The title above comes from an album on cassette released by
the Briagolong Bush Band in the 1980s, but I'll use it here to refer to our
recent trip to Lakes Entrance and other places in Gippsland.
It was a coincidence that I'd been looking to buy an album
by the folk/jazz/blues singer Margret RoadKnight, recorded in 1987 and now
re-issued on CD, and discovered that she lives in Kalimna West on the outskirts
of Lakes Entrance. On Tuesday when we got to Lakes, I phoned her and we went to
visit. (To reminisce a bit, Doortje had seen her perform in Melbourne in the
late 1960s and we saw her in Bairnsdale in about 1990 and have an autographed
LP record from then).
Anyway, we now have a couple of autographed CDs as well, and
had a nice chat with her at her rural property.
On Wednesday we drove to Marlo to see the Snowy River and
the Cape Conran coastal park. Saw some great coastal scenery, some beaut birds
including blue wrens, and Doortje fossicked on the beach, as is her wont. We had lunch at the Marlo pub and watched a
rainstorm, the only one for the day, pass by while we ate. It was windy on the
beach, though.
Next day we went to Nyerimilang homestead, a National Trust
site at Nungurner. In our Bairnsdale days, I spent time doing a painting
course, and a couple of times we visited Nyerimilang to paint the scenery,
which is magnificent. The homestead is on a cliff overlooking the lakes.
The homestead had many period artifacts on display,
including this clock, which we were both impressed by.
We visited our friend, Marion Pearce, Doortje's long-time
work colleague, at Sarsfield. Marion's husband, Jumbo, died in April, and now
she, too, has been diagnosed with bowel cancer with complications. Despite the
sadness involved, it was great to see the family again—three daughters, May,
Michelle and Linda, were all there, and it was difficult to know which one was
Marion! And of course, James, Marion's foster son we knew as a little tacker, very proudly showed us his bungalow, with lots of Holden
posters and massive audiovisual system.
More by fluke than management, we stopped at the Bruthen
market, where we met Perran's sister, Liz, and her two boys. The previous day,
we called in to see Perran's Dad, Rob, at Metung, after having lunch at the
Metung pub and being entertained by the pelicans on the wharf outside the
window. Rob's newest enterprise is probably best described as
computer-controlled woodworking, except that in his case the whole shebang is
designed by him from scratch, from computer software to router machine and computerised product
design.
We were incredibly pleased (and grateful) that Rob gave us
an example of his work, this "funky fiddle dish" carved out of a single
piece of camphor laurel and beautifully finished. He (as Sea Eagle Designs) now
has them available in retail outlets such as in Yarragon, and we saw the local
sea eagle continually circling while we enjoyed a cuppa.
Before we left Lakes, and went back to spend one more night
with Helmy and Gavin, we visited Lake Tyers and walked on the sandhill and
beach there. This photo shows the entrance and the work of the waves in eroding
the headland.
On the way back to Maffra, we had lunch in Sale and called
in to see Terry and Roger, very old friends at Longford, and met one of their
grandkids.
We were almost a week away, and I must say that, if we have to have localities without desert sand, the East Gippsland coast and hinterland is a part of the world I'm very fond of, with lots of good friends.
We were almost a week away, and I must say that, if we have to have localities without desert sand, the East Gippsland coast and hinterland is a part of the world I'm very fond of, with lots of good friends.
* * * * *
There's a set of photos from the trip at
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