A week's skiing with friends Julia and Snow and their girls Jessica and Natasha, and also Karen and Stu, and Eve. No beaglies on this trip!
South Island of New Zealand - August 2006
For our 15 day honeymoon (our first serious amount of time without the boys). Highlights were a day's kayak trip at the Abel Tasman National Park frolicking with some baby seals, quad biking and black water rafting at Greymouth, walking on the Fox Glacier with crampons, and having the world's best French toast at the tiny town of Fox Glacier, and then 7 days skiing and eating and drinking our way through Queenstown. Paul got to do the highest bungee jump and the Fly By Wire while I got to take photos, and we both went on the Shotover Jet and did a white water rafting trip too.
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| Ready for the bungee |
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| Fly By Wire |
Western Australia, Darwin to Carnarvon and back again - September/October 2007
Unsure how the boys would travel such long distances, our fears were soon allayed when they were more than happy to sleep on the back seat and not get out of the air-con unless they had to! We went west on the Gibb River Rd far too quickly, had a couple of days at Barn Hill south of Broome, down the west coast, 4 days at Ningaloo Station near Exmouth after meeting up with friends Den and Sue, then to Carnarvon and back home again, picking up our first Oz Tent in Karratha. Nobody told us how windy WA can be! We did a 16 hour day driving from Broome to Katherine as it was too hot to sleep, and we now know sleeping in the car with the air-con on for about 6 hours is the equivalent of about a quarter of a standard sized tank of fuel! And worth it!
Stanthorpe - February 2008
We had 4 days in Brisbane for Rachel's parents 50th wedding anniversary, and managed to slip in a couple of days at a BnB in Stanthorpe in the Granite Belt close to the NSW border with Julia, Snow, Jessica and Natasha. We climbed up The Pyramid in Girraween National Park, and had some gorgeous food and wine as well.
Western Australia, Darwin to Esperence and back again - October/November 2008
This time we zoomed as quickly as possible down to Perth, knowing the boys were happy little campers in the back seat of the car, then focussed on the south-west corner. We caught up with friends Ken and Ingrid and Pete in Perth, and did a day trip to the Swan Valley to check out some wineries. We then mosied around the Margaret River region eating and drinking and picking up some beautiful big slabs of timber, headed across to Albany and then to Esperence to see Erica and Gregg, and their two kiddies Rhys and Mia. Then up to Kalgoorlie, Meekatharra, Karratha and then east home to Darwin as quickly as possible to avoid the inevitable heat.
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| Gibb River Rd camping |
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| Rachel and the boys on the Gibb River Rd |
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| On the beach near Roebourne |
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| Roughing it in Albany |
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| The Big Bucket at Kalgoorlie |
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| Kalgan Pool, NW of Newman |
The wildflowers in Esperence were gorgeous!
Tasmania - September/October 2009
This time, Steve, Lucy and Sophie joined us from Darwin down the middle of Australia to Melbourne via the Devil's Marbles, Alice Springs, Kulgera, and Renmark for 3 days camping on the banks of the Murray with Den and Sue. On the ferry from Melbourne and across Bass Strait overnight to Tasmania during the wettest month of the wettest year in 10 years!
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| Desert Oaks rest stop |
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| Devil's Marbles, just after dawn |
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| Kulgera |
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| Sheffield |
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| Family shot in rainforest near Weldborough |
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| Tasman Arch and Blowhole |
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| The Dog Line at Eaglehawk Neck |
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| Convict ruins near Port Arthur |
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| 4wding near New Norfolk |
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| Running with beagles at Henty Dunes |
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| Black River Camp Ground near Stanley |
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| Stanley |
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| Near Cape Grim |
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| Tulips at Wynyard |
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| Tulip farm near Wynyard |
This spot about two hours south of Darwin is one of our favourites that we've returned to many times over the years. It has permanent fresh water and beautiful rugged gorges, is above where crocs go, we usually are the only ones there, it's got a good, reasonably challenging four wheel drive track in, and not too many locals know about it...yet.
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| A fav pic of our mate Den in his element |
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| Keg's first camping trip! |
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| Another of Den in his element |
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| Tuckered out boys! |
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| Now one of Indy in his element! |
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| Raelene and John |
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| John in contemplative mode |
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| A boy and his slave |
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| Paul, Indy, Keg, Mac, Annie and Graeme |
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| Graeme and Annie |
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| Paul and the Big Dog |
