush. Home just on dark to dinner, life admin but no fire tonight.
Day 14 - Kilkivan to Taabinga - Saturday 11th May 2024
Happy Heavenly Birthday to my Dad, born 88 years ago today.
We awoke to a rain shower in Kilkivan but it soon cleared and the sun came out. An efficient morning with breakfast, dishes, hook up and departure all before 10:30am!
First stop was Goomeri, where I had looked up where we might get water and we decided on the Showgrounds so we could have elevenses while we were there. We were very surprised - although in hindsight, we shouldn't have been as this has happened to us before - to be charged $10 to fill with water! It's only $20 to stay the night with power and water!!! Never mind, we were already there and it all goes back to the local community.
Back on the road heading south again and bound for Kingaroy. I had found this free camp about 5km south of Kingaroy and off a side road so we were aiming for that and it is a gem! On the rating scale devised by us and fellow campers, (we could call it the NJGTGJ scale if that rolled off the tongue easier), this one ticks many boxes - water, pleasant views, can have a fire (with firewood able to be sourced), and the ambience is great when the cars aren't going past (it is a rural road so there aren't too many of them), it's completely free, it's flat.....
First task was to cook lunch - chicken schnitzels are a favourite of ours when camping and I'd picked up some at the Kilkivan butcher the other day so that was today's menu. Fortified after lunch, we decided today was the day to try the new electric chainsaw. So Tracey donned boots and long pants/jumper,and went down the riverbank in search of suitable fallen limbs. It was warm work dragging them back up the steep bank but after a couple of trips, we had a collection. To work the new Stihl went and it went well! Super quiet, don't have to start/stop it, safe because as soon as your fingers are off the trigger it stops - and it went through the logs like a hot knife through butter. Soon the pile of firewood was decent and the chainsawing was done.
The radar showed some rain coming through before dinner so we lit the fire early to have it burning hot enough to last through the rain. We managed a good hour and a half in front of the fire before the rain started, when we retreated indoors for dinner. By 8:00pm, the fire was revved up again and we are out here ready for our cup of tea fireside.
Day 13 - Kilkivan - Friday 10th May 2024
A day of rest and relaxation in quite nice weather.
After breakfast in bed, I did get the fire going again so there would be some coals to make scones in the camp oven for elevenses. And pretty good scones they were, with yesterday's freshly purchased no sugar rosella jam!
I pulled on my boots to go for a walk after that, and headed down to Fat Hen Creek, after which this campground is named. A pretty little creek, although I can imagine it would roar when there is plenty of rain.
A quiet afternoon in the sun, although I did clean inside the van as well (for the photos below) and found homes for a few more things.
Dinner was curried chicken cooked in the outdoor kitchen again and another night sitting around the fire. This is a really hard lifestyle to take!
Below are some photos of the inside of the van, seeing as I was getting so many requests. Trust me, it is not always this clean and tidy!!
Day 12 - Eisvold to Kilkivan - Thursday 9 May 2024
In Tassie, we say it's 2 degrees of separation between every person. Today, we have applied that to Queensland. A couple of months ago after interviewing the wonderful Wayne and Heather for housesitting our place (and most importantly, looking after Slick and Tabitha while we are away this trip), I rang Julie for a reference on Wayne and Heather. Julie was delightful, we got chatting and it turns out she has just opened a bush campground in Kilkivan. Yesterday, I rang her to see if we could come and stay. She had unfortunately left the day before but the very nice caretakers welcomed us with open arms and here we are, on a beautiful property just out of Kilkivan. A favourite town of mine after the local mechanic here helped me out several years ago - I had been abused over the two way by a truckie for my indicator being out of order so I went to see the mechanic who taught me the trick I now use every time it happens again. Although I suspect that nice young man is no longer here....
A fairly efficient morning in Eidsvold saw us breakfasting and packing up very well, and so we were on the road just after 10am. We stopped for elevenses in Gayndah and then made it to Kilkivan by lunchtime. I was somewhat thrown (geographically) because we came into Kilkivan from the opposite direction to every other time. However, as I walked to the butcher (to support a local business) and saw my familiar mechanic's business, I was all good! We also bought some lunch at the general store and then headed out here.
This is a beautiful property that has been well set up for camping. We even had to do a small creek crossing to get in (but not the new van's first one - that happened on Day 1!) and then we got set up. Once the van was level (gotta love the new air bag suspension), we headed back into town to fuel up and buy some firewood (we aren't allowed to cut our own on this property). And look how well that turned out!!
We talked about having scones in the camp oven for elevenses tomorrow so Greg wanted his favourite sugar free jam from just up the road. So we went for a drive. Upon arriving at the Rosella Farm, they didn't have any on display so I rang the lady who makes it. Turns out she was still on her way home from the Maryborough markets so we waited for her. It was truly a delight to meet her after visiting the farm so many times over the past years. A true highlight.
Back to camp to get the fire going.
We so enjoyed our first night for this trip on front of the fire. Thankfully, the wind died down enough to cook our lovely steak (courtesy of the Kilkivan butcher) on the outdoors kitchen along with mashed potato and steamed vegies. This is living!
PS. I keep hearing that people want photos of the inside of the new van - this can only happen when the van is clean and tidy - I'll work on it!!
Day 11 - Eisvold - Wednesday 8th May 2024
A day of rest spent in cattle country - allegedly the cattle capital of the region/the State ?? Ironic given that Beef Week is on in Rockhampton at the moment so they probably have that claim, and Primex is on in Casino (NSW) in two weeks and they probably lay claim to that title too!
Plenty of cattle sponsorship of this centre though - reminded me of Rocco!
The day started a bit cool which was slightly disconcerting. I cooked our first breakfast fry up for this trip on our lovely outdoor kitchen and we did enjoy breakfast outside. The sun eventually came out and we lounged around with coffee and our books until lunchtime. We took a quick trip into the tiny town of Eidsvold, the bare minimum of services but two pubs of course! One even had a visit from this collection of vintage cars!
The lady in the supermarket was keen to hear I was from Tassie and told me at length how much she enjoyed her visit down there a couple of years ago. I love how Tassie is such a talking point everywhere!
After lunch, we walked through the museum here and enjoyed the many stories and artefacts from RM Williams. He certainly did a lot in his 95 years of life, and his family still run the farm here in Eidsvold. Once the sun set, both Greg and I this time, went to watch the Light and Sound Show. We had plenty of company tonight - compared to when it was only me (and the mozzies) watching it last night.
Thankfully the wind has dropped tonight, although I did cook indoors given how windy it had been which makes cooking outside much harder. We have four other vans in here tonight keeping us company. A great spot - highly recommend a visit.
Day 10 - Maryborough to Eidsvold - Tuesday 7 May 2024
Trying out a patch of Queensland we (and especially Greg) haven't been to before. Tonight we are camped at the RM Williams Bush Learning Centre in the tiny town of Eidsvold. We've saved the museum for tomorrow but the Light and Sound Show was excellent tonight.
But, back to the start of the day....
An early-ish start for us as we had a few things to do in Maryborough before heading off today. A quick stop at Super Cheap Auto, Coles, the chemist and then Janne's to say goodbye and return the bits and bobs we had borrowed - none of which seemed quick after it all added up. We got Greg another crumbed sausage while in town (and I am under instructions to buy a box of them frozen to take home) and headed back to the showgrounds via the servo - to ensure we were full of diesel before our travels. We were mostly packed up when we stopped for elevenses and after hooking up (much quicker this time - we are getting used to the new hitch), were on the road by 12pm. Our drive today was 222km mostly west. The roads were pretty narrow in places (single lane of bitumen down the middle on occasion!) so we didn't rush it. The first town we got to was Biggendon after 84 kilometres so we planned to stop for lunch and support a small Queensland town. Unfortunately, it's a pretty sad place with most shops closed up and many heritage buildings falling into disrepair. We did support the bakery, and on our way out of town, saw the very large livestock saleyards so that must serve a big region.
Back on the road for another 138km and we went up and down hills and dale, and did some serious hill climbing in places. It was corn and sunflower country - they were both growing by the paddock full either side of the road. A couple of hours later we rolled down the hill into Eidsvold, the town where RM Williams settled after growing up in the Flinders Ranges. This museum/learning centre honours his contribution to the region and to Australia. Entry is a mere $10, camping on site is $10 but you get a $5 discount if you book the museum and camping in one go. Excellent value.
So we set up, as we are planning to stay here for two days to rest and relax. We are really starting to get used to the new van and it is indeed very comfortable and with great conveniences.
The sound and light show runs every night at 6pm and 7pm and uses lights, sound and moving imagery to tell many of RM William's stories, through the eyes of local poets and storytellers. It is done really well. I took my glass of wine up to watch and was seriously impressed. Who knew you'd find something so clever and tech in such a small country town?!?!
Day 9 - Maryborough - Monday 6th May 2024
A day without rain - how ironic that we rejoice this while travelling but are still praying for rain at home.
Given we had almost got to 24 hours without rain by this morning, we decided to unpack the caravan goodies from the roof of the Landcruiser to try and dry them out. We also had to move the van today as we wanted to test the washing machine and needed power and water for that. We knew we could get into the Showgrounds today so after our morning tasks that left me quite hot and sweaty, we drove the whole 7.7km from the airport to the Showgrounds. Getting set up presented a few new learnings but that's what it's all about. At lunchtime, we headed over to pick up Janne as we had planned to drive to Hervey Bay for lunch today. It was a pleasant drive and I was surprised the traffic was not worse given today was the public holiday and therefore the end of the long weekend.
Even though barely any shops were open today (not even Bunnings or Coles!), it seems all the eateries along the Esplanade had attracted both locals and visitors so it was quite a wait for our lunch but worth it. We enjoyed some more barramundi alongside the beach, watching the world go by. As a treat, we even finished the meal off with a yummy ice cream!
Back to Maryborough, and Janne helped us by loaning us a few things to make some adaptations to the van. I tried to return the favour by providing some IT support but her printer baffled me and I had to concede defeat.
Out to the van just on dark and we got to work with our few jobs - and the excitement (?!) of trying the washing machine in the caravan! Pretty cool! I strung up my portable clothes line outside and hung out my washing - we really can do anything in this new van.
The evening was time for trip planning - where to tomorrow? Do we go north and/or west before heading south, given we have to be back in Caboolture for the first caravan service on Tuesday 14th May? So many options! You 'll all just have to wait and see what unfolds......
Day 8 - Maryborough - Sunday 5th May 2024
Today was really our first day of rest. And we still had jobs to do but we did enjoy lazing in bed with our cuppas and then our breakfast for quite a while. Eventually we got up, enjoying the fact the rain had eased and there was even the odd glimpse of sun to charge our caravan batteries.
When we set off, our first destination was the transfer station, surely the highlight of any touring journey?! - that was to dispose of all the carboard boxes our caravan contents had been delivered in. Then we stopped to pick up coffees for us and Janne and Greg had to get his favourite Queenslander snack for elevenses - a crumbed sausage. After enjoying our cuppa with Janne, we all piled into the Landcruiser for a trip to Bunnings before coming back to her house for lunch. While Greg helped Janne with a few tasks, I did a grocery shop and tried to find a few of the things we had forgotten. This really had to be done today as tomorrow is Labour Day in Queensland and interestingly, most of the shops are closed. It's like Anzac Day or Good Friday down south!
Our jobs all done, we turned to making dinner plans. Given tomorrow's public holiday and most places being closed, we thought we should eat out tonight. The local pub - the Granville Tavern - seemed the go and it turns out half of Maryborough thought so too! It was very busy, and deservedly so as the meals were delicious. A lovely night out catching up with Greg's aunt and relaxing, as one should on holidays.
Day 7 - Noosaville to Maryborough - Saturday 4th May 2024
It is so wet up here. We have really only experienced the rain over the last four days but it has been raining for months here and everything is so soggy. Coming to Maryboorough, we thought our plans for where to stay were just being influenced by the long weekend, but now weather plays a role. Many of the free camps we had in mind are apparently very waterlogged and this van is heavier than the old one so we really don't need to sink somewhere. So we have ended up at Maryborough Airport, on the site of the old airforce base where all the buildings were demolished many years ago but apparently the concrete bases are all still there, just with a bit of compacted ground on top now. So it is all very firm but the top layer is still very wet. It's not like we are going to be sitting outside much anyway....
It was a nice quiet night in Noosaville last night. After our usual morning cuppa in bed, followed by breakfast, John came out to help me label all the switches in the new caravan. It helps that he and Kerry bought a new Sunland recently too. That job done, we all went out for coffee as Greg wanted a ride in John's new F150 to add to his research for the best tow vehicle for our heavier van. By noon, we were farewelling our fabulous hosts - how lucky are we to have such lovely people in our lives and who looked after us so well.
It was a couple of hours drive up to Maryborough, and it was raining the whole way. We had a delicious pork belly burger for lunch south of Gympie and then kept driving through the rain to Janne's house. We wanted to show the van to her and to collect our boxes of caravan goods that had been so kindly delivered. It was while we were there that we re-evaluated our place to stay and chose the airport - which is also handily close to town for our shopping trip tomorrow for all the things we forgot!
After getting set up, the unpacking began. This van has a different layout so I am having to find new homes for everything. I was happy when I could see the benchtop again and all my newly labelled containers lined up awaiting filling tomorrow!
PS - check out how good the red splashback looks against the benchtop I chose!!!
Day 6 - Burpengary East to Noosaville - Friday 3rd May 2024
The beautiful people we have met through owning this brand of caravan are showing through again as tonight we are parked up at the home of John and Kerry who we met in Tasmania last year - they attended the mini gathering of Sunland caravans that I organised last February. We hit it off quite well, saw them again last December and tonight we are camped out the front of their house!
We arrived here just after lunch, the caravan now having driven (been driven!) it's first 100km! It's been raining a lot but the drive was OK, and the van handled well. We stopped for lunch at the Banana Bender pub - good caravan parking you see!
Our first night's sleep in the new van was lovely. Even knowing all the batteries and inverter and solar power we have, I was still a little nervous to make my first coffee with my fancy red coffee machine running off the caravan power. But, it worked a treat and the special cupboard Sunland built for me to store the coffee machine in is also perfect.
We pottered around all morning, playing with a few more things and Greg finding homes for others. We really can't truly set up until we get our other three boxes of caravan goodies. Now the new hitch does take some getting used to and hooking up took much longer than it used to in the old van but I'm sure we'll get better at that with some practice.
Our afternoon rolled into evening with John and Kerry and a few glasses of wine followed by a delicious dinner that Kerry prepared. Such a lovely day with lovely people.
Day 5 - Toogoolawah to Burpengary East via Caboolture - Thursday 2nd May 2024
Today was the day!! New van was collected!! And would you believe, there isn't even a photo of it yet!!! Lots of videos of various aspects of the van so we don't forget but no photos yet of the beauty of this creation!
Up early in Toogoolawah after the comfiest bed we have had on this trip so far. And they include a free breakfast with the accommodation! So we partook, and were on the road by 8:30am, although there was a stop shortly after at The Coffee Shack in Toogoolawah for pretty good coffee. So we arrived at Sunland Caravans for the appointed 10am handover.
It was a very detailed handover, over several hours. With lots of videos, questions and practicing. There are many different things on this van compared to the old one, so a bit of learning required. Once someone came back with our registration plates (I love that we are a 747 - Queensland rego at this stage so that's what ours starts with. Very appropriate.), we then went for a test drive and Mighty Merlot handles it well. So by 1pm, we were released out on our own. We had every intention of staying at the Caboolture Showgrounds practically opposite Sunland but they were fully booked. We rang several other showgrounds and caravan parks and they were all full too. Finally, someone told us it is a long weekend here in Queensland which explained that - even though it is only Thursday today. So, we have come back to a campground in Burpengary East that we have stayed at before. They had room for us, and we certainly get to test out the new batteries and inverter as there is no power here. So we started to get set up, with the bits and bobs we have here. An afternoon trip to the shops for a few things before we cooked our first dinner in the van. I suspect we will sleep well tonight!
Day 4 - Narrabri to Toogoolawah - Wednesday 1st May 2024
This is our second time staying in Toogoolawah – last time
we camped at the Showgrounds but tonight we are in a rather nice “boutique
accommodation”.
Another decent day’s driving – 550km – but marred with lots
of road works. We spent a lot of time stopped at those road work traffic lights
where they only allow one lane at a time through. Still, today was our first
real experience of road works this trip so we should be grateful. It just meant
driving took a lot longer than planned.
We left Narrabri in good time this morning, with our first
stop of the day for fuel. We were aiming for Goondiwindi for elevenses but
roadworks made it more like 11:45am so we called it an early lunch as well. We
stopped at the Gunsynd Bakery. Now, anyone familiar with my family will know my
parents were deeply involved in horse racing. My mother, in particular, loved
Gunsynd – the “Goondiwindi Grey” as they called him on the racetrack in the late
‘70s. So I’d like to think she would have been proud of where we ate – the outside
of the bakery was even painted in his racing colours! We enjoyed a delicious
roast pork roll, a good sausage roll and an average coffee!
Our destination for this evening was aiming to be as close to
Caboolture as possible for tomorrow morning. The road works held us up a fair
bit so we revised our destination as we drove and settled on here. We made a
call to book us in and discovered a far reaching internet outage that we too
had encountered in Goondiwindi. I also took a call from my cousin who informed
us of the passing of my aunt, the last of my parents’ generation on the
Willmott side. Not unexpected but still sad.
We arrived here at 5ish and got settled. I fitted in a quick
walk around town and found the pub that would serve our dinner – literally the
only place open for dinner in this town! It was parmi night so I enjoyed that.
Back to our comfortable room for a cup of tea and an early night, ahead of the
excitement of tomorrow!
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