Sk8 to cre8

Before leaving Mooloolaba we made ourselves known to the local Doctor and the Chemist. Both William and Gracie got antibiotics for various ailments. They like the taste and so they are very good at reminding us that it is time for their medicine. We only stayed one night in Mooloolaba. It was a great place but only an interim stop because there was no room for us at Coolum. Anyway, we set off on Tuesday morning for Coolum, via the Big Pineapple. We parked in the massive carpark (almost as big as the one at Wally World) and geared up for a great adventure. We were somewhat perplexed by the fact that nobody else seemed to be around. We made our way to the magnificent structure just to find that the entire complex was closed. So this adventure had more in common with Wally World than just the carpark. We still managed a photo, but the poor old Pineapple was looking a little sad and unloved. I'm not aware of any other major attractions in Nambour, so we set off for Coolum.

Not much happening at the Big Pineapple - It could use a coat of paint



In keeping with the theme of hoisting oversized fruit on to Bustin' Loose

The Coolum Beach Caravan Park is right on the beach. Unfortunately the weather was average and the surf was wild. It wasn't cold but it did rain a bit. This didn't stop the Simpsons. We swam each day and also used our body boards. It was almost too rough for the boards. Swimming there wasn't exactly relaxing. Gracie always needs to be in the action. It was quite difficult keeping track of who was doing what and where. I spent most of my time yelling at the kids and trying to ensure that they didn't fall off the continental shelf. Things usually calmed down a bit once Gracie went back to the Bus.

The Easter Egg hunt begins like the Boxing Day sales

The hunt continues

We managed an easter egg hunt on Wednesday which was lots of fun. We didn't get a chance to have one on Easter Sunday and so the kids had been eagerly awaiting this event. It was terrific fun although, despite instructions, I lost count of how many I had hidden. I found some tricky hiding spots and I suspect we missed a couple. They'll be found by some kid in the June holidays.

Hannah had quite a tidy haul of Easter Eggs

Competitors compare notes

When the kids aren't in the water, they are sniffing out the next skate park. They have gone skate park crazy. There is a good one in Coolum. It is, however, much bigger than any they had been on before. There was a massive drop-in that caused me some concern. Not because I was considering it, but because Charlie was. I have struggled with my need to encourage the kids to try new things and support them in their ventures on the one hand, and protect them and save them from possible injury on the other. When Charlie anounced that he wanted to try the massive drop-in, I was placed in a difficult position. What to do? Anyway, he tried it and he made it. He stacked on his second attempt but all good since then.  William, Hannah and Gracie are also working hard to hone their skills.

Gracie enjoyed climbing and sliding at Coolum

William is part Spider Man - Still in his PJ's

Dad generously shares his vast knowledge with the younger generation

This is much bigger than it looks

We wandered around the shops at Coolum and bought some bits and pieces. Hannah got a new rashie and Charlie got a jazzy new t-shirt. For some weeks now, Bustin Loose has been sounding like a WW2 fighter. A weld has come undone on the exhaust and the noise is quite unsettling. I tried three separate exhaust places in Coffs Harbour, but nobody was interested. I decided to bite the bullet. I ventured with Hannah and Charlie to Mitre 10 and bought some hose clamps. With the help of a hack saw I then set about fashioning a Nesquik tin into the right shape (where's Peter Starr when you need him!) It has solved the problem for the time being. I've done a couple of hundred km's and it has held up brilliantly. We'll wait and see.

The Alby Mangels style Nesquik repair on Bustin's exhaust

We left Coolum yesterday (Friday) after three nights there and started our trip further north. We went the coast road via Noosa to have a look at rich Victorians on holidays and then set out for Bargara. It was a slow day on the road. We didn't actually go all that far but it did seem to take a while.

In Cooroy for morning tea - Not far from Noosa

William on some military hardware in Cooroy



Looks like she's off to the Spring Carnival



Bargara is just out of Bundaberg. It is right on the beach and this is one of the prettiest places we have been so far. When we arrived last night we stood outside and looked at the sky. We managed to spot a shooting star or two. Lars was always looking in the wrong direction. It was a beautiful clear night and the stars were bright. It has been a magnificent day today. The caravan park is just accross a little access road from the surf beach. We managed to swim, and body board, we flew the kite, walked into town for an icy-pole and mucked around at the skate park. The skate park here is also very good. It has lots of good stuff for beginner and expert alike.

Hauling the boards at Bargara

Sitting under a Palm tree on the foreshore

A classic moment of sibling harmony

The kite flying elective

It is a funny feeling when your kids start getting better than you at something. I thought I would still have a few years of being "the man." Not so, when it comes to riding a scooter. The kids are doing things that I am terrified of. I still offer advice on how they should be doing things and give special comments on technique, but I would never attempt even the stuff that William is doing - let alone Charlie. I decided this morning that I could no longer sit on the side line. I borrowed one of the scooters and thought I would show the kids that I could back up my talk with action. It was very untidy. I just about dislocated my knee and I limped for the rest of the day. I will now just stick to special comments and technical advice.

We had a lovely tea of butter chicken (cooked on the barbie) and rice and the kids were early to bed.

We'll hang around here another couple of nights before heading to our ultimate destination of 1770. It is just over an hour north of here. Until then.

Phil, Lars, Hannah, Charlie, William and Gracie.

More beach action

We have been off the radar a bit over the last few days. We struck the Easter holiday crowd and we found that most parks were full to the brim. We have had a very full week with all sorts of adventures. We left Coffs Harbour last Wednesday morning. We had a great time there. The beach was very good and the pool with all its water slides was a major hit with the kids. We weren't altogether sure where we would head next but I liked the look of Brooms Head. Brooms Head is just beyond Grafton and then about 20ish km's off the Pacific Highway. We thought we would go and have a look and see what it was like. It turned out to be a fantastic place. It was very basic, with the caravan park occupying 1.5 km's of beach frontage. It was a very sleepy little settlement, but the park was quite full. There is very little development there and that was part of its charm. Mostly occupied by holiday makers from northern NSW and QLD. We stayed there for 2 nights. We played in the rock pools, and searched for crabs. We also spent hours in the surf, both swimming and boarding. The water was very warm. We had great weather for the time that we were there. Lara was so inspired by the place that she ran a jogging expedition on Friday morning.

searching for crabs in the rock pools at Brooms Head

Is anyone here a marine biologist?



Gracie with her shell collection

Gracie finding her sea legs

A serious card game in progress - Brooms Head

Brooms Head lookout

Mum and her two precious boys

 



On the beach by 7.00 am



Early morning jogging expedition

 

We left Brooms Head on Good Friday and made our way to Yamba for morning tea. We found a nice little spot and had a little Easter reflection. While brief, it was a nice time as a family. We then had a short swim before pointing Bustin' Loose back up the Pacific Highway.

Our Good Friday reflection

We didn't get too far before we took a little detour towards Evans Head. Evans Head is about 40 km's south of Ballina. It is a relatively big place - Kind of Sorrento size or bigger but not as flashy. It has a bit of everything. There is a huge surf beach, and a big estuary. It was much more "cashed up bogan" than Brooms Head, with a fairly strong jet ski contingent. It a lovely place. We got ourselves a massive feed of fish and chips and ate them overlooking the water. We spent most of the arvo there and only left when it got dark. The girls had a walk on the beach while the boys hung out at the skate park. I had a major case of BMX envy. There was a bloke there, only just old enough to grow a drug cartel style Mo. He was seriously talented on his BMX. I assured the boys that he could only do those tricks because he was a truant and worked on his routine while his contemporaries were getting an education. This made me feel better too.

Fish and Chip lunch at Evans Head

Phil and his peeps at the skate park

Gracie's head at Evans Head

After leaving Evans Head we again joined the Pacific Highway. We headed north until we found a truck stop where Lars cooked up a noodle delight for the kids. Once the kids were fed and ablutions were taken care of we set off to find a suitable place to spend the night. We settled on a free camp on the side of the Pacific Highway just south of Byron Bay. It wasn't a bad position, but it turned out to be quite noisy. Unfortunately our overnight coincided with the Byron Bay Blues festival. The festival crowd started to arrive at about midnight. When we woke in the morning there were "Wicked" campers as far as the eye could see. I suppose we got what we paid for.

We set off early Saturday Morning for Byron. We hit town just after 7.00 am. We had subway and hot cross buns for breaky. We found an absolute ripper park, right on the main intersection in the thick of the Easter market and right on the beach. Another 5.00 minutes and we wouldn't have found a park anywhere. We walked through the market, we swan in the surf and we generally sucked in the atmosphere. We lazed around town for about 6 hours. It was divine.  Before we left town, Lars cooked up a pancake morning tea and we ate them on the grass in the thick of all the action. There was tie dye, beads, Latin music and dreads everywhere. We thought we were just spectators until a grey haired lady walked past, looked at Bustin' Loose and complained to her friend about ferrals. How dare she!

Pole position at Byron Bay

Gracie at Byron Bay



By the time we left Byron, there was a line of cars about 3 km's long trying to get in. Our timing was perfect. We then set off for Brisbane. Upon arriving in Brisbane (at about 3.30 pm) we found a cinema and went off and saw RIO as a family. It was lots of fun. The suburb was Stafford. I'm not sure where it is, but parking was easy and we had Happy Meals to finish off the night. We then drove to Sandgate (a northern suburb of Brisbane), found a quiet side street and bedded down for the night.

Sandgate is a beautiful suburb. It is a bit like Williamstown. It is right on the water, with lots of lovely homes. I'm sure they loved having us camped there for nothing. The Easter bunny was very clever to find us hiding out up our back street. We went to Bracken Ridge Baptist Church which was quite good. The speaker was engaging and spoke very well. We then settled on the Sandgate foreshore and remained until dark. We caught up with our good friends Andrew and Melissa Russell (fellow Melbournites on holidays) and they joined us for fish and chips and a lazy arvo by the sea. The kids paddled and it was a very relaxing day. The Simpsons finished off with an ice cream before hunting out another "freebie" for the night. We ended up camping out the front of one of Andrew Russell's good mates. It was very close to our Saturday night position.


A back street in Sandgate - Clever Easter Bunny



Our oasis on the Sandgate foreshore

The Russells popped in for lunch

We are now in a caravan park in Mooloolaba. It is basic but in a fantastic location. After a walk through the cafes this morning we had a very slow day. We are enjoying having power again after three nights doing freebies. We spent about 90 mins in the surf this arvo. The water is incredibly warm. The waves were the biggest we have had so far. The kids are amazing with the surf. Even little Gracie gets out with her board. The waves crash all over her and she bobs around and then pops up with a smile on her face. She wears a floatie vest which makes us all feel a bit better. Yes Mum, we always swim between the flags. 39 years of having Mum yell at me "Philip, that's far enough" has made me quite cautious when swimming in the sea.

Sausages for tea tonight and a quick episode of Skippy before bed. We will probably move on to Coolum tomorrow (Tuesday).

Cheers

Phil, Lars, Hannah, Charlie, William and Gracie

We haven't moved far

We had a terrific time in Nambucca Heads. The Big 4 caravan park was a hidden gem. We were looked after very well by Shawn and Janine who were the park managers. Shawn has a great mind for remembering names. He seemed to know all his guests by name (including me) and he and his wife Janine couldn't do enough to help. He later confessed that he farmed beef cattle in NZ and gained his memory skills from looking at his 250 or so cows each day. He possibly imagined each of us with a tag in our ear. Either way, he was impressive and the park was great fun.

Some slip and slide action

Hannah with the best seat in the house

The weather was, however, very average and it rained pretty consistently while we were there. The upside was that the pool was heated and we spent hours swimming and playing. Charlie and William also enjoyed the games room, complete with table tennis table.

On Saturday, the owner of the park (Ian) gave me a lift into town and I did a spot of shopping. I stocked up on all the essentials before walking home. Hannah was crook most of Saturday with a big temperature and a bad cough. Indoors for her. On Sunday we decided to venture out to Nambucca Heads Baptist Church. As it was pouring with rain, we got ourselves a Maxi Taxi. Church was good - a cross between West Preston Baptist and Bolwarra Uniting. It was very informal and we felt right at home. The kids behaved well and enjoyed the post service morning tea. We scored a heap of guavas from one of the parishoners. They were very tasty (the guavas that is). Following Church we lazed around town.

We made the mistake of going back to the Rip Curl shop. A few more purchases were undertaken. The girls got themselves a necklace each. We scored some free stickers from the lovely owner. The boys found themselves some very jazzy caps. Unfortunately, they were just about the most expensive caps in the entire shop (possibly the Southern Hemisphere). The boys put them on and they looked like they should be on tour with the Krusty Demons. Before we forked out the cash, we gave them a little lecture about taking care of them and the need to put them in a safe place when not adorning their unruly heads.

It was too wet to walk home again and so we called another Maxi Taxi. Kath was our driver. She drove us both ways. It was a round trip of $30.00, although it could have been more. Later in the day, when we asked William where his expensive new cap was, he looked at us very blankly. We canvassed a range of possibilities. His face contorted when we mentioned the Maxi Taxi. Yep, it was left in the taxi after only  10 minutes in his care.

More sliding action

Following several distressed calls to the Taxi people, we had to just move on. I was busily calculating how much our taxi ride had actually cost us. It was terrifying. However, at about 7.00 pm there was a knock on the door at Bustin' Loose central. It was the lovely Kath, complete with William's cap in hand. What a relief. She'd gone out of her way to drive the 2 km's to our park to drop it off. We found this generosity over and over again from the people we met in Nambucca Heads.



Leaving Nambucca Heads Big 4


After a quick turn on the slip and slide on Monday morning, the Simpson's were back on the road. We didn't get far. I entertained romantic notions of driving hundreds of kilometres (possibly well into the night). Lara, it seems, had different plans. We made it to Coffs Harbour. This is approximately 45 km's from Nambucca Heads. Doh! We stopped at the Big Banana and Lara sort of got caught up in the hype of Coffs Harbour and all its possibilities. I think it was the chocolate covered banana she scoffed that tipped her over the edge. Tonight is our last night here.


It was difficult getting it up there but it was worth the effort



The health food of a nation



Ice creams with Nana's money at the Big Banana

This place does have an awesome pool. It has three water slides and all sorts of other stuff to keep the kids entertained. It is about 17 degrees below zero but nobody seems to mind. Hannah spent almost 5 hours in the water today. Charlie was not far behind her.






Hannah's favourite activity




William occupied himself for ages



We started today by hitting the beach early. I think we were probably in the water shortly after 7.30 am. The body boards got a work out. After 30 mins or so, Lars, William, Hannah and Gracie headed back to the park. Charlie and I stayed on to muck around in the surf. Charlie just loves his board and catching waves. The water is amazingly warm.

Off we trot to the waves

Willliam gearing himself for the waves - Note the Cap!

  

An early start at the beach

 

Our new found family activity


We're not sure where we are going next. Possibly a little further tomorrow than we went on Monday. But we'll see. We picked up the free camping book from BCF in town as we may have to do some free camping over the Easter weekend. Most parks are already booked out.

William hard at work




Lara the meanie makes the kids do homework

We had a short naming ceremony today as we re-attached the Bustin' Loose name to the back of the old girl. It was quite a special moment. The various stickers adorning the bus are thanks to our good mate Matt Adams at Motosign. He made them up quick as a flash for us before we departed Melbourne. Thanks Matt, they look ace. At least now when trucks, cars, push bikes and old ladies in personal mobility scooters are stuck behind us, they will be able to curse us by name.



Moments after the naming ceremony



Until next time.

Phil, Lars, Hannah, Charlie, William and Gracie