Did you hear the one about the bloke with rooftop solar panels who chose to free camp in a nice shady spot and wondered why his batteries went flat? It’s nice to have shade but not if you’ve got rooftop solar or you want pay TV reception. Continue reading Bring me sunshine
This life of retirement has meant that we have made a lot of new friends in our new found pursuits. The obvious fact is that we won’t be lucky enough to know them for a whole lifetime. Perhaps that is why seniors laugh a lot. They are laughing at the ups, the downs and the inevitabilities. Today we say farewell to a very dear mate, whom we were lucky to meet when we joined our caravan club. A mate who possessed the quintessential laid-back dry Aussie humour that this culture is known for. A man who deserved a gold medal … Continue reading Farewell to a Good Mate
You know the people that camp right beside you in a huge empty free camp? I reckon that they’re the ones who, in the morning, choose the cubicle beside you in an otherwise empty toilet block. Maybe they grew up in a large family and just need company. Continue reading Don’t stand so close to me
Feb 2019, Woods Point, Vic The Mansfield to Woods Point Road straddles Frenchman’s Gap at 1082 metres. The path of the 2006/2007 bushfires is still visible. The intensity of that fire meant that the eucalypts never recovered, never sprouted brilliant green regrowth the length of their trunks. Instead, they stand tall and silent, grey tombstones. Continue reading Frenchman’s Gap
One of our favourite watering holes is the historic Kevington Hotel (aka the Kevington Hilton) at Kevington in Victoria’s high country. Situated on a bend of the winding road that follows the wild Goulburn River ‘The Kevi’ is a welcome sight for the weary traveller. The front bar is a treat, adorned with gold rush photos of days gone by and once neighbouring valley hotels that have succumbed to fire. This is an area popular with deer hunters and on the wall hangs the head of a magnificent deer that wasn’t shot but the victim of a road accident not … Continue reading A bevi @ the Kevi
Feb 2019, Jamieson, Vic A friend’s daughter joined us last week in her new second-hand Jayco Starcraft pop top. It’s a perfect van for her and her young son to enjoy the fun of camping in the bush the same … Continue reading Some caravan fridges like to be level
Sometimes you just have to use what nature has provided. At least there was plenty of paper. Continue reading A sticky solution
When travelling in Victoria, a handy and free app to have on your phone is the Vic Emergency App. You can set a Watch Zone to receive alerts on Warnings and Incidents in your area. It can also be used … Continue reading Vic Emergency App
Many times we’ve camped at Skipworth Reserve south of Jamieson in Victoria’s Upper Goulburn Valley but there has been no mobile phone service and the nearest communications was at a phone box outside the Kevington Pub, 4 kilometres away. Thinking back, the last time I used a phone box was probably at that very one back in 2014. And on several occasions I’ve driven 7 kilometres back to Jamieson township to publish a blog post via the ipad or phone. Now thankfully mobile service is available part way up the valley, to the joy of Facebook tragics like Woody and … Continue reading Good News for FOMO’s
Winter 2018 It’s easy to travel from cold to warmth, happily stripping down from jeans and jumpers to shorts and tee shirts, but after mooching about the tropics for nigh on three months we wonder how we’ll acclimatise to August the coldest month of winter in Melbourne. But nature has its way when it’s time to go as not only do we count down (or is it up?) the latitudes but there are ranges to cross, higher altitudes, lower altitudes and inland regions with cold freezing nights and delightfully warm days. We cross from latitude 16˚S to latitude 37˚S, through … Continue reading Changes in attitude, changes in latitude
