hello readers
I am a choral conductor.
In 2008 my husband was diagnosed with Lewybody disease ( a combination of parkinson desease and dementia), not a nice thing to have, time is short. We now have come back from South Australia, as the blog tells you, and I realised that many things had to change as I have to deal with the day to day details with the caravan as well as looking after John. The system needed to change as far as the towing implement was concerned and we now have a Reece System. We also have a system to lift the roof of the van with a motor (we have a pop up), as I cannot lift my arms very well and lifting the roof was getting too hard. My arms were damaged in a fall and the tendons were torned. I honestly believe that having disabilities should not stop anybody to achieve some goals and travel, and it is my intention to keep this blog up to date with our travel and the progression of the sickness while travelling.
We have recently purchased "Rosie" a demountable gopher, Rosie partly fits in the boot of the car and partly in the van; the batteries fits under a seat in the van and Rosie' seat, fits on the back seat of the car with a seatbelt, however rest assured that we have enough room to also fit our little dog in the car. I also have decided to give the van a name, and I would invite readers to send me some names to choose from,of course it should be easy and fun and reflect the nature of what we are doing..... over to you and good luck
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mum2December 20th 2009
Sunday 20th December We are now back home. We took two days to come back via Wongan Hill. As we always do when we are on that particular route, we stopped at "Goomaling Caravan Park", it is a shire park and it is unrated, however, it would put to shame some of the rated park. The service is great and friendly, the facilities are superb, and you can even exchange books freely in the laundry, there are plenty to choose from. A bonus: it is only $10.00 per night per van- pets are welcome This year, Goomaling Caravan Park is having a get together for their clients on Christmas day and a big meal will be provided in the park's kitchen. We loved Jurien Bay and we will go back, hopefully when the wind is not
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mum2December 15th 2009
15th December 09 Today was a reasonable day, and John is recovering from the bite he had. We were able to take a long walk and enjoyed the foreshore, even with the atrocious wind that we had today. It was so bad that we had to close the awning on the van, or we may have lost it as we did some years ago when we were in Fowlers Bay. Poppy is really enjoying these walks, and so do we, as he sleep all night without a murmur!!!!. so, from me, it is good bye for now
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mum2December 14th 2009
Monday 14th December Very little to write about, the heat is not as bad, about 32 degrees today, not much wind, in all a very pleasant day. John was bitten by a red back and felt some pain and discomfort, I took him to the medical centre and he is now on the road to recovery. Even the dog feels the heat after a long walk!!! As for me, it is goodbye for now
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mum2December 12th 2009
December 12th 09 Yesterday was a very quiet day, I did a lot of NOTHING.... and I loved it. The heat is still with us, and we are getting temperatures of about 38-39 degrees. The wind is very strong but appear to die down during the mornings however it comes back with a vengeance in the afternoons, it is not unpleasant at all and it help keep the heat down a little. Another blessing..... we have not noticed any flies......nor mosquitos..... John is enjoying "Rosie" and the footpaths in Jurien are really well designed and very safe to use. Today we went to the Marina and took a good look around town. Jurien is really a top little town, and really user friendly. One annoying little point was that we could not visit the Pinnacles in
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mum2December 10th 2009
Thursday December 10th So much for the rest day that I planned to have on day 3. We decided to leave Cervantes and go to Jurien Bay. The caravan park at Cervantes was terrible with the road works inside the park and the dust was incredible, so much for all my effort with cleaning the van inside out before we left, I was left with having to wash everything again.Fortunately, we did get a refund as we had paid in advance for 10 days, we should have been told when we booked a month ago that there were to be heavy machinery and the like happening in the park. So, once more I packed everything , including Rosie (grrrrrrrrrrrr she is so heavy!!!! and my right arm is feeling it!) We arrived on Wednesday the 9th
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mum2December 8th 2009
Day one We arrived at Moora on the first day without too much fuss, no wind and the roads were good, we booked at Moora Caravan Park, a very pleasant park with very good facilities, we liked Moora, it is a very pleasant little town, people are friendly, and courteous. No photos taken today, as there is really nothing to take. Day two We left for Cervantes via Badgingarra, and Tom Tom tried to sent me on a wild adventure, this is really to be watched, because before I knew it, I was on a gravel road, indicating "Cervantes" however it was very corragated. Doing a U turn with the caravan really tried my reversing skills it was not that easy because the Rd was a little on the narrow side. I assume that this probably
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mum2December 4th 2009
Today is the 4th December 09 and after a very busy year, we are taking 10 days away. It could be the last trip for us with the caravan, as John is not as well as what one would expect for travelling in a van. This time we are taking "Rosie" (gopher) it may make life a little easier, that way, I will be able to walk and enjoy the sights and so will John. it is a good compromise, it is a portable Gopher and the bottom half will fit in the boot of the car very easily, the rest will go into the caravan. For the last 2 days, I have been busy preparing the van, and departure is Sunday morning (early):). We plan to stop in Moora for the night on the first
... read moreThe rest of the journey was very steady. The car needed a new battery in Dalwallinu, but as it was 5 years old, we cannot grumble. We made a brief over night stop in Henly Brook to be with our grand children, before heading home. so, until we travel again, goodbye for now.
... read moreWe left Leonora about 9.15 AM and drove slowly to our next destination. Many Wedge Tail Eagles on the road, some are just magnificent, unfortunately as soon as we approached them, they flew away, making it impossible to photograph. We visited Leinster very briefly and were impressed by the mining town, it was very green and very pretty, extremely well kept. The caravan park is now open to the public and we are told that the cost per night is $10.00. However we pressed on traveling, as our destination was Sandstone for the day. The Van Park in Sandstone is very well kept and comfortable $18.00 for a power site. We visited the 17.5 Km heritage trail and the photos will speak for themselves. We enjoyed it and find it interesting, good gravel road to drive
... read moreGwalia is a ghost town; a community that has the deepest love and respect for their heritage has preserved it. The Sons of Gwalia mine was a major part of the lives of the people of Leonora Gwalia, supporting a population of around 3000 in 1911.Many resident were migrants form Italy and Yugoslavia living in simple cottages made from bush timber, corrugated iron and Hessian. In December 1963 The Sons of Gwalia mine closed for good and the towns folks virtually walked away taking with them only what they could carry. In a period of 3 weeks the population went from 3000 to a mere 40. Today, Gwalia host a museum, with many interesting artifacts, a library and hundreds of old photos. Hoover House is now a bed and breakfast residence and has been fully restored,
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