Camping..... in the middle of winter!!!

Now coming from the Northern Hemisphere I learnt from an early age how to keep warm in wintery conditions, generally by staying inside rugged up by a warm radiator sipping hot chocolate and eating comfort food. Never had I ever camped out in it!

It turned out to be a wonderful adventure and such a beautiful area to visit, due to the time of year there was hardly anyone else around a bonus which meant we saw more of the wildlife...

As soon as the decision to go was made Rick and Deb set too and made a couple of brilliant 'kitchens' for each of the vehicles. Debs opened up and ours slid out, both working from the back of the vehicles a very neat way of carrying most of our food etc., There was a flurry of vehicle maintenance, food preparing, map and thermal gear purchasing and  in a blink of an eye we were off to the snow fields. The plan being to meet Kay and Mick there the next evening. They are experienced campers who had been there before at this time of year and so hopefully knew what they were doing. Fred was left at home with Uncle Pete and his two dogs.

Very early Saturday morning with our vehicles packed to the gunnels Deb, Robert, Rick and I set off for Rushworth in Victoria, wanting to spend a night there to break the journey up a bit.

With the 'help' of our GPS systems both giving us different advice... mainly Turn Around! and the use of a map we eventually found a quite spot in a glade to camp. A tarp was strung between our two vehicles for sleeping under and we set up our first camp.

In no time at all and with night falling we'd built the fire, got some tucker on the go, stretchers, swags, sleeping gear at the ready and (for some of us) hot water bottles filled.

I think the local wildlife were relieved we managed to resist the urge to sing Kumbaya around the campfire. It was magical and so very peaceful.

We awoke to a stunning misty morning and the beautiful eerie sound of the Currawong call. It was a little on the chilly side... Ricks swag was covered in ice!

After a quick brekkie and vehicles reloaded off we headed into Rushworth, via the cemetery, which told many tales of the hardships endured by the people who lived here. Established in 1853, Rushworth was a gold mining town and by all accounts a very tough place to live then.

Onwards then to the Blue Mountains, wanting to arrive in enough daylight to set up camp, this time with the luxury of a tent! We headed off to Tabacco Flats, which according to my map was bush camping with no facilities. Eventually after driving through some beautiful countryside along plenty of unsealed roads we found the 4wd track we needed only to discover it was closed. With nowhere to turn around we headed through the open gate and had to go quite a way down the sticky steep muddy track to find a place to turn. That got the heart rates going and luckily we made it back to Sheepyard Flat, got ourselves sorted just before nightfall.

The beautiful soothing Howqua river right next to where we put the tents

Our village of tents.... some a lot more basic than others

There is nothing like campfire cooking, everything tastes delicious.

There were so many best parts to the trip, enough to outweigh any discomforts and challenges of camping. We were on a mission for Deb to see snow but sadly we only caught glimpses of the snow topped Alpine Village of Mount Buller which we discovered had been man-made! We had a couple of really cold nights, a wee bit of drizzle and mainly cold but sunny days. 

We visited old huts, which offered protection from the elements for hikers, graziers and anyone needing shelter. Found some amazing ice formations, had a day of exhilarating four wheel driving, hats off to the chaps for getting us back to camp safely and made friends with the local bird life. 

There is so much to tell best perhaps to let the photo's tell some of the story......

Australian Tree Ferns very happy in the cold and damp

On top of the world above the clouds

And then the sun came out

One of the four wheel drive tracks. No worries for any of the vehicles or their drivers Dora managed it all very elegently.

Some fungis

The Howqua river along the track to Frys Hut

The hut at the top of the Bluff

Fry's Hut, named after the chap who built and lived in it.

Tomahawk Hut, high in the misty mountains

A young Kookaburra 

And his mates, keen for an easy feed...

The male King Parrot

And his Mrs

Enjoying morning smoko with us and our dehydrated apples

Our final camp site beside the great Murray River at Echuca. 

It was amazing and but oh so good to get home to a hot shower and a real bed.

The 2015 Australian Kelpie Muster

This is one of the little woofers the celebration was all about. Casterton is the home of the Kelpie a very special breed of Aussie sheep dog originally from a couple of Scottish Border Collies.

The 1 hour and a half journey across the border into Victoria to visit the town of Casterton was really worth the effort. Bearing in mind 'they' are half an hour ahead of us time wise we needed to make a really early start to be able to catch the Poets Breakfast.

Poets corner

Bush poetry has always been a part of the Aussie culture since settlers first started to arrive in the new land. It is rhymed poetry about Australia, Australians or the Aussie way of life and more often than not side splitting funny. Having only seen the best on video and read some of the poems I really wanted to experience it first hand and today was the day. We were not disappointed and got there in time to hear at least four poems being recited two of which had us all in tears roaring with laughter. A great way to start a dull winters day.

Sleepy Casterton, main street closed to traffic, towns folk dashing here there and every where, Kelpies and their excited owners starting to arrive......

By the time the poetry had finished the street was set up, one part for the fun events the other for the Kelpie Triathlon and other more 'serious' skill testing events. We found our places just in time for the Kelpie Country Street Parade. It seemed like every man, woman, child and their dogs took part.

The Programme promised a full day of activities

We were a little confused and concerned as to why the children were wearing beards all was made clear when they got closer.... they were all sheep! Must remember to have our eyes tested soon....

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Every group was represented, the Gardening one was one of my favourites, all flowers were locally grown!

A pack of the all important competing Kelpies,... The one on this chaps shoulders was from Working Dog Rescue and, much to our amusement, 'sung ' all the way through the procession

The Novelty Events offered prizes for the best 6 legs; 11 Legged Race; Sack Race and many more events like

The Keplie Idol which was made funnier when the dogs realised they were being made to roll over where the horses had not long been through! It was a hard job getting the to stop rolling over then....

They were all very clever and a credit to their trainers.

The working skills were put to test with Indian Runner ducks which apparently is how the dogs train in real life before being let loose on the sheep.

No one thought to train the ducks though they were having none of it so this Kelpie decided to show them how it was done.

Clancy was very grey of muzzle and so quiet and calm with the ducks, almost willing them through the obstacle course. 

There was a Stockmans Trial this chap worked so smoothly with horse and dog, the sheep were through the various obstacles and back in the pen in no time. Very impressive.

Throughout the day the Kelpie Triathlon was taking place starting with a 50 m dash, then the wall climb. The record being an incredible 2.91 meters! Then onto the hill climb which was the funniest of all. You may have spotted the hill with the Casterton name on it at the back of the street photo. For those who know Denne Hill it's a wee bit like the steep side of that before the fire break was put through it. The dogs at the bottom of the hill couldn't see their owners at the very top of the hill but could hear them. Some dogs got very confused and headed off in the opposite direction especially when the owner at the top got a tad hysterical with the arm waving and shouting. Dog was possible a little embarrassed! Some of the dogs incredibly sprinted up the hill a few in less than half a minute.

Such a peaceful magical setting.

A pile up of happy Kelpies having had a grand day out

There must have been dogs of all makes in their hundreds most very polite, happy and waggy, all really well behaved we only found one grumpy one. There were also owners of all back grounds, very similar to their dogs without the wags.... it was a perfect place to people and dog watch.

All the shops were open for business the kerb sides were littered with trestle tables offering all manner of home made items.  

I never cease to be surprised and slightly humbled by the amount of talented people there are around.

There were evening meals being offered at the club house followed by a Country Dance for those who still had the energy.... It really was a brilliant day out and according to the report in the paper at least 10,000 other people agreed with us!

Its official Winter has arrived

Winter here started like clockwork, 1st June and we awoke to a really frosty morning. Proper frost too which crunched under foot and looked like a coating of icing sugar. It was beautiful.

And even nicer for us our house was fairly warm even though the fire had burnt out quite a few hours before. Even on the really cold days the house seems to stay between 13 and 17c.

Hanging out the washing is a real pleasure on these beautiful days.You can imagine how fresh the washing smells by the end of the day but here it's not stiff when you get it in off the line.

The plants still amaze me, the courgettes or zucchinis, depending on which side of the plant you're on, didn't like it very much and have had a fit of the vapours and finally given up the ghost. But the narcissi (the ones Rick hasn't beheaded with the lawn mower or slasher) are just coming into flower. Our lovely Big Red pelargonium is still going strong with new flowers on the way and there is tons of new veggies coming up in the patch. Incredible 

We have a gorgeous new orange grevillea called Loopy Lou in flower and we only planted it a month ago. It's only a junior but already attracting the honeyeaters and other native birds.

The start of winter was remarked upon in the local paper with the headlines in the declaring:

'The first week of winter in Naracoorte has tested the mettle of locals, with morning temperatures dipping below freezing and causing heavy frosts across the district'

So there you have it our mettle has been tested and I think we weren't found wanting!

It is a tad on the chilly side and when the wind blows from the south it really isn't a good time to be in the carport stripping..... doors that is.

And then last night we had the most beautiful golden full moon, sadly the photo doesn't do it justice.

The Penola Arts Festival

The Penola Show was yet again a brilliant show case of the many talented local people of all ages, a real celebration all designed it seemed to make you smile. It seemed very mean to not support them! Deb and I set off early on a very chilly but sunny Sunday morning our first port of call to be the market only to find they were still setting up. So we popped into one of the gorgeous cafes there for a delicious cup of coffee and homemade cakes... tough I know but someone had to do it.... delish. As tradition goes at this time of year in Penola we passed many beautifully bombed objects along the way... these are a few and we found some more awaiting us in the cafe...

  

Wall art with a difference

And the beautifully bombed cafe, almost anything not moving seemed to be bombed it was so jolly and colourful

We did eventually make it to the market to be tempted by lots and lots of delicious local produce and beautifully handmade items. And for the kids some huge games to play with, everyone was smiling and having fun.

From there we visited Petticoat Lane

Unassumingly tucked in the back streets it is one of the oldest parts of Penola, most of the properties there are now owned by the National Trust.

 This dear old Chrysler (I only know that cos of the badge on the radiator) was parked outside of the very first homestead to be built there. Known as Sharam's Cottage it was built in 1850 by Christopher Sharam who became quite famous for his boot and shoe making skills.

Deb not realising she was in shot,modelling her beautiful hand spun totally home made alpaca jacket, such talented lady.

Before I digress anymore the next lot of photos are of the inside of the two cottages. As was the tradition way back then one cottage was for the food  and the other for living in, in case of a fire.

The kitchen where the family of 17 had there meals

Timber wall separating the larder and preparation area from the cooking area

The second cottage was where the family slept and the all important parlour room for entertaining  visitors, children were banned from this room.

The fire place in the parlour was never used for a warming fire! Instead they used to keep the butter there so the cooling breeze would keep the butter from going off.

Whats left of the various wall papers, including a layer of newspaper and a layer of fabric. And the pictures of the original owners

The cot in which 15 babies spent their first few months. All made it into childhood but sadly three of them died before reaching adulthood.

The beautiful wood original shingle roof

A huge amount of energy and work went into the buildings with all the timbers being hand felled local trees and all the shingles for the roofs hand cut. The walls were filled with a wattle and daub mix to keep out the drafts. Everything then would have been handmade from the furniture to the rugs and blankets.

The National Trust have made an inspiring organic herb and veggie garden in the backyard and offer the produce for sale in an honesty box. They also provide scissors and bags so you can help yourself to the herbs. The resident cat slowly wandered over to say G'day, and have it's ears tickled. far to hard to resist.

After visiting the little shops down there, local blacksmith included we decided to wend our way towards home. Via one of the winerys... to view the art there..... why else!

They were holding a sculpture competition and this little fella made out of old vines got my vote.

And then onto a very old shearing shed, which for some reason I have no photos of, where there was an amazing display of eccentric tea cosys and sculptures of believe it or not sheeps poo!! The items were for sale and the sheeps poo pyramid was up for $45.... the mind boggles....

Tank Tales and Fan Tales.......

Have I mentioned before that the above ground tank is struggling to fill? It was a conundrum which had us beat for a while. Rick, not one to be beaten, eventually worked it out. The inlet pipe, sticking up just above the tank is actually about 2.5 cm (or 1" in old currency) above the gutter. So if left the tank will never fill and the carport gutter never empty. Meanwhile our underground tank was actually full and more rain was promised. Rick had a brain wave and decided to pump the water from the underground tank to the above ground one. Brilliant move as it turns out as we no longer have to prime the pump everyday.

And then we noticed wet patches appearing around the sides of the tank! A couple of emails to the manufacturers later and it was explained that the tanks are fully tested before they are sent out and this can sometimes happen when the tank is filled too quickly. We've no idea yet if these damp patches will compromise (rust) the steel reinforced mesh inside the tank walls. That's another conversation for another day...

The Doors

Have been a wee bit of a challenge but I think I may just be starting to get the hang of stripping them. Though it seems to take me a very long time I think the effort was worth it.

The very first door finished and hung... ok so it doesn't yet have any furnishings BUT this is our very first door and Rick did a splendid job with the architrave.

Only another 8 left to do!

Deb has been a total star as usual and in between all the things she does (very busy lady) has helped Rick finish off his shed. It looks like it has been there all the time. Just needs to have the gutters connected to the fire fighting water tank and a floor of some kind done and it will be up and running.

And then I spotted it was already being tried out for size by Dora and Landy

The plan, I'm told, is for the big shed to be cleared ready for carpentry work to begin in ernest. 

Spinning Yarn

I've been very slowly working my way through a bottomless bag of wool (it seems never ending) and found I had some very short bits of staple. Deb suggested I used the Spinning Groups Drum Carder and blended some of the longer staples in with the short.

It was a brilliant idea which has worked very well BUT I managed to injure myself in the process and wasn't able to walk properly for about a week. I know the mind boggles doesn't it. 

The drum carder needs to be clamped to a table to hold it steady and the only old table I had was very low. Rather than sit on the floor I used a very low stool and must have lent at an odd angle to work the machine, whilst holding the table steady with my legs. Oh dear... I spent the week not moving very far and feeling quite sorry for myself.

Rick to the rescue. Rick was brilliant and made me a table out of bits of wood left over from the house build. What an absolute star. It's fantastic and works a treat AND I have room to do other crafty things, I am a very lucky girl.

The Weather

It's been raining and thankfully our tanks have been slowly filling up...... very exciting.

We have had a couple of really cool mornings but once you start to move around and get a hot drink inside you and of course rug up it is very comfortable here.  It seems the louvre sections of the roof are working really well. When the sun does shine it comes well into the room. We have noticed on the days when the floors have been warmed up in this way we don't have a need to light the fire in the evening. The heat sink works.

And with the cool mornings anything which can seasonally drop a leaf has and we made this discovery in one of the trees.

Not quite sure whose nest it was maybe one of the wagtails, which are also known as fantails here.

Very different from the Willie Wagtails in the UK. These little fellas are much bigger and really dance they way around as they chase the bugs. The tail is fanned out and waved about very enthusiastically, they hardly pause for breath. The other day we noticed one dancing on the outside shower wall carefully picking off the bugs and spiders as he went.

The Veg Patch

I'm still sorting out the veggie patch, determined to grow as much as I possibly can this season. There are still 5 butternut squash (pumpkin for those this side of the planet) on the vine and they are ripening albeit slowly.

The big bed now has brussels sprouts, carrots, beetroot, sweetpeas, turnips, broadbeans, peas and English Spinach. The parsnips have still to be sown. There is garlic in abundance and I've got a bag of Desiree potatoes ready for chitting and then planting.  It is very exciting.

And then there is Tess, who I think I have introduced before. We think she perhaps gets a bit lonely with her family out at work and school all day. She she takes herself off and visits the neighbours for a bit of fuss and attention.

Last night we got a text from her boss asking if we'd seen her. She had paid a visit but had disappeared off (I thought home) about an hour earlier. She had missed home completely and trotted off to visit someone else. I thought I'd best check she wasn't here so had a quick look outside to find her curled up by the front door! 

A real mixture of news

On the water front

I think I may have mentioned before just how laid back and trusting people are here, even so we are both still quite surprised some three months after the plumbers have fixed up the house and there is still no sign of a bill!  Not complaining mind just saying.  However not all is rosy on the water front and it has been a wee bit of a learning curve working out what works best with the system. We are very lucky to have a hot water system which has been programmed to deliver different temperature water to the ablution areas and the domestic areas. In the laundry and kitchen the water is set to reach 70c and the bathrooms it gets to 50c..... excellent no chance of scalding yourself in the shower then. And we can read what the temperature of the water is in the hot water service.... fantastic and very handy as it turns out. Cloudy days mean the roof mounted solar water heater is not heating the water so we have to turn on the hot water tank heater... or suffer a cold shower!

Since the second water tank was installed and connected to the gutters the pump looses power and has to be primed. It's no joke if you are all soaped up in the middle of a shower, the neighbours have been treated more than once to Rick dashing out in my dressing gown (a very fetching lilac and because he couldn't find his own) to prime the pump! Many discussions with the plumbers and a few sleepless nights the thought is this will improve once the second water tank fills up.

Unfortunately it seems very reluctant to fill up even though we have had rain, even one day of non stop rain!! Rick has tried all sorts of things and yesterday flushed the pipes through and hopefully flushed out any blockage which may have been there. Fingers crossed, we now need a decent down pour to test it out. 

The back door saga

You may well remember the months we waited in excited anticipation of the external doors arriving. Which they eventually did only for us to discover the wrong back door had been supplied. Finally the correct door arrived, was duly fitted and coated with special UV resistant sealant. A month or so later Rick fitted new seals to the frames (these were originally supplied to short), it was only then I realised I could still see daylight around the door. Hmmm... correct me if I'm wrong but surely a fire door should actually fit the frame.....

On a closer inspection I realised the door had taken on a banana shape, oh dear. I rang the company who supplied the door and then the local hardware store we got it from and eventually a meeting was agreed for the company rep to pay a visit and inspect the offending door. Which they did yesterday and it seems we are allowed a 3 mm gap but the gap around our door was 7 mm. 15 minutes of discussion later and they have agreed to supply a new one free of charge.

Mice!

We have been warned there may well be a plague of mice this year, something to do with the very long dry season. We know they had taken up lodgings in the shed but I was still very surprised to find evidence of the wee furry critters in the kitchen. 

They had been feasting on our cherry tomatoes and nibbled on a clove of our home grown garlic, obviously on a Mediterranean diet! And left evidence of their wanderings on our cooker... as much as I don't mind them... in the garden... I do object to living with them under the same roof.  This was war and they needed to be evicted... fast.  

I trundled, slightly sleepy, into the kitchen the other morning to find a couple of them partying, they really made me jump, they move so fast! Heading for their nearest exit which happened to be the gap between the window frame and inside wall.... you know where the sill will eventually be.  Without further ado, at Ricks request, I headed into town, sample in hand to find 2 two meter lengths of Meranti sill.

YEAY Mouse escape route headed off and we have the first of many smart new sills

Meranti wood comes in many different colours and by chance this piece (the only sill in stock) just happens to match the cupboard doors. How lucky is that!

The Laundry

Rick has now installed the sink and cupboard in the laundry. We have now two working sinks, which is looking very smart and is definitely worth a celebration.

The view from the loo!

The local carpenter who slabbed our Hill Gum supplied this very smart, and very heavy, block of beautiful Red Gum for the sink for our guest loo. Unfortunately you can't see from the photo the beautiful grain of this wood. I have yet to seal it which will hopefully enhance the amazing colour of this wood. 

A wonderful bonus is the lump of wood cut for the sink to be fitted, which I have now got to feed with Tung Oil ready for using as a... well not sure what yet. Maybe just a thing of beauty to be admired.

In between all these wonderful happenings I've been busy with the spinning wheel. One of the joys of a really rainy day is you can't really work outside. I know being from the Northern Hemisphere I am quite used to working outside in all sorts of inclement weather but here things are different. It's such a great excuse to do some crafty things like spinning. The wheel was obviously in shock from this sudden activity and threw off a nut and bolt which was holding the spool in place! 

And just before the rains arrived we (I use the term loosely here) fitted the all the metal we have to the shed walls and roof. Deb's timing was perfect arriving as Rick started work on the shed and the family building skills once again came to the fore, what a team... I quietly went to put the kettle on for them.

ANZAC Day 2015

April 25th this year was the 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli landings. This year the focus seemed to be more on individual peoples stories which made the people who sacrificed their lives, and not just on the battle field, some how so real and close. Their stories and the horrors of war were shared on the television, radio and local papers and at every commemoration ceremony local peoples stores were read out during each service.

Here, in our household it was a bit of a shock when the alarm erupted into life at 4 am, it was still dark and quite cold, we breakfasted and rugged up and set off into a very misty cold morning to meet with Deb and walk down to the town square.  When we arrived the statue was well lit, officials,choirs and a few chairs were in place for ex-servicemen and dignitaries. There were a few towns folk around and surprisingly quite a few youngsters with their families. We had a chance to reflect in the stillness of pre-dawn on what it must have felt like for those young diggers, what would they have been feeling 100 years ago. Something which I guess unless you have had personal experience of war is impossible to imagine.

Very slowly people of all ages started to arrive in the town square. A dozen members of the Third Light Horse Regiment Naracoorte Troop quietly rode their horses in accompanied by three nurses in the ANZAC nurses uniform, which all added to the atmosphere.

The narrator, a lady from the RSL (Returned Services League) had a beautiful voice and gently guided us all through the service. Local youngsters from all the schools sang, all the services groups were represented and laid wreaths, flowers and poppies. And for some reason lost in time these early morning services are always accompanied by a lone piper, who also succeeded in making the horses a wee bit nervous. As he started his lament on the pipes as one all the horses ears turned to where the noise was coming from.... no doubt wondering what wailing manner of beastie was in pain behind them.

With perfect timing the dawn started to break with the bugler playing the last post, very emotional moment for everyone. Slowly all the stories were told, hymns sung, prayers read, wreaths laid and respects paid. The Diggers and families lined up with the Horsemen and a couple of privately owned army vehicles and walked once around the town square to one of the local hotels.

In exchange for a gold coin donation the hotel was offering breakfast and, much to my surprise, milk and Bundaburg rum. Once the ex servicemen were in out of the cold, lots of people bundled in for breakfast and a drink.  We didn't stop for brekkie but also didn't want to pass up the chance to try a 'Bundy and milk', or in my case just the Bundy. Well it certainly brings a rosy glow to the cheeks!