Well, it’s taken a long time, but I’ve now faced the fact that I have to write the last chapter of our wonderful trip. I can’t believe that it’s been nearly twelve months since we headed off for our trip of a lifetime. It seems like only yesterday, but at the same time, it seems such a long time ago. We talk about it all the time, and it’s never far from our minds.
Despite life getting back to normal, now that the cold weather is settling in for the Melbourne winter, Doug and I still feel very unsettled and constant reminders of the travelling life from magazine articles, friends blogs and various forums only serve to confirm that we have to do it again.
A quick run down of the last week of our holiday, as I think I left you in Sydney when last I wrote.
We left our very lovely, centrally located Sydney caravan park and started to make our way south. Man, I thought Melbourne traffic was bad, but try getting from Lane Cove to the south-western suburbs of Sydney on a Monday morning!! But we eventually left the big smoke behind us and turned the car towards the Southern Highlands. It was a beautiful drive down through this area, and we had one more stop to make.
Lunch was waiting for us at another relative, who lives in the pretty town of Bundanoon. It was great to catch up with my aunt and my cousin and his wife and to spend time chatting about old times and family things. All too soon though, it was time to hit the road again, if we were to make any ground in finding a campsite before the end of the day.
We skirted around the edge of the Morton National Park and drove to a nice campsite, but here’s where staying in a NSW national park gets ridiculous. They wanted $28 per night to stay there, plus a $7 vehicle entry fee. This was to be paid before we could even drive it to see what the campground was like! So we said “no thanks” and kept going. Thankfully, with the help of Wikicamps, we found a couple of lovely free camping spots a bit further on, and had our choice for the night. We decided on a very quiet spot beside the Corang River and had the place to ourselves.
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| The serenity of the Corang River |
After another cool night, we were on the road early next morning and were heading for the last thing to tick off our list for the trip. We had set out to visit every mainland state and territory during our travels so our last port of call was to swing in through Canberra and the ACT on our way south. It wasn't the most direct route to where we were going, but it was a necessary diversion so we could add the last piece of the jigsaw.
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| Our nation's capital |
We travelled via the old town of Braidwood, where we stopped for a cuppa, before heading through Canberra and out the bottom side of the state. We had decided the town of Cooma was going to be our home for the night, and we enjoyed the slow amble south through small country towns until we arrived in the Snowy River town which played such a big part in the building of the hydro-electric scheme.
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| That ain't no way to treat a lady - some of the garden art we found in Cooma |
The next day we grabbed some last supplies in town and then headed up over the mountains. We took the route through Adaminaby, past the Tumult Reservoir to emerge on the other side of the range at Corryong. It was a spectacular drive, lots of winding single-lane road, steep climbs and equally steep descents. It was a perfect road for motorbikes and we had to be careful as we met a few on blind corners. I don’t know who got the bigger fright, us or them.
We arrived in Corryong; back in Victoria, the sun was shining and it was lunch time. It’s a beautiful, peaceful little town made famous as the resting place of the “man from Snowy River”, Jack Riley.
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| The Man from Snowy River |
We ate lunch on the grass, had a lovely coffee and after a look around, jumped back in the car and made our way to a little place called Old Tallangatta, to meet up with some friends who were spending Cup Weekend camped near there.
This was to be our last campsite for the trip and it was a nice way to spend our last few days, with good friends. We were very quiet on Sunday morning when it came time to pack up and head for home. It was such a mix of emotions. Of course it would be wonderful to see the kids and grandkids again, but so much of us just wanted to keep going. But here's a good reason to be home for a while.
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| Papa and Tom on Xmas Day |
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| Charlotte loved her presents |
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| So did Uncle Liam |
After leaving Melbourne in the middle of the year, we were finally travelling the last few hundred kilometres back home. What an incredible journey we have had discovering this amazing country of ours. This trip was meant to be a once in a lifetime adventure. But after four months we feel like we have only just started. There’s so much more to see; new places and places to re-visit.
Whatever the future holds (and we’re pretty sure it’ll be more time on the road), we have done our Big Trip now. The experience has enriched us and the photos and memories will last forever. It was an experience we will never forget.
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| Almost back to the starting place |
Some interesting stats:
Kilometres travelled - 18,949km
Cheapest diesel - $1.39 (Port Augusta, SA)
Dearest diesel - $2.50 (Mt Barnett Roadhouse, Gibb River Road)
Days on the road - 114
Campsite sets ups - 61 (including 2 in one day)
Favourite places
Kakadu National Park
El Questro
King Edward River (Mitchell Plateau)
Lawn Hill National Park
Gregory Downs
Elliott Heads
I had to limit myself to 6 - but there was many, many more.
Thanks to everyone who has read and commented on our blog. It's been great to have you along for the ride. I hope you’ve enjoyed it as much as we have. To everyone who is out on the road or about to start their own adventure, stay safe and have the time of your life!!!!
