OMG it was cold last night! Minus two degrees and our cabin was like a little ice box. We had to keep the heater on all night because it only took 5 minutes for the cold to set in whenever we turned it off.
We had a lazy start to the day and didn't even leave our cabin until 10am.
We had our 2nd breakfast in a row at Arbuckles, and even though I planned on eating a duck egg omelette, I was really worried about how it would affect my digestion and the remote areas we would be driving today, so I chose the atlantic salmon again. It was absolutely delicious and both the owner, and the chef, remembered us from yesterday!
After breakfast, we drove to Gulgong, which was a funny looking town with charming, but very old, very tiny houses and buildings. It was a really interesting little town, but the main street, with cars parked on either side of the road, had only one lane left down the middle to drive on. Luckily, we could see from one end of the street to the other, so we knew when it was safe to go, but there was absolutely no way that two cars could travel in different directions down the street.
Phil, our winery tour guide, suggested that on our way out of Mudgee, and after we passed through Gulgong, we should stop at a place called 'The Drip'. It involves walking a supposed 'easy' 1 hour round trip to a location that involved a rugged cliff face that drips water.
We had forgotten all about his suggestion until we were driving along and saw the sign, so we drove down the little dirt track to the parking area, where there were three other cars, grabbed our camera bags, locked the car and decided to do the 1km walk.
Firstly there was a little picnic area where there were heaps of little Superb Fairy Wrens and I attempted to get some shots, but I was really having trouble getting my 400mm lens to focus, so I don't think I had much luck.
As we walked to the beginning of the track to The Drip, an older couple was returning from the trek, so we asked what the walk was like and if it was worth the effort. They both agreed that the track was easy and that it was definitely worth the effort, so we happily began the walk.
It was a beautiful spot and the track skirted along a running stream. The bushland was quite lush with tree ferns and vines and ivy and there was moss and other fungi growing on the smooth rocks and cliff faces that we passed by.
The track, in the beginning, was quite well maintained and there were rocks placed along the edge to guide us, little timber steps dug into the ground that led down to a timber walking bridge that took us over part of the stream. A sign to tell us that we had travelled 150 metres of our 1km.
Then the track became a little more rugged. It was narrow in some places. We had to climb over rocks and then hold onto a rail to squeeze along a narrow path that had a steep drop beside it. We squeezed between the cliff face and some rocks. We skirted around a big hole that had formed in the middle of the track.
We climbed down some rocks and through an archway of rock to the very edge of the stream and then had to climb up some more steep rock that had some footholds carved into them.
At this point we were questioning and loudly criticising the older couple who had told us that it was an easy walk and wondered if they had come this far.
Twice we passed a small patch of cliff face that was dripping water and wondered how much farther we had to go. Then there was a sign that said 600m to The Drip. This was quite discouraging because we were sure we had walked further than 400m!!!
All the while we were stopping to take pics of interesting things, like the rock formations, mud nests on the ceiling of some rock arches, the moss, the fungi, the view of the stream from various points of interest.
A couple of times, the path kind of disappeared and we had to search for where it began again. We passed a couple of other people returning, so we knew we were headed in the right direction.
Finally after almost an hour, we reached what we believed to be 'The Drip' because there was no signage, but there was a huge wall of cliff face that was wet and dripping into still pools of water below. The path went no further. We could hear running water in the distance, but there was nowhere to go to find it.
It was quite spectacular and beautiful and I was surprised at how easy it was to do the walk, fitness wise, for me .. even though my short legs had trouble stepping up onto some higher rock, I didn't feel puffed at any stage and I kept up a fairly steady pace.
By the end of the walk, which took us about 90 minutes, my dodgy knee was beginning to ask a few questions, but it feels ok right now.
On the return walk, we came across a Lyrebird scratching under a bush, which was a bit of a surprise.
For a couple of old birds who don't exercise, I think we did remarkably well!! I have photos to share too, but with slow free WiFi, they won't be shared tonight.
From there we went through the mining town of Ulan and then stopped at Merriwa, where I paid $16.50 for 3 small bottles of water and a cup of coffee. Luckily the coffee was delicious and well worth $6!
We drove on to Scone which is where we are staying tonight in a very comfortable motel. We are unhappy about a galah in a cage because he had no water to drink and when BGWLBH filled the water container, the poor bird went straight to it and guzzled. We are also unhappy about the free WiFi. I was able to sign in, but it was impossibly slow. BGWLBH couldn't even sign in .. it kept telling her to try again, until she gave up.
Last time we stayed in Scone, the Golf Club was recommended to us for meals, and we enjoyed delicious Asian cuisine, so we drove there again tonight, but the restaurant was an empty shell of a room - looks like they might be refurbishing or something - so we decided to try the RSL Club instead, which wasn't too far away.
It was a nice club with friendly staff and the restaurant sold Chinese food as well as Australian meals. We both chose grilled chicken with chips and salad. The salad was minuscule but fresh and nice. The chips were crisp on the outside and fluffy on the inside. The chicken was like no chicken I had ever tasted and we couldn't decide if it was real chicken or processed chicken. It was tough and stringy and had a flavour all of it's own. Neither of us ate more than two bites.
We were home by 7.30pm and obviously, by the hysterical laughter that ensued for no particular reason, we are feeling quite exhausted.
BGWLBH is not coming to QLD now. We will be returning to Sydney and I will fly out on Friday next week, while she will drive home to her home town. She will take my wine with her and then bring it up in January next year when she visits. That could be tricky because white wine goes off after a while, so I hope it lasts the distance.
Time to hit the hay and fall asleep to the sound of Wimbledon tennis on the TV.
It's been a good day.
Nite all.
