Spring 2013

With great excitement Cate, Ethan, Aisha and I, packed the trailer, loaded the car, locked the front door and headed off for our first extended trip in the camper trailer.

Our first stop was Bairnsdale for a short break playing in the park on the way to the Lake Tyres Beachfront Park, just over a 2.5 hour drive.

Lake Tyres was a very pleasant park set near the beach in amongst the tea tree and a very bushy atmosphere, it was quiet and relaxed. Trish and Darren were the owners and were very helpful. While in Bairnsdale we did a "Swap and Go" with our gas bottle only to realise when we set up for dinner that the bottle had a different connection to the previous bottle and we couldn't connect the stove. Darren found us another bottle he had and changed it for us. I could finally make a tea and coffee.

Cate and the kids went to the beach while I completed the set up and got dinner ready. We were blessed with perfect weather and beautiful surroundings.

The next morning, Wednesday, we packed up and headed for Pambula. We had never been there before and began the 3.5 hr drive around 10:30.





We decided to stop for a break in Cann River, I wandered over to the bakery while Cate, Ethan and Aisha played in the park. In the bakery were hand made dolls houses and we decided to take the kids over for a look. Chatting to the lady behind the counter she told us about a new doll museum they had opened 5 day previous. We walked into the most amazing miniature world I had ever seen. One of the residents had been collecting and making dolls houses for 40 years and they were now proudly on display. We could have spent hours there but we still had nearly 2 hours to Pambula. We will make more time to see it next time we are in the area.

This holiday was the first time Aisha had been to NSW so we couldn't help but stop for some tourist shots at the boarder, Welcome to NSW!!

We arrived at Pambula mid afternoon and set up camp. The park was fantastic. The facilities were excellent and it was not too busy, we had plenty of room. Again Cate and the kids headed to the beach while I finished setting the camp up. It didn't take us very long to realise the local kangaroos were extremely friendly and didn't mind coming right up to the campers. The kids were excited to be so close to wild animals and they were very used to being around people.

Thursday we went to the beach after breakfast. The weather was perfect, a beautifully clear sky and not a breath of wind. We played in the sand and paddles in the water for what seemed like hours only to realise when we got back to camp it was still only 9:30 so we decided to head to Merimbula and Magic Mountain for the day. We had heard about the theme park the day before with the tourist information they gave us when we arrived.

The weather turned dramatically during the morning and by the time we got to Magic Mountain the wind was blow furiously and increased within an hour of us being there. Ethan and I managed to have a ride on the roller coaster and Aisha and I rode in the racing cars before the wind became too strong and they had to close the park for safety reasons. Ethan was particularly disappointed however they gave us ticket to return the following day.

We returning to Magic Mountain of Friday and had a wonderful day. The kids enjoyed the toboggan ride and the racing cars. Ethan rode the rollercoaster for a second time and we played a game of mini golf. It wasn't only the little kids that had a great day!!

 

After Magic Mountain we went to a little cafe had some food and coffee and discovered a camping shop over the road. We purchased another table for some bench space and a cloths line both for camping.

Saturday morning was glorious, another morning with no wind at all. Cate went for a 2 hour walk along the beach while Ethan, Aisha and I played in the sand. After lunch we went for a long bike ride through the park and played in the playground.

The final day of our holiday was spent at the beach and again riding around the park. Late in the afternoon we began to pack up. After an early dinner Cate took the kids for a shower and then into their pyjamas for a 7 pm departure.

The kids enjoyed the drive for a little while before they both fell asleep, Cate slept for some of the trip. We got home around 12:30.

It was a wonderful trip and we booked another trip there before we left.