Onto Evandale

The boys headed off early for some beach fishing... and they managed to catch 3 Salmon Trout!  They were so proud of their efforts! When they finally came back to camp we had breakfast then sat down to do some school work.  In general the kids have become quite good at concentrating on their school work even if we're outside.  When it comes to diary writing tho - they are very easily distracted!  So while they did their school work, Rowan putted around with his monster trucks and Axel played in the BLACK dirt - just enjoying the freedom!  We had a few comments from passing people and for a whole hour I think we managed to look like we 'had everything under control'. 

Whenever we speak to people about taking the kids off school for 6 months the reactions are always the same - "they'll learn so much more being on the road than stuck in a classroom!" And we have to agree with them - as long as we keep up their Maths & English!

Did I mention the black sand...?

After the schoolwork was finished we headed off to the beach for some more fishing.  While we were there we saw a stingray heading up and down the shore and after that a shark! The beach had quite a gutter as it hit the water and the shark was swimming in the gutter.  Occasionally the waves would wash the shark onto the shore! Needless to say, there wasn't many fish caught!

We had an enjoyable morning on the beach then headed back to camp to pack up the van. Our plan was to drive to Fingal to camp for the night, about 90 minutes drive.  We arrived in Fingal and set up camp. It was quite windy.  The following morning it was VERY chilly! Inside the van the temperature was 8 degrees! When I checked the car thermometer it was 5 degrees!

We drove on to Evandale - about 90 minutes drive on the 'scenic route'.  Evandale was hosting their annual Penny Farthing Festival. We enjoyed some breakfast in the sun (and defrosted!).  We strolled through the Festival and came to a part which had lots of different bikes that could be tested to check your ability! It was very entertaining!

From there we went to watch some of the Penny Farthing Races! We could easily have sat there for a few hours... but the kids weren't as keen as us!  We eventually left Evandale and headed to Old Mac's Farm in Launceston where we quickly set up the van next to the Ritchies and headed back out to visit the Buist family.  We had some very excited kids on board! We spent the evening catching up with the Buists - was so much fun!  The kids had a blast - as did we!