Hey! Check out my new travel journal ✈📷

Australia 2016

Aug 20 - Oct 17 2016

@sandratemplar

No entries have been mapped yet.

Unnamed Road

Aug 20 2016

We started our road trip in Melbourne,bringing our camp trailer and the dog. We spent four whirlwind days in Melbourne catching up with Cy and Ella,seeing shows,eating out and going to exhibitions We saw a musical called Curtains ,it was pretty terrible despite good reviews

Baxter is a real character

Enjoyable meal at Longgrain

@sandratemplar

Aug 21 2016

Some exhibitions we saw in Melbourne This quilt was made on an army blanket by an Australian soldier in a Japanese POW camp.

This beautiful quilt was made by convict women on their way to Australia

Small exhibition about the Glenn Murcett architecture design of a new mosque in Melbourne

Exhibition at the immigration museum about the Italian immigrants from the Aurelian islands from Volcanoes to Gelati

The immigration museum again and this exhibition was about the pearling industry in Australia

Beautiful pearls

Scorcese exhibition at ACMI

@sandratemplar

6 Boag St

Aug 25 2016

Far too cold to camp so we got a cottage we arrived in the dark and the cottage, an Airb&b at Tostaree near Lakes Entrance,was cold.the fire didn't work very well ,great views though and sunny mornings we stayed two nights and had a magnificent seafood feast at Lakes Entrance and I had a disastrous haircut

Very cold morning!It was freezing in the drovers cottage Airb&b at Tostaree near Lakes Entrance

Seafood feast Lakes Entrance at Miriams

@sandratemplar

6 Boag St

Aug 27 2016

Next stop beautiful Mollymook to eat at Rick Steins restaurant not the best camping spot but dog friendly park. although the beach isn't as I discovered after a lengthy walk to it The meal was very nice but his Cornwall restaurant at Padstowe was better. The nights are very cold and we have hot water bottles.we had a good bike ride around the coast with a little uphill,im not overly impressed with my fold up bike. Dining out and cheeky birds in the park

Bannisters rick steins seafood restaurant

Cheeky!

My new haircut

Our campsite private but no view

@sandratemplar

Unnamed Road

Aug 28 2016

Finding dog friendly camping near Sydney led us to Percy's place on the banks of the Hawkesbury at Pitt town it was fantastic! An hours train ride from Sydney,fascinating history of early settlement and a great local butcher. Great spacious camp sites and clean amenities. We also had the very worst paleo meal ever at a paleo cafe in Windsor,however Arthur didn't mind his choice

Percy's place great camping spot

Oldest church in Australia,Ebenezer church

Sheyville national park. Used as an immigration hostel,home for unemployed men and boys a farm school and a military officer training camp,

Sheyville main building

Early morning

Grave of first blue heeler breeder

Windsor,Macquarie town

@sandratemplar

Aug 28 2016

We found a family doggy day carer in Windsor called Julie. After dropping Saphy off to her,we got the train into Sydney to see the Frida Karlo and Diego Riviera exhibition. Brilliant! I'd been looking forward to this for a long time and it didn't disappoint Also caught the Archibald and Sulman exhibitions so interesting.not sure I agree with the winning choice We finished our day in Sydney with a stroll in the botanic gardens

A montage I made about the Frida exhibition

Archibald finalists

Beautiful

@sandratemplar

7 Falmouth St

Aug 31 2016

The drive up the coast from Sydney is always beautiful and we just drove until quite late as we had booked an Airbnb at Port Macquarie.it was a beautiful new house out on a property with rural views and a huge Eco swimming pool full of frogs who were very noisy but in a good way. So we had birds in the morning and frogs in the evening! Access to the property was steep however

Nice AirBnb

Port Macquarie beach

We had breakfast in the rainforest cafe the morning we were leaving

Commemorative spot in The forest

@sandratemplar

Unnamed Road

Sep 02 2016

We contnuied on our drive and drove up the coast to Yamba we have to find dog friendly accommadation where we stop we found a park at Yamba. The weather was warm and we enjoyed the beach and the prawns,the best in Australia in my opinion however where we stayed the sand flys were vicious !

Coastal heathland on the way

Motorcycle museum

Coastal subtropical rainforest

Yamba beach

Sweet delicious Yamba prawns

@sandratemplar

Unnamed Road

Sep 03 2016

After enjoying a feed of Yamba prawns and getting bad sandfly bites we continued on our journey to eat breakfast in Byron. Bay We had breakfast at 'Folk' and it left us unimpressed and a little hungry. We decided to stay for lunch and headed out to the farm and the Three Ducks Restaurant. It was very buzzy and great food we shared the rillette and Arthur had the lamb shoulder.This is a paddock to plate eating experience in a farm setting.we were going to stay at Byron but we've walked to the lighthouse etc before and we decided to move on Little Italy does have the best coffee since we left Melbourne

Stopped off in little Italy for the best coffee and a fascinating history and stories of Italian regions

Paddock to plate eating at the Farm

The rillette entree

He looks pleased with himself

@sandratemplar

Unnamed Road

Sep 05 2016

We decided not to stay at Byron and continued to Brisbane and stayed in a cabin before going to Straddie on the ferry the next day

Campsite Flinders beach

Lace monitor near our camp

Curlew

Campsite beach path

Catching bream

Lazy Sunday ,market,lunch. Gelati

Dawn on flinders beach

@sandratemplar

Unnamed Road

Sep 11 2016

North Stradbroke island is Paradise .Perfect climate ,beautiful beaches safe swimming,good fishing wildlife, good coffee,healthy eating and wifi .Holiday perfection

Bream for brekky

Myoura springs

Frenchmans beach

@sandratemplar

Unnamed Road

Sep 13 2016

Yesterday we swam at Amity,walked and swam at Home Beach so the dog could have a run then had a lovely lunch at the green room. I had beef cheeks in mushroom broth with broccoli rice and Arthur had the fish tacos. Then we did the North gorge walk followed by a gelati Back at the camper we changed and went to the beach hotel for dinner. Amazing view warm night and ok food later we sat around our campfire and had a coffee and paleo crunches perfect

North Gorge

Main Beach

@sandratemplar

86 Clara St

Sep 18 2016

We spent the weekend in Brisbane visiting relatives and friends. We were sad to leave the island and we will be back. On our last couple of days there we drove along the huge main beach ,got some pippis and had a feed.we swam in brown Lake and the sea On Friday we left the island and had lunch with Alison,Aunty June,Dale and Willi and family.it was so nice lovely food and company. On Saturday we caught up with our laundry ,some Aldi shopping and Saphy went to doggy day care and got a bath .Saturday night we had a great barbecue with Tracey Harris and met up with Isaac and Jenna again a great night. We found some really good eating places near our accommodation,and dog friendly as well I want to come back and stay in Brisbane longer Again we were in luck the Brisbane festival was on and we enjoyed a cabaret show and and some beers and music looking over the river

Leaving our camp

Lunch at Alisons

Tracey and I

Isaac,Jenna and Bruce at Traceys

Bike riding near our accommadation

The garden at our accommadation

Brisbane busker

Caught a cabaret show at the Brisbane festival

Cabaret show

@sandratemplar

59 McCormack Dr

Sep 21 2016

We are staying at Murphys creek near Toowoomba,it's a spacious camp ground and I really like it but you have to hire a fire pot buy wood and pay for a shower,so total for two nights for an unpowered sight $87We stayed two nights and caught the Toowoomba flower festival and the Cobb & Co museum.we ended up packing up in the wet which was not fun Lucky for us the Toowoomba flower festival was on,we spent a very enjoyable day there and had a lovely lunch,the tourist info centre were extremely helpful

Our camp at Murphys creek

We had a nice lunch here at Rosedale on our way to Toowoomba

Spring gully railway station

Toowoomba flower festival

Cobb & Co museum Toowoomba

@sandratemplar

Monomeeth Street

Sep 23 2016

We stayed overnight in a cabin at Moree and had a nice soak in the artesian pool and visited a pecan farm .it has rained a lot out here and it is very green

Lots of water about

Lovely hot pool

Pruners at the pecan farm

@sandratemplar

Monomeeth Street

Sep 24 2016

Finally made it to lightening ridge it has changed a lot in 43 years. I love our campsite,we moved the camper after the first night same park better spot.There is a pool.lots of space and it's close to the artesian bore and we have a toilet really close. Only problem mosquitos because of the rain they are vicious We love it here and have enjoyed fossicking,a mine tour soaking in the bore,and learning about opals and the Artesian basin.We have found a great little cafe with good coffee. We stayed extra days

First campsite

Circle of rocks at the lookout

Opal diggings

Church used fir movie set

Old shaft

Old miners camp he lived here until he was over ninety

Arthur's opal

Cacti garden

Fossicking

In an opal mine,the local Cyprus pine is really strong and good for holding up the roof

Great colours

It's a quirky place

Sunset

Handsome miner lol

@sandratemplar

Bennetts Walking Track

Sep 29 2016

We are now at Bourke and it has been very cold at night and we had a thuderstorm last night. The Darling river is very swollen and we couldn't do the paddle steamer trip The exhibition centre is very good but neglects the aboriginal history On the way we had a guided tour of the cultural centre at Brewarrina where the ancient fish traps are. Unfortunately they were under water due to flooding. However the tour was great with very moving accounts of the treatment of Aboriginal people since white settlement Our visit to the Gundabooka national park near Bourke was a highlight for me,with beautiful landscapes and rock art. The restaurant food in Bourke was terrible but I have had worse . Interesting history here, Henry Lawson stayed at Bourke,one of Charles Dickens sons worked here making maps and Fred Hollows is buried here.

Brewarrina cultural centre

Charles Dickens son

The Darling

Bourke wharf

Old newspaper office

Gundabooka

Lots of flowers and growth. From all the rain

Rock art

Gundamooka

@sandratemplar

Unnamed Road

Sep 30 2016

We left Bourke and set off for Broken Hill. Our plans to complete the Darling run were thwarted by closed roads to Tilpa ,but we did bits of the road where we could. We stopped in Cobar,it was terribly windy and a typical mining town,took some pics and kept going. We had had enough driving by Wilcannia and as it was very windy we booked a bunkhouse cabin on Warrwong on the Darling It was fantastic with a campfire dinner for $15 we stayed two nights so we could watch the grand final on the telly in our cabin Wilcannia has some lovely sandstone buildings and a terrible reputation. However it seems to be getting its act together and building a stronger community. We ate at a nice cafe there We stocked up at the supermarket for the grand final and I drank too much bubbly,we shared a bottle. Great game.

Cobar open cut

Campfire dinner

Wind goats are everywhere

Patterson's Curse a pretty noxious weed

Very wet this road is on the station

Type of country

Old truck by the Darlingriver

Warrawong

Wilcannia

@sandratemplar

67 Cardinal Rd

Oct 02 2016

After exploring Warrawong on the Darling and getting bitten by more mossies we continued on to Broken Hill,there weren't a lot of camping options so we went to the best caravan park according to Wiki camps and our campsite was okay. A very rude neighbour and the constant wind made camping a bit unpleasant ,however we went to the miners memorial on the hill,it's very well done and very sad.it was so windy that I couldn't go out on the lookout to take a photo. Then we had a deluge,we set off to dinner at the famous palace hotel and it rained so much that we had to wade through ankle deep water to get to the hotel the food was not good and the rugby grand final was on,we got a table by default when two women who had booked left because of the rugby. Let's just say I've had better eating experiences. But we did find some good places to eat,a paleo cafe called the Silly goat and an elegant Art Deco hotel called The royal Exchange with an open fire We visited galleries,geo museums ,desert parks and film sets at Silverton An interesting and quirky place ,but that bloody wind.

Approaching Broken Hill

Miners memorial

View fro memorial hill

Disused mining machinery

Deluge

Disused mining machinery

Silverton

Silverton almost ghost town used for film sets

Sculpture symposium,desert park

Mad max museum,

Geo mineral centre,beautiful displays

Wildflowers desert park

Pro hart sculpture

@sandratemplar

69 Cardinal Rd, Glenroy VIC 3046, Australia

Oct 04 2016

How delightful to arrive in Mildura,it's such an elegant town. The weather was sunny and we had a wonderful evening stroll along the river after some very generous tastings of local wines. We got a cabin but not where we wanted it as it was booked out. We can only stay one night as we are meeting Cy and Jordan tomorrow at Swan Hill as Jordan flew over to stay a few days. I would like to go back to Mildura

Emu family on the way to Mildura

Where the Darling meets the Murray

Water running in the Murray near the loch at Wentworth

Homestead Mildura

100 year old olive grove

Saphy in the Murray

Original Chaffee mansion

@sandratemplar

Swan Hill

Oct 05 2016

Swan Hill weather is warm and we have a great camp spot right on the river so good to see Jordan and so good of Cy to bring him up pity Cy couldn't stay longer There is a pool in the park and Jordan is taking advantage of it We are spending some time here researching Arthur's family tree. Day one we went to the pioneer village and on a paddle steamer,unfortunately the laser light show was cancelled because of the height of the river .Day two we went out to PoonDoon station,the cemetery and the library researching the Mackenzie family

Our campsite

Jordan and Arthur

Gazanias growing wild on the way to Poon Doon

Pioneer village photos

On the paddle boat

Finding friends and ants!

Sunset on the river

Poon Doon station

Wild pigface

@sandratemplar

Bendigo

Oct 07 2016

We had a nice meal at a restaurant on the Murray at Swan Hill and packed up our camper for the last time this trip. We decided to stop at Bendigo for Jordan mainly to learn about the gold mining history we got a great Airbnb that was dog friendly. I made dinner at home and we all enjoyed the comfort of a house. Arthur and Jordan went on an underground mine tour and I went to the Jenny Kee and Lisa Jackson exhibition

Jordan in his lux bed in Bendigo

Down in the goldmine

Unfortunately the dragon museum was closed

Colourful Jenny Kee,Linda Jackson exhibition

@sandratemplar

Melbourne

Oct 13 2016

We headed back to Melbourne to babysit Baxter while Cy and Ella went on a cruise Jordan went ice skating and then went home on the plane on the 11th we were lucky that the Melbourne festival was on and spent the next week enjoying the shows and city life