New Zealand: Taupo, Mt Ruapehu, Wellington. aka crossing lakes, rivers and volcanoes to get a scone.

Taupo was such a lovely place, and we were very sad to be leaving here.  It is definitely on the visit again list.

On the drive around Lake Taupo to Tongariro, I had a go fishing in a few of the rivers.  I never caught anything, but with scenery this gorgeous it didn't matter in the slightest.

Great Ocean Road, Mt Eccles and Mt Gambier Region

Thursday

The first part of this holiday was an extended family holiday in Apollo Bay.  We rented a unit in the back of Apollo Bay which served as our base and we had a relaxing 4 days exploring Apollo Bay, relaxing on the beaches, visiting the craft market and also exploring some of the Otway National Park.

James spotted a penguin playing in the swell off the jetty at the boat harbour one evening, which he was quite chuffed about.

Friday

We also went on the Mait's Rest Rainforest walk where we spotted an unusual black snail slithering across the path, which we lifted up and placed in the bracken at the path edge to protect him from being trodden on.  An information sign further on indicated that this was a rare Otway Black Snail, so we wandered back up the trail in search of the snail for a photo!

We also drove along the Barham River Scenic Drive, and came to Paradise Point, which is a magical picnic location on the river, with tables under the tall tree ferns.  We came back here after dark and saw a number of glow worms on the embankments of the path edges, which the kids, and the adults thought fantastic.

We also drove along some of the back country roads behind Apollo Bay, where we enjoyed some great views of the rolling hills, ocean and rainforest, and Liam and I walked along the rocks at Marengo to the incoming tide.

Saturday

Saturday Shazzy, Clark, Arthur & Glenda, Gards and myself went on a fishing trip with Moonlight Fishing Charters, where we fished for Snapper off the Lighthouse at Cape Otway.  The fishing wasn't too great, with only a few undersized Snapper and Flatties being caught, and a decent sized Blue Throated Wrasse that I caught.  We baked this for dinner, but it wasn't particularly tasty.  Though the fishing wasn't too great, the views and the boat ride where enjoyable, except for a couple others who suffered sea-sickness!

Sunday

Sunday we had Easter lunch at the pub, and then Michelle, Sharon, Glenda, James, Liam, Shannon and myself drove along the Great Ocean Road to visit the Twelve Apostles and some of the other sites.  The Twelve Apostles was quite different to the last time we visited, some 15 years earlier, being very touristy now.  Gone is the small carpark on the side of the road and the dirt walking tracks meandering through the salty scrub; replaced with a large tourist information centre, hoards of tourists, landscaped paths and highway underpass and the constant thrumming of the helicopter joy flights.  We also visited Loch Ard Gorge and walked down on the beach, as well as the Thunder Cave and Blowhole.

On through to ANZAC Day

Monday

With ANZAC Day falling straight after Easter this year, it was the perfect opportunity for an extended break without using up much Annual Leave.

We said our goodbyes to all of the Tuffens, and Michelle, I and our kids continued onto the next leg of our holidays.

Our first stop was the lighthouse at Cape Otway, very historic with the lighthouse built in 1848, powered originally by whale oil, and the old buildings and various artefacts on display including the anchor from Eric the Red, a ship wrecked on the reef 3 kilometres offshore on it's way to Melbourne, laden with exhibits for an exhibition at the newly opened Melbourne Exhibition Buildings.

After exploring the grounds, the views from the lighthouse and a nice morning tea at the cafe we set off exploring some of the tracks in the area for future campsites.

There was a nice campsite at Parker Hill, near where the stone that the lighthouse and buildings was quarried.  There were toilets here, but the walk down to the beach was a very long way; still this was a nice sheltered camping site.  A better site close to the beach was at Crayfish Bay, but this lacked any facilities.  We spent some time here exploring the rock pools which were quite good, with a number of colourful pink starfish, glass shrimp, anemones, gobies and other critters spotted.  We also found the other anchor for the Eric the Red, embedded in the rocks!

We also drove down to Johanna Beach campground, which too seemed a very nice beach campsite with the added advantage of toilets.  No fires are allowed here, same as the other campsites along the coast.

Having seen a number of the sites along the Shipwreck coast the day before, we were able to drive past Port Campbell before our next stop, The Arch.  As well as viewing some scenic rugged coastline, there also was an echidna walking along the path!

From here we had to visit London Bridge.  The last time Michelle and I saw London Bridge it was still a bridge, so we had to see it with the collapsed arch.  All signs of the arch had vanished into the sea, and the kids were pretty impressed that we had walked on the new island, something I guess they will never be able to do.

Time was now running short.  We drove past the Bay of Martyrs and the Bay of Islands past Peterborough and headed into Warrnambool for fuel and food supplies.

We arrived at Mt. Eccles just before dusk and quickly had the tent set up.  A chat with another camper identified a farm house down the road where firewood could be purchased, so it wasn't long before we were relaxing around the campfire and entertained by Brush Tail Possums, as well as having a close encounter with a Boobook Owl!

Tuesday

Tuesday we woke to kookaburras and other bird calls, and after a campfire cooked Bacon & Eggs breakfast, we walked around the Mt Eccles crater rim and explored the lava cave, and the kids made some friends with some kids who camp at Mt. Eccles each Christmas and Easter.  Lunch was an easy cold meat and salad sandwiches amongst the Superb Fairy Wrens, who were totally oblivious to us, hopping around our feet through the campsite.  After lunch, we drove to the Natural Arch, a section of un-collapsed lava tube.

For dinner we roasted a chicken in the camp oven, which we are still getting the hang of.  A small chicken could easily be done in about an hour; while some of it and some vegies were overdone, it was still generally a very tasty roast dinner, and being prepared for the possums tonight we had some apple ready which they very much enjoyed.

Wednesday

Wednesday we walked down and around Lake Surprise after another Bacon & Egg breakfast, spotting a koala and a number of other noisy kids on our way, then returned to camp to pack up and head to Mt. Gambier.

At Mt. Gambier, we explored a few lookouts before looking for a caravan park for the night, settling on Pine Country Caravan Park, in a comfortable cabin.  We cooked up a big BBQ dinner and then at dusk headed to the Umpherston Sinkhole to feed the friendly and cheeky possums.

Thursday

Thursday morning we circumnavigated Blue Lake, which was still a strong blue colour given the time of year, and also drove down into the other crater for a quick explore.  We then drove down to Mt. Schank, where James, Liam and I climbed the summit and descended into the crater to leave our mark.  From the crater rim, I had a magnificent close up view of a goshawk as it flew across the rim just metres in front of me.

From Mt. Schank we continued on down to Port MacDonnell for some Fish & Chips, and a quick explore along the coast here.  We lunched on Shelly Beach, and the kids and I had a quick snorkel, though it was getting quite cold!  We also went to Port Northumberland, the southern most point in S.A. where we viewed the site of an old lighthouse, which was removed for fear of it collapsing into the sea.

From Port MacDonnell, we left around 2:00pm for our long drive home, arriving in Ballarat about 6:30 for dinner at Mum's and eventually getting home late Thursday night.

Queensland Road Trip

Wanting a winter escape from Melbourne, we planned a short holiday on the Gold Coast with Michelle's parents, Glenda and Arthur.  Also, wanting to add a bit of variety to the trip up and back, we diverted from the usual Newell path.

The Trip Up

After spending the night in Coonabarabran, we drove into Gunnedah at sunrise and then to Lake Keepit, the site of my Irish ancestor's first settlement in Australia.  Past Tamworth, we drove past the huge granite boulders at Moonbi pass, stopping a short while at the lookout.  On through Armidale and Glenn Innes, we passed some beautiful countryside near Deepwater and explored the Bungulla Station near Tenterfield, before heading to the coast at Ballina.  Sugar cane, sugar cane and more sugar cane and we eventually found ourselves at Burleigh Heads.

Around and about South-East Queensland

We had a great time spending a couple of days on the beach, especially Tallebudgera which is very kid friendly.  We also tried a bit of fishing here, catching a few toadies.  We did a trip up into the Hinterlands, taking in Springbrook Falls, and the Natural Arch; visited Sanctuary Cove; went to Movie World and Wet 'N' Wild; and also visited the Glasshouse Mountains, enjoying lunch at Moss's Cafe with some spectacular mountain scenery of old worn volcanic plugs with a strong aboriginal heritage.  We also explored the rainforest walk at Marie Cairncross, and the arty crafty township of Maleny before heading back, enjoying a delicious fresh crushed pineapple juice along the way.

The Trip Back

Also wanting to make something of the long trip back, so we headed down the coast past fields of sugar cane to Grafton and taking the Gwydir Highway to Glenn Innes.  The scenery along the rocky Mann River was magnificent, but was surpassed by the climb up the Gibraltar Range through rainforest with glorious views.  We passed some promising looking fishing spots shy of Glenn Innes where we stopped for lunch in the park near the visitor centre.

We continuing down the New England Highway through Armidale and on past Tamworth, collecting an unfortunate Kookaburra along the way.  He cracked the windscreen, which I'm sure faired better than he did.  On through Willow Tree, Scone and Muswellbrook where we spent the night.

From Muswellbrook, we headed cross country through Denman and then across through the top of Wollemi National Park, with honeycombed cliffs climbing abruptly from the valley.  We passed a huge freight train, then meandered into the hills, passing the Kerrabee Tunnel before coming out into the valley at Murrumbo Gap and Bylong Flat where we had a close up look at a Wedgetailed Eagle on the verge as we passed.

We continued past Capertee and a number of collieries, skirting the Gardens of Stone which I plan to explore on a future trip.  We arrived in Lithgow and made our way down the windy but scenic road to Jenolan Caves.  We explored two caves, the Imperial and the Orient, both where breathtaking and the first time the kids had been into limestone caves which they were most impressed with.  It was my 4th visit to the caves but still as magical as the first.  Next visit will have to include the River Cave for the kids.

After lunch with the Currawongs, we climbed out the back road to Oberon, through the Gurnang State Forest and into Goulburn for dinner.  Not wanting to spend another night from home, and to be home on my Birthday we continued through down the Hume Freeway into the evening, arriving home some time around midnight, if not slightly after.

Hamilton Explorer Range Rover Club Trip

A Weekend camping trip with Liam and Mark Linkin

Saturday

This wasn't really a 4WD trip, and the greater majority of the trip was on good quality sealed bitumen.  What this trip was about, was exploring some of the volcanic history of Western Victoria.

Our meeting place was at Lismore at 9:00, which meant a fairly early start from home to get there in time.  After introductions, and a briefing we made our way around the old Flax Mills in Lismore and then headed off to Mt Elephant.  Mt Elephant is a giant scoria cone, but is wholly on private land and we were not able to arrange access to drive up the cone.

We drove on to Lake Bolac, where I suspect Liam influenced one of the other young boys on the trip to fall into the lake and had our morning tea on the rocky shore.  From memory, Lake Bolac was formed by the lava flows blocking old stream beds forming a natural dam.

From Lake Bolac we drove to Penshurst and had our lunch on Mt Rouse.  Quite good views from the fire tower where overlooking the plains, and we could also see quite clearly Mt Napier, which would be our next destination.  After exploring the scoria cones on the face of the volcano, we headed off to Mt Napier and our campsite for the night.

We arrived into Mt Napier State Park from the north, via Buckley Swamp and proceeded to climb to the top of the volcanic cone.  Again we had quite excellent views, and the Western lip of the volcanic crater was missing where the lava had spilled out and flowed out to form the Byaduk lava tubes, which we would explore on Sunday.

I was quite impressed with Liam's climbing, having made it to the top of the volcano easily.  We saw some goats on the side of the cone, and we climbed down into the crater as well before making our way back down the mountain side and getting completely lost on our way back to camp.

The tents were quite hard to pitch, due to the ground consisting entirely of small volcanic stones just below the shallow top soil and grass.  There were also some enormous toadstools growing beneath the trees, which all of the kids found quite fascinating.  A short walk at night to spot any possums and then we were off to sleep for a very noisy night, thanks to a number of koalas.

Sunday

On Sunday we saw some very interesting formations, apparently quite unique in the world where the cooling lava had solidified into rock, then been buckled upwards forming mounds of basalt called tumuli.

These were on a farmers property easily visible from the road through an electrified fence which the kids had great fun with by forming a chain of hands and then grabbing the fence so that all where zapped.

From here we visited the Byaduk Lava tubes, some of which had collapsed ceilings allowing us to enter them and explore by torch light.

We drove along the Henty Highway, which gave us views back across the lava plains to Mt Napier and then made for our lunch destination at Wannon Falls.

The falls were in great form, with a very decent flow of water.  The track down to the falls base was closed, and looked like it had been for a long time.  A new viewing platform had been built at the top of the falls since I had last visited.

After lunch we visited Nigretta Falls further up the Wannon River and then drove up the west side of the Grampians in search of Brolgas, but did not find any.  We cut across the Grampians (on which Road I can't recall) and headed out along some dirt tracks to Moyston and back home.