Murray and Mail

Picked up the MH on Friday as scheduled on-time, a good job, thanks Royans.

Stayed the night in Wilks Park before heading to Narrandera to pick up the mail I've been directing to a friends PO Box since early January. Always fun picking up the mail drop as I sometimes find forgotten impulse buys from eBay.

Spent a couple of days swimming and paddling at Tocumwal and Cottadidda Res at Barooga pondering the next move.

Walking home from the pub in Narrandera.

Wagga ducks on holiday?

Wagga - A face lift.

Dropped the MH off at Royans in Wagga on Monday. Time to kill. I have this theory about waiting...

Staying in a motel, what was I thinking? Well, I did check all the listed B&Bs in town before I had to settle for a motel. Years of traveling for work and living in hotels, in one of my previous lives, comes flooding back. This style of accommodation is not for me.

Been walking around Wagga clocking up lots of kms and still can't get the BGL to where it should be. I really do need to prepare my own meals.

Wagga Wagga, the biggest inland city in NSW is still just a big country town. These ducks probably believe its a good place to live. But I for one am very keen to be gone. The ducks can have it.

Baylis St - The main shopping street in Wagga Wagga.

Wagga - nearby anyway

On the road again camping beside, and splashing in, the Murrumbidgee as its HOT!

Saw this caravan and trailer setup and thought he would only travel in the early hours to avoid the police. No wrong, shortly after taking the shot an old codger backs up a horse float type truck, hooks up and drives away. What Da! The rig must be 80 to 100 feet long and the tow bar on the caravan doesn't look up to it either.

Spending next week in a wheel-less abode, will be different.

How's the serenity? 

Serenity - until you hear the birds.

What Da!

Thoona - BlazeAid - Time to Go,

So back on the fences after a lay day on Monday doing domestic stuff and provisioning in Yarrawonga.

Got the go ahead from the Insurer, the repairs can start. I was expecting to have to wait for shop time but was lucky being booked in for next week. So arranged a car and accommodation from Monday to Friday.

Suffering another bout of destination fixation as I'm really keen to get this done and to be free to go. But decided I will do a few more days for BlazeAid before heading north. Always good to stay in control of those impulses.

The work is easier when the farmer has all the gear to do the job the right way.

Burned out tree on the fence line.

The easy way to put in the concrete posts.

Sunrise after overnight rain, its beautiful out here.

Thoona - BlazeAid - week two.

Just a quick photo or two.

Sometimes the farmer supplies morning tea and lunch. Morning tea is usually at the fence, a cuppa and cake, a standing around sort of affair. But lunch is at their home and is usual home cooked and eaten in comfort, nice.

click a photo to enlarge

Lunch is served.

The best time of the day, its cool at 7am.

Thoona - BlazeAid

Checked on the progress of the proposed repairs after the kangaroo strike to find no quote received by the insurer yet. Called and emailed the repairer, Royans Wagga, waiting, waiting. Time slows when waiting... Decided I needed a diversion so off to Thoona in Victoria to do some BlazeAid, only 90km down the road.

Thoona is a small farming community about 25km west of Wangaratta in Victoria. The town has a pub, general store and a primary school. The land around is undulating and very picturesque, except for where the fires went through just before Christmas.

Arrived mid afternoon to find about 25 other volunteers here, plenty of room, but limited power and only pumped river water. The closest potable water and dump appears to be Benalla so every now and then I will need to take a drive.

With BlazeAid, in exchange for working from 630am till about 4pm, the local community and BlazeAid feed you and provide a camp site. Having done BlazeAid in Monto Qld, after the Burnett River flooded, I know the volunteer gets as much personal gratification as the farmer get valuable assistance to help recover from their predicament. Its hard work but rewarding.

The team I'm in completed the boundary fences for an 80 acre farm in 3 days. So Sunday is lay day for us, that's nice.

Rip it out, new posts then 5 strands and mesh. 

The old and the new.