1st - 7th December 2020
After spending a week in Noosa we decided it was time to start making the journey back to South Australia to spend Christmas with our family. We left Noosa nice and early on the 3rd December and headed towards Tamworth. We decided to try and avoid Brisbane and road tolls so we headed inland towards Toowoomba and down through Warwick, Tenterfield, Glen Innes and finally to Armidale where we spent the night. The night in Armidale was pretty wet and stormy and colder than we have been used too. I think it was the first night for months we had actually used the quilt on the bed and looked for a jacket to wear. Almost makes you want to turn around and head back up the coast where it is warmer !!! Next morning we decided to head to Dubbo and spend a few days.
We had always gone through Dubbo and said – the next time we come back we will go to the Western Plains Zoo, well this time we actually did it !! Wow what a zoo, there are so many big animals, rhino’s, hippos, elephants and lots more. You can either drive your car around the zoo and stop in the many car parks or hire a bike or golf buggy to drive around. We drove the car into the zoo and parked and walked most of the zoo. Unfortunately for us it rained and we got drenched, but it was all part of the fun. All the animals were pretty active, not sure if it was the rain and thunder or if that was just a normal day, but it made for a very interesting day. We both really enjoyed the zoo experience. Great to see all the animals with such huge areas to wander and graze.
We stayed at the Discovery Dubbo whilst in Dubbo which was a fantastic little park with lots of shady trees, swimming pool and fun park for kids. Whilst we were there the Rotary club put on a sausage sizzle barbecue for the park visitors, which i think is a regular Saturday night event- definitely beat cooking!!!
Next on our agenda was a visit to Parkes to see the radio telescopes which are famous for their part in the broadcast of the moon landing back in the 60’s but also still used today for exploration of our solar system. Well worth a visit to see the history of the centre and to witness the giant telescopes in action.
We made our way to Hay where we found a fantastic little free park down by the Murrumbidgee River – Sandy Point Reserve. This is a great place to spend a few days in amongst the huge River Red gums and right on the edge of the Murrumbidgee river. We were only going to stay a night, but the place is so peaceful and relaxing we decided to stay and extra day. The town of Hay itself it a lovely little town to wander around and look at the painted water towers and enjoy a coffee at the Black Sheep Cafe. Highly recommend if you are driving through to stop and spend a few days.
Only a few more days left of our travels before we get home, maybe a night or two in the Riverland before we get there !!!
