Spirit of Tasmania!

From Winchelsea we made our way past Geelong to a Freeway service station which offered free camping.  It was located 40 minutes to Port Phillip Bay where we had to catch the Ferry the next morning.  It was really windy and the road noise was quite loud so we stayed in the van most of the afternoon.

Early in the morning (4:30am) we woke to drive to the ferry. We loaded the kids into the car and they all gradually woke up on the way.  We stopped about 5 minutes before the ferry and had our breakfast on the side of the road.  We then lined up for quite some time before being told to come back in 10 minutes due to the ship docking late and cars were still unloading.

After about an hour we went through to Quarantine where we handed over garlic and oranges which we couldn't take to Tasmania.  The kids had already eaten carrots at 5:30am and tomatoes a bit later!

So we drove onto the ferry.  We were all pretty excited! We parked the car and made our way to our cabin to drop off our school books and backpacks so we could go explore the ship. 

We found the kids corner with a small jungle gym and kids tv.  They were pretty happy with that until they explored further and found a gaming station with 4 screens and 8 seats!

Karli found the face painting lady who later painted Chad, Brenton, Rowan and Axels faces too! She was very talented!  The kids also made some postcards.

Once the ship had left Port we went to our cabin to do some schoolwork AND have a shower!  A real shower was so nice after the camping showers we'd been having!

As the boat headed out of 'The Heads' and into open water we started to experience the 4-5m swells and 30knot winds! Walking through the corridors got a bit tricky as did walking across the top deck!  None of us actually became ill but we were glad to use the beds for regular naps to keep on top of the queasy feeling!  Chad, however, never noticed - he spent most of the day at the gaming station!

After a relatively uneventful day we docked in Devonport about 7:15pm. We went down to the car and waited to be able to leave the boat.  From there we made our way about 5 minutes to a showground where we met The Ritchies again - who had made us DINNER!  As we stood and chatted the sun was beautiful... the minute it set, the wind became icy! Brrrr!

Sovereign Hill Day 2

We packed up the camper and got ready to spend another morning at Sovereign Hill.  There was so much that we still wanted to enjoy there.  Mars left us for an hour to try and get the water pump issue sorted on the caravan.

The kids were keen to have another ride on the horse and carriage.  As that wasn't busy yet we had a quick 'spin' around the town. From there the kids spent a bit of time on a Chinese craft. 

We then found Mars and moved on to the main event... Gold Panning!  We spent quite some time here with the boys starting out very enthusiastic!  However, as time went on they became less keen and realised the specks of gold weren't as exciting as noodling for opals!

We had another walk around the town and had a look through the Church there, as well as the Fire Brigade and a few more buildings.

We exited the Museum and then headed over to the Gold Museum.  We spent an hour here then headed back to the car and on the road to Torquay.  We then made our way to our camping spot for the night - Barwon River Reserve in Winchelsea.  The kids loved this location - as we were under a bridge which had a passenger train running a few times in the evening and then again in the morning.

Torquay to Ballarat

On our way out from Beauchamp Falls (along the windy roads) we came across an obstacle! We spent a few minutes trying to edge it a bit further out the way, so our caravan could get through without being scratched.

We headed along the Great Ocean Road, stopping at Lorne for lunch.  From there we stopped at Torquay to check out the surf outlet shops. It was enjoyable to step back into the shops again but they weren't as cheap as I was expecting/hoping! I did manage to stock up on a few winter items for the cooler weather in Tasmania.

After a quick scoot at the skate park we drove out to Meredith, a small town about an hour before Ballarat.

The next morning we drove into Ballarat... first stop - Sovereign Hill - an enormous 'village' set in the 1800's depicting what life would've been like.  It is the BEST museum I've been in! 

As we strolled through the main street the musicians would call out 'good morning marm' and keep singing. We made our way firstly to the horse drawn carriage for a quick ride around town. This helped to get our 'bearings' on where different places were located.  From there we went to watch the 'Sweet Making' display - mmmm... raspberry lollies! Too bad I know how much sugar went into making them!!!  After the display we made our way through the village to the Lollyshop to stock up on some sugary 'goodness'! 

We then stopped to have our photo taken in 1800's dress code. Surprisingly the kids co-operated well and I was really happy with the photo! Such a great momento!

We stopped to enjoy some scones and coffee. It was good to have a break and enjoy hearing the kids reactions to different things.

After our stop we made our way through the different buildings, stopping at the hotel and library. At 1:00pm the Redcoat Soldiers do a parade and firing of the muskets. It was extremely loud (but also entertaining).

 

From there we took a Gold Mine tour.  We hopped in the train heading down underground. It was pitch black for about a minute.  No lights or phones were allowed to enable you to fully understand the depths that miners will go everyday to do their job!  We made it and were taken on a tour detailing the hazards that the miners dealt with as well as the good fortunes that can be made. We took another train back to our starting point underground then hopped aboard the other train to take us back up to the surface.  One again - Rowan proved he will never be a miner... as he did not enjoy being underground! But the other kids loved the experience!

As we walked through town we made our way to the bowling alley.  They used to play a game of 9-pin bowling with wooden pins and a wooden ball.  The kids enjoyed this! We continued to look through town, stopping at the Candle makers - who incidentally weren't making candles as it was too hot!  The metal workers were making candle holders out of brass.

We took another Gold Mine tour which was also very informative and showed a replica of the biggest gold nugget found in the area... Chad's guess was 70kg - it was in fact a 69kg nugget! Chads was the closest guess the guide has ever heard. It doesn't look like 69kgs!

When we finished the tour we were just in time to see gold pour.  A bar of gold is brought to liquid form in a 1000 degree Celsius oven and then poured into a bar.  The kids were allowed to hold the bar worth $160,000!!!

    

    

As we were all pretty tired and hot we headed back to the caravan to set up camp at the nearby caravan park.  The kids and Mars went for a swim in the beautiful pool while I went to do some grocery shopping. 

After showers and dinner (and a rest for Axel and Rowan) we headed back out to see the Sound & Light show back at Sovereign Hill - which started at 9pm. The story was based on the events leading up to and including the Eureka Stockade.  It was an extremely well 'presented' show which was also very informative. Mars and I learnt a lot too!

Following the show we headed back to the caravan with our tired little people and off to bed!

Maits Rest and Beauchamp Falls

We packed up early and drove to Maits Rest rainforest walk where we had breakfast then headed into the rainforest. It was about a 25 minute walk but there was lots to see and enjoy. Massive Eucalyptus trees, huge ferns and shrubs! It did get quite cool in temperature too.

From there we drove to the Otway Lighthouse but chose not to go in (didn't want to pay the ridiculous fees!) - Mars took a quick pic from the distance.

We continued driving into the Otway National Park looking for koalas! We quickly came to a stop when there were a number of cars parked on a bend (!!!) and the cameras were out in force! We did see a few koalas so we really enjoyed that!

 Mum and baby koala off to the left

We had to backtrack a little to head to our next camping spot - Beauchamp Falls.  As there are limited FREE camping areas along the Great Ocean Road it's necessary to get there early to secure a camping spot! We arrived about lunchtime and were enjoying some lunch when a van pulled up. Chad says, 'That girl was counting how many kids we had!' Turns out it was a family with 5 kids from Mt Barker in WA - the Ritchie family.  Our kids thought it was fantastic!

We went for a walk down to the waterfalls with the Ritchies.  At the base of the waterfall was a swimming hole but no where to put your towel so we couldn't get too comfortable. 

Some of us did go for a swim, just so I could say I stood in a waterfall (haha). The water was breathtakingly COLD. Halfway across from the waterfall I thought I wouldn't be able to breathe anymore! Was definitely refreshing!

The boys did a bit of rock climbing down the creek for a while until the leeches found them! Then it was time to go back up.

We spent the afternoon chatting and watching the cars keep rolling into the carpark. The kids enjoyed some painting and then some cricket. We heard the last few come in about 11pm, a total of 24 cars in a small carpark!

Dinner / Bath time