Homeward bound...

Well this time tomorrow we'll be back on home soil. Not permanently, just for a little christmas break. We're currently staying with friends in Sydney, John and Judy Reid who have been wonderful and will be looking after Lulu for us whilst we're back in Tassie. Since Lake Lyell we've camped in a few spots in the Blue Mountains a little closer to Sydney. Places such Ingra camp (where we watched a big red bellied black snake devour a frog!), Murphy's Glen (on two seperate occasions) and Euroka camp near Glenbrook. Lulu has tackled some pretty hairy tracks but so far we've managed to stay out of trouble. The weather has been pretty good to us too since Lake Lyell with not much rain to report. It was actually 35 degrees here in Castle Hill yesterday which saw us seeking refuge in the pool here. And very nice it was too. The only downside regarding the Sydney side of the Blue Mountains is the tourists. We've seen plenty. Luckily they dont seem to be into camping tho so it is pretty easy to get away from them. We've done a few good walks throughout the mountains. Some pretty tame and others that required using ropes and ladders to negotiate the terrain. We even found a nice little creek to have a swim in at the Euroka camp site. It was sign posted as a 4 hour return hike to get to get to the creek and back. We're not sure why as it only took us 15 minutes to get down into the gorge and probably no more than 25 minutes to get back out. We did the walk, had a swim and lunch in under 3 hours. Although it was pretty hard work coming back out though. Nothing much else to report unfortunately. We took a train into the city today and had a stroll around Darling Harbour and killed a couple of hours in the Sydney aquarium. Some pretty cool critters in there but to be honest we thought the Melbourne aquarium was a little better. Sorry Sydney! Anyways, is very much our bed time so we'll sign off for now and hope to catch up with a few of you over the next three weeks. Be good peoples!

Always Take The Weather With You!

And the rain keeps afallin’! It appears that we have bought the rain with us from Tassie and these parts of NSW are experiencing the best rainfall for the last 10 years. The roads are a mess, either closed for trees down or flooded, not to mention the copious amounts of pot holes and landslides across the roads. Lulu has been dodging washouts and fording streams, that on reflection were a little too deep, but she is managing a treat. I’m not too sure if Bronson’s theory of increased speed makes the bumps more bearable tho, and I think Lulu is a little unsure of the merit of it too!

From Nowra and with a new set of front brake pads for Lulu we headed inland again (just so we could try out the new brakes coming back down again!). Visibility was next to none heading up the hill to Budderoo National Park, we were lucky to find the camping ground. Most cars were driving with their hazard lights on and at a snail’s pace (or just a little above Lulu’s cruising speed!). The Carrington Falls did not disappoint after a short walk from our camp to see them. The area was also thick with frogs and we managed to identify striped marsh frogs and something that we can’t remember what it was now (some sort of froglet). Brons went for a little fish until we came across a sign indicating the protected nature of the fauna in the area and we assume this included fish, so the fishing was short lived and unsuccessful.

On to the Blue Mountains (via Abercrombe River which was in flood and the national park mostly required 4WD to access it). Here we found a great camp spot which was set in the grounds of an old stone homestead. The huts were open for people to utilise them for shelter in poor weather with a big open fire. We took the opportunity to dry out our annex and camp in the shelter of an old carport. Lead and Silver used to be mined in the area and we took a stroll to an old mine a few kms down the road. Here we not only found more leeches but also some bits of rock with silvery looking bits in them. Don’t think we’ll be rich beyond our wildest dreams but we fossicked all the same. On the return journey back to camp we were stampeded by a wombat making a startled dash back to his hole. The next night was spent in Kanangra-Boyd national park just a little ways down the road, on the way we went to Janolan Caves but it was a little populated with weekenders form Sydney for our liking. A cup of tea’s worth of time after arriving at Boyd River camp site and enough time to decide we would fashion a yabby trap out of a cola bottle and a teabag to hold some tinned salmon, it started to bucket rain. Luckily we had set up camp next to a shelter with yet another lovely open fire. In dire need of a wash we took opportunity of the down pour and stripped off. We ended up washing in the overflow from the tank on the shelter. Very refreshing and very cold! The next morning before heading off to Bathurst we called into the Kanangra Walls to have a look. For once the vista was not impeded with fog and we could see the magnificent escarpment and take more than just photos of mist!

After a quick stop in Bathurst for supplies (and some non-stinky shoes for Brons) we headed onto Sofala with the hope of fishing the river. The river had been in flood only within the last week or so, the road was torn up and parts impassable due to the flooding. A quick flit with the spinning rod with no results saw us heading back into town to check out the local pub for a couple of ales. The locals were a buzz with talk of the recent shooting on the Gold Coast, after a little more eavesdropping we were able to ascertain that the suspect in the shooting was an ex local of Sofala Keith. His claim to fame up until now was that he put an axe through someone’s head back in the 70’s and there were even holes in the wall of the pub where he took shots at it with his air rifle. Hmm no wonder we didn’t sleep too soundly that night!

Needless to say we were up and out of the Sofala district the next morning headed for Wollemi national park. On the way we pulled up and picked up a long necked turtle who was destined to be cleaned up by the log truck that came past us a couple of minutes later. We dubbed her Sofie and released her in a stream a couple of kms up the road.

The town of Newnes and access to the Wollemi national park lay at the end of a very rough and rugged road. This is where we may have miss judged the depth of a couple of streams and puddles but Lulu took it all in her stride and came out bonza! We camped under enormous cliff faces that seemed to change colour every time you looked up at them as the sun was slipping away at night. We decided to forego the 4WD only ford for Lulu and went on foot to the old oil shale refinery which was in operation in the early 1900’s. Mostly ruins now it’s hard to believe so much infrastructure was set up in such a harsh place, but the bush has crumbled it back to almost nothing. Wombats and roos were aplenty at this camp site and so was a C130 Hercules that was doing low altitude laps above us.

Now we are in the other cultural hub of the universe (I know there are more than just Wynyard!) Lithgow. We camped last night at Lake Lyell where we awoke to a water feature running through the annex. Upon closer inspection of our chosen camp site we realised we had parked Lulu on the runoff channels from the near by road! All very soggy and muddy now.

We are on the home straight to coming back for a few weeks for Christmas. Only a week to go and we will be flying out of Sydney for some much needed home cooking and family time.

P.S. We see we have a new follower? Smoka2 what happened to Smoka1?

Raindrops keep falling on my head...

It's raining in Nowra. The rain has been with us for 4 days now and it may well be with us for another 4 days. We've taken shelter in a grotty motel in Nowra but more on that later. So where have we been since our last post? When we last left you we had just set up camp back at Island Bend on the banks of the Snowy. Unfortunately due to the power stations being in operation the river itself was flooded and not really fishable. No real excuse for the several fish we managed to miss right at our camp site! The first night there we were awakened at around 3am to some terrible scraping noises and Lulu rocking from side to side. At first we thought we may have been the targets of some practical joke undertaken by a group of youths we had seen earlier. Upon inspection it actually turned out to be a huge wombat scratching its arse on the underside of the van! After two nights there we proceeded back down the mountain and onto the coast (not before we were treated to a quick visit from our newly acquired naturalist mates). Whilst discussing the logistics of nude travel such as seat belt chafing, the fabrically challenged couple in question pulled up next to us in their van to see how our fishing had been going. They were on their way home (or possibly to a campsite near you!) and we are happy to report that yes they do use those fluffy seat belt pads to minimise chaffage! On our way back down the mountain we stopped briefly at Bega to sample some cheese at the factory. We shouldn’t have bothered, although the discerning processed cheese singles connoisseur might disagree! We then made our way to Mimosa Rocks where we spent just the one night trying to keep two very inquisitive possums from climbing into the back of Lulu. Whilst we were here we realised that sitting in the van of a night reading with the lights on and the rear door open is not something that should be attempted. Apart from the nosy possums we ended up with about a kabillion insects in the van with us. The many specimens flattened into the pages of the books we were reading show why! Then it was off to Marramarang NP just a little ways north of Batemans Bay. It was a nice little spot apart from the fact that we landed in a marine reserve which meant fishing was not on the cards. We met a young couple from Canberra who were on their way home after a whirlwind tour around the country. We spent the evening chatting with them around the campfire. Next day we made our way to the northern end of the park to Pretty Beach. Another nice spot with lots of kangaroos grazing in the camp grounds but it was here that the weather turned sour. A couple of afternoon thunderstorms passed us by but the showers hit us the morning we decided to pack up. We decided to head inland to see if the weather was any better and spent a couple of fairly miserable days sitting in our annex avoiding the rain at a little roadside campsite just outside of Nerriga. The only excitement we had was watching the fuel gauge after assuming we could get fuel at Nerriga and finding out there wasn't any! But we made it back to Braidwood after our couple of soggy nights with plenty to spare and proceeded onwards to the northern end of Morton NP just outside the lovely little town of Bundanoon. In the afternoon we visited some waterfalls in the park and that evening we visited Glow worm Glen. I know what you're all thinking but no, we never did find a dude called Glen happily chowing down on a feast of glow worms. Nothing quite that exciting. Just a very picturesque little creek lined with small limestone cliffs filled with glow worms. Had Glen actually been there he may instead have tucked into a few of the leeches that we kept finding attached to our shoes and pants. Somehow we managed not to get bitten despite removing 20+ leeches from our clothing. We stayed that night at a campsite nearby and this morning after taking in the very misty views at Fitzroy falls (and an 11am bacardi!), came back down out of the hills and into Nowra. We had hoped to spend a few nights at Abercrombie NP but the weather is driving us nuts and the rivers are starting to flood a little. So now we're sitting here in our affore mentioned grotty motel room where they want to charge us $7 to do a load of laundry plus an additional $7 to use their dryer because the one provided has shit itself. I think Ruth politely told them to get knotted! Lulu is going well but had the bushes in the idler arm replaced today and is getting some new brake pads in the morning. Tonight we will have to decide where to head to next. We can't possibly spend another night here. Unfortunately we're a little low on power as we've had next to no sun but as long as we can keep the cola cold we'll be happy! Apologies for the long-winded-ness of this post but we had a bit to add and we have been out of reception alot so internet access has been very limited. We'll try to be a bit more frequent with our updates. That way we don't have to sit here racking our brains thinking of what has happened since our last post. Cheers peoples! Us. xx

There was movement at the station....

Hello from the banks of the Snowy River!

Since Eden we had a short hop to Bournda NP. Not much to report because there were no fish in either the sea or the lake! The camp site was pretty ritzy tho with hot showers and good facilities. We also were rudely awakened during the night by a possum who had broken into the annex for a sticky beak. From Bournda we headed for the hills to a midpoint to break up the drive to a place called Numeralla. Again not much to report, we got to the mighty Numeralla River and it was dirty and ridden with carp.

So now we are into day 3 of a stint in the hills. Only one small trout bagged by Bronson to report at this stage but we have another day or so here to add to the tally. The country is magnificent and one can see why you would be tempted to launch into reciting bush poetry. Again some fire struck areas that were hit hard in 2003 but the bush is doing what it does best and coming back strong. The water is very cold on the tootsies when wet wading, not suprising really seeing there is still snow on the peaks. Think we will have to leave the climbing of the summit of Kosciusko for a return trip. This has been the highlight of our trip so far, although Lulu is labouring up the hills and is inclined to disagree with us!

We did come across the national park's nudist colony this afternoon. Upon returning to our camp site from the first night we mounted the hill to be confronted by an elderly couple enjoying a spot of fishing in the nude! Upon reflection Bronson thinks he has figured out why our fishing tally is low for this leg of the trip...apparently we have been using the wrong tackle!

Must be time for another Bacardi, over and out for now!

Over the border we go.

Well we finally made it through Victoria and into NSW. After Shipwreck Creek we spent a couple of nights in the Ben Boyd national park at Bittangabee Bay. It was when we arrived here after traveling along 35km of gravel road that we discovered the back door on Lulu wasn't shut properly. You should have seen the dust inside the van! And we're still finding it! We didn't get to do a whole lot of fishing here, just a quick couple of casts from the rocks where I managed a small kelp fish. Probably akin to catching a parrot fish back home. Still, it's another one for the species count. On our second day there we went for a bit of a stroll out to Green Cape to the light house which was about 7km each way. It was a very nice spot, perched up on the cliffs with the swells smashing against the rocks. We saw a couple of enormous whales just out to sea and a few seals frolicking in close. We decided then and there that we'd very much like to become lighthouse keepers for our next jobs (Later that night we reviewed this decision when the fog rolled in and the fog horn started up!). On the walk back we came across an echidna nosing around who was a little nervous having us there. I think he could smell us which was no surprise given that we hadn't had a shower for a couple of days. We shared our campsite with an assortment of roos and swamp wallabies and even a couple of lyre birds. We left Bittangabee on the Monday after having pancakes for breakfast (a substitute for a birthday cake!) and made our way to Eden. Given the lack of sun over the past few days the solar panel was struggling to keep up with the fridge so we have settled in a caravan park for a couple of nights to hopefully recharge a bit. This also allowed us to do some washing, including ourselves! Still the sun isn't playing ball so we're not out of the woods yet. At least we were able to let someone else worry about the washing up last night when Ruth took me out to tea. As for where next? We're not quite sure, so many places to see. Might even head up into Kosciusko for a look which could mean trout fishing. It could also mean cold! We'll see.
Anyways, enough ramblings from me, we hope you're all well and being good. Love from us!

Cicada Melodies

From Lake Tyers we travelled to Mueller Inlet near Tamboon (but not if you believed our Navman!). A couple of nights camped on the bank of the inlet gave us the opportunity for surf fishing, fly fishing and a bit of bait fishing in the inlet too. The species count has been broadened somewhat with the addition of bream, mullet and puffer fish. A brim and mullet were caught on the dry fly when we happened across a hatch. The mullet was still a bit green when it hit the bank as it was so small it got pulled out of the water on the first strike! Whilst peacefully reading and fishing on the beach we were interrupted by a F1-11 flying sideways just in-front of the breaking waves, didn't hear it coming, it was almost past us before we noticed it!

From Mullers we went to Mallacoota, restocked the fridge with some supplies and went back to Shipwreck Creek. A tall forested area with only a couple of campsites so it was nice and quiet. A bit of a trudge down to the beach but very pretty all the same. Serenity was some what compromised by the continual chorus of cicadas. We thought we were going nuts and was convinced we could still hear them long after they went to bed, think they were ringing in our ears. Shipwreck creek saw the advent of our first live wombat and even a whale splashing about off in the distance. The area had been ravaged by bushfires not that long ago but it was great to see the xanthoreas coming back and flowering on mass. Night fishing paid off the best here, Brons even managed to land an eating sized salmon. It was lovely encrusted with dukka and a little lime!

We'll cross the boarder today and head to Wonboyn. For a little more of same - fishing and sunshine (we hope!). Then maybe a night in the big smoke of Eden for Bronson's birthday on Monday.

Apologies for slack reply to phone messages - we are getting off the beaten track a bit and reception is not that great.

Love to you all

Can I catch fish or what?!

Greetings from Lake Tyers, where I managed our first fish for the trip. And what a corker! Check out the trip photos for a picture of said monster. We're just a little north east of Lake's Entrance where there happened to be no free camping. We've been here for a night and will stay for one more before we head somewhere else. Possibly Malacoota. After Thailand we stayed with Ruth's Aunt Liz (Thanks Liz!) for a few nights and then made our way to Golden Beach for 2 nights. It wasn't a bad spot but was windy and the mozzies nearly carried us away. Not to mention a few yobbos that turned up and subjected us to Casey Chambers which is torture in itself. We spent an afternoon on the beach digging up pippies for bait but when the wind refused to abate we ended up cooking the pippies for tea. They were pretty bloody good too! We have our current campsite to ourselves apart from a 5 foot lace monitor that we just spotted. We've been warned that these things will wander into camp sites and steal food directly from your bbq. This one was being hassled by a magpie and didn't seem to like us much as we tried to get closer for some photos! We also spotted a young seal clambering up the beach as we were fishing this morning. He also wasn't keen on us trying to get a pic. Maybe we smell? Anyways, I'm off to laze around in the sun for a bit. Cheers!

Bronson

We're baaaaack!

Wow, where do I begin? Well we flew back into Aus yesterday morning after what seemed like a pretty hectic trip. And let me say that if I never travel on another bus it'll be too soon. Most of our commuting was done in small buses often crammed with tourists. Our trip down to Phi Phi involved 14 hour bus rides there and back which were no fun at all, not to mention having all our gear rifled through whilst it was "safely" stored under the bus. A couple of the other tourists on our trip lost money and even a passport. Luckily we had all our valuables with us in our seats. Phi Phi itself was great tho. It's about 1 1/2 hours on the ferry from Krabi or Phuket depending which way you go and we stayed in a little beach side bungalow which was very relaxing. Our trip to the river Kwai was also fantastic. We stayed on in a floating house for a night which was kinda cool except you could hear everything going from the toilet straight into the river. We tried not to think about this too much the next morning when we were swimming downstream... with elephants! That's right, we got to bathe with the elephants which was amazing. You simply jumped on and hung on for dear life as they submerged themselves in the river. We also got to visit the bridge over the river Kwai and walk part of the death railway including Hellfire Pass which was a very sobering moment when you take into account the atrocities involved in constructing the railway and all those who died doing so. Back in Bangkok we took a stroll around the grand Palace, the National Museum and the Medical Museum which was just bizarre. All manner of preserved body parts displaying deformities and injuries were on display including complete preserved bodies of convicted murderers put to death. Not a place for those with a weak stomach. We think we may have seen the King (of Thailand, not Elvis!) driving through the city. We were at a huge intersection with Police everywhere stopping all traffic and telling us to stay where we were, when a huge motorcade passed through. There had to be at least 50 vehicles, mostly police and security forces with one or two rolls royces somewhere in the middle. It took several minutes for them to all come through and they were travelling at a pretty good pace. All in all the trip was pretty cool, great food and mostly great people. And cheap too. The heat did knock us around at times but sitting here in Ballarat in 13 degrees almost makes me want to go back! So the plan now is to regroup here in Ballarat for another night or two, get some washing done and prepare to take off again. We're thinking about heading across to Lake's Entrance but we're not entirely sure just yet. We will try to post up a couple of pictures from our Thai adventure a bit later too. Anyways, I'm well overdue for a shower so I'll sign out and we'll catch you all later! Be good!

Bronson and Ruth xx

Crap it's hot...

Greetings from muggy Thailand! Our brains hurt but here goes.....
Firstly, thank goodness our interviews etc are over. We were staying in a resort owned by the company who were interviewing us, 160km east of Bangkok. We arrived at the resort at 3am Thailand time (7am our time), some 24 hours since we took our heads off the pillow in Ballarat. We have been sleep deprived ever since! The programme was gruelling, we worked in the mill for a couple of days to complete an assignment which had to be presented to the owner of the company along with all his departmental CEOs. The locals were lovely, giving us the salute as we wandered to breakfast every morning and not to mention the local population of geckos (not so lovely making strange noises at 3am!).

Yesterday we came back to Bangkok. After a day cruising around on the high speed water taxis, the grand palace, the golden buddah and dodging tuk tuk drivers trying to rip us off, we are beat. Heading out of Bangkok tomorrow morning to see the Bridge over River Kwai, visit the floating markets and ride some elephants.

Oh did we mention that it's f*&#ing hot! Oh and the food is great.

Love to you all
Brons and Ruth

Who'll stop the rain...

Greetings from not so lovely Ballarat! After a damp and windy night in the Grampians we have booked a room at a motel in Ballarat in order to dry out and make preparations for flying to Thailand this Sunday. The weather today is miserable and we just couldn't be bothered setting up camp in the wet. As it stands everything is pretty wet already so we have to do some washing and drying (especially the van annex)so that things don't get all manky whilst we're in Thailand for a fortnight. Lulu is still performing admirably considering the burden we've graced her with. Apart from the weather, the Grampians showcased some pretty country. Unfortunately we didn't get a chance to get the fly rods out so the fish tally still stands at zero. We did manage to see our first wild emus and lots of roos, one almost as big as Lulu who was in no hurry to get out of our way. We followed him up the road for 50 yards until he decided we could pass. After de-camping this morning we stopped to take a stroll to MacKenzie Falls. Not bad but not as spectacular as some of the tourists seemed to think. Guess we get a little spoiled in Tassie in that regard. Of course it rained the whole walk so as well as wet camping gear we were able to add wet campers to Lulu's list of contents. Yes we had rain coats but they only cover so much and mine has one of those hoods that's great if you like looking at the ground and not seeing anything around you! So the road trip is I guess put on hold for the next 2 weeks whilst we go and enjoy Thailand which apart from the job interview side of things we're very much looking forward to. Lulu will hopefully be able to stay with one of Ruth's rellies for the duration of our trip. We will try to update the blog from Thailand to let you all know what we're up to. That's all for now!

Bronson

PS. Yes Mum, you can write whatever you want in the comment thingy as long as you don't mind other people reading it!

On the road...

Well we finally got to the big island! After a fairly uneventful crossing on the Spirit we drove off the boat and within 300 metres I had us heading in the wrong direction. A quick u-turn tho and we were underway. After a little look around Bells Beach, we spent a fairly wet first night at Johanna Beach. It wasn't a terrible spot although we didn't have the place to ourselves. Probably something we'll have to get used to. Next morning we decided to head further south. After stopping to appreciate Clifton's Steps, the 12 Apostles and Bay of Islands we decided to head for Port Fairy where free camping appears to be non existent. And so we paid $33 for a small patch of grass conveniently located away from the grey nomads with there new cruisers and dirty great big caravans. I think we must look a little ferral in comparison! The next morning (today), and we're planning on heading to the Grampians where hopefully we'll be able to use the fishing licenses we picked up in Warnambool with help of an ace map drawn up by the chap at BCF just out of town. He had the map drawing skills of a pissed, illiterate aardvark. But it did help us find the right place so we're grateful all the same. Well it's time to hit the road again. Oh and Lulu is running like a dream!

Bronson

PS. I'd like to say a special hi to our followers. Without people like you we just wouldn't have ANY followers. If more people sign up you just might get a special hi too. Maybe. If i can be bothered. But don't go signing up on the premise of a special hi, do it for your country!

Getting there.....slowly!

Well not long now till the big adventure begins! Our little cottage is looking very empty with only the essentials left...the beanbag, the bacardi bottle and the fly rods on the ready for packing into Lulu!

We have all the bits and pieces that are supposed to be coming with us on the trip in the front spare room - looks like more than lil 1.3L Lulu can manage but I'm sure we'll squeeze it all in somewhere.

Been doing some searching for motor home insurance. No one is all that keen on insuring a van that is worth half what the Waeko that is inside it is worth! Not to mention the thousands of dollars worth of fly gear! Apparently she does not meet the criteria to be classified as a motor home, I mean she is no Winnebago but she's going to be our home for the next who knows how long, and she has a motor!

We have had a slight change of plans too, we are heading to Thailand on the 17th for a job interview with the mob who bought our paper machine. So over to Melbourne on the 11th, have a squizz about the great ocean road and the grampians, drop Lulu off somewhere, then off to the tropics! Planning to stay on for a bit so we can check out a few things - elephant riding is high on my list of priorities! Then we will return to pick up Lulu and start the east coast fly fishing odyssey!

Think I'm going to miss this place. Despite the wind, rain, rising damp and Bruno calling in waking us up for his morning coffee, did I mention the wind and rain?! This little cottage has been home for me for a bit over 12 months and has seen Brons and I fall in love and plan our next adventure together, ah the memories! It's all very exciting but also a bit scary too....who knows where we'll end up next! I know it's going to be ok tho, hand in hand with my Bronicles!

Next post....from the big island.

Ruth

Not long now...

Well we have finally booked our ticket! We are due to set sail on the 11th Oct. Initially I managed to book for 11th Oct 2011. Fortunately this struck someone from spirit of Tas as a little odd so they rang us to make sure we hadn't made a mistake. Luckily they managed to hook us up with the correct date without applying any change of booking fees. Could have been a little embarrassing turning up to the boat 12 months early! So we're currently packing up our little cottage and putting everything into storage. With the bed removed Lulu makes a pretty good removal van! It's a little strange knowing that soon we wont actually have a home to go to. Now we just have to find a few camping/fishing spots in Victoria to get us started. Once we get off the boat the plan will be to get out of Melbourne as fast as we possibly can. I better start looking at some maps!

Bronson

PS. See that little comment link below each post? You do realise you can click on that to leave us a message yeah?

So, where were we?

Ah yes, the coil. A new and correct part has fixed the starting problem and now Lulu is running like a train. I think the old ABT railway train is probably a good comparison. You know the one that climbs the hill slower than a man could walk? Yep, that one! Actually she's running pretty good but like the ABT she's a little slow on inclines. Good thing we wont be in a hurry. We have just spent a week in Hobart which included a couple of days down at Cockle Creek, the end of the road. Weather was superb if not a little chilly in the mornings and it really is a beautiful place. Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be any fish there. Only currawongs suffering from diarrhoea and thieving tiger cats! All in all the trip was a success and outlined a few small problems that we'll be able to rectify before the big trip starts. So far the solar panel and fridge are working well but it will be interesting to see how we go in the heat when the fridge has to work a bit harder. Only time will tell. We also decided to add the Big Spud at Sassafras to the big things list on the trip stats page. Hopefully we'll be able to add several more big things in the not too distant future. Stay tuned.

No bright spark...

Lulu isn't playing fair. We put the engine back together and now she refuses to start when it is cold (a bit like her unemployed owners!). With some persistence she eventually fires and runs like a dream. But only after multiple coffee and cigarette breaks! Unfortunately I don't think the crew on the Spirit of Tasmania are going to allow us several coffees as they wait for us to get our bomb started and off their boat! One way to fix the starting problem is to warm her up - with a bucket of fuel and a match. The other is to replace the dodgey coil with a new one or at least that is what we have been told. The first option does sound tempting at times. So we bought a replacement coil today only to discover they gave us the wrong one! Hopefully we'll grab the right one tomorrow and see if that sorts out the starting conundrum. Fingers crossed.

Getting there...

Things have happened. At least some things. Bronson is now an unemployed bum and Ruth is only a couple of days away from being the same. There have been dramas, dodgey charging system leading to flat batteries, blown head gasket and buggered head! But those little set backs have been over come. The new bed is in and the roof racks are on. Fridge, solar panel and dual battery are waiting to be installed so it's all finally starting to come together. It's all getting a bit exciting to be honest. Unfortunately not much will happen over the next few days as I have managed to wound myself with a stanley knife. Nothing a few stitches in my hand didn't fix but I'm under strict instructions to take it easy! Fortunately that is something I excel at! At the moment we're aiming to be on the road by September. It will be done!
Cheers!

Bronson

In the beginning...

Lulu is a 1982 Toyota Liteace who just oozes character. Mainly from rust holes in her flanks! She was in a pretty sad state when we bought her late last year with her 1/3 finished purple duluxe weathershield paint job. And with a brush no less! Things have changed though. She now sports a custom camo paint job which we applied in the driveway at home. Currently she is awaiting a new bed set up, roof racks, annexe, dual battery system and portable fridge. All this is in readiness for our 12 month sojourn around the big island as we embark on a fishing odyssey! Yes we expect our fair share of problems, surely we cant set off on a 12 month driving holdiay in a near 30 year old liteace with no dramas? Our friends think we're just a little bit mad and they'd be right! But we're very much looking forward to the big adventure ahead. Stay tuned for more!

Bronson