ADELAIDE TO MOUNT MARTHA

The trip home - beautiful clouds

Fields of canola

We want to come home - no, really, we do!

One foot in South Australia, one foot in Victoria

Look who you find in Horsham - the Gordons!!

DAY 97 – ADELAIDE TO MOUNT MARTHA                         Friday, 7^th October

Our last day!  Cannot quite believe it!  We were on the road by 7am and went through the same rituals that we went through each time we left a place – a prayer for a safe journey and then playing John Denver’s Leaving on a Jet Plane, followed by Rhymes and Reasons, and Country Roads, and finishing up with Do Wah Diddy Diddy Dum Diddy Do.  (It really is better that you don’t ask – I HAVE already informed DHS of the issues). 

The drive down out of Adelaide past Hahndorf and Murray Bridge down to Bordertown and finally across the border into Victoria.  The countryside was really beautiful but so different from what we had been seeing.  It started to look like the home we knew – green rolling hills.  We stopped for our very last “border photo” (one leg in South Australia and one leg in Victoria) and headed to Horsham for lunch where we met …. The Gordons!!  They were in the Grampians for a rock climbing weekend (those outdoorsy types … I don’t know).  How fitting that they were the last people to see us before we left and the first to see us when we got home!  It was great to see a friendly face. 

Our trip home became a little hairy when we got near to Bacchus Marsh.  An enormous storm hit and we narrowly missed a serious accident between a bus and a car in Myrniong which later caused the closing of the highway.  The rain was unbelievable.  We ended up slowing to 60kph which obviously slowed our journey enormously. 

It was so funny listening to Bridgie as we got to the city (“I remember this!”) and the kids reliving our trip across the Westgate Bridge (accidentally) when trying to get to Ben’s Auskick game at the MCG.  (Why do they always have to repeat EXACTLY what you say, when you really wish you hadn’t sworn that much??)

It was lovely to reach our beautiful “new” home at 4 Pardella Place, with flowers and food from Mum, and balloons and a full fridge and pantry from our wonderful house guests, the Rauters.  21,926 kms travelled and so many wonderful sights seen and experiences had.  I may need some time to reflect before wrapping up.  I cannot possibly choose a highlight in terms of places or individual experiences.  But the most precious thing was being with my family for three wonderful months – and nothing can ever take that time or those memories away from us.

ADELAIDE

DAY 96 – ADELAIDE                                                             Thursday, 6^th October

Enjoying an ice cream at Glenelg

In Rundle Street Mall

Tessie is so kind to ALL animals

Riding a pig is one thing we hadn't done on our holiday

I have got my money on Bridgie

Racing "leaf boats" in the Botanical Gardens

David and Beth at the Botanical Gardens

Well, it is actually 18^th October today but I have had so many people say “You haven’t finished the blog!” that I thought I would get down and finish the last two days!  Well, woke up and had nowhere to go on the Thursday!  Have to laugh really!  We had a relaxing morning.  The kids loved zooming around on their scooters around the caravan park while I cut David’s hair and trimmed his beard (wow, I could make a business out of this!).  David then, as positive as always, set about making our day in Adelaide as exciting as it could be – while his wife mopped around just wanting to be home.  It is the problem when you are a control freak like me.  Everything had been intricately planned and had gone like clockwork … until the penultimate day!! 

Anyway, we drove into Glenelg in our jazzy new Skoda wagon and hopped on the tram to the city.  We hopped off at Rundle Street mall and wandered up the mall, watching street performers and doing a little shopping.  We made it all the way to the Botanical Gardens which were nice (but not a patch on Melbourne’s, or Kings Park in Perth!) and then hopped on the tram and back to Glenelg where we had lunch on the beach, watching some of the local ladies being spoken to rather sternly by the local constabulary!  A large ice cream later and back to the caravan park where the kids again spent time cruising around on their scooters.  We packed up most of the van in preparation for our early morning and slept well looking straight at our beautiful new painting which needed to be in the van for protection!

PORT AUGUSTA TO ADELAIDE

Some of the beautiful pink lakes south of Port Augusta

Beautiful old farmhouse ruins

We even saw the Loch Ness Monster

800 kms from Melbourne - a day and a half - this can't be happening

My beautiful Prado

Towing the van to the caravan park

DAY 95 – PORT AUGUSTA TO ADELAIDE                     Wednesday, 5^th October

Well, today did not go exactly to plan.  We started off well with dear Kevin rushing to Woolies to buy the kids a selection of breakfast cereals!  What a gem!  So we all had breakfast and then a shower (with fresh, white towels!) and said our farewells (again!) and headed off in the rain for Bordertown or hopefully even further.  Best laid plans ….

The kids did quite a bit of journal work in the car and we got to Adelaide, filled up and then decided we would have lunch somewhere on the other side of Adelaide on the way to Murray Bridge.  We got part way up the hill to Mt Barker and then the engine started to rev very high and there was a terrible smell of burning.  We did not get any further up the hill.  The stench was overpowering.  So that is where we stayed while we rang RACV and organised for roadside assistance, discovered that it would need to be towed to a mechanic, that we would need accommodation for the next couple of days, etc etc etc.  It is probably the clutch but we don’t know.  Could cost anywhere between $700 and $3000.  Great!  

Anyway, things could be much worse.  We have RACV Total Care so the towing, taxis, hire car, accommodation are all covered (a bit extreme to go to these lengths to get some free accommodation but oh well!!)  Yesterday we were driving between Nullarbor Roadhouse and Port Augusta with no service and pouring rain.  That would have been a nightmare.  We are in possibly the best caravan park we have EVER stayed in – the kids are in kid heaven – and we are right on the beach.  We are so blessed in so many ways.  Just have to wait a little longer to see all those we love.

So tomorrow we will investigate a bit of Adelaide and hope and pray they can fix our precious Prado quickly.  As David says, it is a good thing we bought our painting yesterday because there is absolutely no way the Chancellor of the Exchequor (me!) would have allowed it now!!  Anyway, things always look better in the morning.

NULLARBOR TO PORT AUGUSTA

The beautiful Nullarbor plain

Classy pizza and wine at Port Augusta

The tent on the left looking out to a huge green

The campsite in the morning

DAY 94 – NULLARBOR TO PORT AUGUSTA                                  Tuesday, 4^th October

Well, we all almost blew away last night!  The pole in the tent creaked all night so the kids claimed to have not slept a wink.  It is still very warm and children were cursing mum for making them wear singlets to bed last night.  Well, we WERE in the middle of the desert!!!  David cooked pancakes for all while we tried to pack up quickly before the rain poured down on us.  Unfortunately, right at the last minute, Caleb’s front wheel came off his bike and he went over the top of the handlebars into the hard gravel.  Poor thing winded himself and has some impressive grazes on his elbows, hands and chin.  Not a nice experience but David, being always one to look at the bright side of things, said:  “Chicks dig scars, mate”.

Off to Ceduna where we had a classy lunch in a carpark!  Then said farewell to the Patersons as they went off to Streaky Bay and we headed towards Port Augusta.

The whole trip we have wanted to purchase a piece of Aboriginal art for our new home.  David suggested we buy a Seven Sisters painting we saw at Mt Ebenezer which is between Uluru and Erldunda.  But, ever the cautious one, I said we should continue to look to make sure it is what we really want.  Of course, my ignorance meant that I did not realise the extent of the different styles of Aboriginal art throughout the country.  Whilst I can appreciate all types of art, I really like the traditional dot paintings, which are really found only in central Australia.  So when we got up north, we realised we had missed our opportunity. 

It has been one thing I have regretted.  BUT, God is indeed smiling on us because we popped into an Aboriginal art gallery in Ceduna, in the pouring rain, just as we were heading off on a long drive to Kimba.  And I just loved the work in there.  There were two paintings by Verna Lawrie about her mother-in-law who had travelled inland Australia, mainly through western and northern South Australia.  As a child, she travelled with her parents through the desert, sometimes by foot, sometimes with the Afghan Cameleers, and sometimes they would “jump a train”.  They continued to travel until she married and settled in Coober Pedy.  The painting is entitled “She Knows this Country”.  It just spoke to me about needing to travel through places to really understand your country and your place in it.  I just love it – and I think David does too.  Anyway, it is a fantastic momento of our trip – and also my 40^th Birthday present (did I just say 40??!!).  David decided we would take it with us in the van – it is two metres long and probably almost a metre wide!  Lucky we have only got two nights left!

It has rained ever since we left Ceduna – steady, soaking rain – so we have decided (for the first time) to be slack and get a cheap and nasty motel in Port Augusta.  It is so hard to put up the tent in the rain, especially with all the things that need to sit outside the van at night (most importantly, our new painting!)  Kimba looked like such a lovely town too.  But all of this will be for our South Australian holiday!  We are dying to come back and do the Eyre and Yorke Peninsulas one day before the kids are too old.

But we just wanted to get as far as we could.  The Flinders Hotel in the main street of Port Augusta is a very old hotel, with the huge bedrooms and big verandahs.  All of us are in one room and, while the menfolk went out hunting and gathering for our dinner, Alanna and I reached new levels by having to drink wine from a cheap tea/coffee cup!  Pizza was the dinner they “hunted and gathered” so we sat in our hotel room, eating from the box!  Oh how the mighty have fallen!!  We had a good laugh on the verandah after putting the kids to bed and then realised we have another huge day in the car tomorrow.  Today, at 765kms would be our biggest day.  The kids were so good for being stuck in the car all day and they did quite a bit of catching up on their journals!

We are all depressed tonight because after the last two weeks of average weather, we have all lost our beautiful tans!  Broome seems like such a dim and distant memory!

EUCLA TO NULLARBOR

Still a long way from home

All the kids with one foot in WA and one foot in SA

The sad adults (Laurence and Vi, Sarah and David, Kevin and Alanna) at the SA border

Bunda Cliffs

Hansen family at the Bunda Cliffs

Aren't they stunning?

Hansen family at one of the many lookouts along Bunda Cliffs

You have to be careful on these roads!!

More Bunda Cliffs, Nullarbor National Park

At the Head of the Bight

The Boys - David, Laurence and Kevin

The Girls - Vi, Sarah and Alanna

Sunset over the Nullarbor Roadhouse

Teeing off on the Nullarbor Links - Dingo's Den

Down the fairway

DAY 93 – EUCLA TO NULLARBOR                                Monday, 3^rd October

Things looked so much brighter in the morning.  Tent survived the night and was not wet.  Children did not drown and items did not need to be recovered from all over Eucla!  By 7am the entire caravan park was deserted!!  All these grey nomads get up very early in the morning!  My husband did a magnificent job of reversing out of the corner we were squashed into and exiting the park.  We headed off to WA/SA Border Village where the time was one and three quarter hours later than it was ten minutes earlier, and two and a half hours later than it was the day before.  So we were due for lunch only a couple of hours after breakfast!! 

We stopped at a number of lookout spots along the way which were just stunning – the sheer drop of the cliffs, the blue water, the white limestone cliffs and beautiful sand dunes.  Bunda Cliffs was particularly beautiful.  We just could not stop taking photographs of the water and the cliffs.

We arrived at Nullarbor at about 3pm Nullarbor time, which was only about 1:15 or even 12:45pm “our time”!!  We decided that we wanted to see the Head of the Bight and the caves which are close to here so decided to book into the roadhouse and take the vans off.  When we booked in, the man at reception told us that there was a private function at the Head of the Bight tonight so we needed to get out there quickly.  So we all unhooked the vans, grabbed our Saladas and vegemite (no fresh bread to be found on the Nullarbor) and hot-footed it out there!  Great fun buttering saladas and putting on peanut butter and vegemite in a car travelling first at 110kph and then on a rocky uneven road!  After that nutritionally satisfying meal we jumped out and walked to the boardwalk hoping to see some Southern Right Whales.  

An amazing sight greeted us!!  As we searched the horizon for signs of breeching or blowing, our eyes turned downwards to just below the cliffs where a mother and her calf were lazing in the water about 50 metres offshore.  She was beautiful!  We stood watching about four or five mothers and their calves playing in the water for about an hour.  They stay at the Head of the Bight for some time to allow the calves to acclimatise to the cooler waters and to get stronger for the big journey down into the Southern Ocean.  As we looked westward, there were maybe five or more mothers coming down with their calves.  They were like new mothers; their calves were with them constantly, and there was so much touch between them, it was beautiful.  Some of the calves were clearly more adventurous than others, jumping out of the water.  Alanna managed to capture, just before she left, a picture of a mother lying on her back with her flippers in the air.  These majestic, peaceful animals were just exquisite.  Such a special experience to witness such a superb display of magnificent animals in their natural environment caring for their young.

We were all on a bit of a high when we left but we had to say goodbye to the Tedescos who were travelling on to Ceduna that night.  After the traditional “Leaving on a Jet Plane” serenade, we headed back to the roadhouse for a spot of golf.  My goodness!  My husband wonders why I don’t play golf with him!  ONE HOLE TOOK OVER AN HOUR!!  Many minutes of searching for lost balls in the scrub and hitting into a wild wind, meant that it was an excruciating hour!!  But lots of fun, with Alanna teeing off in her bat cape that had to be variously tucked into her knickers and bra to keep it from interfering with her excellent golf!!

Aftet that, we sat outside to eat dinner whilst watching the most magnificent display of lightning and thunder lighting up the whole sky.  The tent was a little way from the van so we wanted to put the kids to bed before it started raining, when it becomes difficult to get kids into bed without everything getting wet!  Bridgie managed to score Caleb’s bed in the Paterson van (ultra comfortable) while the other five were in the tent.  We then noticed that a fire had been started by a lightning strike about 8 kms away.  It was a decent size fire to be seen from the roadhouse.  Scottie Gordon would have been in his element.  David, Kevin, Alanna and Caleb set off immediately to investigate!  As they got closer, it completely disappeared but David managed to speak to the local SES volunteer who had seen the fire and headed off from the roadhouse within minutes.  Fortunately, the wind blew the fire back on itself and it burnt out within minutes, otherwise a fire break would have had to be lit just behind the roadhouse!  That would have been so much more exciting!

We consumed coffee and chocolate whilst looking at Alanna’s fantastic whale shots before hitting the sack, hoping to hell that when we woke, we wouldn’t have to search the surrounding Nullarbor Plain for the tent … oh, and the children!

BALLADONIA TO EUCLA

Ben teeing off at the Skylab Par 3, Balladonia

David giving Bridgie a few pointers

Look at that swing!!

On the fairway and headed for the green!

Trying to get onto the green!

On the Nullarbor

A team photo - The Tedescos, the Patersons and the Hansens

Tess and Tess enjoying the Hansen Travelling Cinema

Stormtrooper on the way from Perth to Sydney

The Nullarbor

Tess, Bridget and Tess in the travelling Hansen Cinema

All the kids in the van waiting for dinner

DAY 92 – BALLADONIA – EUCLA                                         Sunday, 2^nd October

This morning, the guys decided that they had to “have a hit” on a few of the holes of the Nullarbor Links Golf Course - longest golf course in the world.  Kevin had three golf clubs (2 left-handed) and some golf balls so they hit the course.  You should have seen the fairways!!  Undulating rock and sand and scrub!!  A Par 3 turned into a … well, let’s say that they were almost double figures – and some more than that!

After that we hit the road towards Eucla.  The first stop, of course, was the sign saying “Longest straight stretch of road in Australia”.  90 miles or 146.6 kms of dead straight road!  So we had a team photo and then a stop halfway so ALL the adults could say that had driven across this famous stretch of road.  We saw some amazing sights along the way.  Enormous semi-trailers carrying funnels for wheat farms and trucks, emus running across in front of the cars, and beautiful Wedged-Tail Eagles sitting on the road, dining on dead kangaroo and brazenly staring us down as we thundered past.  They don’t move from their dinner table!!  They are just amazingly beautiful, powerful birds.

We came across a Stormtrooper, walking from Perth to Sydney to raise money for the Starlight Foundation.  And Superman was there too, raising money for the Heart Foundation!

We stopped at Madura Roadhouse, pulled out the awning, got out our chairs and sat there for lunch, just like the Grey Nomads.  The men had another hit on a Par 3; very funny sight.  We arrived at Eucla, after crossing the Central Western Time zone and putting our clocks forward 45 minutes – bizzare! – around 5pm (not sure what time zone that was!) and were stunned to find the Roadhouse practically booked out!  We had to drive over to the Caravan Park and search for a site for our three vans – not an easy task with just plain sand and electricity boxes dotted around in strange spots.  We finally all found a spot, pushed into corners and parked in laneways!   It will be a very interesting time getting out in the morning as we really can’t move until others move!

We cooked dinner and had a record number of people in our van – at one time, four adults and ten children – before putting the kids to bed and cleaning up!  All children VERY tired!!  When we put the vans up, the sky was a beautiful blue, but the wind should have tipped us off.  David and Laurence were up at 3am putting shoes under cover and chairs away as the rain poured down and the thunder and lightning crashed.  There was absolutely nothing we could do about the tent at that time so we just hoped the kids would not get wet and stay asleep.  We would have to figure it out in the morning.