First stop was the Ginger Factory at Yandina where Kai insisted on a train ride only to find out that the driver blows the whistle every two minutes and Kai did not like that at all. The kids found a lolly shop which ended in tears as usual. Thea found a Macadamia shop which ended in a purchase (which surprisingly we have not eaten yet). Tig (Phil) found a coffee factory, but it was closed.
On to find a place for lunch, which as luck (or Google assisted research) would have it was a newly opened park on the out skirts of Gympie. We drove in only to find that the parking options did not really cater for 40 foot rigs so we drove out and around to the other side of the park (it’s a big park for a country town).
The park was amazing and would rival any the kids have been to in Sydney. The highlights for our three was the twin flying foxes, all three loved them and with a bit of a push (quite a lot really) you could get the kids to come back to within 3 feet of the start point. It was a bit scary for me sending Kai down as he swung almost up to horizontal and I hoped that he held on tight, which he did.
Maddi also loved the spinning dish, and even held her own when the boys came and spun it as fast as they could to see who would fall off first. Ella found the giant spiders web and climbed right to the top, fortunately Kai could not stretch enough to get more than a couple of metres off the ground.
Eventually we convinced the kids we should get moving and after the slowest possible walk back across the park we were on our way to Hervey Bay where we had agreed we would spend a couple of nights. It was lucky it was more than an overnight stay as it took a good hour to get into the very small spot for our very large van. This was not helped by having to back in around a 90 degree turn, off a very narrow roadway and being ‘helped’ by one of the staff and having difficulty getting the hitch undone due to the slight slope of the site. It was a very frustrating hour but we provided good entertainment and the evenings conversation for the people camped around us.
The next day was very relaxing, starting with an early (7am) morning run/walk for me to check out the neighbourhood. This allowed me to find a nice park for the kids, right on the beach. Alongside was a good café who were happy to bring out a coffee to the beach for me when we returned with the kids. This also provided an opportunity to get the family on the bikes, as there is a fantastic 16km bike track along the Esplanade. The girls even ventured into the very cold water but could not convince Kai to join them.
Tomorrow it is off to 1770 or somewhere else north of here.
Until next time.
Tig (Phil)
No comments:
Post a Comment