Sydney 2014 – Day 1 – 17th January – Home to Grafton

We are on the road again, but just for a month. It was a very familiar drive today, down the Gold Coast and Pacific Highways to Grafton, where the overnight stop is at a small caravan park at the Greyhound Racing Club. The “dish lickers” were performing last night, so all is quiet.

Just two stops along the way. Lunch by the Tweed River at Chindra and coffee at Ferry Park near Maclean. Somehow, with the time difference between Queensland and NSW at this time of the year, there is no time for morning tea. We no sooner leave home than it is lunch time.

On the green, green grass of Grafton

Chindra always has interest for us. Over 100 years ago my maternal grandfather operated the pedestrian ferry over the river. The family lived nearby and Mum’s playground was the river bank. She talked of playing with the soldier crabs on a small sandy beach. She had no siblings, so the crabs were probably her main play mates.  I think she enjoyed their stay at Chindra.

The plan for this trip is to stay as much as possible in the higher country to avoid crowded coastal caravan parks and for cooler nights. After a few days at Katoomba (where Ruth and I honeymooned over half a century ago) we will move on to Sydney where we will stay for a week. Daughter Karen is coming home from India for six weeks. She flies into Sydney on Friday 30th January. Younger daughter Briony has a birthday on 3rd February (now resident in Sydney) so we will celebrate her birthday and spend time together. A few days after we travel home, via the coast, Karen goes to Tasmania for a few days but then joins us for a month in Brisbane a couple of days after we get home. We will celebrate what Karen calls “the birthday season” while she is with us. She and Craig have birthdays only a few days apart near the end of February.

Ruth is travelling with a brand new knee. The entire process of the replacement has gone very well and eight weeks on from the big day she has almost full use of that vital joint and not much discomfort. On day 2 of our trip we will give it a bit of a work out as we travel along the Waterfall Way to Armidale.

Until then stay well.