Yeppoon October 2013

October 9^th, Finished packing up and got an early start (9am) on our trip to Yeppoon. We called into Makay, to buy another carton of jars for Val’s preserves and have some lunch. We pulled into Clairview for an overnight stop at the Barracrab Caravan Park (formally Clairview Caravan Park). It’s a very basic Park but the amenities are clean and they always have a meal special on, a licenced Bar and it’s on the beach. The breeze coming off the water was a delight after the very hot weather we had up north. We had a drive through site, so we will make a quick getaway tomorrow. Not that we need to leave early, as Yeppoon is only a couple of hours drive away. We had a walk around the Park, reminiscing about the last time we stayed here (possibly 7 years ago) and nothing had changed except the name. Val challenged me to a game of darts, so we collected 2 sets of darts from the Bar and started a 301 game. Val hit a double after a few shots and was down to trying for the double 3, to end the game, before I hit a double. Needless to say, I did rack up a reasonable score before Val was declared the Winner. My arthritic shoulders were my excuse for my poor performance. We both had the Pork Chop with Veg’s and gravy at the Bar/Bistro for dinner and at $17.50 was reasonably priced and a good meal. As Val says, “It beats cooking”.

October 10^th, While I was having my morning coffee, I was entertained by a tilt tray semi- trailer loading up a hired Portable Cabin, that had been placed in the Park for the Line Marking Workers. Obviously the Park didn’t have enough accommodation for those working on the Highway just outside the Park. I thought that this would be a simple operation for the truck driver and 5 other workers. Not so, It took them around an hour, and a few adjustments before it was successfully winched onto the tilt tray and secured down. To top the exercise off, when the semi was leaving the Park and turning into the narrow road out front, the back of the trailer collected a small tree and their front fence, knocking it down and uprooting the tree. We had a good drive down to Yeppoon and booked into the Beachside Caravan Park for 2 weeks. We have arrived here in time for their annual “Pinefest” Celebrations this weekend. While setting up Val asked for the step to be put in place, as the height from the slab to the floor at the door, was just a few inches too high for a comfortable step up. That’s when I recalled that we made a roadside stop on our way down here and I had not put our step back into the Van, Oh Dear!

October 11^th, I did the Centrelink thing and lodged my paperwork. I do like to keep them happy! I then went to 2 places that sold camping /caravan accessories and priced their platform steps. The only one that looked safe was $69, so I left that as something to think about. Val gave me an all over short haircut, no step on the cutters. I am starting today to treat my forehead for sun spots, with Efudix Cream and so my hair (what little I have) had to go. We went into Town, walked the shops and bought a few groceries. At 7.30pm tonight we walked down to the Beach, to watch the Fireworks that were the start of their Pinefest Celebrations. For a small Town we thought they were very good. They went for around 15mins.

October 12^th, I decided to make my own step and drew up a rough sketch of what I intended to make. The old step was one that I had also made myself, when we bought our first Van and was virtually a box shape. It wasn’t a great design, as it would tip over if you didn’t place your foot in the centre of the platform. It was dangerous and Val had been complaining for years about it. I went down to the local Mitre10 and bought a 90cm X 60cm X 12mm sheet of waterproof plywood for $24. After lunch I got busy and cut out all the pieces for my step while Val was busy on her sewing machine, making a pair of Peddle Pushers, that she had cut out back in Townsville.

October 13^th, Today was the Parade and Street Markets for the Pinefest Celebrations. We walked into Town, knowing that the parking would be impossible and it was only about a kilometre to the main street from our Caravan Park. We had plenty of time to find out the route of the Parade and get a good spot. The Parade started at 10.30am and was very good. Several of the Floats were handing out small Pineapples and Val managed to get one. The main street is a divided 2 way thoroughfare so the Parade came along one side, around the roundabout and back the other way. They had a huge crowd and lots of Market Stalls and Rides for the kids. Val bought a few summer dresses and I had an ice-cream to eat on our walk back to the Van. It was a very enjoyable morning. Val had to lie down under the air conditioner and have a Nanny Nap after our big morning out. After lunch, I assembled my step, all nailed, glued and screwed together, with a piece of outdoor carpet glued to the platform. After testing my “non tip” design. Val put it through her own testing and was very happy, so I gave it a first coat of cream paint.

October 14^th, After breakfast I put the finishing coat of cream paint on our new step. We started doing a beach walk this afternoon, for exercise, and were entertained by a learner “Kite Surfer”, being instructed by his mate. We were surprised how warm the ocean water was, when we paddled in the waves on our way back.

October 18^th, We have been enjoying our daily ½ hour walks along the Beach, but this morning I woke up with a sore throat, aching all over and stuffed up in the head. Oh! Oh! This s the start of a bout of the dreaded “Man Flu”!!

October 19^th, We had a shower of rain tonight, started around 10 0’clock. Up here they are all praying for rain, it is so dry. Started with a heavy shower but didn’t last long. My MF is getting worse. Val tells everyone that I’m such a baby when it comes to a simple head cold but  now different.

October 22^nd, We did some grocery shopping today, so I finally bought some Codral Day and Night Tablets, to help me finish off this MF I’ve still got.

October 23^rd, We went to Cool Waters Caravan Park, only a 15 minutes drive from Yeppoon, to visit Judy and Peter. They were our next door neighbours where we stayed in Townsville. Val made a batch of Eccles Cakes for afternoon tea, which were delicious. Peter fixed up some nibblies and wine and we had a very enjoyable afternoon, catching up. We did some packing up after dinner, ready to leave in the morning for an overnight stop somewhere on the way to Poona, 30k out from Maryborough.

Airlie Beach September 2013

September 25^th, Before leaving Townsville we called into the Joyce Mayne Store and Val bought a “Stonedine” frying pan, which was on sale. She had been talking about getting one for a long time now and it was a bargain at $38 for the large size. We stopped at the ‘Big Mango’ at Bowen for lunch and found out that they don’t sell food (only drinks and ice-cream), so we made lunch in the Van and ate it at the rest area opposite. We had a good trip down to Airlie Beach, only 2 stops for roadworks on this stretch of the Bruce Highway, and booked into the Seabreeze Tourist Park for 2 weeks. After setting up, we were both buggered, so we drove into Town to grab a Maccas. It had been a few years since we were here last, so we were surprised to find the main street abuzz with young people after dark and finding a parking spot almost impossible. We took a little walk up and down the main drag; Val wanted to soak up the atmosphere. It reminded us of Surfers Paradise, without all the Japanese Shops. We enjoyed our Maccas and went home for an early night.

September 26^th, We put up Val’s signs around the Park, hoping to get some sales for her Jams, Pickles and Chutneys, while we are here. We took a drive around Town to see what it looked like in the daytime and found that there are more Cruise Booking places than Pubs or Restaurants. This is the hub of the Whitsunday Island Cruises. We were very impressed with The Lagoon built on the foreshore parkland. Our impression was, a small Tourist Town with the surrounding hills covered with houses with amazing ocean views.

September 28^th, Val has been busy replenishing her supplies of home made products and is now adding a chilli version of the Tomato Chutney to her range, at the request of our neighbour opposite. After a very hot day, just relaxing watching TV after dinner with a glass of wine, Val sat down on her Coleman’s Wide Padded Chair and the plastic arm snapped off at the hinge point. They have a 5 year Warranty, so on Monday I will be down to BCF to exchange it. That will be the 4^th replacement in less than 2 years.

September 30^th, BCF happily replaced our broken chair and even suggested that we might like to change it for another brand, as we had so many replacements. We decided to stay with the Coleman Chair and I noticed when I un-wrapped it at home, that this chair only has a 1 year replacement warranty.

October 3^rd, The Caravan Park put on a sausage sizzle tonight, with an entertainer, in the Camp Kitchen. Val got permission to set up a table with her products and donated several jars of her pickles for everyone to try on their sausage. It was a great night, Val sold lots of her products and the most popular was the “Fiery Chill Tomato Chutney”. We only had 4 jars of the Chilli Chutney, so had a few disappointed customers and the comments from the tastings were, nice but “Could be a bit hotter”!

October 6^th, We decided to have a day without any jam or pickle making, so we drove out to Shute Harbour, only a 15min. drive from Airlie Beach. It’s the Terminus for the Tour Boats that handle the trips out and around the Islands. We went up to the lookout and the views out over the very blue water to the off-shore Islands were spectacular.  We went back to Airlie Beach and walked along the Shops and stopped at The Whitsunday Seafood Bar, where Val had fish and chips and I had a works hamburger and chips for our lunch, with a great view out over the beachfront. We walked back along the opposite side of the road, looking in all the shops, until we found a Tavern and just had to check out their Pokies. 30 minutes later, we came out of the Tavern having had some fun and with our money still intact. We got home in good time to get set up to watch the NRL Grand Final between Manly and Eastern Suburbs and the Roosters were Victorious, Yea!

October 8^th, We packed up today, ready to leave in the morning. We have changed our mind again and are going to continue back down the coast to Yappoon, hoping for cooler weather on the coast and less chance of running into bushfires. Val had last minute sales for her Pickles, when our neighbours in the Park were reminded that we were leaving in the morning.