BUT…

If you don’t have the time to soak then a plunge can be very full and leave you dripping. Ü

What can you see in 5 days?  Oh, do sit back and let me tell you… 

Day 1-A short 11.5 hour drive from Canberra you can arrive in the Adelaide Hills.

Day 2- If you started driving through the Barossa Valley at 6:00am when the sun is peeking over the hills. If you don’t drink wine and are only looking at the beauty of the area- knowing your husband would love to sample... if only he were there. In that day you could drive through the entire Barossa Valley region, through the Adelaide Hills region, climb to the top of the Giant Rocking Horse, tour the Melba Chocolate Factory, explore the streets of the VERY cute town of Hahndorf, go into a few cellar doors just to see how pretty they are, go to the top of Mt. Lofty, shop at the Beerenberg Strawberry Farm (it’s too early for pick your own), do a few walks around the Chain of Ponds, a walk at Mt. Crawford and the highlight of our day… the Whispering Wall. You could end the evening driving into Port Adelaide to see where you need to be the next morning , then go and get a hotel room at the Adelaide Inn in the CBD and walk along the street to find some dinner. Did you know you could do all that in one day?

Oh that’s nothing… just wait!

Day 3- wake up and enjoy a big breakfast and a short drive back to Port Adelaide where you wait for the tall sailing ship carrying your son to arrive. Once he docks you can have a tour of the ship and watch as they get it ready and everyone leaves. Once you have your son and all his gear you can hop into the car and drive back into Adleaide. You can go to the Art Gallery of SA, Central Market, Rundle Mall, take some pictures of amazing churches and then …. because that is not enough to do in one day…. drive to Geelong to check out the crowded beach, keep going  and stop at the Rose Cottage, a delightful tea room and gardens and enjoy a Devonshire tea. Hop back in the car and go the 10 minutes until you reach Victor Harbor where you ride on the horse drawn trolley to Granite Island, and walk back to town.  Do a little shopping in the cute town, noting that you’d like to come back here to spend a relaxing week on the beach. Grab some dinner and back into the car you go… to Goolwar where you cross the bridge and drive on Hindmarsh Island to see the Murray Mouth, scoring a new animal crossing road sign along the way. Keep driving along the lake and go on the ferry at Wellington. Drive for another bit and grab a room in the small town of Meningie for the night.

Day 4- wake up and hop in the car bright and early. Drive down to Kingston to get that all important picture of the giant lobster! Of course, that is high on our list today! Heading down the Princess Highway you can pull off at Beach Port, another very cute town with an amazing scenic drive! Don’t forget to duck into the Pool of Siloam which is 7X’s saltier then the sea, for a quick float. If it is early in the spring and early in the morning it just might be a VERY quick float! Back in the car, and in dry clothes, you would want to keep going so you could stop at Tantanoola Caves for lunch and a hike to the quarry. (yep, it’s just lunch time) Back in the car and a hour so and you are at the information center in Mt. Gambier. Here you would be delighted at the Cave Gardens and the Umpherston Sinkhole! A quick drive takes you up the hill and you find yourself at the Blue Lake. It is starting to change color and you are blessed to be able to see the transformation in progress. While you are up there you might as well do a few walks: Centenary Tower, The Valley Lake, Wildlife Park and boardwalk, Leg of Mutton Lake. At this time you would have to, regretfully, give up the idea of a snorkel at Piccaninnie & Ewans Ponds- deciding a trip back with darling husband would be in order when you can obtain the permits and gear required. So, since you are not going south… you hop back in your car for a quick dash—up north to BoarderTown, racing to make it before dark. You make it with time to spare and are able to find that colony of white Kangaroos that you read about, the only reason for the mad dash up north. You get a special treat of seeing white joeys and their moms (some of which are brown)! Once that excitement is pass and the sun is setting, you would get back into the car and head east and south stopping for the night at the town of Horsham.

Day 5- wake up – bright and early and start the drive into Grampains National Park. Stopping at literally every sign you see along the way & doing the hikes that are marked. Honeycomb falls was a nice walk although there was no water ( a theme for us here). Before you feed your kids breakfast (well, lunch because it takes that long) you can hike at Honeycomb falls, MacKenzie falls, Reed lookout & the balconies, see Lake Wartook, and do the amazing walks from Wonderland carpark! (from the Grand Canyon up to the Pinnacle). A few minutes down the road and you reach the town of Halls Gap. After a trip to the National Park & cultural center you stop at the tiny,but oh so cute, little village... where much to your children’s relief you buy them a large lunch and top it off with a large ice cream from the corner parlor. All that done and assured by the workers at the national park that there is nothing else spectacular to see- you jot down the names of a few places to stay in town as you drive out- noting that you would really like to come back for a week of bike riding and leisurely walks in this area. Back in that car you drive east and then north ending the evening up in your own bed back home in Canberra.

Who knew you could do all of that in just 5 short days?  I’ll see you in a few days after I get some rest. (LOL) Devon will be posting about his time at sea soon too.

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We stayed at Devon Cottage and it was delightful! The weather couldn’t have been better and we enjoyed a number of strolls through the area. ( of course to hear me in the middle they weren’t strolls LOL)

Our weekend ended with a little shopping in one of the quant mountain towns and a drive home.

It was a great weekend with a few great finds!

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This morning the kids and I made it out to Sherri’s family farm in Young. It was about 2 ½ hours to drive there, Devon & I split the time. In the ACT, where we live, drivers with their “L” (learners license) can drive maxim of 100 Kilometers per hour, however we had to drive in new South Wales, where his top speed is 80 although the actual speed limit is 110. So, he drove for a while and then I jammed us the rest of the way there. Dev also drove half way home, on the unsealed roads at night- good practice for him.

Sherri’s folks were great! Her mom had breakie waiting for us when we arrived. Her dad showed us around a field he was planting and then they had a great spread for lunch. The kids all had a good time just exploring the property, climbing tree’s, riding bikes around the paddocks, going on walks and playing with Candy, the Burns pet sheep.   

A paddock is a field, of any size. Sherries dad has been on the property for all his life. He left school when he was 14 to work on the family farm. In the past they had a lot of sheep and some cattle as well. Due to the drought, and her dads age, he has slowed up in the crops a lot and gone for more cattle, they are easier then sheep and take less time.

Sherries dad is just 74 … can you imagine the changes that he has seen in the farming industry in his life? From driving a team of horses to plough the fields on foot to now driving a rig that can do 150 acres in under 3 hours! Amazing the advances he has witnessed.  

Anyways~ It was a delightful day out on a real Aussie property. I took heaps of pictures- don’ you know! Enjoy.

On a fallen Gum Tree...

Devon

Lavender

On back of a ute...

A great tree ...

Addison ...

Lovely flowering bush...

Candy, the pet sheep....

color ....

color....

and more color!

John Deer down under =0)

Getting a lesson on how the machine works.

Addi & Katarina

Thirsty?

on a walk about ...

Fraz and Dyl heading back in ...

Just a shot I liked ...

                                                Dev ~ Addi ~ Dyl

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On Oct 14, 1947 Chuck Yeager made aviation history, he flew the XS-1 past the sound barrier, becoming the world's first supersonic pilot.

You can read more about this American hero at his website:   http://www.klpstudio.com/chuckyeager.com/htm_docs/bioframe.html

At the air show in Victoria, where Paul was sent to help coordinate the American pilots & aircraft, he had the chance to meet and hear some great stories from General Yeager! 

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Well...

I have uploaded a heap of our pictures and journaled about many things we saw and did on our trip. I have been asked by no few what my favorite place was and I just don't think I can answer that. I enjoyed everywhere we went and all we were able to see and do.  There were only a couple of places that we just couldn't squeeze into this trip but I am thrilled with all we did get to do.

Sydney is one of my favorite cities still. It is just hard to beat that harbor and the views. I loved exploring a new path over at Gap Bluff... Great views, parks, ferry ride, hikes & picture spots! 

Brisbane I think I would need to visit again. We didn't give the actual city much of a chance this go around. I loved all of the buildings and there are so many old churches all along the CBD. The City Cats were a great way to get around and we did love the views of the homes along the river.  What a great spot to be in though between the Sunshine & Gold coasts!  Truth be told we went to Brisbane just so we could go the AU Zoo, Steve Irwin’s zoo and that was worth trip for us. My highlight at our Brissy stop though had to be our snorkel trip at North Stradbroke Island. Just the 10 of us went out and it was a great spot to check out all the sea life, 2 good sized white tipped reef sharks, a sea turtle, countless fish, star fish & the fun boat ride.

a spinny leaf insect

 Cairns was just full of new things and good spots. I loved that the water was just 1 degree cooler then the air! The Great Barrier Reef & the rainforests ....  so many things that I couldn't just pick a favorite. A week up there just wasn't enough time! We are blessed to have been able to see so many cool things that we can't choose a fav!  ( we did so enjoy having a few chances to catch up with the vdB's!)

* Below are all the pictures from our trip that I am going to put up at this time. One day I can bore you with my scrap book.  Hopefully I'll be back to normal in a few days-- The trip threw me for a bit of a loop and the mornings have seen me sleeping past 8am for the last 3 days!! 

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At the base of Mt. Coo-tha just outside of Brisbane is a wonderful garden full of different types of shrubs, trees, flowers, birds and settings. It was a lovely stroll through -- even if hanging out there did make us VERY late for our flight. The serenity of the gardens was lost for a little while in the hustle of tossing luggage and children into the car, driving like maniacs through morning traffic, skidding into the airport, throwing rental car keys to the attendant and running like 10 madmen into the airport, luggage and people flying everywhere, (that was yours truly herself… inspecting the pavement as we raced across the street rolling luggage in tow, purse, carryon and camera bag scattering along the roadside… it was a site I tell ya!)  all the while praying that our luggage would make the flight as well as ourselves.

I don't recommend ending a stroll through the gardens in this exact manner... but I do recommend strolling through the gardens in a leisurely way when you are able to relax and enjoy the sights, sounds and smells of creation.  Enjoy.

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Ettamoogah is based on a famous Australian cartoon series, shown as an outback pub.  The Ettamogah Bar and Family Restaurant provides something for everyone.The Ettamogah pub has heaps of cartoon signs and the pub itself is in the shape of a cartoon. It was worth a quick stop for a snap or two, thanks for the heads up Amanda!

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I love to watch the sun come up in the morning. I love to welcome in a new day and to think about the blessings God has given to me. I love to use that time to praise him and to wonder at His creation and all He does for us. Thank you Lord for each day and it's Blessings....

Sunrise on the Tablelands

Devon on Trinity Beach

Good Morning Brisbane

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Matt 5:16

For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to [give] the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 2Cor 4:6

And to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord, and likewise at even; 1 Ch 23:30

My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct [my prayer] unto thee, and will look up. Pslm 5:3

To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night, Pslm 92:2

And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed. Mark 1:35

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Paul found a coconut laying on the beach he husked it, broke it open and we all had sip of the milk & a chew on the flesh.

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The Big Peanut

farmers field

Neat tree growths

Queenslander home built off the ground

sugar cane farm

I liked this shed

There are crocs in that green water

Watching the honey bees

Another Queenslander home

A golden tree

Great general store!

Love the sign posts!

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