The Hixon Trip Logs

Beechworth - 2014

2014-07-13T20:16:00.001+10:00

Another long weekend, another get away. This time we took the van

We went back to Beechworth however this time we did not plan to do any fossicking. Whilst there we stayed in a new caravan park, or at least one we had not been to before, the Beechworth Holiday Park. The park turned out to be as good choice and we enjoyed our stay there.

Whilst doing the normal Beechworth type things (bakery) we also went along to the Ghost Tours run at the local Lunatic Asylum. Wow, what a great night we had. I would highly recommend it. We also visited a local Strawberry farm returning to the van to eat them.

The Lunatic Asylum

Local Scenic Spots

Queretaro Mexico

2014-05-31T19:03:00.000+10:00

With my new job I will be fortunate enough to do some traveling to other countries. One of the main ones, where we have a second production facility, is in Queretaro, Mexico.

I was lucky enough to have my first visit in May this year.Although i was there for work the three week visit encompassed two weekends where i was able to get out and explore this amazing city.

I enjoyed some amazing food, including grass hoppers, met some very welcoming people, and was fascinated by the disparity seen in city/rural life

Queretaro City centre (where my Hotel was located)

First Weekends Tour – Local city significant sites

Second Weekends Tours – Pyramids and outlying tourist towns

Some Amethyst and Fire Opal i purchased to facet back home

Powelltown 2014

2014-02-16T20:59:00.000+11:00

I managed to sneak back to Powelltown with a couple of friends from the Essendon Lapidary Club. Powelltown is a great fossicking location, and i have posted about it before. This time was no different. A great day was had with some great cutters found.

The photos are from two trips during Jan and Feb

Christmas in Junee–2013/14

2014-01-10T20:38:00.000+11:00

We had a two week break at my new job so we took the chance to head up to Junee for a get away. Junee is well known historically as the main railway between Sydney and Melbourne run past and a Roundhouse/Repairs workshop was built here to service the trains, and the region

We stayed at the Junee Caravan Park which we found to be very clean and quiet with our site backing on to a peaceful lake. The lake was a godsend during the VERY hot afternoons.

We didn't actually do much whilst here other than relax, visit Wagga Wagga and indulge at the local Chocolate and Liquorice factory.

The only other activity we managed to get in was some fossicking for Tourmaline in Quartz at Grenfell

Fossicking for Peridot (Olivine) at the Mount Shadwell Quarry

2013-10-26T20:39:00.000+11:00

For the second weekend in a row we found ourselves out in the elements fossicking. This time we were at the Mount Shadwell scoria quarry where gem quality Olivine, or Peridot, can be found.

We attended this trip with other members of the Essendon Gem and Lapidary club.

Olivine, or Peridot, occurs within scoria bombs that must be opened first. The quality of the find varies from none to gem quality with the latter being rare. The act of opening the rock, with a small hammer, renders much of what you find shattered. We had a great day and our one and only cutter was a small piece that Bianca found whilst specking the ground. I will try to get it cut for her but the size of it is currently beyond my skill.

Overall we had a great day and i think everyone came away with something.

Powelltown Fossicking with ALF

2013-10-19T20:22:00.000+11:00

I though i would post a few photos up of a recent fossicking trip i attended. With the support of many members from the Warragul Lapidary club, and the Australian Lapidary forum, a trip was organised to Powelltown in Victoria’s south east.

Powelltown is a great location that we have been to before and is a location that Topaz, Tourmaline and Quartz (Smokey) can be easily found. The actual fossicking is easy, once you access the creek, and consists of digging and sieving the sandy bottom of the creek. This time around we managed to find a couple of Smokey quartz points, a nice 300 carat clear quartz cutter, many black tourmaline specimens and one sliver of topaz that would be to small to cut.

Wollongong–Corrimal Beach

2013-10-06T08:42:00.000+11:00

Well, its been a while but as i am in between jobs at the moment we have been careful with our funds. As soon as i knew i had been offered a new role with a new employer we started planning our next getaway.

We decided we wanted to go “Glamping” this trip and leave the van at home so that's what we did. Booking a cabin at the Corrimal Beach tourist park we left Melbourne for our next mini adventure with the car zipping along minus the tag-a-long.

Why Wollongong? No reason, we had not stayed there before and most of Sydney’s north side beaches were booked out with school holidays.

As we wanted to take our time somewhat we decided to stay overnight in Albury, first stopping in Euroa for morning tea before finding a great little hotel, the Best Western Meramie motor inn, near the main street, which allowed us to walk the township, as well as to and from dinner at the Albury Commercial Club.

After a good nights sleep we were back in the car and on our way, discovering to our disappointment that the bypass of Holbrook is now complete and we did not pass the submarine as we normally do. The trip into Wollongong was mostly uneventful except for when we walked into a random bakery in Yass to find Maree and Peter there having morning tea. Seems Yass is not that far a drive from Canberra.

As mentioned, our home for the next 5 days was to be the Corrimal Beach tourist park, where we had a massive 3 bedroom cabin with a BBQ on the balcony, right next to the dunes and the beach. Very easy for me to get to for my morning walks and coffee whilst the girls slept in.One of the reasons for our choice of Sydney and Wollongong was that Sara wanted to visit Manly and the Northern Beaches (Palm Beach) however most of the accommodation around them was booked. Due to fires in the area the northern beaches ended up being scratched but Manly was still a destination we could reach. As we always do in Sydney, the public transport system was utilised to make the trip. It was actually a great train ride from Corrimal to Circular Quay, before boarding the ferry for Manly. It beats driving any day.

We also managed to find time to explore other beaches in the area including the Wollongong north beach. There is a great lookout on the heads and petrified wood can be found on the beach itself. The kids had a great time fossicking at the waters edge.

We had a free day so we also decided to visit Symbio Zoo, a wildlife park on the south side of Sydney. It was not as good as the Mogo Zoo however they are doing renovations so i am sure it would be worth visiting again in the future. The kids enjoyed it and they had some great Tigers

The trip home, after a great week away, was via Eden. We had planned to stop for a few days but the weather had turned very windy so we stayed here overnight and headed home via the coast.

ANZAC day weekend - Eldorado 2013

2013-05-03T19:09:00.001+10:00

ANZAC long weekend saw us take the van out for possibly the last time before winter. We decided a short trip to Eldorado would be a nice break from the hustle and bustle

We have been to the Gemstone Caravan Park in Eldorado a few times now and every time the park is the same, Clean, well maintained and quiet. We really love that its only 10 mins from the Hume Highway yet seems to be virtually unknown and therefore relaxing.

From Eldorado its only a short 30min drive to either Beachworth or Wangaratta, both of which we visited over the weekend. Brown Brothers Winery is also only a short drive away and stock a great Tokay only available at the cellar door.

Right behind the caravan park is the Reedy Creek where alluvial gold can be found along with various gemstones. With my renewed miners right and my pans and sieves i did manage to spend some time fossicking however not much was found other than some well worn glass and a couple of flakes of Gold. The gold did not photograph to well so you will have to trust me the stones i found did but no cutters like last time

Also Nearby to the caravan park is the Swinging Bridge and the Eldorado Dredge. Looking at the photos around the town and in the pub its amazing what this dredge did to the valley in the search for Gold

Sara’s parents, who also came along, have just purchased a Minelab Xterra 705 metal detector and they were keen to have a look around also however there was no real expectation of finding a nugget here. They did have fun learning the machine and digging up other peoples waste

Mostly the weekend was about relaxing and we did plenty of that with the park providing firewood and portable camp fires, one of which found a permanent spot outside our van.

We also spent one afternoon taking the parents out to the old Chinese gardens in search of relics we got to play with the car in 4WD but no relics were found

That will probably be it for a while with the van now due to a good clean and then the covers will go on.

Warrnambool

2013-04-14T19:34:00.001+10:00

As i was given some leave that coincided with School Holidays, we decided to take ourselves away for a week. Warrnambool proved to be a good choice for this. We stayed at the Surfside Holiday Park, which we rated as a 4/5 with Badgers caravaners reports.

As we had no real plans other than a full week or relaxation we had no plans for what we might do whilst we were in Warrnambool. Our first “treat” was the realisation the park was situated next to the main rail line in and out of Warrnambool. Some train drivers tried to sneak past in the night, ineffectively, and others must of enjoyed the use of the Horn very much . This happened about 4 times a day, with no more than 2 trains at night. All that said we were not disturbed that much by them and this would not stop us visiting again.

Our second “treat” was an explosion during the first night. A power transformer coming into the park exploded, cutting power to the park for most of the first day. That was the extent of surprises for the stay.

During the week we enjoyed some great meals at some local venues, including Maceys and the RSL, which was only a short walk from the park.

We spent most of the days either reading and relaxing at the van, or walking to the beach, the Breakwater wall, the local park or into town.

During our stay we did venture out of town for a visit to Tower Hill, where we were meant to see some wildlife but only managed to find a Koala. We also went out to Timboon to visit the Timboon distillery and Ice cream shop, as well as the Allansford Cheese factory. Both of these are highly recommended tourist destinations.

Xmas 2012–Oberon to Home

2013-01-13T20:14:00.000+11:00

Not much to report on the trip home. We had planned to stay out one more night before heading home but after we found a caravan drawer open again and a large mess in the van we decided to make it one last BIG day and drive all the way.

We did stop at Goulburn on the way back, and therefore one last “Big Things” photo for the trip, a big Merino sheep. I should of headed out the back for a second photo because he seems correctly proportioned. The people who made this must of had many a laugh.

Overall we had a great trip. Our van has suffered some damage and we had some near misses, but based on the roads we travelled i think we did great. I have some repairs to make now, as well as some improvements, before we head out on our next adventure.

The Colorado performed flawlessly and i was impressed with how it went overall. Below is the facts and figures, showing a maximum of 16L/100Km but this can easily be justified by the steep ascents the car was making whilst pulling the van. On average a value of 13l/100km is as i would of expected.

The last photo shows a distribution of funds, with the total trip costing around $3000

As i make improvements to the van i will update the relevant pages.=

Thanks for following us on our latest trip.

Xmas 2012– Oberon

2013-01-09T19:57:00.000+11:00

Oberon, a great little town on the west side of the Blue Mountains, near Sydney. We chose this town due to its proximity to the Jenolan Caves and the Blue mountains town of Katoomba, and its associated tourist attractions, the Scenic World and the Three Sisters.

After setting ourselves up in a great site and having a well earned rest, due to the great roads we seem attracted to this trip, we planned our next two days. For the first day, a day of high fire danger, we had chosen a trip to the Jenolan Caves. Prior to heading out though we made sure to have a look at the NSW Rural Fire service website to ensure there were no local fire risks. We also packed plenty of water.

The Caves were great, and we ended up on one of the longer tours, with around 900 steps. The caves proved to be cool relief as well with an average temperature of 15deg. It was a big shock then when we came back into the light. As part of our tickets we also got to do a self guided tour of a more outdoors style cave. On our walk back to the car we also managed to disturb various lizards, some of which waited while i took some photos…

After a great day at Jenolan caves we returned to the caravan park for an afternoon rest and an evening walk back into town, where i snapped this shot of the towns original Cinema building the Malachi Gilmore Hall, its looks great but is no longer in operation it seems.

Day two had us driving out to Katoomba and Scenic World where we rode all the attractions.

After Scenic World we headed back into Katoomba to see the Three Sister from another vantage point, along with all the other tourists.

After all this it was back to the van to begin packing, ready for the trip home.

Xmas 2012–Yamba to Oberon

2013-01-06T19:12:00.000+11:00

It has taken some time but i have finally found time to finish the blog for our Christmas 2012 holiday.

From Yamba we travelled to Tamworth, via Grafton and Glen Inness. The day started out cool and slightly overcast but after a few quick stops to ensure the Kayak was properly secure we made it through Grafton and on our way up through the hills to Glen Inness.

We had travelled this way in the past with the caravan being towed by a Commodore, so we did not expect any issues with the Colorado and none were had. Once we made it to the top of the past we stopped for a quick break, and to let the car rest, before heading into Glen Inness where we stopped for lunch, and to purchase a bag of Sapphire Wash from the Information Centre. This was to be the only fossicking i was to see for the whole trip (found a few sapphires, but no cutters)

The weather in Glen Inness was still cool, around 24deg. The reason i stress this was that pulling into Tamworth, we thought that maybe our temperature indicator on the Colorado was playing up, the temperature had jumped up to 40deg. Wow, it was really HOT.

In Tamworth we stayed at the Austin Tourist Park which turned out to be a great park on the outskirts of town. The Country Music Festival was not due to start for another couple of weeks but people had started arriving already, in small numbers.

Once the van had been setup and we had a quick break we took off into town to get some photos of the Big guitar and stock up on some groceries. Not much else was done in Tamworth due to both the heat and the fact this was only an over night stop for us, on our way to Oberon.

Yet again we fell victim to our GPS navigation, although again in this case i did pick some of the path. The poor van was pulled through some very hilly country on our way south to Oberon. We made it fine but i am sure there were some better roads around we could of used.

One concern we started to have was the real beginnings of the severe fire risk season and bush fires. We monitored the risk via the NSW Rural Fire Service website. Lucky for us there were no real fire risks in the Oberon area.

Arriving in Oberon we were greeted to a great country park, The Jenolan Caravan Park, that had first class amenities and very spacious sites. We were well located near the main street, allowing us to walk in when the weather cooled down in the evenings, and not far from the regions main attractions, Jenolan Caves (45 min) and Katoomba (1Hr).

Ill post more on this in the next post – Oberon.

Xmas 2012–Yamba

2013-01-06T07:45:00.001+11:00

In Yamba we stayed at the Yamba Waters Caravan Park, which is off the beach. Arriving around lunch time on our first day we set up camp at our ensuite site i had decided to spoil Sara and the kids a bit, so no walking down to the showers for the next 5 days.
Unfortunately, due to the time of year, the minimum booking time at many costal parks was 5 nights, otherwise we would not have spent as much time here. That said, we were confidant we could fill our time somehow.
As we drove in we also noticed that there was to be a night market in town, and when booking in, besides confirming the market we were also told a carnival was in town, all within walking distance of the park. So, after setting up and having tea, off we went on the 15min walk into town.
The walk turned out to actually be about 25, but it was a nice evening so no problems. The market, on the other hand comprised of only about 6 stalls, so not much to write home about there. We picked up some ice creams and headed back to the carnival. We also noticed, on the way back, a rainbow in the clouds. With no rain present this was an unusual sight and it turns out rare as well. More photos and a good description of the phenomenon can be found here.
The carnival was in full swing when we arrived so the kids got their customary Cha Cha ride before we headed back to camp for the evening.
We didn't really have much planed when we picked Yamba other than staying somewhere new. In the few days we stayed here we took a drive back up north to Byron Bay, which was amazingly busy to the parking was unavailable at many of the local sights and walking was the only way around. The kids had their hair braided with feathers in the main street and we picked up some trinkets.
After Byron Bay that day we headed inland to have a look at Lismore, with a plan to drive through to Grafton, via Casino. We decided after walking around Lismore to head back home as it would be after 5pm getting to Grafton so the town would be shutting down. We will be heading out through Grafton on our way to Tamworth.
We spent another of our days fishing, at a recommended spot, but yet again, not much luck. Bianca did catch an undersized Bream though so we did manage to catch something.
Lastly we found a great local beach that was great for Kayaking, so we spent a few hours there also. We had hoped that Dolphins we had seen there whilst walking would be around, but not the day we went out.

Lastly, as per normal, the kids spent quite a few days in the pool, with the purchase of an underwater camera providing some amusement. As the water was not clear, no real good photos came of it.

Next stop, Tamworth.

Xmas 2012–Brisbane

2013-01-02T09:56:00.001+11:00

Our trip from Poona to Brisbane was uneventful. thankfully, and we arrived at the Newmarket Caravan Park with a minimum of fuss. The park is very spacious and well used, being marketed as on of the closest parks to the Brisbane CBD. We had a couple of friendly neighbours for the stay, two of which were either in new vans or vans new to them. The other couple, whom we spoke with a few times, were staying for a couple f weeks so as to get off the farm and were on their way back home from a trip to Adelaide.
It was this couple that gave us their remedy for Psoriasis. He was heavily effected by the open sore variant and swore by this mixture of products being;
1. After a shower you step out, whilst still wet and massage in Polytar Plus shampoo as per the photo below.
2. let it sit for 4-5 min.
3. Step back under the water and let the water run the shampoo off, do not aid it by rubbing.
4. After the shower, work into the Psoriasis some baby oil that also contains a table spoon of Witch-hazel. Shake well before using it so as to ensure it is well mixed.
I will be trying the same mixture on my Dermatitis when i get home.

Anyways, back to Brisbane. Having only two days, i am sure the city has much to offer but we decided on a drive up to Mt Tamborine on the first day, bypassing all of the attractions of the gold coast. We had bought the children here a couple of years ago and i am sure we will return up here in the future.
In Mt Tambourine we found, quite by accident, the Glow Worm Caves. This turned out to be a great attraction, buy no photography allowed in the cave so you will have to take our word for it. The cave, purpose built for studying the worms, was only half full to capacity with worms and once our eyes had adjusted it really did look like the night sky. Truly Amazing.
After the caves we went to the tree tops walk which was also a good choice. As per the Otways, you have raised walk ways through the canopy and cantilevered boardwalks as well as forest floor paths and a river running through the property.

They even had a tank full of Native fish. If i ever stop traveling for a while, i would love to set up a tank again.
Leaving Mt Tambourine we headed back to the van via a shopping mall for afternoon lunch.
In the evening we had planned to meet up with Lynnette for Dinner. This was the main reason for our stop over at Brisbane and we had a great dinner at the Makanan Indonesian Restaurant with her partner Paul.
Day two in Brisbane was taken up with a trip into the city. It all seems well laid out around the river with the main shopping malls on one side and the arts precinct on the other. We started out at the Brisbane Wheel, which unlike the Melbourne Wheel, actually functions. It gave us a great view of the city and allowed us to see some more of the attractions available. This was followed by a walk through the city malls. Brisbane definitely looks like a place we could return to with more time allotted as there are many things we did not see and do.
After this brief stop we then packed up for our short hop down to Yamba.

Xmas 2012–Poona–Bundaberg

2012-12-28T15:37:00.000+11:00

One of the reasons for travelling so far up the Queensland coast, besides visiting the Dolphins at Tin Can Bay, was so we could visit the Bundaberg Rum Factory. We needed more of the Royal Liquor you can only buy at the cellar door.
The other reason we were to leave Poona was to head into town to purchase a new spare wheel and replace the last old tyre on the van. We had done a few K’s on these tyres and in hindsight i probably should of got new ones before the trip. We were lucky and lesson learned here. We managed to get both in Maryborough so that was some relief. We also found that Maryborough runs a weekday (Thursday) Mall in the main street. We purchased some fruit and homemade hot Sausage whilst there, as well as having a bite to eat.

After that t was on to Bundaberg. We had hope that we could have a look around after the Rum factory as well but after doing the factory tour and the taste testing at the end we did not have much time before we needed to e heading back to Poona.
One disappointing part of the factory tour was that no photography was allowed so the only photos we have are below.

The next, and last day in Poona was planned to be another “Relax by the pool” day but when we woke it turned out to be a nice, mild for the morning, day with the bay looking very calm. We therefore decided, along with everyone else in the park it seems, to get the Kayak out again and go for a paddle. I took off first for a look around the bay. When i returned, Caitlyn was waiting for her turn and the “beach” was loaded with swimmers and water craft of all sorts. Bianca also got in on the act as can be seen.

Lastly, just a quick pick of our setup here at Poona, before we started packing up. We would love to visit again.

Xmas 2012–Poona Palms, Queensland

2012-12-26T19:11:00.001+11:00

We picked Poona Palms out of the Badgers website. When we were looking for a place to stay, near Bundaberg, Tin Can bay was first on our list due to the Dolphins. Caitlyn has a passion for Dolphins at the moment, wanting to be a Marine Biologist when she grows up so as to work with them Nothing at Tin Can bay took our fancy, and Rainbow Beach appeared to expensive.
When we saw Poona Beach, its cost and its location, it seemed a safe bet and fortunately, unlike many of the other things we have had happen to us so far this trip, luck was with us. Poona Palms caravan park is a quiet oasis, away from civilisation, even the internet/phone reception is sketchy.
We have a vast tidal inlet to play in, but no real sandy beaches. so far we have spent many an hour in the pool, taken the kayak out for a paddle, gone fishing, catching nothing as per normal. The kids even love using the yabby pump to catch bait.
On boxing day we got up early and drove around to Tin Can bay to watch the dolphins. The first hour there was a meet and greet and it seems we were lucky. Over the past few days only a single dolphin had come in, where as on the day we went we had 5 plus a 9 month old calf with its mother. we also didn't have the crowds that normally accompany feeding, up to 300 in a session. We probably only had 50-100 people there. Caitlyn was front and center for the meet and greet but the dolphins, pink estuarine dolphins, don't really like contact and did not come close enough for a pat. After meet and greet, Caitlyn was able to purchase a single fish for feeding.
After feeding time we ad breakfast at Barnacles, the cafe attached to the Dolphin center before we continued around to Rainbow Beach. We are glad we did not stay there, heaps of people were around, i suspect on their way over to Fraser Island. We could see heaps of people on the beach with their vehicles too. I would of loved to join them but with no experience beach driving, i did not want to be that person, the one who needed help getting back out

Heading home we did much of the same, sleeping and pool.
Update to Follow
The 27th will see us travel north to Marybourgh and Bundaberg. Our main destination being the Rum Distillery

Xmas 2012–Melbourne to Poona, Queensland

2012-12-24T13:51:00.000+11:00

Day 1 Melbourne to Forbes
Finally our latest holiday is upon us. The last few weeks dragged on whilst we prepared the van and car.
After an early get away, 7 am, we travelled through diggers rest to the donnybrook road to try and buy pass some of the road works currently under way on the western ring road. This was actually an interesting route, made all the more interesting due to some of the valley roads.
From there it was McDonald's for breakfast, a bit of a tradition, and a final inspection of the car and kayak. Back on the road it was an uneventful trip through to Calcairn where we had lunch at the Jubilee Park. It was a great little stop where the kids had a play, I introduced Caitlyn to cicada casings and we found the remains (they probably were not lost) of the towns old swimming hole. With much of the form work still evident it must of been something in its day and its a shame many of these sorts of things end up "lost"

From here it was through Wagga Wagga to West Wyalong. So far this would have to be the worst stretch of road we have encountered on many of our travels and I suspect many would prefer corrugations to this surface.
Pulling into the Apex River Park we were welcomed to a nice little park on a river bend. It's out of town and very quiet, with only a few people staying here at the moment.
The river is flowing quite heavily and I am told cod and yellow belly can be caught in it. This particular spot was also the towns local swimming hole in the 1930s with the remnant of the bath house forming a feature of the park.
The weather for the day slowly climbed in to the high 30's but once the sun went down it was very comfortable.
Day 2 Forbes to Bellata
After a good nights sleep it was up again at 6am for another big day. We had planned on going to Bellata today. By the time everyone woke up, had breakfast and helped pack the van it was 8am before we left the park but that was not a problem.
First stop for the morning was at "The Dish". The radio telescope just outside of Parkes. As only Caitlyn was interested, I took her in and we had a good look around, Caitlyn spending most of her time at a model of a black hole, which sucked in a ball when you spun it around. We also played with some "whispering walls", a pair of parabolic dishes.

Back on the road, my pet problem for the day was the drivers side mirror being blown in every time a truck, or car in some cases, drove past. I tried to investigate tightening it on the road side but it does not have any adjustment I can find.
All fixed now with some rope, and well timed as the road from Dubbo to Moree is very poor. The road surface was even worse than yesterday, not a good example of a national highway. We also found that with the start of the holidays the traffic had increased, with many learners on the road.
In NSW it seems learners can not exceed 80km/hr which is, in my opinion, an accident waiting to happen in a 110km/hr zone, when you add in the road traffic levels and surface conditions. Needless to say it was an interesting few hours on the road.
When we arrived at Bellata we found out, to my disappointment, that there was no caravan park anymore and the guy at the petrol station could not direct me towards any agate fossicking locations. We therefore decided to travel on to Moree.
We chose to stay at the Gwydir caravan park, with its hot artesian bore fed pools. Wow, even though it was a hot day, the 34deg pool was great. The 39deg pool was a bit on the hot side, with its warning of only 15min soakings at a time. We also spent some time in the normal pool :)
Later in the evening we had some more fun when it turns out we were taking up more than our allotted space. The sites were actually quite small and a permanent resident came over to inform us that we were not suppose to have our awning out and that if the owner came out we would have some trouble on our hands. Well, after the second van they sent down to park next to us found alternative sites we thought we should probably pack up. When we had finished the third van arrived, parked next to us and we had our very own door to door neighbour.

Day three – Moree to Nanango
Based on distance and reports on the badgers site we made Nanango our next destination. What fun we had. I really need to stop talking about roads but today really took the cake. I won't be surprised if find damage to the van or car when we get home based on how we were thrown about by the extremely poor roads we drove. That said it was great country side, much of it cane fields. The town of Nanango is modest and surprisingly busy. The park we chose, the Twin Gum Caravan Park, is quiet with only a couple of vans in besides the permanents. We got a great site and set up taking all the space we wanted. Unfortunately, due to the roads, we again struck some problems with the larger if my two drawers under the bunk bed breaking. The facia came off and the drawer then came out all the way. The exposed screws then punctured some cans of coke we had on the floor so we had a great mess to clean up again.

After we cleaned up and had lunch I thought it best we tried out our new washing machine, one we got for the van from here. We set it up and it worked well right up to the spin drying of the clothes. We then hung them out to dry whilst I fixed the drawer...... That was when it rained :). All the chairs and the just washed clothes got wet. I only just got the washing machine back into the car, along with everything else I had out, in time for it to not get wet as well.
As quick as it started the rain stopped so we all took a walk before cooking tea for the night.
Day four - Nanango to Poona
Well, they say bad things come in three's. if that's true then we have had ours. You would not believe it but the drivers side caravan tyre blew out today and we did not notice until we were driving on the rim. We were very lucky.
Now I have to find a new spare, hopefully in Bundaberg when we visit during the week.
Other than that the day was great, we had a short trip from Nanango to Tin Can bay, which we had a quick look at before heading on to Poona.
The caravan park here at Poona seems great. The layout is spacious and even though the park is almost full, there is plenty of room to move and the people we have spoken to are all friendly. The beach is actually a large tidal flat and the tide was out when we arrived. Plenty of people were out gathering yabbies for the afternoon fishing session.

Between setting up, lunch and a park walk we missed the boat on the yabbies so we tried soft plastic yabbies :)
Caitlyn lasted about 15min, with Bianca fast following her. I was left talking to another park resident whilst he reeled in a sting ray. That got Caitlyn's attention. Although I was using plastics, something gave it a good go and my bait came back up with chunks missing.
We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing before dinner and a music show at the camp kitchen. The park has a singer in for the evening and plenty of good songs were sung.
Lets see if Santa Claus can find us in the morning :)

Stratford fossicking trip

2012-12-01T21:17:00.001+11:00

Poor Bianca :)

We went out today with the Essendon Lapidary Club on a field trip to the Stratford area. Members from the McMillan rock hounds had offered to show us around.

The Avon River

For this trip, Thunder Eggs and Lava flow tuft were what we were looking for and we managed to find both.

For Bianca and I, the day started at 5am with a 3hr drive to meet up with the other members staying at the Stratford caravan park. Once meeting up we headed off in a 6 car convoy to the Thunder egg site. The site was very overgrown due to previous control burns and we were required to hack our way through the undergrowth a few hundred meters into the fossicking site. It seems that although thunder eggs can be found at various locations, this was one of the easier to get to with eggs that would yield some content.

As per the last field trip it seemed best to share the load and work a singe dig site. Chris and I dug whilst Bianca sorted the eggs out and filled the bucket. The fossicking was quite easy once we had located a "nest" and the biggest issue we faced, other than spiders, bull ants and centipede's, was carrying our haul out :)

The thunder eggs....

Once back at the car we all had lunch before heading out to a cutting that contained the lava flow tufts, apparently a sedimentary form of compressed lava that is suitable for cabbing. We managed to find some nice green tinted pieces.

Lava Flow Tuft

It was after this that most of the group decided to head back to the park, with Bianca and I heading home again

Thankyou to the McMillan Rockhounds for ahowing us around, It was a long day but well worth it. All that is left now is to open the eggs and see what we found.

Posted with Blogsy

Port Fairy - Melbourne Cup Weekend 2012

2012-11-13T12:43:00.000+11:00

Port Fairy, our home over the Melbourne Cup long weekend.

As we had not had the van out since the Darwin trip in April we had been looking forward to a good opportunity to get back out on the road and with our planned three week trip at Christmas getting closer it was a good change for a dry run. For this trip we chose the Belfast Cove Holiday Park. It turned out to be a great little park that was nice and quiet. Its only let down, to us, was the size of the sites and the road through the park. The sites are tight to reverse into and there is insufficient room to park your vehicles. This means many cars are protruding onto the road, limiting through traffic. I ended up rating the park a 3 on "Badgers"

As it was a dry run we also took the Kayak. We did not end up using it on this trip but it did travel well on the car. Also on this trip was Mum and Dad (Suprise, Suprise) who were testing out their new Van on its first trip. All went well and overall we only have a small list of things we had forgotten to pack.

As we were there for a few days we had planned to do some travelling to other towns in the region. Our first stop, though, was the Port Fairy show. This just happened to be on when we arrived on Saturday so off we went. It was a typical country show with plenty of farm related animals. There was also rides for the kids and some great stalls/displays. Caityn ended up finding herself nursing a wallaby joey and a blue tongue lizard, which she enjoyed. Sara would of liked to bring home one of the sugar gliders they had as a pet too.

Caitlyn also found herself jumping around in a Giant ball, she is in the Yellow one :)

Sunday saw us drive down to Portland for a look around. A place on our bucket list of places to stay is Narrawong, and looking at the caravan park there, we will most definitely visit there soon.

We had a brief look around Portland, most of the town being out to support a running event that was on. In the evening we all decided to go for a walk out to the Griffiths Island Light house. This was a great walk and we returned to the cars just in time for the sunset.

Monday saw us head east to Warrnambool. We have been here before and spent most of the day walking the main street before heading down to the beach. The weather had turned for the weekend though so it was not as nice a day as the day before. We also drove out to the breakwater wall and the old battery installation for a bit of a look. They really knew how to build structures in the "old days". The breakwater wall has seen better days and must of really looked great in its time.

Our final night in Port Fairy was spent at the Commercial Hotel for a great meal before walking along the old docks in town.

Fossicking in Powelltown

2012-10-29T13:27:00.000+11:00

We managed to get away with the Goulburn Valley Gem Club on a fossicking trip this week end. The trip was well supported with about 10 car loads of people heading up into the hills north east of Powelltown, Victoria.

Powelltown Hall Carpark

Carpark / Clearing near our fossicking location

Bianca, Our Mining Supervisor for the day

The location, once an old Tin mine, was said to have many varieties of Quartz (clear, Smokey and Citrine) as well as Topaz and Tourmaline.

In our car, our being Bianca and Myself, we had Chris and John. As a team we also ended up working the same hole for the day with Margaret joining us after lunch. Working the one hole meant we were able to work over much more material in our sieves and plenty of stone was carries back up to the cars for investigation, not all of it keepers though.

Some of the dense bush we needed to get through to find the creek

Apparently its time for lunch

Some of our haul

Yep, another Leech

In the end we managed to find plenty of quartz, of various colors and quality and some good samples of black Tourmaline. I don't believe we were lucky enough to uncover any Topaz, which i a shame. Still, that just means there is some there for us to find next time. Leeches were the only issue for the day, many of them finding their way over to me for a feed.

Smoky Quartz Points

A Large Smoky Crystal i grabbed for the garden

All in all it was a great day out. Thank you to the Goulburn Valley Gem club and Margaret from the Essendon Lapidary club for a great day out. I am looking forward to the next trip to Stratford.

Updates and Port Fairy planning

2012-10-01T08:43:00.001+10:00

Its been a long time between posts but as its winter we have not been taking the van out, rather we have been doing some great day trips out of Melbourne, on the days where the weather is mild.

With Spring here and Summer on its way we have a few outings planned to get us warmed up for the Christmas Trip.

Updates
Firstly, i have made some updates to the Fuel economy page for the Colorado, and i have updated the Colorado page with updated information on the Warranty issues we have been having, and some photos of the recent upgrades.

Trips

We have a few longer day trips planned, mostly with the Essendon Gem & Lapidary Club. The first, in late October, will be to Powelltown, were we expect to be able to fossick for Quartz and Topaz. As Powelltown is close to Melbourne we will be treating this as a day trip.

The second Fossicking trip we have planned for the last part of the year is to Stratford, which although further afield, we will also still treat as a day trip. It will be a LONG day though so we are keeping our options open :) I am not to sure what we expect to find here but there is a 4WD day planned into the hills so it should be a lot of fun.

Lastly we have booked a weekend away for Melbourne Cup weekend. For the 4 days of the long weekend we are booked into the Belfast Cove Holiday Park in Port Fairy. The park receives very good ratings on the Badgers review site and we are looking forward to getting away in the van.

Australian Travel Bloggers

2012-08-10T08:34:00.000+10:00

I thought i might make an update detailing some of the various Blog's i have been following lately. They are all great and detail the many ways we are travelling around Australia. I find the blog's a great source of Ideas for future trips, and a way of escaping without actually heading out myself. There is no order to the pages below, and many of them have completed their Epic journeys. If you know of any other great travel blogs, feel free to leave a comment.

http://www.livinontheroad.com.au/

http://www.rednomadoz.blogspot.com.au/

http://barbanddarrylgottago.blogspot.com.au/

http://smiffy2011.wordpress.com/

http://mumfordsvswild.wordpress.com/

http://stamand4.blogspot.com.au/

http://www.touring4x4.com/blog/

http://somers1999.blogspot.com.au/

http://frostystravellingaustralia.blogspot.com.au/

http://project2014australia.blogspot.com.au/

http://woodfamilyaroundoz.blogspot.com.au/

http://aroundaustraliabycaravan.blogspot.com.au

http://cusworthcaravancapers.wordpress.com

http://gillfamilyozodyssey.blogspot.com.au

Housekeeping and Blog updates

2012-07-31T19:34:00.001+10:00

We are now underway with the planning of the next trip. To help support the planning, i have set up an Itinerary page, as per some of the other trips we have made. It can be found here.

I also plan to update the other Itinerary pages linking to each blog post relevant to that particular trip. I should have this done over the next few days.

We are having quite a bit of fun planing this trip, especially since we now have our own 4WD. We are planing to go on a "tag along tour" whilst in Queensland, hopefully on Stradbroke Island, to learn how to drive on sand. Caitlyn is looking forward to hand feeding the Dolphins at Tin Can Bay, and of course, Sara and I cant wait to visit the Bundaberg Rum Distillery.

In Oberon we are planing to visit the Glow worms at Lithgow, the Jenolan caves and Katoomba. I cant wait to get the girls on the Scenic Railway.

As always, if you have any suggestions or comments please feel free to leave a comment here :)

Planning–Xmas 2012

2012-07-09T20:50:00.000+10:00

Well, planning is now underway for Christmas this year. We would like to travel up to Queensland for the break and have picked Tin Can bay as our most northerly destination. We are still finalising our stops and are having some difficulties as many of the places we have chosen further south are either booked already, or are charging overly exorbitant prices for a powered caravan site.

The stops include Tin Can Bay, Surfers Paradise, Yamba and Oberon with other places in between.

View Larger Map

If you have any great suggestions feel free to leave a comment.

Colorado updates :)

2012-07-09T20:29:00.002+10:00

I have just added a page to the side bar showing the upgrades we are making to our tow vehicle as we make them, the page will also detail any issues we have.

Fuel economy information can be found here and is regularly updated.