"No matter where you go, there you are."

SOUTH WEST ROCKS

Tuesday 14^th November:

It was a beautiful day to be on the road. We traveled east from Armidale through Dorrigo, Bellingen, Nambucca Heads and Macksville arriving at South West Rocks by lunchtime. We have a perfect site overlooking the river. We called into the local dive shop and made a booking to dive Fish Rock Cave in the morning.

Wednesday 15^th November:

We were at the SWR Dive Centre by 8am kitting up our tanks and meeting the other divers. It took about 30 minutes to get out to Fish Rock. Our first dive was through the cave which runs the length of the rock. It was amazing, the cave was full of crayfish. We stopped in a bubble inside the cave and we were able to take our regulators out and breathe, a weird sensation. There were masses of small fish at the cave entrance. We did our second dive outside the cave and saw lots of Wobbegongs and Grey Nurse Sharks. The visibility wasn’t very good and it was very cold but the cave dive is well worth it. We took a drive out to the Trial Bay Gaol in the afternoon.

Thursday 16^th November:

A cold front came through overnight and the temperature has dropped to 15 degrees. We have dug out the jumpers and fluffy slippers. John took a bush walk near the Smoky Cape Lighthouse. Too cold for me, I went to the South West Rocks Country Club. We spent the afternoon indoors with the heater cranked up.

Friday 17^th November:

On the move again today, south through Kempsey and Taree. We stopped at a great spot in the Buledelah State Forest for lunch. We ended up at The Entrance just north of Gosford. It was a nice area but the van park was packed like sardines so we only stayed the one night.

CANBERRA

Saturday 18^th November:

Sydney here we come, yuk, goodbye Sydney. Too many cars, houses and humanity! We kept on driving and decided on Canberra as a good place to park for a few days. We are staying in the Exhibition Park (showgrounds) for $12 per night. Good value and only 5 minutes from Parliament House.

Sunday 19^th November:

We visited the Old Bus Depot Markets this morning. Great markets, lots of interesting crafts, flowers and food. The food section was delicious, we got to taste all the goodies. Nuts, olives, fudge, bread, wine, fruit, cheese….. yes and all in that order….. YUM! No need for lunch! We also visited a textile gallery in the morning. I caught up with my friend Simone and we had dinner with her husband and family in the evening.

Monday 20^th November:

We got up early today for a walk along Lake Burley Griffin. There were lots of cyclists and joggers about and the hot air balloons were flying overhead. Back to the van for breakfast then off to do some sightseeing. Our first stop was the National Museum where we saw our next caravan! Then on to the National War Museum which overlooks Anzac Avenue down to Parliament House. We spent a good hour wandering around all the displays. That was enough walking for one day. Late in the afternoon we got to watch the local Trots meet as our van overlooks the racecourse.