We're home, having journeyed 6,960kms of this fantastic country over six weeks.
After two days of exploring Moree and quite a bit of time yakking to other nomads as we eased our bones in the Artesian Baths, we left to head to Gunnedah. Moree is a very interesting town but we guess the highlight for most visitors would be the baths and exchanging outrageous stories with other soaking nomads!
The trip to Gunnedah was relaxing with plenty of beautiful countryside to enjoy on the way. With Spring just around the corner, and lots of rain over the past weeks, the countryside was resplendent in golden wattle, trees and bushes bursting with new life of bright green buds, fields of canola, wheat and barley crops, and all manner of grasses gently swaying in the breeze as far as the eye could see. See some photos below.
Our arrival in Gunnedah was thankfully greeted by a very agreeable 18 degree mid-day and we found the very pleasant caravan park to be within walking distance of almost all the places of interest in town. We spent the afternoon on-foot exploring Dorothea Mackellar country (author of My Country - see below) before going back to the car for a drive to the local Porcupine Lookout overlooking the town in the late afternoon sun. The view from there was absolutely gorgeous bringing together a patchwork scene of colours and textures over the whole district. Again, see the photos below.
We couldn't help putting the first two verses of My Country in the Blog because it seems we've experienced it all as described and it brought back some lovely memories of learning the poem at school all those years ago:
The love of field and coppice, Of green and shaded lanes, Of ordered woods and gardens, Is running in your veins. Strong love of grey-blue distance, Brown streams and soft dim skies, I know but cannot share it, My love is otherwise.
I love a sunburnt country, A land of sweeping plains, Of ragged mountain ranges, Of droughts and flooding rains. I love her far horizons, I love her jewel-sea, Her beauty and her terror, The wide brown land for me!
Dorothea Mackellar
On Sunday morning we explored Lake Keepit State Park about 30kms east of Gunnedah. Again, a lovely area and one which would have been a great place to camp had we known about it. That's not to say we didn't thoroughly enjoy our stay in Gunnedah proper because we most certainly did, it's just it's nice to know there are different venues to camp when next we visit.
We stayed 2 nights so spent some of our walking time in the hope of finding the koalas that are supposed to be abundant in the area. The brochures we'd gathered informed us Gunnedah was the Koala Capital of the World and that often there is a koala in the tree outside the Tourist Information Office and the staff there would put a sign outside the office saying 'Koala in the tree today'. Funnily, we also heard the local joke that the 'koala' in the tree was actually a stuffed one which the staff moved and replaced in the tree at differing times. We didn't know whether to believe it or not but there was certainly no koala in the tree that day (and as it was Saturday the Tourist Information Office was closed, which may or may not have had something to do with it!!). However, we woke on Sunday morning to find a koala in the tree near our van but by the time T. got the camera up and running, it had disappeared! We decided that if we were going to see real, live koalas the best place would be the local wildlife park, which we did. (See below for 'Bureaucracy Gone Mad' for an interesting event at the park early in 2010.)
Bureaucracy Gone Mad: The Waterways Wildlife Park (http://www.infogunnedah.com.au/tourism/attractions_display.php?id=8) is privately owned and supported by the generous assistance of volunteers, the local council and donations from businesses around the town, and is definitely one of the most natural environments for wildlife we've ever seen. With that in mind, you may have seen the segment on the Animal Rescue program some months ago where the RSPCA 'rescued' 8 koalas and 2 lizards from the park because of the 'appalling conditions' the animals were supposed to be in. We saw the 'appalling conditions' and wondered what all the fuss was about because conditions appeared to us to be brilliant.
We were told by a volunteer that the whole TV segment was meant to get attention for the RSPCA and as the Channel Seven Television Network supposedly donated $50,000.00 to the RSPCA, we wondered if there was some truth in that. The story is that an RSPCA inspector arrived at the park, unannounced, to carry out an inspection, and afterwards informed the owner that the park and the animals, were both 'in splendid shape'. Ten days later she came back, with 5 RSPCA officers, government officials and others to lead the 'raid' which removed 8 (licensed) koalas from the premises. The owner, who has government permits and licenses to keep all the native animals in the park, was distraught by the heavy-handedness of the inspectors and the fact that these particular koalas, who were born at the park, were frightened and bewildered by the rough treatment.
A NSW Government hearing resulted in the local vet, who had been caring for all of the animals in the park stepping in, as did various government agencies, to prove that the animals were indeed in brilliant health and after the hearing, the koalas were subsequently returned to their home, with the RSPCA told in no uncertain terms to ‘butt out’! A Government official arrived at the park some time later and informed the owner that his department has been grossly lied to and apologised for the stress that had been caused. This is a much shorter version of the events of this case but you if you are interested to find out more you can log into the NSW Government Hansard records - they make interesting reading about bureaucracy gone mad!
Thankfully common sense prevailed! We highly recommend a visit if you're ever out that way. From Gunnedah we went to Coolah see visit friends D. & D.. D. is a former 'mature-aged' CSU student and is now the Principal at Sacred Heart School, Coolah. On the way we took advantage of a photo opportunity by way of the 150o E Time Meridian Line (see photo).
There's not much in Coolah by way of you must visit but there are 2 pubs, an IGA which sells absolutely everything, a hairdresser, a few 'specialty' shops and a couple of dogs sleeping on the footpath. We had good steak dinner with D. & D. at one of the pubs and a celebratory drink or two having finally got together after not seeing each other for nearly 5 years.
It was then home on Tuesday via Mudgee. Mudgee is one of those towns which until a few years ago was a sleepy hollow that no-one took much notice of but has had the good foresight to reinvent itself to cater for the hordes of tourist who arrive all year round to sample to local tipple and the great food on offer. We took a walk around before heading out of town to 'do' lunch on the side of the road somewhere between Mudgee and Sofala, arriving home to a cat ecstatic to see us.
If you haven't already gathered, we are totally hooked by the caravan travel/lifestyle bug and are now planning a 4-month trip incorporating South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory, with like-minded friends, commencing mid-March 2011. More on that trip as we finalise the details later this year.
For now, it's back-to-earth before we set off in a month to spend a few weeks on Norfolk Island visiting our daughter, son-in-law and 2 grandchildren. Can't wait for that one! Pity the van is not amphibious!
We are at Moree participating in some wonderful heat therapy for our tired, aching bones. That aside, the social aspects of sitting in hot pools of Artesian water with about 20 strangers proved to be hilarious as the true Aussie characters came out of their vans and into the 4 x pools of 35, 36, 37 and 39 degree temps to also relieve their aching bones.
This morning we met Nola who told us she was '2 minutes away from 90-years-young'! And what a character! She bounced into the pool, complete with hairdo and make-up, rolled her eyes as she informed us that yesterday had been a tiring day because she'd had to be at the airport at 6.00am for her flight to Moree, booked into the park, did enough food shopping to last a week and then went to bed last night at 6.30 and slept soundly until 6.00am this morning. (We didn't get the chance to ask her how she got about in Moree but we assumed she wasn't driving!) Nola told us that she and her 'much younger' friend, Esme, who is only 87 years-old, apparently often travel together and have a great time wandering around the countryside. Moree is one particularly popular destination because they both love the benefits on their arthritis of the thermal pools.
Nola had us in hysterics as she sprouted on about the election result (or lack thereof), the lack of public transport, what an idiot she thought Peter Garret was because of the pink batt debacle, finally finding a good cup of coffee (yes, she drinks Campos Coffee - how good is that?) and telling us how she spends her Saturday's. Apparently her social activities every Saturday commence at 10.00am coffee with friends in Randwick, and because she is horse-racing-made, she places her bets at the TAB at 11.00am, onto 12o'clock mass at her local Catholic church and then home to follow the horses on Sky channel for the afternoon. Nola then told us that she had been betting on the horses since she was in Primary school and had done pretty well at it too. We could just imagine it!
So horse racing mad is she, Nola then told us about getting a phone call early one Saturday morning from Esme (my family know better than to ring me on Saturday mornings!!). Esme wanted to know, 'What's that stuff you put on roses to make them grow?' Put out because she'd been interrupted in her usual Saturday morning preparations, Nola's response was: Super Impose. It wasn't until Esme told her a couple of days later that when she'd gone to the garden centre, staff there said they'd never heard of Super Impose for roses. Nola then realized that she'd had horses on-the-brain, it being Saturday and all, and should have said Sudden Impact, apparently a specially formulated fertilizer for roses!
We didn't see much of Esme, she was off regaling folk in one of the other pools.
We received an email this evening from our very good friend Robin in response to an we sent him lamenting our lack of fishing prowess and suggesting that perhaps a hand grenade might be in order if we are to achieve our aim of 'catching' dinner. Robin's response is worth publishing!
"Ah, great minds obviously think alike - as if we didn't know. I tried to post something on your blog advising about the wonderful fishing properties there are in a very small lump of gelignite carefully place in blue-tack. But my ineptitude with blog postings resulted in my carefully considered fishing tips going the way of so many really constructive, imaginative and utterly brilliant ideas, up the chimney without trace."
So that's how it's done! Anyone else got any creative fish-catching ideas?
Yes, we've changed our minds again! Yesterday we decided we really should make the effort to visit Moree and environs despite having said a week ago that we wouldn't, just in case it is a few years before we head that way again. We will be home in (about) a week so this morning we left Nambucca Heads to head inland to Inverell for our first night's stay in the area before heading on to Moree tomorrow. And what a day of contrasting scenery it's been!
As we left behind the lush greenery of the many trees, bushes, flora whose botanical names escape us, the ocean, rivers, lagoons and lakes of the the coast and the hinterlands behind the Coffs Coast, we were greeted by a profusion of colour of different sorts as we drove into dense rain forest along the Gwyder Highway lined with tall palms, huge orange gums, bright yellow and silver wattle and stringybark trees, all followed by the alpine grasses of the farming country around the New England region. Today saw us travel from sea level to 1068mtres above at the highest point over the Gibaltar Range National Park with its very deep, beautiful valleys and giant granite boulders. We passed through the Mann Valley which was absolutely wonderful but because of the the steep, winding road were unable to capture any good photographs. On cruising into the New England farming countryside we were again greeted with colour though with a winter-tinge still quite evident, something we really noticed because there was such a Spring-feel on the coast. The small selection of photos below don't really do the day justice but you may get some idea of our experiences.
We're camped the night in the Fossickers' Rest Tourist Park, in Inverell. It is a small town, with a population of 10,000, on the picturesque Macintyre River and we have just discovered that Inverell is called the 'Sapphire City' because of the prevalence of the gems and minerals to be found in the district. (In the office at the caravan park there are 10kg bags of 'sapphire' gravel for sale - and T. is sooooo....... tempted! It'd be good for a giggle anyway, and you never know your luck do you!!)
Two nights ago we had a delicious dinner of an over-sized blackfish, grilled a la natural on our hotplate, unadulterated by herbs or spices, and as fresh as it possibly can be. Who said we couldn't feed ourselves?
Having said that, the fishing hasn't been quite as brilliant as we'd envisaged. Despite the best fishing advice from our fishing-legend brother-in-law Terry, who has been known to catch enough fish to feed the multitudes using a bent pin and a piece of string, we've not had the pleasure of those much anticipated, longed-awaited fish dinners each night, despite the smorgasbord of bait we've been feeding the fish. We've got a range of venues to choose from by way of a breakwater, pontoon, river and lagoon, all without any reel (pardon the pun!) success. That's not to say, we haven't actually caught fish - we most certainly have. However instead of being fingertip to elbow in size, it's been more like fingertip to palm, so of course they've been sent back to their mothers! Those cans of sardines in the pantry are going to come into use after all!
The Excuses:
Tide: too high; too low; too late; too early; too fast; too slow.
Bait: Long green weed (supposed to send (black)fish 'wild' definitely sent them (into the) wild); cabbage weed; beef strips; chicken strips; bait prawns, and 4 new bright, shiny lures, (designed we were told to catch just about anything), 2 of which have found watery graves somewhere in Numbucca!
Gear: Rod too long; rod too short; rod too flexible; line too light, and definitely too many tangles!!!
And today it's raining!
By the way, the fish we had for dinner the other night was given to us by an 'ancient angler', fishing about 10 metres away, who obviously took pity on a couple of 'youngsters' struggling to make a catch. His generous gesture came with the words, "I just caught this so it is perfectly fresh. They're not biting much and I've only caught this one. I can't be bothered cleaning it......... would you like it? "
Would we like it? Is the Pope catholic?
Now for that inevitable fishing joke: Did you hear the one about 2 men sitting out on a frozen lake all day ice fishing? One has been having no luck at all, while the other has been pulling fish after fish out of his hole in the ice. The man having no luck finally leans over and asks the other what his secret is.
"mmmmm mmm mm mmm mmmm mmm mmm." is the reply.
"I'm sorry, what did you say?"
"mmmmm mmm mm mmm mmmm mmm mmm." the successful fisherman repeats.
"I'm sorry, I still didn't understand you."
The man spits something into his hand and says very clearly, "You've got to keep your worms warm."
Don't let anyone tell that this Grey Nomad stuff is relaxing! We've been so busy we need a holiday! We were delighted to have spent the past week and half visiting friends and family in Bundaberg, Buderim, Maroochydore, Nerang and Pottsville and whilst we've enjoyed every minute, we're exhausted! We're done visiting so now we're going fishing! Drove from Pottsville (near Murwillumbah) to Nambucca Heads yesterday and have a great camp site almost on the waterfront at the White Albatross Caravan and Camping Park. The park is well away from the highway, trucks, noise and only rolling ocean and bird call in the morning to wake up to. Ah..... peace and quite at last!!!! Will post some photos of the area later.
Our kilometres to date: 5,321 (not bad for 4 weeks huh!)
lieve it or not but there was certainly no koala in the tree that day (and as it was Saturday the Tourist Information Office was closed, which may or may not have had something to do with it!!). However, we woke on Sunday morning to find a koala in the tree near our van but by the time T. got the camera up and running, it had disappeared! We decided that if we were going to see real, live koalas the best place would be the local wildlife park, which we did. (See below for 'Bureaucracy Gone Mad' for an interesting event at the park early in 2010.)
There's not much in Coolah by way of you must visit but there are 2 pubs, an IGA which sells absolutely everything, a hairdresser, a few 'specialty' shops and a couple of dogs sleeping on the footpath. We had good steak dinner with D. & D. at one of the pubs and a celebratory drink or two having finally got together after not seeing each other for nearly 5 years.
