The Stony Creek Trestle Bridge

There's a turn-off to the left just before Nowa Nowa, that says old Trestle Bridge 3 kms. I'm glad we decided to turn down here because we met John, an interesting old pensioner who has just bought a second hand three wheel bicycle, a present from Kevy, he said. For those who don't know, our Prime Minister Kevin Rudd gave all Australian pensioners, carers and parents on low incomes, a Christmas gift of around $1200 each in the hope they would spend the money and stimulate the economy. John says he's happy to be doing his bit for the country.

He's only had it 6 days and actually did 72 kms in one day and that's a long way for anyone, let alone a man well into his sixties, he said in a few months time when he works off all his excess fat, the young ladies will be queueing up for his attention. I'm not sure about the safety factor, coming around a corner on this narrow dirt track and meeting John head on might be a bit disconcerting, and when I think of him out on the highway with all those trucks the mind boggles, he's a sitting duck.

The bridge I thought was rather photographable (is that a word), the last train came across here in 1988.

We also got to watch a harmless goanna slowly amble across the road.

The fish are biting at Nowa Nowa

Are you wondering where this young fella's boat is? He doesn't have one, he caught these bream off the bank here at Nowa Nowa today, New Year's Eve, 2008 and with no fancy bait either, just ordinary everyday prawns!

Nowa Nowa is a 15 minute drive north of Lakes Entrance.

Fishing on 90 Mile Beach

90 Mile Beach, Lakes Entrance, Victoria

Lunch at the Metung Pub

Had a nice meal here at the Metung pub yesterday, it's about a 15 minute drive from Lakes Entrance. The food was pretty good, I had duck on a warm pear salad with toasted hazelnuts and Dennis had flathead in beer batter and chips, which seemed to be the most popular dish. Because the weather was overcast and dull, the view from the dining room wasn't as good as it would be on a sunny day.

Lakes Entrance, cruise of the lakes

Just a short walk through the scrub behind where these boats are beached, is 90 mile beach.






Decided to go on a three hour afternoon cruise of the lakes yesterday, the weather was beautiful. But our captain wasn't a happy camper, he was annoyed at the jet skis and ski boats who were hooning around the lakes when there was a 10 knot speed limit, he said it happens every year.








Four days ago this beautiful 18 year old girl pictured here with her father on Christmas Day, died when she was thrown from a speedboat that hit a tree on Lake Eildon at 1 pm in the morning. A 16 year old male who was driving the boat has since been charged with manslaughter. The lake was low and the tree was half submerged and difficult to see in broad daylight - the mind boggles.







The captain and his wife run the local afternoon cruise in peak time at Lakes Entrance. He drives the boat and his wife, a very friendly lady who likes to chat, makes fresh scones every trip and serves them with home made strawberry jam and cream. She cooks them on board and she brought out an enormous tray for everyone, then we were served with tea or coffee.






Molly Campbell, who belongs to Sean, a member of the crew, is a 10 year old bitza this and bitza that, and also a very important crew member.

Christmas Day at Lakes Entrance

Lakes Entrance has a first class Fisherman’s Co-op which made the decision of what to have for a special Christmas lunch very easy. We decided on one dozen Pacific (large) oysters each, followed by Lobster Mornay on a bed of mashed potatoes with finely chopped green onions through it.

Dennis cut the lobster into chunks and put the two empty half shells into the oven to warm. When I made a light mornay sauce, he put the lobster chunks into the sauce to heat through, then took the 2 now warm shells out of the oven, spooned the lobster mixture in and placed the finished product on a bed of mash – divine.

On Christmas night the owner of the Caravan Park invited everyone to another feast in the camp kitchen, he cooked some delicious pork with crackling and chickens for everyone with fried potatoes and lots of different salads. I was so full from lunch, I couldn’t do it justice but enjoyed chatting to the other campers. The weather was perfect - sunny but mild - about 24C.

Lakes Entrance in Victoria, truly is a beautiful place.

Lakes Entrance, Victoria

Double click to enlarge image. I took this photo on 22nd December at 11am, the temperature was 31C

Arrived at Lakes Entrance, Victoria, we’ll be here for two weeks which takes in Christmas and New Year.

The Victorians really love this place, there must be over 20 caravan parks here and almost all the private homes have been turned into flats. It’s expensive - $45 a night in the caravan park, but it is peak season and we are limited to parks that allow dogs. Pip is a French Bulldog and she doesn’t bark at all so she’s no trouble to anyone, she sleeps outside in the day and comes inside at night.

Dennis is very keen to free camp and wanted to check out a place called Paradise Beach which is in the Camps 4 book about a 220kms return trip from here, so off we went to check it out.

There were some very strange looking people camped at this Paradise beach, and it looked a long way from paradise. There were a couple of old battered caravans that looked ready for the scrap yard and some wild looking yobbos with beards sitting on empty oil drums around a campfire in front of a make-shift tarpaulin shelter. There was also an ancient old bus turned into a camper which looks like it wouldn’t make it up the next hill plus a couple of VW Kombis covered in graffiti.

Then I had to use the toilet and it was my favourite type, the dreaded self composting long drop toilet, just a deep hole in he ground. When I lift the lid, I try not to look down into the abyss and when I sit on the seat I can’t help imagining that I’ve just disturbed a sleeping python down there who’s decided to come up and see what’s happening.

Paradise Beach free camp is definitely not for me.

Malacoota, Victoria

Arrived at Malacoota, just over the New South Wales border and into Victoria, a beautiful spot where the lakes join the sea. It’s a small town and rather isolated, being 25 miles from the highway and a long way from the next major town. With a population of only 1000, at Easter and Christmas, the population rises to around 8,000.

Like most seaside country towns, it's deserted in the winter months and I noticed that most businesses were for sale - the bakery, newsagent, coffee lounge, grocery store but not the pub, we had a meal there one night and the place was jumping.

We got talking to a young couple who have been living here in their caravan at the Caravan Park for 5 months, the wife is working in the village coffee shop and her husband is an electrician putting solar panels in a primary school across the bay. They have applied for a Government job in an Aboriginal community in the Northern Territory and have received an interview date. If accepted they will be trained and then they will manage a general store in a small community. Just as well they are not big drinkers because it’s a grog free area, strictly no alcohol allowed. They are already experienced travelers and have been all around the country and enjoy the gypsy life but have their own home to go home to should the need arise.

Next stop, Lakes Entrance, Victoria

The Big Trip Around Australia

We said goodbye to our home in Sydney on the 3rd December and set off on our big adventure – to travel around Australia - with no set plans and about 12 months to do it.

We have a Jeep Grand Cherokee V8 and are hauling a 24ft Jayco caravan with its own shower, toilet and washing machine. And because we hope to do some 'free camping' (not staying in Caravan Parks) Dennis has a Yamaha 2.6kva generator mounted on the front of the van in it's own sound-proof box. Oh, and I mustn't forget our three year old female French Bulldog Pip.

First stop Batemans Bay, 300 kms south of Sydney, a popular holiday destination for our politicians, most having holidays homes here. It’s only a 2 hour drive from our capital city, Canberra.

Next stop Tathra in southern New South Wales. A terrible tragedy happened here just a few weeks ago. A young father was fishing at night with his two small boys off the Tathra wharf when suddenly the pram with the baby in it toppled into the water, followed by the toddler who was hanging onto it. The father jumped in to save them but his efforts were in vain, the seas were high and the night was very dark and they all drowned. When we went fishing on the wharf, there was a lone bunch of flowers and two drawings by a child pinned to the railing. The small town is still in shock.

Next stop Malacoota.

Paul McCartney upsets his neighbours

The British Government allows farmers to humanely cull deer and boar if they are a threat to the environment, farming or human safety. But Sir Paul is having none of it, he likes his boars and is allowing them to breed like rabbits and wreak havoc on his property and the neighbours are understandably furious.

The neighbours argue that crops, trees and gardens are being ruined by the animals who can weigh as much as a horse.

Sir Paul, a vege and animal rights campaigner will not hear of his boars being shot and is happy to let them overrun his 1500 acre estate in Sussex.

Neighbours say the boars are ruining crops, trees and gardens in the area.

Wild boar can be very dangerous and will attack people to protect their young. They have tusks and teeth like razors and a charging boar could kill someone.

Late Night Jokes

"Rod Blagojevich was arrested for trying to sell a seat in the Senate to the highest bidder. Isn't that crazy? Yeah. And folks, if convicted, he could wind up in prison, where his seat will be sold to the highest bidder." --Conan O'Brien

"Illinois Governor Rod Bla-son-of-a-bitch, is that how you say his name? Is it Bla-son-of-a-bitch? I think I'm saying that right. He was arrested for conspiring to sell the Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama. ... Let me tell you something. You know, you don't buy a Senate seat in this country. You take up donations. You go out. You lie to the American people. You make promises you are never going to keep. That's how you get to be a United States Senator." --Jay Leno

"And I love this story. Congress wants to appoint a government car czar to oversee the auto companies. Today, President Bush said, 'Car czar? Isn't he the president of Afghanistan?'" --Jay Leno

"Don't you love watching congressmen lecture auto executives on how to run their business? I mean, you got people that put us a trillion dollars in debt lecturing people who put us a billion dollars in debt." --Jay Leno

"Barack Obama said that he will not smoke cigarettes while he's in the Oval Office. He's kind of a closet smoker. So, he said he wouldn't smoke. And President Bush actually defended him today. President Bush said he smokes a cigar on rare occasions. He says it helps him think. Apparently it's a very rare occasion." --Jay Leno

"And President Bush talked about his religious believes on ABC's 'Nightline' the other night. When the host asked Bush if he was a literalist when it came to the bible, Bush said, no, no, he's actually a Methodist." --Jay Leno

"And today, in Hollywood, some same-sex marriage supporters urged people to call in gay and not go to work to show how much our country relies on the gay and lesbian people in the workforce. Interesting idea, but it kind of backfired here in Hollywood. When they called in, there was nobody there to answer the phone." --Jay Leno

Almost Homeless

Paul Nawrocki, has been looking for work for 9 months with no luck. So the 59 year old businessman took to the streets of New York with a make-shift sandwich board which reads:

'Almost Homeless.

'Looking for employment.

'Very experienced operations and administration manager.

'Desperately seeking full-time employment with insurance benefits for self and family.
Disabled wife on 15 medications.

'Request a copy of my resume. Any kind of help would be greatly appreciated.'

Although several people stopped and took a copy of his CV, he is still without a job.

'I've seen a lot of people look at me and get scared, too. Not of me, but you see it in their eyes.

'They are thinking, "Could it come to this? Could this be me someday?"'

Caterpillar plague drives small town crazy

A small town in Queensland has been suffering from a plague of millions of caterpillars for 18 months. One woman, Dallas Boothey is fed up and has to wear a full body suit every time she leaves the house because of a dangerous allergy.

The species is a processionary caterpillar, which is a sub-species of the bag-shelter moth.

Ms Boothey and friends have set up the Itty Bitty Grub Committee in an effort to get some help from environmental authorities. "The most frustrating part is that it's been so hard just to get somebody to come out here," she said.

"They are very easy to kill, just warm soapy water, but we can't do it by ourselves, because there is so much state forest and crown land."

Ms Boothey said it was in the authorities' best interest to act on the issue as the caterpillars were now only 28km away from the city of Bundaberg.

"And each time they outbreak, they move 8km further, we've measured it," she said.
Itty Bitty Grub Committee spokeswoman Karen Carr said she no longer lets her dogs outside, after one pet died earlier this year.

There will be a meeting held at the Darren Hotel where insect expert and Member of Parliament Rob Messenger will hopefully provide answers to the problem.

"It's like a horror movie, they're just hanging from trees, fence posts, they are everywhere” Ms Boothey said.

The sex life of the Redback Spider

The Australian male redback spider is rather romantic in his courtship - he plucks the female’s web, similar to strumming a guitar which is music to her ears. But after she succumbs to his advances and while he is engrossed in the mating ritual, she begins to eat him. The sex lasts from 6 to 31 minutes and she doesn’t even have the courtesy to wait until it’s all over.

Redbacks are only one of two spiders in the world where the male is eaten during copulation.

Redback bites occur frequently, particularly over the summer months and only the female bite is dangerous. They can cause serious illness and have caused deaths but since they rarely leave their webs, humans are not likely to be bitten unless a body part such as a hand is put directly into the web.

Common early symptoms are pain (which can become severe), sweating (always including local sweating at bite site), muscular weakness, nausea and vomiting. Anti-venom is available. No deaths have occurred since its introduction.