O.B.A.A Ballarat

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O.B.A.A Phillip Island

We arrived on Phillip Island on Saturday the 9th of April. We stayed at the Amaze N' Things Caravan Park.
The day we arrived it rained in the evening which Todd enjoyed the sound of it on the Caravan roof.

On Sunday we spent the day at Amaze 'N Things Centre. 

It had a lot of different rooms like the Andy's Gravity room where the floor was on a lean and it made it look like  water in a sink was running up hill. Mirror Maze, Mystic Tunnel and a lot of other things that played with your senses. In the puzzle room was a giant 7M free fall slide. The attend asked us if we wanted to have a go.Todd went up with a couple of other people while I was still deciding. I got really brave and decided to have a go. I got to the top and my heart was pounding. I sat on the ledge and  slowly put my legs over the edge while holding onto the metal bar. The attendant explained to me what to do but when I finally hung from the bar and then let go I forgot everything he told me.I do not have a photo of this because I had my face screwed up with fear and I was wearing red overalls.

They also had a giant maze which would have to be one of the hardest that we have done. (Tried to lose the kids but failed.)

Out the front of the complex was a 19 hole putt putt golf course.

It was well worth the visit.

PENGUIN PARADE

We went and saw the little penguins arrive on the beach on Sunday night.We chose the penguin plus option which had less people.(100 compared to the 2000 in the  Common Area.)

The kids watched a documentary about the Little Penguins in the car on the way to Phillip Island.

Careena was quite shocked about how hard the Little Penguins lives are.

No photos were allowed to be taken of the penguins.

PANNY'S CHOCOLATE FACTORY

I really enjoyed the tour of th chocolate factory.It wasn't a long tour but it explained the process of making chocolate right from the start of picking the cocoa beans to the end product. They had a village made from chocolate, A chocolate water fall,Robotic chocolate arm that gave free samples, A machine that we could make our own designed chocolate which we got to eat.

I was wanting to see the Oompa Loompas but they didn't show. HA HA

Chocolate waterfall

Chocolate Village



The machine that we made our own chocolates on.



CNC mill machine that cuts out designs on chocolate blocks.



A worker in the factory.



 I could have stayed longer to watch the workers make more chocolates but the kids do speed sightseeing.

I would recommend Panny's to everyone.





                                                                       FORREST CAVES

Alanna, Todd and Luke playing in the caves.
The tide was coming in and they were seeing who could stay dry the longest.
Luke lost.



Careena, Todd and Alanna



The caves are best viewed at low tide.

Well it is time for bed before I get too fustrated with blogging.The pictures won't go where I want them tooand it is taking longer than expected.

Next Blog will be on Ballarat.

O.B.A.A Wednesday 6th April

Another freezing night in Kosciuszko so we decided to pack up and head to Cann River in Victoria.The scenery through Kosciuszko was beautiful with lots of rolling hills. We had to stop at a little Town called Adaminaby for Petrol and it was an old style Service Station where the attendant filled the car before Todd got out.

 On the way Todd  realised that we forgot our rego sticker so we had to stop in a little town called Bombala.

The motor registry was in a building with the Council Chambers,just one person serving.There was a customer before us and one after us. That was propably the rush for the day. No buttons to press when you walk in and no waiting for a long time. I love small towns.

We arrived in Cann River approximately 4pm and set up in a small caravan park. The girls and I had to walk to the pub to pay for staying the night.

A possum came to visit us when we had to use the toilets at night. The weather is warmer now and the nights are not as cold.

Thursday 7th April

Left Cann River at 10am and found a free camping spot at Paradise Beach ( along Ninety Mile Beach) half hour from Sale.We were only going to stay 1 night but it was a nice spot so we decided to stay another night.



Our camp spot at Paradise Beach



Short walk to the beach from our campspot.







A local visited our campspot and left us some tourist information about Sale and surronding suburbs.

In the morning he came back and gave the kids stickers, badges, etc on the Roulettes (planes that perform at air shows.)





The remains of a Shipwreck over 100 years ago.





Info about the Shipwreck.





Todd trying to dig his way to China to escape the kids.



Looks like Todd has fallen asleep after his effort of digging a hole.



O.B.A.A day 2 -5th April

Today was Careena's Birthday. She and Todd got up early and checked the temperature.It was a cold 1deg. but it warmed up fast when the sun came out, and she wanted to go swimming in the thermal pools near Yarangobilly caves.
We had to walk 1.7km down a very steep hill.The girls got excited when they saw the pools and I said they could take a photo but then Todd spotted a lady walking around in the nude and we thought it was best not to.By the time we got to the pools she had her bikini back on.

The thermal pools are build over a natural spring which flows through the mountains at 100,000 litres of water per hour.They are a constant 27deg. all year.The sides of the pool were covered in slime and algae was growing on the bottom. The water was very clear. The algae is a sign that the water is pure.Tadpoles and frogs live in the pool in spring which is another sign that the water is clean.The frogs are Eastern Banjo also known as Pobblebonks.

The kids were freaked out by the slime and didn't spend much time in the water.

The walk back out was hard especially for Luke because he kept complaining that his feet were sore and he kept stopping to throw rocks and then he would get cross and stop walking because the girls and Todd were far in front of us.

Our Big Aussie Adventure

DAY 1 Monday 4th of April

We left home at 9.45 in the morning.The drive down to Kosciuszko was quite good. We stopped at the Big Merino to fill up with petrol and have a bite to eat.

The Merino was open and we climbed up flights of stairs and looked out its eyes.

We arrived at our camp spot - Yarrangobilly village in Kosciuszko National Park approx 4.30pm.We set up our camp site and had a BBQ for dinner.The cold kicked in fast and we ended up going to bed at 7.30 with 2 layers of clothes,double socks and beanies on our heads.





Kids hard at work doing schoolwork



Our Caravan set-up

Yarrangobilly River out our door













Ballina

Ballina is located approximately 12 hours from Sydney, near Byron Bay and is a beautiful township.

We stayed at the Ballina Lakeside caravan park and I would highly recommend this park especially for families.It has a beautiful water park suited to young children as well as a normal sized swimming pool.The jumping pillow is lots of fun for the kids as well as the adults.The Putt Putt golf course was a big hit and they also have movies on certain nights.

Putt Putt golf course.

Kids Pool Area

The park is situated near  the beach which is suitable for swimming.

While we were here we visited the Crystal Castle which is near Byron Bay.

The Crystal Castle http://www.crystalcastle.com.au/ as the name suggests sells crystals from all over the world.

It is a place where you can recharge your spirit by meditation, walking the labyrinth,  Budha or rainforest walk.
They sell inspiational cd's and books and you can have Aura photos taken and read.

Turon Gates

Turon Gates is located on Mudgee rd Capertee N.S.W

It is approximately 2.5 to 3 hour drive from the Sydney CBD and 25mins from Lithgow

The website for Turon Gates is www.turongates.com

It is a great place for getting away from the hustle and bustle of city life and relaxing in a nice country atmosphere.

The accommodation ranges from self contained cabins which are scattered through the 6000 acre property to camping along the river.

There is plenty to do from bush walking, canoeing, swimming, horse riding and even gold panning.