Gloucester

 Tuesday 27th

After sleeping on it we decided to continue with our original plan to go down the mountain towards Gloucester so we said goodbye to the flushing toilet and headed off. But first another stop in Walcha for supplies, and another coffee, this time at a venue that had got our attention yesterday. An old pub, that has been turned in to a coffee shop and B&B, judging by the garden decorations it is owned by someone very creative. I was particularly taken by the tree made from star picket fence posts.

As you can see by the last photo Al and Helen’s camper is very easy to keep track off.

The journey down the mountain went without drama, although the 6/7km downhill is very steep and I think Al made the right call, judging that it would be easier going down the hill with a van, rather than pulling it up (providing your brakes work well).

Our next stop didn’t look all that inviting from the road, but once over the hill and away from the farmhouse, we found plenty of sites to choose from as we were the only campers. We selected one with absolute creek frontage, which would be great for swimming in warmer weather, as the facilities were a long way away and very ‘rustic’.

This time Al gave Michael lessons in setting a fire on the ground and declared he had passed the Novice Stage. The creek also came in handy for doing the dishes and the area provided me ample opportunity to use my binoculars.

Wednesday

When we surfaced the sun was shining so we decided to drive up in to the Barrington Tops with the intention of exploring one of the shorter walks. It was an interesting drive through varying environments, but the higher we went the lower the temperature got and then came the fog and rain. By the time we had driven for over an hour it became obvious we wouldn’t be doing any walks so we turned back. As we returned we were amazed to see sleet on the windscreen and the temperature had plummeted to 9 degrees! 

After finding a warm, dry cafe in downtown Gloucester we were able to explore the town in sunshine. One of the town’s attractions is a Mosaic Walk, consisting of mosaics which appear on walls and footpaths around town. Beyond the two dimensional images there are also planter boxes and seating covered in mosaics in the Meeting Place and a large mosaic platypus in Billabong Park. I also found a shop full of my own personal fashions.