Maldon, Victoria

Ratings: CP ** Surroundings **

A walk into the past ...Maldon's streets are lined with well preserved buildings including heritage miners' accommodation such as Scotch Pie House. This 1866 building houses a shop and provides comfortable accommodation for visitors to the Victorian Goldfields. Maldon has been designated "Australia's First Notable Town" by the National Trust of Victoria due to its nineteenth century appearance maintained since the gold rush days.  In addition to various festivals, it is known for its annual street Twilight Dinner which raises funds for the town.  A steam train still runs between Castlemaine and Maldon.

Ultimate contentment in the evocative Maldon Athenaeum Library reading room. The library was established in 1863. My senses were delighted by the smells of musty books, antique furniture, stained glass windows, Victorian prints and etchings and by the array of books, modern and classic, as we wandered through. Staffed by volunteers, we were fortunate that one of those volunteers appeared and opened the library for us. She treated us to a historical tour around the entire building!

A corner of the library which houses The Maldon Collection which comprises books reflecting the lifestyle of the goldfields in the Victorian and Edwardian eras in addition to books tracing the development and history of Maldon.

An Aboriginal print discovered tied to the church fence by blue ribbons. The Dja Dja Wurrung people were the original inhabitants of this area and there is some evidence that small pox swept through the tribe in 1789 and 1825. There are also massacres of the tribe in the territory between 1838 and 1859 reported in a register compiled by Ian D. Clark. The Dja Dja Wurrung people are now formally recognised under the Traditional Owner Settlement Agreement 2010 (Victoria) as traditional owners for part of Central Victoria.

Parched landscape beside the depleted Cairn Curran Reservoir constructed primarily for irrigation purposes between 1947 and 1956.

Officer, Victoria

Golden green landscape on a misty morning in Officer where we stayed with my cousin. A ram being treated for pinkeye became the shadow of these two horses which calmed him when he was stressed or agitated.

The small 'flock' of Dorper ewes peacefully grazing. The ram was allowed to join them soon after this photograph was taken as his eye infection had improved.

Berwick, Victoria

Our home dwarfed by two giants on either side of us at Akoonah Park, Berwick....a strange and almost claustrophobic experience! These are known as "Fifth wheelers"and are towed by powerful vehicles.

Colourful collage along Elizabeth Street in Melbourne during our day trip.

Princes Bridge across the mighty Yarra River in Melbourne.

African rhythms ....a snapshot of Africa at Flinders Street Station in Melbourne!

Seaspray, Victoria

Ratings: CP *** Surroundings ****

Puddles left by the high tide along 90 Mile Beach where children were content to spend time playing on warmer days. We had two perfect days for exploring, swimming and welcoming 2016 before the weather deteriorated drastically.
Seaspray is a small coastal village with about 300 residents. It has a post office / general store which provides basic supplies, take-away but no fuel. The newly established and popular Surf Club offers a varied cuisine. In addition, a pizza van and a pancake, strawberries and ice cream van are semi-permanent fixtures on the lawns of the foreshore during holiday time. These are favourites with hungry holidaymakers who almost certainly outnumbered the locals over the New Year period!

Patterned shapes and colours gifted by the ocean as the tide went out.

Four days of gusty winds and rain forced us from our beach meanders to find alternative walks and shelter along the serene Merriman Creek.

Wheelie Good wood fired pizzas were delicious!

Lakes Entrance, Victoria

Ratings:  CP **  Surroundings ****

The Entrance in the distance is man made connecting the Gippsland Lakes to Bass Strait.  Lakes Entrance is primarily a fishing and tourist driven town.

Picturesque fishing boats in the port off loading their catches.

90 mile beach, one of the longest in the world, stretches as far as the eye can see while a tower used by life guards awaits the arrival of the post Christmas holiday crowds.

A treasure trove discovered in the small settlement of Nowa Nowa which used to be a timber town. This general store serves as a post office, petrol station, supply store and has a wonderful array of craft work, some locally made.

Idyllic Metung............waiting for a friend after fifteen years apart.

Mallacoota, Victoria

Ratings: CP ***** Surroundings *****

Morning light over Bottom Lake, Mallacoota...the view from our site.

Bottom Lake is home to a bird sanctuary. While flocks of water birds rose into the air and then settled on sandbars in a cacophony of song and beating wings, languid pelicans watched on.

Reflective images and silence in calm waters of the lake on a windless day.

White sands stretch north from Bastion Point to the inlet where the Tasman Sea and Bottom Lake meet.  Over a period of 10 years, a group comprised of  local organisations and individuals attempted to prevent the building of a large breakwater and boat ramp south of Bastion Point. They were concerned about the environmental impacts of the proposed construction but they lost their fight in December 2014.

Layers of colour emerge from the wet sand.. Mudstone, sandstone, silica and shales laid down over millions of years. Apparently most of these Ordovician rocks in Victoria are of deep water sedimentary origin and have been squeezed, exposed, baked, covered and eroded by currents and other environmental factors.

Eden, NSW

Ratings: CP ***** Surroundings *****

Mealtime for an egret as the tide rises in Lake Curalo...the view from our site. Eden has an interesting whaling history: the Thawa people of the Yuin Aboriginal nation were the original inhabitants of this area and had a special relationship with dolphins and whales, killer whales (Orca) in particular which were sacred and which they refused to kill. However the settlers exploited Aboriginal knowledge of whales, employing them in the whaling industry which began in this area around 1828. The Orca whales were used to trap humpbacks which entered Twofold Bay where they were harpooned and the Orcas were rewarded with humpback carcasses. Whaling was banned in Australia in 1979.

An solitary walk along the sweeping Aslings Beach returning from the Lake Curalo inlet.

Colours and reflections of the serene Merimbula River where we enjoyed coffee after a boardwalk.

The Pinnacles of Ben Boyd National Park. Surprisingly different to other pinnacles we've seen, this is a natural cliff formation of multi coloured sands and clays which were apparently deposited around 65 million years ago during the Tertiary geological period. The top of the white sediment marks the level of an ancient water table while the red colour is iron oxide.