Who wants Kakapo vomit with their Melbourne Cup salad and pav...?

Today there's another collection of tales and epics which have dropped into my inbox through the morning.
As I've rehashed and prattled about the Melbourne Cup and its history plenty of times in the past, let's move along and discuss other things.
Like who's running the SP book, who's holding the BBQ and which do we bring...salads or desserts?

Same goes for Halloween - celebrate it, don't celebrate it, it's a personal choice and up to each individual - but I've posted about that, too, plenty of times in the past, so we're moving on.

In amongst all the not-so-flying Kangaroo nonsense, rural doctors were left stranded.

Great article HERE about how book illustrators are turning back to traditional methods to plot out the pictures in a story away from computer software.

Have a look at this sumptuously gorgeous silk crazy quilt, which was created between 1890 and 1896 in Wangaratta, which will hopefully be listed for heritage status.

The Combined Gaelic Clans of Australiasia chieftan states why we should embrace the Gaelic culture and not let it die.

With the horrendous earthquake in Lyttelton in February the little-known WW2 tunnels were unearthed; here is a well detailed article explaining their origin and state.

Did I tell you about the auction to raise funds for the Kakapo?

They were auctioning off regurgitated Kakapo food...and not just any Kakapo vomit but that of the infamous Sirocco.

They managed to raise $400.00.
Woohoo!

Isn't it nice to hear of pats on the back to recognise the extra effort someone has gone to?
Well, a registrar doctor in Charlton - who'd been flooded out twice herself - has been patted on the back in the form of the Rural Registrar of the Year award for the hard work she did for those in the Charlton community during the floods this year.

And probably not the boiler Andrew was expecting but this story HERE explains the Wreck of '73.
That would be the train wreck.
Of 1873.
At Geelong.
When someone overdid the puffer valve on the boiler.

And the last word goes to good old Clint Eastwood.

I need your dongle advice....

We are planning a week away with the Feral Teen near Christmas and, obviously, I can't check the gossip my emails or blog on my pre-paid itsybitsy teeny tiny phone.
So.
I will have to drag the laptop along with us.
And I shall need to purchase myself a pre-paid dongle thingie whatsit.

What is the best one to get?
Remember, we'll be in the wilds of Central Victoria, in Dunolly.
So, I expect we'll need a super-dooper nuclear-powered dongle thingie whatsit.

Over to you, dear reader, what in your opinion is the best value for money?

Hysterical Historical round up of stuffs

I'm not a huge one for watching sports stuff but this article plopped into my inbox - I had seen the previous news coverage of these lads on NITV with Deeks - and the review sounds like it's a good 'un to watch.
It'll be on mainstream TV (well, ABC is mainstream, isn't it?) on December 1, so mark your diaries.

So sad to read HERE of the controlled partial demolition of the Christ Church Cathedral - as a result of that dreadful earthquake - but they gotta do what they gotta do and have few options by the sound of things.

Debby was asking what the Murtoa Stick Shed was - here's another link HERE to showcase the magnificent old gal.

A demolished power station was honoured with being named as a national heritage landmark.
Go figure.
I'd rather they recognise the architect of the long-gone Yallourn Township and recreate his style.
Yeah, yeah, whistling in the wind...

The famous Rum Hospital - better known these days by the more PC title of Sydney Hospital - celebrates it's 200th birthday.
There will be an exhibition, a $1,000 nursing grant has been announced, history tours will be conducted and possibly someone may sneak some rum into the punch bowl...

There will be ructions, I tells ya, ructions galore!

Well, I was going to be all deep and meaningful with the HUGE list of interesting (or boring as bat shyte, depending on what float your boat) links to stories that landed in my inbox.
I have such a busy little inbox.
*ahem*
Sluice and boilers, Andrew, sluice and boilers.

But the Foxtel unit has crapped itself and the earliest a techie can get here is Sunday.
Try explaining that to the Feral Teen who is addicted to Nat Geo, Discovery Science, History, Sci Fi, BBC Knowledge, etc.
I shall be hiding out under the bed til the techie gets here.

For those suffering hay fever this Spring - and it's been a bumper season for it - have a gander at the little morsels causing all your discomfort that have been eyeballed by a microscope named Anthony.
 Anthony's big brothers are scattered about the globe, christened Gary, Bob, Greig, Ken and Colin.
*snort*

Jamieson, a lovely town in the high country of Victoria, is turning 150 years old and it's pulling out all the stops to have a proper knees up celebration.
Or you can pop over here to see the fabulous slideshow of old photos and read about what events are scheduled to tickle everyone's fancy.
Have your speakers turned on to sing along!

The Murtoa Stick Shed has proved to be such a popular tourist attraction - while it's not officially a tourist attraction - that they've had to turn people away!

 The famed, beautiful timepiece linked to the Loch Ard maritime tragedy was successfully bought at Sothbeby's auction by the Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village.

If you're in Maitland or within a cooee of the town, beware!
There's going to be squillions of historians out and about as the town is hosting the Royal Australian Historical Conference this weekend.

Randwick will soon say goodbye to some of it's more attractive historical buildings, notably the Tea House, as bulldozers do away with Australia's oldest racecourse's building history.
*sigh*
More gone to become just memories.

Interesting article on why Australia just doesn't compare with Europe when it comes to tourist destinations -a variety of reasons given with history and museums two of the foremost amongst them.

And for your good behaviour in class today...
a random shot of a grave at the old Dunolly Historical Cemetery

Sunday saunter along the Hard Hills Track...and back again

Right, now....where was I ...?
Oh, some piccys from the walk from Dunolly to Goldsborough and back, 14 kms round trip on a pleasant Sunday through some great bushland along the Hard Hills Track.
Sans Joe Blakes.
Thank Gawd!

Click on the pics for larger images.

Well signposted...


With plenty to see...


Meandering path leading the curious ever onward...


...through verdant grasslands...


...creaking trees...


...across a creek bed that was flooding the town only 6 months back...


...past a house I had previously photographed from a distance...

The Baillieus are not receiving guests today...

...and dams mirroring the beautiful surrounds...


... the Dunolly Historic Cemetery where the gates are just for show...


...where holes and mullock heaps were many in number...












...where the controlled burn offs had happened...






...where some areas are so luna-scaped from mining barely anything grows...


...also found a squillion Bull ants nests...if you ever have need to stake someone out on one at sunset...*ahem*..


Is this your bumper...?


It's bucolic, just enjoy it, damnit.


Have yet to eyeball Mataranka...


...but there's plenty of signs pointing to it!


You must take notice of the signs!


It's a tree.


And anotheree.


Follow the signs and not your nose.


Cross the tracks with care!


Yay, we got there!


Yes, that really is the Goldsborough Railway Station.


A wider shot...


Click on HERE, scroll down and read about the disappearence of the railway station due to gold.

Throughout the whole walk we were treated to delightful birdsong form many different feathered critters while Feral teen spied his first Echidna in the wild (it's not the Echidna love-train season, so he didn't get to play David Attenborough In the Wild *snort*)

Last few bits and bobs of Tarnagulla History Walk

Click on the pics for larger images.

This is the poppet head for the Great Western Mine which was worked from 1938-1942 but without huge riches being found.
The poppet head wheels were installed in 1941 then removed as the Govt wouldn't support a non-essential industry during wartime and these barely-used wheels (only driven to church on a Sunday) are now in the Dunolly Museum.
It was worked again in the 1990s, again with little success.


The Tarnagualla War Memorial, located in the park in the main street.


The remains of the original garden at the Grey House.


This is, or was, the Ebenezer Chapel, Baptist Church built in 1864.


The peaceful setting of the one holer.


This is the remains of one of the dams which held water for the Tarnagulla Gold Estates dredge in the early 1900s (was more of a sluice).


Remains of the boilers used in the sluice.



More industrial remnants.


The Court House built in 1863.


The original police lockup (behind the old police station and residence) which was built in 1869 for a mere £345.


Bubbles appearing from the bed of the Tarnagulla Reservoir.
Yabbies, maybe...?


The Victoria Theatre (built in 1862), in the main street of Tarnagulla, as seen from the Poverty Reef Monument.
Lola Montez performed her infamous Spider Dance here in 1871.


Another of those gorgeous gate posts.


Get along to have a fun time!


Tomorrow I'll pop in some shots of our 14km trek along the Hard Hills Track.

Tarnagulla History Walk part 2

 Remember - click on the pics for larger images.

So, we'll start off with Bell's Cottage, the wee stone cottage WW1 veteran Herbert Bell built during the Great Depression before going off to serve in WW2.
A chap who liked a bit of hard work!

Again, he collected these stones while cycling through the bush looking for/doing work and slowly built this cottage over several years.


Close up of the stone work along the back, some minor mortar repairs having been done recently.


The verandah...


...and the date of completion inscribed in the cement, 1937.


This is the entire width of the kitchen.


The kitchen itself - I could touch the bench under the window (which is to the right of the front door) and the opposite wall without stretching my arms, and I was standing just inside the doorway which shows how tiny it was (the lounge/bedroom was equally as tiny).


A one holer was favoured.


The former Tarnagulla Post Office from 1859-1886 (which was originally intended as the Tarnagulla Gold Office but Those In Power changed their minds).


As it is today - note they have increased the height of the chimneys at some stage, perhaps they didn't draw properly...?


Another shot of the century-old St Francis' Church (in 1911 this replaced the wooden church built there in 1865).


Proper solid door handles and lock.


Some chaps on their knees in front of the church... not praying but checking the bedrock and soil for gold-bearing qualities.


St Saviour's Church of England, a mere stone's throw up the street.


And look at those delightful gate posts (cast brass work!).


Remains of Weslyn Church, built in 1865 burnt approx. 17 yrs ago.


Pavillion at the Historic Recreation Reserve, built in 1884 it is the oldest remaining wooden grandstand in Victoria.


Tarnagulla Reservoir, built in the 1860s, has not been this full in 15 years.






Bits and bobs at the reserve.






This canon was given to the town of Tarnagulla from the ship HMVS Nelson


It was only fired a few times after it arrived in Tarnagulla but one occasion it wasn't fixed firmly enough and backfired, causing a bushfire.


And we'll leave it there for tomorrow.