The BIG 6-OH!

Hi everyone. Well it's official, I've reached the 60's, though according to Carol, the queen of birthdays, as she has claimed 49 and holding forever more, I will forever be 47!

I have had a fantastic birthday. Carol has made the day very special for me.

To all my family and friends who sent cards, presents, and wishes by email, and to all those who called me on the day, a special thank you. I'm a lucky boy to be surrounded by such good people.

As my birthday fell on Good Friday, we deferred our dinner out until Saturday night, as everything in Bairnsdale was closed. But needless to say, Carol cooked up a very special meal, complete with cake and candles, just for the three of us.

Dinner out was worth the wait. We walked up town to the River Grill, which was very classy and very good. The food was excellent. Pork & prawn wontons with 3 dipping sauces for John, and Carol's favourite of Twice cooked Pork Belly, followed by fantastic steaks for both of us. Can you believe it, there was no room for dessert. These country restaurants serve up such big helpings! It was a lovely night, all warm and cosy by the open fire. Very special indeed.

A big thank you to everyone.

Bairnsdale & The Gippsland Lakes District

The Pub at Orbost



We arrived in Bairnsdale after a lovely drive via Orbost, where we stopped for lunch. Orbost is on the banks of the Snowy River, and is steeped in the history of the timber industry, never more evident than in the architecture of the town. Check out the verandah at the local pub. We have put Orbost on our list of places to come back to, and spend some time, as the caravan park looks lovely, along the banks of the Snowy River.

Our caravan park at Bairnsdale, is the Mitchell Gardens Holiday Park. It couldn't be better. It is small, lined with gorgeous oak trees that are changing colour, is right on the banks of the Mitchell River, and only 500 metres from the main shopping district. It is home for 2 weeks, as we wait out the school holidays and Easter.

Bairnsdale itself, is a much bigger town than we had expected, and has all the services, which has been a great benefit to us, as we had some electrical problems with the van, and have been able to get them all sorted out. Minor problems with our hot water unit, and an outside light fitting, have led to blowing out all the 12 volt system, and a simple change of the hot water anode, resulted in the entire 240 volt system shorting out. Still, thanks to the prompt service of John & Leigh from John Edwards Caravan Repairs, we were back to normal within 48 hours. Thanks guys. We'll tell all the caravanners we meet about your fantastic service! But more importantly, the food scene here is great, both with fresh produce, and eating out! Plus it has some real shops, which Carol has been exploring in her spare time.

On arrival, we were again reminded of our small world, when our neighbors asked us if we had been at Kangaroo Valley in January. They remembered our van, and we remembered their dog and bird!


The Lakes Entrance

The Gippsland Lakes area has really surprised us. Having never been here before, we were surprised to see how big and developed the area is. This is our kind of area. I spoke to a local, expressing my surprise at what the area had to offer, but he simply explained that it is the only large inlet on the entire Victorian coast, and it is easily accessible from Melbourne. Those bloody Victorians have been keeping it secret for years! Shame they didn't do the same with Aussie Rules football!


The area of the lakes is enormous, and if the coast is not your scene, it is the eastern gateway to the Victorian Snowfields, only an hour & a half away. The lakes district has a number of centres. Lakes Entrance, as its name implies, is the only sea entrance to the lake system. It is the commercial centre of the fishing industry, and you can, and we did, buy some great fresh seafood direct from the trawlers. How civilised! We even tried Duck Fish, a local fish that looks like Plucka Duck, and tasted great. Eating seafood this Easter is not going to be a problem!


Thunderbird - Big one at the back

We also decided that a cruise on the lakes to familiarise ourselves would be a good idea. We could then explore in more detail by car, as nothing is more than 60 to 100 kilometres away. We chose to cruise on "Thunderbird". We gave up waiting for great weather, and just took the plunge on an overcast, cool, but still day. It was a great cruise. It started at the marina at Lakes Entrance and took in the other major tourist centres around the lakes, which we will now explain in more detail.



Canal living at Paynesville

Paynesville is the boating capital of Victoria. We were amazed at how many boats were here. Large and small, motor and sail, the lakes can handle them all. In addition, there is an incredible amount of infrastructure to support these boat people (don't panic - recreational, not illegal!). Demand has created a waterway wonderland, with lots of canals and expensive houses, many of them just holiday houses. On land there is the usual smattering of Fish & Chip shops, cafes and a pub, and there is the shortest car ferry ride in the world, about 100 metres across to Raymond Island, which is more residential, and a large colony of very elusive koalas. Around the bay are many new subdivisions, including Kings Cove, complete with golf course, and soon to have marina and resort, all promoted using John Bertrand of America's Cup fame. In addition there are plenty of caravan parks, for those on a budget. I had a free game of golf here courtesy of an old brochure I found at the Visitors Information Centre in Bairnsdale. The lady at the Pro Shop had never seen the brochure before, but because it said free game, she said go for it! Most enjoyable round I've played in ages!


Mum with babies

Another thing that has amazed us here, is the number of black swans. They are everywhere! It is the only seaside area where even the sea gulls are outnumbered! And they are really aggressive, floating around, trying to pinch food, and hissing and snapping when they don't get their way. It has apparently been a great breeding season, so there are lots of family scenes.

The Silt Jetties

Just outside Paynesville, is a unique natural phenomenom, called the Silt Jetties. Here, where the Mitchell River enters the lake, the silt has been deposited along the edges of the river over thousands of years. As a result, the river goes out into the lake for kilometres, with just narrow strips of land along each side. These are the silt jetties, and one of them is wide enough to drive along, right to the end. Truly unique, and a fisherman's paradise, so they tell me!



The Pub at Metung

Next major centre to visit is Metung. This is the trendy, upmarket village, complete with village green, fancy restaurants, expensive boutiques and million dollar lake homes. The brand new white Bentley that glided past us on the road in, should have given us a hint! There is a great pub with its own marina out front. We really liked this area, some of the homes were exceptional, and there were lots of very smart resort style accommodation along the waterfront. Serious money on show everywhere. Cars, boats, houses. A playground of the rich, and only saw one celebrity chef!
 


The Golden Oldies

On the way into Metung we came across a car rally of vintage cars. They called it the "Golden Oldies Rally", and lining the streets of Metung, they fitted right in. Classy old cars in a classy village.



The Tambo River Valley

 

So having seen the lake towns, we decided to take a drive into the mountains, and headed for Omeo (No mio). What a drive! We drove for about 100 kilometres, through the Tambo River Valley, first through the forest region, and then through the fertile valley, all the time following the Tambo River. Spectacular scenery all the way. When we arrived in Omeo, and opened the door to get out and have a look around, we immediately knew we were underdressed. We were the only ones in shorts and T-Shirts. We had climbed a few hundred metres up the mountain, and the temperature had dropped about 10 degrees! We decided to have a coffee and cake on the verandah of a cute looking cafe. We had April in tow, so couldn't go inside by the warm fire. Coffee and cake in 74 seconds! A new record! We raced back to the car and cranked up the heater. Holy moly it was cold!
 

Bats in Bairnsdale


Back in Bairnsdale, we have been doing the sites. We found out that along the river front they have a serious Bat (flying fox) problem. The noise and the smell was incredible. The poor people who live nearby must be driven crazy with the incessant squawking, and that smell! When I stopped to take a photo, a guy walking past says to me "shame it isn't a machine gun", as I pointed my camera. I guess that sums up the local sentiment.

We are here for a few more days, heading off again on Anzac Day. So John will celebrate his 60th Birthday in Bairnsdale. Carol has booked a table at the River Grill Restaurant, a short walk away, so we will enjoy a lovely lunch living our dream on the road.

Mallacoota



The Inlet meets the sea at Mallacoota.

 Well here we are at beautiful, pristine, Mallacoota in Victoria's East Gippsland. This is a remote setting along the shores of the huge Mallacoota Inlet, just below the NSW border. It is so peaceful, and scenically magnificent, though the Inlet is showing the effects of all the recent flooding rains, and it has also affected the fishing. That's my excuse anyway!

You come to Mallacoota for one of two reasons. Fishing or fishing.



The Inlet side of the park.

 Accommodation is provided by the Mallacoota Foreshore Holiday Park, which at 65 acres and some 730 sites, is one of the largest caravan parks in Australia. It winds around the headland, with hundreds of sites facing the Inlet and hundreds more facing the sea. The Inlet side is quite steep and hilly with smaller sites, and is home to the regular fishermen, who come in small caravans and tents, with trailer boats, for the sole purpose of fishing. Here the air is full of the smell of campfires, fried fish, beer and tobacco, and the men outnumber the rest by ten to one. Needless to say, we are on the ocean side, where the sites are bigger, flatter and more family friendly, which, with the Victorian school holidays having started, is very obvious.


Large grassy site at Mallacoota.


There are lots of beautiful walks along the beaches and headlands, and we have had some good weather to be able to do a little exploring. Our precious little April is showing her age these days, so the walks are a little slower and not as long, but we just can't bring ourselves to leave her behind. After all, she is travelling Australia as well.

I have tried my hand at fishing a few times, but it is obvious that a boat is the key to real success. I have had a lot of fun and drowned a lot of bait, but so far it has only been one small flathead and two small bream, all undersize, so saved to swim another day.


Waiting for the boats to come home.



Down town, everything seems to come in pairs. Two supermarkets, two service stations that are also Bait & Tackle shops, two cafes, two gift shops, two real estate agents, a butcher, a restaurant, the obligatory bakery, and a pub. Almost everyone of them is currently for sale! Good luck! They've probably been for sale for years! Bustling is not a word that comes to mind. This is one laid back town. Needless to say, the food scene (ha!ha!ho!ho!) is nouveau bush. The big restaurant opposite the caravan park has a great location, is for sale, and so far we haven't seen more than four customers inside. There is no menu to read, only a sign that says Specials from $19.95 and Senoirs' Discounts. We aren't encouraged to try.



Tomorrow, we head on to our next stop at Bairnsdale. We will be there for two weeks, sitting out the school holidays and Easter, when it becomes very difficult to get accommodation. This will give us a great chance to exlore the Gippsland Lake district.

We have really enjoyed our few days here at Mallacoota. It has been lazy and very relaxing, and apart from today, the weather has been good.



Bikie Caravanning

You don't need a car to caravan!

Now this takes the cake as the most amazing touring rig we've come across so far, and we have seen some different ones!  On our last day at Eden, we got new neighbours, Dave & Jackie. They literally roared into the caravan park on their Trike, towing a trailer. We couldn't believe what then unfolded, literally. It was a camper trailer for a motor bike, and out popped two bedrooms and a living room, followed by a fridge, table, 2 chairs, TV and the usual bags of clothes and food. We see these towed behind cars all the time, but behind a bike, sorry Trike?
I got talking to Dave, who behind all that leather, bandanna, studs and stubble, turned out to be a real nice "have-a-chat' kind of guy. Looks can deceive! The camper trailer had been imported from Europe, and he had bought it second hand 3 years ago. He reckons he doesn't have any trouble meeting people. Everyone wants to take a look at his fantastic rig!

Eden (The Garden Of)

John hard at work in the office.

Our stay in and around Eden has been lovely, but again the rotten weather has played a role. We have had the odd beautiful day, but most have been cold, cloudy and windy, or a combination of all three. The Garden of Eden is a lovely quiet park, and our surrounds of parkland give us a feeling of camping in our own garden paradise.

It has given us the chance to do a little necessary van and car maintenance, as the services are good here for both. Unfortunately the same can't be said of the food scene! There will be no glowing reports for the establishments of Eden, other that to say that the Fish & Chips at "The Great White Bite" by the harbour, was first class. Thank heavens that girl of mine is good, inspired and cooking up a storm.

The golf course here, Eden Gardens Country Club, is a nice, country style layout, with kangaroos being the greatest hazard. They lay around on the fairways in large groups of 30 to 50, having trampled over the greens and left large pot holes and poop in their wake. They don't seem to mind the golfers at all. I played the Saturday comp with 3 fun locals, and together we played horrible golf, in cold, windy conditions. But we had fun. I new it would be a great day when on the first tee Gary joked "how do you make your wife scream while your having sex? Answer, phone her up and tell her where you are!"  No wonder the golf was bad. My sides were sore from laughing.

Candelo River in the Bega Valley.



The Bega River off the main bridge.

We toured the area up the coast, that we had missed, because of the floods and wheel mishap. Everywhere we went in this area, the evidence of the flash floods could be seen. It was amazing to see debris, some 20 to 30 feet up trees, and river flats strewn with trees and rubbish.


The Sea Wharf at Tathra

We went as far north as Tathra on the coast, to see where we would have stayed. This is where the Bega River meets the sea, and at the river mouth, huge machines were still moving trees and logs washed down the river, and the sea was a brown stain for 2-3 kilometres out from shore. Tahra's most famous landmark is the historic timber sea wharf, the last of its kind on the east coast of Australia, and a reminder of the busy coastal ship trade of the 19th and early 20th centuries.



The inlet at Merimbula.

 From Tathra we headed down the Sapphire Coast to Tura Beach, Merimbula and Pambula. All these areas have grown enormously, with large housing estates everywhere. The coastal scenery is beautiful, and with a variety of large lakes and picturesque inlets along the coast, it is a paradise for swimming, boating and fishing, when the sun shines! Everyone you talk to, tells us how unseasonal it is.  Merimbula was our favourite, right on a beautiful inlet, and it has a lively feel about it, with bright shopping areas, and a vibrant cafe scene along the waterfront. We went back a couple of times.


Carol at the Bega Cheese Factory.

The second time we went back to Bega, to take in the famous Bega Cheese Factory, which was thankfully spared by the floods. You have to go and check out all those famous cheeses we've been eating for years. Remember the old Kameruka Cheese? Amazing to think, that in this day and age, such a big business is still a Co-Operative controlled and operated by the dairy farmers of the Bega Valley. Good on 'em I say. Looks like they are doing a dam fine job of it, and we sure helped their bottom line!

Back around Eden there is a lot to do and see. The Killer Whale Museum is a must. The whole history of the long discontinued whale industry, is all around Eden. The skeleton of "Old Tom", the last killer whale to help the whalers, is at the museum. Can you believe that the killer whales actually herded the larger humpback and southern right whales, for the whalers, in return for the sweet meat of the lips and tongue, which the whalers didn't really want. It is an amazing story, and apparently in the wide world of whaling, only ever happened at Eden.

The equally popular wood chip industry took over from whaling.The greenies were very thankful that they didn't have to leave town, just change industries! Seriously though, all those problems seemed to have been sorted out now, and the industry is a big part of Eden's economy, shipping about 40,000 tonnes a week to Japan.


The Seahorse Inn at Boydtown

Another very interesting part of Eden's history, revolves around Benjamin Boyd. He was like a Christopher Skase of the 1850's! He made a fortune in whaling and timber, using other peoples money, and had grand plans to get the government of NSW, moved to Eden. He created his own town, Boydtown, on a beautiful sheltered bay south of Eden, but everything went pear shaped when a big depression hit, and Boyd headed for the goldfields of the USA in a fast ship! Still he left some interesting infrastructure around. The old house has been fully restored and is a beautiful hotel and restaurant called The Seahorse Inn, where we did manage to have a drink on a sunny Sunday afternoon. There is also Boyd's Tower on the headland at the entrance to Twofold Bay, built by guess who, and only to be used by his whaling boats. The Government didn't like that plan and insisted it be available to all shipping, Boyd refused, so the lighthouse never got lit, but still stands proudly on the headland.


Candelo Markets

Enough of the history lesson. On to things shopping. We just so happened to be in the area for the once a month Candelo Markets. (First Sunday of the month). Candelo is a very quaint village nestled in a valley, by the Candelo River. Once a month they host the markets, and a huge crowd of both stall holders and shoppers, comes from far and wide.

We parked in a nearby paddock, which I think the owner mows and mans the gate, and charges $2.00 to park in. He was a lovely old fellow of Italian descent, as we soon found out, as when we got to the market entrance a big sign said "NO DOGS". We headed back to the car, but our gatekeeper saved the day, and said leave her with me, and go shopping. So we did. It was mostly food and local produce, so we re-stocked the larder with lots of fresh fruit and vegies at very cheap prices, and managed to find some other beautiful home made goodies to spark up our taste buds at various stages in the near future. There was also the usual, clothes, jewellery, craft, furniture etc. plus a few buskers, that made it a really nice day out. We headed back to the gate keeper, and paid him with a white chocolate & raspberry cupcake, for his dog minding duties, of which he now had three! (Dogs not cupcakes!)

Tomorrow is our last day in Eden. It will be wash the caravan and car day, before we head for Mallacoota, just over the border in Victoria. Yay! we've made it out of the state.