Committed Travellers

A large cloud hovered over Yamba so we decided to hitch up before going to breakfast. Reversing the car onto the van was complicated by the bloke nextdoor having parked his car hanging over the site boundary. We parked near a playground as that was the closest parallel parking area. The rain passed over so it remained dry.

We checked the menu and decided to eat at the Yum Yum Angourie Cafe and General Store. Sourdough toast made with bread from Social served with proper butter was my choice, while Anita had eggs on sourdough toast. Our coffees were also good.

Once we settled Blue and Tilly into their crate in the car we headed for home. Tilly has been scratchy when first put into the crate, but settles down after I grouse on her.

We stopped at the Chinderah Northbound Service Centre. There were no signs advising where caravans should park, so we followed the directions for cars. The only place to stop was in coach parking bays, but we did not linger. Next time we will follow the trucks to access the ample parking provided for big rigs.

We were able to park the Bushtracker outside our house, despite the street being busy with roadwork vehicles used to replace storm water drainage. After levelling the van we started unloading. We both made several trips up and down the stairs, while the critters happily chased each other around the house.

Our only working fridge is downstairs so one of us has to go down each time we need something from the fridge or freezer. That will quickly become tedious! A technician is coming on Monday to let us know if the big fridge is worth fixing.

I took Blue for a run in the park and to catch up with our dog walking group. We had a quiet night watching the T20 cricket.

We had planned to do the washing before going out for breakfast, but we hadn’t planned on the laundry being locked until 8am! By the time the washing cycle finished and I had hung up our clothes, it was after 9am when we walked to the Beechwood Cafe. This cafe has been a favourite for years, but it slipped down the favourite list today because it took so long to be served.

We walked around the shops but didn’t find much worth buying. It was more interesting walking to Turners Beach, beside the Clarence River breakwater. The sign said no dogs but I let Bluey have a quick run on the sand and around the rock pools.

We walked to the interesting rock formations at Clarence Head, but didn’t need to climb the rocks.

There is a protected cove on the river opposite the caravan park. Several boats are moored there.

We had dinner at the Italian on the Hill, the top rated Yamba restaurant. The building and table decorations are high quality, but the food was average and not up to the restaurant’s high rating.

Real estate prices in Yamba have skyrocketed with the influx of cashed up Sydneysiders. All cafes and restaurants need staff, but the cost of accommodation will be a challenge for young workers.

We made a bad choice when we decided to have breakfast at Robyn’s Cafe in Bulahdelah. Anita described her scrambled eggs on white toast as pedestrian. My raisin toast was served with a butter substitute. The cafe gets a 4.7 google rating but that could just be from locals.

On the highway strong winds caused me to slow down to make sure the caravan didn’t start to sway. The 420kms journey began to feel tedious as it is all highway driving. About a dozen times roadworks slowed us down to 60kph, where roadside grass and bush was being slashed. To do this safely one lane was closed and a large safety truck positioned to protect workers.

Sites at the Calypso Caravan Park are not generous and the internal road is narrow. We were very lucky as the site behind was vacant and we could drive through onto our level site. We were unhooked within 5 minutes.

We used to spend a lot of time in Yamba, when we lived on Palmers Island. As we approached the caravan park I had a premonition we would know someone in the park. An hour after arriving I was walking Bluey and ran into a woman I don’t know well, but last encountered on an Aussie Road Crew tour pre covid. She and her partner are staying in the park with their young Golden Retriever.

We had dinner at the Pacific Hotel overlooking Convent Beach. It was very busy but we had booked a table. The hotel had extensive under-pinning work done to protect the building from sliding down the hill.

Back at the caravan park I caught the sun setting over the Clarence River. Blue enjoyed the scrap of Waygu beef burger Anita had saved for him.

Overnight rain came in waves, sometimes loud enough to wake me with the noise on the plastic window protector. Gusts of wind were strong enough to rock the Bushtracker. The maximum gust at Goulburn Airport was 87kph at 3.15am.

The rain had stopped by the time we were up and about. Hooking up was simple enough without the rain, and we were on the road just after 8.30am. We had planned our first stop to be the Pheasants Nest Service Centre, as this is the last place to pull over before committing to the series of motorways and tollways to get through Sydney.

We drove 150kms before reaching a roadside rest stop beside the Mooney Mooney Bridge. The only places to pull over on the motorways are for trucks or for emergency use only. The tollways cost $68, which should be enough to cover a couple of rest stops!

At the rest stop Tilly eyed off a bush turkey. She could not reach it because of her lead. The turkey demonstrated its contempt of her by scratching dirt and twigs over the silly Tilly.

The Hawksbury River was too rough for boats with white caps whipped up by the wind.

We drove for another 2 hours to reach Bulahdelah where we planned to spend the night. Our first stop was the dump site at the showgrounds. Camping there is not allowed so we tried the bowling club but it was full. We ended up at the newly constructed Big4 River Myall Holiday Resort. The caravan sites are very spacious so we reversed on and stayed hooked up. This type of caravan park has features we pay for but which we are unlikely to use – jumping pillow, water slide, camp kitchen, games room, tennis court, playground and glamping tents. The surrounds are attractive and we can see cattle grazing nearby.

A friend joined us for a cup of tea while Blue and Tilly spent time in their playpen. For dinner we walked 700m to Warung Peri for simple Indonesian food. Fortunately the rain held off until we had walked back to the Bushtracker.

We had a peaceful night and a slow start to our morning. A little rain fell overnight but it was dry when we walked across to the Long Track Pantry for coffee and breakfast. The shop also sells food and wine, clothing and quirky gifts.

I gave Blue and Tilly a quick run before driving to the dump site, another appreciated essential for this rest area. After yesterday’s long day we didn’t want to tackle the drive around Sydney on busy motorways. Instead we looked for caravan parks on the southern side of Sydney to reduce the distance we will have to drive to get to the other side of Sydney, and far enough north to find a caravan park not too far off the highway.

The Mittagong CP was already booked out, so we settled on a powered site at the Big4 Governor’s Hill Carapark in Goulburn. We like the fact the caravan park is on a hill as it poured with rain from the minute we left Jugiong until we reached Goulburn. Even the Hume Hwy has some potholes and rough section of roadway.

Fortunately we only had to contend with light rain while we refuelled in town and set up camp. Our site is small so we had to unhook. As the site slopes downhill I used straps and screw pegs for extra security.

We had a late lunch of baked beans on toast sprinkled with Parmesan cheese, otherwise known as gourmet baked beans! I put some washing on in the park laundry and used the dryer.

This part of NSW is covered by a severe weather warning. By 6.30pm the weather worsened with heavy rain, small hail, and gusting winds. Damaging north westerly winds up to 95kph have been forecast.

After that patch of red and yellow on the radar had passed over, a severe thunderstorm was cancelled but the severe weather warning remains for tonight.

It was quiet all night at our $10 powered site in Underbool. There was hardly any traffic along the Mallee Hwy. I played with Tilly and Bluey in the park before their long day on the road.

The roads were open through to Wagga Wagga, but the Murrumbidgee River is very high. Roads could be closed if more rain falls, and the forecast was for more wet weather to come across from the west. The high risk area is around Narrandera.

We drove east until we crossed the Murray River over the Tooleybuc Bridge. The 1925 timber truss bridge is also a lifting bridge. The river is only one metre below the bridge.

At Balranald we joined the Sturt Hwy and drove along sections of damaged road surface, and avoided hundreds of potholes. For three hours we followed a truck because we could see which sections of road that driver was avoiding.

The Sturt Hwy and Newell Hwy briefly become the same road at Narrandera. A large sign advised drivers to ignore their GPS, because the highways were open. We had to wait to drive through this section of flooded road controlled by road workers and traffic lights.

We passed two vehicles that had left the road. The first was a ute with a bucket crane that was on its side with police and fire trucks attending. The second was a semi trailer which left the road, because according to CB chatter, two caravans were stopped on the highway having a chat!! The truck was upright but stopped in very soft soil. A heavy lifting tow truck was  on the scene.

We refuelled twice and had several short stops, longer at MacDonald’s in Wagga Wagga. Some caravan parks are closed and none of those still open in Wagga had enticing reviews. We merged onto the Hume Hwy heading for Gundagai, but the only still open caravan park was full. We ended up driving 712kms today, as we continued on to Jugiong, to stay at the showground beside the Murrumbidgee River, where we made a donation for being able to stay here. Here the river is flowing fast but has not broken its banks.

As we were reversing onto a flat section of grass away from the river, we spotted a lilac Burmese cat outside the caravan opposite. I walked over with Tilly and she smooched up to the other cat’s human! At the next caravan Tilly visited, I was warned a brown snake had just slithered away!

This is the first time we have had a good enough internet connection to post blogs, so I will have to catch up on the past few days.

After our final Beccy Breakfast, we farewelled our friends and started our trip home. We had decided to go via Sydney instead of the Broken Hill route. There is flooding along the way so we will have to keep an eye on the weather and river levels.

On the road towards Victor Harbour we had a very close encounter with a large kangaroo. It bounced onto the road 40m in front of us. Fortunately it continued jumping on our side of the road, away from us and managed to avoid a messy end.

We stopped at Strathalbyn for coffees and to buy food for the critters. I found a parking space 300m from Woolworths. The coffee shops were busy so I tried the coffee from The Old Market Shed. My coffee was fine but Anita didn’t like the poor attempt at making her a piccolo. This magnificent bank building was on the opposite corner.

We refuelled a couple of times because it was Saturday afternoon and open fuel stops became few and far between. We had a stop at Peake for the critters. This is wheat and sheep country with a population of only about 100. Next to the hall there are two quality tennis courts, a sports field and a skate park. The only store is the post office.

We crossed the border into Victoria just past Pinaroo on the Mallee Hwy. We decided to stop for the night at Underbool, a small wheat town where the police station is unattended, the pub is closed, and the General Store has been closed for a very long time. There is a post office and apparently the bowling club continues to operate. The park opposite the police station has nice grass for the critters. For a $10 donation we stayed the night with power and access to toilets and showers.

I took Tilly for a walk past the closed pub. There are three sheep statues in the park – a ram, ewe and lamb. These would not be very interesting except for Tilly’s reaction to them. She furred up and hugged the ground. I was worried she had seen a snake or a dog that I had not noticed.

Eventually I realised she had been frightened by the statue of the lamb, which was “looking” in her direction. Even after I showed her the lamb was not alive, she was very wary.

After several days and nights of anticipation, today was Beccy’s 50th birthday! It was also Amber Joy Poulton’s birthday, but not her 50th.

We drove to the nearby village of Normanville for lunch. It was warm and sunny away from Cape Jervis. Bluey had a sore paw so we tried to find a beach where he could paddle in salt water. The best we could find was this bay with tons of seagrass.

The theme for the party was Western, and there were some great outfits.

There were multiple birthday cakes, but an amazing 50th cake, all of which was edible.

Several of Beccy’s family members came to the party, including her mother Carole Sturtzel, who was a professional singer. At 78 years of age she can still belt out great songs. Beccy and Carole sang their duet Mother Knows Best. It was a great party and Beccy enjoyed herself.

The weather at Cape Jervis has been drizzly and misty. So far we have not seen Kangaroo Island because of poor visibility. While the weather is often wet in this area, the benefit of this venue is the large barn with its attached kitchen, which provides a dry warm place for meals and concerts. There are several cabins so Beccy will be able to have friends and family stay and join the extended party later in the week.

I took Tilly for a couple of long walks with periods of running. She keeps quiet at night with daytime exercise. Bluey has been chasing his ball on the small area of short grass. Most of the greenery is long weed infested grass. The business is for sale and it is obvious the owners struggle to maintain the place.

Tilly wasn’t interested in the chickens, and did not like it when the rooster crowed. She played by herself chasing the string hanging from the van.

Beccy thanked Amber Joy Poulton for doing most of the organising and logistics for this week. Beccy and her crew cook breakfast each morning, and I wash the dishes while other Roadies clean up and wipe the dishes. Her crew also includes her son Ricky Albeck, Chris E Thomas, Jo Tahini and Therese Proust.

Beccy was our entertainer this evening. She is back to her old self and is very relaxed and at her best singing and joking.

Anita walked to the market at the Showground for coffees and croissants. We did not leave until the check out time of 11am. Our drive from Adelaide to Cape Jervis was in the rain on several rough potholed roads. We stopped at Myponga to make cups of tea, and to ensure we did not arrive before the stipulated check in time of 2pm.

It was still raining when we reversed onto our sloping site. We could not unhook on such a slope, so in the morning moved to another site.

Our new neighbours have a large ginger cat they rescued from a cattle farm after the cat’s owner abandoned him. He is camera shy so I didn’t manage to get a photo of him, and Tilly didn’t even realise another cat was in the next caravan.

The reason we are staying at Cape Jervis is to help Beccy Cole celebrate her 50th birthday. This will be a six day event with lots of live music.

Our welcome pack included a tea towel with a hole where there used to be a picture of Beccy’s ex, whose name I will not repeat. I took photos of more reliable, loyal and loving companions!