After spending a couple of weeks with our family in the Riverland it was time for us to move on with our first stop being Meningie. Though we were there for an overnight stay it still gave us the opportunity to meander through the town & along the lake. We have been hearing on the radio about how low the lake is but until we actually saw it for ourselves it was hard to comprehend how much it has actually deteriorated. We have to wonder where our government’s priority really is; it seems to be with assisting other countries who have experienced a natural disaster, rather than assisting our own people who are experiencing the same phenomenal. Leaving Meningie behind us we continued on to 42 Mile Crossing Campground in the Coorong Conservation Park. The 3km road into the campground was a little bumpy but what was at the end was worth it. In the evening saw us walking for ½ hour along a track to the beach for our usual sunset ritual. We enjoy watching the sun set.
At Robe we stayed 3 nights which gave me the opportunity to catch up on the week’s washing & general domestic duties. It’s amazing how quickly it mounts up when you’re on the road. After a short time in Mt Gambier where we had morning tea at the Blue Lake (which was really bright blue), we made a quick visit to several other places of interest before we continued on to our next stay at Piccaninnie Ponds. Piccaninnie Ponds is well known for the wonderful treasures below the surface of the ponds especially amongst the professional divers. To be able to view the treasures it is necessary to have appropriate cave diving licence, but anyone can snorkel in the ponds. It is necessary however to book & there are strict guidelines by the Conservation Park managers. The fresh water overflow from the ponds flows out to sea and a lovely walk follows its course. At another point along the beach there is another interesting phenomenon; about halfway between high and low water is a series of small geysers, fresh water discharging into the sea. An evening walk up to the beach cliff was mandatory for our usual sunset.
Pritchard’s Conservation Park was another quiet spot along the Little Glenelg River taken in for another two nights stay. Once we had settled in, the remainder of the day was time for Colin to throw a line in to test his chances of catching any fish. What’s frustrating is when you can see the fish swimming around your line & no bites.
The City of Portland is a major Victorian shipping port not far from where we chose to stay at Narrawong. The scenic drives around the area were quite picturesque. One place of interest at Cape Bridgewater was the Petrified Forest which is thought to have developed when a Moonah forest was smothered by a large sand dune, creating unusual sandstone formations around the decaying tree trunks. Geologists have since debunked this theory preferring instead, the idea of calcification of water flows through cracks in the strata. Cape Bridgewater itself was once a volcanic island and became linked to the mainland as a sand spit calcified and turned to limestone.
Our next stop was at Port Campbell along the Great Ocean Road. There are numerous tourist sites which are always quite full with mainly overseas visitors. Our few days at Pt Campbell were full-on; so many places to see & so little time to do it in. No sooner had we settled into our site we were off to The Otway Fly, a 600 metre long 25 metre high elevated tree top walk ascending at a gentle grade through a magnificent stand of cool temperate rainforest featuring Myrtle Beech, Blackwood & Mountain Ash. For those who like a bit more thrill seeking there is a 45 metre high spiral staircase lookout in the centre of the walk which emerges amongst the crowns of the giants of the forest. At one point there is a springboard cantilever which bounces gently high over Young’s Creek. Though I don’t like heights, I will always attempt these feats. It’s always interesting to visit these attractions in each state. Each has been different & unique in its own way. This one has a dinosaur trail for the kids & dinosaur enthusiasts.
The main tourist attraction around this area is of course the 12 Apostles. Tourists from near & a-far travel here to watch the sunset over the Apostles. This was one of those places where it pays to have some height on your side. Everyone is muscling in close to the fence to find just the right spot to get their special photo. I ended up climbing up onto the concrete wall & hanging on the wire fence just to get that ‘once in a life-time’ sunset in the sea mist around the ancient edifices.
When it came time to move on again, the weather map showed that it was still going to be quite windy along the Great Ocean Road, so Col decided to travel inland, but unfortunately, the wind was there waiting for us East of Colac. The next couple of hours, we were not only battling the windy conditions but also the trucks coming in the opposite direction. With the two forces hitting us, at times we would lose our towing mirrors, not very pleasant at all. Finally we arrived at our destination, Werribee South CP & would you believe it, it was windy there too!
Werribee is a satellite township East of Melbourne on the Geelong Highway. Werribee South is a popular fishing, boating and jet-ski area on the shores of Port Phillip Bay. Unfortunately, it is also popular with the local hoons often to the early hours of the morning.
We have been here since 1st March & most of this time we has been spent pursuing our next home & tow vehicle as well as catching up with Josh, Kendehl &baby Arthur who will turn 1 this Easter.
Driving around Melbourne is a chore, one day visiting businesses in the Eastern suburbs, we clocked up over 200Km, then 2 hours to get home, busy all the way. A visit to the Caravan Show at Caulfield was sensibly done by train. At $3.40 each, all day, this is the sensible way to travel to the city.
To view the photos that go with this narrative, visit our BlogSpot and click on the updated Album 1.
http://picasaweb.google.com.au/108879761974384702036/Album1?authkey=Gv1sRgCJDw2N2I4LygyAE&feat=directlink
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