Coolum and Mudjimba

Yes, you have the right blog. I decided it was time for a change, so we have gone from orange background to green, my favourite colour.

We feel it's a bit like groundhog day at the moment. We seem to be wearing a groove into the road back to Coffs Harbour. Don't get me wrong, we are enjoying the relaxation and revisiting places and friends, but just feel like we are being held back at the moment, from new and exciting destinations!

Paul, Lynne, Carolyn & John.

The last two weeks were spent at Coolum, and just a little further back down the Sunshine Coast at Mudjimba, which sounds harsh and horrible, but proved to be a nice spot. More on that later. Primarily we chose Coolum, as we wanted to catch up with friends Lynne and Paul, who have made the huge step of relocating from Mudgee, in central west NSW, to Maleny in the beautiful Sunshine Coast Hinterland. We also catch up with our good mate and Coolum resident, Peter Taylor, who has also moved into new surroundings, albeit a different townhouse in the same complex! And most importantly, Carolyn needed a puppy fix, with Kenzie the Collie.

The weather at Coolum was dreadful. It is called the Sunshine Coast for God's sake! And if I hear one more local smugly tell me "well you don't get gold at the Gold Coast", I'll strangle the bastard! We had two fine days in the week. The Friday we arrived and the Friday we left. On Sunday we headed up to Maleny to see Lynne and Paul. The plan was to enjoy some lunch and music in the gardens of a local establishment, but the weather put the kibosh on that, but Lynne found a wonderful substitute called Secrets on the Lake. Usually this is one of the most beautiful drives you will ever experience, as you drive up onto the range at Mapleton, and drive along the range to Maleny, taking in the breathtaking views to the coast. This day, the fog and mist was so thick, you couldn't see the car in front!

Lynne, Paul, Harley & Kenzie at
their new home.

Lynne & Paul have purchased a new home in a new  "Lifestyle Village" called Maleny Grove. It is set in the rolling hills on the edge of town, and it is lovely. Being all new and modern it is bright and airy and needs little to be done, other than some secure fencing to keep their dogs contained. They are in the first stage of the development, but given the layout of stage 1, where the feeling is open and friendly, I don't think they'll ever feel hemmed in. The common area has everything you could imagine, and is the ideal place for a community get together.

Part of Maleny Grove Village.

They have already settled into life in Maleny. Paul has joined Rotary, and transferred to the local Rural Fire Service, and Lynne has signed up for tennis, and has already made a mark with her team winning their grade in the local comp. The final was on whilst we were there, and Carol went off to give moral support, on a freezing day where I'm reliably told that the victory was overshadowed by the sumptuous morning tea and lunch provided by the ladies, and ravenously partaken of by players and spectators alike. 

Lunch at Secrets on the Lake.

Now back to Secrets on the Lake, a wonderful establishment on the shores of Lake Barron, a short drive from Maleny. It is a guest house and restaurant built as an open plan tree house looking across the lake. The timber work is amazing, with structural beams and railings hand carved, and displaying native animals and birds. The fire was burning away and the setting was just amazing. Whilst we wouldn't describe the food as outstanding, it was good, and just sitting there with a glass of wine taking in the atmosphere both inside and out, was very nice indeed.

Carolyn & Kenzie.

Back on the coast we didn't do a lot, other than read and relax. Of course we revisited our favourite cafe, Sunrise, where the food and coffee is first rate, and we also got back to C@F, another popular, quirky cafe that serves the "best lemon tart Carolyn has ever had! Now that's a big call that will be tested in the weeks and months ahead! With Peter working hard, we only managed a dinner catch up at Castro's which is very good and does excellent Pizzas which we shared along with excessive quantities of local beverages. A great night. Lynne & Paul brought the dogs down for a run along the beach, and thankfully the rain took a little break to accommodate.

Us, set up at Mudjimba.

Friday morning, thankfully the rain had gone, and we packed up and headed down the road about 16 kilometres to Mudjimba Beach Holiday Park. This is officially our shortest ever drive to a new location. We left at 10.00am on the dot, and pulled up at the front gate of Mudjimba, 12 minutes later, and we got a red light on the way! So, what we just dismantled was remantled (is that a word? If it isn't, it should be.) We decided to put up the full annexe, so we'd have somewhere to gather on the quite cold evenings. It makes such a good room.
This is a really nice caravan park. Well laid out, lots of trees, but still lots of open spaces as well. The park intentionally doesn't target the backpacker brigade in those annoying little whizz bangers. It is a park aimed at families in the school holidays, and long term nomads like us, at other times. We spoke to a lot of people who had been there for weeks and others planning to stay for weeks. We met some lovely people. The only word of warning, is BATS. There are small colonies in a few trees around the park. You do not want Bat Crap on your car or caravan. It is so toxic. We had one of these trees near us, and Paul's annexe got some peripheral damage, but not too bad. The park was also full of rainbow lorikeets, as many of the trees were in flower, and much of the splatter was from these guys.

All the kids back together.

Lynne & Paul's new caravan.

Lynne & Paul have retired their camper trailer on the basis of too much work to put up and take down, and have invested in a second hand small caravan. They wanted to try it out, so hence we all came to Mudjimba, which is a rare dog friendly caravan park on the Sunshine Coast, and unlike at Coolum which is also dog friendly, will allow more than one dog per caravan. The new caravan has a rear door. Now this presents us with somewhat of a dilemma, as such vans due to their rear entry door, have an unfortunate nickname, and are the butt (terrible pun) of many a joke. Nonetheless, it is a very practical design, and it was agreed we'd get the jokes out of the way early. It is a very nice van, in excellent condition, and will serve them well. No more excuses not to visit!

The Lizard Cafe at Mudjimba.

The tiny beach side village of Mudjimba has very little in the way of shops, but we did find The Lizard. No, not a frill neck or a gecko, it is a great little cafe, that serves breakfast lunch and dinner (Thursday to Sunday). It was excellent. We had a few nice visits, including Sunday Night Schnitzel Night, where for $15.00 you get your choice of 6 different kinds of schnitzel. They were all delicious, and with a Happy Hour and $4.00 beers and wines from 5 to 6.00pm, it was a hit. For more serious sorts of shopping, there is a nice centre with supermarket, pub, butcher etc. just 5 minutes drive away.

Mudjimba Beach looking towards
Maroochydore.

Beach erosion at Mudjimba.

We spent our days lazing around. The weather was kind, with bright sunny days, but cold crisp nights. We walked the beautiful long beach, which the dogs really loved, chasing sticks and racing in and out of the water, which was still a pleasant 21 degrees. But it still didn't entice the humans in! The beaches of the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast have been taking a hammering over the past 6 months, with heavy seas causing terrible erosion. The photo at the left was taken at low tide, but the one on the right shows just where the high tide comes to, and the damage being done. You can't get onto the beach at high tide!!

John makes the pancakes,

The time went really quickly, and on Thursday Lynne & Paul packed up and headed home, but not before we enjoyed our traditional pancake breakfast. Everyone gets pancakes, even the puppies! They have a few minor issues to sort out with the caravan, so the

Lynne likes the pancakes.

shake down trip proved successful. The same day, John met up with Pete for a game of golf at nearby Twin Waters Resort. This is one of my absolute favourite golf courses. It is always beautifully maintained, and this day was no exception. The course was quiet, and Pete and I had a great time. The golf reflected the fact that neither of us plays much these days, but there were some moments of brilliance interspersed with a fair measure of mediocrity. That night Pete joined us for dinner at the caravan. Carolyn cooked up a storm. The Oregano Lamb Stew with Gnocchi, served with a rocket salad was delicious, and Pete and John went back for seconds!!

View to the Glasshouse Mountains.

A little German diplomacy.

We decided to stay an extra 3 days at Mudjimba, and due to the lovely weather, headed back up to Maleny for one last lunch with Lynne & Paul. We wanted to see the area, not shrouded in fog and mist. We headed out along Mountain View Road where the views over the Glasshouse Mountains are spectacular. We lunched at a pub whose name escapes me. The food was good and very cheap, but we couldn't get a seat with a view, so we headed back along the road to the quite iconic "King Ludwig's" German Restaurant for dessert. We were not disappointed. The apple strudel and the sticky date pudding were heavenly, and we got a seat on the balcony to take in more of those spectacular views. It is a great place to visit, and there are signs and King Ludwig stuff everywhere, though I think they have been a little more kind on the mad kings place in history, but hey, you can't beat his castles.

Sunday we took time to get packed away. Monday morning we used the time before checkout to head up to The Lizard for one last coffee before hitting the road. We got way laid by the neighbours when we returned, and had a great old chat about caravans and destinations, and left around an hour late. This time our destination is Kingscliff, en route to Coffs Harbour, as we have another leak, this time around the bathroom window. We are booked in for Monday 1st July. Our teething problems with the van are starting to resemble a full set of new dentures! Thankfully they have all been pretty minor, but we are getting a bit tired of seeing the same old piece of bitumen. Hopefully, this will be the last visit to Coffs Harbour for some time!

Post Cruise

The Gypsies have been sick! We got off the plane with a sniffle and within three days were at the doctor's coughing, sneezing and generally whacked. Can't remember having felt so bad for so long. As is usual these days, the doctor couldn't do much, just panadol and rest (imagine telling Carolyn to rest!!), so we have been suffering for a good while. Thankfully now feeling a lot better, and with the warmer weather greeting us on our arrival yesterday at Coolum, all should be back to normal soon.

Sorry to those we infected during our visit. A bit of a double edged sword, visiting when sick. But you'll get over it, eventually!!!

Katrina, Bev, Leia & Carolyn.

Our feet didn't touch the ground when we got back. A couple of days with Wayne and Debbie to get our caravan ready for the next part of the journey. It was great catching up with them again. We'll get them on the road soon!! We headed down to Shellharbour as we had the big wedding of Bev & Fred's daughter Katrina, and the weekend  before was the Hen's Weekend in the Hunter Valley, and Carolyn and Bev were waving the flag for the oldies! They were doing the "Lovedale Long Lunch", which is an institution in the Hunter Valley these days, and had a ball, though Carolyn mostly coughed and sneezed, and passed on her drink vouchers! We men, did very little, as I was really crook and just wanted to be horizontal. Still Fred did cook me up one of his famous curries and fried rice, which was delicious.

The Rotunda at Balmoral Beach.

The week leading up to the wedding was all about last minute planning, trying not to infect the wedding party, and Bev & Carolyn were  still looking for last minute accessories. The weather was terrible, and that coupled with John's health meant no fishing! On the Friday we headed up to Sydney for the big day. Bev & Fred, Carolyn and John, were booked into the Brookvale Travelodge for the weekend, as the wedding ceremony was held in the Rotunda at Balmoral Beach, and the Reception at the Middle Harbour Yacht Club at the Spit. But first we had a night of pre wedding celebrations at Manly Leagues Club!! My old mate Fred has been a Manly supporter all his life, which is a burden in itself, and he had never set a foot inside the club in 60+ years. He may be scarred for life! I could, and believe me I would like to go into details, but I promised Fred I'd be gentle with him. Let's just say, that if the St.George Leagues Club is known as the Taj Mahal, Manly is a little more along the lines of the Lost City, or should that be the City of the Lost. Still we did have a reasonably good meal seated among the other twelve guests on a bustling Friday night.

Katrina with a proud dad.

Malik & Katrina.

Weather for the big day dawned bright and beautiful. The bride was an hour late, which caused a few nervous moments, but she arrived looking beautiful. Hubby Malik, was relieved to see those big Chrysler's pull up at the kerb!
It was a lovely ceremony at a great location, and drew quite a crowd of onlookers among the local Balmoral set. From Balmoral, we took the short drive down to The Spit, for a delightful cocktail reception. On a sparkling Sydney day, there can be few better spots to be than standing on the veranda of a yacht club, with a glass of wine in one hand, someone handing you an endless supply of delicious food, surrounded by happy revellers, all looking out across the harbour.

Fred, Katrina, Bev & Leia.

Belly Dancing at the reception.

Everything went according to plan, until Malik introduced the entertainment. Malik is originally from Iraq, and it is a tradition that at a wedding you have Belly Dancers! So we did, and they were fantastic. It sure put a twist on the Bridal Waltz!!
Everyone thought it was just so much fun, and I think a few of the relatives have had their horizons broadened!

A happy Bev & Carolyn.

After the reception, the bride & Groom were off to Q Station at North Head for their wedding night. Only problem was that no one knew where it was! So the problem of getting a taxi back to the hotel was solved, when John agreed to show the way in return for a ride back to Brookvale! So off we went. A Convoy of three Chrysler 300C's  being driven by mates of Malik from western Sydney who were way outside their comfort zone. They were fantastic. We said goodnight to the honeymooners at the reception of Q Station, and then the guys dropped us off at Brookvale. I sure hope they made it home!!

Back at Brookie, Manly was playing a home game, so the League's Club was packed, and you could hear the roar of the crowd from the ground next door. We went over for a drink and to soak up the atmosphere. By kick off, the place was deserted again, and the lonely piano player was left playing to the same twelve people from the night before, but I don't think they were listening. To put a perfect ending to a perfect day, Manly had a win. I hope someone told the twelve at the club.

You may kiss the bride!

Sunday morning we took the honeymooners out to the airport for their flight to the Whitsundays, and then headed for home at Shellharbour. We stopped at Brighton for a hearty breakfast, and on Monday night held our customary break up party with Bev & Fred at the new pub next to Shellharbour Square. The rain had returned, and we enjoyed a great meal beside the fire place.

In the morning we were off early as we had the caravan booked, at of all places Brookvale, so they could check out our satellite TV, which hasn't worked properly since we changed it over onto the new van. Having identified the problem, we are off north where we have some things to be fitted to the caravan in Port Macquarie, followed by service and a redo of the satellite electrics at Watson's Caravans.

We spent a week in Port Macquarie at the Sundowner Breakwall Caravan Park. It was nice just being able to rest and try and shake the flu and this dreaded cough. Disaster struck on the Saturday, when our Foxtel box just crackled and groaned and died! Carolyn was mortified. We had hours of recordings she had made whilst we were on our cruise. There were weeks of her favourite shows all lost. Oh No!!! It was the final straw in the sage of the TV changeover.

We successfully had the work done at Port Macquarie. We have had an Electronic Stability Control system put onto the caravan. This is new to caravans, but works the same as stability control systems on cars. With so much time on the road, we felt it very worthwhile, as it helps keep the caravan stable and automatically compensates for any sudden sway caused by huge trucks, strong winds or a sudden swerve to dodge a pot hole, or an animal on the road.

We arrived at Coffs Harbour for the service. They were very good about the problems and admitted they had made mistakes with the original installation, using the incorrect inverter. The problem was solved, and the new Foxtel box had arrived at brother Neil's office for redirection to us in Coolum Beach. The box has been installed and all is well, except that all those recorded shows are gone for good. So all is well and we are now ready to resume the journey. It seems so long since we've been on the road!!

We have two weeks here at Coolum, where we will catch up with Lynne and Paul and my mate Peter. It was nice to feel the warm sun on us when we arrived and we were soon in shorts and T Shirts, but alas the weather has changed and it is much cooler and the rains have come, hopefully for a short visit.

More when the journey resumes.