Today we set off for Albany – the long awaited “real” trip in our Quantum. It is surprising how much room we now have compared to our Kimberley Kamper. We decided to fill both water tanks (280 litres) and to take a full set up to see how the van would tow fully loaded. We were pleasantly surprised! We sat on speeds between 90 and 100 nearly all the way. The only hold up was a couple of grey nomads travelling in convoy. They sat right behind one and other and travelled at about 80 kph. No chance of me overtaking!
We arrived at Paula’s Mum’s farm at about 12.30pm. All was good with the Quantum and the car – the brake drums are still getting a bit hot on the Quantum and I don’t know why. We set up in no time – in the drive of the house with sweeping views of the Kalgan River. I put up the satellite TV easily and even arced up the air-con in the van (it was bloody hot and humid!). This is a beautiful location!
As I write this, Paula is inside with her mum and some of her friends from church (hence my retiring to the van). We plan to veg out whilst in Albany before heading towards Esperance where we will meet up with Vicki and Rod before heading further east. We will try to keep the blog up to date as we go – subject to internet availability!
Thursday 31st December 2009
Our final post for the naughties! We have really enjoyed the last couple of days. We haven’t been doing much, just catching up with Paula’s family and enjoying the “vibe” of being away. Yesterday two of Paula’s sisters called out to the farm in the morning so we spent time chatting. The weather was not the best so there was not much else to do. In the afternoon, we headed into town and arranged to have a Rhino Rack and Basket fitted. We decided this would be easier than putting the barbecue into the van every time we moved. We were able to get the bits we wanted and have it fitted immediately – lucky at last!
We cooked Fran dinner – roast lamb and veges using the Cob. It turned out well! All in all a good day.
Today the weather changed for the better! It was an absolutely glorious day. We headed into town for morning tea with Chris – Paula’s eldest sister and chatted for a couple of hours. After that we headed into town to top up supplies and then back to the farm. We had put some yabbie traps in the dam earlier and went up to check them...plenty of yabbies….but very small. There were a few keepers so we cooked these up with some garlic butter – scrummy!
The rest of the day was spent enjoying the sun (and a few drinks) and watching the world pass us by. The full moon rising over the river was spectacular!
We heard from our friends Glenn and Tricia who are on their way to Queensland to pick up their own Quantum. They are having a good time and seem to be making good progress.
Well – 2009 is almost over. It has been a year to remember – actually, one we will never forget – we are looking forward to the future and hope that 2010 is a better year for us all. Happy new year!
Today the weather changed for the better! It was an absolutely glorious day. We headed into town for morning tea with Chris – Paula’s eldest sister and chatted for a couple of hours. After that we headed into town to top up supplies and then back to the farm. We had put some yabbie traps in the dam earlier and went up to check them...plenty of yabbies….but very small. There were a few keepers so we cooked these up with some garlic butter – scrummy!