Return to Oz

On 31 October 2016 we flew to Melbourne to see our new grandson Sean (and his mum & dad of course) and after a few days there in the not too warm Aussie Spring weather, the five of us plus Laura, took two cars on a trip the Grampians National Park. 'Geriwerd' is the aboriginal word for this vast wildreness of sandstone ridges, waterfalls, vertical cliffs and mile after mile of bush.

 Above: On the way to Halls Gap in the Grampians, we stop at Beaufort, a town of about 1000 people situated between Ballarat and Ararat. Lovely and warm!

Below: Our spacious cabin, surrounded by trees and birds including the obligatory cockatoos. On our walks to and from Halls Gap we see emus, wallabies and kangaroos galore.

Below: Halls Gap golf course. Put 10 dollars in the honesty box and have a game. Not a luxurious looking club house but a golf course in a truly beautiful setting.

 No bunkers, you have to get over the roos instead.

On our walk up to Boronia Peak we spied many different kinds of lizards sunbathing and this echidna having its daily sleep.

Below: Sean on his first trek. Note the Vietnamese hat being worn by his dad.

 Nearly there.

The next day we took in the Boroka and Reed lookouts for fantastic views, the Mackenzie Falls (too busy so we did not stay long) and the Zumsteins camping ground where we learned about the visionary Walter Zumstein and his family who lived there over 100 years ago.

After spending a few more days in Melbourne we took a flight to the Sunshine Coast and spent a week in Noosa. Warm sea, cold beer and great food.

Two days before flying back to England Laura and I each did a tandem skydive over Melbourne. The base is at St Kilda beach. The morning was a little cloudy but we had spectacular views of Melbourne and Port Phillip Bay.

 There's Laura, front left. She went out 2nd, me 5th.