Australia
Kyoomba

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    • Day 1,429

      Stanthorpe

      April 22, 2022 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

      Friday was a day we had been looking forward to. Kirsty and Matt, as a thank you for helping with their bathroom, had treated us to a wine tour of the region.
      We were picked up by Eugene and with one other couple we visited five wineries throughout the day.
      At the first Ridgehill we were given samples of every one of their wines, six whites, three rose, 5 red and a port.
      We next visited Jesters Hill where we sampled about 50% of their range.
      Just prior to lunch we enjoyed a tasting at Kominski, and Toni the Greek proprietor was a brilliant character.
      All the while, as we travelled around the area Eugene was giving us a commentary on the history, geography and farming industry in the area.
      We enjoyed a pie lunch at The Blue Pool prior to a visiting The Summit vineyard, then Castle Glen where the proprietor was exceedingly proud of the selection of 200 liqueurs, fortified wines etc that were all developed by himself on the premises.
      On Saturday we drove into the Girroween National Park where the Granite outcrops in the area form some interesting shapes.
      On the way we had a look at the train station at Wallangarra, famously visited by the Prince of Wales on his tour to Australia after WW1. It is built on the border between NSW and Queensland and the different shapes of the two canopies on either side of the station building is apparently due to the authorities of each railway administration not liking each other.
      Prior to the National Park , we needed to stop at the chocolate factory where K enjoyed a tea and A a coffee accompanied by a nice chocolate fancy. Karen then managed a short walk around the park on her crutches where we came face to face with kangaroos and wallabies. A took a further short walk to have a look at the granite arch - a natural formation of the granite formed over millions of years.
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    • Day 1,431

      Stanthorpe

      April 24, 2022 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

      On Sunday we visited the Museum at Amiens where the local history society were keen to bring us up to speed with the post WW1 history of the area. Sunday turned into quite a cold day so we returned to the site to keep warm in the camp kitchen.
      On Monday we drove to Mount Malay the local high spot to have a look over the plains surrounding Stanthorpe, we then we visited Suttons farm and juice factory where the apple pies were hotly recommended. We were glad we were forewarned, we had one pie helping to share and it was enormous, served with cider ice cream and chantilly cream.
      Eugene had told us about the Queensland College of Wine and Tourism which had been built to provide a practical education for non academic students in the area. The restaurant was reputed to offer great fare so we booked ourselves in for a lunch. We both opted for the signature lunch tasting menu which came with complimenting wines from the college vinyards over four courses which was all very tasty.
      By the evening the winds had dropped and the temperatures improved and we enjoyed our last night in the open in front of a raging camp fire.
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    • Day 1,427

      Stanthorpe

      April 20, 2022 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

      Wednesday was a travelling day. We left Eatons Hill in the morning and passed through the Scenic Rim and Warwick before climbing up onto the Darling Downs.
      We passed through The Summit, the highest point on the Inland Country Way from Sydney to Rockhampton. This area is the home of the Australian fruit growing industry - we passed apple orchards, and stone fruit orchards on our journey into the Granite Belt.
      Our destination was the Sommerville campsite at The Storm King Dam, after arriving at 2pm we were all set up by 4pm proving that the tent can be set up by one person.
      Stanthorpe is 850m above sea level and one of the highest towns is Queensland. When we visited the weather was changeable with strong winds, daytime temperatures varied between 16 to 21 deg C and the night time temperatures dropped as low as 10 deg C. We had come prepared for colder temperatures but we had become used to the heat of Brisbane and found it a little of a shock to our system.
      On Thursday we took a drive along one of the tourist routes which took in the villages of Amiens, Paschendale and a few others which were named after the end of the first world war. The Queensland Government designated the area for distribution to returning soldiers from WW1 who were encouraged to become farmers and build new lives on the land. Many endured and prospered, but some fell by the wayside, many of the owners of the fruit farms and wine farms in the area are related to the original settlers. The little museum at Amiens, run by volunteers opened for three hours each Sunday so we moved on to the local Cheese making factory to have a tasting.
      The cheese shop was busy, we paid for a taste of each cheese prior to picking our favourite to have with a ploughmans lunch. The cheeses were delightful and the blue cheese in particular caught our fancy.
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