driving days

I love driving and that is a very good thing because I did a lot of it today! Waking up fairly early to a beautiful sunrise from my rest area campground, I made it on the road by 7:30am on my way to Canberra. I tried finding a little cafe to have breakfast at, but the only place I found was a tiny joint good enough for a "take away" coffee.

Canberra, the capital of Australia, greeted me with a view of the Telstra Tower and two hot air balloons on a clear morning. I proceeded to the Visitor’s Information Centre and asked for the directions to the National Museum of Australia. The architecture and information provided here was fascinating and eye-opening. The curators use a mixture of historical information, artifacts, and art to tell the story of the land and people of Australia. Strangely enough, Australia is a relatively new country like the United States where the indigenous people (Aboriginals & Native Americans) were pushed back by the Europeans.

My time spent in Canberra was short. Afterall, my new plans of extending my trip a couple thousand extra kilometers required me to be diligent about forward movement. I asked a man at the museum info booth the best way to Melbourne and he recommended the Helm Highway, even though it forced me north again. He also suggested camping for the evening on Mount Buffalo.

On my way, I stopped for gas in Yass (pretty much only so I could say just that). I pulled over for coffee in Gundagai with my book, and for a short walk and early supper at Chiltern to stretch for a bit at a rest area.

At Wangaratta, I turned off onto the Great Alpine Road and drove an hour before I appreciated what the museum man had told me: Mount Buffalo National Park takes you right up the mountainside on 30+ kilometers of winding, steep, narrow road. I opened my windows on the way up and could smell the sweet eucalyptus on my ascent. The sun was setting (6-6:30pm) and caught some of the turning autumn leaves in a warm glow. Bush fires damaged many parts of Australia due to droughts this summer and evidence is here, as well as many other areas I have driven though. I am glad they have seen some rain in the past couple weeks!

I arrived at the Lake Catani campground to find a wonderful little camp, nearly entirely deserted with bathrooms and showers. On this mountaintop they may not have lights and electricity, but they have warm water! So, I cleaned up after setting up my tent and settled in to upload my pictures and read. This is roughing it!

*favorite photo: sunrise peaking through the gum trees.