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Puppy Gets High
  • Bec Taylor
March 2024

Puppy Gets High

In the Victorian High Country Read more
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  • Trip start
    March 1, 2024
  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Yassssssss

    March 1, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

    Not much to report on today. We finished getting things together and grabbed a feed from McDonald's before heading off around 11:30.
    Pup did his usual, unsettled for a while, getting the shits that the window wasn't open, then getting the shits because the wind was too fast when we did open them. It's a tough life. We had a quick bathroom break at Ourimbah, then the Partridge VC rest stop where I grabbed some fresh raspberries and grapes, followed by a break to grab a feed at Marulan. We got into Yass just after 5pm. It was a quick set up and some quiet time for the boy. Burritos and guac for dinner. Just a night stopover at Yass Valley Caravan Park, we're heading to Beechworth tomorrow.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High
    1

    Puppy on the Tuckerbox

    March 2, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    We had some unexpected rain overnight, so Ben didn't sleep the best, and I'm a bit crook and sore, so we were pretty tired and slow to move this morning. Pup was surprisingly alert for the morning, he's usually fighting us to snuggle back in while we're trying to get ready. The usual tidy up, pack down, and breakfast, then we headed off around 10. A quick fuel up and we were off to our first stop at Gundagai. We had a little wander and a shop, lots of people around. Then Ben put Pup on the doggy tuckerbox prop for his photo. We tried to move away for him to have his own photo, he did not want a bar of that haha.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Holbrook

    March 2, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C

    Back on the road to Holbrook where we stopped at the HMAS Otway submarine. They were setting up for the Festival by the Sub, there were the classic cars, food options and they were setting up a stage. We made ourselves wraps for lunch, then headed off.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Ettamogah Pub

    March 2, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Ettamogah pub was so strange but awesome! We didn't realise there'd be so much to it, lots of buildings out the back of the pub, mini museums and bits and pieces, very cool! Next was Albury for a quick stop at kmart for a wheatpack and bits I'd forgotten.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    To Beechworth

    March 2, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Less than an hour down the road and we made it to Beechworth, first stopping at the visitor info centre, then on to our accommodation at Lake Sambell. It's a lovely park, lots of shade and activities, depending on how busy we are, we might hire a kayak tomorrow. We had some quiet time for the boy, but were getting hungry, so we headed for Bridge Road Brewers. We shared a pizza and a burger, while trying some of their drinks. We had a cinnamon sugar pretzel with pistachio ice cream, and caramelised apple (well, I ate the apple..), for dessert, so good! Then headed back. Just the usual tonight, relaxing, netflix, showers and bed.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Beechworth

    March 3, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    Another slow morning, a fair bit fresher too. We got ourselves organised and headed to Eldorado. We stopped at the old mining dredge for a look, there was a nice walk around the outside, so we went for a wander before going into the machinery to have a look. It looked like a roller-coaster of horrors, so cool! We headed into town to have a drink at the smallest pub in Victoria, McEvoy Tavern. It was really nice, had some outdoor seating in the sunshine where we had a chat to one of the workers, she was telling us about her mischievous parrots. Ben found a dirt road to take us back to Beechworth, so we had to take that of course. There are so many beautiful old buildings, we popped in and out of the shops on their main streets, including the bakery, Beechworth honey and the sweets co. Our lunch at Billsons was booked for 1:30pm in the beer garden. It was very busy and we had heard other people saying they'd been turned away since they didn't have a booking. We often wing it, but good thing we'd booked this time. We shared a steak sandwich and Brisket tacos, while sampling the local gin and beer. It was getting quite warm in the sun, so we relocated to a shady spot out front and took turns to go into the tasting room. It was serve yourself which was dangerous, but great! You could taste their beers, cordials, spirits and their premixed flavours of course. We decided on a 24 can mixed pack, and 2 stubby holders that actually fit their can size, same as the seltzers we often get, so they'll come in handy. We went for a quick loop to grab fuel and past the Lake Sambell reserve. There's a Pontoon for kids to jump off, lots of kayaks and watercraft. A lovely spot! We headed back to camp for some quiet time and a post lunch snooze. This caravan park is so nice, there's also putt putt, badminton/volleyball nets, and lots of walking tracks. We cooked up dinner and I jumped on the laptop for a bit to give my Year 12s some feedback for their upcoming assessment task. Then the usual showers and off to bed.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    To Bright

    March 4, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Puppy invaded my space last night instead of Ben's, lucky I'm not as tall as him. It was cooler again this morning, even Ben put long sleeves on! We packed up and headed to Beechworth bakery for breakfast. A Cuban for Ben, breaky roll for me, and straight up disdain for Pup, not a happy boy this morning, he even turned his nose up at his chicken, the bacon he was offered, but he happily took my egg though. Next we went for a drive through Mayday Hills and through the Asylum grounds. Such a strange place with a weird feel. Linden stayed down here maybe 12 months ago? She got a great deal and couldn't work out why.. until they arrived and their airbnb was on the asylum grounds, haa! It would be a solid no from me. Next was Beechworth berries, we wandered through the fields, collecting strawberries, 3 whole raspberries and a few blackberries. It was a nice wander for the morning, even pup was less grumpy. On the road to Bright, we took a longer loop to go through Yackandandah and Mount Beauty. We attempted to do the gorge track walk, but we couldn't quite find the entrance, so we just kept going. A quick stop at Sullivan's lookout, then on the winding road to Bright. We were a bit early for check in, so we pulled up at the main park and went for a wander. Bright is possibly one of my favourite towns we've ever stopped at. The splash park and river are so lovely, they have a waterslide and close and easy access to the shops and cafes. Absolutely gorgeous. A quick stop at the info centre before heading back to the car to try for an early check in. We booked an ensuite here, not sure why, but bonus! The tasman parks we've stayed at are so lovely, this one is no exception. We set up then enjoyed the weather for a bit, pup was less thrilled when we tried to make him be an outside dog, but once he was back up in his (our) bed, he was much happier. We were going through some info booklets and Ben planned which trek we'd be doing tomorrow. A quick shower and freshen and up, and we walked over to Bright brewery for an early dinner, not as early as the couple next to us who were cooking theirs up at 4pm. Beef and fish burgers for us while sampling some of the local brews. The beer garden was lovely, and 2 very well behaved dogs were off leash, waiting patiently for their owner to come back outside. Maxie must be the naughtier/younger of the 2, he kept slowly creeping over to say hello to the dog at the table opposite them. An easy wander back to the camper for the usual before bed.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    The first 4wd track of the trip

    March 5, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    We woke up to a verrrry grumpy boy today, neither of us are morning people/dogs, and he made sure we knew that today. He perked right up once he had his chicken luckily. We got organised and popped over to the bakery for breaky rolls since we'll be on 4wd tracks all day. We headed for Porepunkah, the town the tracks start from. The golden spur track followed the powerlines to the summit, before continuing on another track. Once pup realised what we were doing, he settled in. We did a big loop from one of the 4wd books we've been given, lots of twists and turns, beautiful outlooks. I did stuff up and we missed a turn, in my defence it was at a 5 way dirt intersection and Ben had a quick look too. Where we'd planned to stop to have a feed was just inside the national park borders, so we had to keep going for a bit. We got to the end of the Buffalo Range track, at an intersection before the Twins Jeep track, which we did 7 years ago, unintentionally because of a massive tree down where we actually wanted to go. I hated that track so much, but he we were. There was a big clearing and Ben said we stopped here for a feed last time too, so we made ourselves some wraps, pup stretched his legs and we were back in the ute for the awful twins track. We remember it being super narrow, sheer drop off's and just yuck. Now, maybe because we've done a lot more tracks since then, it wasn't as bad as we remembered. It was still narrow and the drop off's were scary, but it wasn't as nervewracking as last time, and we're in a wider car this time. The end of the track was on the Great Alpine Road, at an intersection for our next track.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Blue Rag Range

    March 5, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    Next up was the Blue Rag Range track. We did this one last time too, the trig point is the highest offside peak you can get to. Only about 6kms to get to the top, but it was a bit of a scramble with some nice challenges for Ben to climb, while Puppy and I just got thrown around the car. The photos don't do it justice, or really show how steep the tracks are. We enjoyed the top for a while, before heading back down the windy Great Alpine Road. I got incredibly car sick on the way back down, conveniently forgot about that from last time. A quick stop at the base town, Harrietville for a sneaky vom and bathroom break, and I was feeling muuuch better. It was getting late and we needed to do a quick woolies stop, Ben ran in, then back to camp for showers and dinner.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Wandiligong

    March 6, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

    Another check out morning. We left the boy to snooze while we packed up and got organised. Once sorted we headed over to Howitt's Park where Ben took pup for a wander to feel the river, which he definitely didn't hate.. while I grabbed a coffee. Very busy for a Wednesday morning! We headed into Wandiligong. We'd been map searching and saw a cute park and a produce shop, only 10mins out of Bright so we figured we'd go have a look. The park looked like it was on private property, damn you google maps, but the shop was undersold. What a find! Nightingale Bros Alpine Produce was absolutely lovely. They had picnic tables set up around the grounds, lots of lawn games, cider tasting and their big shop with local produce and products. I had to do a cider tasting and we enjoyed the sunshine for a bit. Another reason to come back. They love their cycling around here, lots of mountain biking options, but also cycleways everywhere for an easier/more recreational ride. We also spotted some flavoured Pumpkin seeds but weren't 100% sure if they'd be our thing, it didn't matter since Pepo Farms was the next planned stop anyway.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Brown Brothers!

    March 6, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 31 °C

    Pepo farms was a long stop than planned, the lady inside told me about how their slovenian pumpkins are grown purely for their seeds, they then flavour them or press them into oil. She walked me through a tasting and I picked up some goodies. Next was Brown Brothers! So glad we were able to pop in. Ben hung outside with Pup and a beer, while I tried '5' (ended up being 12) of their wines. The staff member, Jacob, tried to make me like Chardonnay, it's still not for me, blah. We grabbed a pie from the bakery across the road and kept moving.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    To Mansfield via Glenrowan

    March 6, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    Time got away from us today with some stops being longer than anticipated, wouldn't change it though. We had a quick stop at Wangaratta then onto Glenrowan. It's changed a lot since we were here last, the visitors info centre is a discovery hub museum with a built in lookout of the seige area. Kellyland and the museum were still there, both dog friendly! But it was about 3:30 by this point and we didn't feel like rushing through. We popped into King Valley popcorn, took a photo of the big Ned Kelly, then were back on the road to our next stop - Mansfield holiday park. It's a lovely spot and was quite warm today! We set up in the shade and got ourselves organised. I had a few reports to finish while Ben cooked dinner, then the usual evening routine. Another 4wd day tomorrow, heading out to Mount Buller, then on the tracks to find Craig's Hut.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Mount Buller

    March 7, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    We've found a way to trick puppy into being a morning dog, he gets breakfast in bed and he perks right up 😅 he's been snoozing on my side the last few nights which works out well for Ben since he's so tall and Pup takes up a fair bit of space for a dog who isn't very big himself. We had a quick chat with our neighbour who donated some beef jerky to pup, I'm not sure that he realised Ben would probably eat it before he would, ha! They didn't realise it's coming into the long weekend either but got lucky with a cancellation for the weekend. On the road to Mount Buller, we cruised around the village and went to the summit walk. Dogs aren't allowed and Ben is a glutton for punishment, so I stayed in the car with Pup, while Ben did the walk to the summit, he got some great photos!Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Mount Stirling

    March 7, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Back on the track for a bit, before stopping at Mount Stirling. We did the summit walk and the walk up to the trig point, well, Pup got a lift up there as there were quite a few stairs and we dont want him to overdo it. He'a also terribly stubborn which is a good match for us haha. Beautiful views over the valley and looking back at Mount Buller. The temperature wasn't too bad, but we both still got a bit sunburnt. There was a big barrel between the 2 walks which we weren't sure about, Ben opened it up and it was a spinal board and rescue gear, ominous but cool that it was there and ready to go, which makes sense with all of the proper hiking tracks around.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Craig's Hut

    March 7, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    Next stop was Craig's Hut. As we pulled into the carpark there were so many cars around, there's a variety kids charity 4wd event on at the moment. There were a lot of oldies, which made it tricky to get photos for a bit, but it was really nice seeing so many people around and enjoying the scenery. The Hut itself is lovely, views are amazing and plenty of shady options for a picnic, which is exactly what we did. We had a sit down and made some wraps for lunch. We wandered back over to the hut to take some photos as the crowd had started head off. We met a lovely lady, Stella, who offered to take some photos for us which was really nice of her. We chatted for a while, mostly about a very 'regal' looking Pup, as well astheir travels. She was part of the charity event, they were travelling between Merimbula and Mt Dandenong. We took a few more photos then headed off ourselves.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Bindaree Falls

    March 7, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    We backtracked very slightly to go down to the Bindaree Falls. A relatively easy road and not too far. The falls track had lots of steps and Pup was a bit stiff, so back up on Ben's shoulders he went. He definitely had the best view and no puffing and panting (from Pup at least) when we got to the falls.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    The descent

    March 7, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    We still had a large part of the drive to go, but no long stops planned. We cruised through a number of lovely campsites down by the river, and kept driving between the national park, the state forest and back again. We had a quick stop at King Hut, those campgrounds were right up our alley, flat, grassy and shady, with a drop loo too which is always handy. We cruised past Razorback hut which had 2 people setting up a bbq. There were a number of swags and backpacks rolled up and a ridiculous amount of chairs for 2 people. As we looped out, I noticed one of the utes had hiking group tours on the side of it, so we're guessing that a hiking group were on their way to them for the night. As we started the decent, my motion sickness kicked in again, so that was fab, it wasn't long before we were on the highway back to Mansfield.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Buller Road Brewery

    March 7, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Pup was pretty happy to be back at his camper and less thrilled that it wasn't for long. I'd been map searching and spotted another dog friendly brewery up the road, so we headed there for dinner. Before we headed off, our new neighbour came over for a chat, asking if we were part of a 4x4 club and if we were dog people. He's part of a Land Rover club who were booked in for the long weekend and they were about to head up to the brewery themselves and asked if we'd listen out in case their dog started to bark, we let him know that we were heading there also, but that it's dog friendly if he wanted to take his dog along with them. Buller Road Brewery is relatively new, and they had a heap of shady, outdoor tables. Inside was very nice too, reminded of the Thirsty Mesiah at Broadmeadow. We sampled a cider and beer each, and ordered the BBQ chicken pizza and pulled pork tacos to share. Bloody delicious feed! We tried one more drink each before heading back to camp. The usual evening activities before bed.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    A bumpy road & a change of plans

    March 8, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Not much on for today, it's roughly 4 hours from Mansfield to Coongulla. We had a quick stop at Merchant coffee roasters for an iced latte and some toasties for the road. It wasn't long before the tarmac turned to dirt around Jamieson, and we realised why the 140kms was going to take so long. Lots of corrugations and tight bends. We stopped a few times to give the boy and drink since the road was so bumpy, the passenger princess he is was getting the shits when we tried to do the usual and give him water while driving. We had a short stop at Licola to stretch our legs and go to the bathroom. There was a general store, caravan park and a lovely rest area that looked quite new. Another hour on the road and we made it to Coongulla, set on Lake Glenmaggie. We originally had plans to stay near Walhalla at one of the many free camps, before we realised it's a long weekend and couldn't get into the caravan parks either. We got lucky with a cancellation at an airbnb, so we locked it in. Very good timing considering the temperature for the next 2 days is meant to be 38-40 degrees and this place has aircon. Unfortunately with the weather, we got a call from the Walhalla Rail who said that due to the temperatures there is a total fire ban for the weekend, so the train that we had booked is unable to run. Coongulla is about 90 minutes from Walhalla, the plan was to head in Saturday morning, do our train ride, grab lunch then we had a mine tour booked, all dog friendly too! When we got the call about the train, we ummed and ahhed about whether it was worth driving 90 mins to do just the mine tour for an hour, then another 90 minutes back. The mine tour people were also happy to refund, so change of plans this weekend. We brought what we needed into the airbnb and relaxed for a bit before deciding on heading to Heyfield, about 15 minutes away, to grab Chinese for dinner. We got plenty for leftovers since we don't plan on doing much tomorrow. The house does have an arcade machine, poker table, pool table and lots of board games, so that'll probably be our plan with the heat.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    A quiet Saturday

    March 9, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 36 °C

    We took advantage of the opportunity to sleep in this morning. Took it nice and slow, had some breaky and caught up on survivor while hiding in the aircon. We ducked out to get our groceries so we don't have to do it tomorrow, bit of a stock up for a few days without shops/service etc. Back to the accom to cook up some food to prep and to have some leftovers for lunch. We went for a short drive to the water access points, looks lovely but just far too hot. We had a quiet arvo/night with a few drinks, snacks, movies and playing the arcade machine. There were far too many game options but it was really fun.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Back on the road

    March 10, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 37 °C

    A bigger sleep in today, another 38 degree day too. We just relaxed most of the day in the aircon and packed everything up. We already decided that we'd leave later in the day, it's only 90 mins to Dargo Hotel and meant to be just as hot there. We finished packing up not long ago and are at Maffra to fuel up. Unless the pub has wifi, the optus map says we'll be out of service until we get to Lakes Entrance on Thursday.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Dargo Hotel

    March 10, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 33 °C

    It was an easy run into Dargo. Lots of people around due to the long weekend. We're staying at Dargo Hotel, last time we stayed at Dargo River Inn, which was great, we just wanted to change it up. We found a spot, set up then headed up for dinner. It wasn't too busy in the beer garden, but absolutely chockers inside. A few dogs embarrassing their owners too while sweet Pup just ignored everyone ha! Lots of people stopped to have a chat, mostly about Pup, and we listened in to convos about the tracks people had been doing over the weekend. Most people had been on the drinks most of the day so were very relaxed. The wait time wasn't too bad considering how busy it was, we both got parmas, then headed back to the camper. We were pretty tired so fed the boy and turned in for an early night.Read more

  • Bec TaylorTravelerPuppy Gets High

    Grant Historic Mining area

    March 11, 2024 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    Lots of movement today, we're expecting that most people will be gone by the time we get back this arvo. There are a few caravans which look like they're sticking around. Our neighbours and their friends are staying for another night, we chatted with them last night briefly and again this morning. They're from Phillip Island and forgot about the long weekend themselves, made us feel better, at least we're from interstate. We had a quick stop at the public hall to use the wifi to check in with a few things and to confirm our tracks, then headed to Grant Historic Mining Area. We took the track in the booklet, with the added challenging loop along the Bulltown Spur track, then onto the Crooked River track which is on Ben was really keen to do. We did the first water crossing and needed to winch up out of it, the exit was super rocky and steep, the ute wasn't having it.Read more

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