After the rest and recuperation of Melbourne (as well as all the fun that was had), Rustle and I hit the road again on Tuesday with Sydney as our destination.
The day's planed journey, with endpoints marked for recreating if google maps link doesn't work.
It's not the most entertaining day, but it does contain a few brief highlights for the travelling companion to see. The Yarra Valley in the morning light is always nice, and with the road works after Yea finally finished, the trip from there through to Bonnie Doon and Lake Eildon is much nicer. It's only a brief view of one of the largest man made lakes in the country as we cross over it near the top of the northern arm. It's currently quite a bit down on it's capacity level with a lot of previously sunken trees showing all the way to their bases.
Source: I've got photos on this bridge somewhere, but I just can't find them. It's a nice walk parallel to the bridge you drive over
Not long after the lake we turn north and head for Benalla and our first food stop of the day. There weren't parks in the main street near the cafes, so I ended up grabbing subway and getting back on the road. The Hume Hwy lay ahead for almost the entire rest of the day. We pass by Glenrowan, Wangaratta on the way to Albury-Wadonga and the border. We pushed on and passed by Holbrook eventually stopping at Tarcutta, the 'halfway' town, being roughly 430 km from Sydney and Melbourne.
Source: This sign is out on the highway so you see it even if you don't take a visit into the township
The stop at Tarcutta was a bit longer than planned due to my hip deciding that it would like to play up when getting out of the car. Thankfully it just needed a bit of a massage and some rest, as well as only being the left hip, so not that important for driving my car. It did allow for some snack foods being consumed in the park. A crab stick and crumbed sausage. they're expensive, but I'm a sucker for them.
It's a shot I've used before, but it's not like the dog has changed in the last couple of years
More driving and we cross over the Murrumbidgee River at Gundagai, as well as passing the dog on the tuckerbox. Rustle was amused at the little statue as we flew past. He didn't want to hang about though with the local magpies running the show in the park. Next stop, Goulburn and Rustle's next 'big' item with us stopping near the big merino for a break and some food. I decided to try the indian place that is on the side of the road that leads to the McDonalds, and it was decent. I had the beef curry (which I forget which type it was) that the owner said was hottest. It was quite a decent heat, and I was glad for the rice and naan, but it could have done with something to balance out the heat a bit. Best was seeing him freshly cook the naan in what looked like a mini tandoor style oven. It was one of the better naan I've had, especially from a cheap take away style place. The curry did me for leftovers for a bit as well which is always nice.
source: It's a really big sheep next to a petrol station and right at the entry to town
After leaving Goulburn, the run into the city starts. There's still a couple of hours of highway driving before it becomes the wider freeway and then I wander through the other main roads to avoid the toll road. It was great to get home, and it's been a fun journey with my little friend. In the next few days I'll set up a meetup for Sydney people to come to and meet him, and hopefully I can talk with bearone about him visiting her.
