Just when you didn't think it couldn't get colder we arrived in Arno Bay!

Our morning was one of getting a few parts from some shops in Whyalla before we left as they had been closed because of the long weekend.  Jason took Kayla out with him whilst I did one of Hamish’s sessions and tried to join the LSODE session where they announced the classes and teachers.  It was a bit of a fail as I thought all was going well when I heard the teacher come on and say hello and then after that I had the leader leave the session and after five minutes I was disconnected.  I tried to call back again but nothing happened so I don’t know what happened, but after a while I got the hint that nothing was happening so gave up.

Eventually we got away, but not before the lovely caretaker Kay dropped buy with a bag of assorted home cooking and some fresh tomatoes and a cucumber straight from her garden.  It was so lovely and such a treat for us.  It really makes staying there all the more worthwhile.  The other fellow campers hadn’t been as friendly, not that they were nasty but when we tried to strike up a conversation they just didn’t seem up for a chat, yet when fellow travellers pulled in there were over there saying hello and having happy hour.  Each to their own, but I have to admit that this trip we are finding the fellow travellers in the caravan parks to be more accepting of us family travellers and include us more which we really appreciate.  Jason even had a phone call from our friends who we first met in Airlie Beach and then again in Adelaide. 

Talk about score big time.

 Finally, we managed to get on the road just before 10 am and it was just going to be one of those days where we were watching the navigator and counting down the kilometres.  It seems to be that sometimes on the days you only have to travel a short distance that you watch it a lot more.  We also had a strong head wind which wasn’t helping and we passed what felt like a hundred or so caravans heading the other way.  Not many of them waved so we just put it down to the fact that they were at the end of their holidays and so therefore not happy.  Realistically they were probably just concentrating on driving in the wind!

Another drive.

Eventually we rolled into the caravan park we had booked and already we felt at ease.  Straight away I felt so welcome at the Arno Bay caravan park.   On the front wall at reception they had a sign that you are welcome to pick some of their roses to enjoy in your van.  We had been kindly allocated a very shady site, but we weren’t too excited about it.  Why, because it was soooo cold!  We would have loved the full sun beating down on us!  As soon as we had parked the van in the spot I opened the caravan and grabbed jumpers for us.  Even the kids refused to get out of the car until the caravan was set up and they could go into the warmth of inside.  Such tough Queenslanders we are!

Cool little welcome to the town.

Right next door to us.

We seemed to be set up in record time as it was too cold outside.  We also didn’t bother with the awning area as the wind was blowing a bit and we didn’t think it was really necessary with the shade.  I then thought it was very appropriate to cook up a hot lunch for us all to warm up and start the onslaught of washing that had backed up.  I am happy to report I have finally worked out the limit of our washing machine and can fit nearly two days’ worth of clothes in there.  This is certainly making catching up a lot faster.  I also finished Hamish’s last session for day one which he had heaps of fun doing as he could choose a play activity and of course chose construction.  So out came the recycled boxes, sticky tape, glue and stapler.

Once that was over it was Jason’s turn to start teaching so I took Kayla out for a walk.  We walked all the way into the main part of the town.  It seems like the place is divided by salt plains.  On our side is some beachfront shacks, playground, the marina/boat area and of course the all-important pub.  Whilst on the other side is the grocery store, post office, bowls club and where I would guess the majority of the permanent population live.  So we walked along the nice path to the main part of town and got some post packs to send off the ridiculous about of extra clothes the kids have.  We then popped into the food shop to grab a treat for ourselves and one for Hamish.

Hamish doing school.

Probably not the best photo but to the left is the main town and the right the caravan park and pub.

Another beach covered by seaweed.

After the walk back we checked out a local shelter near the playground that had heaps of pictures on the history, fishing and Progress Association projects for the area.  It was certainly an interesting read and a great way to show it to visitors.  By now I assumed the hour was up and returned to the van to see Hamish happily decorating his hat creation with Jason.  I love how Prep has a lot of play based learning as it is going to make it easier to keep Hamish’s attention and we all have a lot of fun doing it.  I then took the kids for a walk to help me hang out the washing whilst Jason cleaned up.

Hamish had been begging to go fishing so Jason took him and Kayla down to the jetty to try their luck.  I went to join them with the camera but couldn’t find them on the jetty.  I then spotted them coming back from the playground.  Jason said it had been too windy and they weren’t getting any bites so they gave up pretty fast and went to the playground.  Oh that is another wonderful thing about this park.  Apparently in June and July you can go out on their boat fishing with them and I believe it is free as long as you stay two weeks.  Just a wonderful added touch to how well this little park is run.

We just enjoyed a quiet night inside as Jason was keen to see the Murray vs Kyrgios tennis match.  I caught up on some reading and a bit of the blog before calling it a night.  The wind by now had really picked up and was blowing a gale.  I was grateful that we had the trees and a few other vans buffering us from the worst of it.  Hopefully it dies down a bit tomorrow so we can get out and enjoy the beach.

Surprise, surprise we woke to yet another windy, cold day.  I think we are missing our Queensland Summer, but I am sure it will catch up with us somewhere along the road.  Knowing our luck it will be when we do the Nullarbor!  Anyway today was Jason’s main day to teach Hamish school so I took Kayla down to the local mangrove walk to give the boys a bit of time to get two sessions done without interruption.  The walkway was so well designed and had great explanations of the area and why the open salt marshes exist.  Apparently they do flood in the springtime, and it even showed a picture of it for those of us that needed a bit of convincing.

The walkway was fantastic.

Kayla taking it all in.

By the time we had completed the entire walk I checked with Jason to see how they were going and he let me know they only had another 15 minutes left of work to do.  So of course Kayla and I headed back into town (driving this time) to post the parcels of extra clothes of the kids that we didn’t need and buy some more milk and items to make play dough for school that afternoon.  By the time we got back the boys were finished so we had a quick morning tea and attempt to have a coffee (the morning attempt failed as it was cold before I got to it).

So off we set to check out the local area which included the towns of Cleve and Cowell.  I was interested to see what Cleve was like as the houses advertised at the Arno Bay grocery store looked quite nice and were around the $200K asking price.  Seems so cheap when compared to back in Brisbane!  I naturally assumed it was a small town but was pleasantly surprised by how big it was.  It kind of reminded me of St George and Longreach and had a really nice feel to it.  From here we set off to see a bit more of Cowell and the drive through the countryside was really nice and scenic.

They stack their sheep and leave the dogs to watch over them in Cleve.

Cowell was not what I was expecting.  The caravan park looked so busy and the town itself was very pretty, but there really wasn’t even a beach there I was trying to work out why people would choose here over a place like Arno Bay that is right on the beach.  I mean assuming the weather is actually warm enough to enjoy the beach.  Oh and if you could remove the seaweed from the beach, which Jason was told is worse in Summer as the fishing boats churn it all up and then cause it to come in to the beach.  I have no idea how true this is.

Hamish could of stayed here all day.

Having a lot of fun.

The poor birds.

There was a lovely playground that we stopped to let the kids out to play and stretch their legs, and then we thought we would follow the signs to the Quandong farm.  I had no idea what a Quandong even was.  I was thinking some sort of bird, but Jason said he thought it was a fruit.  He was spot on, but it wasn’t really a farm, instead it was some lovely old lady’s house and in there you could buy Quandong sauce and jam.  She kindly gave us a tasting and we just felt so obliged to buy one of each.  It isn’t like she forced us but we both really felt like we had to.  It did actually taste nice and wasn’t expensive so of course it wasn’t a negative thing.

Local pub.

A Quandong tree.

Port Lincoln parrot.

Tractors all waiting to tow the boats homes.

After being shown pictures of what the berries looked like and then the trees, we enjoyed looking at her pet birds and she even had a Port Lincoln parrot.  To me I have no idea about birds, but Jason was excited and recognised it so of course had to get a photo!  We have been married nearly eight years and still he surprises me with traits I have no idea about.  Once back in the car we had a great discussion on how you could make some serious money by getting your elderly family members to go into business as people feel obliged to always buy something of them.

We were getting hungry now so we headed back to the local pub in Arno Bay.  On the way we called into Port Gibbon to have a sticky beak.  I wasn’t too impressed as we accidently ran over a snake on the way in.  I am no snake lover but I did feel sorry for it but also relieved that it was still on the ground once we were past it.  The place itself was quiet and not much happening but there was a donation camp there right on the water.  Finally we made it back to the pub for lunch and ordered the special rissoles and vegies for lunch.  It was a fantastic meal and quite large so I couldn’t finish it, but also so reasonably priced with the whole lot plus drinks coming to approximately $35. 

Port Gibbon Beach.

Shelter from the old days.

Our lunch stop.

That afternoon we did a few more school lessons and Jason took Kayla back down to the mangrove walk to get some exercise.  Hamish and I went to the camp kitchen to get a head start on the next day of school.  I think we spent more time trying to find the light switches for the room, but eventually just opened the door.  At the end of the lesson people were starting to come in, as it was fish and chip night for dinner.  The caravan park runs it every Wednesday night if they get enough interested parties, so we of course put our names down in the morning so we didn’t have to cook that night – winning!

Believe it or not this is part of his school lesson.

It is a great idea and there were a few of us sitting around, swapping stories and enjoying a lovely meal together.  I think this caravan park really has the right idea with what they offer for their guests and it was really hard having to pull ourselves away to pack up the van and get the kids ready for bed.  We had booked the van in for its 10,000km service and for one of the front water tanks to be moved, the next day in Port Lincoln so need to get there around 9am.

If it stays like this where everyone socialises, that will make us really enjoy this trip.  Yes we are seeing some wonderful places, but the people you meet along the way just add so much to the experience.  We were apprehensive as we were going to be free camping (well only $5 a night) for the first two nights in Port Lincoln so just assumed it would be a quiet keep to yourself deal again.  We are actually staying right where we get the caravan serviced.  He has heaps of spare land so let’s people stay – bonus I say.