Mother and calf lazing in the warm waters of the south.

Whales

We saw 30 whales today, wallowing in the waters of the Great Australian Bight. Mothers and calves were socializing and babies were suckling. 

Teacher's spelling

Sorry that Nullarbor is spelt incorrectly on my blog title. I misspelt it when I constructed the blog and don't know how to change it. Please notify the children. Null = no arbor = trees. 

Hi Sid

Hi to my neice's son Sid. I hope you can travel to interesting places when you are older Sid. I love it! Hope I can visit you soon. Xx

Creative Time

I was inspired to write as we travelled through the very productive farmland of South Australia. This was my "creative time". (Class 3G will know what that is. I used carefully selected adjectives which I am sure  3/4S will recognize.)

Brilliant yellow canola flowers sway in the cool breeze as we pass by the fields this morning. They glisten with plump water drops still clinging to their delicate petals from overnight rain. 

Hundreds of majestic towering wind turbines spin in harmony on the hilltops. The paddocks reflect every shade of green from the artist's palette, creating a patchwork quilt that has been gently placed over the rolling hills. 

A giant sleeps snugly beneath and I dare not awaken him. My caravan massages his back in the hope that he is not disturbed and remains as peaceful yet productive tomorrow as he is today. 

Over the borders

Travelling through  the Mildura district we saw orchards of citrus fruits, almonds, grapes and olives. There was a cornucopia shaped sculpture in the town to represent the bountiful harvest of fruits that the area supplies to Australia. It was sad to see that imports of overseas grown fruit and vegetables (processed and raw) have lead to the unviable farming of local produce and the farmer has no choice but to bulldoze his trees into piles and burn them. 

We followed the Murrumbidgee River and then connected with the Murray River. We had to catch a car ferry across the Murray River because there isn't a bridge across the water. It was a surprise because it wasn't on the map and we were not expecting it until it came into view over a hill. 

Our current location is in Burra in South Australia. It is an old copper mining town. Since leaving NSW we have crossed into Victoria and are now in the state of South Australia. Only one more state to drive into on this trip. An emu stood defiantly on the side of the road today but ran off as we got closer. We had to maneuver around several lizards along the way too, sunning themselves on the hot road. This is not a good idea.  I can hear lots of frogs and ducks on the river behind our caravan. I do hope they go to sleep soon as it is nearly time for me to read a book and snuggle into my warm bed and wonder what lies ahead on my adventure across the Nullabor. 

Overnight at the lake

After a long drive on straight, flat roads we have arrived at Lake Benanee near Mildura. We have driven past hundreds of cattle feeding on the grasses on the side of the road. They are brought to this area because there isn't enough food on their owner's properties due to the drought. They often wander across the road so we have to be alert and drive safely near them. The drovers used to ride horses alongside the cattle to keep the cattle under control but now they ride motorbikes. They used to sleep in swags but now they have a caravan. They used to use clever dogs to help them...and they still do! 

The green and yellow pastures of canola and wheat reach as far as we can see. The huge tractors have 8 wheels and air conditioning. I can imagine how hard it was for the early settlers who cleared the land and used strong horses to plough the earth in the hot, dusty conditions.

Maybe tomorrow we will cross the border between NSW and South Australia to see what new sights, history and discoveries await us. 

On our way

The house on wheels

Only a few days to go now before we leave on our exciting adventure.

Preparation

Only 20 days to before we leave!