Marlay and Me and GM

Friday 7th December '12

After my fab boss giving me a POETS day, I raced home and packed my bags and we headed off to a place called Marlays Point about 18km north east of Sale. It took just over an hour to get here.

GM has forgotten to bring the good camera again which is a wee bit unfortunate as there is so much bird life.

This is our very first summer getaway (not including GM's solo fishing trip to Echuca last weekend........which I will admit I'm still sulking about........he could have taken a tent, but he wanted (needed maybe) to show her off to his fishing buddies, which was the only thing really he could show off as he is a very crappy fisherman ;)  )

We turned right through a gate just before the Lake Wellington Yacht Club and drove along the edge of Lake Wellington for a little while until we found a nice spot with its own little beach. The Yacht Club is home to the Marlay Point Overnight Race from Marlay Point to Paynesville each year.
Based at the western end of the Gippsland Lakes, we camped on the edge of protected wetlands and the Clydebank Morass Game Reserve is on the northern side of Marlay Point. 

Our own private beach

National parks have been doing a lot of planting around here so it's hard to find a spot where you can park.  It wasn't until after we set Barbara up that we noticed the "no camping" sprayed in yellow paint on the grass.....oops!!! Oh we'll, if they want people to see their signs, then they should put them on a big board :)

It was late and getting a bit too dark to take the kayaks out.

GM cooked satay chicken for tea and it was delicious as usual.  Had a couple of drinks and then off to bed.

Saturday 8th Dec, 2012

We woke up around 8 and had crunchy nuts for breaky.  Slathered sunblock on and put the kayaks in the water.  We went for a paddle around the point and could see the giant golf ball at Longford.  There are a lot of old submerged trees that the parks have put nesting boxes on so there are water fowl everywhere sitting in their own cliquey groups just like the local footy/netball club ;)

GM has decided he'd rather have a dodgem car than a kayak.......he came very close to pushing his luck!!!!!

The water isn't very deep but it is fresh water with a sand floor and no weed whatsoever.  Bit cold for swimming in the morning, so we stopped at camp for a bit of a laze and a ginger beer.  Dan Murphys didn't sell non alcoholic, so we had to settle for what we could get ;)

GM has just gone fishing in the kayak......probably should head off in a minute to rescue him, or at least find out what he really gets up to, coz I'm pretty sure it's not fishing!!!  Lucky we have a good food supply :)

Seems he wasn't going fishing after all.....he went treeing and lost his lure somewhere in the higher branches.  Might suggest buying fish and chips for lunch on the way home before we forget what the stuff tastes like ;)

The weather is amazing at the moment so there's been a few trips in the kayaks and even a bit of a dip. The water is shallow for a long way out but still deep enough for water skiing and jet skis.  We're not supposed to have a campfire, but there's supposed to be storms later and a cool change, so we went out in the hot sun and collected wood and checked out the other camp spots.

We had a stew for tea that turned out remarkably good considering we didn't think we'd be able to keep the flame alive with the wind that was blowing gale force through our camp.  GM tied the annex down with extra rope and we did a bit of lock down duties. Barbara did a bit of rock and rolling a wee bit like an earthquake (due to the wind of course!!!) but she survived her first storm very well :)  we even got to watch a bit of a lightening show through the sun roof ......GM has been hanging out for a thunder storm, but this was pretty tame as far as storms go.

North side of our camp

South Side of our camp.

Sunday 9th Dec, 2012

We woke to a fairly calm morning.  The wind is cold but the sun has a good kick in it.  GM is cooking me one of his amazing breakfasts and reminiscing about music and the memories it brings back, like the time in Daryl Fraser's panel van when they went to the drive in with a couple of girls :-O "paradise by the dashboard light" brings back memories for everyone I think ;) anyway, he's having a thoroughly good laugh about earlier times :D

He's gone for a paddle while I clean up the breakfast mess, but I might just have to join him!!!!

We had a lazy morning reading the local papers and junk mail and then the wind picked up.  It was no good for kayaking and after a while the wind started to become really annoying.  The sun was beautiful when you got out of the wind, so I took my book and went around the sheltered side of Barbara and lay in the sun and read.  I have no idea what GM was doing :-)  I think he wanted to pack up and go somewhere else, but I really couldn't have faced that.  I was totally wiped out after catching some horrid disease.....most likely from my work do the previous week :-/  I've witnessed how truly germy some of those fella's are throughout the year ;-)

Anyway we survived the day and had a bbq tea.  It's hard work trying to cook outdoors in conditions like that, but GM did a great job :-)

Monday 10th Dec, 2012

We woke to pretty much the same conditions as the previous day, but with the morning calm.  We had a cuppa, then hopped in the Kayaks and rowed around to Marlay Point.  There were a couple of old Italian men having a fish......oh dear, there really are fish in there ;-) They seemed to be having quite a bit of success with bream!

We went for a look at the lake map and then picked up a bit of rubbish.  There is one rubbish bin there.  It was completely full, and people just left their bags of rubbish on the ground or wherever they felt like.  Even nappies the dirty pigs.  They can bring it in with them, so why can't they take it home??

No sign of the park ranger or Wellington Shire.  The toilets had no paper, the septic tank was overflowing outside.  The first decent weekend of summer....they ought to be ashamed, what a pathetic effort for a beautiful tourist spot.

Our little trip only took about and hour and a half, but we were starving by the time we got back to camp.  Pancakes with maple syrup for breaky.  GM sure packs them away :-) and by that time, the wind had picked up again.  It was very gusty.  Thank goodness it waited until we got back, it would have been a hard row back.

We packed up camp and had a fairly tough time trying to pack up the awning in the wind but we managed eventually.  We were going great guns and then we lifted the floor.  GM let out an almighty girly shriek.....just kidding.......but he did swear a lot, and I've never seen him move so quickly before.

The big girls blouse was frightened by a little blue tongue ;-)  It was a beauty and didn't seem in the least bit fazed about us working around it.  It was a strange colour as far as blue tongues go, so it may be a different type than what we're used to seeing at home.

The bird life was amazing with swallows, finches, wrens, all types of water birds, sea eagles and hawks, magpies and crows and thousands of ducks.  

The only noticeably absent bird was the swan.  Didn't see a single one, which I found quite strange as they're usually massed around this part of the country.  There were wombat holes everywhere you walked and we were lucky not to drive into any.  Came close a couple of times.

Home time!

We wanted to stop off at BCF on the way home, so we called in at Rosedale Bakery for Coffee and a Pie.  We had our lunch under the most amazing tree at Blind Joe's Creek on the outskirts of Rosedale.  I've never seen so many different birds in one tree, and the branches were amazing :-)  A bird pooed on my shoulder which is supposed to be lucky, but I'm still waiting for that big win?????  

Got myself a new frying pan for Barbara, and a couple of other bits and pieces.  GM bought a few things too, then home to shower and get everything ready for work the next day.

Summary

• Well, if the weather had been great for the whole weekend, it would have been a terrific spot to stay, but it was a bit too exposed to the wind with no shelter.  But that's something we should have checked before choosing to come here for this particular weekend.
• The water was fantastic for all water leisure (other than GM's fishing) and we hardly saw a soul the entire weekend, very peaceful indeed. 
• There were no sandflies, but the March flies were around, still a bit slow at the moment, but here very early which may be a sign that it could be a very dry hot summer.
• I got a lot of rest, didn't drink too much and got quite a bit of kayaking in, which was thoroughly good fun!  GM got a weekend away in his beloved Barbara and she proved herself worthy to handle the wind and rain :-) 
• One thing we will have to keep an eye on though is snakes getting under the floor.......not quite sure how we go about checking this before we raise it, but I think I'll leave it to GM to raise the floor from now on ;-)  I'll sit in the car while he does that :-)
• We spent quite a bit of time making notes on improvements and things.  Why do we have 3 bottles of sunblock?? Why does GM have 10 stubbie holders???   
• We're off to the Mitta Mitta after Christmas, so am really looking forward to that, as this will be our first trip that's longer than a weekend!
• I think it may be worth our while to invest in a waterproof camera, as there were so many wonderful sights while we were kayaking.
• Note: Don't forget the good camera!!!!!!

Cheers!

Barbara Goes Bush #1 - 12/10/2012

12/10/2012

Well here we are deep in the hills at Taronga Falls on a very dark, very wet Friday night.  The weather is supposed to improve radically, so it should be lovely and warm by Sunday. (fingers crossed!)
Note to self: Snakes like warmth :-/

This was meant to be Barbara's first date, but she's been stood up :-O  They don't know what they're missing ;-)

We splashed out and bought a portaloo when we were at leisurefest last weekend, and GM just found them cheaper at Supercheap.....same brand!...isn't he just impressed!!!! But he only said one swear word, so his temperament is definitely getting sweeter.  Could be because he was excited about coming away in Barbara, could be because I have that wonderful calming influence on him, but really.............I think it's because he's very, very old now ;-)  Anyway, it is probably the best investment we've made since Barbara :-)

We were to stay at Loch Valley just outside Noojee, along the banks of the Latrobe River, but the place doesn't open until November.  Looked like a cattle yard, so I imagine it wouldn't be that great a place to enjoy the peace.

The campsite here is very muddy, and quite steep in places, but we're not packed in, and we have a lovely flat spot near the river.  There are drop toilets and fire pits, but we didn't have time to check the place out properly before night set in.  Am looking forward to a lovely walk to the falls and elsewhere :-)

Our campsite

Barbara goes to Taronga Falls

It doesn't matter too much if it rains as Barbara is waterproof, the annex has plenty of room and we have the right clothing and plenty of scotch and bourbon to keep us warm :-)

I am sitting here in a lovely snugly coat, drinking champers.  I can see my breath but am not cold.

Snug as a bug!!!

GM is cooking dinner and drinking champers faster than me. (We've already deduced that he's a bigger pisshead than me.)  He's a very contented soul at the moment, and life is good. :-)

13/10/2012

Had an amazing sleep and woke up to a light rain, had some cornflakes and a cuppa, made a stew in the dreampot for dinner and went and checked out the river.  We met Bella, a very excited, very muddy, fluffy white puppy.....even GM didn't crack up when she jumped all over him, but we both ended up wearing the same colour mud encrusted clothes for the day :-)

We went for a drive into the clouds, and GM wanted to show me McAdams Gap,

A wee bit wet up here :-)

but it was closed off for the winter still.  We stopped to take a couple of pics and amazingly, I found a gold nugget in the middle of nowhere on the top of the world :-)  It's about the size and shape of a $2 coin, and even has the same pictures on it ;-)  GM was pretty impressed!!!

My lucky nugget ;-) gone into the holiday fund!

We toodled down into Woods Point (I reckon my ears popped a dozen times going down!!!) We stopped at the pub and had a steak sandwich and a couple of beers for lunch :-).  There's an awful lot to see in there.......almost gives you the history of the place.  It's the 3rd pub and is about 70 years old, the other two burned down in bush fires.  We took a few pics and then headed off again.  There was a little boy about 3 years old standing on the road with no one else in site......he threw stones at the car.....unfortunately the laws in this country don't allow you to run kids over ;-)

Took some more pics of the old service station and main street and drove back to camp.

We drove through Matlock, but I couldn't see the police station.....there were clumps of daffodils and forget-me-nots all along the sides of the road.  I've seen more kookaburras today than I have all year, they obviously breed well up in these hills!!  The rain forest was beautiful, but I somehow preferred the top part driving across the high plains.  The trees are so tall and straight and there are so many of them :-)
The road was nearly all gravel, but seemed smoother than our sealed roads and highways. 

GM is in his element.....his car is covered in mud, Barbara is filthy and he finally got to play 4WD, pretending to get bogged.....I rolled my eyes at him, but luckily he hasn't read 50 shades ;-)  He only reads books with pictures!!!

We're now back at camp, the sky is clearing and it's very peaceful sitting here eating nibblies and drinking scotch in front of a lovely warm camp fire.

The sun is just starting to go down, so I'll have to get up soon and finish cooking tea before I can drink some more and relax some more :-)

14/10/2012

Well, it's Sunday and a very lazy sleep in.  It's finally stopped raining and the sun is out!! Woo Hoo!!!!
GM can be heard pottering around camp getting ready to cook me an amazing breaky, and the camp next to us is full of screaming kids.....super! 

So, after a lazy, amazing breakfast, we went for a walk to Taronga and Amphitheatre falls.

It is so amazing walking through rain forest.  There's lots of noise from the water and the birds, but it feels so quiet.  We stopped and watched a Lyrebird go by and then took a few pics of the Taronga falls, (a bit more spectacular than the Amphitheatre falls).

Taronga Falls.....a magnificent sight ;-)

Amphitheatre Falls

The walk is supposed to be 2 & 1/2 hours, but we did it in about 30/40 mins and it was very slippery, but beautiful.  On the way back to camp I almost stood on a Lyrebird hen.  She didn't seem in the least bit scared :-)  This is the natural habitat of the Blue Fairy Wren and the Black Wallaby, but we didn't see any of those.  All we saw were the Lyrebirds and Bronwyn & Matt from the next campsite with their dog Rupert the spoodle, who had very similar hair to me :-/

We got to camp in time to put a roast lamb in the camp oven.  Guests turned up at lunch time and we had a very leisurely afternoon drinking scotch and champers :-) while watching everyone else pack up camp.....suckers!!!!

Everyone has left, and GM made me the most awesome shower.  We're sitting here all squeaky clean but still stinking of campfire smoke :-) drinking scotch and bourbon, listening to the radio and river, and life is still grand!!! :-)

15/10/2012

Another lazy sleep in, then pancakes for breaky before packing up camp.  It isn't quite as muddy this morning.  We got going around 11 and stopped at the trestle bridge at Noojee.

Got a wee bit of a fright as something long and slithery crossed my path, but it was just a big skink....Phew!!!!
We went to look at the Aida Tree, but the road was closed, so maybe next time???  We drove back through Nayook and went on a detour to Glen Nayook.  It's a beautiful little patch of rain forest right in the middle of farmland.  The walk was steep and slippery and I must remember to wear decent footwear next time!!

It was hard work walking back uphill in thongs :-/  and I swear it took longer to wash the mud out from between my toes than it did to wash my hair!!

We're now back at the passion pit, all squeaky clean, smelling rather delicious.  I have a rather lovely shade of raspberry glow to my skin.
Note to self: Sunblock is there to be used, not just take up space! But I did get a good dose of Vitamin D :-) ......who would have thought, with all that rain!!!

Now it's time to plan the next adventure, which should be quite exciting, as we'll have some extra equipment to play with :-)

Stay tuned!!!!

Note: Life is Good :-))

More happy snaps below....................