Autumn at Robe – SA

May 16, 2018 / heatherandtom2013 / Leave a comment

We are having a restful Autumn break away in South Australia, good to get away from the routines at home.

After Warrnambool the weather gradually improved as we drove west. The weather has been mostly overcast but some blue skies and the cold wind has gone despite our unit over-looking Hooper Bay.

Sunrise out of our front window.

The coast at Beachport

Lighthouse at Kingston – the only lighthouse in Australia to be moved inland – now National Trust

The Obelisk at Robe

Beacon Hill – Robe

Grape vines in their Autumn glory

Main jetty at Beachport

Trip to Tasmania.(January 2018).

January 24, 2018January 25, 2018 / bundooraboy / 6 Comments

It was 20 years ago exactly since we first visited the north, north-west and southern regions of Tasmania,and as we had yet to explore the east coast and its many wonders, that led onto becoming our next holiday destination.

Initially, we had considered going over on the Spirit of Tasmania and take the car, however, on doing the sums and realizing we would be losing a day each way, the decision to fly over and hire a car was a good one.

Wanting to ensure not to risk missing our flight on departure day, considerable extra time was allowed as major road works were underway between the ring road turn off and the Tullamarine freeway leading to the airport.

Well, you wouldn’t believe it, we had an uninterrupted and swift drive all the way from home to the long-term parking, found a car park almost at the entrance, the shuttle bus arrived within three minutes and the passage through check in went as smooth as one could wish for. Without a doubt, of all the traveling by air we have done, I was delighted how good fortune smiled on us all the way.

Once on board, buckled up and taken off, there was just enough time for a quick cuppa before we were ready to land in Launceston. Oh, how nice it was to arrive in such a small, easy to navigate airport where collecting our baggage, collecting the car and on our way to Bicheno that was about two and a half hours away through a beautiful meandering mountain range all on first class roads.

Our base was to be about a 10 minute drive before Bicheno at a place called “The Douglas River Cabin, so, before heading there we went straight for town to firstly have a look around and pick up some supplies.”

Below is a view of the beautiful beach on the approach side of town.

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Douglas River Cabin.

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From both inside and outside the cabin we had magnificent views of the Douglas River, the beach and endless countryside where sheep grazed.

Within walking distance, the property extended down to the ocean where the sand was soft and white and also it was possible to walk for hours through bush and grazing lands.

The tee-pee shape/s in the photo below were scattered along the foreshore and built by children from driftwood that had been washed ashore.

There were two days that were overcast and on one of those we headed north up to the Bay of Fires,mistakenly I had believed its name had arisen from the color of the Lichen on the rocks, but in actual fact it was named by an early explorer observing the many fires lit by the native population of a night cooking their meals.

Not far out of Bicheno one of its highlights was the Blowhole, an event that occurred when every wave came into shore rising up through a natural phenomena. A very popular spot for the tourists.

The Blowhole.

The Mountains below are at Coles Bay and needed to be climbed to see the bay, and, if you were to continue on further up the walking track eventually you would reach the Wineglass Bay lookout.

After a (grueling) hour plus trekking ,the magnificent view of Wineglass Bay could be enjoyed.

Whaler’s Hill located nearby Bicheno was a short and enjoyable climb up to the towns highest point where Whalers of old would look out to sea for the water spouts of whales. An industry that took whales almost to annihilation.

Whalers Lookout.

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Easy walk to the top.

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Another day we journeyed south down to the town of Swansea,a very old pioneer town with an array of historical buildings.

The Swansea School house (below) now converted into a town museum and information centre.

Well worth a look for its historical information,old original class room and tribute to its soldiers that were lost in the great war.

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And, finally a lovely night out in town at the Seafood Restaurant over looking Bicheno Bay to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary.

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Our souvenir tea cozy from Bicheno!

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Athens, The Parthenon, Corinth, Mycenea, Olympia, Ionian Coast, Delphi & Meteora.

September 15, 2017 / heatherandtom2013 / 2 Comments

Finished our travel and had an amazing time in Greece, followed the incredible journey of the ancient Greeks and their monuments….Tom & Heather.

Corinth Canal

Temple of the Apollo

Ancient road to Corinth

On the ancient road to Corinth

Great theater at Mycenae – 1300BC

Granery

The Lion’s gate

Entrance to the Beehive Tomb

Inside the Beehive Tomb – 1500BC

The Temple of Zeus

The tunnel to the running track

The stadium track

Tom ‘Bolt’ on the starting blocks

The flame for each Olympic torch is lit here

Trading shops at Delphi

Treasury building – Delphi

Temple of Apollo

The theater at Delphi

View down from the theater

Lunch in Delphi overlooking Itea

Meteora a rock formation in central Greece. The 6 Eastern Orthodox monasteries are built on immense natural rock pillars that dominate this area.

Cheers…Tom and Heather

Reflections of Spain and Portugal

September 7, 2017 / heatherandtom2013 / Leave a comment

Tom and Heather’s travels continue :-

Plaza Major – Salamanca

Lisbon Monastery Cathedral

1929 Expo Building in Seville

Belem tower – Lisbon

Christ the King monument – Lisbon

The Ballroom – Lisbon Royal Palace

The tomb of Christopher Columbus – Seville Cathedral

The Valley of the Fallen (Valle de los Caídos) near Madrid – a monument to those who died in the Spanish Civil War.
The monument precinct covers over 3,360 acres (13.6 km2) of Mediterranean woodlands and granite boulders on the Sierra de Guadarrama hills, more than 3,000 feet (910 m) above sea level and includes a basilica, a Benedictine abbey, a guest house, the Valley, and the Juanelos — four cylindrical monoliths dating from the 16th century. The most prominent feature of the monument is the towering 150-metre-high (500 ft) cross erected over a granite outcrop 150 meters over the basilica esplanade and visible from over 20 miles (32 km) away.

500 foot cross at the underground basilica

Underground basilica

Underground basilica and cross.

Underground basilica

A Snapshot of Morocco & Spain

August 29, 2017 / heatherandtom2013 / Leave a comment

In front of the Alhambra, ancient palace and fortress – Grenada

Having a great time traveling through Spain and Morocco. The temperature has been in the mid to high thirties and 44 in Marrakesh. Morocco was certainly different to what I expected, a very fertile country. Moving on to Tangier tomorrow then back to Spain and Portugal. Hi to all.

Man in the market square – Marrakesh.

Leather tanning vats in the ancient medina of Fes.

The Cathedral at Toledo

Ancient Roman viaduct at Segovia – Spain.

Reflections of The Alhambra.

Ceiling in The Alhambra, Grenada

Silk carpets for sale in the Fes medina.

Jacko’s August Travels North

August 26, 2017August 27, 2017 / ringrove2013 / 4 Comments

Our trip north was a dash to Narrandera for night 1…turned out to be
0c in the morning though. Then a long drive to Bourke and it was 1c the
following morning. Then we went on a bush road to Hungerford just over
the Qld border for some much better weather of mid 20s daytime, and cool
single figures overnight, so we stayed 2 nights at th CP….$11 per
night for power and full bathroom facilities….fantastic, but the pub
meal in the town of 9 permanents was superb. Currawinya NP was nearby,
so we explored the past of this vast sheep station, now NP

Shearing stands at the old wool shed -Currawinya Station

More bush road to Thargomindah for a snoop, then on to Quilpie on
another dirt track to camp on the banks of the Bulloo River. Nothing
better than a freedom camp with big camp fires for 2 nights. We had been
to Quilpie before, but didn’t see the Amy Johnson tribute, so nailed it
this time. An amazing adventure for a young British aviator in the
1930’s trying to beat a Bert Hinkler record crossing to Australia.

We have spent another 300km on a dirt bush road today from Quilpie to
Blackall where we will stay 2 nights…to do some washing and re-stock.
This “Channel Country” in Qld is amazing and challenging, for its
remoteness, flatness….hence the channels when it rains, and for its
harsh dry climate.

Amy Johnson memorial at Quilpie.

Crossing the dog fence into Queensland.

Entry to Currawinya NP just out of Hungerford.

Free camp on the banks of the Bulloo river at Quimpie.

” I closed the gate, Sir!!”

Hungerford camp on the Queensland border.

Main street Hungerford – population 9.

Quilpie – free camp.

Here is photo of Blackall’s version of the Black Stump….this one
a survey peg from the 1860’s, but since blackened. All black stumps have
the common thread of marking the edge of nowhere!

Blackall’s black stump

Also some pics of the partially resurrected plant, funded by a
$100,000grant from PM Hawke, and massive vollunteer input from the local
community. The buildings have been recovered from desolation, and much
of the working plant stripped and overhauled to safe working order. The
plant was the only scouring plant for hundreds of kms, and sheep would
be herded for shearing and scouring from surrounding farms. Water at 58c
from the Great Artesian Basin (capacity…170,000 Sydney Harbours!!) was
heated and maintained at 60c for scouring, and the entire plant,
including workshop, and amenities, was run by steam from 2 boilers, and
the giant flywheel….returned to working order today. It is all started
up (now small diesel steam engine) to show the plant in running order
for every guided tour….every hour! They even have a dozen or so
merinos on hand to show what they would have looked like.

With the advent of synthetic fabric and subsequent demise of the wool
industry, hastened by the uncontrollable menace of wild dogs, there are
NO SHEEP in western Qld any more, now turned over to cattle. The
Blackall Woolscour Plant closed in 1978, and the town virtually
deserted. It is now making a steady comeback.

Nice town, with obvious civic pride and certainly RV Friendly

Broome W.A.

July 25, 2017July 25, 2017 / bundooraboy / 4 Comments

July 2017 and finally a destination we have longed to visit for quite a while!

On arrival in Broome, from cold and wet Melbourne the days gave way to beautiful, warm, sunny days averaging 30* every day, giving the old pins to once again adorn shorts and soak up the sun.

Our accommodation was the “Bali Hai Resort” that gave the feeling of being on a holiday in Asia, with the rooms, decor, buildings, garden layout and atmosphere all allowing relaxation to kick in within minutes of arrival.

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This particular holiday we decided not to rent a car, and instead, do lots of walking each day to discover the town and its surroundings utilizing the magnificent and very reasonably priced town bus service.

It was our desire to experience as much as possible during our stay, the only downside of the trip was mainly due to ocean tidal changes, and, one only bus service connection to “Gantheaume Point” first thing in the morning, the opportunity to see and stand in the 130 million-year-old Dinosaur footprints was to hopefully see them at any future visit we may embark upon.

Some of the outings we experienced included attending the huge local “Court House” markets set amongst tropical frangipani trees in full flower, displays of local produce, local entertainment performers, various stalls on yummy smelling food outlets and trash and treasure of all varieties,from there a stroll into town to visit the “Pearl Luggers” outlet reflected many of the origins of Broome’s primary pearling industry.

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On three separate occasions we visited Chinatown in the heart of Broome and enjoyed the towns unique multicultural character, the vast amount of outlets where pearls/jewellery could be inspected and purchased, and indeed the wonderful variety of eating establishments, all having both indoor and outdoor dining on the footpath where the sunshine and fresh air could be enjoyed.

A point of historical interest was that 75 years ago the Broome airport was the target of a Japanese air raid resulting in a high cost of 70 lives being lost and the destruction of a fleet of flying boats that were enclosed in nearby “Roebuck Bay”.

Our resort was about a five-minute walk to the magnificent 20 kilometers plus length of Cable Beach to view the evening sunset. The villa was fully self-contained amongst beautifully manicured gardens, we additionally had a secluded outdoor dining area and also a secluded outdoor shower for use on hot days.

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Cable Beach.

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Another highlight was the “Astronomy lecture and star viewing night’; we were collected from our accommodation in a huge 4WD vehicle, and driven about an hour out into the hinterland where a large area of scrub had been cleared for seating about 100 people on fold up chairs and 10 big telescopes pointed out into deep space. The lecture on the universe went for a very informative hour followed by the viewing of the night sky.

The absolute experience that we both thoroughly enjoyed was a 10.5 hour day adventure, that is truly a natural wonder of our world.The Horizontal Falls are only accessible by either boat, helicopter or sea plane.

We were collected at 5:30 am in a 4WD that took us to the Beagle Bay Mission where a welcome stop for a cuppa and biscuits was enjoyed. At this mission is the Beagle Bay church that had the altar and backdrop made from a collection of Mother of Pearl shells that gave a unique and interesting look.

Beagle Bay Mission Church.

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On the road again our next stop was “Cygnet Bay” pearl farm where breakfast was waiting for us prior to going on a tour through the establishment, a history of pearling and a demonstration of pearl seeding was given.

All fed and watered, we next boarded the 4WD again and headed to a small private tarmac,where we climbed aboard a combined land/seaplane for a half hour flight over the Buccaneer Archipelago consisting of in excess of 2000 small islands situated in the most beautiful blue/aqua colored waters to our destination of “Talbot Bay”.

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We smoothly landed on the water and taxied to the “Horizontal Falls Pontoon” to have a wonderful Barramundi lunch and refreshments and also if one was game enough have a swim with the sharks.

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Finally the most exciting part of the day trip was when we boarded a 900hp very fast Jet Stream boat (The fastest in all the Kimberley) that took us through the most thrilling ride into the horizontal falls (6x) and then to let the adrenaline subside a cruise around the surrounding creeks and bays prior to returning to the pontoon and boarding the Seaplane. This was a direct flight back to Broome airport and on arrival to be delivered back to our accommodation. Wow, what a great holiday and new experiences to tick off the bucket list.

“A short trip to “Pennyroyal”.

July 17, 2017July 19, 2017 / bundooraboy / 2 Comments

Early March 2017 was when we headed off for a few days break at “Pennyroyal“, which is in the vicinity of the very small township of “Deans Marsh” roughly located between Lorne and Birragurra, Victoria.

Why Deans Marsh? well my eldest sister and her family lived in this isolated region back in 1957 and it consisted of very little more than a sawmill, a store and houses occupied by the sawmill employees and it was a place where I would spend many an Easter, school holidays or Christmas with my young niece and nephew and enjoy the tranquility of the outback bush countryside.

Memories abound of swimming in the waterhole beneath a bridge, going rabbiting, chopping starting wood chips for the massive IXL cast iron stove that burned constantly as it also heated the hot water and the wonderful smells of fresh air and the wood fire.

Not having been in this region for such a long time and having many vivid and enjoyable times there in my youth, we booked a B&B cabin at Pennyroyal.

Pennyroyal in itself is an insignificant place of bush and farmlands and not a town and is a five-minute drive from Deans Marsh. The place we stayed at was a fully kitted out cabin having magnificent views of the country side from the back verandah where we shared breakfast with so many different birds and their chorus every morning and at night viewed the abundance of heavenly stars above.

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Honeysuckle Cottage.

This was not a sit back and relax get away for we wanted to explore and experience as much as time permitted of the surrounding countryside.

Our many journeys included visiting/driving through the” Otway Ranges” into Lorne for lunch and a nice stroll along the beach, and a trip out to “Forrest” another very small township in the hinterland of the Otways where we lunched at the “Forrest Brewing Company”,a small micro brewing enterprise brewing hand crafted beers.

“Birragurra”, (another historic town of the region)is about a 20-minute drive from “Deans Marsh”, consisted of a very wide main street, shop fronts all of which were more than 100 years old and has an ambiance of utter slowness, peace, and quiet.

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Main Road Birragurra.

Next day we continued our journey onto the vibrant city of “Colac” where we explored the magnificent Botanical Gardens and had lunch at the garden’s restaurant that over looked the impressive Lake Colac, a massive fresh water catchment area that supplied the township.

As early afternoon approached, we first visited “Lake Cundare” salt lake then onto our next destination of “Red Rock Lookout“. That supplied us with a sturdy climb to the top and a reward of 360* of an uninterrupted vista of the many and varied craters left by volcanic activity from as little as 4000 years ago, after that a return to the cabin for a lovely home cooked meal and glass of wine. DSCN1747

Lake Cundare.(Salt Lake).

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Looking down from Red Rock lookout.

Whilst all of the above consisted of a lot of driving, it was well worth it as the experience was one you needed to personally appreciate what it offered!All in all, an enjoyable time.

A chance encounter with the Primrose Rugby Club

June 25, 2017June 25, 2017 / timdymo / 4 Comments

Primrose Rugby Club 2

On a blustery day in September 2012 my wife and I were relaxing in our seats in the rear of a plane on the tarmac at Cape Town’s international airport on our way back to Australia, when a babble of excited voices filled the aircraft and a group of young boys, accompanied by some adults, made their way to where we were sitting. We quietly braced ourselves for a long and noisy flight.

The boys were all dark-skinned and clearly belonged to some sort of sporting club.

Whilst growing up in South Africa during the Apartheid era, I had never once played sport against, nor even sat next to anyone who was not white. Under the laws of the time everything relating to racial matters was separate or ‘apart’ – sport, public transport, park benches, churches, schools, toilets and even public parks.

Having been active in the Anti-Apartheid movement for many years, it was a novel and heart-warming experience for me to share the plane with these excited, dark-skinned youngsters.

Their coach’s seat was not far from mine, on the other side of the aisle. I could tell that he had an excellent rapport with the kids. One of the boys came past and ruffled his hair. When they became too excited and noisy, he called them to order and they quietened down immediately.

“What is the name of your club?” I asked the coach.

“The Primrose Rugby Club. Our boys are going to compete in a rugby competition for Under 13s in New Zealand.”

I had never heard of the Primrose Rugby Club, so I asked him how long the club had been in existence. “It started in 1896,” he said. “It’s a community club. I used to play for them myself when I was young. We have at least one boy here who is going to play for South Africa one day,” he added confidently.

The separation or ‘apartheid’ between races when I grew up was so comprehensive that this rugby club, which had existed not far from where I had lived as a schoolboy, was unfamiliar to me.

“Do your teams sometimes fly to other parts of South Africa to compete?” I asked him.

“Oh no, very few of our players would ever have been in an aeroplane before.”

The excitement amongst the boys was palpable. One of them had taken more than a hundred photos on his digital camera in the plane even before take-off. Another exclaimed: “Look! They even have little televisions in here.” He turned to me. “Could you please show me how to switch this on?”

The plane started moving towards the runway. I asked the young fellow across the aisle from me if he had ever travelled in a plane before. “No, never,” he replied. “I’m very scared!”

As the plane gathered speed on the runway the boys’ voices grew louder and some of them cried out aloud in fright when it lifted off the ground. Suddenly, one of them started singing the post-Apartheid South African national anthem, “Nkosi Sikilel iAfrika” (“Lord Bless Africa”, in the Xhosa language) and all the others immediately joined in to sing their fear of flying away. It was an enthusiastic and beautiful impromptu performance.

Later, back in Melbourne, I googled the Primrose Rugby Club and found an amateur video of the boys on a New Zealand rugby field, standing in line and facing a long line of their young New Zealand opponents, who were performing the haka. I could imagine just how immensely the boys of the Primrose Rugby Club would have enjoyed that moment, and I was grateful that something like this had become possible in my lifetime.

Some months later I googled the Primrose Rugby Club again, curious to know how their tour of New Zealand had gone. One website informed me that they had made history as the first ever international team to have been invited to compete in the prestigious Annual New Zealand Junior Rugby Festival. Then I found a photo on another website that caused me to be overwhelmed with great emotion, as well as with a strange feeling of immense pride. There was the trophy for the Under 13 Champions of the New Zealand Junior Rugby Festival, perched on the shore of Table Bay, with Cape Town in the background.

Primrose Rugby Club trophy

POSTSCRIPT

At the time of writing this piece I had tried my utmost to find a contact email address or snail mail address for the Primrose Rugby Club so that I could share this story with them, but to my great frustration I was unable to do so. Then, out of the blue four years later, I received the following message per email:

22 June 2017

Hi There

It was by chance that I came across your article which was written in 2014 about a group of young rugby players setting off to play for the very first time in a foreign country. 🙂 Boys from Primrose Rugby Club.

I was on that plane with those boys and I would love to share your post on my blog: zivs2.wordpress.com

It was a really fascinating story which I would love to share with you some time.

Best regards

Zivia Sallie

22 June 2017

Reblogged this on The World of Zivs and commented: It was per chance that I found this article today. To all the Primrose Rugby boys, staff and parents who travelled on this flight with us…I’m sure you will all just be smiling when you read this.

22 June 2017

Dear Tim

You cannot imagine my delight in discovering your article this morning. It brought back so many fond memories of this tour and I have already shared with most families linked to that tour.

I will take some time out and email you the details and I am certain you will find it extremely fascinating.

The tour was a great success. We returned to SA with a Silver plate and boys whose lives had been changed forever.

I hope to be in touch sometime soon.

Best Regards

Zivia

23 June 2017

I shared your post with many of the parents and they thanked me for sharing because it brought back so many beautiful memories for them too. One of the families now live in New Zealand and the mom, Insaaf, said that she was in tears just remembering that time. She has also travelled with the group.

Zivia

…and so …. The Journey Begins

May 20, 2017June 3, 2017 / brucemccorkill / Leave a comment

19th May 2017 – Barry and Denise, pictured with friends Val and David, taking the first step in their epic adventure to challenge the legendary Canning Stock Route.

From all the blokes at OM:NI DC – wishing you a safe, interesting and fulfilling journey ……..

**The road goes ever on and on
   Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the road has gone,
    And I must follow, if I can.
Pursuing it with eager feet,
        Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet,
            And, whither then? I cannot say.