Caravan with a propeller

The final highlight of our Murray River tour was three nights on a riverboat exploring its reaches around the historic town of Echuca. The town was once a bustling inland port on the Murray. At its peak, between 1865 and 1910, hundreds of steamers plied the river, opening up large areas in New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia. For many settlers, they were the only source of supply and contact with the outside world.

Today you still enjoy the steam-driven era courtesy of paddle steamers offering tourist excursions from the river wharves. However, these days Echuca and its NSW twin city of Moama are a popular destination for hiring private river boats. Garry and I joined the throng by renting a boat for three nights, based out Moama.

I’d pushed for a more spacious deluxe option on offer from Moama on Murray Houseboats. However, Garry was keen on the entry-level vessel thanks to its more generous outdoor deck area. The boat we ultimately chose I subsequently christened “a caravan with a propeller.”. Although, to Garry’s credit, it did offer all the mod-cons we wanted including a hot shower, air-conditioning, gas cooktop, BBQ and a reasonably generous fridge. The bed was also partially segregated from the living and dining areas creating two distinct zones inside.

The hire company provided a series of detailed river maps and gave a thorough orientation of the boat’s features before we set off mid-afternoon for our first cruising adventure. We followed their recommendation and made our way downstream past the town centre and bustling wharves. It suggested this route in part because the river has a speed limit through town and thus it's easier to become accustomed to the boat without battling endless ski boat wakes.

We eventually pulled up for the evening on quiet riverbank 100 metres beyond the Dhungala bridge. This bridge is still under construction and will become the region’s second river crossing. Berthing a riverboat is surprisingly simple. You simply reverse into the bank and tie the boat onto two of the nearest trees. Once moored we cracked open the wine and watched the sun go down while enjoying flocks of cockatoos swarming on the opposite bank.

Our first full day on the river was an ambitious one. We retraced our steps and continued upriver until we eventually found a muddy beach, kilometres from the nearest campsite. It proved to be a wise choice. This stretch of the Murry was almost completely devoid of the noisy ski boats we’d passed for much of the day. You can see our location on Google Maps below.

The next morning made our way at a leisurely pace downriver. Our aim was to base ourselves in a scenic spot that was close enough for us to motor home the following morning in time for our scheduled “checkout” deadline. By chance, we came across a sandy beach south of the Murray Goulburn River junction. It was a quiet spot on a gently curving bank free from ski boats on the river and campers on the shore.

We settled in for the afternoon and spent a wonderful time swimming for hours in the shallows, drinking wine, and watching the world go by. We were also visited by native ducks and other fauna as the sun dipped below the far bank. Perhaps the only thing that spoilt the experience was the hundreds of leeches that came out to play early the following morning. We’d had no idea they were residents in the general area.

We completed our riverboat adventure the following morning with a well-timed dash back to port. Three nights on the Murray was refreshing and a genuine highlight of our tour along this legendary river.

UPDATE: 24 October

The Murray River reaches its highest level in 100 years on 22 October causing widespread flooding across Victoria and inland NSW. In Echuca, the river peaked at 94.94 metres (above sea level) making it the third-highest flood in the town's history - only behind the levels of 1870 (96.20m) and 1867 (95.34m). Garry and I can hardly believe that some of the towering river banks we saw around Euchua have been overwhelmed.

The perfect lunch spot

Our driving route between Yankabilly Island and Echuca was mapped out to give us plenty of spectacular Murry River views. We spread the journey over two days with an overnight stop in Swan Hill. Our booking in Swan Hill was a last minute addition. With the border remaining open in the days leading up to our vacation we decided to relocate to a motel in town rather than stay at a regional golf resort in New South Wales.

This proved a savvy decision. The Augusta Motel got rave reviews online and proved to be a great choice. We had planned to visit Swan Hill’s primary attraction, the Pioneer Settlement museum. However, the day before we’d enjoyed spectacular lunch on the river that left us keen to get to Moama and board our riverboat as early as possible. As a result, we stopped at the town's giant Muarry Cod for an obligatory tourist photo, walked The Ten Steps down to the Murray, and then headed south via Lake Boga.

Our lunch spot the previous day had been a genuine stroke of luck. We followed the Murray River out of Mildura and headed east towards Boundary Bend. We’d planned to have lunch in Boundary Bend. However, upon arrival, the riverscape around the town left a lot to be desired. On a whim, we took a gravel side road on the other side of town that lead to the Passage Camp Conversation Reserve.

Much to our delight, the end of the road opened onto a stunning scenic bend in the river. We pulled out our picnic rug and enjoyed an hour of sunny solitude soaking in the most magical scene. Without a doubt, it was one of the most memorable lunch spots on our entire road trip. Click on the panorama below to enlarge it and you'll see exactly what I mean.

COVID-free no more!

As 2021 comes to an end it’s a shock to see daily COVID cases in the state of New South Wales hitting a new record high of 21,151 today. Two weeks' vacation in the outback is suddenly looking very prescient indeed!

 
According to NSW Health, more than 14 percent of tests processed in the 24 hours to 8pm on Thursday were positive, indicating a significant rate of cases undetected in the community.

I’ve already booked my booster shot after we arrive back in Sydney. It’s hard to believe that as little as six months ago we were all freaking out over one or two isolated cases. The new normal has certainly changed. Party safely tonight everyone!

The ultimate river R&R

 

Our Murray River adventure continues. We’re now comfortably settled into our Airbnb digs on the bank of the Darling River. This river is the largest tributary of the Murray River catchment. For the next five nights, we’re enjoying plenty of R&R doing absolutely nothing every day.

Our accommodation is impressive, to say the least. We’ve based ourselves in a modern apartment-style home with soaring ceilings and a wall of glass that looks out over manicured lawns and the Darling River. It’s part of a hobby farm located on Yankabilly Island, a semi-isolated landmass that was once the eastern bank of the river itself.

The farm is located just 10 minutes drive from the town of Wentworth. This town’s claim to fame is its location at the junction of the Murray and Darling River systems. Earlier in the day we stopped in town and climbed a local observation tower. Here we could see the brown and murky waters of the Darling slowly merging with the greener hues of the Murray. This is my second time in Wentworth. I was last here in 2003.

UPDATE: 2 January 2022
We’ve finally had our first river swim. The Airbnb homestead has its own floating jetty. We ventured down to the river yesterday and enjoyed a couple of hours splashing around the muddy Darling. The outback heat here has been extraordinary. We’ve endured temperatures approaching 40 degrees most days. Thank goodness the home has air-conditioning!

Murray River: first sighting

We’ve made it! Garry has finally spent a night on the banks of the Murray River. We’re currently in Euston on the NSW side of the river near the Victorian town of Robinvale. When we first planned our itinerary, we mapped it out in such a way that it could be driven in its entirety without ever crossing into Victoria. While the border had reopened, we thought it prudent that we always stayed overnight in NSW – just to be safe! As a result, we’re staying in several towns where the NSW destination is often a sleepy twin of its nearby Victorian neighbour.

Euston is one such town. It’s basically one street village on the banks of the Murray River. The biggest venue in town is the local community club. We’re staying overnight in one of its riverside motel units. Here we can sit on the porch and look out over the mighty Murray. Sadly, our first river vista is somewhat marred by the presence of large power pylons spanning the river in this location.

Earlier in the day, we stopped at the Shear Outback centre. Located outside Hay, this venue celebrates Australia’s iconic sheep shearing traditions. Here we watched them shear a sheep and toured its interpretative centre filled with all manner of shearing paraphernalia and outback farming exhibits.

Today's scenic lunch spot was the Swing Bridge in Balranald on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River. This proved to be a picturesque location filled with wildlife including plenty of Rosellas and Kookaburras. The area also has a scenic walking track. However, recent rains have flooded the area so this excursion was off the table today.

We’re also patting ourselves on the back as we enjoy some much-needed COVID-free outback air. With more than 11,200 new cases in the state of New South Wales today we think it’s the best place to be.

Koala spotting

The second night of our transit toward the Murray River saw us stop overnight in Grong Grong. The motel we'd booked proved to be the only disappointment on our entire vacation. It was rather plain and a little shabby around the edges, to say the least. However, I’d chosen it so that we’d be close to Narrandera and its popular Koala Reserve.

To reach Grong Grong, our touring route took us through Young and then on to Temora. The town of Temora proved a memorable stop. On the outskirts of town sits the Temora Memorial Museum. It’s famed for its semi-annual airshows when lovingly restored Second World War spitfires and other vintage aircraft take to the skies.

The museum itself houses an impressive collection of planes. Highlights for us included a visit to the restoration hanger where we witnessed a spitfire undergoing routine maintenance. The Tiger Moth and Vampire jet were also highlights. This event was well worth a pit stop – and even better – it cost us nothing thanks to event vouchers issued recently by the NSW Government. As the pandemic grinds on, these vouchers have been given to residents statewide as part of a program designed to help struggling local businesses.

The following morning, we made our way into Narrandera to spend a couple of hours searching for koalas along the banks of the Murrumbidgee River. In 1972, at a time when no koalas had been seen around these parts since 1900, koalas were re-introduced into a local reserve from Victoria and Queensland. Through heatwaves, flooding and fire, a healthy population has survived. Today, there are an estimated 200 koalas living in the area.

We did well. During a 5km hike through the gum trees, we ultimately spotted three adults plus one baby clinging to its mother (you can see its little leg sticking out in one of the photos posted here). There’s something wonderfully satisfying about spotting koalas in the wild.

We stopped for lunch on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River outside Darlington Point before making our way on to Hay for our next overnight stop at the beautifully restored Convent Hotel. Sadly the image below isn't the hotel but one of the town's historic buildings.  However, the hotel itself was still a picturesque clutter of white-washed colonial buildings in the middle of town.

Bathurst and Beyond

Our journey towards the Murray River took us through some NSW’s most renowned regional centres. After leaving the Blue Mountains spent three nights progressively making our way southeast towards Euston, where we’d planned our first sighting of Australia’s landmark river.

On Boxing Day we drove inland towards Bathurst and then on to Cowra for our first overnight stop. As all good tourists do, we took time out in Bathurst to drive the Mount Panorama racing circuit and enjoy its scenic views across the town. No speed limits were broken during our circuit!

We stopped for a picnic lunch on the shores of Lake Carcoar. Picnic lunches have become one of our signature activities on these road trips, both here and overseas. Over the years we’ve built out an impressive “picnic basket” stocked with all manner of cutlery, crockery, and utensils. However, for this trip Garry has taken things to a new level. He’s bought a mobile fridge Eski that plugs into the car during the day and then into a regular household socket at night.

The following morning was spent touring Cowra’s war-themed tourist attractions. During the Second World War Cowra housed a major POW camp. More than 4,000 Axis military personnel and civilians were detained here in a massive complex built on the outskirts of town. Almost half of those interned were Japanese soldiers and officers.

At 1.50 am on the clear moonlit night of August 5, 1944, the largest Prisoner of War breakout in modern military history occurred at Cowra. More than 1000 Japanese prisoners launched a mass 'suicide attack' on their guards.

Armed with crude weapons, four groups each of approximately 300 Japanese threw themselves on to barbed wire fences and into the firing line of Vickers machine guns. Protected only by baseball mitts, blankets, and coats and using their comrades as a human bridge to cross the tangled barbed wire, more than 350 Japanese clawed their way to freedom.

All escapees were captured during the following week. A total of 107 POWs were wounded, and 234 prisoners died along with 5 Australian soldiers. This tragic event has since been immortalised on the camp’s original site with a series of interpretative signs. The site’s most compelling feature is a reproduction of one of the camp’s original guard towers.

Cowra is also famed for its Japanese Garden. It was established as a symbol of peace and reconciliation between Australia and Japan. A commemorative drive connects the Cowra Japanese Garden with the site of the POW Camp and continues to the Australian and Japanese War Cemetery.

The gardens, opened in 1979, cover five hectares of a landscaped hillside, They’re simply stunning. Garry and I spent several relaxing hours exploring its many hidden features.

Blue Mountains Bliss

Garry and I have abandoned Sydney for Christmas. This year we’re celebrating the Yuletide season at Echoes Boutique Hotel in the Blue Mountains. This hotel is part of the famous Lilianfel hotel complex sitting on the edge of a spectacular escarpment in Katoomba. We’ve talked about dining at Lilianfel for years so this is another of those bucket list moments for us.

We booked two nights at the hotel, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. The weather kindly played its part and after a few brief showers, we enjoyed plenty of sun-speckled experiences during our stay. The view from our hotel room was magical. While the room itself was a classic hotel room and slightly cluttered, the view outside was breathtaking.

Every morning we sat in our courtyard looking out over immaculately manicured gardens that fell away in a series of hedged tiers to reveal the neighbouring valley in all its glory. I’ll let the photos in the post speak for themselves.

Our Christmas degustation lunch was equally memorable. We debated endlessly which option to choose as the hotel complex offered several Christmas meal options during our stay. However, the menu and venue we ultimately settled upon proved a real winner. A copy of the lunch menu we enjoyed at Darley's restaurant is posted above. The Lamb Rump was insanely tasty.

We also took time out after our hearty Christmas lunch to wander down to Echo Point (just a block away from the hotel) to soak up the classic Blue Mountains vista that is the Three Sisters and Jamison Valley below. These first two days on vacation have certainly set the tone for what’s to come.

Oh yes, the scrambled eggs below? Just a fancy breakfast I made myself before we headed off on vacation.What better way to kick things off than fresh ground coffee and scrambled egg brioche sliders finished off with truffled cheese.

Business loan bliss

We've just paid off our business loan, three years ahead of schedule. Our big bet has clearly paid off. For the last seven years, Garry and I have kept a roof over our heads and successfully grown a thriving, reputable business. A proud milestone!

UPDATE: 14 August 2022

I've just edited this post to include an image of our new re-designed trade show booth. We erected it for the first time at the Reed Gift Fair in Melbourne earlier this month.

The final tweak

Almost two decades ago I brought a corner TV cabinet from IKEA. When we moved into Crescent Street we'd always intended to replace it with something more in keeping the new apartment's look and feel.  18 months later we relocated to London and these plans went on hold. At the time the cabinet fitted reasonably well with the look and feel of our home in London.  

However, when we returned to Australia in 2011, the cabinet was once again no longer fit for purpose once we'd refreshed the apartment. For the next decade it became a daily reminder of unfinished business. Last month I finally decided I'd had enough. I searched online and eventually found a suitable, interim replacement.

Garry thought I was mad buying furniture, sight unseen, online. Incredibly the cabinet I bought came from the USA. Remarkably it's survived four weeks of air travel, moving in and out of multiple transit depots before finally arriving this week.  The physical product isn't too bad.  Its finish is a little "cheap" but it's a vast improvement on its predecessor!  What took us so long?

Garry's also gone shopping and bought us a portable car fridge.  He's decided we're doing enough road trips that it's time to ditch the old Eskis and replace them with something that'll keep everything cold without the need to constantly buy bags of ice or refreeze chiller blocks.

Oh yes, I should also give a quick shout-out for the "new" rug. We bought it last year while shopping one afternoon for a microwave to go in our office kitchen. On a whim, we decided the rug we'd brought with us from London was well past its use-by-date. We saw this rug on sale and ultimately came home with it, but no microwave.