After all the late nights and sort of early mornings we’ve had over the past week, I put my foot down last night. I stridently declared that I would be sleeping in this morning and not getting up at a time governed by the clock, knocking on the door, or any other external influence. Nope, none of that was to hamper my effort to get a decent nights rest and so it was when I rolled over at about 10:30AM to see if Bec was yet awake. Unable to see properly in the dim half-light, I flapped my arm around only to find that not only was Bec already awake, but she was also no longer even in bed, or as it turned out, in the caravan. Even the dogs had let me enjoy my sleep in, remaining curled up comfortably on their own divans. Bec on the other hand I found inside the house, with her Nan and an aunty and uncle who had come out to see us off.

At least the weather was on our side, with the sun shining, despite the morning chill that was hanging in the clear air. Well it was, until the moment I decided that it was time to begin packing up. We were in no hurry at all today, figuring that so long as we were on the road by 1:00PM, we would reach our target on time. So it was after I scoffed down a bowl of cereal for breakfast, that I got dressed ready to go about the task of striking camp, only for the heavens to open in a drenching downpour.

Thankfully the rain stopped almost as quickly as it started, giving me the opportunity to get things ready without getting soaked.

In no time at all, we were all hitched up and ready to leave, a task that was undertaken amid a flurry of daintily daubed tears and promises not to leave it so long before we again return to Horsham.

Goodbye family.

Waving madly out the windows of ‘The Beast’ as we roared off down the road, we punted down back roads as ‘Shazza’ tried her best to direct us out onto the highway as we edged ever closer to Melbourne. It was near Naracoorte the other day, before we had even crossed back into Victoria, that we spotted the first sign for Melbourne, indicating that we had in the vicinity of 450Km to go. The signs today were much more frequent as the countdown to home continued.

Much of today was to be spent in the cabin of ‘The Beast’ watching these signs announcing ever decreasing numbers as we motored towards Bacchus Marsh, where we have enlisted the front yard of friends in which to park the rig overnight, for our final night on the road, our final free camp of the trip, just to help ensure that our accommodation budget stays in the black.

We did make a very quick stop in Ararat to stretch the legs and grab a bite to eat for lunch. Another fast food joint burger that had as much flavor as a slice of cardboard and a texture to match. It was to fill the hole for a little while at least. Our next stop was to have been in Ballarat to visit a cousin of mine, but our schedules didn’t quite convene suitably. With Ballarat a bust, we instead stopped in the little town of Beaufort, which lays claim to being the last highway town on the road to Melbourne. This though didn’t influence our decision to pull over, rather the two craft shops and two antique shops caught our eyes.

In a repeat of this morning, not 10 seconds after stepping out of ‘The Beast’ the rain came down in swathing buckets, forcing us to don our rainwear as we ran for cover beneath the welcoming canopies extending from the shops lining the main street. For the next hour or so, we skirted the puddles as best we could as we wandered up and down the street peering in at the few stores that were open. We must be growing immune to the allure of cute handicrafts and bargains of an antique variety though, because we returned from our shopping spree wet, but empty handed.

Back in the saddle, we turned back onto the highway, with ‘Shazza’ set to direct us via the fastest possible route to Bacchus Marsh, where we were due to arrive at a little after 5:00PM. That was pretty much spot on for when we were expected to arrive, so there would be no more stops along the way now. ‘Shazza’ had one last trick up her sleeve though, as she directed us to exit the freeway somewhat earlier than I expected. Putting blind faith in her ability, we turned off of the highway, only to find ourselves on a terribly rutted little back lane, the width of which was barely wide enough for the track of ‘The Beast’. By this stage, there was nothing that we could do, but to push onward, as there wasn’t even anywhere we might have been able to negotiate a U-turn to head back to the main road.

Then, like a stab in the back with a rusty spoon, the tar petered out into a sloshy gravel topped surface, although amusingly this turned out to be smoother for the most part than the asphalt, even if our speed did drop by necessity to below 60Km an hour as we carefully navigated tight switchbacks and devilish declines.

To her credit, ‘Shazza’ did get us safely to our destination, albeit a little later than expected. Almost 15 minutes behind schedule, we finally rolled along the snaking drive of our friends place, to be greeted with huge waves, bear hugs and just a couple of tears for good measure. Anyone would think that we hadn’t seen them for six months!

Hello friends.

With 6 months worth of catching up to do, we quickly set the van up, then ensconced ourselves within their delightfully warm living room for a feed of excellent fish and chips, accompanied by several hours of chit chat. By the time we were all caught up on the comings and goings during our absence, it was almost like we’d never been away. It was more than a dream wasn’t it?

Until next time, stay safe, have fun and don’t forget to write.