AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY - 4 TO 8 MARCH 2021

 CANBERRA

4 March

We spent the morning packing for the south trip. After stopping for petrol and food we finally hit the road at noon. A bit of a late start.

The drive down was relatively pain free and we arrived at Cotter Campground in the ACT at about 5 pm.

We sat down by the edge of the Cotter River and chatted with a few drinks.

A long day travelling! After dinner, I crashed! Haha.

5 March

I had an early kayak on the Cotter River which was short due to shallow water one way and a weir in the other direction. Still, it was very pretty.

We had breakfast then went on a hike to Cotter Caves. The scenery along the way was very pretty – a track with varying vegetation and a shallow clear river to our left. At Cotters bend we crossed the river and followed the track and trail to Cotters Cave. The caves were closed but the viewing platform above it was open. Nice panorama! There was another track leading back to the camp but it was very overgrown so we decided to backtrack instead.

Back at camp I had a swim - it was very cold – and a short snooze.

We drove to the Australian Arboretum where we met up with long time friend Mark and had coffee. Great view!

We drove back to camp, where I had another river swim and dinner.

An excellent day!

6 March

We had breakfast and drove to the Arboretum for a bike ride. The tracks were flowy in sections with some great views. Mark had met up with us part of the way.

We had lunch in a pretty garden café with heaps of birds flittering about.

Back at camp, I had a swim and later in the evening we lit a fire. It was nice watching the flames flicker while we drank some wine under a starry, starry night.

On going to bed Jacinta noticed that the fridge wasn’t working. A job for the morning.

7 March

Last night the refrigerator wasn’t working. Well, it didn’t turn out too bad.

We packed and left Cotter Campground. We drove till we found a quiet spot with reception and rang the NRMA. After an hour, the mechanic arrived. It turned out that the problem was the battery. Unfortunately, he didn’t have a deep cycle battery but he recommended Battery World to get one. We rang and they were open and they had the battery we wanted and could install it. Lee the battery world attendant was great and in about an hour we were off. We all electrically good again! An amazing experience and luck was with us as it was a long weekend in Canberra and most places were closed.

Next stop was food, followed by a camping area. We stayed at EPIC in Canberra _ $35 pn for a powered site.

8 March

A good sleep and we awoke to rain. It only lasted a short while.

Off on the road again to Jindabyne.

THE ACT - MOUNTAIN BIKING - 11 TO 13 JUNE 2020

11 TO 13 JUNE 2020

 A few days visiting my old friend Mark in Sutton, NSW.

We had two really fun and long mountain bike rides on groomed tracks in the ACT. They were so varied and the views were sensational.

Mark lives on a large property where he is farming trees.

We also spent a lot of time eating at good restaurants and cafes. Once again such a variety.

AUSTRALIA - CANBERRA - THE JOURNEY AND THE A.C.T. - 27 to 28 december 2013

27^th December 2014 Friday

 We loaded the campervan, filled with petrol, picked up a coffee and we were on our way on our ‘South Trip’.

We arrived at Canberra and camped at Cotters Camping - $12 per night.

In the afternoon, we drove to Tidbinbilla – entry fee. It is a great place for walks. We drove to the refuge section of the park and walked around the wetland areas. There were a number of different types of b birds. The brolgas were the highlight.

Distance 2.71 km

The sunset on the way back was awesome across the kangaroo dotted grasslands with mountain backdrop.

28^th December 2014 Saturday

The first stop was Stromlo Mountain Bike Park. I started the ride at the top and Jacinta picked me up at the bottom. It was a fast and fun ride from beginning to end. One stack at the beginning with a slight chunk of flesh missing.

Distance - 2.62
Time - 14 minutes
Av speed – 17.2 km/h
Max speed - 24.8 km/h
Elevation range – 146 m

After the ride, we drove back to the top for the café and the great views towards the west.

AUSTRALIA - CANBERRA - STROMO - MTB - 20 June 2013

Mark was off working so I did a MTB at Stromlo.



My intention was the follow the cross country trail for a long ride BUT ...

1 couldn't find trail
2 too cold

The morning started with 1/2 spent thawing the ice on my van.

I got to Stromlo and the weather was clear and cold. Noone else was there riding!

I followed two trail leading uphill and had a fun downhill ride back. I tried playgrounds but I wasn't very successful. I need to work on the height factor!

On the first run, I came across a small mob of kangaroos.

Great and fun ride but it was hard to keep warm.

distance     - 3.91 km
time           - 19 minutes
av speed    - 12.4 km/h
max speed - 26.3 km/h

AUSTRALIA - CANBERRA - MURRUMBIDGEE RIVER - POINT HUT CROSSING TO PINE ISLAND - KAYAK - 19 June 2013

The day was clear, a very cold wind and there some rain the previous night.

We (mark and I) launched from Point Hut Crossing where we finished yesterday. It was an easy launch spot with a sandy beach.

The river was flowing more strongly than yesterday. There were a number of small rapids that were much easier to guide over though we still managed to get struck a number of times.

 

The last rapid had a small drop. I went over the drop and it seemed good but then the kayak swerved to the left and I was stuck between two rocks with the water gushing over my back. Mark was ahead and he scrambled back over the rocks and managed to give my kayak a nudged over the offending rocks setting me free. A hero! The rocks were very slippery as well.

We had a bit of difficulty finding the landing area that would lead us to the car.

A shorter but faster, more enjoyable and exciting kayak than yesterday! Best kayak ever since yesterday!

Distance      - 2.36 km

Time            - 31 mins

Av speed     – 4.5 km/h

Max speed – 9.9 km/h

AUSTRALIA - CANBERRA - THARWA BRIDGE TO POINT HUT CROSSING - KAYAK - 18 june 2013

I’m in Canberra visiting old mate Mark.

Our first adventure was a kayak down the Murrumbidgee River.

The day started very, very cold with thick fog. We waited till about 9ish then set off in two cars – one for the start and the other for the finish.

The weather had cleared at the launch site and the river was looking calm and shallow. We slowly paddled down the river enjoying the tranquillity. We stopped a few times to walk around the shore. On one occasion, we stopped as we had seen  what looked like watermelons growing on the river sandbank. They looked like melons, when opened they looked like white oranges and when we smelled them they were sweet.  BUT when Mark tasted one, he spat and cursed that it was foul. A short while later, he complained his lips were numb, then his tongue, then his mouth and then his face. Luckily it stopped there and he started to recover.

Later, we came across some light rapids that were fun and easy. The next rapid was fun and a bit harder. The next one was a heaps steeper with larger drops. I went first and got stuck. Mark followed and rammed me nearly sending me over the drop, then he grabbed the front of my kayak then I started going over the edge backwards. Not going according to plan! Over I went and in a short time my kayak was stuck again and full with freezing water.

Later, on another rapid we went through lantana and of course avoiding the thorns lead to another water dousing and a broken paddle.

Next was the rain but luckily that was short lived.

We landed, complained and laughed at being soaked, cold and tired and then we planned tomorrow’s paddle.

Overall, the best kayak I’ve had yet – freezing water, soaked, broken paddle, and wet mobile – total FUN!

Distance 9.86 km
Time – 2h 13min
Av speed 4.5 km/h
Max speed 8.8kn/h

AUSTRALIA - CANBERRA - 'Stromlo, Walk in Aviary, Cockington Green, Viking road race' - 18/19/20 January 2013

STROMLO- OFF ROAD CYCLE

The best off road cycle I've had yet with Mark G. I wasn't sure of what I was doing at times and had three stacks - ankle very sore - but such fun. Playgrounds, skyline, switchbacks.

 9.13 km
41minutes
13.3 km/h
28 km/h



WALK IN AVIARY

A nice walk around with plenty of birds to see and feed.



COCKINGTON GREEN

This is a model village display. It is quite amazing for detail and the maintenance invilved to keep it looking good.



VIKINGS ROAD CYCLE RACE
The next day was Mark's bike club having a race. The scenery was excellent!



Later that day, I caught up with Louise K. Peter K.'s sister for lunch. Nice to catch up!

It was great to catch up with Mark and his family - renewing old friendships!

AUSTRALIA - Canberra - tidbinbilla nature reserve - Gilbraltar Rocks - HIKE - 7 October 2011

We headed off to Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve to hike it to Gilbraltar Rocks.

The walk startd as a nice stroll through grassland and light bush. Soon the track endede and we followed a fire trail up and up and up. Eventually, we reached a small bench and then it was a steep short downhill walk to the start of the rocks.

The trail turned into a track and meandered up and amongst the large boulders that formed Gilbraltar Rocks. It was very misty when we arrived but after a short time the mist cleared to a higher level providing a view of the immediate area. It was a lot of fun scrambling over the rocks and peering over the abyss below.

The walk back was hard has well due to the steepness of the trail.

It took 2 1/2 hours for the trek. This included a lot of mucking around on the rocks.