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Published: March 28th 2012
Final Entry - The End Of The Road
Well, this is it! The last blog entry for our, almost two year, trek around Oz.
After leaving Adelaide we travelled through the towns along the Murray River. We made visits to Mannum, Walkers Flat, Renmark, Blanchetown and Echuca. Once again the weather was kind to us and the “Mighty Murray” was great to see. The “PS Murray Princess” was in dock at Mannum and was a magic sight. PS standing for “Paddle Steamer”. We took a trip up the river at Echuca, where the Murray is significantly narrower and dirtier than at Renmark. Nevertheless we ticked yet another box.
From Echuca we headed for Bendigo where we caught up with my sister Jean’s son Steven. He was recovering from a serious back injury after being thrown from a horse. He was still in considerable pain and was on very strong pain- killers so we felt quite sorry for him. We’ve since heard that he is making a good recovery and has even got a new girlfriend!!
Ballarat was our next stop, where Rose managed to pan some gold (as does
Wheelhouse at Echuca
Skipper at work on a paddle steamereveryone) in the river at the Sovereign Hill mining museum. We had a great day visiting the many exhibits, which were well presented.
Next stop was Melbourne again, where we spent some time doing a lot more research into Rose’s ancestors. It proved very fruitful after meeting with members of the Whittlesea Historical Society and a historian from University of Tasmania at his home near the Vic Markets. We managed to find the school at which Rose’s triple Great Grandfather helped establish and taught at from 1853 until 1870, when he died.
Our trip along the south coast of Victoria then saw us set up camp at Lakes Entrance for a few days. We had some lovely walks along the side of the lakes to the entrance, with a few special sunsets in the evenings. The highlight of the stay there was a drive around to Paynesville for the local annual music festival. The first performers were some older guys with the name “Five Feet Under” who, believe it or not, were sponsored by the local funeral directors? There were many good acts to follow.
A one-night stop at Merimbula followed,
Snapper Steve
Nephew Steve after his back injury. due to some pretty ugly weather, followed by an unscheduled, prolonged stay at Batemans Bay. Last time I visited Batemans Bay it rained for ten days solid, so not surprisingly, we experienced seven days straight of heavy rain this time!! I’m not going back again.
Eventually we arrived in Sydney after a two-night stay at Kiama, famous for its “Blow Hole”. The sea was very flat when we arrived so there was no action there either? We made a quick excursion up to Bowral where we visited the Bradman Cricket Museum. A must for anyone, whether interested in cricket or not! It is so well presented.
Sydney greeted us with twelve hours of incredibly heavy rain, so we were confined to the van, slowly being deafened by the noise of the rain on the roof. While there we visited a few of Rose’s relatives, most of whom are getting on in years yet surprisingly spritely.
From Sydney we had short stays at Lake Macquarie, Tuncurry, Coffs Harbour and Ballina before parking the van at its final location at Tallebudgera Creek Tourist Park, about five minutes from our house. It is probably
Gold Panner
Rose looking for the spec of gold she has panned!! one of the best locations we have stayed at during our trip and a nice way to end the adventure.
The last few days have been spent cleaning out the van in preparation for its sale. We finally left it in storage today (quite sad really), and have taken a house-sit in Brisbane for a few weeks prior to returning to the Gold Coast in late April.
We have had a fantastic time exploring this massive continent and have absolutely no hesitation in recommending to anyone of any age to get out there and do it, if the opportunity arises.
We hope you’ve all enjoyed the journey with us.
Love
John & Rosemary
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