Elisabeth and Craig's Blog: Darwin to Tassie

Heading south to Tasmania!

Our arrival in Queensland marked the start of the third leg of our trip which saw us finally heading south and in the right direction!! Starting from Thargomindah, our last outback town on the Great Artesian Basin, we headed towards Toowoomba from where we began our meandering tour through Queensland, NSW, ACT and Victoria visiting lots of family and friends along the way to Tassie.

First stop, the pretty little town of St. George for the night.

Playground tour of Australia!

Now that Maddy had discovered playgrounds we had to ensure that they were always part of our itinerary. And since we were going to see so many we decided to make them into a travelling photo gallery - the Playground Tour of Australia.

I'm not sure if we ever decided which one was best, but there are certainly plenty of lovely playgrounds all over Oz for anyone travelling with kids!

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The start of our 'guest room' tour of the east coast set the standard high as we arrived to beautiful home-cooked meals and the first of many great evenings with friends with the Morrison family, Emma, Tim and new little Thomas.

Maddy and I enjoying a little baby Thomas time, and getting in some sneaky newborn practice time for our soon to be newborn.

Maddy proud of her Morrison garden pickings.

Quality Daddy time

Out and about in Toowoomba.

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From Toowoomba we headed inland to Moree, New South Wales to visit Craig's brother Richard & Liz, and Maddy's cousins Millicent, Harriet and Edward on the farm. It was great to visit family, and Maddy getting to spend some time with her cousins was an important part of this leg of the trip.

Great little readers - Maddy and Edward enjoying an evening book with Liz.

Maddy had lots of great play time with Edward. A bit of family resemblance perhaps?

Moree playgrounds

Dads coaching the slide race...
(??pushy dads already with interference from Maddy's dad??)

Little mini Richard tinkering Maddy's quad bike - fixing or breaking...

Southern Boobook

Maddy loving playing on the farm with her cousins.

Evening dance-off and show & tell

Farm tour with Uncle Richard

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Our next stop on the way through NSW was in Gunnedah, koala capital of Australia, for a brief visit with Team ZAC. Sadly no koala sightings, but we did find a sneaky playground and enjoyed some yummy homemade biscuits (kingstons, monte carlos!) and discussed plans for many future adventures and toys.

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By mid-May we made it to Nan & Pop's for a lovely week of grandparent, beach and recovery time. Playgrounds here included the beach, the garden, nan's toys and the local shops :).

Finally a beach that Maddy could swim in with lots of sand to play in. She loved it!

Picking lemons and mandarins

Cup of tea Nan?

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Going south from Coffs gave Craig a chance to revisit his childhood and show us the farm where he grew up.

Wet, winding road up into the northern tablelands. Luckily I didn't get sick!

Craig's primary school house at Yarrowitch, built 1887.

Probably not the best weather for it, but great to see the country that I've heard so much about.

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Next stop, visit of Uncle Don and Aunty Meg's new digs in Gloucester. Lots of hard work happening there, which we admired from their cosy shed overlooking fantastic views of the mountains. Look forward to checking out the finished product one day!

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Continuing south, I think...

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Quick stop in Wollongong for a too short visit with lovely hosts Gaz, Jody and the boys.

The kids had good fun, and are growing up too fast!

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From the coast we headed up through the ACT (which means we hit all states and territories this trip!) into the Snowy Mountains for some fun with Heather & Andrew, and cousins Zara and Georgia in Jindabyne. With some great warm weather gear picked up from cousins along the way, this was a good cold test for soft Territorians too!

Cousins Maddy and Georgia

Visiting Sport and Recreation Centre

Heading up into the mountains around Perisher ski resort

Maddy's first snow!

It took Maddy a little while to get over the cold aspect, but once she realised you can eat it, throw it at your parents and make snowmen out of it, she decided snow wasn't so bad.

But it is still cold...

Lots of fun at home.

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Next we drove over the snowy mountains into Victoria to visit Gunbalanya friends Paula and Stanley in Beechworth. Nice town and great visit with Maddy's first 'boyfriend'. ;)

Fun times!

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Back north again into NSW for a quick stop at Merriwagga to visit the farm with Sam, Sandy and the kids meant a playground for Craig this time ;). Always nice to catch up with old schoolmates and visit more of Craig's school year stomping grounds.

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June 6th saw us back in Victoria and celebrating Craig's birthday with a great stay with cousin Matt and family. Lots of fun to be had playing with Alana, Matt and Pam, and checking out the new additions to the family - some acreage, beautiful garden and growing veggie patch, new sheep, and better not forget new little brother Jack...

Cousins Alana and Maddy had a great time!

Feeding fish and sheep is lots of fun.

3 1/2 month old Jack

It's all very exhausting work on the farm...

Daddy daycare while the Moms enjoy some spa time.

Playground nappy check...

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Time to head into the big smoke for a visit with Melbourne friends before saying bye to the mainland and hopping on the boat across Bass Strait to Tasmania!

Maddy talked about taking the train into the city for weeks after this Melbourne commuter ride :).

Our ferry, and accommodation for the night, the Spirit of Tasmania

Although a bit rainy to start, it was an otherwise smooth ride before an early morning wake up in our new state.

And we are off!

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It was a cold and wet beginning to our Tassie adventures, but exciting to finally be here and exploring the gorgeous hills, historical towns and countryside. Starting with a few days around Launceston, then moving east to the coast towards Hobart visiting and checking out prospective GP locations, mostly based on the quality of their bakeries at this point!

Blown tire heading down the hills into Scottsdale!

We carried two extra tires for a distance of twice the distance north to south of Australia, and luckily only had to use it in the last 200 km. Not a bad scenic point to change a tire at least. And I apologise to the Tasmanian authorities for clandestine entrance of red centre, NT dirt...

Brief coffee and playground break on the east coast.

Beautiful coastal drive and harbours along the coast, like this one at Bicheno.

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We finally arrived in Hobart in mid June after 2 1/2 months on the road, and approximately 14,000 km and lots of beautiful country covered. Our big holiday adventure is over and time to find a job, a house (and maybe a haircut...).