We spent today in Naracoorte and have now seen all of the attractions featured on their brown tourist sign! We started the day at the World Heritage Listed Naracoorte Caves. With time to fill before our tour booked for 10.15am we completed the above ground loop above the Alexandra, Blanche and Bat Caves. There are a number of above ground openings to the caves which means that even people who do not want to go underground can experience the caves at Naracoorte. After our above ground experience we drove down to the Victoria Fossil Cave for our guided tour. Our guide was passionate about the caves and made our tour very interesting. I was particularly taken with a new explanation about stalactites and stalagmites. Apparently the word roots mean that one, the stalactites, are the drippy ... read more

We left Canberra just before 9.00am this morning for the drive home to Melbourne. We made our first stop near Gundagai for the BIG Koala and, of course, the Dog (back) on the Tuckerbox. The statue was vandalised (knocked from its plinth) at the end of July and had to be taken away for repairs. Bernie checked this morning to learn that the dog is back. When we arrived, not only was the dog back on the tuckerbox, there were hundreds of people at the site for the ceremonial return of the dog. What a momentous day to visit! Tracey took over the driving and we continued down the Hume. As we neared Holbrook, Tracey decided that it was probably time for another leg stretch and maybe some lunch. When we stopped near Gundagai we smelt ... read more

This morning we set off to visit the Jenolan Caves. Only 27 Kilometres away from Katoomba, as the crow flies, but 74 kilometres by road! On our way we made a quick stop at Govetts Leap Lookout near Blackheath. The falls here are known as the Bridal Veil Falls or simply, Govetts Leap. One more stupendous view of a rugged Blue Mountains valley, this time the Grose Valley. Back on the road we made it to Jenolan Caves nearly an hour before our scheduled cave tour at 11.30am. The weather associated with the polar vortex dumped snow on this part of the world last weekend closing the road to Jenolan Caves. Knowing that there could still be a bit of snow and ice by the road we decided to allow plenty of time for the trip. ... read more

Our host at the Brooklyn Motel, Keith, told us this morning that someone drove their car off the Peats Ferry Bridge overnight. This is the same bridge that we crossed coming into Brooklyn yesterday afternoon. As at this morning police divers had still not located the vehicle and the driver. After packing the car we headed down to the Brooklyn Public Wharf for our cruise on the Hawkesbury River with the Riverboat Postman. We were so lucky with the weather today as it was a beautiful clear blue and sunny day on the river. Although it was a bit brisk, it was perfect for a leisurely cruise. The first Riverboat Postman started the run in 1910. Today the tradition continues with Hawkesbury Cruises, the current operators of this famous half day trip. Before we left the ... read more

Well, we have travelled south and the polar vortex has blown north and we have met up in Newcastle. It is extremely cold and windy today! We parked near the Surf Club at Newcastle Beach this morning and watched the surfers as we walked towards the Art Deco Ocean Baths. After taking far too many photos of the surfers, we continued heading out towards Nobbys Head via the Surf Club at Nobbys Beach. As we walked out we thought that we were seeing Fort Scratchley on the headland and the ‘lighthouse’ at the end of the breakwater. Very disappointing we thought, as it looked to be only a beacon. About halfway out, Cathy turned around and realised that we had walked around the base of Fort Scratchley and it was actually the lighthouse and associated buildings ... read more