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.

Towns To Stay In Longer

I picked up the latest edition of Caravan and Motorhome On Tour magazine today. The front cover tells us that the contents include Australia’s Top 20 Towns To Stay In Longer.

I would like to add another to the list, since Mount Gambier (our last stopover) was already included. Let’s make Warrnambool, Victoria No 21 on the list. And I am sure there are plenty more that could be considered. I expect to discover many of them in my travels.

So why include Warrnambool on that list?

It is obviously a popular spot during the warmer months with it beaches and water activities, both in and near the town.

Tower Hill

We had a quick drive through Tower Hill Game Reserve yesterday and despite the occasional shower and cold weather we discovered a wonderful whole new world inside the crater of a dormant volcano. It has been restored to natural bushland, based on the paintings of an early visitor, before the area was devastated during the rabbit plague era. There are still rabbits in the area, but now controlled to allow the natural vegetation to flourish.

The yellow wattles at this time are brilliant and a mass of colour. We saw kangaroos, emus, ducks, finches, wrens, crows, magpies and many more birds who use this haven as their home.

This panorama show the Tower Hill Reserve from a lookout on the edge of the road to Koroit.

(click the picture to enlarge)

Inside the Reserve we met this kangaroo who was content to keep munching on his grass despite our presence in his territory.

We stopped alongside this little fellow and sat watching as he continued to pull out mouthful after mouthful of grass from the side of the road. He did not even move or seem concerned when we got out of the car for this photo.

While we were watching him we also saw some finches (probably firetail finches judging from the colour that we could see) that flitted in and out of the reeds at the side of the lake.

In this spot we could hear blue wrens but they stayed out of sight, unlike those near the information centre.

Also near the information centre we managed to see a couple of Koala high in the top of one of the gum trees that they are allowed to climb. We presumed that they are prevented from climbing some trees with plastic skirts around the base to allow them to recover and not be eaten out by the koalas.

The two that we saw were busy reaching out to pick gum leaves to eat. Since they were high in the treetops the pictures taken were not brilliant, but it was good to see koalas in their natural environment.

Tower Hill is a definite revisit place when we make the return trip when we have more time, and maybe even before we move on in a couple of days.

On good reason to stay in Warrnambool for a few extra days.

Flagstaff Hill and Shipwrecked!

The information Centre at Warrnambool is next to the Flagstaff Hill Village, a recreation of a typical port on the coasts of Australia in the 1870s. The replica buildings and cobblestone streets give an impression of life in those times. The village is also the home for relics and survivors of shipwrecks along this part of the Southern Victorian Coast. Most notable is the Lochard Peacock whose story is told in the interactive Shipwrecked! laser show each evening.

Last night was a perfect night to view Shipwrecked with the cold weather and threatening storm. A perfect atmosphere for learning the story of the Lochard and the rescue of  just 2 people, and the Peacock. This highly recommended for your stay in Warrnambool, and is another good reason to stay longer, because there are many things not mentioned in this post that you can also do.

Check out the list below for some options.

Visiting the First Big Thing

After making an early start, and with good driving conditions on the freeway, through Tailem Bend, alongside Lake Albert, then a quick stop at Meningie, lunch at Salt Creek.

Coorong Mullet and a Steak Sandwich, as anticipated, were on the menu, and enjoyed. But it seems that Marlene has moved on from the Heart Of The Coorong roadhouse, so there was no bread and apricot jam served up with the meal.

Since we were making such good time we had the opportunity to stop at one of Australia’s iconic BIG things. At KingstonSE, you can not miss Larry The Big Lobster.

Australia has several of these big tourist attractions, and on our journeys we expect to see several of them and maybe write a little about them with photos.

The legend behind the Big Lobster.

Larry, as he is know by locals stands 17 metres tall, and is regarded as one of Australia’s most impressive Big Things.

He was originally planned to stand over the Tourist Centre at KingstonSE, but council or building regulations did not permit that so he now stands at the front, separate from the building.

There is some thought that Larry is much bigger than originally planned because the builder misread the blueprint, thinking that the measurements were in metres, rather than in the imperial measurement of  feet. Of course that may be one of those Urban (or in this case Rural) Myths.

On to Robe.

Just down down the road from KingstonSE is the historic old port town of Robe. The first overnight stay of our trip to Geelong is at the Lakeside Tourist and Cabin Park alongside the curiously named Lake Fellmongery. A walk down the main street of Robe is almost like a walk back in time with the well restored old stone buildings typical of port towns of the mid 1800′s.  Tomorrow it’s on to Mount Gambier, and maybe beyond.

No It’s not Stone Henge, but

Here’s a perfect spot to break your trip to or from the Flinders Ranges in South Australia.
Stone Hut is a true little town. So small that it no longer has its own shop, post office or pub. I wonder if it ever did have any of those.
It does have have a World Class, worth travelling miles for, Old Style Bakery. The pies are to die for.

Enjoy a snack or sit down to a full meal in the dining area.

And after the meal pick up a few plants at the recently opened Nursery.Have a chat with Richard

Then take stroll around the town. Many of the buildings have small plaques in front of them with snippets of historical information. The Bakery is based in the building that was once a Blacksmith shop.

So where is Stone Hut?

If you are travelling north or south on the Main North Road it lies between the towns of Laura, to the south, and Wirrabara, to the north.

Want to stay a little longer? Where to stay:

Caravan Parks:

• Laura
• Wirrabara
• Camp site in Wirrabara Forest.

Cabins:

• Stone Hut
• Laura Caravan Park

Bed and Breakfast:

• Old Brewery in Laura
• Laura Stayz.