Heading Home

On Thursday 16th December the fabulous sunny weather at Bonny Hills started to deteriorate so we packed up camp and continued to trek south toward Sydney. We planned to set up camp around the Foster area but we were having trouble finding a caravan park that would take dogs. Many parks that accept dogs all year, ban them at peak holiday times because they are so full. One park said that they would take dogs OR children..... but not both! So we kept driving and before we knew it we were in the driveway of our very good friends The Claydons at Hornsby Hts. Hello Sydney!! Hello chaos!! The traffic and the crowds were almost overwhelming. Over the next 5 or so days we caught up with our friends and took a trip out to Ebenezer to visit Great Grandfather Donald and Virginia. Then it was on to the Northern Beaches to celebrate Christmas with Grandparents, Great Grandparents, aunties, uncles and cousins. We all had a ball and it really felt wonderful (and slightly un-real) to be home again.

Bonny Hills

On December 14 we headed south, stopping at Nambucca Heads for lunch and continuing on to Port Macquarie and Bonny Hills. We checked into a caravan park perched high up on a headland with spectacular views over the ocean and Rainbow Beach. It was a magnificant spot and the park was virtually empty so the girls could ride their bikes and run around on the grassy slopes. Rainbow Beach was another amazing northern NSW beach with golden sand and clean clear water. Just what we love.

The Waterfall Way

This winding and very scenic stretch of road goes from Urunga on the coast over to Armidale, and is apparently the 3rd most popular tourist drive in Australia. We left Daisy at home in Woopi and borrowed a zippy little Mazda for the drive along the Waterfall Way. The road followed the Bellinger River and meandered through the bustling little arty town of Bellingen and past rolling pastures and happy cows. Then it climbed steeply through world heritage rainforest, past several waterfalls and up to the town of Dorrigo on the edge of a magnificent escarpment. The weather was fine and sunny so we could see across the valley for miles. At the National Parks Centre we walked out amongst the tree tops on the "skywalk" and had an incredible view down toward the sea. We also stopped at the beautiful Dangar Falls on the Bielsdown River and had a walk around the sleepy town of Dorrigo. It was a really great day.

Whoopee! We're in Woopi!

We departed Ocean Shores on November 30 and stopped in Ballina for morning tea and beside the river at Evans Head for lunch. The plan was to spend a few days (at least) in Yamba, but by the time we got there the heavens had opened and one night with the pouring rain was all we could handle. The following day we checked out the waves (through the fog) at Angourie Point, the tartan power poles at MacLean, then hung out at Grafton Shopping World for several hours (what a day!) It continued to pour down upon us at Corindi Beach but luckily the next stop was the luxury of Janice and Greg's place at Woolgoolga (called Woopi for short). Over the next 12 days we had an amazing time exploring all the beautiful beaches around Woopi and Coffs Harbour including Sapphire Beach, Emerald, Red Rock and Sawtell. We also took a drive up through Nana Glen and Coramba, and did a fabulous trip along the Waterfall Way. One day we visited Karen, Ken, Liamm and Connor in Lower Bucca and had a barbie. We had met these guys when we were in SW Victoria and caught up again in Wrights Bay, South Australia. On Janice and Greg's property was the 3 Bears House and several other miniature houses left over from when the place used to be a theme park. It was very cute. We also wrapped our scarves around us and visited the Guru Nanak Gurdwara which is the spectacular white Sikh temple in Woopi.

The Sunshine Coast to Byron

On Wednesday November 24 we left Mooloolabah, drove through Brisbane and down to Emalie and Gabriel's place in Palm Beach. With Em we had a delicious lunch (which Riley the parrot also enjoyed) and a brief catch-up before continuing over the border and on to Tony and Charm's place in Ocean Shores. And the luxuries commenced!!!!!! The girls kicked off with a big bubble bath and we all tucked into a baked dinner followed by ice cream and home made apple crumble for dessert. Over the next five days we explored Brunswick Heads, Byron Bay, Lennox Head, Nimbin and Bangalow. The beaches and the rolling countyside were just beautiful and even though we had a bit of rain, it was mostly early in the day and didn't stop us from getting out. One day we took Daisy up to Nerang on the Gold Coast for a service while Charm minded Hannah and Ashleigh and took them to the beach and made some Christmas craft, which they absolutely loved. Daisy's check-up went OK and upon replacing the air filter the mechanic found a family of mice and a few thousand locusts (all dead).

Hervey Bay to the Sunshine Coast

Our next stop was Hervey Bay with it's lovely beaches and views across to Fraser Island. We stayed right on the waterfront at Urangan and spent a few days swimming, walking, bike riding and eating seafood from the local fish market and the Boat Club across the road. Unfortunately a day trip to Fraser Island was a bit too pricey so we'll have to put it on the To Do list. We heard the Wards might be doing a trip up here next year..... Next camping stop was beautiful Rainbow Beach. The walls of colourful sand were amazing and we had two perfect sunny days before it started raining again. Sean and Stephany only had one rainy day on their 2006 around Australia adventure and we have hundreds (it seems)! On November 20 we drove south through huge pine plantations and on to very nice big roads to the Sunshine Coast (where there was no sunshine to be seen..) Ashleigh and Hannah were very excited as it was time to go to Australia Zoo!!! Poppy went to a kennel while we had a fabulous day at "Bindi's Zoo". There was so much to see and we were absolutely exhausted at the end of the day. Our favourites things were: feeding the elephants because it tickled your hand (Hannah), watching the tigers play with the keepers in the swimming pool (Ashleigh), the wombats (Simon) and the Jabirus (Sam). We stayed at Landsborough one night and then moved to Mooloolabah where we enjoyed the surf beach and the Thai and Indian restaurants!

Hello Luke and Poppy!

November 13th was a very exciting day as we picked up Luke and Poppy from Luke's place in North Isis, near Childers. After stocking up with some groceries then some ice creams from Mammino (delicious! - try the macadamia and ginger) we drove about 40km out to Woodgate Beach. Over the next 2 days we swam in the "semi" surf, fished at Theodolite Creek, had a couple of bbqs and caught up on things. Poppy was extremely well behaved and we don't think travelling with her will be too bad after all. Ashleigh tried out her Uno skills on Luke (who is apparently the world champion...) and didn't come off too badly. She is still rejoicing that she made him have to pick up 12 cards.

Bundaberg

The tropical fruit in North Queensland is fantastic and we are always stopping at roadside stalls to try more. Our favourites are papaya, pineapple, mangoes (of course) and mango melons that taste like a mixture between rockmelon and honeydew. Sugar cane and mango farms were everywhere along the rainy drive into Bundy. After having a quick look around we made our way out to the coast again and camped at the lazy seaside suburb of Elliot Heads. Over the next few days the sun came out and we had a fabulous time swimming and fishing at the river mouth. There were often people kite surfing in the inlet as the wind was always up.

The Discovery Coast

When we left Mackay on November 4th it was pouring with rain and it continued to rain for the 330km drive to Rockhampton. We checked in for one night at a caravan park beside the brown Fitzroy River and noted the signs that warned of crocodiles living on the banks. Glad we weren't in a tent! The next day we dropped into Gladstone for a look at Queensland's largest port and the huge mountains of coal waiting to be exported to Japan, South Korea and India. Gladstone also has a Rio Tinto alumina plant and the state's largest coal-fired power station. There are big massive trucks everywhere and it is going to get even busier here when the Santos liquefied natural gas project takes off. After lunch we continued south to the Discovery Coast and the beautiful village of 1770. We stayed 4 nights at Agnes Water and swam in the ocean for the first time since Broome. No crocodiles or stingers here! Yipee! Agnes Water is also Qld's most northerly surf beach so we had a lot of fun on the boogie boards.

On to Mackay

On October 27 we stopped in at beautiful Airlie Beach and spent the day swimming in the waterfront lagoon pool and admiring the sensational views of islands and sailing boats. In the late afternoon we continued south and camped at Halliday Bay, near Seaforth and the Cape Hillsborough National Park. The beaches were lined with paperbarks and coconut palms, and in the morning we saw the tracks of a nesting Sea Turtle along the sand. Our next stop was Mackay where we checked into a caravan park at Black's Beach that had been recommended to us. The "village life" at this park was quite busy with several families staying there and a number of permanent residents who worked on the coal mines. Mackay has become very expensive as there is a shortage of residential accommodation. Every day we walked along the beach several times, and Ashleigh and Hannah played with their new village friends. On Halloween the kids all dressed up and went 'trick or treating' around the park (many times). We are still ploughing through all the candy!

Cairns to Bowen

On October 19th we left Cairns for a 2 hour drive south, through loads of sugar cane and banana plantations, to Innisfail. Here we stayed at Flying Fish Point, but the weather was extremely windy and the recent high rainfall washing down the Johnstone River meant the sea along the coast was very brown and murky. Our next stop was beautiful Mission Beach where we stayed right on the beach at South Mission, looking across to Dunk Island. Mission Beach was named after the Aboriginal mission that was established here in 1914. When white man settled in Mission Beach they forced the Aboriginal people out of their traditional hunting grounds and soon had them working as farm labourers. The white men paid the Aborigines in rum and the Chinese banana plantation owners paid them in Opium. So before long the Queensland Government identified major social problems within the indigenous communities (not surprisingly) and forced them all into a mission (penal camp) where they were fed on sugar, tea and canned corned beef. Four years later a cyclone destroyed the mission and the Aboriginal people were relocated to Palm Island. It poured with rain for the next 2 days in South Mission but that didn't stop me going white water rafting on the Tully River. It was an unreal day with plenty of rapids and excitement........but not for Simon! He stayed in the van most of the day with the girls watching movies. Dunk Island disappeared behind a huge cloud.........it was so wet. Our next stop south was Townsville where we celebrated Simon's birthday and enjoyed walking along the foreshore and looking at the view to Magnetic Island. On Sunday 24th of October (Happy Birthday Pa) we left Townsville in the morning and just called into Bowen for a lunch stop.....and ended up staying 3 nights. We loved the beautiful turquiose waters, lovely long Queen Beach, the playgrounds along the main bay and the huge swimming pool at our caravan park. One day we walked out along the main jetty (used in the film "Australia") and saw dugongs feeding on the sea grass, a massive sea turtle, a baby black tip shark, a pod of dolphins and a guy on the end caught a Golden Trevally. What a great place!

Hannah's Birthday - 16th October

Hannah celebrated her 4th birthday with a party at the Lagoon Pool in Cairns. Isaac, Leanne and Mal (new friends from Exmouth) were also with us and everyone enjoyed some birthday cake and lollies. It was a great day! Thank you to everyone who phoned, emailed and txted birthday wishes.

Cairns and Surrounds

From Karumba we travelled East about 370km to Georgetown where we stopped for the night and continued about another 400km on to Cairns the following day. The landscape changed dramatically from the dry outback to lush rainforest as we crossed the Atherton Tablelands. It was so exciting to see flowing creeks and rivers, and cattle that actually had green grass in their paddocks! The town of Atherton is 800m above sea level and the drive along the Gillies Highway and down the escarpment to Cairns was an exciting one. Would have been better in a Porsche rather than a 7m long Winnebago! Cairns was very busy and congested but the coastline and landscape around it was spectacular. We stayed 4 nights and made a day trip further north along the northern beaches, Port Douglas and up to Mossman. Mossman Gorge was beautiful and Ashleigh and Hannah had a swim in the extremely cold river.

Karumba

From Cloncurry we made the 560km drive north to Karumba on the Gulf of Carpentaria. Here we checked into the Sunset Caravan Park for 3 days and Simon and Ashleigh didn't waste any time jumping on a half-day fishing charter. Together they caught 8 Blue-nose Salmon and 1 Silver Jewelfish, and we had yummy BBQ fish for dinner. We also tucked into some Gulf Prawns and watched the beautiful sunsets from the local tavern. Ashleigh and Hannah met lots of kids during our stay and we ended up travelling for the next few days with Mal, Leanne and 4- year-old Isaac from Exmouth.

Across to Queensland

At 9am on Friday the 8th of October we drove north out of Tennant Creek and turned right at 3-ways Roadhouse towards Queensland. Any green in the landscape soon disappeared as we travelled through dry brown grazing country. Our first stop in the sunshine state was for fuel and ice creams at Camooweal before arriving at the smoke stacks in Mt Isa about 6pm. We knew 'the Isa' was a huge mining town but we had no idea that it was all smack bang in the middle of the town. The Xstrata mining operation is the largest underground mine in Australia. We stopped for 2 nights at the Coppercity Caravan Park and did lots of washing and grocery shopping. We met a lovely family from Victoria who were travelling around the country for 2 years and had stopped in Mt Isa for work. Ashleigh, Hannah and their 2 girls raided the 'free clothes' box in the laundry and played dressups for hours. We also visited a free water park in the centre of town, right below a smoke stack. No wonder we read that Isa kids have the highest lead levels in the country. After Mt Isa we stopped only 60kms out of town at peaceful Corella Dam for the night. The dam was constructed to supply drinking water for Cloncurry and was a beautiful camp with loads of birdlife including Brolgas.