I had a good catch up with Geoff and Sandra this morning after their return from Griffith late last night. Was great to hear they had enjoyed a relaxing family holiday together with the boys.
About mid morning, I set off to the North, on the road again and up the Melba Highway. I stopped for a lunch break in Yea, along with many others, most of whom appeared to be returning to the Melbourne area after the Easter Holiday. Fortunately there were many cafes and pubs to choose from. Looks like Yea is a regular stopover point for many travellers.
The old Shire Hall at Yea is lovely building.
Yea's main street was doing a roaring trade.
I continued NE on the Goulburn Valley Highway until I came across the "famous" holiday resort of Bonnie Doon. For those of you who are fans of the Australian cult movie "The Castle" you may remember the Kerrigan family having an excursion to their holiday home at their favourite place outside Melbourne. I did not realise that it was a real place, but here it is.
Bonnie Doon, complete with high voltage power lines.
Very little water in the lake, which is actually an arm of Lake Eildon.
The Bonnie Doon Pub was doing a good early afternoon trade.
My journey continued to near Bengalla where I joined the very busy Hume Freeway (M31), the main road link between Melbourne and Sydney. From there it was only a short hop to Wangaratta, where I had booked into the Painters Island Caravan Park, close to the CBD. The park is large, beautiful and extremely well managed by Dutch (Kiwi) couple Gini and Gary. Many of the powered sites are under shady deciduous trees all shedding their leaves madly at this time of year. I asked and was given a site not directly under the trees which was an added bonus.
On Wednesday I had a walk around the area and the CBD of Wangaratta. The walking bridge across the Ovens River made access to City very convenient.
The river is very pretty and benign looking. However, all the new infrastructure in the caravan park is now built up on legs, which I am sure means there have been a few floods in the past.
An old set of Toll Gates have been preserved at the footbridge and a large park & recreation area is just a small walk from the City.
On the City side of the river is a nice precinct of cafes, pub and RSL club. Amongst these was the Cafe The PreVue, which I found most impressive.
The City has wide streets, plenty of parking, shopping choice and a great slower pace feel about it.
I also visited the Tourist Information Centre which was very worthwhile. Was given a number of personal recommendations of things to see, plus a few very fresh locally picked apples. Also had an interesting discussion about the 1970's Captain Matchbox Whoopee Band song "Wangaratta Wahine", one thing that had attracted me to the City after so many years. Fairly bizarre, but the lady at the Info Centre remembered them as well.
Thursday 25 April 2019 - Anzac Day
Today I decided to follow an art and art silo trail on a map given to me by the information centre. First stop was Glenrowan, home of Ned Kelly's final stand. A very small town with a number of tourist venues modelled around Ned & the Kelly Gang.
Amongst the sights of Glenrowan is a "Big" Ned Kelly.
On the road into the wetlands "Martin's Barge" has had some extra colour added to it.
An old watertank has been cleverly used by an artist, with a series of faces shown. The wetlands are very dry as this area has been in drought and is at the end of a dry Summer.
Another view, another face.
and another.
My first silo stop was Devenish, which was of particular significance today as the silo features an Anzac tribute.
Many visitors to Devenish on Anzac Day.
The old Devenish Pub was doing a good trade on the day.
Next stop to the North was St James, with more skilled artworks, and a nearby local pub doing well.
Further North still was Tungamah silo which had quite a different style from a local street artist.
On the other side of the silos was more skilled artwork and the tiny town was also attracting a lot of visitors.
On Friday 26 April, I made my first excursion into the nearby wine growing areas. As many of you will know, Brown Brothers is a large, old winemaker based in Milawa, not far from Wangaratta. As with many of the large commercial wine Companies, they offered a series of tours and other packages. I tried to book one online and for some reason, even though spaces were available it would not let me book for one person. I then tried ringing the Winery and ended up dumped in a voicemail account. Eventually I decided I would just visit and see what I could find.
Just near Whitfield (further South) I turned off onto the Mansfield Road and climbed up into the hills to visit Power's Lookout.
A very impressive panorama from the Lookout.
The view was really impressive.
I returned down to the valley floor and visited Pizzini Winery, just out of Whitfield. It was getting late in the afternoon, but they were welcoming, still quite busy and preparing for a wedding.
The Winery was very pretty, using a mix of old and new buildings for Cellar Door and function area.
Pizzini made a whole range of Italian grape variety wines including Prosecco for which area is very well known. I particularly enjoyed their Sangioveso and Nebiollo red wines.
Saturday 27 April 2019
Today I had an outing to Beechworth, about 35km to the East of Wangaratta. Beechworth is another of Victoria's historic gold mining towns. Beautiful, but a much smaller scale than Ballarat or Bendigo.
The hall interior has been lovingly restored and at the rear of the building in the basement is a cell that (amongst others) was used to hold the Bushranger Harry Powers.
Across the road in the morning sunshine is the old Courthouse, built with local granite and most impressive. The old Telegraph Station is next door and similar construction.
Not far down the hill, Autumn colours can be seen in their full glory.
Across the road is a large, very old Applejack, eucalypt tree which is pretty much a sole survivor as nearly all timber nearby was cut for fuel and to allow access to the alluvial gold fields..
Walking back up the hill to the centre of Town we passed the "Original" Beechworth Bakery, which is now franchised over many places in Victoria.
On the edge of town is the formidable Beechworth Gaol, also built out of local granite by the inmates. Reportedly a very hard, unpleasant place to be incarcerated. 
In the gaol central courtyard, as a contrast, a sleek Airstream Caravan is set up as a Cafe and Ticket Office.
Down the hill is the old Billson's Brewery which still produces a number of brews and a range of cordials.
So many things to see in Beechworth and very well set up for visitors and tourists. Highly recommended.
On the way back to Wangaratta, I diverted to the small gold mining settlement of Eldorado, situated along Reedy Creek, next to the Chiltern- Mount Pilot National Park. A number of things to look at and a Shared Path walking trail to enjoy on a sunny day.
I also visited a local pottery operated by a retired teacher and CFA (Country Fire Authority) Volunteer. Had an interesting chat with him about many things.....
On Sunday I took a drive out to Wangaratta Airport to have a look at the annual Historic Vehicle Show, which also included many old aircraft and a number of flying displays. A great country or regional feel about it with many volunteers from car clubs, community organisations and the CFA keeping it running well.
There were quite a few beautifully restored trucks, including this small International flatbed,
and this modified Chamberlain Tractor.
I loved the lines of this old American ute,
and this original looking EH Holden in excellent condition.
Lots of room under the bonnet with the ("larger") 179 (cu in) six cylinder engine option.
I was also impressed by this 1979 Holden Kingswood South Australian Police car, which was in an area next to a large collection of old fire trucks and ambulances. Far too many photographs taken.
Then there were a lot of old aeroplanes, so a collage seemed like a good idea.......
Quite a collection for a Regional Airport.
I was even motivated to get out the Nikon and telephoto lens to capture some of the display flying.
I thought this was a pretty good photo (for PJ),
and this one too.....
One of two P140, World War II fighter aircraft in the air.
Monday 29 April 2019
Today pre-poll voting for the Federal Election opened and Wangaratta polling place in the City was up and running and had its act together. With little problem, I was able to cast my vote for both the House of Representatives and the Senate in the seat of Hasluck in Western Australia.
Wangaratta is in the Federal Seat of Indi, presently held by Independent Cathy McGowan. It is being heavily contested by the Liberals and National Party this election as well as Helen Gaines, an Independent Candidate endorsed by the sitting member.
As usual these days there were many, many choices on the white Senate paper. Thanks to recent reforms it is now only required that you number a minimum of 6 party boxes if you are voting "above the line" or a minimum of 12 candidates if voting "below the line". I can share with you that Pauline Hanson, Clive Palmer, The Pirate Party and a number of others received no preferences from PJ. Hopefully this may prevent many candidates who in the past have received only a handful of primary votes from becoming elected Senators for up to six years.
On a lighter note I returned to the King Valley and visited Dal Zotto Wines in the afternoon. Another beautiful sunny, calm and cool Autumn Day. I am told Dal Zotto was one of the first wineries in the area. They specialise in Northern Italian grape varieties and wines including Prosecco sparkling white of course.
The Cellar Door was bright & airy with a local lady, who knew her wines well, in attendance. I bought a half dozen mixed reds and a rose after a very pleasant tasting. These included another outstanding Nebbiolo.
Next to the Cellar Door was an impressive Bocce Rink for outdoor relaxation.
On Tuesday, I made return to nearby Gracebrook Winery for lunch.
Quite a view from the car park.
Also very pretty on the outdoor terrace in front of the Restaurant and very quiet on a Tuesday after the holidays.
Wednesday 1 May 2019
I packed up reasonably early and towed the van from Wangaratta to Bright, which is located on the Great Alpine Road in a beautiful valley on the way to Mount Hotham, Omeo and ultimately Bairnsdale in East Gippsland. I stayed in the Bright Freeburg Caravan Park, about 8km from town.
Very pretty park with plenty of room and the full range of Autumn trees.
The park is in a beautiful valley.
Thursday, it just pissed down with heavy rain overnight and quite violent thunderstorms. On Friday (3 May) the weather cleared a little and during a sunny period I explored Bright which was coming to the end of its annual Autumn Festival. As a result, it was busy with many visitors and tourists walking the streets.
Bright Main Street.
Autumn colours in town.
The local Church in the centre of Bright.
Saturday was the final day of the festival, so I decided to stay away from the crowds and take a day trip up into the mountains to visit Mount Hotham.
As expected, quite a steep winding journey up into the mountains. In and out of the clouds once above the tree line.
From Blowards Hut you could see parts of Hotham Village up at around 1750 metres (but not in the photo).
The chairlift looks stark, with no snow and all the chairs removed for maintenance / storage.
The Village was virtually deserted with just a few vehicles on the Great Alpine Road stopping as I did. My very first visit ever to an Australian Ski Resort. About 3deg C outside with a very fresh wind.
I drove on to the nearby resort of Dinner Plain where I found a Cafe open and enjoyed a sandwich and yet another good coffee.
Modern looking apartments blend in well with the Eucalyptus trees at Dinner Plain.
Stunning alpine panorama on the road back to Mount Hotham.
Sunday 5 May 2019
Another day with a mix of sunshine and cloudy periods, so a good excuse for another day trip, to Falls Creek this time.
Access from Bright is over the Tawonga Gap Road then through the Kiewa Valley, climbing up a long narrow river valley to Falls Creek.
The view above is of Mount Beauty from Patterson's Lookout on the descent from the top of Tawonga Gap. Just stunning.
Another view of the township of Mount Beauty from the start of the climb up to Falls Creek.
Also on the road up to Falls Creek is Bogong Alpine Village. Very pretty with many houses built on steep valley walls.
Falls Creek was also almost a ghost town, but the many huge carparks and large apartment buildings give an indication of how busy it must be through the snow season.
A number of runs cut through the scrubby alpine vegetation above the Village centre.
Very scenic view looking back down the valley towards Mount Beauty,
and a panorama including the Rocky Valley Reservoir storage above the Resort.
The return trip to Bright took quite a lot of concentration. I very glad that there was no snow or ice on the roads and very little traffic. Not a trip I would now really want to make with full Winter traffic with impatient drivers and meeting buses on the tight bends.
On the final run from Bright back to Freeburgh, the sun came out with this stunning view looking towards the Mountains along the Great Alpine Road.
On Monday (6 May) I had a quiet day and started writing up the blog again. As usual I got distracted and took another trip into Bright in the afternoon. When I came back I hooked up the van to be ready to leave in the morning for more of the High Country and the upper reaches of the Murray River.
A bit of a saga this time with a lot of photographs in this chapter of the blog, but as they say "so many places to go and so much to see". Time to pause and hit the publish button so my enthusiasm can recharge for the next stage of this expedition when I turn for home again.....
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