This is our trip with friends Jeannie & David.
We left home and the rain started and as we drove through Chain of Ponds we had fog through the hills but by the time we got to Murray Bridge the sun was shining.
We stopped at Sherlock for mornings tea and headed for Pinnaroo. The rain has stopped and the wind had picked up but not a head wind. We stopped at Pinnaroo for lunch at a roadside park and got fuel then headed off again. Crossed the border into Victoria and onto Ouyen for coffee and to stretch our legs. We arrived at Sea Lake camping area around 4.30pm and the weather was looking very cloudy, had a quick drive around the camping area, only one other van here, so decided to stay the night. We set up quickly as we didn't unhook and sat outside with a drink before tea, but soon it was starting to rain so we packed up the chairs and went inside.
Next morning we were on the road again at about 9 am and our next stop was Castlemaine where we had a look around the Restorers' Barn, an interesting shop we have been to before. We had a coffee in the town, got fuel and headed on to Maldon and to Mt Tarangower for a free camp just out of the town and a lovely bush setting, had a campfire and then it rained!
Next morning we woke to a lovely clear sky, fed the local magpies and headed off to Rawson where we would be meeting Jeannie & David tomorrow.
We drove on and our Navman took us through Dibcaster and Ringwood, busy roads and raining again. We stopped at a Service Centre near Officer and rang Rawson CP to see if we could get a site a night earlier than we had previously booked. They said they would leave a map for us on our sites 9 and 10. The weather was getting colder now. We stopped at Trafalgar Bakery, through a lovely little town called Erica, then onto Rawson. The CP was in a forest of stringy barks, it was very dark and damp, so we didn't unhook and got inside the van to keep warm and dry and tomorrow we will sort things out when we have more time and hopefully no rain.
27th April 2015
Had a good sleep. Jeannie sent message to say they would be late. We got the van site sorted and decided to have a drive around the area and had lunch at Walhalla, a pretty little town not far away. Jeannie & David arrived about 4 pm. After they were organised we lit a campfire in the camp kitchen and caught up on all the latest news.
Next day we all drove in our car to Thompson Dam where we did a short walk in the beechwood forest, very pretty area. Had another campfire at night.
28th April
We drove to Walhall for the train trip, beautiful scenery along the way and had lunch at the Walhalla Pub. We then drove around and found the Cricket Ground after a bit of tracking around on 4WD tracks, then back to Rawson and another campfire.
Next day we just all sat around, catching up again and enjoying each others company and of course a campfire.
1st May 2015
We left Rawson CP after a lovely time there, but our next destination was Lakes Entrance and decided to stay at the Lake Tyers CP just out of Lakes Entrance.
After a good night's sleep we drove in David's car to Lakes Entrance and had a good look around, took some photos, and then onto Metung for lunch at the Hotel. Metung is a lovely beachside town with some nice apartments on the waterfront.
Next day we left Lake Tyers and stopped at Nowa Nowa to look at the sculptures in the park, a bit disappointing but a nice drive anyway, then drove on through Bruthen and a forest of stringy bark and wattles. We were on the Great Alpine Road and stopped for lunch, then on to Little River and Swifts Creek, and Omeo Caravan Park. We had a stop here at the Bakery for coffee before setting up at the caravan park. A very friendly welcome at the CP, bought a bag of firewood for $10 delivered to our van, then got ourselves set up, campfire lit and drinks before tea.
Monday was a lovely sunny day so we had a look around the Museum in Omeo, then onto Benamba and the lake, and Hininje Bridge. Beautiful scenic drive.
Tuesday we packed up again and headed to Mt Hotham on the Great Alpine Road. The weather started out cold and cloudy and as we got up higher the fog increased to the point that we could hardly see anything in front. We couldn't stop anywhere so we had to keep going and down into Bright. Disappointing that we couldn't see anything on this drive, but luckily we both made it safely into Bright where we had lunch then on to Eldorado for the boys to see the Dredge. We had a good look around here, David & Ron would have stayed there forever, but Jeannie & I were not so interested, so we all agreed we would head onto Wangaratta and found a CP which looked very nice so we booked in at the Painters Island CP.
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| Painters Island Caravan Park |
We were particularly impressed by this caravan park and the friendly staff were happy for our caravan to stay hooked up as we were only staying 1 night and this would be our last night with our friends. Of course the first thing Jeannie and I did was to inspect the Amenities, and to our delight they were exceptionally clean and modern and even had fresh flowers on the hand basins. This sounds like we have an obsession, but to be honest, some of the Amenities on this trip have left a bit to be desired, so it was great to find facilities as good as these, especially for Jeannie as their van does not have shower/toilet and they were staying 3 extra nights here at Wangaratta.
We decided to have an "End of Trip" night out and after making ourselves look respectable, set off for the Pinsent Hotel. We had a great meal and we all agreed we had had a great trip and we're starting to think about another one.
Wednesday 6th May 2015
We said our goodbyes and headed for home, which would probably take 2 days, while Jeannie and David had their day planned including catching up with friends and a game of golf.
Our first stop was at Shepparton where I did some Aldi shopping, as I wanted to get some chocolate for the grandchildren and a few other goodies that I can't get in Adelaide supermarkets.
We then headed to Nyah for our overnight stop.
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| Nyah campsite at the Race Course |
Thursday 7th May 2015
After a good overnight stop, with no traffic noise, just a horse or two going around the track nearby. We stopped at Robinvale for a look around the town which we have not done before, although we have stayed in the caravan park, but it was good to see the town.
We headed for our overnight stop at Lake Cullulleraine, Lock 9 on the River Murray, another area that we have stayed in before, so we knew what to expect.
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| Lock 9 |
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| View from our van |
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| Beautiful views |
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| Ron soon got the "choofer" going This was the last night of our trip and we have had such a good time with our friends, but all good things must come to an end. |
We booked in to the Lake Tyers Caravan Park and found our sites. 
