After spending lots of nights free camping we all needed a proper shower, plus the minimum temperature was in single digits. But we had found it difficult to find reasonably priced accommodation in Tamworth. Yet again, we found many caravan parks charge outrageously for children. Before we left home I had a number of people tell me to just say we have two adults, but I’m too honest for my own good I think! We found the prices zip up to around $50 per night once we declared our kids. Ouch!
After lots of phone calls I found ‘Manilla Ski Fields Caravan Park’ which charges $18 per night for up to 4 people. Manilla is about 50km north of Tamworth so not too far away. It is on the banks of ‘Lake Keepit’ which is home to lots of fish – yellow belly, cod, carp etc. and this park is virtually all “permanent weekenders’, where people from surrounding towns pay a weekly lease to keep their van and fibro annexe here, and when they want to stay, pay a nightly fee to cover power and water. According to the misnamed man ‘Trimmer’ who I met on the first night, there can be 80 to 100 fishing boats on the lake in summer. At the moment it is too cold for the fish, so there are not many people staying here.
I’m happy as the showers are hot and the people are friendly!
This morning we set out to pay the town of Tamworth a visit. Tamworth is famous in Australia as being the home of country music. It has a festival in January each year with the best and lots of other musicians playing in entertanment centres, sports clubs and on the street. The town is otherwise a vibrant beef and sheep farming area. It also is a major regional centre for surrounding towns.
We went to the town lookout which was very impressive.
After a picnic lunch we drove down to check out ‘The Golden Guitar’…
We arrived “home” to a gorgeous sunset over ‘Lake Keepit’. We got to it about 5 minutes late, but it was still impressive!
What was even more impressive was our family ‘crafting’ tonight.
Earlier in the week I bought some wool from a gorgeous little shop in Bellingen. I’m knitting a simple striped rainbow blanket – not sure if it will be to keep me warm when we’re in the car or for a future baby (settle down, it won’t be mine!!).
Max has been fascinated and has subsequently asked me to teach him many times. We stopped into Spotlight today and bought some 10mm needles and thick yarn for him. After sunset I taught him how to garter stitch and away he went. He completed a good 5 cm of his scarf tonight and is very keen to keep going - what an amazing kid!
Harry got some beads from a $3 bargain bin, and has been making each of us a necklace to wear and then made a necklace '”for the person I’m going to marry”. He is so adorable!
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| here we are, hard at work. Look at Harry's concentration! |
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| some of Harry's creations |
We are moving on again tomorrow and hope to see Lauren in Moree by the afternoon.
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