Saturday, 16th November 2013 - To Beltana Station … Day 185 of our ‘Around Oz Trip’
Up around 7.30 and have a shower and the hot water service is working fine. Geoff then pulled the microwave out as he wanted to put longer screws in to make it more secure. After a couple of moths the screws that hold it in start to loosen up so we have to keep an eye on it. The microwave also seems to be behaving itself so it must have gone into some strange mode when the genny spat the dummy. We will keep out fingers crossed.
We received an email this morning from the Liz at the Clarence Valley Council who had received a PDF copy of our Clarence River article which had been passed on to her from the Yamba Maritime Museum. This is what she wrote
Dear Geoff and Maz
The Yamba Historical Society passed on your published article about your experience’s on the Clarence River.
Receiving the article made my day! Your article is vindication that the hard work council’s been putting into destination development and implementing the Clarence River Way Masterplan is paying off.
You have no idea how much your feedback has lifted my spirits and reinvigorated my efforts on this project.
Thank you Liz
As you can imagine … it made our day too!!!
It was still windy last night but no rain and we eventually got going in our normal slack way and continued north more into the mountainous reaches of the Flinders Ranges. We had a quick look around Hawker and stopped to gaze towards Wilpena Pound and did some reminiscing.
We stopped at a rest area somewhere along the way and later got to the junction at the Beltana Roadhouse and the track for Beltana Station. We went a few hundred yards up the track and Geoff decided he would let the tyres down from 80 psi to 65 psi to test the theory of whether it made any difference to the ride. Even though the ride was still a little rough it certainly did smooth it out a bit and made it a little more comfortable. It was only 8km of dirt road so we were soon there and searching for Laura, the boss. We eventually found her and she told us just to find a spot and settle in, relax and she would be down later. When she did come down she said they were all going into Leigh Creek for the Christmas Pageant and invited us along. So we relaxed until 5pm when she came to pick us up. We piled into the car with Laura, Alex (another Danish backpacker) and Jake (a 16 year old)
Working on the station under a traineeship. Laura drove well over 120 kms an hour all the way, 40 odd kms, to Leigh Creek so it didn’t take long. We wandered around the few food and market stalls and looked at the couple of attractions which didn’t take long. We bought a snag in bread and later Geoff got 4 dim sims and I got Lemon Chicken and a spring Roll. Dessert was a cinnamon donut each … tch, tch! We missed the fancy dress finals, as did some of the participants as there was no ‘actual’ parade.
We also chatted to some volunteers manning the ‘Great Tracks SA’ stand. This was a volunteer organisation who went out annually in 4WD vehicles and trailers and cleaned up an iconic SA track like the Birdsville and Oodnadatta tracks. It was very interesting talking to them and we thought it would make a great article so we asked it they would mind and the answer was no, of course not. Any advertising is great. We then asked more pertinent questions and took some photos and they said they would supply photos if the article went ahead.
This took up a bit of time but there was still 2 hours to go before the fireworks display so we played a game of phone Scrabble. We had come to the pageant way too early but I think Laura wanted to catch up with all of her friends that she doesn’t get to see to often so you couldn’t blame her. Laura had also asked Geoff if he minded being the ‘designated driver’ on the way back so she could have some drinks (Bourbon and cokes). Her definition of ‘some’ drinks and ours are worlds apart and I think she was a getting a little more pickled each time we saw her. Santa was also around for the small kids and the ‘big’ kids so I got my photo taken, of course. We didn’t expect much of the firework display when it eventuated at 9.15 but were in for a pleasant surprise as they were pretty good, especially for a small, remote mining town.
Geoff drove back much more sedately than the ride in and we got back safe and sound.
Sunday, 17th November 2013 - Beltana Station, SA
Laura had told us to just relax today so we were not early getting up. She also told us we would get better internet reception if we moved down the side of the camp kitchen so this is what we did and it was so much better. I cooked bacon and eggs for brekky and then stripped the bed and got the linen into the wash and then did the clothes washing after. It is so windy here that the washing dried really quickly.
There is a herd of Alpacas here that just wander free, three working dogs and one pet and some little lambs.
Geoff fitted the new power point and replaced some damaged reflectors on the vehicle. He also went of chatting to Rod and Margaret who are originally from Johannesburg in South Africa and have been here 14 years. There are also ‘Wanderers’ and are volunteering and have been here about eight weeks so far. They have a lovely 5th wheeler.
Soon it was time for dinner … yes, you get fed lunch and dinner here for your efforts, Spaghetti Bolognaise and take your own alcohol … fair enough!
Back to the van and relax for tomorrow we work!!!
Monday, 18th November 2013 - Beltana Station
Up at 7.30, brekky and then wander up to find Laura. She asked me to help Margaret and Geoff was to work on getting her computer into shape. I cleaned the amenities whilst Margaret cleaned the ‘Shearers’ rooms (now guest accommodation). I then cleaned the camp kitchen and the camp dining room which was attached to the ‘Shearers’ quarters and Margaret came in to mop the floors. By this time my feet were really hurting so I went to the van for a cuppa and tried another pair of shoes. After a short rest we went up and finished cleaning the cottage (more guest accommodation). Lunch time, thank goodness and then it was up to the guest
Restaurant/dining hall, which was also housed in the station museum, and cleaned out the cupboard under the sink. Laura and her station help were doing the preparation for a small bus tour that were in overnight. When they had got this done we then had to kryovac a whole steer. That’s a lot of meat people!!!!! It had already been slaughtered and cut up by a butcher into slabs or steaks and we had to cut the larger slabs into workable roasts and bag up the steaks in 3/4/5 pieces into bags. There was T-bone, rump, chuck, round, gravy, ribs etc (didn’t see fillet steak though). I don’t hink I have seen so much beef, olther than in a butchers shop, at one time. Time to clean up, wash the floor and sneak away about 4.30 as my feet couldn’t take anymore and I was knackered. I relaxed with a cuppa and went on the laptop and soon it was 6pm and time for a shower and went up to the restaurant at 6.30 to see if they needed a hand. I didn’t do much and the bus group traipsed in at 7pm and were served roast beef, roast lamb, roast spuds, pumpkin, sweet potato, carrots, broccoli and gravy. Then we had ours … yum … followed by Quondong Pie and cream. We had never eaten Quondong before so this was a new experience for us. Click on the following link for more info http://www.nullarbornet.com.au/themes/quandongs.html. It was good, a little bit like the taste of raspberry/rhubarb maybe? We then helped clean up and it was back to the van with Melena for Geoff to look at her laptop as it wasn’t working. He needed her there as it was all in Danish!!! Of course, the clever bugger got it working so she is very happy.
A very tiring day and another one again tomorrow as we have to do a complete clean again!!!
Tuesday, 19th November 2013 - Beltana Station
Yep … another tiring day!
I started at 8.30 as Margaret and I had 10/11 rooms and toilets and showers to clean. This included stripping the bed linen and getting them washed and dried plus towels, cleaning the camp kitchen and dining room etc. I did the toilets and showers, Margaret stripped the beds and got washing and Melena cleaned the camp kitchen and dining room. We then all mucked in doing a little bit of everything to get it all finished by 1.30 when my feet were, once again, complaining bitterly along with my back. Up to the restaurant to make up lunch with left overs. Geoff made up a sandwich whilst I opted for the cold roast veggies.
Back to the van to take everything out of the fridge/freezer and store it in the camp kitchen on so that I could defrost our fridge which was getting to be in a bad way. Whilst it was empty Geoff took the opportunity to install the thermostat properly. It was soon defrosted and clean but was taking ages to cool down but it didn’t matter. Geoff had a snooze. Hmm … he had been sitting down doing computer work in the cool … it should have been me having a snooze!
Wednesday, 20th November 2013 - Beltana Station
Up at 8am and get to the kitchen around 8.30 only to find that everyone had started at 7.30 to bake a load of muffins, Anzac biscuits etc. I felt a bit bad but nobody told me so how was I to know. Anyway, I helped out as soon as I got there.
After lunch they said they were off to clean out a stock trough and mend waterlines and I was welcome to come along. As my back was suffering from all the cleaning of the day before I said no and said I would clean up the kitchen. As I felt guilty for not going with them I gave the kitchen a good ‘going over’ and pulled the gas cooktop apart and gave it a good scouring. I also cleaned the covers for the deep fry as well. I cleaned down all the cupboard doors and kick boards, the coffee machine, tables and chairs, freezer lids etc. Then the food delivery van arrived and everything just got chucked in the cool room so I spent a good few cold minutes in there stacking it all away. Whilst this was all happening a family arrived in a caravan so we stopped to chat and show them where they could find a spot and where everything was.
I left them with Geoff who was down at the entertainment area fixing up all the outside tables and chairs. I went back to the cool room and unpacked all the perishables and dated them. Geoff arrived for some lunch and then the floors were swept and mopped and I finished at 2pm. The girls arrived back at 3pm so I didn’t feel as if I had ‘slacked off’.
Back to the van to empty the ‘Shearers Quarters’ fridge and freezer of our stuff and stack it all back in our fridge which had, eventually, got down to a reasonable temperature. Time to relax and have a shower and get ready for dinner up at the Woolshed. BBQ and salad again as Laura was only cooking for workers and no guests.
Thursday, 21st November 2013 - Beltana Station
A cooler and more cloudy day with the chance of rain, maybe!
I was ready for work at 8.30 and checked the amenities on the way up to the homestead.
I caught up with Laura and she showed me what she needed doing on the computer. I had to do five little spiels of 50 words each on each aspect of the tourism side of her business, such as 4WDriving, Camel Treks, the Saltbush Café, Woolshed Museum, Accommodation and a spiel on Laura and Graham themselves. These were for a website called ‘Stationstays’. I found it quite hard compacting something appealing into 50 words but hopefully I achieved the results she wanted. She has a myriad of other office jobs she wants me to tackle as well, once all the computer work is done so I am as happy as a ‘Pig in Poop’!
At midday Laura called all of us girls together and drove us into Leigh Creek, 40 kms away, for shopping and lunch at the pub. I chose the cheapest meal on the menu which was a mixed platter of mini dims sim, spring rolls, crumbed calamari, chicken nuggets and wedges. When it came out it was massive and Margaret said she thought she had read it was a shared platter. There was no way I could eat it all so it got ‘shared’. I washed it down with a lemon, lime and bitters and then grabbed Geoff a six pack of beer and then it was on to the supermarket. I didn’t buy much as I didn’t need much as we have only been supplying our own breakfast. Then it was back to the station to do a bit more computer work.
Geoff had been busy fixing all the outside tables and chairs and oiling them and they are now sturdy again and look good.
We both finished about 4pm and relaxed with a cuppa for me and a snoozette for Geoff. Wyn rang just as I was cleaning my teeth so I handed him over to Geoff whilst I finished off. Up to the Woolshed for dinner again. Still windy and still looks like rain but nothing seems to come our way.
Friday, 23rd November 2013 - Beltana Station
Up at the homestead at 8.30 to do some more computer work. Geoff also needed to go on their computer so I took my laptop with me and used that. Today I had to write a 500 word article for an ‘online’ 4WD magazine so this took a little researching on Laura’s computer. All the details were on the computer, it was just finding them. Eventually I had the article ‘nutted’ out but it was 585 words not 500, still that should be ok. The third task was going on her Accommodation program, Front Desk’ and update the information in it and make it more appealing. Laura thought I could do it better than her as I was looking at Beltana Station through new and tourist eyes. First I had to find my way around the program and, after a couple of false starts, started on this. This time I have to shrink some of the photos to a certain size so on Monday I will have to put ‘Photo Razor’ on for her or I can select them and put them on a memory stick and then Geoff can manipulate them to the exact size I need.
We stopped for lunch and Geoff went off to start painting one of the rooms that Rod had been working on. The ceiling had fallen down during high winds and he had been fixing. How he managed it on his own is beyond me, but manage it … he did!
I finished around 4pm, grabbed Geoff and we went back to the van for a shower, a cuppa and to relax before dinner. Laura was a little ‘happy’ at dinner. She would be the first to admit she likes a drink or two, or three! I finished at 4pm and went down to have a shower and relax.
Saturday, 23rd November 2013 - Beltana Station
As it was Saturday we had a bit of a lie in. I popped up to the office and put in a couple of hours but that was all. Geoff did a little more of the painting.
After lunch I nutted out a draft of an article I want to submit on Beltana Station. Only 1605 words as the RV magazine we write for stipulates 1200 - 1600 words (whoops, I am five words over). I need to pass it by Laura to make sure everything is accurate and there are no glaring errors. I know some of the 4WD info is a bit out of date so she can edit that for me, hopefully, as she is a very busy woman.
Geoff and I then went into the dining room of the ‘Shearers Quarters’ to play Carcassonne as there was a very large table there. We thought it would be nice to be able to spread out this time. Blow me down, I actually won! Rod found us in there and was intrigued with the game so we, very quickly, ran him through the basic rules.
Geoff then borrowed his multi purpose tool so he could cut a hole in wasted space near the entry step and make an enclosed section to keep a pair of shoes each. He needs hinges etc. to finish it off so that will be a job he can do at John’s in Adelaide.
Geoff then borrowed his multi purpose tool so he could cut a hole in wasted space near the entry step and make an enclosed section to keep a pair of shoes each. He needs hinges etc. to finish it off so that will be a job he can do at John’s in Adelaide.
Up to dinner and it was BBQ again. Geoff is hanging out for a bit of chicken or fish but he will have to wait. A nice dessert of cheesecake, strawberries and ice cream, yum!
Sunday, 24th November 2013 - Beltana Station
A lovely lay in as it is a definite no work day for us volunteers. Bacon and eggs, of course.
After brekky Geoff got the scooter down and it was slip, slop, slap and we were off exploring. We only travelled a further three kilometres past Beltana on a reasonable dirt track to the historic town of old Beltana. The town was born in 1870 when copper mining started up in the area. It became a thriving outback hub when the Port Augusta to Darwin Telegraph Service was put through and also the Port Augusta to Darwin rail link was constructed. It became a semi-ghost town when the road was re-aligned in 1983 via Leigh Creek, as was the rail. Beltana was no longer needed and today it has many ruins, some restored buildings and some are now private residences. The private residences include the old railway station, the school and the hotel to name a few. It had a lot of very informative interpretations signs outside of various buildings and places of interest and it was very interesting and we thoroughly enjoyed it. Of course, we did the customary tour through the local cemetery which we always find fascinating. For more information click on the following link … http://www.southaustralianhistory.com.au/beltana.htm
Soon we were back at the homestead looking for some lunch and it was time to relax for the rest of the day. I wrote up my journal and did some washing whilst Geoff had a nano-nap.
Monday, 25th November 2013 - Beltana Station
Back into the fun and games of trying to sort out my Centrelink and Job provider stuff … roll on next May! Still have to try to get a medical certificate before the 16th December so will have to arrange a doctor’s appointment.
We were up early today to feed the lambs at 7am. There are about a dozen of them and there is a little black one and a slightly bigger one with brown round its eyes that are not doing so well so we made sure they got a good feed this morning, fingers crossed that they make it. It was funny watching the bigger ones clambering all over Geoff to get to the bottle. We only have one teat and bottle and have to do them one at a time, so it takes about 30 minutes to get them all done. I made up the formula as Geoff fed them and soon the bulk of them were satiated and we could concentrate on the ones that were a bit poorly.
Once this was all done, Geoff went off to paint and I went back to the office to continue working on the Accommodation program. I have a lot of information and photos to enter and it takes quite a while.
At 11am I met up with Geoff again and we went through the whole rigmarole of feeding the lambs again. The two small ones seemed to have picked up from this morning so we are quite hopeful they will pull through.
Back to the office where I worked until 2pm and them went back to the van to wash our smelly lamb’s poo clothes. We also had dinner in the van tonight as Geoff was hanging out for some rice and chicken so we had curry, which was a nice change. We still went up and helped out after tea as there were over 30 guests eating at the café/restaurant. Many hands make light work, so they say!
Tuesday, 26th November 2013 - Beltana
Up early to help out Margaret as there were 11 rooms, amenities, kitchen and dining room to clean plus linen for all the rooms. So we stripped the beds and got the washing going, dusted the rooms, vacced, re-made beds etc. Margaret wouldn’t let me make beds as I stuffed my back last time so I, basically, hung washing and ironed the pillow slips when they were dry. We both did the toilets and showers and Lisa did the kitchen and lounge/dining. Lunch at 12.30 and then I left Margaret to finish off as she mainly had the towels to wash, dry and put back in the rooms. I went up to the office to do more computer work and finished around 3pm. Geoff spent the time painting and feeding the lambs.
Later we went up to join the others at the pool. It was nice and refreshing. We then relaxed until dinner of Beef Schnitzel which was very nice and was followed by Quandong Pie and Cream.
Wednesday, 27th November 2013 - Beltana Station
Up to the office again at 8.30 to continue updating Laura’s Accommodation pr0gram. It is slow going as the internet drops out a lot plus I have to resize every photo I upload. I had to also remember to move the sprinkler every 45 minutes so I put it in my phone alarm as I can get very engrossed when doing computer stuff.
At 11am I went over and helped Geoff feed the lambs and we are now right out of formula so I hope Laura is getting some more today.
Geoff then finished the painting, apart from a couple of touch up jobs. I worked till 2pm when we both said we had had enough. The temperate was around 39º today and it really knocks you about. As I walked back to the van I took a lot more photos for tomorrow and then it was a refreshing shower, change and relax.
Not much to report. Same things need to be done each day so there’s not much to write home about … sorry!
Thursday, 28th December 2013 - Beltana Station
Today was virtually a re-make of yesterday! Computer work for me and Geoff is still sorting out the Beltana Unit after Rod replaced the ceiling when it fell down in high winds. He is now trying to get the Vast Sat TV system working. Malena, Alex, Jake and Laura left at 8am this morning. Malena and Alex are off to their next volunteering experience, this time harvesting oranges at Loxton on the SA Riverland. By pure coincidence, Laura was taking the trainee, Jake, back to Loxton for the weekend so he could visit his parents. This meant that two birds were killed with one stone. Malena and Alex were trying to work out the logistics of getting from here to Loxton so it has all worked out well. Geoff and I are now left in charge of the lambs for the weekend. ,
Geoff helped Rod out this morning as he was cementing in the poles for the new swimming pool pergola.
Margaret, Rod’s partner, is still making me feel very ill at ease. Her demeanour is very unwelcoming and I think she is a bit ’territorial’. I normally take to anyone, but not this time. Although I have enjoyed my Beltana experience, Margaret has put a bit of a downer on it for me! But I will get over it!
BBQ steak and salad again for tea. It gets a tad tedious when you don’t really like steak very much. Salads are good.
Friday 29th November 2013 - Who knows? I forgot to write it up but probably more of the same!
Saturday, 30th November 2013
Up early to feed the lambkins. Geoff had to enlarge some of the holes on the teats as the lambs were not able to get much out of three of them. A lot of the lambs are now able to feed from the new five teat feeder box so that cuts the time down quite considerably. We still have to feed Betty, the little black one, and Cleo (brown eyes) by hand and also have to ensure that two of the smaller lambs get their fair share from the feeder as the bigger ones can get a bit pushy and take all the feed.
Back for brekky and I then went back to finish of the input into Laura’s accommodation program. Just an hours work to finish it all off, on the way back to the van I popped into the Beltana Unit and polished all of the furniture so it is now ready to go. Started doing a big clean of the van, which it really needed, and then it was 11am and time to feed the lambs again. Coffee in the café on the way back down and then continue on with the cleaning whilst Geoff helped Rod with the pergola, putting up the cross beams etc. I popped up to take the normal photos and back to the van to keep cleaning, sort out my winter clothes from my wardrobe and store them under the bed and put the bed linen in to wash. I then thoroughly cleaned the oven, pulled the leather lounge chairs apart and gave them a good nourish with a leather conditioner/polish and they now look really good. We fed the lambs again at 4pm and Cleo has learnt to use the feeder so we only have to had feed Betty now. More cleaning and, by the end of the day, my back was really protesting so I think I may have overdone it a bit. My back also plays up when I get on and off the scooter a lot and we have been using it constantly. From the van to the lambs is 350 metres and we were getting fed up with all the walking back and forth so we decided to do it the easy way. I have also been using my electric bike a lot around the place too.
Shower, change and up to dinner of roast chook, roast vegies which made a really nice change. Tea was half an hour late so, by the time we had eaten, it was time for the last, 8pm feed for the lambs.
Sunday, 1st December 2013 - Beltana Station, Flinders Ranges, South Australia (Day 195 of our around Oz Trip)
It’s the first of the month today … so rabbits.
It’s the first of the month today … so rabbits.
Up early to feed the lambs at 7am. We only have to feed one lamb now, Betty, the black one as Cleo (Brown eyes) has learnt to use the feeder. Although, she still wants to be hand fed and just loves human company. Cleo is not yet big enough to push herself forward and grab the feeder teat so all we have to do is make sure she gets on after all the big ones have had their fill.
Back to bacon and eggs and to do a load of washing whilst Geoff fiddled around with things on the outside of the van. He says the 9kg gas ‘swap and go’ cylinder is leaking slightly and he needs a hose that has a rubber ring seal on it.
Before we knew it 11am had come around and it was time to feed the lambs again. On the way back we popped into the unit Geoff had painted to take a photo of his work.
Monday, 2nd December 2013 - Overnight at the Woolshed Flats, Quorn South
A warm night last night so not restful even with both fans on. Up at 8am and slowly pack everything away. Then it was time to shower, empty the black water, fill up with fresh and top up the diesel. Graham had insisted we fill up our diesel tank before we went which was really nice of him and saved us about $60. We said goodbye to Laura and Graham, shouted goodbye to Lisa, stopped to say goodbye to Rod and Margaret and then we were off.
We took it easy on the 8kms of dirt road back to the bitumen where we stopped to re-inflate the tyres back up to 80psi per tyre. The compressor got really hot and blew a 35 amp fuse twice as Geoff was working on the last two tyres (we have 6). The problem is that, although we bought a good tyre compressor, the instructions stipulate a continuous run time of no more than 30 minutes. I don’t think we had been using it that long but the day was extremely hot (41ºC in the shade, we found out later) so it heated up much more quickly. After we let it cool down Geoff finished pumping up the last two tyres and we headed off.
We stopped for lunch just north of Hawker and then detoured slightly to have a look around the town. We bought bread and mailed a letter and continued on. Our next stop was Quorn which was also just off the highway and we decided to treat ourselves to a milk shake. Quorn is a quaint, old town and very appealing, apart from the summer heat.
We saw a place called Emily’s Bistro and though this was a god place as any to grab a milkshake. What a wonderful surprise awaited us as we walked in through the door. It was a café cum museum and, although re-decorated, was still in its original form when it was Fosters Emporium for 150 year ( for more information click on the following link
It closed in 2004 and stood empty for 9 years until it became Emily’s Bistro less than a year now it is an old fashioned café amidst the original Foster Emporium which still has the tellers cage and the flying fox to take the money to the teller (I remember the air ones in the Co-op shop back in the UK when I was a kid). What a little gem it was and it certainly leant itself to being photographed! We loved it!!! And, the milkshakes were good too! We chatted to Emily who gave us some historical articles to read on the closure of the emporium. We walked away from there remarking that you never know what little gems are hidden in some of these historic towns. Lovely! Geoff took a couple more photos of the town and then we were on our way again. Not far, just 18kms south to the Quorn Rest Area.
As soon as we had parked, under a nice big shady tree, it was door and windows open and the fan on. There was a nice through breeze so it didn’t take long to cool the interior of the van down, thank goodness.
Once it was cooler inside I re-arranged the overhead kitchen cupboards. What again? Yep, I keep trying different configurations to get things to fit a bit better and utilise what space is available to me. Geoff also wants to move the power point on the bench as it is hard to get to if there is something in front of it, which there always is. He also wants to put in some shelves behind the kitchen drawers to hold light things like spare foil, gladwrap and bake etc.
At 6.30 Geoff went outside to see how bad the flies were and to cook ham steak and pineapple, fried potato and baked beans on the BBQ. We were really hanging out for something other than red meat so ham steak was a nice change.
Tuesday, 3rd December 2013 - Lochiel
The wind came up during the night with lightning and thunder around. I got up to close the windows and made a bit of a noise. It was hard as I was trying to be quiet but also not put the light on. A fly screen slipped out of my fingers and rolled up with a bang and woke Geoff up so I am in the ‘bad books’ this morning. After all that the squall was over in a matter of seconds so I needn’t have bothered. But you are dammed if you do, and dammed if you don’t. I had read in the last ‘Grey Nomad Times’ of a window being blown out in a gust of wind so I thought it was better safe than sorry.
As is normal for us, we didn't hit the road till 9.30 and we wound our way down to Port Augusta. Two weeks without spending money and then ‘wham’ we’re back in civilisation and spending again. Geoff wanted to buy a gas safety gauge instead of just a hose with a rubber ring and fittings and the money soon mounted up. Never mind!
On the way back to the van Geoff found a ‘fair dinkum’ computer shop (not the Dick Smith type) so went in to see whether he could con them out of some magnets from an old hard drive. These magnets are extremely powerful and handy and his spares went down with the boat, of course. We got talking to the guy in the shop and found he was also a boatie so we chatted about sailing. The conversation got round to Cape Otway and then the lighthouse and we said we had been there and that good friends had managed it for a while. He then told us that his great uncle is the ghost that haunts the lighthouse cottages. I told him that I had met, well heard really, his great uncle walking up and down the passage one night when I was down there with my brother in law, Steve, and niece Brea. I thought it was Steve walking up and down and he thought it was me so the only conclusion we could come up with was that it was the resident ghost. I posted on Brea’s Facebook page asking her if she remembered and she did, very much so! Interesting. I must tell Bob and Kay and see what they think!
Back to the van and continue on to Lochiel to park behind the community hall and go to the local hotel close by for another pizza. I spent $2 on the pokies and Geoff spent $1. After playing for a short while (we find it a bit boring) we walked away with the money still in our pockets. Back to the van in the rain … yes … the weather has changed, and play a game of Farkle which I won! Amazing!!!
Wednesday, 4th December 2013 - Maitland overnight
From the ridiculous to the sublime. One day we are experiencing 41ºc and then today it is around 22º . Brrrr!!! I have just put all my warm clothes away.
Once again we didn’t get going early. We decided to take the road inland from Lochiel to the Yorke Peninsular
But it wasn’t long before we stopped at the lookout to take a photo of the salt lake below. Not a brilliant photo but good enough. Apparently, salt has been mined at the nearby Lake Bumbunga salt extraction works since 1912. This time we visited Lochiel, the lake was a beautiful pink colour and the lady at the Lochiel Pub says it is different day by day depending on the weather, sun or atmospheric conditions.
On towards Kadina which was another largish town and, once again, a surprise. We parked and wandered around again and spent money, but not a lot, on bits and pieces and another gas fitting. Geoff then decided we would make a quick detour to Wallaroo to look at the marina and then to where the vehicular ferry leaves and crosses the Spencer Gulf to the Eyre Peninsular. We grabbed a price list and it looks to cost about $250 one way for a vehicle our size. We will think about it but we will probably leave it for next year. It was a pleasant spot, looking out across the sea, so we stayed to make lunch. We had two visitors while we were parked. One was a guy who owned a caravan and wanted to look at the gas fitting Geoff was fitting and the other was a guy about 65 who was a bachelor and I think he just wanted to talk as he was lonely.
From here we continued on to Maitland through pouring rain to the free camp there. This parking area turned out to be very nice with individual sites and opposite the hospital. It was bitterly cold and Geoff’s fingers were complaining so I wandered down to the IGA store in search of Real Bacon (Bacon bits in a jar) and Branston Pickle as I could not get it in either Woolies or Coles. I was in luck and got both items so I was happy. As I wandered back I read a few of the historical interpretations signs around town and the were quite interesting. But much too cold to linger for long especially as it started to rain again.
When I got back we were joined by a newish and large Winnebago so we had a quick chat before the cold chased us all inside. Fish for dinner … Barramundi, yummo!
We had the doona over us last night and I also had to pull my warmer clothes out from under the bed. I had only put them away a few days ago. Jeans and long sleeved short today. It is sunny but there is a bitterly cold wind blowing straight off Antarctica. After a shower and brekky we were off to find Ballywire Farm near Yorketown. We only knew the name of the road it was situated so we drove down 10 kms of dirt road when, in reality, we needed to only have drive on 4 kms of dirt. It was a little bit off the beaten track and closer to a small hamlet called Port Moorowie than Yorketown and close to the sea. When we got there we found a closed sign on the gate but we drove in but couldn’t find any humans. Plenty of dogs, cats, sheep, cattle, horses, ponies, donkeys, pigs, chooks, geese, turkeys, parrots etc. We parked and made a coffee and had only just started to sip it when Chris and Pete arrived back. They were both originally English but had been out here many years. Chris, since she was a child and Pete since 1972. I think Chris was about my age and Pete was about 10 years older. They told us to settle in and showed us where we could park and get power and where everything was.
We went back to the van to find we had a visitor of the fluffy type. A very friendly tabby cat called Meena who had made herself at home on the passenger seat in the cab, which was also in the sun.
We had some lunch and then Geoff went out and cut down some dead limbs of a tree so we could park the van out of the actual car park. We then moved and plugged into the power. Geoff then fitted the hinges and handle onto the front of the little compartment he had made near the entry step which now holds a pair of shoes each and the bug spray. I did some work on my j0urnal and then had a quick look around the farm and 2nd hand shop. Had another chat with Chris and found out the names of the dogs, now I just have to remember them. Meena/Nina the cat spent the whole day curled up on the passenger seat. We had ribs and baked potato for dinner and the dogs enjoyed the bones. They were huge beef ribs so it was fine giving them to the dogs as they were the non splinter type. After tea we wandered down to the back section of the farm and talked to all the animals.
Friday, 6th December 2013 - Ballywire Farm
We didn't get up early. Chris and Pete had offered us a place to stay with no strings attached and, therefore, were not expecting us to work, which was nice of them. But, we offered and they accepted so I went into the little second hand shop and dusted, sneezed and vacuumed.
Things get very dusty here as it is, of course, a farm environment. Well, yes it is a farm but not a commercial farm and only has ‘rescue’ animals and birds here. They have a tearooms, museum, the farm animals and mini golf and any money they make goes into the upkeep of their animals. What a couple! All done on a shoestring, so to speak, but done very well.
Geoff spent the time cutting down what he could of another dead tree but he now needs a tractor to hold it into place whilst he cuts the remainder down so it doesn’t fall over the fence.
After some lunch we changed, got the scooter down and headed back to Yorketown for a better look around. We took another route and this was 8kms of reasonable dirt road and 3 kms of tarmac. We weren’t in Yorketown long as it is a small town but, like most Aussie towns, boasted two pubs. There were about 4 shops, some professional rooms, bank, supermarket, real estate, café and a store complex comprising a bakery, electrical items, fishing gear and clothes. We bought some Kirin (Japanese) cider at the pub bottle shop as we had never seen it before. Apple and ginger and apple and plum. We also bought a few items from the supermarket and then went across to the café to indulge in a thick shake each before heading back. It was warmer than yesterday and sunny but still with a coolish wind so it was still windcheater weather.
I cooked quiche for tea as Pete had given us some duck eggs to try as we had never eaten them before, I think? They make a good quiche and it was washed down with the apple and ginger cider which we also found to our liking.
Saturday, 7th December 2013 - Ballywire Farm
Up latish, shower, brekky and check with Chris and Pete what needed to be done. Pete had shown Geoff around the museum and Geoff had seen that one of the exhibits, a fibreglass horse and racing sulky, needed cleaning. Not only was it dusty but the pigeons had pooped on it. “Maz can clean that” he said and “thanks very much’ said I. So back to the van to put on my oldest tattiest work clothes, grab a bucket, cleaner and cloths and get ‘at it’!
The exhibit had a fence around it and I couldn’t find a gate so I grabbed two old milk urns and used them to climb over. As my balance is all to shot, this was not an easy task but I was soon in the enclosure. It was a dirty job, but by the time I had finished, it certainly looked better. All the time I was being overlooked by two Shetland ponies, one of which was called Merlin (Geoff used to have a horse called Merlin). They can come into an enclosed pen in the museum to get out of the weather so it was nice company.
When I had finished I went in search of Geoff who was cutting down bolts that were sticking out of the fence posts as one of the horses had cut himself badly on one of them a little while ago. Pete had not had time to do them when he was whisked into hospital to have quadruple bypass surgery and was still feeling the effects and tired easily. Whilst I was holding things for Geoff a sheep came over for an ear tickle and I also found the two smaller pigs (there were two huge ones at the back of the farm which were kept away from the general public as they were a bit nasty) and these looked as cute as Winston up at Herbert.
There are a huge amount of animals and birds around the places, hundreds in fact and I doubt if I have seen them all yet. For an older couple, the place is a credit to them. There is just the two of them and they have built up a little gem with tea rooms, 2nd Hand Shop, Museum, animal enclosures and the mini golf. Yes, they charge a minimal fee to go through the complex but any money they make gets ploughed straight back into their animal family. They do get vegetable scraps twice a week from the local supermarket which supplements the feed they have to buy but the rest, somehow, comes out of their pensions. How do they do it? Pete is around 74 years old so they were very interested in the two websites helpx and Workaway which links volunteer workers with hosts. I have also posted on the Grey Nomad, Oz Nomad, Caravan and Motorhome on Tour and Highway Wanderers Facebook sites so they may get more offers of help for a site, power and water. I sincerely hope so! I am also thinking about writing an article about them for the RV magazine we now write for.
Back to the van for some R&R and coffee with bikkies. After coffee I pulled out 4 crystal wine and 4 crystal sherry glasses that I had in the van that I thought I would never use. The wine glasses were a little too small and we don’t drink sherry. I swapped the crystal glasses over for a couple of ordinary wine glasses from the shop as a couple of van spares.
Time to change, hop on the scooter and head for Edithburgh which was about 23 kms away. This time we went on the 4kms of dirt road and then tarmac the rest of the way. Not much to Edithburgh but, once again, boasted two pubs. After filling up with fuel we found the jetty area and the little harbour where you could launch a small boat in protected waters. It was very nice but SA seems to have a user pay system and you have to pay a fee to launch a boat here. I suppose it is ‘user pays’, as it should be. We continued along the beach road as far was we could, passing a lot of holiday homes. Some were mansions and others were holiday shacks. At the end of the line we wandered onto the beach but the flies were horrendous and we had forgotten to bring the bug spray. Back on the bike and try to outrun them, not that easy!
We decided to patronise one of the pubs and we had a glass each of the local apple cider and it was very nice. Not too strong or fizzy, as some ciders can be. Geoff was feeling hungry by then so we walked across the road to a local café where Geoff had fish and chips and I just ordered chips. My chips turned out to be a huge serving but I managed to eat them. Well … I wasn’t going to waste them!
Our next stop was the viewing area for the local wind farm where you could get up ‘close and personal’ to a wind generator. Bloody big things and reasonably noisy but not intrusive, I think.
We took the obligatory photo, of course, and then decided to go back into town to go back to the farm via Coobowie. Well … that was the plan … but more exciting things took over our lives! We were heading down a road on the outskirts of town when Geoff saw something flashing up ahead. He thought it was a warning light on a power pole but as we got closer he saw that it was a short on a power pole that was really arcing badly. We screeched to a stop just as the power line fell across the road about 10 metres from us. There were also a lot of sparks falling from the connecting box at the top of the pole. We scurried to the other side of the road as we were directly under the remaining power line. The sparks hit the ground and within seconds the grass had
caught fire and the fire was up and running. I went to call 000 but saw another guy on the other side of the break was already doing it. As this area is constantly windy (hence the wind farm) the fire was soon racing across the paddock towards a remote house standing alone in the distance.
We got on the scooter and, after shouted instructions on how to get there from a local, sped off to find the track in. At first we thought there was nobody at home but the lady of the house came out when we called. She had no idea what was bearing down on her and called out for her son, Matt, t come. He was in the local CFS (Country Fire Service) so he jumped in his car to head off to the fire station but was soon back as he said there was nobody there. She was soon moving her Audi car and jet ski and fuel from the large shed nearest the fire and we were soon herding four of her rams into another paddock with the sheep (they must have thought all their birthdays had come at one). But their water pressure was abysmal and there wasn’t much we could do. Luckily some local boys turned up with a water pig and pump in the back of their ute and were soon working on. A couple more local utes and water turned up and they all had it under control by the time the CFS turned up. They just had the job of ‘blacking out’ and making sure it was out. We hadn’t done much apart from the warning and the rams so, once the local boys had got it all under control, we decided it was time to leave and left them to it. We decided it was too late now to go back via Coobowie and were soon back in Yorketown but, alas, the supermarket was closed so we didn’t get to pick up any milk. Never mind, we will survive.
As we got to the entrance to Ballywire Farm a flock of Galah’s flew up from the road but leaving one just sitting there. Geoff came to a screeching halt and I thought he was going to drop the scooter but he didn't. I got up and scooped the Galah up in my coat and carried him up the driveway to find Chris. She popped him in a cage and said she would see how he went but she said he felt like skin and bones so didn’t hold out much hope for him.
Back into the van for a relaxing drink after a very eventful afternoon.
Sunday, 8th December 2013 - Ballywire Farm
A bit cooler today. We got up around 8.30 and Geoff went off to Yourketown to get the milk and to pick up a copy of the magazine ‘Caravan and Motorhome on Tour’ as Colleen P had said we were mentioned in it. He came back to bacon and eggs and we read the magazine. I was hoping it was my ‘house sit’ article but it was about the website Helpx which is a host/worker linking site. The magazine had interviewed me via Facebook at one stage so I was mentioned. Geoff’s toilet ventilation system was also featured so it was worth buying.
After brekkie Pete bought the tractor around to secure the dead tree whilst Geoff cut it down and then cut it up. Pete and I loaded the wood into the back of the ute and then the two guys went off to stack it somewhere.
Apart from that, we didn't do too much and fiddled around on our laptops the rest of the day.
Oh … the Galah died overnight. Chris thinks he must have been old as she couldn’t see any damage on him anywhere.
Monday, 9th December 2013 - Ballywire Farm
We got going really late today, around 10.30 I think, but such is life. Geoff went off to cut down a few more bolts he had missed and had a look at how he was going to fi and strengthen the water run off pipes and guttering on the museum sheds. He then had a look at strengthening out bull bar but it still needs to wait until we get to John and Irene’s. I cleaned the window of the second hand shop and the café, did a little cleaning in the museum and pulled out weeds that were poking up their heads in the gravel car park.
Apart from that, not much to write about.
Apart from that, not much to write about.
Tuesday, 10th December 2013 - Ballywire Farm
Geoff and Pete went off together today to fix a couple off sagging diagonal downpipes on the two museum sheds. Whoever had installed the guttering had fixed them straight and not angled which meant the water and debris just laid in there stopping the water getting to the humungous water tank. They rely solely on rain water here and this tank is their main water supply for their animals. The first pipe was reasonably straight forward but still took quite some time as Geoff had to clean all the gutters out first. He then got a good angle on it and secured it in place.
Only the one end of the first pipe was blocked but the second pipe was more of a problem as it was really sagging in the middle. As the farm is completely surrounded by barley fields there is a lot of chaff blowing around when the combine harvesters are working, which they are doing at the moment, and this finds its way into the gutters. When the guys pulled the second pipe apart it fell down with an avalanche of water and then mud and chaff slurry. This pipe was really blocked and Geoff and Pete worked really hard to get it in place with an angle they were happy with and then re-fixed in place with more brackets. They didn’t finish till around 2.30 when Geoff came back for a coffee, shower and some R&R. Whilst they were doing the first pope I spent my time in the museum cleaning some of the glass exhibition cases, cleaning the café outside furniture etc. I then went and watched/helped the guys before heading off around the farm to take some more photos. ‘Caravan and Motorhome on Tour’ are going to do a little bit on Facebook about this place and we are hoping more Grey Nomad/Wanderers will come and help out. Keeping our fingers crossed.
Wednesday, 11th December 2013 - Ardrossan, Yorke Peninsular
We drove to Yorketown where we went to the little supermarket there to top up with a few things and also got a little diesel to keep us going. We also bought some take away lunch from the bakery and then headed north. We detoured on the way to have a look at Port Vincent and it had a nice but under utilised marina there with very cheap berth fees, up against Qld prices. The marina was surrounded by some large mansions with private jetties but there were also a lot of empty blocks of land as well. It would have been a pleasant spot if it had been warm and sunny but it was bleak and overcast so we didn’t see it at its best. But it was a pleasant place to stop for a cuppa.
From here we continued north towards Ardrossan and saw a lookout just as we got there so turned off and wound our way up a dirt track to a viewing point that overlook the Gulf of St Vincent on one side and a dolomite quarry on the other. From this vantage point we could see over the gulf to around about Parham which is north of Adelaide. We got the monocular out and watched the barley and wheat trucks unloading way below at the grain storage facility. There was a long jetty here and we thought it was for ships to load barley and wheat but found out it was used solely for the loading of the dolomite. It was a good lookout and we spent quite a few minutes up there looking around.
On to Ardrossan which was a bit bigger than Yorketown but with a summer tourist town feel about it. Not quite empty but also not peak summer trade. We went down to the jetty as we had been told that nobody moved you on from there but there was no camping signs so we didn’t linger as we knew there were a couple of CMCA camp sites close by where we knew we would not get moved on. We drove back about 4 kms they way we had come and down a short dirt track and found the overnight camp spot which was right on the coast and very quiet. Not that the coast along this side of the peninsular is very inviting! At low tide it is weedy, slimy and nothing to write home about but it was ours for the night. We settled in and got dinner cooking and relaxed and then Geoff went off for a little explore of the shoreline. I went to follow but had my boat shoes on which let water in so decided against it and cleaned up the camp site instead.
We belong to the ‘Leave no Trace’ scheme and part of the Code of Conduct you sign is to leave the site cleaner than you find it. It wasn’t too bad but I did pick up (carefully) a used kids diaper. Why people think it is okay to dump this sort of thing when they are out is beyond me. Some people blame Grey Nomads for messy camps but I beg to differ and say it is not the older generation but some of the younger ones!
We belong to the ‘Leave no Trace’ scheme and part of the Code of Conduct you sign is to leave the site cleaner than you find it. It wasn’t too bad but I did pick up (carefully) a used kids diaper. Why people think it is okay to dump this sort of thing when they are out is beyond me. Some people blame Grey Nomads for messy camps but I beg to differ and say it is not the older generation but some of the younger ones!
Thursday, 12th December 2013 - Port Noarlunga (again)
It was a vey quiet night and there were no waves crashing as this section of the coast is very shallow. There were no cockerels crowing at the break of dawn and no Cockatoos imitating cockerels crowing, dogs barking and every other animal on the planet. I got up at 8.30 but Geoff didn’t even stir till 9.30. I didn’t wake him as I thought he must be tired and we were in no hurry.
We eventually got going back into Ardrossan to dump our black and grey water and chatted to another guy who was doing the same thing. We found out that the reserve where the dump point is was also an overnight CMCA campsite and quite pleasant but it would not have been as so peaceful as the one we went to. He also told us of another couple of overnight camps that we wrote in our camps book as these ‘word of mouth’ recommendations are always handy.
We were soon back on the road and heading towards Adelaide but doing our usual detour to have a look at a couple of towns on the way. One was Port Clinton (SA not Qld) and the other was Two Wells closer to Adelaide. We had now swapped barley paddocks for Olive orchards. We also stopped at Dublin again to buy cheap fresh produce and meat. This time Geoff did buy the 20kg bag of spuds for $8.90 as he thought it was too cheap a bargain to pass up on and we could share them around. I also bought some Chilli Beef Jerky and it was SO hot that I went back and bought some plain as well for me. We had a bite to eat and then continued on to Adelaide.
We soon found the Western Hospital at Henley Beach, a suburb of Adelaide, where I had a doctors appointment later that day with Tom, my doctor from Bright. We were way too early so we drove down to Henley Beach to make a cuppa and relax for a while. Of course, I couldn’t resist feeding the seagulls (sorry Moo).
At 4.15 we headed off to the doctors surgery and I filled in all the necessary paperwork and waited for my appointment. As we waited we played a game of phone Scrabble as Tom hadn’t changed and was running late. His problem is that he gives all of his patients longer than the allotted 15 mins so ends up running quite late. The receptionist said that Tom’s patients all love him and are always willing to wait with never a grumble so they can see him and him alone. There are some really special doctors in this world and Tom is one of them. When it came to our time I said to Tom, remember me, and he said the face is very familiar (of course, I have aged and wrinkled more than Geoff) and then he looked at Geoff and said I know this guy very well. He seemed genuinely pleased to see us and invited us to dinner next week sometime. He fixed me up for now and we all wanted to talk but we left as we were not the last patient and he was running late anyway. I made another appointment next Wednesday as I need to get my eyes fixed as they are really playing up sometimes. They feel like they are stuck at the corners all the time. When I went to pay I found he had bulk billed me which was really nice of him as I knew they did not bulk bill here.
We left Henley Beach and travelled south to Port Noarlunga again so we could have fish’n chips for tea and where we knew of a spot we could stay overnight down by the river.
Friday, 13th December 2013 - Flagstaff Hill, Adelaide
We headed off to Macca’s as soon as we had showered to get brekkie each and our senior’s complimentary cappuccinos. $9.90 in total for brekkie. Geoff then popped into Supercheap Auto to buy some more engine oil for when he does the oil change which is due soon. From here it was on to Strathalbyn to pick up the generator. When we picked it up it wouldn’t start and they said it was a stuffed spark plug. Luckily we had a spare and we heard it working in the workshop and the guy brought it over to us.
Next stop was Centrelink to drop off my medical certificate which took over an hour. I’m right for a couple more months now and I can breathe easier.
From here we headed towards John and Irene’s place but not before the GPS got us a bit lost. We eventually got away from the hilly, narrow country roads and onto something a tad more substantial. We found Flagstaff Hill and it was a very high and bushy area below Adelaide complete with resident koalas. Nice! We were soon ensconced on their front lawn for a few days. Irene still looks the same but John has gone a little greyer (whiter). Irene still works about two days a week even though she is seventy years old in a few days time. John still works the occasional day at Bunning's as well.
We had some very late lunch and then John took us to Bunning’s where I bought Geoff a multi purpose tool for Christmas. We also bought a gift card for our mail lady and a little gift pack.
Back to John’s for drinks and a Beef Curry and rice followed by fresh fruit salad. We chatted till about 10pm and then it was back to 2AB and bed.
Saturday, 14th December 2013 - Flagstaff Hill
A coolish night and up at 8.30. After brekky I went out to Spotlight with Irene and then we wandered very quickly through the shops. I got Geoff a small Chrissie present but that was all.
When we got back Geoff was gone, off to buy liquor essences, said John. He was a long time and I guessed he was out buying a Christmas present for me (well, I was hoping he was). Yep, he came back with a few wrapped pressies (wrapped by the Salvos) and they are now under (well, around and near) our little 10” LED Christmas tree.
I then borrowed Irene’s washing machine to do three loads of washing and got it out on the line.
Meanwhile Geoff modified the waste water pipes so that the water could flow away better. The manufacturer had the waist pipe going uphill just towards the outlet. This meant the water couldn’t flow away and just laid in the pipe and causing a smell. It took him most of the afternoon but at least it is now done. It has been on the TO DO list for months now, but now it’s finished. We had spare ribs, baked potato and salad for tea … yum … and then Geoff played with his new on board Diagnostic tool which he had bought from ebay for $50. Not that he understands it all yet so is reading TFM. It looks like it is an old model, hence the cheap price, and will not work with Windows 7 or 8 operating systems. It still works on the engine diagnostic but it means he can’t print out the information it gives him. He went on a forum about it and even an IT guy was having trouble installing the software. Never mind. He also installed the new mat on the dashboard to save the dash from the extreme Aussie sun.
Sunday, 15th December 2013 - Flagstaff Hill
Up at our normal slack time.
Not much happened today. I washed the kitchen floor mats and Geoff fiddled around with the genny. When he went to start it the key just went round and round in the lock plus the guys at Strathalbyn hadn’t put a plug back in properly so they are a bit slack. Geoff is really thinking he made a bad choice when he bought a Hyundai generator. He did get it started but now needs a new ignition switch for it. We went to Supercheap Auto but they didn’t have one and he really needs to get one from the supplier in WA. Still, we also went to the supermarket as we needed a few things as Geoff was cooking tea for us all tonight, Mexican Shepherds Pie. He prepared it when we got back so that when Irene came back from her Sunday sailing races he could just pop it into the oven to reheat and crisp the top. It was yum and we chatted until John said he couldn’t stay up anymore and we left them to go to bed.
Monday, 16th December 2013 - Flagstaff Hill, Adelaide … Day 210 of the Around Oz Trip
Geoff washed the scooter and also went out to see if he could get the switch for the generator but he had no luck. I started another article for the RV magazine and finished off the December Part One journal.
We checked out the table that John was making for friends and a very nice job he has made of it as well. He is a craftsman.
And that was it folks!
Tuesday, 17th December 2013 - Flagstaff Hill, Adelaide
At 8.30 Irene and I went out to the large Marion Shopping Centre for the morning. I wanted to get Geoff’s Christmas presents and I think I did ok. Irene went one way and I went the other and we met up two hours later for coffee. Geoff is very hard to buy for as he really needs to buy tools and electronic stuff as I don’t know what I am buying. But I got a lot of little things so I think he will be happy, hopefully. He knows that his main present is a multi purpose tool, as he chose it. I went into Dan Murphy’s whilst I was there to buy him his favourite liquor, Mandarine Napolean, but they no longer stock it. Bumma! So he got something else he likes instead.
We got back about four hours later and I found Geoff had gone by scooter to Gepps Cross, over 28 kms one way. He found a place that said they had the switch for the generator but when he got there it was on the computer but not in their stock. Wouldn’t you have thought they would have physically eyeballed the item before they told Geoff they had one? So a frustrating drive through hectic Christmas traffic and all for nothing! And it is much hotter today, around 34ºC.
Then I found that the tool box I had bought for Geoff was broken. I went to all the effort to pull out one from the back that was wrapped so Geoff had to go back to Marion to change it.
Whilst he was out again I got his pressies wrapped and under the Christmas tree. When I say under I really mean near or around it as the tree is only about 10/12 inches high. It is a little LED one that runs off a USB port. But, ‘Bah Humbug’ says Geoff as he is definitely not a Christmas person although he is no Scrooge either. It is just that the hype seems to get earlier and earlier each year and is just an excuse for everyone to put a big hole in their wallet!
When Geoff came back he borrowed John’s air compressor and blew out the scooter and Fiat air filters so another good job done. Drinks with Irene and John for an hour or so and then it was back into the van to cook tea. Whilst we were eating tea we got a call from a lady who wants us to house sit her small farm in Mt Barker from the 17th to 27th January which will be nice as it is a really nice area.
Wednesday, 18th December 2013— Semaphore Park in caravan park
Up early to find a big koala up high in John and Irene’s tree and just above our van. How lucky are they that they get koalas visiting on a regular basis.
We packed up the van and said our temporary goodbyes to Irene and John and were soon on the road to Cararest to pick up some more curtain hooks and then it was onto the Adelaide Beach Caravan Park at Semaphore Park for a few days as it was going to be up in the low 40 degrees. We settled in, awning out, air con and fan on and it was time for some lunch. At 1.30 we headed off to Henley Beach on the scooter for my doctor’s appointment with Tom. I spoke to him about a couple of issues, one being my dry and irritating eyes and the more worrying one of when my legs go weak and will not hold me up. Not surprisingly, Tom wanted me to have a blood test as he has always been a big believer in blood tests so I will have that done tomorrow.
From here we went to the West Lakes shopping centre , basically just to get some milk. When we walked in it was absolutely massive so we wandered around for a bit and then grabbed a few bits and then it was back to 2AB2 to put the Air con and fan back on and relax for a while. Tom rang in the evening and has invited us to dinner on Friday night so that will be nice as we can just chat and not hold up any of his patients.
Thursday, 19th December 2013 - Semaphore Park
A warm a slightly uncomfortable night so up early and nothing to eat or drink, well, a glass of water was allowed. When Geoff eventually got up we showered, got the scooter off the rack and headed into Port Adelaide to the pathologist to get my blood test done. I had hardly any wait at all and the nurse was very gentle, so good. From here we went in search of a store we had seen on the way in which was a grocery store that sold only discontinued and close to or past their ‘best buy’ date. As we all know, things are fine way past their ‘best buy’ so we hoped to get some bargains plus we were in search of the discontinued PMU processed peas. We spent a tad over $18 and for that came out with the following (just in case you wanted to know), no peas for a start but 3 pkts of ten Cappucino sticks, 4 x 1 litres of up market OJ (no good), mince pies, pappadams, tin of tomatoes, 3 medium sized bars of dark chocolate, 500 gm Assorted biscuits, Tim Tams, Jaffa biscuits. They also had huge Sarah Lee lasagnes for just over $7 so we will definitely get one of those when/if we go back.
On the way back we detoured along the coast to find the jetty where we were going to meet with a lady later called Victoria who was our second house sit in Adelaide so we can give each other the ‘once over’.
Back to the van and definitely on with the Air Con and fan as we have a predicted top of 43º today (actually got to 44.4º in Adelaide but cooler here on the coast). We are both feeling a little lethargic and down today. It is either the heat, the Christmas hoohah or a bit of both. Christmas isn’t really anything special to us as we have no friends and family around this year.
At 6pm we headed off to catch up with Victoria, her two boys and her dog, Duke. Duky, as she calls him, is a Kelpie X Corgi. So, there you have a good looking Kelpie with these little short legs. A funny combination but a really friendly little fella and I think we shall enjoy sitting him, the cat and the wabbits. We left her after a while to enjoy the beach with her kids and went in search of fish and chips for tea. Yum.
Friday, 20th December 2013 - Semaphore Park
Another warm night, even with the two fans going flat out all night. Up reasonably early, for us.
After scrambled eggs on toast we were off to Port Adelaide again to go to the Rivers Clearance Store as Geoff needed some new shorts, but they didn’t have anything that was appealing at a good price. We did by an Omron blood pressure machine for $60 as ours went down with the boat and Geoff needs to keep an eye on his BP and I always find it is good to keep an eye on mine as well even though it is always on the low side of normal. Back via Semaphore Park to buy a pair of the Kroten boat shoes that my feet like, in sliver … more like silver grey. Then it was back to 2AB2 for lunch.
After lunch we took the Kodak digital photo frame to The Good Guys in Gepps Cross and, after listening to our story, were very helpful and said they would put through a credit card refund form or we could buy something of the same value at the store. But first we had to get the power supply to go with it. Geoff thought it was a waste of time but I disagreed as we have to go that way when we leave Burton and we now knew we could get a refund.
On to the West Lakes shopping centre where we eventually got Geoff a couple of pairs of nice shorts and it was back to 2Ab2 for a couple of hours until we were back on the scooter and heading back into town to go to Tom’s for dinner. It was very windy on the way there but we were ok. We met Annie, Tom’s partner who has the very interesting occupation of being a illustrator of children’s books. We also met his boisterous German Shorthair Pointer, Harriet. Tom is a bit of a ‘push over’ as far as Harriet is concerned and she is only 5 months old and full of life. We had Mexican tortillas for tea which were very nice although Harriet did put her nose on the table at one time and hoover up a bowl of cheese. Tch, tch! We chatted till after 11 pm when Tom’s eyelids were getting heavy so said goodbye.
Saturday, 2ist December 2013 - Semaphore Park
A much colder day today, windy, raining and overcast. Yesterday was 41º and today it is 28º … what a difference. We also heard that the strong wind of yesterday did a lot of damage to some of the inner city suburbs, including Norwood where Tom lives. They said parts of Norwood were without power all night but not where we were.
Geoff siliconed up the holes in my new shoes this morning. They are, basically, boat shoes and they have these small holes in the soles to let the water out when you are wading in water. The only trouble is that, when it rains, they also suck the rain water up so we will see if Geoff’s modifications work. They are about the only enclosed shoes that I can wear on my bad feet. Other than that I can only wear certain types of sandals.
We also had to move sites today as the caravan park had someone coming into our spot. Soon done.
Geoff went out to Bunnings and bought some light wire racks to fit in behind the kitchen drawers as there is a lot of wasted space there. I was amazed at how much space there was when he showed me and we will store light spare stuff like paper towels, foil, wrap etc.
We then played Carcassonne and he won, but what’s new!
Apart from that, it was a nothing thing of day.
Monday. 22nd December 2013 - On to Springbank Waters (Burton)
Bacon and egg and then pack up, empty black water and on our way by 10 am and headed, once again, to Port Adelaide to visit the Maritime Museum there. It was $8 each to go in and it turned out to be 3 levels of a small museum, but very well laid out with some very interesting stuff which we thoroughly enjoyed.
We spent about 90 minutes browsing around and then headed for the old lighthouse which was included in the price. When we reached the wharf complex, where the lighthouse was situated, we also found a huge indoor market permanently located in one of the disused warehouses. Oh, this was a nice little bonus for Mazzie, so in Geoff got dragged. It was much more interesting than a normal market as about 75% of it consisted of bric-a-brac and the rest was craft, jewellery, clothes, food etc. It took a while for us to wander around and we actually managed to go round it without buying anything. That’s the joy of living in a small space … nowhere to put extra things that are not really needed even if wanted.
We spent about 90 minutes browsing around and then headed for the old lighthouse which was included in the price. When we reached the wharf complex, where the lighthouse was situated, we also found a huge indoor market permanently located in one of the disused warehouses. Oh, this was a nice little bonus for Mazzie, so in Geoff got dragged. It was much more interesting than a normal market as about 75% of it consisted of bric-a-brac and the rest was craft, jewellery, clothes, food etc. It took a while for us to wander around and we actually managed to go round it without buying anything. That’s the joy of living in a small space … nowhere to put extra things that are not really needed even if wanted.
Once back outside it was on to the lighthouse. This lighthouse had been re-located to the wharf precinct when it ceased being a working lighthouse. We climbed the narrow, steep and metal staircase to the top where there was a small manhole to climb through. Hmmm, would my bum get through there? Yep … luckily. There was a good view from the top and we were lucky enough to see the tall ship the ‘Young Endeavour’ coming through the opening bridge and dock down below. The ‘Young Endeavour’ is a training ship for young people and people with disabilities. She was a gift from the UK to mark Australia’s Bi-centenary in 1988. For more information click on the following link http://www.youngendeavour.gov.au/site/ship.php
From the top we could also see the river cruise boats and saw that a two hour cruise down the river was only $8 per adult which we thought wasn’t too bad at all and well within our budget. But first, being the cheapskates that we are, it was back to 2AB2 to grab some lunch and a drink before heading back for the 2pm cruise. We wound our way down the river listening to the commentary. There is nothing scenic about this river which is called, understandably so, Port River, as we passed mostly industrial complexes like the power station, grain silos, mineral wharfs etc. We also passed a company called ASC which we found out stood for the Australian Submarine Company and where the Collins Class submarines were built and where they now get maintained with two in the water being worked on. This company still makes defence force ships and were in the process of constructing a destroyer which is to be called HMAS Hobart. The cruise was worth $8 but probably no more as there wasn’t much to see but it was a pleasant afternoon out.
From the top we could also see the river cruise boats and saw that a two hour cruise down the river was only $8 per adult which we thought wasn’t too bad at all and well within our budget. But first, being the cheapskates that we are, it was back to 2AB2 to grab some lunch and a drink before heading back for the 2pm cruise. We wound our way down the river listening to the commentary. There is nothing scenic about this river which is called, understandably so, Port River, as we passed mostly industrial complexes like the power station, grain silos, mineral wharfs etc. We also passed a company called ASC which we found out stood for the Australian Submarine Company and where the Collins Class submarines were built and where they now get maintained with two in the water being worked on. This company still makes defence force ships and were in the process of constructing a destroyer which is to be called HMAS Hobart. The cruise was worth $8 but probably no more as there wasn’t much to see but it was a pleasant afternoon out.
We got back at 4pm and made our way to our next house sit in Burton, well Springbank Waters to be precise, where we were expected for dinner. We met Kyle, Lani and the two woofs, Barney and Charlie. Barney is a Staffordshire Bull Terrier and Charlie is a Blue Heeler cattle dog and is only 5 months old. Both are boisterous, loving and great ones for a cuddle and I think we are really going to enjoy looking after them.
Kyle was in the process of cooking lasagne, yummo, but also wanted to walk the dogs so he left Lani in charge of the cooking and the three of us, well five of us, went off to the park. Kyle is very dedicated and takes a bag with the dogs balls and Frisbee, dog water bottle and dish and his own beer. Each dog has its own individual ball and they, mostly, chase the ball that is thrown just for them. Mostly but not always. Once they got hot and tired they were straight into the lake for a cool off. When they got back Kyle took them into the shower with him as he says the water in the lake (recycled from the sewage plant) smells and the easiest way to wash them is to take them in the shower. Whilst we were on our walk we found that Kyle is in the navy and is an engineer working on the construction of that destroyer I was talking about earlier. How about that, we have seen where he works!
Kyle was in the process of cooking lasagne, yummo, but also wanted to walk the dogs so he left Lani in charge of the cooking and the three of us, well five of us, went off to the park. Kyle is very dedicated and takes a bag with the dogs balls and Frisbee, dog water bottle and dish and his own beer. Each dog has its own individual ball and they, mostly, chase the ball that is thrown just for them. Mostly but not always. Once they got hot and tired they were straight into the lake for a cool off. When they got back Kyle took them into the shower with him as he says the water in the lake (recycled from the sewage plant) smells and the easiest way to wash them is to take them in the shower. Whilst we were on our walk we found that Kyle is in the navy and is an engineer working on the construction of that destroyer I was talking about earlier. How about that, we have seen where he works!
Back home we sat down to the lasagne, which was great, and then watched the movie ‘Love Actually’ (for about the 6th time) before we headed off to bed in the van. We were offered a bed in the house but thought we would leave it till they left in a few days time so they could still have some privacy and not have to worry about us.
Monday, 23rd December 2013 - Springbank Waters
It was a cold night therefore we had a good sleep with the doona pulled right up.
After brekky we were off on the scooter and into Elizabeth to have a look around the shops and get some prawns as Geoff was cooking Thai Chilli Prawns tomorrow. We were wandering around Dick Smiths (electronic store for you non Aussies) and saw that they had a new model of digital photo frame out that did random shuffling of the photos. We wanted the 10” one, which they didn’t have, but checked and said that Salisbury, 7 kms away, had one. But first we continued looking around and I came across a ‘Just Cuts’ hair dresser so I got my hair cut whilst I was there as she threw in a wash as well. It is now really short and is not so ‘flash’ but it should last me another two months, at least. Whilst I was in the hairdressers Geoff went for a wander and found a shop selling Daim chocolate so he treated himself which was annoying as I had searched for it and found a small supply which I had wrapped up for Christmas. Never mind
From here we continued on to Salisbury passing the Holden car plant on the way, which is closing down in a couple of years. This plant has been on the news a lot lately because of all the jobs that will be lost. It is a huge complex and you wonder what they will do with it.
We were soon at Dick Smith and in possession of a new 10” digital photo frame. Popped into Woolies and then headed back where I made a bread pudding from some stale bread. Whilst I did that Geoff installed and loaded up the new photo frame. The colours are not as good as the Kodak one but better than nothing.
Lani and Kyle took the dogs for a walk and then it was roast chicken with them and time to relax.
Tuesday, 24th December 2013 - Springbank Waters
Geoff went off to Elizabeth first thing this morning to Jaycar to buy Kyle an ‘Amazing Fly Gun’ for Christmas and one for himself . Kyle hates flies and is so quick he can often kill then with his bare hands and definitely with the flick of a tea towel so Geoff thought it would be a fun present.
Whilst he was away I peeled the prawns and cleaned up. When Geoff came back we met Bruce, the next door neighbour who came over to say g’day. Geoff then started to prepare the Chilli prawns and I cooked the rice and grated some choc0late to dolly up the store baked cheese cake Geoff had purchased.
Dinner was good and then we got all our instructions for the dogs etc. for when they were away. We then left them too it as they still had to pack.
Wednesday, 25th December 2013 - Springbank Waters
Up at 8.30 to see if Santa had been. We must have been good as he had left a lot of presents around the tree. I got a new Samsung Galaxy Ace Plus mobile phone (the same as Geoff’s which he is very impressed with), a black and pink case for it, some perfume and a cook book. Geoff got his multi purpose tool, of course, a PC game, chocolates, bikkies and two liquors. Lucky boy.
Kyle and Lani were on their way by 9.30 so we moved into the house. I did four loads of washing as I took the opportunity to wash all the bed linen, towels and clothes. It is always difficult to do the bed linen and towels when you are on the road. As it was a hot and sunny day the washing was soon dry. I didn’t get much out of Geoff all day as he was playing the PC game I had given him. I should be glad he liked it. Roast turkey, roast veggies followed by plum pudding and cream for Christmas dinner. The dog’s also had a bit of festive fare with us.
After dinner I rang dad and Kay but it was a terrible line and I couldn’t understand a thing dad was saying. I did ask him whether he had his teeth in at one stage. What a shame but at least he knew I rang. I spent some of the day sending off Christmas emails to a lot of friends and got a lot back, of course.
Thursday, 26th December 2013 - Springbank Waters
Not a restful night which is always the same in a new bed. Geoff got up at 8.30 and was soon back on the laptop playing that game. I read and did some work on my laptop until mid morning when we took Barney and Charlie to the park to chase ball. Then Geoff was back playing his game again and I just fiddled around. Kyle rang to check that all was fine with his boys.
But we really didn’t do much. Geoff eventually finished the game so that didn't take long. He has now downloaded the prequel for $7 so he is now playing the new one.
And that was all for the day.
Friday, 27th December 2013
Up at the usual slack time. Geoff put his PC game on my computer so now it is my turn to play it.
By mid morning we decided to head off to the Barossa Valley in Lani’s little 3 cylinder Daihatsu blue car. We had been to the Barossa Valley over 40 years ago, where did all the years go? The car had no A/ Con and no opening passenger side window but with the drivers front and the two back windows open we had a nice breeze blowing through. Still, it was easy on the fuel which was a blessing. The Barossa Valley was about 30 minutes away and the first winery we visited was McGuigans which we like but after tasting about three, nothing jumped out at us as a ‘must buy’. For the price of around $20/25 a bottle it really would have to stand out from the crowd. So nothing spent here. The McGuigans Winery was in the old Chateau Yaldara estate which was one we visited those many years ago. We had a hard time remembering it, but there were faint stirings in the back of our brains. A lovely old building and estate. The Barossa Valley then was know for its wines but wine had not come into popularity all those years ago and Chateau Yaldara specialised in flagons of wine. Now the Barossa Valley has boutique and mainstream wineries around every corner so you certainly have a wide choice.
Our next stop was at Jacobs Creek Winery which is well know and exports wine all over the world. Alas, this winery came over as very commercial, touristy, too modern, crowds everywhere and no ambience about the place. We didn’t even bother to taste anything here as you would have to have been very pushy to get to the tasting counter.
Our next stop wasn’t a winery but a lookout and sculpture park. The lookout was called Mengler Hill Lookout and had good views over the valley with all the striped vineyards below. Below the lookout was a sculpture park. The Barossa Sculpture Park was the result of the Barossa International Sculpture Symposium held in 1988 on the site below the Look Out. Nine sculptors met over six weeks and carved their sculptures in local marble and granite. Not really my cup of tea but interesting if you are into that sort of thing.
Back down through Tanunda and onto my favourite wine maker, Peter Lehman. Alas, Peter had died in 2013, but I expect his good work will continue on. The reason I liked his wines is that my boss at Parks Victoria was a shareholder and, once a year, he had the opportunity to get cases of shareholders specials for around $90 for half a dozen. They were a cab/sav and were so smooth and really pleasing on the palette. The lady at he winery said they stopped these specials about three years ago. We tasted a bottle that she said was the closest but it wasn’t what I remembered so we tried a $60 bottle which was very smooth but not much taste. Plus, we were not going to spend $60 on one bottle of wine. So, I asked to try their Moscato as we both have a sweet tooth and love Moscato. As soon as I sipped this one I knew it was the wine I had been looking for. It wasn’t as sickly sweet as some Moscato’s and had a really spritzed tang to it. It was also low alcohol which we prefer. We joined the Peter Lehman club so we could buy the bottles at $15 a bottle instead of $18 and bought a half dozen. Still on the expensive side for us, as you know we are very careful with our pennies, but we will keep them for special times and will cry when we finish the last bottle.
We then decided we couldn’t afford to visit any more wineries as we had spent our quota so eaded towards Elizabeth but stopping at Maccas for lunch. $9.40 saw us with one spicy chicken wrap, one cheese burger and two complimentary seniors coffees. On the way back from here Geoff got a phone call from Kodak who listened as Geoff explained the long story with the digital photo frame and the guy said he was going to send us another or better one without needing the digital photo frame back and intimated that if we wanted to return it to The Good Guys as well there would be no problem. So that is what we will do.
Back at the house Barney and Charlie were pleased to see us. It was on with the A/Con and relax until it had cooled down at 7.30 when we took the two boys for a walk and a play. Boy, they are really boisterous but very loving and a pleasure to be with.
Saturday, 28th December 2013
When I got up I put some lamb shanks in the crockpot and then we went to Gepps Cross to the Good Guys to return the photo frame. Instead of them putting a credit card refund in process we decided to use it to buy something from the store. We had a good look around and looked at an electric kettle but thought we really didn’t need one as when we were on mains power we had the electric hob. Geoff looked at a new Garmin GPS but really needed to do some research first so we ended up with slimline electronic kitchen scales that will store away easily.
From here we made our way to the Rundle Mall and had to park in a car park there at $6 per hour … ouch! We then wandered up the Rundle Mall and down the other side checking out a board games shop on the way but they didn’t have anything we wanted. The Rundle Mall was vibrant and humming with post Christmas Sales shoppers. By the time we had grabbed some lunch and got back to the car, two hours had passed by so there was $12 gone, just like that.
Back to the house with just enough time to say hello to the boys and then we were back out again to the local shops. I was able to pick up a couple of the collapsible washing baskets here, at last, plus a few groceries. Back to the boys to take them to the park to play ball. Alas, Charlie grabbed Barneys ball and took it into the lake where he left it and we couldn’t get either of the dogs to retrieve it. So … that’s a ball lost … sorry Kyle.
Back to yummy Lamb Shanks.
Sunday, 29th December 2013 - Park Holme
Bacon and eggs and then start transferring stuff back into the motorhome. Then it was tidy up, wash the linen and some of our bits, vacuum and wash the floors, clean the bathroom etc. We then relaxed for a bit, played with the boys, went on our laptops and then made a Mexican Shepherds Pie for dinner.
Kyles plane landed early and he was back at 5.30 so we all had an early dinner and said our goodbyes and cuddles for the boys.
We were soon heading towards our next house sit at Parkholme, which is a suburb close to Marion and John and Irene’s. We found the address and Geoff carefully drove the motorhome into her back yard. We were soon getting all the instructions f0r the dog, Duke, Bubbles the cat, Tilly the kitten (which they had only had one day), Snowy and Dusty the wabbits and Pipi the guinea pig. We settled in the motorhome for the night.
Kyles plane landed early and he was back at 5.30 so we all had an early dinner and said our goodbyes and cuddles for the boys.
We were soon heading towards our next house sit at Parkholme, which is a suburb close to Marion and John and Irene’s. We found the address and Geoff carefully drove the motorhome into her back yard. We were soon getting all the instructions f0r the dog, Duke, Bubbles the cat, Tilly the kitten (which they had only had one day), Snowy and Dusty the wabbits and Pipi the guinea pig. We settled in the motorhome for the night.
Monday, 30th December 2013
We got up early as Victoria and her brood of two small sons and an older daughter were leaving at 8am. We found where everything was, what to feed the animals etc. By 8am they were off. The first thing I did was clean the kitchen table and sweep the floor. We have decided to sleep in the van as it is not the tidiest or cleanest of houses and it smells due to the two kitty litters inside. Victoria wasn’t worried whether we slept in the house or the van. As she has no partner and two small kids I think she finds it hard to get any time to herself … maybe!
After brekky I started to clean the van but came to a screaming stop when Geoff decided he was going to try to fix the leaking grey water under the kitchen sink and also try out his multi purpose tool. When he had finished it was still leaking so he thought it might be the old pipe he had used or the wrong glue. So, we decided to go to Bunnings in Marion. Wrong decision! The traffic was horrendous and almost at a standstill. This surprised us as Melbourne almost empties out over the Christmas and New Years break so we thought all cities would be the same. When we got to the lights for the shopping centre we saw what part of the delay was as a car with a crumpled bonnet was being hoisted on to a tow truck. But when we got into the shopping centre car park there was no spare spots to be seen and cars just cruising back and fro hoping to get a spot when someone left. Aaarrrgggg! Not for us so Geoff said he was going back to unload the scooter as he can always find a place to park with that. So back we went, moved the motorhome a tad forward so he could get the scooter off. Before he went he got the chainsaw out and trimmed a few trees (with Victoria’s permission) so that it would be easier for us to back out when it is time to leave. He then went off to Bunnings and was soon back and said it was so much quicker and less frustrating on the scooter.
When he came back he fixed the leak and also changed the oil on the engine and then I helped him decant the old oil into bottles ready for disposal. Whilst he was away I caught up on my journal and, thank goodness, am now up to date with it.
Tuesday, 31st December 2013 - Parkholme
It was a hot one today, around 36º. I did a couple of small loads of washing after having a funny 5 minutes with the washing machine emptying itself when the water got to a certain level. It turned out to be the pipe had slowly been making its way down from where it should be. Geoff soon had it all under control and I was able to proceed.
Later I heard Geoff talking to someone in the front garden and it was Victoria’s landlady who lives next door. She had come round to tell Geoff that Victoria had put the wrong bins out and said she was pleased Geoff was watering the garden. She shakes her head at the way Victoria lives and Geoff said he was happy to get rid of some of the garden rubbish that was piling up in the front garden. She brought round an empty wheelie bin and Geoff cut the rubbish up into manageable pieces and we had soon filled it. Luckily the bin man was running late so it was able to be emptied. Geoff has three empty bins he can now fill up again. He will also help her cut back a tree that is growing over the fence from her yard as Victoria thought it was dangerous for the kids.
Later I heard Geoff talking to someone in the front garden and it was Victoria’s landlady who lives next door. She had come round to tell Geoff that Victoria had put the wrong bins out and said she was pleased Geoff was watering the garden. She shakes her head at the way Victoria lives and Geoff said he was happy to get rid of some of the garden rubbish that was piling up in the front garden. She brought round an empty wheelie bin and Geoff cut the rubbish up into manageable pieces and we had soon filled it. Luckily the bin man was running late so it was able to be emptied. Geoff has three empty bins he can now fill up again. He will also help her cut back a tree that is growing over the fence from her yard as Victoria thought it was dangerous for the kids.
Later in the afternoon we put Duke in the car and went in search of the fenced dog park that Victoria had told us about. We missed it but found another ‘off leash’ area so he had a nice walk, sniff and leg cock and there were plenty of seats in the shade for us oldies to use. Too hot to be able to walk too far today.
Back to the motor home and on with A/Con and just fiddle around for the rest of the day. As usual, we didn’t stay up for New Year but watched some of the pre-celebrations on the TV whilst sipping one of our new bottles of Peter Lehman Moscato’s … and nice it was too. But Geoff realised that it was only a 500 ml bottle as well so, because it is low alcohol, we ended up consuming just over one legal glass each.
At New Year I was woken by the fireworks so got up to check on the animals but they were fine.
So goodbye 2013 and welcome 2104. May this be a better year for us!
To be continued ………………………..
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