Whenever we’ve camped in the Upper Goulburn valley we’ve remarked on the impeccable condition of the camp grounds. No rubbish, well mown grass and clean toilets. Even the fire pits are tidy and have no stray ash. On our last … Continue reading The Forestry Boys
Flotsam and Jetsam One lonely starfish. 10 million peripatetic hermit crabs scurrying and climbing over each other and rocks in search of food and a larger home. Rocks the size of golf balls, no two the same, some red some golden all granite. Sponges scattered on the sand. Tongues of rocks reach out to sea. Chunks, spikes, mushrooms and paperweights of dead coral strewn roughly aside by each tide, cast offs from the reef. Tree trunks water logged and bearing the scars of oysters, blackened by the sea and age. Mangroves flank the shore at the creek mouth. Palms have … Continue reading Rollingstone on the Coral Sea
This cassowary sign in the Daintree National Park is well known. Continue reading Signs of Life or Death
The answer is a resounding “No”. We usually stay in the place that offers the best taste of the area or town. Sometimes it depends on weather. If it is appallingly wet then a well maintained caravan park with a concrete slab outside our door is not to be sneezed at. We don’t have a diesel or gas heater fitted, so a caravan park with power for heating and of course the electric blanket can be awfully enticing during a cold snap. In some towns there may be a local show ground with power and good facilities. These can be … Continue reading Do We Stay in Caravan Parks All the Time?
We were in the north of Western Australia and chatting with friends that we’d met on the road. They were from Perth and were talking longingly of visiting Melbourne. “Oh”, we cry with delight “We must take you to a gastro pub.” Our new friends stare at us in shock and horror. Melburnians are indeed proud of their Gastro pubs. Tired old hotels are given a makeover and a top chef is employed to produce high quality gastronomic meals. Fine food is served in a pleasant and somewhat refined atmosphere and patrons will happily travel across town just to judge … Continue reading Gastro Pubs
Winter 2016 I’m standing in the shower with warm soapy water sloshing around my ankles and it’s all because of the sullage hose. For those who are unfamiliar with the operation of sullage hoses here is an explanation. Most caravan parks have an outlet into the drainage system. We attach our grey water sullage hose to our van’s waste water pipes and drop the other end of our sullage hose into the park outlet. Some parks let us run our hose onto their lawns and they move the hose daily. Not surprisingly these parks have the lushest lawns and gardens. Now … Continue reading We need a rubber duck
Cooktown, Qld is all colonial charm and thankfully undeveloped. In fact it is the complete opposite of Port Douglas and Cairns. When we visit in 2014 there is a well-worn pub, an even more worn pub that has lost its … Continue reading Getting to Know Cooktown
I stand under a hot shower in our latest caravan, the water is both cleansing and refreshing. There is classical music tinkling in the background and as I smell the aroma of espresso coffee I remember… My mother often reminisced … Continue reading The Evolution of Camping
It is worth the drive up to the Fort Bourke Lookout in Cobar, NSW just to see the colour of the rock face of the New Cobar Gold Mine. The town of Cobar stretches out in the distance. Continue reading New Cobar Gold Mine
Our mate El Prado and his dear lady Elle spent a few days at the Jamieson Caravan Park recently. One evening they walked across town to a little restaurant called Mingo’s for dinner, which they tell us is well worth the visit. After an evening of most pleasant inebriation they left the restaurant for the stroll home in the warm evening air. Suddenly a large pig of about 250 – 300kg loomed out of the dark with a certain attraction for our mate El Prado. Much oinking, snuffling and nudging ensued before they reached the safety of their caravan, their … Continue reading Pink elephants? Never!
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