Yackandandah, Vic

Day 8 Saturday 12/10/2024 Yackandandah, sunny 5 – 21

Mother of Pearl and little Pearl leave early for home and the ballet.

The spring sunshine is hot on my back, yet my toes are cold. The last drops of dew sparkle on the grass. Yack Creek burbles over the rocks and overhanging branches cast Japanese style shadows on the wet granite. I know there are trout in the water, but they are hiding from sight today. There’s a feast of flowers and weeds holding the bank together. Forget Me Nots, buttercups, ivy and grasses. Tall gums tower overhead alongside elms and pin oaks. Honeysuckle rambles through the undergrowth and a medlar tree struggles for purchase. What is this about medlar trees? I hadn’t seen one in decades and now they seem to appear on every trip.

Toothless’ old mate P who lives here, drops by for a chat over morning tea and Gavin the park manager joins us. We learn that the ‘Bottom’ Pub is closing today, and the locals have been trying to drink the cellar down. “I had to change beers 3 times!” said Gavin. Life’s hard for a bloke in the bush.

We are spoilt for choice of walking trails in Yackandandah and after lunch we all go walking at different paces and in different directions. I take the bike path towards Osborne’s Flat, skirting the town and following the creek. It’s a good temperature for walking and I’m not the only one enjoying it.

We light the fire again at happy hour and watch a magpie who is wandering about with a skink in his beak. Our dinner is a chicken schnitzel, no doubt tastier than lizard. The other park residents have scurried off to see The Pigs.

Accom: $45.00, Fuel: $113.41 from the community owned servo.