Brad & Julie's Farm - Then Home Again - Almost!!

On our way North to Bundy we called in to see our friends Brad & Julie Bretag who have a farm near Tiaro just South of Maryborough. The boys had a great time as did Lee and I. Here's Joey & Sam with the very cute...Fudge the dog...

Some of Brad's 'other kids' looking stressed as cattle don't...a nice lifestyle on the farm...peaceful and quiet with good company...

Brad used these cattle yards to separate the cattle when they were sprayed for tics...one of the many jobs involved in looking after a cattle farm...the boys liked it too!!

This calf was having some difficulty getting milk...maybe it's a bit shortsighted??

Any farm would be incomplete without a farm ute...here's a classic Aussie ute. It may need just a little touch up here and there to bring it up to scratch...

Joey & Sam having a drive on Brad's tractor. The boys loved the farm...the hospitality of the generous Bretag family much appreciated by the durnies...

...Well, after 45,000km and seeing many beautiful places and having the pleasure of meeting some great people, we arrive back in Bundaberg. We left in late June 2010 and arrived back mid June 2011.

We're all very grateful for the opportunity and the experiences we've been able to enjoy together...not quite done yet though...the tenants in the house have a couple of weeks left!! Oh well, we'll just have to tough it out at the lovely Bargara Beach Caravan Park...

Tin Can Bay & Rainbow Beach - Cooloola Coast

Leaving the hustle of the Gold Coast we headed north to Brisbane and then to the lovely Cooloola Coast Region just East of Gympie. This shot is of our campsite at Tin Can Bay...

Between Tin Can Bay and Rainbow beach visitors can stop at 'Carlo Sandblow' which is a large are of sand that is slowly heading inland - very similar to Fraser Island which is just off this coast...

Lee, Joey, & Sam at Carlo's Sandblow with Sandy Strait in the background...

Rainbow Beach is viewed looking south along Carlo's Sandblow. The coloured sands found along this beach are why the beach has its name...

Tom, Joey, & Sam had a crack at sand boarding without much success - too wet...Oh well, worth a try...

Back at Tin Can Bay Lee is preparing to feed the local Dolphins - if they are lucky!! Fish without the chips - no thanks!!

Here she is again...feeding the Dolphin this time...all good fun

Not to be outdone by mum, Joey has a go....if you don't look you don't see them bite your fingers...the Dolphins are quite used to being close to people...

Movie World - Gold Coast

Here's Louey, Joey, & Sam at the entrance to Movie World, one of the popular theme parks on Qld's Gold Coast....looking forward to what's inside...

The Princess sneaks a photo with Scooby-Do and his sidekick Shaggy...

 Sam thought the Scooby-Doo Spooky House was pretty cool!

During the Day, we were able to see the stunt drivers do their thing. They performed the stunts to a hold-up theme with the bad guys being chased by the cops....

Joey & Sam up close to the Batmobile...very cool!

A couple of old time favourites - Daffy Duck and Tweety Bird.....no Putty Cat in sight....

It was a tight squeeze, but I managed to get into the Batman suit and say hi to the crowd...

At days end it was a very good day out for the visitors to the Gold Coast!

Mount Hotham Victoria & Some Snow

One of the things we really wanted to do if possible was to see some snow on our trip, as the boys hadn't seen any, and Lee and I hadn't for a long time...so off we went on a day trip from Bright to Mt Hotham which is supposed to be Australia's highest snow resort...

Beside a cafeteria we came across a lump of snow that had fallen the previous week, most of which had melted due to the rains that had followed...it was a start! The boys were quite excited...Lee just wanted to throw some at Tom!!

This pan shot is a typical view of the country surrounding Mt Hotham...very cold, -1 to 1 degree min and max temperatures!!

Joey and Sam were happy to find some more snow to play in. Funny how people want to throw the stuff at the camera person!!

Sam was so excited he had to sit down...not for long though, just enough to make his bottom numb!!

Tom, Joey, & Sam experienced a little snow fall during our walk around Mt Hotham. The boys had just enough to make them want to come back again...in the middle of winter next time...

Bright - Victorian Alpine Country

Here we are down South in Victoria (again!). This shot shows something a lot of Queensland doesn't see - Autumn leaves falling. We have a lot of evergreens in the North. These colours of Autumn are all around Bright which is a lovely little town at the foothills of Victoria's Alpine Country...

Sam is getting into the swing of things and letting off some steam, having a good time playing around in the park full of leaves...

Leeanne was keen to practice some more photography. It'd easy to see why Americans call this time of year 'Fall'...

Something we heard about recently was a silly sort of 'game' called planking. Here's Joey demonstrating a  way of executing the 'art'...

...He decided that it would be far easier and more comfortable to utilise a real 'plank' to show his style on...

Not to be outdone, the 'old bloke' has a go as well. Something the photo doesn't highlight are the creaks! The bent legs aren't on purpose, it's actually the first stage of rigour mortis!!!

Lee has captured the scene alongside the Ovens River which runs through Bright quite nicely. It really is a quaint sort of town with lots of colours and attractions...

Above us we could see the 'Big Bird' heading south (probably to Melbourne) and couldn't resist a snapshot...

Into Qld & Kenilworth on the Sunshine Coast

Here is the entrance sign to 'God's Country' the 'beautiful one day, and perfect the next' - QLD!! However, the last 12 months of topsy-turvey weather might suggest otherwise....anyhow it's a beautiful drive through the countryside of Tenterfield (NSW) to the Sunshine Coast...

Arriving at Kenilworth we set up camp a day earlier than other visitors from the fellowships around the Sunshine Coast. Here's Louey in her 'PJ's' to greet the new day!!

A pan view of the lovely hills around the Kenilworth Showgrounds - very peaceful...

This is Elizabeth St which is the main street of the township. Both sides have a coffee shop & cafe to snack at if visitors choose to. Overall it's a quaint sort of atmosphere here...

A local tourist attraction is the Cheese factory where visitors can indulge in a variety of cheeses, as well as yoghurts, and other fat laden dairy products...yummy...

The kids hangout! Kenilworth town park, where kids of all ages congregate...some in their forties and fifties!! I think it's because of the sliding swing and surrounding greenery....

Another highlight of our Kenilworth visit, (but she's a highlight anywhere in Australia!) was the princess having a birthday. Thanks for the cake Chrissy!...

Newcastle & Salamander Bay Area

Heading north from the 'Big Smoke' we went to Newcastle which is a couple of hours away. Quite a beautiful section of coastline compliments this medium size city. This shot is of Newcastle main beach.

A further 55km north took us to Lee's home town area of Nelson Bay which has a multitude of inlets and beaches, all part of the Port Stephens area which holds several more times water than Sydney Harbour. Here is Sam having some exercise at the local park near Lee's parents' place...

A pan view of the southern bay area looking towards Corlette Beach...

Joey & Sam at the northern end of Wanda Beach. On this occasion we were headed up the beach to check out a tree swing that someone kindly provided...the boys had a ball...

...here's the 'swingers' at Wanda Beach...

A pan view of Wanda Beach showing the heads. On the south is Tomaree National Park and on the north is Yackaba...

Yes, another year rolls by...birthday time again...at Ma & Pops' this time. Thanks boys & mum for the pressies and songs...

Because we missed Christmas with the family this year it was...Christmas in April at Ma & Pops'...

A bit of nostalgia...in 1982 I worked on these storage tanks (at left) for Tomago Alumina. At the right is one of the coal loaders on Kooragang Island. Newcastle is the worlds busiest coal port!!