Round the Block

With Marty on holidays for a week we decided to head off on a much overdue road trip. A quick drive round the block so to speak. A 1700km journey through Carrawarna, Tallarook, Alexandra, Gippsland, Lakes Entrance and back home via Cann River and Cooma. Our little car is now starting to feel a bit on the weary side. It always astounds us what we manage to cram into and on top of what is definitely not really your typical family car. Two bikes, two kids, a chariot, a porta cot, a baby hammock, 3 small suit cases and about 20 full plastic bags which are great for squishing into the most unlikely small space but not so great when it comes to repacking! Not surprisingly Marty wasn't at all impressed when I decided to include a kayak paddle into the mix for the return journey.

The first few days of our journey involved a 'farm stay' of sorts. The weekend was spent slowly sinking into holiday mode, catching up with family and just relaxing in general. The seemingly endless fields of golden canola were strangely enticing, I couldn't help but imagine myself riding through them on my bike at sun set, no helmet, the wind blowing through my hair, carefree - you get the picture. This never quite happened; firstly because on closer inspection I realised that this beautiful view was also the cause of my sudden onset of hay fever; secondly because a field of golden canola does not in reality make for the smoothest or easiest of rides and thirdly because with both kids sick at the time, sleep deprivation made any type of physical activity seem low on the priority list.

Our next stop was visiting friends just over the border in Victoria. Here we were able to squeeze in a day ride on the new Goulburn Valley Rail Trail. It would be our first Rail Trail experience and we thought it was also another good opportunity to test out the kid's endurance. We started early from Tallarook and winded our way along the banks of the Goulburn River about 15km to Trawool where a much needed coffee break was had. From here we had about 25km to go until the final destination of Yea. Being a Rail Trail it was smooth and easy riding with no major ups or downs, however,  the sheer distance covered and time in the saddle made it quite the little adventure and it proved to be our longest ride with the kids so far!

We returned home by first heading south to Gippsland and Lakes Entrance for a long overdue visit with family. Our temporary home here was a shed in the back yard which sounded perfect considering our recent goal of spending a month living in a tent. It wasn't exactly your average back yard shed though, the fact that it came complete with a flat screen TV mounted on the wall and fully stocked mini bar paints a more realistic picture of our 'roughing it in the backyard' experience.

This road trip happened weeks ago yet we are only managing to write about it now. The past month has been chaotic and exhausting, and unfortunately there has been no time for blog writing amidst the countless doctors appointments, ear infections, colds, teething issues, sleepless nights and stomach bugs. But things are starting to now look up and as Dr. Suess says;

"Thank goodness for all the things you are not!

Thank goodness you're not something someone forgot,

and left all alone in some punkerish place

like a rusty tin coat hanger hanging in space."