Crooked Brook

The weather gods did not smile on us at all. After a very wet night, the day was quite unpredictable. With sunshine and heavy showers, one after another. From our parking spot at Crooked Brook, there were walks in several directions. I had forgotten to pack my waterproof jacket, but Helen (a Bibbulmun Track veteran) kindle let me borrow her spare one. Even so, i got very wet during one heavy downpour, then decided to sit out the next one and stayed in the car for an hour, trying to catch up with my blog offline.

We managed to have lunch in one of the shelters near the carpark and make use of the toilets there: always a bonus. After that, there was a choice of returning to the cabins or visiting a local brewery. Most people went home, but four of us decided on the brewery and Arlene paid for our drinks on behalf of the Nats Committee. She is Vice President, but they are lacking a President, which is a big problem for the club. There was a staggering choice of beer and cider, made on the premises. The dining room was packed, and at 3.00 pm it seemed that people were still eating, drinking or waiting to be served.

Back at the cottages, we all met up again at Number 3. Don had decided on a Q and A session given by Helen and myself: a sort of debate on the relative merits of the Bibbulmun Track and the Camino de Santiago. To me the Bib would become boring after 2 or 3 days walking through forests.

Collie

Last night there was a moth invasion. Suddenly our porch area was full of flying objects, some of which flew into my face and into my bedroom. The shower had quite a few too. I think they came in out of the rain, which started with a heavy downpour at 8.00 pm.

First thing this morning, Val swept them all outside, dead or alive, and immediately a magpie descended on them and consumed the lot for his breakfast.

First on the agenda was a woodland walk on an easy path straight from the cottages. There were lots of things of interest to the Nats, including an abundance of Water Bushes on both sides of the track. We passed a so-called Conference Centre where it’s possible to hold a bush wedding. 

After that we drove into Collie for the rest of the day.; a half hour trip. People could replenish their supplies from Woolworths or Coles if they needed to. There was also a guided walk to see all the murals around town, but i didn’t go on that. I preferred to go to McDonalds to use their wi-fi. Maccas are reputed to have wi-fi everywhere in the world, but I found that in Collie it was still very weak and unable to load photos onto my blog.

We went to a coffee shop, where I sat next to a local woman and complained about the poor communications. She said welcome to the bush! People living in cities have no idea how badly served the regions are.

For dinner we all met up at the Crown Hotel, where a private room had been booked for us. Most of the group ordered barramundi, but I just fancied a pizza. It was delicious.

Driving home in the dark was no fun. We were trying to follow Alan and Jolanda, but they got lost and we went out of our way on a long bumpy gravel track. At the time, I thought we might never find the cottages and have to spend the night in the middle of the forest.

Later we joined everyone in Cottage 3, where I proceeded to demonstrate my fire lighting skills because nobody else had done so. I love a log fire!

Camino Confidential: Wellington Forest

May 2nd.

Very close to here is the Wellington Discovery Centre, where we had an interesting talk by a man from DBCA (Dept of Biodiversity Conservation and Attractions), formerly CALM: they are always changing their name! He defended their policy of controlled burns, which many people object to. There was also an amazing exhibition of stuffed animals: beautiful examples of expert taxidermy. I have never seen a better display about West Australian native animals and birds.

Red-tailed black cockatoo on top; fierce looking feral cat bottom right. Beautiful examples of taxidermy .

After lunch, we car pooled and drove to Wellington Dam. The road was narrow and winding through dense forest that always looked the same and very badly signposted. So easy to get lost around here!

The dam wall is never allowed to overflow these days, because of the huge murals on the downward side. We had a little talk about these murals from Alison, a local guide. It seems there are about 40 of these, most of them in the town of Collie, where we are going tomorrow.

There was also a lovely kiosk where we all enjoyed an ice cream or a coffee before driving back. We met up again at Cottage Number 3 for drinks snd nibbles. It was Val’s turn to cook dinner and she produced a delicious beef casserole with potatoes and broccoli.

Wellington Forest

1st May.

We drove down from Perth and noticed how brown the paddocks were on all sides. They are in need of rain, a lot of rain. The directions to Wellington Forest Cottages were very confusing and I was navigating. We took a wrong turn twice and I felt bad, as Val had been driving for hours.

At the cottages, Val and I were given number five and we had it to ourselves for the first night. A married couple were expected for the master bedroom next day, I was disappointed to find that our cottage didn’t have a log fire just a measly ancient gas fire. Also, there was no Wi-Fi and the Telstra phone signal was down to one bar.  It would be impossible to do my blog every night…

We arrived on a surprisingly warm afternoon having been warned of really low temperatures overnight. In fact I was too hot in the night with my down duvet and winter night dress. I didn’t sleep well because my mind was so full of the events of the day. We had cooked chicken for dinner with coleslaw and baked potato.

Kalamunda Farmers Market

Held on Sundays and 25 minutes drive away, but well worth the trip. Val wanted me to buy some fruit and veg for our upcoming trip to Wellington Dam with the Nats Club. The produce was very diverse: lots of interesting plants not available in your local nurseries. Also, an amazing selection of home-cooked meals and treats for dogs. Who knew? There was so much to choose from: bread, olive oils to sample, strange mushrooms, crepes…

I’ll have to go again with a shopping list, now that I know what to expect.

Election

I really don’t like elections. In Australia, voting is compulsory. You can be fined if you don’t cast your vote. Also, the voting system is extremely complicated, with separate sheets for the upper and lower house. I can’t be bothered with all that. I just scribble on my ballot papers in a silent protest.

In England, it was a different story. I worked on the elections: it was a nice little earner! I was in effect getting paid twice, since my branch library was turned into a polling station for the day.

Yesterday, I went to an “early voting” place as I’ll be away from home on 3rd May which is the actual election day. Many people had the same idea. When I arrived at 8.45 am there was already a long queue. There were representatives of all the major parties asking people if they knew what to do: so complicated is the process. I brushed them all off. It took me 35 minutes in the queue. Luckily it was a warm morning or it would have been a cold and draughty wait.

Later, I enjoyed a Moroccan inspired meal in my tagine:

…followed by papaya which is in season right now:

It is delicious served with fresh lime juice. I used to have it every day for breakfast in Singapore.

This is interesting:

https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/find-legal-answers/books-online/hot-topics-voting-and-elections/compulsory-voting-and-against

Coughs and Sneezes

Since returning from Portugal I’ve done nothing but cough and cough. It is a so-called “dry cough”, whereas on holiday I suffered from a “wet cough”. I think I picked up both on the plane, going and coming back. 

I tried everything, before finally seeking medical advice. I saw a new doctor at the surgery and she was extremely thorough, writing down everything on a piece of paper, as well as handing me several prescriptions. She even gave me some alternatives, which I found a bit disconcerting as I didn’t know which to choose. First was a chest X-ray which showed nothing untoward. She took a nasal swab and sent it off for testing, including for COVID.

In the meantime, I started taking antibiotics: two types together. Surely these will kill off whatever I’ve got! My biggest problem is trying to sleep. The doctor recommended stacking up three pillows in order to sleep on a slope. This is not easy. Here is a pic of all the remedies I’ve tried:

L to R: 3 antibiotics, a non prescription sleeping pill, a medicated cough pastille and a butter -menthol sweet.

You can see I’m getting desperate! Fortunately I was not on any regular medication before all this, which apparently is very good for someone of my age.

Here is an update on Rocky, photos taken a week apart.:

The skin had to be tightly stretched over his knee and as the wound healed it probably itched a lot. He tried to lick it all the time, so first he had to wear a muzzle and then a pair of human exercise shorts to keep him off the area. All because of that inconsiderate Staffy owner.