Road Trip 2017 - 1st-4th August - Bribie Island Relaxing - the last 3 days!!

To finish off this years road trip we had a relaxing 3 nights by the beach at Bribie Islands Woorim Caravan Park.

This is quite an old park - but though the facilities are old they are clean and the park is just a 5 minute walk to the surf beach.

My only reservation in going to this park (where we have previously been with the tvan) was that a lot of the sites are tight / awkward to get into. We did mention this when booking and were fortunately given a corner spot - although for my backing skills it was still quite tight and a bit daunting - especially with the new bigger camper.

Yeh!!!  It wasn't quick - but I came through with flying colours and we worked well as a team to get Miss Q perfectly where she needed to go on the site.

Our time here was spent taking in a morning and afternoon beach walk, reading in the sunshine - and having fish chips from a little Bongaree cafe, overlooking the lovely Pumicestone Passage. As far as we are concerned these guys, at Bongaree foreshore, do the best grilled barramundi we have ever had anywhere -  well that is barring the feast we had on Talbot Bay (on our trip to the Horizontal Falls some years back in WA) - which was beyond comparison.

Here are some lovely shells collected on the beach at Woorim. I just can't help myself I am always looking at shells as I walk any beach - and have a collection at home that I might make something with one day,!!

It was a short 1hr trip home on Friday (4th August) and we were back to the realities of regular life in Brisbane.

Another road trip enjoyed!!!

We are now planning and organising for our 12 mths on the road in 2018!!!   Bring it On!!!!

Road Trip 2017 - Day 24 (31st July) - Overnight at Kenilworth Showground

Today we drive down through the lovely Mary River Valley to Kenilworth. 

Getting close to home now aren't we!!

We wanted to try and catch up with a guy who does accessories for campers/caravans - he came highly recommended to us by some other travellers that we met at Lara Wetlands.

He comes to your site and helps you work out what you want in terms of awning shade --  and then can usually whip it up for you that day apparently.  We also wanted to purchase from him a clothes line that he makes that velcros onto the awning supports - it is a pretty handy accessory.

I locate his mobile number - from a sign on the notice board at the Showground - and ring him - but unfortunately he is away for a couple of weeks. Just bad timing on our part!!

We will have to get ourselves back up here for a long weekend sometime later in the year if we are going to get this guy to do some work for us.

We spend the day just lounging in the lovely sun and checking out what we might buy from the Kenilworth Cheese factory and sampling some of the cheeses they have. We also get some yummy yoghurt for afternoon tea snack.

Of course happy hour today includes a Kenilworth Cheese - Lemon Myrtle and Macadamia.

[Scotty and Jan Travelling Trimmers 

Caravan Annexe Shades

Kenilworth 

0417 460 900]

Road Trip 2017 - Day 23 (30th July) - The Magnificent Whales at Hervey Bay!!

We leave early and drive to Hervey Bay where we find a cafe on the waterfront for breakfast.

We find the marina our tour is leaving from and the shop front for Pacific Whale Foundation - the not-for-profit research foundation that we are going out with today.

Our whale watching tour today is for 3hrs - 11am to 2pm - and we are soon boarding with a dozen others with high hopes of seeing some whales today.

We travel out into the bay - and our captain takes us in for a closer look at Frasier Island as we are passing by it

We have scored the most beautiful weather for our tour today - it is a gorgeous sunny day and dead calm - so we happy just enjoying the boat trip out on the water.

Early on we don't have much luck getting in a position to have any whales close around us - but about halfway into the tour we move in nearby a couple of whales frolicking in the bay and are lucky enough for them to take an interest and continue to swim around and under our boat.

It is really impossible to describe the feeling of being in the presence of these huge creatures of the sea  - it was really quite overwhelming at times just trying to take in the sheer size of them.

The clarity of the water was also amazing and we could actually see the whales under the water - 

One of the whales even breached right in front of the bow of our boat - but the only photo I got was the resulting splash.

This would have to rate as one of the best experiences we have ever had - it was just awesome and breathtaking being so close to these wonderful creatures.

Road Trip 2017 - Day 22 (29th July) - Checking out Maryborough!!

This morning we travelled into Gayndah with Cindy and Russ and had morning tea at the local bakery before sadly parting company with them.

Gayndah is situated on the banks of the might Burnett River - not a lot of water in it when we were there - but it can be a fearsome beast and Gayndah has suffered in times of flood.

Having a bit of a wander to check the river we spy a flock of Pelicans - and they are "herd fishing" - grouping together to herd and encircle their fish prey and then they all duck their bills in together to hopefully catch some fish.

Cindy and Russ are now on a mission to get south to Newcastle -  and we have decided we are going to head on over to the coast to Hervey Bay.

SInce we are so close, and it's the right time of the season, we are thinking that we should take in a whale watching tour.

We have decided to stay over in Maryborough and travel the 30mins from here into Hervey Bay to do the whale watching your.

After leaving Cindy and Russ we have to head back through Biggenden and then East on the Maryborough-Biggenden Road to Maryborough.

We ended up at the Maryborough showground - a nice cheap campsite with quite a few other travellers. Definitely much cheaper than staying in Hervey Bay and for $20 we had power and good hot showers.

After lunching at this campsite we jump in LC and drive into Maryborough to take a look around this town and to grab a few groceries at the supermarket.

We park and walk down to the riverside of the Mary River to check out the historic precinct of Maryborough.

We find a lovely cafe at the Marina -  of course we have to stop for coffee - it's just lovely sitting by the river in the sun.

We walk through the park and find this lovely memorial statue to the first Australian Digger to set foot ashore at Gallipoli (believed to be Duncan Chapman from Maryborough).

- it's a very simple but moving installation.

On our further wandering of this area we find this interesting piece of work ---

And these 'Ships Bollards' --

I have managed to book us on a whale watching tour from Hervey Bay tomorrow at 11am - we are very excited and so looking forward to tomorrow.

Road Trip 2017 - Day 20/21 (27/28th July) - Beautiful Mingo Crossing - 30km N of Gayndah

KWe left 1770 this morning heading to a quieter country town where we could have a fire - we just did not know exactly yet what that actual destination was going to be.

We did however have some plan in that we had to do via Bundaberg - as Russ wanted to go to the Bundaberg Rum Distillery to get a special liquor they make. 

We took the back road from Agnes Water to Bundie - through all the farmlands of this outer Bundie area.

Lots of sugar cane fields, strawberry growing farmland, tomatoes and some other produce of which we were not sure - bit hard to tell speeding by them

Once in Bundie the Distillery wasn't too hard to find and Russ had his liqueur. But being back in civilisation - with traffic lights and all the traffic itself was bloody awful!!

We love this sign in the distillery carpark - 

The goods in hand - we headed off to take in a few areas around Bundie - and we found the best morning tea ever at a little bakery/cafe at Burnett Heads and by god we did enjoy and overindulge 

In the yummy pies, sausage rolls and pecan slice!!!!   We rated the pie as best we have seen/had anywhere!!!

We then took Cindy and Russ to Elliott Heads - a southern beach area of Bundie - at the mouth of the Elliott River.

This is one of our most favourite places that we discovered some years ago in this area - but we have yet to come back and stay at the caravan park located right at the beautiful location. One day!!!

From Elliott Heads we decided to take a back roads short cut across to the Bruce Highway - lots of dirt roads and farmland - that was fun!!

We now had decided on a destination for the night and we headed out through Biggenden for the backwaters of Paradise Dam - to a campground at Mingo Crossing.

Very pretty coming intoBiggenden --  

And we drove around a bit here looking for the correct road to take for Mingo Crossing

Once on the correct road we had a quick stop to check out Historic Chowey Rail Bridge - built 1905. It's no longer in use.

We made Mingo Crossing by mid afternoon - what a gem of a find this was. Good work Cindy!!

We were quickly settled and relaxed - with wine in hand late afternoon - looking forward to a night by the campfire.

Russell even had the Weber fired up - it was all happening.

We were soooo relaxed and settled here - that we decided to sat on for a second night - planning a camp oven meal on the fire coals for dinner.

It was a gorgeous day and we got a load of washing done and dried in the beautiful sunshine.

Rest of the day was just relaxing and wood scavenging out along the road.

Then playing cards whilst the camp oven cooked and enjoying the sunset.

We have loved these few nights in the great outdoors travelling with Cindy and Russ again - we say goodbye to them tomorrow and look forward to our planned travels together next year. 

Bring it On!!! - Can't Wait!!!