Peace and quiet in the middle of the city.

The previous post gave the impression that for someone visiting Sydney could be in for a stressful time, especially when driving in the busy traffic for the first time.

We are staying at the Lane Cove River Tourist Park which is located on the edge of the Lane Cove National Park. Leading from the caravan park is a walkway, down a series of roughly made steps, that takes visitors into the National Park and the walking paths and recreation areas alongside the Lane Cove River.

On a short walk through the park the thing that struck me most was the peace and quiet that could be found so close to the city. The park is about 15kms out of the city, but while walking through there is no sound or indication that we were so close to the busy city. And when the wind is in the right direction the flight path for the planes going into and out of the airport do not pass overhead.

Lane Cove River National Park

The photos below were taken during a short stroll in the park, and we will be making a return visit to enjoy the serenity.

Driving On Busy Roads

After months of travelling on quiet country roads with the occasional freeway driving, it came as a bit of a shock to hit the hustle and bustle of city driving that comes with being in Sydney.

We have moved from the central region of NSW, through Wagga Wagga, Goulburn and down the Hume Highway/Freeway to Sydney. Our destination in Sydney was Lane Cove River Tourist Park, at North Ryde, just 14kms from the CBD. Thankfully when I asked the best way to get there I was told to use the Western Link (M7) and M2 Toll roads, since that would cut out a lot of stop/start driving on busy streets. That turned out to true, and my experience driving the Landcruiser on some of the roads is proving to be very challenging, especially when the roads we are travelling on are unknown, and there seem to be hundreds of signs to read and comprehend.

A Quiet Park

Despite being so close to the city, and near some high rise office and business headquarters the Lane Cover River Tourist Park is quiet with very pleasant surroundings. The site on which we have set up is private, with trees and shelter. It is a site that has to have the van backed into it, and there’s not a lot of room to swing into it. With the help of another camper, we managed to site the van well.

Soon after we arrived we were visited by a couple of Brush Turkeys, who visit quite regularly as they wander the park scratching the bark for the goodies they want to eat. The Noisy Miners, however, don’t seem to appreciate them as they are often seen  annoying the Brush Turkeys. So much so that I saw one of the turkeys fly over a neighbour’s caravan and slide down their awning in an effort to escape the Noisy Miner.

The park has many tall trees, and with this being spring several have magnificent flowers. It is amazing to see many species that I have heard about but not seen growing in their natural environment.

On the first night, I heard a rustling sound in the annexe, and discovered that a Brush Tailed Possum had found the vegetable peelings that were inside a bag left outside, and not yet taken to the bin. He sat and watched me for a while, but decided that by the time I got the camera ready he should be on his way out of there. Obviously the possum doesn’t know that we are not supposed to feed him!

An Extended Stay

With so many things to do and a pleasant environment at a very reasonable cost, we have decided to stay for 2 weeks at this park, before we move on to another, or find some low cost/free camping near the northern outskirts of Sydney where we have a house sit planned in about 4 weeks time.

Tomorrow is looking to be a day of discovery as we are driven around by our son and his partner. Since they live in inner Sydney, hopefully they can get us to some places that we might have missed without their background knowledge.

Building A Washing Machine.

After a few days of free camping there will come a time when there are some clothes that need to be washed. You could go down to the creek and do what some of our ancestors might have done and washed the clothes in the water, beating them on the rocks and rinsing.

But there are other options now that can be used. Just a couple of examples are:

• Buy a bucket, fill it with water, detergent and the dirty clothes. Then put it in your vehicle while you drive to your next location. The agitation as you are driving will help to wash the clothes. Just take them out, rinse and hang out to dry when you arrive.
• Buy a purpose built hand operated tumbling washing machine from your camping supplies store.

While we were camped at Oxley, Victoria, we met a couple who had another option, so we bought the materials required and built our own machine.

Materials Required:

• Large bucket (20l approx)
• Large plastic funnel
• Broom handle
• Screws

Agitator Construction Procedure:

Cut several large holes in the sides of the funnel.

Cut the end of the spout of the funnel where the diameter is the same as the broom handle.

Attach the funnel to the broom handle with screws.

How to use:

Add water to the large bucket, add the clothes and detergent. Agitate the clothes by pushing up and down with the agitator.

When done, rinse the clothes, hand wring and hang out to dry.

Next Project? A Spin Dryer?

What is needed now is a method for wringing most of the water from the clothes to shorten the drying time. The hand wringing method works OK, but I am hoping to find something better.

I have considered a string bag on a long rope to twirl around, but any other suggestions would be handy.

Catching Up

The past week has been busy visiting some of the sites important in the story of the Kelly Outbreak in North East Victoria and into Jerilderie in New South Wales. I did promise to post more about that, but will leave that for later.

While we were free camping at Oxley, near Wangaratta in Victoria, the reception for the modem was a little patchy, so things have got a little bit behind. We have also travelled significant distances in the past couple of days, and there have been lots of photographs to process, which has also delayed the publishing of posts.

So for this post I will include a couple of maps to show the route taken over the last couple of days, with a photo or two.

Oxley to Jerilderie:

On the way to Jerilderie

Jerilderie To Ariah Park

Where is Ariah Park? Never heard of it? Neither had I until today. We found this place in the Bible for Free Campers, Camps 6. It’s not strictly Free Camping for us, because we chose to connect to the available power and water. However this community has decided to attract visitors by keeping the costs down, and also offer Free (with a small donation) to campers who want to be self sufficient.

There are several things to check out in Ariah Park, and day trips to Wagga, Junee and some other towns are also possible.

Starting The Checklist

One of the major aims of the current Grey Nomad trip is to spend some time visiting landmarks that featured in the historical events that were called the Kelly Outbreak in North Eastern Victoria in the late 1870′s and 1880.

We have completed the journey from Bendigo into Kelly country and have based ourselves at Oxley, where the Recreation Reserve is proving to be a very relaxing site.

A herd of about 40 cattle greeted us for the evening meal, and breakfast the next morning. The sound of the small birds that flit around near the caravan is very pleasant and contrast to the screeching of the Sulphur Crested Cockatoos. A little walk around the reserve also rewarded us with sights of Blue Wrens, Spoonbills, Egrets, Ducks and Kookaburras, among other birds.

From Bendigo To Kelly Country

Click the Map to see the route that we took to get to Kelly Country from Bendigo.

First Leg: To Rushworth.

We travelled over this route on our quick round trip to Shepparton and Echuca, and I wanted to go back to see if Rushworth had retained the title that I gave it on the first visit. The Town Where Time Stood Still.

We arrived in Rushworth at approximately 10:30am, and the clock on the Rotunda/War Memorial said 9:30, so yes the title still is true. It seems that someone forgot to adjust the clock for Daylight Saving.

Rushworth really is a town where time has stood still, as some of its buildings still have the feeling of being just as they might have been in the Gold Rush days.

In the wide main street we saw at least 3 places where you can enjoy a coffee or some take-away foods. It was a little early for us, so we had to give them a miss.

On To Euroa

From Rushworth we moved through Murchison and headed to Euroa for lunch.

This town has one of the significant Kelly sites that I hope to visit, the National Bank that was held up and several people were taken as hostages, before being released after the gang left town. More about that story later.

Although the original bank that Ned Kelly and his gang held-up has been demolished, there are several other magnificent buildings and places of interest to look at on the historic walk around the town.

With the imposing Strathbogle Ranges to the east of the town this was a ideal setting for a quick lunch before heading to the next stop.

Benalla: A quick visit.

On the way through to Benalla we left the freeway to take a quick drive through Violet Town, according to the sign as you enter, the first town surveyed in Victoria.

Then it was on to Benalla for a little shopping to make sure we had supplies for the next few days. Things were looking hopeful for finding a park when we saw a sign indicating caravan parking. Unfortunately the parking spaces for caravans were not long enough for our rig, so we went on short discovery tour to find some parallel parking spaces that would be big enough. Thankfully that was not too difficult and we managed to find a spot not far from the shopping precinct.

Benalla will be worth a revisit, and not just for the Ned Kelly sites. There are 4 gardens open for visitors on Sunday.

On to Oxley

From Benalla it was back on to the Hume Freeway, were we stopped to take a look at the Mokoan Rest Area, which has a great view out over the lake and has all the facilities for an overnight stay. It would however be noisy with the constant movement of trucks in and out, and the sound of traffic on the freeway.

Just past a Service Centre (there are actually 2 of them, one on each side of the Freeway) with fuel and the obligatory Macdonald’s Restaurant is the turn off to Milawa, which is the road to take to get to the Oxley Recreation Reserve, our destination for the day.

After a quick drive around the site we decided on a spot to park the van, and for the first night we had only the herd of cattle, and the many birds mentioned earlier as company. The Recreation Reserve has a creek running through the back, with an oval (obviously not used for regular sport) and some jumps and a dressage area for the local pony clubs.

For the second night we were joined by two other groups of campers, who also got to share the company of the friendly cattle.

So Much To See And Do

A last minute decision to take the road to Bendigo, rather than another route through central Victoria,  has been rewarded with some wonderful experiences and plenty more that we could do with more time.

Gold!

Poppet Head Lookout

Bendigo is a large rural centre in Victoria, that was established during the Gold Rushes of the 1850s in Australia. It was one of several locations where gold was discovered and grew into large mining operations. The results of the wealth generated by the lucky, or resourceful miners and those who supplied materials and services to them, are to be found in lots of places around the town.

Buildings

Grand buildings, religious, civil and business, with ornate facades and balconies are all over the town.

Sacred Heart Cathedral

It is impossible to miss the Cathedral, started in the 1870′s, partly completed in the early 1900′s, and finally completed in the 1950′s to late 1970′s. It is an impressive, both inside and out, and well worth a visit.It is just one of many impressive religious buildings that are found around various parts of the city.

A visit to the Chinese Joss House, dedicated to Guan Di (Kwang Gong) is also worth a

Lion Guarding The Joss House Entrance

visit. There we found out about  the hardships that Chinese diggers endured, and their contribution to history of Bendigo. Included in the tour is a talk about the history of the building the uses of the various parts of the temple.

The Talking Tram

The main street, Pall Mall, carries a tramline that runs regular services  that have a commentary about Bendigo’s history and landmarks that it passes. This is the famous Bendigo Talking Tram. Actually there are several of different vintages.

Bendigo Talking Tram

Fortunately we rode one that had padded seats and not the hard wooden seats that we saw on another.

Mining.

The Central Deborah Goldmine has several tours available to people who want to find out more about Gold Mining, the conditions that the early miners had to endure and the tools and equipment that they used.

A Poppet Head has been relocated to the top of Camp Hill in the centre of the city, just behind the Information Centre and  Rosalind Gardens. The climb to the top is worth the effort with the spectacular views that it provides. Around the base of the Poppet Head is a series of mosiacs depicting the contributions of the many different nationalities who build the city to what it is is today, along with indications of the huge role played by gold.

Melbourne Zoo Butterfly House

This post is a little late due to power problems for the laptop, and so many other interesting things to see and do while we are starting out on our Free Camping experiences.

Before we left Melbourne we enjoyed 2 visits to the Zoo, and the Butterfly House in particular.

The bright colours of some butterflies are spectacular and the thrill of having one land on your head, hand or back is something to look forward to. Although there are some people who seem to shudder at the approach of a butterfly.

Some camera-shy butterflies also like to land on the camera, making it very difficult to take their photo.

To see just a few examples of the photos taken click the photo of the Orange Butterfly on Joy’s back. Or click here.

Free Camping.

After completing our stay near Melbourne we have moved north, and found a delightful camping spot just out of Bendigo. It means that we have been off the electricity grid, and the learning curve for Free Camping has been re-invigorated.

One factor that we have been struggling with is the lack of power for recharging things like the laptop, the modem, my iPhone, etc. The cloudy weather has not helped, although it is surprising just how much recharging of the caravan battery can be achieved with just a short burst of sunshine.

Battery Problems.

Things were not helped when we discovered on the first night at the free campsite that the battery was not powering even the lights, and especially not the water pump. A night spent reading by candlelight was our re-introduction to life off the grid. That was solved when I bought a new battery. Since then we have saved enough money from not paying caravan park fees to pay for the new battery.

Recharging Appliances.

The modern Grey Nomad lifestyle almost requires that there will be a range of appliances that will have batteries that need recharging. The laptop that I am using to write this post, has been idle for a few days while we worked out the best way to organise ways to recharge it. I almost ran the battery right down on the iPhone, which is not a smart thing to do.

New Friends and Old.

The atmosphere at this free camping site is a lot more friendly than that in caravan parks, as everyone tends to spend some time sharing experiences and plans with each other. It is a time to pick up  few more hints and discover new places to visit and stay at.

You meet some interesting new people, such as Pat and Dave with their 3 dogs, who were waiting to move on after the sad experience of have to part with a fourth dog whose age and illness meant that she could not complete this trip.

And then just when it looked like we were going to have the site to ourselves tonight, who should arrive but a couple that we knew several years ago when we were working as volunteers on a community playground construction project. Australia is a big country, and it is surprising to be able to reconnect with people such a long way from home base.

Werribee Open Range Zoo.

Actually, we’ve already been to the Zoo, and here are the photos.

There’s not much need for words. Most photos are from the guided bus tour of the Open Range sections of the Zoo.

My First Snow.

The weather forecast last night said that there was a potential for light snow at heights above 600m for today. A relatively short distance from where are now based is Mount Macedon, height 1000m, so we decided to head for the hills.

The weather didn’t look too much like it would provide snow, but we arrived at Mount Macedon after:

• A short detour when I missed the turnoff to the Calder Highway that would take us north, in the direction of Bendigo. I managed to get on the Calder Highway, but heading to Melbourne, and the dreaded Tollway. A short trip through some back streets and then back onto the outbound lanes of the Calder Highway and we finally heading in the right direction.
• Lunch at Gisborne. We found a great cafe that had some gluten free vegetable fritatas with salad or chips for lunch. A quick walk around part of the town then it was on to Mount Macedon.

The skies didn’t look too promising as far as providing snow, but right on cue, just after we got out the car we saw some snow flakes drifting to the ground. They didn’t hang around long but at least I saw my first snow, EVER!

We managed to get a photo with some snowflakes on Joy’s jacket before they melted.

Can you see them?

To help you out I have indicated a couple of snowflakes with arrows. You might even be able to see more.

The next photo shows snowflakes falling. Once again you have to look hard, and you might just be able to see the white streaks as the snow falls from left to right.

You may need to click the photo to enlarge it to see the trails made by the snow as it falls.

The Camels Hump

The highest point in the Macedon Regional Park is not actually Mount Macedon, but The Camels Hump, a rocky volcanic outcrop that is about 10m higher.

After a short 10 minute walk, up quite a steep path, there is a lookout that provides breathtaking view of the surrounding countryside. Set among the Snow Gums that exist in this cold, windy and wet environment, the lookout also has a plate pointing  out the directions to nearby locations, including another well know rocky outcrop, Hanging Rock.

The walk also takes you past many different birds and interesting understorey plants, mosses and fungi.

 The Return Journey

Rather than retrace the path that we took to get to Mount Macedon we chose the alternative route through Gisborne and Bacchus Marsh to return to Werribee South. The chocolate box pictures that we could have taken on this particular drive were also quite inspiring, especially as this winter has provided plenty of water that is still lying around in the paddocks, which are also still a bright green. Along with the bright yellow of the wattle trees and the canola crops the scenery is brilliant.