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Paynesville - We left Mallacoota and drove to Paynesville, we eventually want to head up north but we don't want to go over the mountains dragging the caravan while there is a possibility of snow up there. We thought we would drive back the way we had come and then to ease our way around the lower mountains. Because we hadn't been to Paynesville for many years we thought we would stop here. We weren't particular about where we stayed and just chose the closest park which was Allawah caravan and boat park. It is a basic park but clean, the service was friendly and while the park is quite dated there are lots of improvements happening and new cabins being installed. We set up and then took a trip into town to see the times for the ferry to Raymond Island.
Raymond Island - The ferry is running for most of the day and it is only a two minute trip across so when we were up and dressed we drove down to town for a coffee and then joined the line for the ferry. It was only a few minutes wait to drive on and of course it is such a quick trip across you are just on and then driving off again. We drove to a koala viewing area firstly and we were lucky enough to find a few koalas in the trees, it was a lovely area so we had a bit of a walk around before hopping back in the car to take a drive around the island. We found a few nice little spots with views either over the lake or the ocean, the beach looked good but did seem to drop away quickly, too cold to swim though. We spent a couple of hours here and then drove back to board the ferry to return to Paynesville.
Newlands Arm - From here we drove to Newlands Arm for a bit of a look around, there are some lovely homes here on very large blocks and they are mostly nicely landscaped. We drove down to a few of the jetties to take a peek, once again there are heaps of boats moored and we commented if you were living here you would be mad not to have a boat.
Eagle Point - We stopped off here on the way back from Newlands Arm and our first stop was the lookout where you can see right down the rivers to the silt jetties where we are heading to next, fantastic views it is such a picturesque area. We left here and then continued onto the silt jetties. These jetties are quite extensive and have been here for 10,000 years although they are being eroded away so there have been rocks set around the edges to halt the erosion. We drove down one of the jetties and there were a few houses along the way, and it looks like you are allowed to camp in some of the specially marked spots. We drove back to Paynesville from here as we were hoping to have lunch at Piery70, a cafe on the water. Luckily we did get a table and Robb had a Pork Banh Mi and I had a Brisket Ragu Papardelle for lunch. Food and service were good and the prices were reasonable, we had a glass of white wine while waiting for lunch and it was quite pleasant looking over the water and watching the ferry come and go. Back to the van to catch up on a couple of jobs and then I started sorting my photos, we are having fish and chips for dinner so I don't have anything to prepare.
Mansfield - I had a plan in place to drive from Paynesville to Licola and then onto Mansfield. However, everything became a little weird when we put Mansfield into our GPS and they chose Mansfield Qld. By the time we realised we were on our way back to Traralgon, so to cut a long story short we entered Mansfield Victoria but by that time our GPS was annoyed with us so decided to take us the long time around, what should have been a three and a half hour trip ended up taking five and a half hours so we were both a bit over driving by the time we arrived in Mansfield. We turned off at the first caravan sign we saw and drove five kilometres down the road to the park only to find out all their facilities weren't open and that didn't suit us. We very rudely asked if there was another caravan park in town and the lovely lady who was looking after us was nice enough to recommend High Country Caravan Park in the town centre. We drove to the park and booked in and were lucky enough to find a drive through site, there weren't many vans but lots of people in the cabins. We are on a grass site under trees and it is very pleasant, we booked in for three nights but we like it so much we will book another night or two. We set up and I prepared dinner, we were both exhausted from the drive so a quiet night and early to bed.
Mt. Buller and Mirimbah Park - We took our time getting up in the morning and drove down to the Alpine Patisserie in Mansfield for coffee. We sat out the front drinking our coffee and I went through the tourist information to plan our day. From here we returned to our van calling into the local IGA to pick up some essential items we needed, they had the best deli here so we spent a bit of time selecting delicacies to take back to the van. When we arrived back I had a few jobs to do before preparing lunch. After lunch we drove to Mt. Buller, I don't think I had ever been here before so I was interested to have a look around. We passed a lovely waterfall on the way to the summit that I took a few photos of and then we drove right to the top. We stopped here so that I could take a few shots of the views, we were intrigued to see there were still a few drifts of snow hanging around. We drove back down the mountain stopping of at Mirimbah park at the base of Mt. Buller, this is a pretty park with a stream running through it, a popular area for picnics with a children's playground, BBQ's and tables. We drove back to the van happy to have an early to recuperate.
Jamieson and Goughs Bay - We thought we would drive to Jamieson to have a look around because we had missed our stop off here on the way between Paynesville and Mansfield. We stopped off at the Bakery in Mansfield for a coffee and Robb decided he would like an apple pie and cream, they don't normally have cream but the service person obliged by finding some to top it off with, good service. The coffee was average but we haven't had a good coffee since leaving home so we just accepted that, the pie was very heavy on pastry and a bit gluggy so not something we would return for. Their pies, pasties and sausage rolls looked great and they had won many prizes for these so if we go back we will give these a go. Back in the car heading towards Jamieson where we arrived and had a bit of a look around. It is a very pretty small town and the Jamieson river picnic area would be worth a visit but there is not a lot to do there apart from follow the historical trail which is well set up and quite interesting. I think the value of the town is in the natural beauty and the few historic buildings. We had noticed a look out on the drive in so this was our next destination and we were pleasantly surprised when we arrived. The views over Howqua and the Howqua inlet were spectacular and we slowed down on the way back for other excellent views. We have friends who have a house at Goughs Bay and they live in Melbourne and are unable to visit yet, so on the way back we thought we would stop there and take a few photos to send to them. Goughs Bay is on the edges of Lake Eildon and is a hilly area going down to the lake so there are lots of picturesque spots. We drove down to the boat ramps to take a look before moving on back to Mansfield. Our next stop was the Botanic Park in Mansfield which is a very large park area that seems to be popular with dog owners and families, while we were there we could here Mum and Dad singing Happy Birthday to one of their children, obviously not the party that they would have liked to put on but great to see they made an effort. Then we drove down the main street to Mansfield Produce store where we picked up a few interesting locally produced items before sitting out the front to enjoy a white wine, very pleasant sitting there it is such a great day weather wise. We were going to go home and have lunch and then come back to the visitor centre and the historical society building at the old railway station but thought we would do this now and then have the afternoon at home. That seemed like a good plan, I took a few photos around here but the museum was not open because of Covid so I took the photos I could and then we returned to our van for lunch.
Today we thought we would drive to Whitfield to have a look around. Kilometer wise it is not that far from Mansfield, however, it is a very winding road and a long drive. We arrived and there is not really that much to see there so I took a few photos of the churches and the hotel and then we drove back to Mansfield. We then went clothes shopping at Target, I love clothes shopping but hate trying clothes on, I usually just walk around picking off my size in whatever I want and usually don't suffer too much, but seeing I wanted to buy slim fitting jeans I thought I should try them before purchasing, well wasn't that fun. We both walked out with arms full of clothes and we are happy with out purchases if not the sizing, that is another story. It was lunch time now so thought we would drive straight to lunch. The first hotel we went to wasn't that keen to accommodate us so we drove around the corner to the Delatite Hotel. The service here was completely different so we found ourselves with a table out the front of the hotel. We chose a couple of wines and I ordered a butter chicken pizza and Robb ordered the chili squid and we chose a side of chips. We always order Sauvignon Blanc and this was a pleasant one but did taste a bit like a blend with Chardonnay, however, the food was excellent, Robb is not a great fan of pizza but he loved this one, the squid was cooked in a tempura batter and cooked perfectly. The salad was rocket and pickled vegetable and was a perfect accompaniment for the battered squid. The highlight for us though was that Katrina Rowntree from Getaway walked up obviously doing a segment on Mansfield, we had a bit of a chat with her and her cameraman and both very friendly, we did suggest we were ok with them getting us into the filming which they thanked us for, I am sure they have never heard that before. We did enjoy watching the filming process though and one of the production team returned to us later on and offered to take our photo for us for our memories which he did and then he returned later on to ask how our lunch was. It was a fun memory for our holiday. We then returned to the van and packed up ready to move onto our next stop tomorrow.
