Australia
Woolgoolga Creek

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    • Day 59

      Nice day

      September 7, 2020 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

      Up at 7am.
      Sun shining.
      Forecast 21 degrees.
      So lovely walking along the beach this morning.

      Did a load of washing.
      Started reading on the deck.
      I was starving.
      ( I blame that burger we had yesterday. Delicious. Want another one.)
      It was probably only 10am.

      Went into the bus to check the cupboards.
      There is certainly no interesting food in my van.
      I mean, wraps are good but useless when you are starving.

      “Hey ... when did you make pasta? More importantly, can I have it?”

      Had pasta for morning tea.
      I moaned all the way through it.
      Wonderful.

      More reading.
      Another walk.
      The beach was wonderful.

      Lunch was sausages and chops.
      Dinner was pork chops.
      A very food orientated day.

      Had fun talking to people from my deck.
      The rubbish bin collection guy and I are now on first name terms.
      He starts waving as he drives into the park.

      Emily and I sat outside tonight till 9pm.
      It’s usually too chilly to do that.
      We took Winston for a walk on his lead.
      He’s getting so much better at this.

      A lady arrived about 8.30pm and asked directions to site 72.
      I showed her the way by torchlight.
      Said she was a late arrival.
      That’s not all she said.
      I had her whole life story before we hit site 72.
      And I am on site 66.
      So you may be able to work out ... it’s not a long walk.

      I left her to it and went back to Emily.
      “ Mum, she’s high.”
      “ Is she? I thought she was just crazy.”

      Nice enough.
      Perhaps she’ll settle down.

      Great night.

      Xxxx
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    • Day 58

      Forgot.

      September 6, 2020 in Australia ⋅ 🌙 16 °C

      The sun came out about 2pm.
      Lace and I raced to check the amount of water in the creek.
      There was still a lot but the tide was flowing out, pretty fast.

      So Emily grabbed the paddle board and I grabbed the kayak.
      Lacey on point again ...
      And launched at a spot that would take us all the way past our turquoise swimming spot towards the sea.

      This was hysterical.
      The tide was so strong ... no paddles needed.
      Then we would get stuck on a sandbar and feet were necessary over the side to push us along to deeper water.

      Well, we passed that turquoise swimming spot at a rate of knots!
      And raced towards the sea.
      ( The water is only 12 inches deep so all OK.)
      Laugh.
      We were getting spun around.
      Went backwards....
      Great fun.

      Then Lacey and I finally got control of the kayak and paddled furiously in the sea and the waves.
      Again, only about 18 inches deep, I am not being silly here.
      And we turned and surfed back.
      We actually caught a wave.
      It was so much fun.

      Then we came to a dead stop when the wave hit the water racing out of the creek.
      Honestly, I was paddling uphill.

      Emily took the kayak then.
      Out into the waves....
      Turned to catch a wave...
      Not fast enough as it turns out...
      The wave hit her sideways and capsized her boat and out she went.
      So funny.

      She recovered and caught a wave in.
      I went again.
      Lacey on shore with Emily this time.
      I was hit as the current turned me sideways and over I went.

      We had the best time.
      This kayak is just so much fun.
      You can lay on it and just float or you can pretend to be a great surfer!
      Doesn’t matter.
      Both are fun.

      Xxx
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    • Day 58

      Snakes Alive ...

      September 6, 2020 in Australia ⋅ 🌙 17 °C

      Emily - “ Mum, come and have a look at this”.

      There was quite a crowd around the awning of a caravan ....
      And there was an 8 foot python who had made it’s way up a broomstick and curled itself up on top on an electric frypan on the table in the awning.
      Quite a sight to see.

      Then one man said, “I think I saw it’s mother this morning going across the path to the beach.
      It was 4 times as big as this one.”

      Oh.
      I will be watching my step a bit more carefully.
      Lacey and Winston sleep inside of a night.
      And are never left alone during the day.
      ( Even more so now.)

      After much excitement, one man went in, caught the snake behind the head and walked to release it in the bush.
      It was amazing to watch the snake curl round and round his arm though.
      Wouldn’t want to meet the big one.

      Walk on the beach this morning.
      Emily was exercising at camp before we left .
      She has a sore knee and hip.
      Trying to get it moving.
      Seems much better tonight.
      Slightly overcast after very heavy rain last night.

      We drove into Woopi ( feeling lazy) for hamburgers from the Burger Box.
      Shot to Woolies while they were being made.
      Quick trip.
      Very crowded.
      Everyone shopping on a Sunday.
      Then headed to the beach to eat the burgers and watch the surfers.
      There was a boy and girl about 8 - 10 years old, surfing like pros.
      The Dads were out there helping them along.

      Back to camp.
      Read on the deck.

      Then Emily took the One Wheel to the beach at dusk.
      I was still reading and thought that I won’t be here to watch her soon so Lace and I shot off to the beach to join her.
      Lovely evening.
      Great fun.
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    • Day 57

      Head east from the motorway ....

      September 5, 2020 in Australia ⋅ 🌧 18 °C

      And you run into a beautiful beach.
      Big beaches.
      Tiny beaches.
      All with magnificent green parks and huge shady trees.
      And tiny towns.

      The views are stunning.
      Everywhere.

      Daryl and Martine took us on another road trip today.
      We left at 8.30am and arrived back at 6pm.
      It was a big day.

      We went to Sawtell first, for breakfast.
      Small town, on a beautiful beach and river.
      Rivers are everywhere here.
      Huge, huge fig trees are in the centre of the Main Street.
      There branches reach out across the road on both sides.
      They must be so old.
      And fascinating to see the roots growing down from branches way up high.
      Lovely cafe and sat at a table looking at the trees.

      A tour of the beach and river.
      On the road again.
      Daryl took a road to the east and into a very tiny town, Valla.
      You could live there easily.
      Magnificent beach.
      The dogs went for a huge run across this pristine white sand.

      Back in the car.
      Into Nambucca Heads.
      Love this place.
      Martine buys clothes at this one shop here.
      She is very tall and they always have clothes that suit her.
      So all of us trouped in.
      OMG.
      You could have bought everything in this shop.
      Everything was stunning.
      And that is saying a lot.
      I’m not a shopper.

      Except, I could not pass on these pair of shoes.
      See the photo.
      Love them.

      Shopping done and Martine very pleased, down to the water for another look.
      Martine waded in the water with Scout loving every second.

      On to South West Rocks.
      Beautiful holiday town.
      Caravan park right on the water and backed onto the tiny Main Street.
      Everything you need.
      Spectacular parks leading to the water.
      We waded around the huge rocks on the beach at the river mouth.
      Yep.
      Another river.

      Then Martine, who has to be the biggest water fan I have ever seen, went for a swim.
      At another beach.
      She was up and down in the surf, loving every minute.
      We sat on the grass and watched.

      Oh, except, Daryl washed the sand off his feet at one of those shower things at the beach.
      I went after him to start to rinse mine.
      Now there are 2 buttons on the shower thing.
      The lower button turns on the lower spout for feet washing.
      The top button turns on the water for the shower, doesn’t it?
      Guess which one I pressed?
      Hahaha.
      That was a surprise!
      Emily thought it was hysterical.
      So basically, I was pretty clean all over.

      Across to a cafe for chips and dim sims.
      Then a walk along the river to see a long white bridge with kids jumping from huge heights.
      Up we went.
      Watched the jumpers for a while, then continued on a track through the bush to end up on the beach again.
      Lacey was wonderful.
      Racing ahead with Martine and Scout.
      Turning round and finding us again on the track.
      “ You OK? Good.”
      And fly back to find Martine.
      When the 3 of us with shorter legs than the beach baby Martine emerged from the bush, Martine, Lacey and Scout were all having a wonderful time playing in the water.

      Long walk back to the white bridge again to cross the river.
      Back to the car.
      Off to check out the old jail on the headland.
      Amazing place. Huge oils sandstone walls and buildings.

      And we stood on this headland and watched whales come and glide across the surface before diving back down again.

      Headed home.
      Thunder and lightening and very heavy rain.
      Really heavy.
      Emily looked at me.
      She had left all the windows open on her bus.
      Didn’t bear thinking about.

      Arrived back at Woopi.
      It didn’t seem to have rained much here.
      Got everything closed up and set up before the rain hit us.
      Very lucky.

      Emily has also found a border collie litter that will be ready for homes in 3 weeks time..
      So we were talking about this a bit over chips and dim sims.
      The photos, of course, are lovely.
      She can go to have a look next weekend.
      They will be 6 weeks old then.

      She is a bit excited.
      Would be amazing for her to have a dog here with the beach lifestyle.
      And a guard dog as well.

      Winston, the cat will be a bit miffed to start, but they will work it out.

      Fingers crossed. Xxxx
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    • Day 54

      Spring in Woolgoolga ...

      September 2, 2020 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

      Daryl - “Well, Spring has really sprung!”
      Me - “Yes. Hang on. What do you mean?”
      Daryl - “The wind is fierce in Spring”

      You are telling me!
      Perfectly still overnight and early morning.
      Then the wind comes up about 9am and dies down about 5pm.
      So we are into the walks before the wind comes up.
      Absolute perfection on the beach in the early morning.

      Read, inside Tin Tin, laying on the bed.
      Emily working away.
      Wandered in the wind ... and that was fun.
      Back to reading.

      Didn’t do that much today 😎

      Walking tonight though.
      Perfect night.
      No wind.
      Warm.
      And a full moon over the ocean.
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    • Day 53

      I think it’s Tuesday...

      September 1, 2020 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

      Really have no idea what day it is.
      Really.

      Emily is thrilled as she actually has work to do.
      She has been assigned 4 new clients so she’s head down now.

      Very quiet day today.
      Temp 19 but the wind was there again.
      Early morning walk with Lacey on the beach.
      Then off to Woolworths.
      ( I have just got used to where everything is!)

      Bought Emily a lovely cane basket for her small outdoor table outside the door of Bumper for all the odds and ends.
      Looks lovely.

      Lay in Tin Tin reading or watching van conversion videos.

      A few problems to solve.
      Where do you park 2 huge trucks when you are trying to work on them?
      And they are really, really big.
      Not in the street I don’t think.
      You can get away with an old bus ...
      And, not that there is room for 2 in my driveway, even the smaller one is too wide to fit through the gate.

      So still thinking... ( perhaps wishful thinking ...)

      Beautiful evening walk on the beach.
      The wind had dropped.
      Magnificent rolls of chicken that Emily got from the butcher for dinner.

      Tomorrow is 2nd of September.
      In 2 years tomorrow, I hit 66.5 years old.
      Pension qualifying age.
      One part of me is a bit excited.
      The other bit wants to know how the hell that happened.

      Oh well, happening anyway.

      Phyll would be pleased... trying to put into action my next ‘ Five Year Plan’.

      Haha.

      That’s it.

      Xxx
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    • Day 51

      We might be going ‘Stealth’.

      August 30, 2020 in Australia ⋅ 🌙 16 °C

      So it all started because I wanted to get out of the tent.
      Into a Tin Tent.
      Then I found a Tin Tin.
      Loved Tin Tin.
      ABSOLUTELY loved Tin Tin.

      Then Emily got her van.
      My van now.
      Then she wanted to go bigger.
      I said, “ You need a bus.”
      And she got a bus.

      Now, we are thinking we need new vans.
      But we like doing them up ourselves.
      And they are too expensive for us if they are Motorhomes.
      So.....

      On those windy last few afternoons....
      We have been investigating.

      Going to look at Iveco tomorrow in Coffs.

      This will be interesting.
      Emily might come back to Melbourne in March.
      To park in front of my place.
      In a brand new van.
      All ready to be converted into her home.

      Wow.
      How much fun would that be?

      Me?
      I want the shorter version.
      And in blue.

      Bet it won’t fit under the carport!

      Ha ha.
      Fun.
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    • Day 51

      Nambucca Heads on a spectacular day.

      August 30, 2020 in Australia ⋅ 🌙 16 °C

      Left at 10.30am for the drive, about an hour south of us on the wonderful motorway.
      Pulled into a car park right by the water, near the waterside cafe.
      ( Emily is amazing at just following her nose and getting to the right place.)

      Ordered lunch and went for a walk along the Boardwalk while we waited.
      It was amazing.
      This boardwalk hugs the water all the way around to the magnificent breakwater.
      We wandered along, slowly.
      Stopping to gaze all the time.
      Then turned back and took a side track, up through the bush, up and up and up... to a wonderful view of the water.
      We were puffed though!

      Back to the cafe for an outside table in the sun.
      Fish and chips for me and a hamburger for Emily.
      Then off along the boardwalk again to the end.
      Where the sea meets the river.
      The waves were huge here.
      I took a video but it doesn’t really show how scary it was.
      You would not want to be in that water anywhere near that inlet.
      Yet back further, the water was calm and like glass.
      People were kayaking and swimming ( on the edges )
      Such a difference.

      We marvelled at all the painted rocks along the breakwater.
      It just makes it look so like summer somehow.

      Long walk back through the caravan park.
      This was magnificent.
      Sites backed up to the still water.
      Beautiful trees and lawn.
      And the cabins had to be seen to be believed.
      All with a water view.

      Then we walked out of the caravan park and RIGHT at the entrance was a beautiful hotel ...with water views.
      I know where I would be eating every night!

      Back along the boardwalk to the van and home.

      Nambucca Heads is simply beautiful.
      Lovely day.

      ( The smelly little dog loved it as well.)
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    • Day 51

      I have a situation here....

      August 30, 2020 in Australia ⋅ 🌙 16 °C

      And not for one second am I trying to compare this to your situation down there....
      But ....
      Up at 7am this morning.
      Glorious day.
      Walked Lacey near the Lake.
      Saw Martine and Scout in the distance ....
      Said, “ Look Lacey. There’s Scout.”
      Well that little dog spun her head around so quickly to see a Scout, I thought she has dislocated her neck.
      And off she went!
      So excited.
      They played.
      A lot.
      Martine and I talked as we walked back to the caravan park, along the lovely grassy banks.
      That’s where the situation arose.
      Lacey found something absolutely irresistible to roll in.
      Not once.
      But 4 times.
      Rubbing that little body into the grass for all she was worth.
      Don’t know what it was .... but it stank.

      So I had a very stinky little dog on my hands and we were off to Nambucca Heads for the day.
      ( See next blog. )

      Now, we are back from our day out.
      And it was too cold to give a Lacey a bath.
      Very chilly wind at 4pm and given that it is dark at 5pm, not able to get her dry.

      So I am in a van that is 4 foot 6 inches wide and 10 foot long not counting the driving bits.
      I am in bed with a very stinky dog laying at my feet.
      That’s sort of all right until about 2am when she will try to get under the covers with me.
      ( I have just put off everyone who does not have a dog. Sorry.)

      So, even though I have just got back from a steaming hot shower, tomorrow morning off I’ll go again.
      And all those bed clothes to the laundry as well.
      At $4 a load.
      On the plus side, the forecast is 26 degrees and sunny..

      So there...
      Stinky dog night!

      The other night when we sat outside with a Matteo and Jess and I was FROZEN, I dragged a Lacey, kicking and screaming under the covers early, just to be my hot water bottle., and quietly went off to sleep.

      😷
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    • Day 16

      No .... REALLY RAINS!

      July 26, 2020 in Australia ⋅ 🌧 18 °C

      Sunday morning and the rain is absolutely pouring down.

      Melbourne gets 600ml a year, Daryl tells me.
      Coffs gets 2 metres.

      So Martine says “ I am going to see if the Woolgoolga Creek has broken through the sand into the sea.”
      So we said, “We’re coming.”

      And it poured down.
      Felt like we are under a waterfall.
      And there it was ...
      A massive amount of water flowing from the Woolgoolga Lake ( Creek ) down into the sea.
      That’s the Lake next to our caravan park that is usually shallow at low tide.
      So we really wanted to see it broken through again into the sea.

      We all wore coats etc...
      Saturated in seconds...
      I had to take my glasses off.
      Could not see a thing.
      ( Needed windscreen wipers!)

      Everyone paddled and crossed the raging stream.
      Not me though.
      I was keeping those small dogs out of the raging torrent.
      They would have been swept out to sea.

      So much fun.
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    Woolgoolga Creek

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