An eerie place with all the river gums submerged in this man made lake.
Smoke from the burn-off across the lake, produced an intense orange sunset.
Author: Ann Bradshaw
The Black Dog Brewery near Glenrowan
We only really stopped here because of the name but we had a great time tasting hand crafted beers and a selection of their wines, and having a yarn with this gentleman whose family planted the vineyard a hundred years ago. Their Cabernet Sauvignon was a perfect accompaniment to the slow cooked lamb shanks we had for dinner.
Ned Kelly – hero or villain?
We couldn’t drive to North East Victoria without finding out more about the legendary bushranger Ned Kelly and we visited several historical sites in the Glenrowan area. It seems that Ned went on the run with his brother Dan and friends Joe Byrne and Steve Hart after a violent incident involving a policeman at the Kelly family home. Ned’s dear old ma was sentenced to 3 years hard labour for her part.
A shoot out at Stringy Bark Creek left 3 policemen dead and we visited the graves of Sergeant Michael Kennedy and Constables Thomas Lonigan and Michael Scanlan in Mansfield Cemetery.
The gang were declared outlaws and then carried out several daring bank robberies. Ned hatched a plan to derail a special police train sent from Melbourne, when it reached Glenrowan. The police received advance warning of the attack and surrounded Ned, his gang and several hostages who were inside the Glenrowan Inn. Then came the famous shoot-out on the 28th June 1880 when Ned and the others wore their home made armour.
Joe Byrne was shot dead whilst drinking whisky at the bar. It was thought that Dan and Steve committed suicide. Ned Kelly was captured, sentenced to death and hanged on 11th November 1880 at Melbourne Gaol. He was buried there in an unmarked grave. In 2011, Ned’s skeleton was identified using DNA but his skull was missing. The bones were returned to his descendants and he was buried with his family at Greta Cemetery in 2013.
After almost 140 years, it’s difficult to discover the truth behind the Ned Kelly legend. The Kelly family claimed that the police had it in for them and Ned had been trying to make an honest living. Many people were appalled when Ned’s mother was sentenced to hard labour. Thousands of people signed a petition to stop Ned’s execution.
“We’re goin’ to Bonnie Doon” (sung repetitively)
We found ourselves at the location of another favourite Aussie movie. ‘The Castle’ tells the story of the Kerrigan family and their fight to save their home. It’s at the end of a runway and the government wants the land to expand the airport.
The Kerrigans have a holiday home at Bonnie Doon where they ‘feel the serenity’ despite all the power lines. The movie put the town of Bonnie Doon on the map. If you haven’t seen it, it’s highly recommended and you’ll soon be using such iconic quotes as “tell him he’s dreamin’”, “this is going straight to the pool room” or maybe singing “We’re goin’ to Bonnie Doon, we’re goin’ to Bonnie Doon”.
Bush camping and trout fishing
We headed NE out of Melbourne, along the Goulburn River to some popular trout fishing spots. Jonathan is definitely getting the hang of this trout fishing lark.
Some lovely bush walks but it did get quite nippy at night.
The Mornington Peninsula
Melbourne is often described as having four seasons in one day and Monday lived up to that with strong winds, then pouring rain and then sunshine.
Less than an hour’s drive south of Melbourne, we could see why the Mornington Peninsula is a popular getaway for people in the city. We stayed at the Marina View Caravan Park in Hastings on the East Coast as this was the only place we could find that allowed dogs. The coastal walks starting at the camp site were dog friendly.
Luckily Tuesday was gloriously sunny all day and we couldn’t have had better weather for a drive around the Peninsula. It was a morning of sculptures. First up was the McLelland Sculpture Park which gave us the opportunity for lots of photography and it also allowed dogs which was great.
The park was bustling with visitors and school groups. The park has a mixture of sculptures from quirky pieces to interactive installations.
The coastal drive from Mornington to Rosebud was very scenic and we bought some local mussels from a fishmonger along the way. There are several vineyards on the peninsula and the region mainly produces Pinot Grigio. We picked up a bottle from the T’Gallant vineyard to go with the mussels. A rustic baguette from the excellent Red Hill Bakery finished off our dinner plans.
Fancy meeting you here!
Jonathan and Neil used to work together in Swindon and we met up with Neil and his wife Ann in Melbourne. They had flown over from the UK for a family wedding and a holiday and amazingly were just down the road from where we were staying.
The Royal Botanic Gardens, Cranbourne
(Between Phillip Island and Melbourne)
You can spend an hour or so walking around The Australian Garden which is a landscaped space that showcases the diversity of Australian flora or you could spend several hours walking or cycling along the bushland tracks.
Phillip Island
A bridge connects the mainland town of San Remo with Phillip Island. We stayed just outside the main town, Cowes, which is on the north side of the island. The best thing about the caravan park was that it was right beside a dog friendly beach.
I’m sure Winston must have lost a couple of kgs. He’s certainly getting a turn of speed up now when he’s chasing rabbits.
Phillip island is famous for two main things – penguins and motorsport.
The Australian Grand Prix was originally held on the island’s public roads between 1928 and 1935. It is now home to the Australian motorcycle Grand Prix.
The penguin parade takes place each night at sunset at the south west point of the island. Groups of Little Penguins come ashore to return to their burrows and viewing is strictly controlled from a viewing platform by the rangers. The name of the penguins was changed a few years ago from Fairy Penguins due, I believe, to political correctness. This was another no-go activity for people with dogs of course.
Ann’s eyes lit up when she saw the ‘Amazing World of Chocolate’ sign and she headed off excitedly for the Phillip Island chocolate factory tour.
It felt a bit like Willy Wonka’s factory except this one is run by Panny who is of Malaysian/Indian descent.
Lakes Entrance, Victoria
Lakes Entrance is a popular lakeside resort and fishing port. A walk over the footbridge took us to 90 mile beach and our first view of the Bass Strait.
We also had a fish and chip supper with battered gummy shark which seems to be a popular local fish.