Last night, a troupe of fire fighters came to the camp site. They were taking a break from their never-ending days of battling with the bush fires. We have had terrible bush fires in Australia this year and unfortunately as I am writing this blog entry in 2020, the fire is still burning. We had been lucky as the smoke had not affected our holiday at all, but there was a certainty about the fragility of our beautiful landscape. We strive to thread our world lightly and hope to do it better. Our world is here for us to explore and learn and appreciate. These 42 men and women were heroes. They rested in the cabins at the campsite.
Before
the crew headed out to continue their battle in the morning, they showed
children the fire brigades. We bid them goodbye and wished them luck and prayed
for their safe passage.
We
also made friends the caravan couple and their sheep dogs. The children
played fetch with the dogs and we shared some laughs with the couple.
Mount
Gambier’s Blue Lake was smaller than I remembered. The blue turquoise lake was as vivid as ever. I
visited this many years ago with my parents when the Leg of Mutton still possessed
water. Green Lake’s lookout had a plaque to commemorate Queen Elizabeth ll and
Prince Philip’s visit in 1977. The lake was not as impressive as the Blue Lake.
Perhaps it was all the water recreation that happened on that lake. It just
appeared a bit green stirred with muddy brown.
Mount
Gambier is a dormant volcano. Around the crater is this fertile soil with its
population on it. A little fear strikes me due to the recent White Island volcano eruption recently. This active volcano presented no warning and its eruption killed tourists. I
was perplexed why it was permissible for anyone to visit? It is New Zealand’s
most active volcano. Well, I hope Mount Gambier has a better plan. Is it all part
of risk taking to enjoy what life has to offer?
Umpherston Sinkhole was the better than ever as the trees and plants had matured since the last
time I visited. However, due to the recent heatwaves, the hydrangaes were burnt. There were lots of wildlife that resided here such as bees, insects
and bats. I promised the children that we would stay here for a little while
longer in our next visit so that they could come to feed the resident possums.
The
next destination was Kingston. We informed the children we were visiting an old
friend called LarryThe children were very surprised when Larry turned
out to be a giant lobster. Larry has had
a refurbishment recently. He nearly ended up in Western Australia. Thanks to
the generosity of a pastoralist, he was destined to stay in Kingston. Strangely
I didn’t remember him being next to the main road or his surrounding being so
dusty and dry. I can only blame the weather!
The
drive between Cape Bridgewater and Coorong felt long. I think we would prefer
to schedule in another stop if we ever repeat this route again.
We
finally arrived to Coorong. The estuaries appeared purple from its vegetation. It
felt remote as there were not many people or cars around. Pa and Mi were there
already at Coorong Retreat.
A simple rectangular house and the view from the living area was spectacular.
The facilities were very good. They even
had an indigenous kitchen garden. We tried the climbing spinach but it was
definitely an acquired taste. There was even a frog pound that the decking
extended over like a bridge. Moreover, they had a healthy library.
The
children taught Mi how to play Monopoly (We used Thomas' set which was the 50th Anniversary Edition metal boxed). It was great to see the competitiveness
emerged from her as if she was playing Mahjong!
There
was a telescope there that was already focused on a flock of pelicans. The
water was very calm, with a slight breeze that felt like a muslin cloth brushed
against the naked skin. The beach was
not how I expected. It was very silty as it was like a lagoon. The bird life
here was of abundance. We could hear constant twittering outside on the decking
that overlooks the white sand dunes.
We
celebrated my parents’ wedding anniversary that evening. Beautiful food, wine
and company.
The
sunset was glorious. The sky turned peachy orange and awash every element in
its path with the identical colours.
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