Echuca to Sydney 2016

How the time flies!! How on earth did we find time to work???

Echuca Old Port

Our trip along the Murray ended at Echuca. We love this river town. So much history and so much to do! This was the hub of the river trade in the 19th century, with countless paddle boats plying the river, bringing wool and wheat to be shipped off to Melbourne by rail. By 1880, this was the third largest port in Australia, such was the volume of goods passing through the port. Now that is all gone, but the river front precinct has been wonderfully restored, and it is a journey through the history books as you walk among the old stores and pubs. Further away from the port area, is a modern and very busy, regional rural town.

The old Emmy Lou

Times gone by.

We always stay at the Top Tourist Park at the end of the old port precinct, as it is an easy walk into town. This time we noted that the sites could do with some serious maintenance, as most have become pot holed and uneven. Like many parks, the money seems to go into new cabins. Eventually we found a site we could live with, and got ourselves set up. There was a caravan club in residence, so the caravan park was pretty full for the first few days, and from then it was the usual coming and going, through what is a very popular caravan destination. We were staying for two weeks, as we had birthdays and a wedding anniversary to celebrate, and John was off for his now annual golfing event at one of the many Murray River Golf Resorts.

Nightcap by the fire.

We celebrated John's birthday at the Star Hotel, one of the great old port pubs. It has cosy fire places, and on Friday's and Saturday's a local identity with Greek heritage, sets up his spit roast and prepares Greek style lamb and seafood. It was fantastic. Simple, but just so tasty. After dinner we sat by the fire and listened to the local musicians who were doing some great country songs. A fantastic way to celebrate a birthday, and just a short walk home!

John & Pete at Golf.

Welcoming the Champion.

Sunday, John headed off to Tocumwal, the scene of this years BIG TOUR. Five days of golf on the two championship layouts at the beautiful Tocumwal Golf Club. The Big Tour was celebrating its 20th year, and whilst I am a late comer to the event, I am already addicted. This year there were 25 of us, from all walks of life and as far away as Queensland and WA. The golf is taken seriously, but played in great spirit. It is a Ryder Cup style event with the teams based on age. The youngsters are THE ROYALS, and we mature aged gents are THE ANCIENTS. I can proudly report, that this year, age and treachery succeeded over youth and skill, with THE ANCIENTS recording a long overdue, and well deserved victory. The rules of the Big Tour specify that "what happens on tour stays on tour", but I am sure your imagination can deduce what happens when you put 25 men at a golf resort with alcohol, humour, cards, and late nights, and throw in 6 rounds of golf!!

Marvellous macaroon!

Pizza for one!

John returned to Echuca with some serious making up to do, having missed Carolyn's birthday for the first time in 35 years! I did find out that in my absence, Carolyn had taken herself out on the town to celebrate with wood fired pizza and wine, and that the economy of Echuca was experiencing a sudden retail boom!! We had also found a lovely café called The Black Pudding, where they do amazing macaroons filled with delicious things! My spies tell me Carolyn was seen at these premises sipping a latte, and tucking into macaroons stuffed full of salted caramel!! We belatedly celebrated the birthday, which has progressed from 49 & holding to 49 plus GST!!, at another of the great pubs, this time The American, where we devoured some American Southern Style tapas, which was down right finger lickin good!

For our birthdays this year, we decided to buy ourselves new bicycles. Our old ones had succumbed to the elements, and we do enjoy a ride along the many bike tracks we find along our journey. We took ourselves into "Ön your Bike", where the owner Paul was so helpful. This time we were properly fitted for the right size of bike, and now feel very comfortable indeed. We are making arrangements for a suitable bike cover to be made, to try and get the bikes some good protection as they travel around on the back of the caravan.

Celebrating 33 Years.

One of Echuca's great pubs.

On the Sunday we celebrated 33 years of marriage. What a wonderful journey it has been. Here we are living our dream, determined never to let life pass us by! We took ourselves to a lovely restaurant called The Mill. Here, they have an innovative menu choice called "Chefs Got This", where they bring out a number of tasting plates to share. It was delicious, and a great way to taste lots of different things. We had a really lovely night. There is no doubt, that when it comes to excellent dining options, you are spoilt for choice in Echuca. For the last couple of days in Echuca, we took ourselves out along the bike trails on our new bikes, and just sat around reading our books. It is lovely sitting around listening to the steam whistles of the restored paddle boats that take tourists up and down the river. Unfortunately, the river here is suffering from a bad dose of blue/green algae, so no recreation is happening in the water, and whilst they say fish from the river is safe to eat, we wouldn't be so sure!! They say it will die off. It has been most likely caused through all the unseasonal hot weather! As sunset approaches, the corellas and galahs arrive by the thousands and the noise is deafening. There is no sleeping in, as they repeat the squawking at dawn!!

A great exhibition.

Marilyn's in town!

From Echuca, which we sadly bid farewell to, we took a short drive down to Bendigo. This is another Victorian town we really like. This was a fast visit, drawn back to the fantastic regional art gallery, that is currently showing a wonderful exhibition on the life of Marilyn Monroe. Carolyn is a huge fan, and given that we had considerable warning of the dates for the exhibition, it was always on our calendar. It didn't disappoint. It was easy to spend  a few hours there. In the centre of town is a huge statue of Marilyn in the famous wind up the skirt pose. It looks so good and is impossible to miss. The weather had turned cold and wet, so we didn't spend much time outside, but we did take time to visit the Hot House in the gardens in the centre of town. The floral displays here are incredible, and change all the time. This time, in time for Mother's Day, it was full of chrysanthemums and simply stunning.

Bendigo's Flowers.

Coffee & cake at The Boardwalk.

Next day we started our trip north, though not before we had a coffee and cake at The Boardwalk Cafe at Lake Weeroona. This is a great spot to stop in Bendigo, and we always do! It never varies in the quality it offers. Satisfied, we headed for Shepparton and Benalla, then it was onto the Hume Hwy and across the border back into NSW, We did an overnight stop at Holbrook, in a nice little caravan park, that has increased in popularity, due both to new managers, and the fact that the highway now bypasses town. In the morning, we were back on the road early, headed for Yass.

Brendan, Tiernan, Nicole & Olivier.

No trip along this section of the Hume Hwy, can be made without a stop at Jugiong's famous Long Track Pantry. I was safe this time as it wasn't Tuesday!! It was busy as usual, and just as good. We toped up with some essential products, and arrived in Yass around noon. We were stopping in Yass for the weekend to catch up with old friends from our time living in Balmain. When we first moved to Balmain in 1999, Carolyn job shared with Nicole at a Publishing business. Despite a big age difference they became good friends. Nicole is Mauritian by birth, and a true Artisan, making wonderful

Family dinner.

bags, jewellery, kangaroo leather goods etc. Her husband Brendan, is Head Teacher in the history faculty, and they decided to move to the country to raise their two boys, Tiernan & Olivier, and to live a life as self sufficient as they realistically could. They now live on a couple of acres at Bowning just outside Yass, and raise chickens, guinea fowl, ducks, pigs and have a fantastic veggie garden. We parked the caravan on their ample front driveway, and settled in for a family weekend.

In the kitchen.

Wine tasting.

They are a delightful family. The boys took to us as if they knew us all their life. We sat in the kitchen whilst they cooked up a treat from Morocco, Turkey & Mexico, using their delicious fresh goods and preserves. We sat around that kitchen for hours and talked and drank red wine. The boys got out their guitar and drums and entertained us. Saturday morning we went into town to the produce market. We stopped for coffee at the lovely gallery where Nicole both works and sells some of her goods, and we ventured out into the wine country around Murrumbateman, which is very underrated. On our last day it poured with much needed rain, so we played board games and then the boys set themselves up in our caravan to watch movies on The Disney Channel, while the adults amused themselves. Carolyn & Nicole split olives and stacked jars full of them ready for preserving.

At Nicole & Brendan's.

On Monday as we drove up the highway towards Sydney, we talked about the amazing mix of wonderful friends we have all over Australia and the world, and how lucky we are to be able to now spend such quality time with them all. It is undoubtedly one of the greatest parts of our journey through life. We arrived in Sydney to be welcomed by Wayne & Debbie at their Menai home. We set up in our usual spot across from the house and let the party begin!! Later in the week it got a bit crowded, as other caravan friends who used to live next door, also stopped in for a few days. We finally got to meet Gail & Steve, and we all enjoyed some great Happy Hours and meals together.

We have spent a busy couple of weeks catching up with  family & friends all over Sydney, which has been fantastic. My mum has settled in so well at her new "home" at Ferndale Gardens Aged Care. She has embraced all the activities and seems to be having a great life, making the most of it. Her dementia has worsened but it is so good to see her happy and enjoying life. We have a few more days here before we head to warmer regions. We will need a rest after the hectic schedule!!