Home Sweet Home at Last

It truly has been the greatest Rock Star Road Trip EVER!

It is also truly wonderful to be home :)

After farewelling The Nikonian this morning, we headed north and then took a detour to Eumundi for the markets.

We arrived nice and early, before the big crowds arrived, so we had a nice easy stroll through the stalls for the first two hours, but by 10am, the carpark was full and the crowds were so thick that it was difficult to move from one stall to another.

There is so much to see and the variety of stalls are too numerous to mention.

We had a lovely time and I bought some cute little pants and some overalls for Chicklet, as well as some nice tops for myself.

I was under orders from Adoring Husband to buy another timber bird house.  Our fist bird house, which was a feature in our front garden, got eaten by white ants, so this time we'll treat the new one to prevent that from happening again.

It was very lucky, because the man who makes them has been incapacitated for over 3 months and hasn't been able to attend the markets for that period of time.  He has diabetes and an ulcerated foot had him hospitalised for a while (I know somebody who reads this blog who has the same problem!).

Today, the man wasn't back yet, but his wife was manning the stall and it was her first week back - so lucky for us!

I also bought myself the most adorable bag made of colourful rags with a braided rag shoulder strap - it's thick and lush and better than Joseph's technicolour dream coat!  I would show you a photo, but my computer is out of action, so this blog will be 'photo-less' for a week or so, until the Dr can tend to it.

BGWLBH had a great time too and bought some lovely stuff, but soon her back was causing her some discomfort and I was ready to head home, so we decided to grab a take-away coffee, load all of our goods into the car and follow our noses in a northerly direction.

It's only two and a half hours to my house, but crikey it was a LONG two and a half hours!  We were exhausted and just wanted to STOP.  BGWLBH just wanted to start her relaxing holiday and I just wanted to see Adoring Husband.

I didn't tell Adoring Husband that we had left Eumundi and all he knew was that we would be home before dark. 

As we drove into town at 3pm, I sent him a text which read "You knew we were coming, so did you bake a cake?  Turn on the kettle and open the garage door because HI HONEY, WE'RE HOME!"

He was very excited, as were Psychotic Dogs, who took quite a bit of time to settle down.  They were almost doing back flips for about ten minutes!

We gathered all of our goods from the car and then I spent 2 hours unpacking everything!!  Now, you can't even tell that I have been anywhere (except for the load of washing in the machine and the other load waiting to be washed)!

Adoring Husband cooked us a delicious dinner of gluten free chicken snitzel and salad and now we are relaxing and watching the footy on telly, while BGWLBH has set herself up in the bedroom with some dvds and her knitting.

**sigh** it's nice to be home.  It's nice to be with Adoring Husband and I'm looking forward to seeing my boys at the 'Seat of Knowledge' tomorrow morning.

Home Sweet Home at Last :o)

Dramatic Turn of Events

My best friend is suffering.  My macbook is struggling to stay alive.  Gasping for every breath and I am feeling it's pain.

I feel like I've lost a limb!

I can't cope, knowing that it could breathe it's last breath at any moment!

This will be a very short post because I can't rely on my computer to stay alive or stay on line for any length of time.

I set my alarm for 5am and drove with The Nikonian to the beach, hopeful of a beautiful sunrise.  It failed to eventuate but we got some pretty shots while we were there anyway.

Later in the morning we went for a drive with her and ended up back at Montville where we ate a delicious lunch at 'Poets' restaurant.  If you are going there ... I highly recommend it!

We did a little shopping and came home only to discover that my computer was sick.

This afternoon we went for a walk because BGWLBH was excited about the sunset and the birds that were flitting about in the bushes.  Another failure.

However, we took some shots of BGWLBH modelling in the bushes, and we are yet to look at those, so tomorrow morning could bring with it, a pleasant surprise, with some possible good shots in there.

The Nikonian and The Brain made us a delicious dinner tonight and we had a very pleasant meal with wine, good conversation and some good laughs.

They are a wonderful couple who provide the warmest hospitality (and I'm not just saying that because The Nokonian will be reading my blog from now on!) and have made us feel so welcome in their home.

It's been a lovely relaxing end to our Rock Star Road Trip and I truly hope that one day soon, we can return the favour.

Tomorrow we are off to Eumundi Markets early in the morning and then we'll be heading home.

I will probably use Adoring Husband's laptop to update my blog until my baby gets repaired.

Tomorrow night I will be sleeping in my own bed after almost six weeks.  I'm looking forward to that.

After such a dramatic turn of events today, I need to sleep (a couple of glasses of wine with dinner may have contributed to my sleepiness as well)

Nite all.

Mountain Beauty

The Craft Queen gave us directions for leaving Toowoomba via the back roads and through some beautiful mountain roads and countryside.

I sent her a text about an hour into the journey thanking her, because the drive was just glorious.

We took a leisurely drive through the mountains and even pulled over when other drivers came up behind us, so that we could continue to drive at a leisurely pace.  It was all too beautiful to rush.

There were lots of yellow signs along the road, with pictures of koalas indicating that they were about, but we didn't see ANY.  How disappointing!

We stopped at a couple of lookouts and got some shots of the mountain views, but I will have to share them tomorrow.

We had lunch at Mary Cairncross Park today, which overlooks the Glasshouse Mountains.  When we first arrived, there was a fire near the mountains, and by the time we had finished lunch, the view was completely obscured by the dark smoke hanging in the sky.

Lunch was enjoyable and we then cruised on to Montville, where we spent some time and money - but not too much.

We went to visit my photography tutor, The Master, and he said some nice things about my photography, which boosted my ego no end.  I discovered tonight that after I left, he posted on facebook, that the 'Queen of Photography' had honoured him with a visit!

After we left Montville, we tried to find our way to Ms Nikonian's house, where I had been only once before.  Google maps is a wonderful thing ... to a point.

We got lost.

Ms Nikonian had sent me a text and said 'ring me if you need me' then promptly put her phone down in her bedroom and walked outside!

Six missed phone calls later!  We pulled into her driveway and found her there with her partner, The Brain, having a wine!

"Where's your bloody phone?" I asked "You said to phone you if I needed you!!"

"Oh" she laughed "It's inside and I am outside.  Sorry about that!"

She and The Brain welcomed us warmly and we spent the afternoon and evening chatting at the dining table and then they served us home made pumpkin soup with fresh breadstick for dinner.  It was delicious!

They are lovely people.

BGWLBH and I are now housed in separate bedrooms for the next two nights and are looking forward to a quiet rest day tomorrow.

Wilbur Herbert has been quiet today.

We are looking forward to going to the Eumundi Markets on Saturday morning before heading off on the final leg of the trip home.

It's almost midnight and I'm hoping to wake up early enough to go on a sunrise photo shoot with The Nikonian in the morning, so ....

Nite all.



 

Lazy Holiday Day

We had a nice sleep-in this morning and didn't leave the Motel in Warwick until almost check out time!

The people who own the Buckaroo Motel in Warwick are just lovely.  The gentleman welcomed us warmly and actually came with us to the room when we arrived to show us where everything was and how the air conditioner worked.

This morning, as we were leaving, he and his wife were cleaning the rooms and had their two cats out with them.  The cats were very happy and friendly little things ... I am not a cat person, but even I found them endearing.  He wished us a safe journey and we were on our way.

It was a beautiful day.  The sun was shining.  Not a cloud in the sky.  The air was clear - which was a nice change from the smoke filled skies that we experienced in Griffith for the last week that we were there.

First stop was ... you guessed it ... Maccas.  We didn't hang around long because we had an hours drive in front of us and we were meeting The Craft Queen at 11am for morning tea.

We arrived in Toowoomba with time to spare, but when I sent a text to The Craft Queen, she didn't respond, so after 30 minutes, we decided to have lunch.  We did a little shopping at the Rivers Clearance Store and then found a nice little cafe that served gluten free food - another delicious meal! Two days in a row!

During lunch, The Craft Queen contacted us to apologise for the fact that her boss had waylaid her.  She gave us directions to her house and said she would contact her son to let him know that we were arriving.

Well, we knocked on the door, rang the metal bell, pressed the doorbell, turned the buzzer and hit the chime - all to no avail.  We were just about to drive to her work to pick up the key, when Sleepy Teen finally opened the door, looking very 'put out'.

He showed us around so that we could find everything from the toilet to the beds to the tv to coffee and tea, and then he scuttled back to his bedroom ... I did tell him that he didn't have to entertain us.

So while we sat silently in the lounge room with the two cats, we could hear him pounding away at his computer keyboard through the wall that separated us.

We relaxed for a while - both of us feeling quite worn out.  We strolled through the old house, a big old run down Queenslander that she is currenly renovating.

There must have been 15 or 16 rooms, maybe more!  High ceilings and planked walls, lots of antique furniture as well as modern stuff.  She has very eclectic taste and no one particular style.

Arts and crafts galore for all different genres and a love of butterflies and dragonflies - they adorned the walls and were noticeable in little decorative touches all over the house.

After a while, it was almost time for Number One Son to finish work, so we decided to walk to his motel and wait for him.  He has just moved back to Toowoomba to take his old position with Boeing and they are paying for his motel until he moves into his own accommodation on Monday.  Google maps made it look much closer than it actually was!

What we thought would be a ten minute walk, turned into a 25 minute walk and then Number One Son's lift from work dropped him in town, so he had to walk 30 minutes home as well.  When he finally arrived, we used his bathroom, sat for twenty minutes and then left - having made plans to meet for dinner.

We booked into a motel and then walked to The Craft Queen's house to give her the plans for dinner as well.

Surprisingly, the evening was very mild, and we drove to The Coffee Club in Margaret Street and sat outside to eat dinner.

The food was good and the company was great.  No alcohol required.  We told some stories and had some laughs and parted company just after 8pm.

I'm so annoyed that I didn't think to get a photo!  I only see Number One Son once a year if I'm lucky ... I SHOULD have got BGWLBH to take a photo of us together and The Craft Queen could have taken one of us all together.  Ugh!!

Our motel is very comfortable and we will be heading north to Montville and Maleny tomorrow.  Should be home in a few days.  I miss home and I miss Adoring Husband.

We've done a lot of walking today, but it still feels like a lazy holiday day.  Only one photograph taken all day ... and I'll post it tomorrow ... maybe.

Nite all.

Living on the Wild Side (by BGWLBH & Me)

Dang!  It was cold in Inverell last night!

We left there early and drove to Glen Innes, where ... surprise surprise ... there was a Maccas for breakfast!  We all know how important it is for BGWLBH to have her Maccas start to the day!

There were some excellent photo opportunities, but nowhere to stop on the highway.  Why don't the engineers who build the roads make allowances for photographers who want to stop along the way???

We spent some time in Glenn Innes taking photos of all the old buildings, which I will post on here another time ... too many to edit tonight and there are others that I want to share.

After Glen Innes, we continued on the highway to Tenterfield ... singing 'Tenterfield Saddler' loudly, the whole way!  We did have to google the lyrics at one point because we got a bit confused about one line.

We stopped at the Cumquat Cafe for lunch, but they had no gluten free, so I left to search for a nice lunch.

BGWLBH ordered her lunch from Cumquat and was told by the owner about his Heritage House called 'Delorain' which was near a park where we could eat lunch.  He also told her the way to Boonoo Boonoo Falls (pronounced Bunna Banoo).

I got a delicious gluten free lunch at another cafe and we headed to the park.  I got some photos of the lovely Heritage House across the road and whilst eating lunch, BGWLBH studied the map in the park and memorised all the features along the road to the falls.

'Delorain' surrounded by Autumn leaves.

First stop was Thunderbolt's Hideout ... so we trekked 300m over a lovely stream, through rainforest and over rocks.  BGWLBH went exploring down the mountainside over moss covered rocks to find the waterfall that we could hear in the distance.

Unfortunately it was barely visible because it flowed 'under' the giant boulders.  She then had to scramble back up the mountainside.  She used muscles that she hasn't used for a while!

From there, we drove on.  I saw a wallaby on the side of the road and said to BGWLBH "LOOK AT THAT!!"  She immediately looked up (because I have trained her to look for birds) so she completely missed the wallaby!

We agreed that while she was driving, she should look 'up' for birds and I would look 'down' for other wildlife.  We like to live on the wild side!

We found the turn off to the falls which was 14 kilometres of dirt track with a bit of corrugation - but being the adventurers that we are, we pushed on and travelled through hill and dale, dangerously dodging the vicious wildlife (wallabies), while I sang "Skippy the Bush Kangaroo".  BGWLBH told me to stop because I was scaring them.  How rude!

Platypus Hole was our first stop for photos.  A beautiful little spot, but there was strong evidence of the floods that had been through with so many trees knocked over and we could follow the flow of the floods by the fallen trees.  There was also only one concrete post left of a jetty that was once there.

Five more kilometres over the track and we found the picnic area where the 'walk' begins, to find the falls.

It was a steep decent but the sound of the falls kept us going until we found the lookout at the end.  BGWLBH couldn't cope with the height, so I had to take the photos!

We walked most of the way back up, until we found the fork in the path that led to the rock pools.  It was even steeper!  We tried to find a spot on the rocks for a good photo, but all the action was happening behind the rocks and out of sight.

Wilbur Herbert struggled to get up the final part of the hill, but proved that he had more stamina and willpower than both of us ... he was still as fresh as a daisy (compared to us) by the time we reached the top of the path again.

A kookaburra was waiting for us near the car, so we got a couple of photos of him too, which I will share another time.

After we left there, we had to stop the car to watch two Wedge Tailed Eagles soaring high above us. These were younger than the one we saw yesterday ... apparently the older they get, the darker their feathers ... these had a lot of lighter coloured feathers in their wings.

When we got back on to the main road, we decided to continue our adventurous ways and take the unsealed road, which was the back way to Stanthorpe.  It was a beautiful drive with very little traffic and we came across a wallaby and a crimson rosella, both of which had their photos taken by me.

Bald Rock was 5 kilometres down another track, so, because the man had told BGWLBH that it was spectacular, we decided to check it out.

There was lots of wildlife along the road - apparently.

I didn't see any of it!

I saw the rock through a gap in the trees!

BGWLBH didn't see any of it!

It was a 3 km trek to the rock and since it was already after 4pm, we decided against seeing the rock and turned back to the main road.

We found the border of Queensland as we meandered along the dirt track.  There were lots of little properties hidden behind the trees and finally we found Stanthorpe.

We discovered a little deli to get some coffee which would help us travel the next 60kms to Warwick.

The deli had the most delicious little bits and pieces.  BGWLBH bought a pack of different flavoured fudges with which she has fallen passionately in love.  I bought a couple of gifts in there too.  Their coffee was absolutely delicious!!

Stanthorpe didn't appear to have suitable accommodation, so we continued on to Warwick.  We discovered upon arrival, a little motel that we stayed in, on another road trip, about 16 yrs ago.  We think Bubbles was with us on that occasion.

So we've booked into that motel.  Unfortunately, the main road is a lot busier than we remember, so the trucks are speeding past and making a LOT of noise as they go by.  This could be a big mistake!

I shall now attempt to sleep through the traffic noise ... wish me luck.

Nite all.

Back roads rock!

Instead of driving the boring route to Moree, we decided to take the back road to Inverell.

It was a good choice.

What beautiful countryside we have in Australia, if you just get off the highways and freeways.

The roads, of course, are not as good, but there is MUCH LESS traffic on them and if you are really looking at Australia, you don't have to drive at 100kmh!

We like to drive slowly and really see everything.  Take an unexpected side road and find landscape treasures around every corner.

We've seen kangaroos, emus and echidnas along the way and are still on the lookout for a wild koala.  Wrens, Finches, Robins, Kites, Kestrels, Galahs, Cockatoos, Rosellas, Lorikeets and Eagles to name a few of the wonderful birds that we've spotted.

It's been great.

The road to Inverell was the perfect choice.  We drove over mountains and past rolling hills covered in golden grasses.  Beautiful big gum trees lined the road and dotted the fields.  There were mountain streams every so often and Wedge Tailed Eagles soaring high above the mountains.

We drove 10kms down a dirt road to the Pilliga Pottery and Barkala Farm Stay and Bird Haven.  I bought some lovely pottery coffee cups there (one as a gift for a friend) and found, much to my delight, little blue fairy wrens fluttering about.

The male patriarch who keeps his blue colours all year round.

A male who has lost his blue feathers for Autumn.

A female blue fairy wren.

One of the ladies there showed me how she drew the fairy wrens on the pottery pieces and she was amazing.  Her drawings so smooth and perfect.

The other lady gave me lots of information on the happenings of the place including a festival which will be starting up this year in October.  They have lovely farm stay accommodation available all year round and there are lots of activities to do and see in the area.

I think it has to go on Adoring Husband and my 'to do' list!!

We decided to take another turn to the picnic area of Sawn Rock, where we ate lunch and then took the walk along the trail to the rock.

It was amazing and felt a bit like 'Planet of the Apes'

We left there and made another interesting discovery when we took an unexpected turn off.

A geo-glacial waterfall.  Unfortunately it was the wrong time of day, with poor light for a photograph to do it justice, but believe me ... it was beautiful.

So tonight we are sleeping in Inverell.  We found a motel with a kitchen that provided room service AND a gluten free menu ... first time on the trip so far that I've found anything gluten free.

It was not the greatest bangers and mash that I've had, but it was nice to have a cooked meal knowing that it was 'safe'.

It is very bloody cold here ... and you know it's cold if "I" notice it!!

I'm going to crawl into my warm bed and sleep.

Back roads rock!!

Nite all.

Day Three - Wilbur Herbert's day

We arrived in Coonabarabran late yesterday afternoon ...

Wilbur-Herbert needed to rest up ready for the Warrumbungles tomorrow!

We took our time getting ready this morning, after a disappointing and expensive breakfast from the motel kitchen.  I guess we have learned our lesson the hard way there.

Before we headed off to the Warrumbungles, we booked in for an extra night in the motel and phoned to book our star gazing evening at one of the observatories in town.

Wilbur Herbert was so excited that he wouldn't even allow us to stop and take his photo to start the day.

We had a beautiful day for it, though it was bitterly cold up on the mountain - due to strong cold winds.

The observatory was disappointing.  We couldn't get close to anything of interest.

Maybe boys would find it more interesting than me?

We left here and found our way to the walking tracks that led to the lookouts.

There were kangaroos and beautiful yellow wildflowers.  Signs everywhere indicating that koala were in the area, but I searched the trees without success.

After we decided that we'd had enough walking and that we were hungry and ready for a late lunch, we slowly drove back down the mountain so that we could take photos of all the strange and wonderful letterboxes along the way.

Here are a few of them ...

Wilbur-Herbert enjoyed the letterboxes the best.

Finally, there has been a series of signs which I intend showing you in order one day on here, but this is the one that tickled our fancy today.

We were booked in for a star-gazing night tonight.  This amateur astronomer has four different sized powerful telescopes and he even allows you to take photos through the telescopes of the different planets!

We were excited about this because every other time that we've been here, there has been thick cloud cover, which, of course, obstructs a clear view.

Our booking was for 7pm and at 4.30pm, the clouds began to gather above us ... we got the phone call at 6pm from Peter advising that the evening had to be cancelled due to the heavy cloud.

Sadly, we were duped by the cloud yet again!

There are many, many photos yet to be posted, but I think many will have to wait til the journey is over, because I can't keep up with them while we are on the road.  They will filter through in the coming weeks.

Tomorrow, we recommence our Rock Star Road Trip, so I'd best get some sleep.

Nite all.