DIARY OF AN AUSSIE WOMBAT

Sunday 13 July 2014

HELLO.... GOOD BYE.... AND GOOD NIGHT.. A Summary of My Adventures!

THE BEGINNING OF THE END

My Final Blog.... to all my followers, Thank you!

What a great adventure we have had... mum, dad and me! None of us had been to South Australia, Western Australia, and the Northern Territory.... Of course, coming from Tasmania I had been there, that's where mum and dad found me, and all the family have been to Queensland and Canberra, with mum and dad visiting Victoria previously. So now... mum and dad can honestly say they have been to ALL the states and territories in Australia, however.. for seeing all of Australia, that will require many, many, MANY more adventures and trips and travelling. It has saddened me to know that mum intends to sell the Penguin in a few months for something else in the house that needs to be done. I can't really argue with mum as she was the one that bought the van in the first place and it is hers to do as she pleases... She doesn't really want to but sees no other alternative! We have had lots of laughter, arguments, tears, and more laughter along the way.

We never travelled the Great Ocean road, nor did we travel the Oodnadatta track or see the Bungle Bungles (mountain range).. but we did what we set out to do for the main part and a few thousand photos and videos later we arrived home after stopping off at one of mum's friends/work mates from when she worked at Juvenile Justice. Of course, we were again very lucky as the van roof went skewiff again so we had a nice warm place to sleep while the van was repaired. Three days later, along with about the same amount of 'giggle juice' that was consumed we, for the last time, packed up, hitched up and drove off, this time we headed for home so there was no discussion where we were going. Mum was sad that she couldn't meet one of her FB friends, but we did travel through there on the way home so mum told her friend now she knew where the place was, she could visit on the way to Aunty Moyna's place! So, it's all good!

So let's just recap how we started and where we finished...*take totally ginormous deep breath and....* 4 months through Summer on the Murray River after arriving in Tumut for the first night and mum's birthday... , then way up in the high country at Tom Groggins. Clarkes Lagoon was next, a stop over at Albury-Wodonga right on the borders of NSW and Victoria. Onto Rutherglen Victoria for Christmas and New Year, with one of the best swimming we experienced... few! Then... We travelled to Cottadidda State Forest, Cobram, Doctor's Bend, Ulupna Island in the Barmah Forest, The Gulf, Torrumbarry Weir, Echuca, Pericoota National Forest and Gunbower Creek, Cohuna (where mum broke her wrist) Fort Courage Wentworth, Lock 9 Lake Culluleraine State Reserve, Lock 4 Katarapko National Park Berri South Australia, the free overnight camping that cost $100 (ask dad.. LOL) at the historica and totally amazing overland corner hotel, Hogwash Bend, caught up with friends and family in the Adelaide area, Vanessa and Kylee, Mark and of course Winston! Back on the road where we stopped at Mount Remarkable, Mambray Creek, Port Augusta Lipsom Cove, Taylors Landing, Fisherman's point, Mikkari Station where we got up close and personal with Koalas. Haslam Camping area where we got up close and personal with the dolphins! Gilgerabbie Hut and Koonaldra Homestead, and standing in awe at the edge of Australia at the Great Australian Bight... as we crossed the Nullarbor, Into Western Australia and Cave Hill, Coolgardie, (where they made the best fishermans' baskets EVER!), Indee Station, Broome where we saw Staircase to the Moon, Birdwood Downs and crossed the Gibb River Road, throuogh Windjana Gorge, Silent grove, Bell Gorge, Ellenbrae station, Katherine Gorge, Mataranka Springs and homestead, Historic Daly Waters Pub and caravan park, Banka Banka Station, Tennant Creek, Devils' Marbles, Alice Springs, and Teraphina Gorge, Corroboree Rock, Henbury Meteor Craters, Uluru, Mt. Conner and The Olgas, Coober Pedy, Silverton Broken Hill, and at Gilgandra home of the Cooee March! (If you have not heard of this march... google it!.. piece of Australia History).

*phew*.. oh and of course there were all the rest stops inbetween! Toolebuc, Mildura, Crystal Brook, Balladonia, Lake Douglas, Menzies, Meekathara truck stops, Mount Magnet, Three Rivers at the Gasgoyne, Leinster, Wycliffe (potty stop with the aliens!) and Maslin Rest Area, there were many more rest areas where we stayed during the time we have been away... but now we are home, and I am tired... so, I have chosen one photo from each and every place we have stopped at and have posted them here for you... Now? *yawn* this little wombat is going to bed... goodnight and good bye...

As they say in the classics... "That's all folks"...

With much love and affectionate wombatty cuddles

Tahune xxx

The hearty brekkie to start off with!

Very important.

"Keep your eyes on the road, your hands up on the wheel!"

*singing while I shared the driving*

I was in charge of keeping the back in order

Fishing up in the Snowy Mountains

*HAPPY NEW YEAR!!... hic*

TAHUNE BOMB!

MY NIFTY YELLOW FISHING REEL

GOOD LOOKING WOMBAT LOOKING BACK AT ME

CATCHING UP ON MY BLOG

NO PRIVACY WHEN YOU'RE FAMOUS!

IN THE CORNER OF WHERE NSW meets SOUTH AUSTRALIA

YUMMY HOT BREAKFAST...

I LIKE TRAVELLING

DAD NOT LOOKING!!! PINCH A SNAG...

THE SAND IS HOT! BUT READY FOR THE DASH OVER

THE SAND TO THE WATER

LOVED ALL THE CUDDLES I GOT FROM BETHANY!

*BORED... BORED... BORED...*

THE DOLPHINS! SO BEAUTIFUL!!

BARB, ME AND GLENDA! GREAT GALS!

IN MY FROG SPOTTING GEAR.. COOL HUH?

TOO MANY FLIES OUTSIDE.. SO STAYING INSIDE

THE NEW WA TOYOTA LANDCRUISER

SYCHRONISED SWIMMING MASCOT!.. ME!!!

CARROT FOR BREAKFAST!

WOMBAT BEHIND THE BAR WITH A CUTE BARMAID!

MWAH!

ED, LIGHTNING AND ME ASSIGNING CARAVANS

TO THEIR ASSIGNED SITES

ON THE DEVIL'S MARBLES

DON'T BE SCARED! IT'S JUST ME, A WOMBAT!!

LOVED CLIMBING SO MANY TREES

IT'S COLD AT ULURU,

BUT BEAUTIFUL!!!

I LOVE YOU ALL... AND THANKS TO MUM, DAD WHO HELPED ME WITH THIS BLOG

AND TO ALL MY FANS AND FOLLOWERS AND TO THE SPECIAL PEOPLE I HAVE MET ALONG THE WAY....

WITHOUT YOU... THERE WOULD BE NO BLOG!

SO THANKS HEAPS!

Sunday 6 July 2014

ON THE HOMEWARD BOUND LEG NOW FOLKS!

WELCOME TO SILVERTON N.S.W!

Greetings fellow travellers... and wombats alike!

Well!! Over 7 months with just a week or so to go! Here we are back in NSW, no, not shearing sheep as big as whales... just finalizing a few more stops.. both freebies and at friends before going 'home', that is, home like four walls and a ceiling that's bigger than a bread box. Where the kitchen is in the kitchen, the bathroom is inside and not a spray bottle, a loungeroom that doesn't double as the kitchen table, and a bedroom that isn't in the same room as the kitchen sink... LOL

We travelled to Broken Hill (didn't look busted to me though)... and saw how the caravan park was set up and while it looked very nice, the sites were very small and on the main street. Dad decided to have a look at his maps and showed mum the town nearby called "Silverton", she said it was very nice, and guess what? It had an art gallery, a pub, a school, an onsite artist AND there it was! At the very end of the street.. MAD MAX MUSEUM! It had a copy of the interceptor, the actual sign from the movie where the police station was, that was called 'HALLS OF JUSTICE' and lots of photos from the movie including film that was donated from the movie that never made it past the cutting room floor. Mum and dad talked with the owners for a bit but as they didn't take cards, we didn't go in. I think it would have been awesome, as did mum and dad but we were fine with it 'coz we got photos taken outside the museum... so that was cool! Did you know that in America the movie Mad Max didn't get a good review like it did in the rest of the world.. but, when Mad Max II was made, the American investors decided to call it 'ROAD WARRIOR' and wow... it went to like the top box office pullerinerer in ages! It was also to be the starting block in the United States for Aussie actor but US born Mel Gibson.

We set up the van at a place called Penrose Gardens in Silverton, it is classed as a bush camp but you wouldn't know it. Wonderfully hot showers with high pressure so mum blasted her sore neck and dad was able to really blast and massage his sore back. I hope mum and dad don't fall to pieces before we get home.. I can't tow the van! Powered sites this time and got no argument from mum as we were able to fire up the air conditioner ( as we don't have a diesel heater), and let me tell you, even with my thick fur coat it got down to 1 degree! Brrrrr!

Mum made damper and got a slice.. dad did magic with it and made it disappear pretty fast! We stayed there for two nights and had dinner at the Silverton Hotel and looked at all the photos from the movies that had been made in Silverton and nearby country towns. A lot of Aussie and international starts too! I saw a photo of Donna Mills, and mum showed dad a photo of John Mellion, he was in a lot of movies and a special TV programme in the 1960's that mum's mum loved. "My name's Magoolie, what's yours"? As I looked more and more at the photos, I thought Australia has a lot of talented actors!.. Dad made a wonderful campfire and we toasted marshmallows and the toilets were really close because that's where the power box was! LOL. oh well..... Penrose Place has picnic shelters, fresh drinking water, tennis courts, hot showers, laundry, and three bunk houses as well as other accommodation... and the people who looked after the place were lovely!

Mum true to form even found horses! It's wonderful that everyone in the town looks after them.. They are the 'horses of Silverton Common'... They even have donkeys just roaming the street.. I laughed at the one that decided the souvenir shop's ash tray looked tasty but spat it out in disgust.. silly thing!

Well, I had better be off as we have to pack up again and set off, this time for a few nights at different rest areas until we get to Gilgandra where we all will be staying with Chris and Dave.. Mum used to work with Chris and they are good friends... Should be lots of laughs for sure. Then! after the couple of days there we will be heading towards our last stop over also at a rest area at Jerry's Plains.. This is also where mum hopes to catch up with one of her FB friends. It will be nice to meet her!

Until then, enjoy the pics before my last blog of our adventure!

Tahune xx

BYE BYE SOUTH AUSTRALIA HELLO NSW

DONKEY

FUNKY ARTIST BUGGY

NOT FAR TO GO NOW

1200 KMS?? DOESN'T LOOK LIKE MUCH NOW

INTERCEPTOR LOVE CHILD.. HA HA HA!

SILVERTON HOTEL... YUMMY FOOD, GREAT SERVICE!

THIS IS AN ACTUAL PROP FROM ONE OF THE

MAD MAX MOVIES! MAKE A GREAT PAINT BALL GUN!

ANOTHER ORIGINAL PROP FROM THE MAD MAX MOVIES

SILVERTON COMMON HORSE.. SHE WAS SWEET

MUM.. OUTSIDE THE MAD MAX MUSEUM!

Monday 30 June 2014

HELLO COOBER PEDY

OPAL CAPITAL OF THE WORLD!

We arrived in Coober Pedy after a lovely bush camp stop over. This is the place where many people live underground, in their dugouts.. don't be misled! There are heaps of great things about living underground, I should know, I am a wombat! The dugouts might look a bit shabby from the surface, but go 'deeper' and you can find 2, 3 and up to 6 bedroom dugouts, complete with power, gas, and even a swimming pool! As the temperature outside in Summer here can get to 48-50 in the shade underground is the way to go as it always remains at a constant temperature of 24 degrees Celsius so no heating or cooling bills, and on top of that quite possibly the cheapest and the cleanest drinking water in Australia! Caravans and holiday fossickers are always welcome...If you want your tank filled with drinking water it only costs 20 cents for 80 liters! The houses being sandstone no real dust to gather so cleaning is easy. Concrete floors with tiles and or carpet. The other really good thing about living underground is that this part of Australia is prone to dust storms... and I mean really big ones! So come inside, shut the door and wait until the storm is over. The other thing is the cost... about $70,000 for a two to three bedroom house. But don't expect a garden... rocks is probably all you'll get.

We stayed at Oasis Caravan Park (above ground) yes folks, they have above ground houses too. The temperature here is cold! down to 2 degrees at night.. and only 16 in the day time... very unseasonal! We took a bus tour and Rudy the tour guide had been here since 1964, and while opal mining has made a good living for him he said it didn't make his fortune but he loved the life and the community. There are Australians, Greeks, Italians, Serbians and of course Aborigines here. First Nation Aborigines do not mine underground as they believe the Earth Spirits will get angry however Rudy told us and 1/2, 1/4 etc have no issue of trying their luck at opal mining.

Did you know that a 14 year old boy named Willy Hutchinson was travelling with his father and another group looking for gold in Coober Pedy? They didn't find gold, and their attention turned to finding water. They left Willy in charge of the camp but after a while Willy got bored and went for a walk... He kicked the stones with his feet while he walked and discovered the biggest opal fields in Australia, and he also found water! His father was very angry with Willy when he returned to find the camp fire out and cold then in the distance Willy came up to him and said "How did you do dad?" Willy's father started to yell at him but Willy had a big smile on his face.. and showed him the billy full of water and threw down a bag. His father wasn't angry with Willy when he opened the bag! That is why the main street in Coober Pedy is named after Willy "Hutchinson Street"

We went into churches, a mine and a house with mum taking a few pictures. the glass windows and the sculptures in the rock inside is very beautiful. Unfortunately we couldn't go 'noodling' for opals as it was just too cold out on the plains. The cold winds whipped through us like a hot knife through butter.

enjoy the pics.

Until next time... and then the last time

Tahune xx