Bundanoon

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16 September 2002
Ever since returning from Wahgunyah I’ve been suffering from a bad back. The cause, lugging my equipment in and out of centres. I hope this is not a prelude to an early retirement. Last month I turned fifty and I wonder how many more years I can keep crawling around on my hands and knees getting children to say “monkeys” so I can get a smiling face. It’s not a thing I want to be doing when I’m sixty. This morning I left home about 8.30. The weather was wet as I drove to Yea where I branched off to Bonny Doon. It was a pleasant drive, rolling hills with good grazing paddocks on both sides of the road. Two hours after leaving Melbourne I joined the Hume Freeway; the weather was still wet. Albury and all the other familiar New South Wales towns were passed. My first break from driving was at Gundagai where I bought take-away. It was 4.30 in the afternoon when I arrived in Bundanoon. By now the rain had eased. Couldn’t get a meal anywhere in town and had to be satisfied with fish and chips.

17 September 2002
As usual after a long drive I went to sleep early. I didn’t hear the rain during the night. About 6.45 the next morning I was woken from a comfortable sleep by an extra loud goods train passing between the cutting near the motel. A quick look out of the window told me I wasn’t going to take any outside photos today.
Last night I noticed a sign on the bathroom wall; “Its best to let the hot water run for a while, to allow the heat to reach the unit” I took the advice and had to wait for at least five minutes before getting under the shower. Not a very good arrangement in a state that is said to be eighty percent in drought. At the pre-school the morning went well although no outside activities were done, I still managed to get enough “shots” to fill the Childrens photo albums.
Back at the motel the afternoon was taken up by reading and watching TV. Looking out the window the puddles in the parking area showed me it hadn’t stop raining. For my evening meal I found out the local pub didn’t serve cooked meals, instead you had to cook the meat yourself. I wasn’t in the mood to do that, so bought Chinese take-away.

18 September 2002
After my mornings session I took a short drive to Mortan National Park. For the next two hours I drove the dirt roads in the area, stopping when I saw a sign indicating a short walk to impressive lookouts. It wasn’t raining but the wind continued to blow hard. I made sure not to venture too close to the edge of the cliffs. Each lookout gave the viewer magnificent sights of cliffs on the far side of the deep valley.

19 September 2002
Today when my session at the Pre-School was finished I drove to Moss Vale, which is twenty kilometers east of Bundanoon. Had a look around the main street and found a pub to watch life in this country town pass by the window. There was a library in town, which gave me a chance to check my email. The plan is to leave for Melbourne in the morning, that way I could do the whole journey in daylight. I don’t enjoy driving at night, especially if the trip has been long.

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