Pt 2 - Day 32 - Albury/Wodonga

This morning I do the blog by the fire and later Glen joins me for breaky.  Such a nice change of scene and the weather is just perfect, cool in the morning and warming up to high 20's these last two days.  We are so thankful for the nice weather, as we haven't had a lot.  We get ready at a casual pace this morning, let the kids enjoy their breaky by the fire and have a last play by the river.  We aren't going very far today.  We are hoping to find another rest area, but if not, will continue on to Wangaratta where we have the car booked in for a service tomorrow.

But, after only about 120 km we head off the beaten track to look for another hidden rest stop.  It doesn't sound too attractive "Pigs Point Reserve" but, once again we are suitably impressed.  A large grassed area with a couple of camp fire spots, bins, toilets and all on the side of the Murray, just a little further up stream.  There are already a couple of vans here and we quickly meet a couple who pull in just after us.  It is always fun to compare notes with other travellers.

We decide to set up camp and go for a drive into Albury/ Wodonga.  Just another city, but I am not only hanging out for a shopping centre, I actually need one, to get photos developed, buy some clothes for the kids, stuff you just can't get at a food store.  Well, the kids are happy for the 50km drive in to town, but as for navigating in a city to find a shopping centre, then trying to shop with the whole family......what a nightmare!!!!!  We shop together for a bit then split up, but after less than 2 hours Glen and the kids are headed for the car.  Luckily I have mastered the art of "power shopping" and  I manage to have get most of the things on my list, but it is far from the enjoyable experience I was looking forward to the next time I hit a real shopping centre!!!   Hopefully Joondalup is still there when I get home!!

We get back to our camp and we there are yet more travellers who have arrived while we are away.  The kids swim once again, a very strong current so we have to watch them.  We meet more of the people camping the night and we have a look at a great little compact off-roader that our neighbours are travelling in.   Glen and I are keen to do the Gibb River in a few years so we are always discussing the best option for this trip, as our van certainly isn't suitable.

Another enjoyable night free camping, but our last for a little while I am afraid.

Pt 2 - Day 31 - Back up the mountain!!!!

Yes, can you believe it, Glen wants to go back up the mountain to see the highest town in Australia, I can hardly wait!!!!  Well, we trek back up a different road today.  The Snowy Mountain Highway takes us up to Cabramurra, the highest town in Australia, and what a trip up it is.  It is much better not having the van attached, but still!!!!  I felt pretty nauseous by the time we reached the top, an altitude of 1488m, who would want to live there????  And all can think about is the poor delivery guys with the milk and bread.  Needless to say, there wasn't much up there.  This photo below is of the kids at the lookout with the town in the background, all the houses are exactly the same with these very tilted rooves to cater for the snow of course.  

We continue down the other side of the mountain and have look at some little huts on the way.  They are dotted all through out the snowies, shelters for people caught in the snow, some of them are still used by people to camp the night.  They all have a story of their own and you can buy a map that just shows you where all the huts are throughout the mountains. 

We take a different route back over the mountain, a bit more sedate this time, I actually enjoy some of the scenery!!!!  We stop at a little town to get some supplies, it is like stepping back in time out here.  Then we head back to our little piece of paradise where the kids swim and play by the river.  Another very enjoyable evening by the open fire.  Much to the children's disgust, Glen and I shower by the light of the moon using the external shower, only one other van at this spot and they are about 100m away doing their own thing.  We don't want to move on once again, but know we have to tomorrow.

Pt 2 - Day 30 - Over the other side of the mountains to see what we can find!!!

Today we got away by about 8:30.  The weather is fine which we are very happy about as we realise we have some pretty scary ascents and more importantly "descents" ahead of us.  We wave good-bye to the beautiful Jindabyne Lake and head towards Thredbo.  We stop in for a toilet break and a heart starter.  Outside temp is 10C.  As soon as we leave Thredbo our beautifully marked roads become narrower and the lines disappear and very quickly we find ourselves in a very windy, steep ascent up the mountain.  We see a sign that says the next 70 km will take you 2 hours, and that is without a van on!!!  Great!!!!!

This is the Great Dividing Range 1530m alttitude.

 Glen notices this sign while out taking photos.  Needless to say the trip is not one I would like to repeat.  I spend most of my time with my eyes closed and we have to stop to let the brakes cool down a little.

At one stage we come across this clearing, someone's farm nestled in the middle of it all!!!  So we survive the trip.  I officially have the tightest gluts this side of the Dividing Range!!!!  We stop and have a look at the Snowy River Hydro Scheme they have going here, which provides power to a lot of the state.  We then stop at the Khancoban roadhouse and fill the tanks back with water and get some supplies and head off to find a free camp for the night.
We have this free camp, just off the beaten track, ear marked for the night, but you never really know what they are going to be like.  The beauty over here is that if you don't like one, there is another not far or a caravan park.  All the towns are so close together.  In WA if you don't like a rest area you might have to drive another 100km to the next one!!  So we pull into the Murray River reserve.  Just a paddock next to a small part of the Murray River with a beautiful old tree and a long drop, right in the middle of the paddock.  We don't set up until about 1pm and we just love it.  The kids are immediately off playing in the water, outside temp is now 28C.  They crush rocks and make paint and proceed to create some masterpieces on the washed rocks from the river bed.

After a couple of hours we drag them and away and drive 20km into the local town, "Home of the original Man from Snowy River".  We do the "Jack Riley" museum and the lookout, which is very interesting, but we are all eager to get back to our little camp and build a fire.


We are all in love with this spot.  Tonight Glen gets out our barbi and we cook tea while the kids swim.  This is their bath for the night!! We eat by the river and cook marshmallows on the fire.  Livin' the dream!!!

Pt 2 - Day 29 - Day of Rest!!

Well, this morning we lay in bed thinking we should really leave but how nice would it be to just have a day of rest and not do anything.  In the last four weeks we haven't really had a day when we haven't been sightseeing or moving, so we decide to leave the decision in the hands of the gods, if the caravan park is booked out tonight and we can't stay another night, then we move on, if not we stay.  The only worry being is that our next stretch of road it going over the Snowy Mountains and the Great Dividing Range and we are concerned about wet roads and what if it is raining when we depart tomorrow????  Tori comes back from reception with the news that we can stay in our spot another night if we wish.  Everyone is very happy and we will take the risk with the weather.

So we have a leisurely breaky and we go for a nice stroll along the path near the lake up to a big playground.  Glen continues on a bigger walk around the town and I just watch the kids playing.  It is a beautiful sunny day, thunderstorms forecast for this arvo,  but no sign of them at present.  We actually need hats and sunscreen which is a first for some time.  We head back to the van.  Cody and Shannae get changed into boardies and head to the lake to skim rocks.  Tori sits in the sun and reads her magazine, while I get lunch.  Tori and I have lunch on our own and decide today actually feels like holidays.  Before long the other two return soaked from head to toe, as you do end up when you are skimming rocks of course!!!!  The temp is not that warm but it doesn't seem to bother them.  So they head for the showers.

Glen returns from his walk and has lunch with Shannae and Cody and I go off to the shops and spend the afternoon perusing the Jindabyne shopping centre.  How nice it is to browse through all the local shops and galleries and not have to do any grocery shopping.  The place is a buzz on a Saturday afternoon, a busker plays and friends are all catching up over coffee.  The rain comes but no one seems to mind, only a few showers, so I manage to walk home without getting wet.  Glen and Cody are playing table soccer in the games room, Shannae sits in the sun doing her diary and Tori is enjoying a hot chocolate from the coffee making machine.

We have time this arvo to roast vegies and make cauliflower cheese and enjoy a very relaxing meal in the camp kitchen again tonight.  We are organised for the move now.  Water tanks are emptied, fridge relatively empty, brakes at the ready!!!!  toilet emptied, clothes cleaned and esky ready to be packed in the morning!!  Now we are ready to move on!!!

Pt 2 - Day 28 - Horse riding in the snowy mountains

Well, we are still here at Jindabyne, just not ready to leave yet.  It is still really cold, a forecast top of about 18C here today but we just love it.  I got really excited this morning and went for a run around the lake. The radio announcer on "Snow FM" tells me it is 11C at 7am this morning!!!  But it doesn't seem nearly that bad when you have such a beautiful scenery to look at on the way.

I decide that we should do some horse riding today since we are in the Snowy Mountains.  Girls are keen but the boys decide to sit this one out!!!!  I find someone that does an hour ride as we really don't know what we are doing, so I decide that one hour will probably do us.  Plus, thunder storms are forecast for this arvo, and while the sun is shining and it is a beautiful day, we have learnt this can be very short lived here at the moment.

So we saddle up and off we go.  What great fun up into the mountainous country.  I felt like the "Woman from Snowy river".  I just hoped the horses didn't get the smell of the wide open spaces and decide to take off on us.  The guy assured me that he had chosen calm horses for us even though mine was three quarter Brumby!!!  I did offer to slip her a valium just in case, but he assured me she would be fine and she was.  A most enjoyable ride.  I would love to have gone for longer.  Maybe next time!!!

This afternoon a bit of office work.  The weather sets in and Glen and I sit in the camp kitchen with our clothes drying off under the heaters and pay some bills, while the kids are in the games room playing table soccer and watching tv.  Before long, the hail sets in as well.  It just pelted down and for a few minutes it actually looked like it had snowed.  About 10min after it had finished the sun came out and everyone ventures back  out of their van to set up their little tables ready for drinks and nibbles!!!

Tonight we go out for dinner to "Clancy's" bistro.  We had a lovely meal and it was really nice to have a break from cooking in the van.  It is fine when we can go in and out of the van cooking a barbi and eating outside, however, it gets a bit tricky trying to cook and eat a hot meal with 5 of us around a small table.  So eating out is a nice change.  Thinking we should probably move on tomorrow, but we really don't want to!!!!  And do we tackle the mountains from here and head towards Wondonga or do we go back the other way to Bega and down the coast??? Decisions, decisions!!!!

Pt 2 - Day 27 - Mt Kosciuszko

What a beautiful little piece of paradise we have stumbled on here.  What was meant to be a pit stop on the way to Melbourne and a quick look at Mt Kosciusko has become one of the highlights of the trip so far.  This morning I started the day with a walk around Jindabyne Lake.  Just beautiful with the sun shining through the  clouds onto the water.

This is the view from the camp kitchen.

So today, the plan is to go and have a look at Mt Kosciusko.  It is like winter here at the moment, a forecast top of 19C and as we drive further up the mountains and into Thredbo, we discover that the top here for today is  9C.  Unbelievable!!!!!  I am feeling more and more like I am in Canada again.  Beautiful scenery, sunny days, but freezing temps!!

So the only way to get to the top is by catching a chairlift and then walking.  There is one chairlift going in summer just for this purpose.  It is a hikers paradise up here.  So we jump on that and head for the top.  Not the most secure structure in the world and I just can't wait until we get to the top.  The whole family in one chair which the kids could just slip out of at any moment.  Needless to say it is not the most enjoyable part of my day.  "Mum, don't squeeze me so tight you are hurting my tummy"  Says Cody!!!!

View of Thredbo from the top of the chair lift.

So we reach the "Eagles Nest" at the top which I think is about 1800m above sea level and the temp up here is a very warm 6.7C.  There are clouds looming on the horizon and we are warned that there is a little lightning around so we need to take care.  The chair lift will also stop if the weather gets bad.....great!!!

Anyway, it is so beautiful and we can't believe we are so close to the top.  There is a man-made path to the summit and lots of people around.  The sun is still coming out intermittently and we are all very excited being up here, it is very hard to explain what an awesome feeling it is, you feel like you are on top of the world.

So, first we head to the lookout.  We were told that it was a really easy walk to the top!!!  Well, I think the bloke we spoke to had forgotten what it was actually like as he had done it when he was a lot younger, because, although the path was good, the incline made it a bit difficult.

We reached the lookout and stopped and had some lunch,  what a magnificent view.  Glen was determined to reach the summit but the thunder around made us both a bit nervous.  We also thought a 13km round trip might be a bit much for the two little ones.  We pushed on a bit further until Cody, Shannae and I decided that a 6km round trip would do us and we turned back and headed for the Eagles Nest coffee shop!!!!  Tori and Glen decided to go on.

When we got the the top of the chairlift and went in for a nice warm drink, the girls told us that they had been warned of storms and the chairlift may be closed if we wanted to get to the bottom, great!!!  Tori and Glen are still out there.  I phone them and they are very excited as the are at the summit.

Cody, Shannae and I head for the bottom, absolutely freeze on the chair lift, but what a magnificent view.  Before long I call the other two as it has started raining and I am a bit concerned.  Well, they are walking on the grass, as the metal walk way is dangerous with the lightning, and they are getting hailed on by now!!!!

Luckily they have hooked up with a tour guide, who brings all the remaining people back down in a four wheel drive as the chairlift has been closed for a while now.  They look like drowned rats and are pretty exhausted, but on such a high as they had made it to the top.

What a great day.  The rain continues but we are just in winter mode now anyway, we want to see the memorial for the landslide that occurred in 1997, as this has been on our mind since we arrived.  We stand in the place where 18 people lost their lives, a somber feeling.  Not much information can be found about the landslide which surprises us.  Not good publicity I suppose.  Anyway, a beautiful drive back to Jindabyne.

Pt 2 - Day 26 - Jindabyne - The Snowy Mountains

This morning we had planned to move on from Canberra.  We weren't really ready as we wanted to go back to the war memorial and Glen was keen to go to the Australia Institute of Sport, however, we have a bit of a time limit now as we need to be in Melbourne by the 16th Februrary and I'm not too excited about this caravan park, so happy to go to a new one.

First thing we need to do this morning is another trip to the orthodontist, this time I am determined to get a new wire put in Tori's bottom jaw as it has become too short and giving her grief.  Glen has a fight with "ken" our nav man and doesn't make it to the Australian Institute of Sport, he has the van on as well which make things even more difficult, but it all works out, as Tori and I are finished by 10:30, so we are ready to hit the road again

We drive out of Canberra, the Monaro Highway is great and it is a very scenic drive to Jindabyne.  The road becomes a bit more windy as we get closer to the Snowy Mountain.  What a beautiful spot.  We check into our caravan park which is right on the Jindabyne lake.  Our caravan park is awesome, clean ablutions, a games room for the kids and a playground, and ducks on the lake.  I think I could stay here for a couple of weeks.   It is freezing cold though, I don't think it got much above 19C today.

The scene looking over the lake reminds me of the lakes in Canada, the altitude is so high that the clouds sit on top of the mountains and when I go to get groceries I am amazed by the ski shops, I feel like we are in another country and am just waiting for it to snow.

We have a very new camp kitchen just behind our van and it is very relaxing looking over the lake while Glen cooks tea.