Brisbane Trip Day 32: Bathurst -> Wodonga

Caitlin brought Amelie in to me in the middle of the night, Amelie had been a bit bothered by the dark I think. Sleeping with her in a single bed was a little bit uncomfortable.

I was up around 7 and saw the beautiful sunrise over the hills and trees, looking through the gorgeous big window they have in their dining area. I had a bit more of a chat to my friend as she got ready for work, then got the kids up and gave them breakfast, said goodbye to her kids, put our stuff in the car and hitched up the trailer. My friend had given Caitlin some horse blankets that she no longer needed, so I also reorganised the trailer a little to fit them in.

We set off sometime after 9 and drove through Bathurst and on towards Cowra. The countryside on our drive today was beautiful - very dry and dusty, lots of hills, some rocks, trees scattered around. It was all interesting. We stopped at a rest stop between Cowra and Young so that I could get a cup of tea, we all used the toilet and had an early lunch, and I adjusted some straps on the trailer (the bikes were wiggling loose a bit). A friend from home rang while we were stopped so it was a good chance to have a chat to her.

As we drove we listened to Percy Jackson and Greek Gods - which was a entertaining and amusing telling of Greek mythology - we all learnt lots and it's sparked many discussions already. Driving through Young I remembered stopping there once for a coffee with Tony - lots of memories on this road as well. We stopped in Junee (at a park that I remember stopping at before, but it was in a different place than I recalled - I thought it was near the railway station, but it was before we crossed the railway line) because a friend wanted to talk to me about homeschool camp - he was concerned about the bush fires around Camperdown and wanted to work out a plan for whether we would still go or not. We decided we'd keep an eye on weather and fire conditions and if the fire danger was low then we would go to camp as planned. The kids played in the playground while I talked and it was a lovely relaxing stop. There were a few freight trains going past which also added some interest.

We continued on to Wodonga and stopped at the Showground. I rang the number on the sign and the guy said to set up and he'd come and collect payment in the morning. They only allow 8 campers per night and I think we were the 8th. The spot that was left had a bus parked very close to the side where I would need to put my trailer, and I didn't want to encroach on the leisure space of the motorhome on the other side. So I reversed in very close to the bus, I don't think I could have been that accurate at the start of the trip. I also went a bit further back than the bus was, so we could both still walk around our vehicles.

I set up the tent, Caitlin helped with the tricky bits then went to sit on the grass to talk to her friends on the phone. The others played on their iPods for a while. Once we were all set up, Liam, Amelie and I went to Bunnings to get some lanolin spray to use on the tent zip (I wanted it before we got to camp in case it was cold and wet, because the zip sticks even more then, and I wouldn't be able to go shopping once I was at camp) and some other things (contact spray, WD40, and oil for the bike chains). We found these all in the one place which made it easy. There was a KFC in the Bunnings carpark, and I was very tired after a 6 hour drive and not much sleep the night before, so I bought a family pack for dinner, and Amelie bought all the kids frozen drinks.

Back at the tent we sat on the picnic rug (on the slope because I hadn't left us much flat space behind the tent - I figured for a quick stop without the stove we could manage) and ate our KFC which was delicious and just about the right amount of food for us. Afterwards Caitlin sat in the car for a little while and talked to friends again, the rest of us went to bed - I was ready for sleep by 9,30, the first time I'd been in bed before 11.30 in almost a week!

Brisbane Trip Day 25: Armidale -> Newcastle

It was even colder this morning - 6.7 degrees when I got up. Beautiful and crisp though. I started sorting our stuff a little and was about to make a cup of tea when some people arrived at our tent - a man and lady from the New England Lapidary Society, saying that they were setting up for their gem show and would I be leaving today. I said I was and asked what time they were starting - they said 9am. It was just before 8 at this stage so I said that I wouldn't be out by 9, but I'd be as quick as I could. They went around to all the other sites and told people that they had to leave - several of them had paid for another night, or even the whole week, and were understandably quite upset. The gem people were quite rude about it too 'Well we have this area leased, so you'll have to go'. (The caretakers had been away on the weekend and volunteers had helped out, and we figured they must just not have known about this previous booking).

I started packing up at 8.10, and we were all ready to go at 10.20, one of our quickest pack ups ever. By this stage the caretaker had come down and apologised to everyone and said that the lapidary people had no right to go from site to site - and that they didn't start their show until Thursday, they were just marking out the sites today, so everyone could stay a few more days if they wanted to. Some people had already packed up enough that they decided to go anyway, others decided to stay and move in a few days.

We all went to the toilet and on the way back we stopped to chat to several people (and met a very cute puppy), so it was 10.50 by the time we left. It was a beautiful sunny day and not cold any more. I really enjoyed the first part of the drive to Uralla - I've driven that road many many times and it was exciting to see it all again. From Uralla I kept going to Tamworth rather than turning off to go the Buckett's Way - I figured the highway would be easier with the trailer on.

The drive to Tamworth took a lot longer than expected. We were stuck for a good while behind another camper trailer who was driving quite slowly. Twice the truck driver behind me leaned on his horn because I hadn't overtaken the trailer when he thought I could have (neither times felt safe to me). I was glad when we had an overtaking lane and the 2 trucks behind me were able to get past us both. At the next overtaking lane I was also able to get past the slow trailer and was able to drive a bit faster - although I'm often quite slow on windy roads. Before Tamworth the road has a few very steep sections as the elevation drops quickly - this time the speed limit for buses and trucks was 60, so this was possibly steeper than the scary hill a couple of days ago. There was no one behind me as I came down these 2 hills, which made it less scary but I still didn't enjoy it at all, I found it rather stressful. I appear to have gripped the wheel quite hard too because my forearm was very tight and sore afterwards.

We eventually made it to Tamworth and drove past the Big Golden Guitar, then continued south. The road from Tamworth to Muswellbrook had a lot of of roadworks and we were frequently stopped or slowed to 60 or 40, which made the trip take a lot longer. There was another steep hill coming in to Murrurundi. As we came into the town I noticed a dragon fly stuck in my windscreen wipers, so we pulled over opposite a park so I could let him free. I also wanted to check my brake lights on the trailer as on Saturday the connection from the car seemed to wiggle loose as we drove - everything was still working today. We all went over the road to use the one toilet available - Amelie was amused that there were 3 different toilet paper dispensers, all different designs, all fully stocked. There were more roadworks as we continued south and we eventually made it to Muswellbrook around 3pm - way later than I had expected. As we drove in we could see open cut mines on the other side of town - whole hillsides that had been exploded, it was quite striking.

We stopped at the park next to the railway station and I made us some sandwiches. While we ate we saw 3 long trains go past with a variety of engines on them. We explored the park a bit and had a rest, then continued on through town and got some petrol, and stopped at Aldi to buy a 4-pack of Choc-mint ice creams (it took us a while to get to Aldi because first I turned left out of the petrol station instead of turning right across the highway, and tried to get there the back way, then ended up turning right onto the highway further down, and then missed the turn into the street I needed and had to go far enough up the road to find a place to turn around.) Eventually we had our ice creams and were on our way again.

The drive to Singleton was easier, and I enjoyed driving through both Muswellbrook and Singleton and seeing all the old buildings. And lots of memories from both towns. Beyond Singleton, just before Branxton, there's a new road which skips all the rest of the towns and makes the trip to Newcastle much quicker. This was much easier driving and we made good time. It was exciting to come into Newcastle through Wallsend and point out more familiar landmarks, including another street where I used to live. The trip out to Blacksmiths went smoothly and we arrived at my brother-in-laws around 6pm.

The kids were all excited to see their cousins and we sat and ate pizza with them and then I sat out the back and had a cup of tea while chatting to my BIL. Once I felt rested enough I went to get the trailer - when I'd arrived there were lots of cars in the street so I was worried that it would be difficult to even get the trailer to the driveway - by the time I was ready to try, everyone had left (there is a yoga studio across the road so the cars were from the yoga class). We'd moved the couch out of the garage, last time it made it a just a bit narrow and a bit tricky to turn the trailer at the end to avoid the garden. With great directions from my BIL, I backed up the street, into the driveway and through the garage, with really no problems. We unhitched in the garage and pushed the trailer the rest of the way into the yard, and quickly had the tent up. After a bit more of a chat I put the beds up and enjoyed listening to Liam talk to his uncle about movies and books and science and puzzles.

Caitlin hung out with her cousins (either on the trampoline or watching tv) until they went to bed, then she rang some friends. Once everyone else was in bed, Liam and Amelie watched Dr Who and Pokemon on Netflix, and I went to bed to read for a while. The kids came in not too long afterwards.

Brisbane Trip Day 6: Crowdy Bay -> Coffs Harbour

I started the day with a walk on the beach, all the way up to the headland. It was a bit calmer this morning and the sun was trying to break through the clouds. As I started back up the track to camp, Amelie came down the other way, so I went back to the rocks with her and we had a bit of a play.

Back at the tent we had a cuppa then breakfast, joined by the other two as they woke up. We started packing up just before 9 and all the kids did a great job helping out – it was mainly new to them and they were really keen to do what they could to make the job quicker (partly because they wanted to stop at the Koala Hospital in Port Macquarie so I said we needed to leave early enough to fit that in).

Around 11 we were nearly ready so I sent them down for a last play on the beach while I put the bikes on and hitched up the trailer, we were on the road before 11.30. Not bad for our first bush camp pack up, with the annex. And everything being wet. The campground had ended up being completely fine to stay at – I’d heard there was a lot of wildlife around though we didn’t see much – just a couple of kangaroos and some kookaburras who liked to hang around the back of the drop toilets. Oh and about a million mosquitos and some march flies. It was peaceful though and the beach was beautiful, we all had a good time there.

I was a bit worried about the state of the road after 2 days of rain – it wasn’t too bad although there were still some heavily corrugated areas so it took me a while to drive out. Once we reached the bitumen Caitlin was going to put our audio book back on (The Colour of Magic) but we couldn’t find my iPad. We stopped in Laurieton to have a search for it, with no luck. I was a bit concerned then realised there was nowhere it could have gone – we didn’t leave it at the site and I didn’t take it anywhere else, so it had to be in the car somewhere.

We drove through to Port Macquarie, using the coastal scenic road rather than going back out to the Pacific Highway. It was quite beautiful, lots of lakes and rivers, and I don’t think I’ve been through that way before. I enjoyed driving through Port Macquarie, remembering a trip there with my parents when I was about 20, and a trip with Tony when he was playing baseball there. We stopped at the Koala Hospital (and I found my iPad in my camera bag) and spent a happy hour exploring the little museum, looking through a microscope at gum leaves, and looking at and reading about the permanent stay koalas – the ones who have conditions which mean they can’t be released back into the wild. It was also cool reading about those who have been rehabilitated and released. Amelie in particular was so happy to see the koalas – they were very cute and a few of them were even awake and we could watch them moving about. The kids had been talking about adopting a koala, to help with research and rehabilitation, so we looked through the book and found a wild koala that everyone agreed was the cutest, and paid to adopt it for a year. Amelie was vaguely disappointed that this didn’t mean we got to keep the koala, but was happy enough with the idea that our money will help to keep koalas healthy and safe.

It was even more humid here than it had been at the campground and I was keen to get back in the car – we probably should have stopped and had lunch though because we were all pretty hungry later on. My plan was to detour via Bellingen and have lunch by the river there, but we ended up leaving a bit later than I’d planned, and the place we were staying in Coffs Harbour closed reception at 5, so I wanted to make sure were there before then. Liam wasn’t feeling well so we stopped at a rest stop to cool down a bit, then stopped once for petrol and looked like we would have heaps of time to get to Coffs by 5 – our park was just north of the town and it took ages to drive through in afternoon traffic – then the signage was confusing and I wasn’t sure where I was going – we made it to the Sapphire Beach Holiday Park at about 4.55.

The kids had been so excited about staying in a beachside caravan park, and the photos looked amazing. When we got here though it looked much more unkempt and not as inviting – everyone was a little disappointed. We headed to the unpowered camping area – an area designed for 3 sites, but they weren’t marked out. 2 tents were already there and I couldn’t figure out whether they were together or not, or where they would be putting their cars. There was a spot right up against the sand dunes where we would fit, but probably not with the annex. After walking around and considering options for ages I decided to go to the left of the gate, away from the sand dunes – although I was worried that we might be a little too close to one of the tents. In the end though it seemed to be the only place we could fit. It was a tight space and took me quite a while to get the trailer into position. I was still worried about encroaching on other campers as well. I decided to go for a walk to the beach to calm down – although we were worried that the beach might not be as beautiful as in the pictures. Walking through the path over the dunes it felt quite gloomy as the greenery was very dense – then suddenly we stepped out into the light and could see Split Solitary Island and the ocean and it was beautiful. We played briefly on the sand (the surf was still too big to swim in) then went back to set up the tent. There was just enough room for us in the corner we’d picked. The kids explored the park a bit and found the amenities and the games room etc and came back very keen for a swim. Once the tent itself was up I said we could do the beds etc later, and went to close the car windows in case it rained – and my driver’s window wouldn’t go up. We’d had trouble with it for a while and obviously it had reached it’s limit. I felt like I had as well, I just wanted to cry because it felt like everything had gone wrong since we arrived. I taped up the window with plastic bags and gorilla tape and figured I’d have to sort it out in the morning.

We went for a swim in a beautiful new pool and it was lovely, it helped me calm down a little. We still hadn’t had much to eat though, and I was very tired, so reluctantly we went back to camp and Caitlin and Liam cooked pasta with tomatoes and kabana for dinner, while I struggled to set up the annex – normally I do it pretty easily but it was hard work this time. In the midst of it the people next to us came back – we were in the spot where they had parked their camper next to their tent. I thought they hadn’t marked their spot but they had put a rock next to the fence and I hadn’t realised it was a marker. I apologized and they said it was fine but seemed upset -  I talked to them later and they said they’d just been surprised and were happy to put the camper in a different spot.

Dinner was delicious and we finally had the beds all set up so we could go to bed. I felt like I was getting a cold as well and was very glad for the day to be over.

Brisbane Trip Day 4: Newcastle -> Crowdy Bay National Park

The girls and I were up early enough to say goodbye to their cousins and uncle. I spent a bit of time organising things on the computer, then started packing up while the kids took advantage of having access to the internet and the Netflix. It was hot and steamy and I was sweating a LOT by the time I was halfway through packing. I’d taken a lot of stuff out of the trailer so that we could put the beach things close to the tailgate in case we wanted to grab snorkels or boogie boards at a beach while travelling – so it was a big job putting everything back in.

Eventually I had it all sorted and we drove up to see Tony’s Dad (near Raymond Terrace) for lunch. The kids played with the dog and the girls and I had a swim, we made our sandwiches and hung out for a while.

The next part of the drive was familiar to me as I used to come this way on my way to Uni at Armidale. After the Buckets Way it was less familiar although I have driven up this way several times. We saw nets that had been strung up high across the road between trees on either side, for animals to safely cross the highway - we'd never seen that before. Both sides of the highway were fenced so that animals couldn't run onto the road. At one place we saw a sign warning of wild horses and a bit further on we saw 3 or 4 grazing near the fence, it was pretty cool. It was a fairly easy drive up to Crowdy Bay National Park – I went in the northern entrance, near Laurieton, so that there was less unsealed road to drive on. The 6km in to Diamond Head Camping Ground was fairly corrugated at times, although not a problem to drive over, just very slow and uncomfortable. We arrived at the campground around 5, but the office had closed at 4.30, so we decided to head on to Kylie’s campground and come back in the morning to pay. The campground at Diamond Head looked like a caravan park, with gutters on the roads and designated sites; I wanted to go somewhere with more bush camping.

As I was checking out the office Liam saw a goanna walking through the campground – we watched it for a while (I saw it doing a poo) and laughed at the way the kangaroos seemed quite wary of it. We also got a glimpse of the ocean – the surf looked rough.

We drove over to Kylie’s Campground – more corrugations but not as many as on the main road in. The campground looked inviting and peaceful, and there weren’t many people there. We drove in to an area with no other campers, and debated about the best place to set up – there was a very inviting area under several trees, so I put the trailer in there. We decided to go and check out the beach before we did any more setting up – I was feeling quite tired and felt like a beach visit would rejuvenate me.

The beach here was gorgeous – a colourful headland at the northern end, then several rock formations in and along the edge of the water with the waves breaking over and around them. The surf was rough here too, it didn’t look safe at all for swimming. Some of the rocks were out of the waves at this point, so we clambered over them and looked for shapes in the rocks, watched the waves, and found a colony of crabs.

Back at the trailer we realised that there were huge numbers of mosquitoes under the trees, so I moved out into a cleared area. We set the tent up fairly quickly and easily. Amelie wasn’t happy, she didn’t like the bush camping area or the drop toilets or the beach and she really wanted to go somewhere else. After she’d had some food she cheered up and happily helped with the rest of the set up. Caitlin and Liam went for a bike ride and Liam came back finding it hard to breathe. It was extremely humid and I think that contributed to his asthma attack. He was quite worried by it, as he’s rarely had one off attacks – usually when he’s found it that hard to breathe nothing has helped until we have gone to the hospital. This time however he was able to alleviate it with ventolin and he gradually calmed down.

We had sandwiches for tea and headed to bed. I was feeling a bit apprehensive about whether this really was a good place to stay for a couple of nights, but figured I was tired and I often felt that way after a day of travel. We headed in to bed to read for a while, and just before I fell asleep it started pouring – we’d opened all the windows to cool the tent down a little so luckily I was still awake and could jump out and close them all.