Journey with The Stuth’s

17/04/2021

Well that’s a wrap from our 5 month journey where we embraced each day with gratitude for the experience, and for the time spent connecting with each other and this amazing country we are so lucky to call home.

The last part of our trip was spent visiting a good friends winery near Stanthorpe and then parking in the drive way of a great old friend in Golden Beach and our last night camping on the beach at Inskip point.

Perfect way to end our journey.

08/04/2021

Back on the Sunny Coast after an incredible outback leg that completed a nice big loop that included NSW, Vic and SA.

06/04/2021

A bit late but Happy Easter 🐣 from all of us.

We spent Easter in Goondiwindi which we had a quiet day with a picnic on the McIntyre River.

Easter Bunny found the kids which was a relief 😅 for everyone...

It was a little tricky getting to Gundy from Lightning Ridge as some of the roads had a bit of water over them but got through okay.

We are now in Stanthorpe staying with a friend and even though it’s a bet wet it’s still nice to be here!

06/04/2021

Lightning Ridge!! What an interesting place... the kids loved the thought of striking it rich noodling for potch (or in layman’s term - fossicking for black opal) 😉

But unfortunately we didn’t make our fortune but still enjoyed learning about black opals and how the miners live.

We also met some very quirky people especially Amigo who hand made his own castle using rocks from around the area all inspired because he didn’t like seeing the waste (rocks) from the opal mines.

01/04/2021

From Cobar where we spent a few days we went to Bourke and had a beautiful camp site on the Darling River....

I was excited to finally get on a paddle steamer after seeing them in Echuca during the Victoria lockdown.

We are loving the warm days and cool nights with amazing sunsets and night skies!!

We are now in Lightning Ridge where the kids have loved noodling for opals and learning about the opal mining history around the area.

We head to Goondiwindi for Easter 🐣

28/03/2021

A little message that sits in the caravan 🌞

27/03/2021

We are really starting to love the big open blue skies and long straight roads, there is something about being in the middle of nowhere that feels so free!

We had a night in Broken Hill and a couple of nights at an Organic Sheep Farm - at Mount Gipps Station where we experienced a little of what life would be like on a working farm with so much history!

We enjoyed Broken Hill and learning about the beginning of BHP and the rich mineral history of the area. We even found some gems of our own in a dry creek bed out from the property where Charles Rasp first discovered silver...

We even snuck in dinner at the iconic Palace Hotel where they filmed Priscila Queen of the desert!

We are now in Cobar for a few nights and then onto Bourke.

27/03/2021

It’s was hard to leave the coast but we’ve loved the vast difference in landscape, people and flies! 🪰

From the peninsula we spent a few days in Wudinna where we ventured out to see ‘wave rock’ Pildappa Rock and the second biggest monolith in Australia - Mount Wudinna (the first being Uluru) where we were the only ones there! 😆

Between the March flies and the flies we learnt how to keep moving before being swamped by them! Hannah wasn’t too impressed 🙊🪰🪰

We had a quick over night in Port Augusta to get supplies before the long drive to cross the border to NSW and spend a few nights Broken Hill.

21/03/2021

From Cape Hardy we headed further along the Eyre Peninsula stopping at Coffin Bay where we went back to Port Lincoln to swim with the sea lions and then onto Elliston where we stay at another beach camp at Walkers Rocks.

There was so much to explore near Elliston... so many natural wonders and fine examples of our beautiful Mother Nature.

It was hard to start heading inland and back towards NSW and leave this coast but have already enjoyed the extreme differences in the landscape.

21/03/2021

They are not fed by the guides, we could not come too close to their colony and had to stay away but they come over to us...simply to play and interact with us. We wish we could hold our breath longer! A genuinely curious exchange between humans and an endangered creature.

21/03/2021

Our turnaround point was at Port Lincoln, SA and we were so blessed to all have this special experience together swimming with wild sea lions near an island offshore. One of the most incredible things we’ve done!

16/03/2021

South Australia is showcasing its raw and natural beauty to the four of us. From Whyalla we stayed in the little seaside town of Cowell before finding a little free camp perched right on the dunes with the whole place to ourselves. Had to share these pics. Today we are at Coffin Bay and tomorrow we all treat ourselves - A swim with local sea lions on an island offshore. A fitting way to mark the turnaround point before we head inland for an outback adventure on the return.

13/03/2021

13/03/2021

Enquisitive Wild dolphins coming up to interact with us at Whyalla Marina!

13/03/2021

We loved our time in the Adelaide Hills.... super busy in Hahndorf but still found a great bakery with Apple strudel 🍎 and good coffee... 😆 Found a great little winery also which is famous for its sparkling Deviation Road Winery .... The kids enjoyed the Melba's Chocolates shop and learnt a bit about how chocolate is made...

From the Adelaide Hills we spent two nights down in the city where we cruised on our bikes along the Torrens River to the city and were lucky enough to score some tickets to a great acrobat display during the Adelaide Fringe Festival at the Wonderland Spiegeltent

Hannah wanted to check out the tram so we jumped on the tram for a morning in Glenelg... 👌 and a shopping trip through Rundle Mall wasn’t forgotten... 😜

From Adelaide we started heading down the Eyre Peninsula from Whyalla to Cowell today... loved swimming again in the ocean after some cold days in the Adelaide Hills and Adelaide...

07/03/2021

Gee it’s been a busy week with crossing into South Australia. From Port Fairy which was a quaint little town filled with lots of 19th century homes, we went to Mount Gambier in SA, where we learnt lots about volcanos and lakes.

The formation of the volcanos and lakes were a great day of school for both the parents and the kids! 😆

Next on the itinerary was Robe! Another pretty seaside town. Robe is a town and fishing port located in the Limestone Coast of South Australia. The town's distinctive combination of historical buildings, ocean, fishing fleets, lakes and dense bush was a stark difference to Mount Gambier.

We are now camped in the Adelaide Hills on a gorgeous old property Shiloh Hills Park Accommodation and now off to explore Hahndorf and the surrounds.

Trying hard to not to think about our journey home but it’s coming around quickly. Seems hard to agree on a time to head home as there’s so much to see in this part of Australia!!

27/02/2021

We had such a great time with family in Melbourne...! And it’s always hard to say goodbye, but hopefully 2021 will allow you guys to come and visit us in Queensland!

After spending a week with family, we left on Wednesday to continue our journey along the Great Ocean Road to South Australia. We spent a few days at Apollo Bay, where we camped in the paddock at a Dairy Farm!

We are now currently in a little place called Princetown which is just a few kilometres from the 12 Apostles! What a place to see and experience.... 👌The kids loved trying to count the apostles which is now just 8!

Tomorrow we are heading to another little town on the Great Ocean Road, Port Fairy.

27/02/2021

On our way back to Melbourne we were recommended by my Uncle to stop off and visit The Great Stupa of Universal Compassion just near Bendigo.... and we were so glad we did!

What an amazing place in the middle of nowhere.... 😲 it is the largest Stupa in the western world and houses The Jade Buddha. It is 2.5 metres high and sits on an alabaster throne of close to 1.6 metres high. The Jade Buddha itself weighs around 4 tonne and is considered to be priceless. 😲😲 If you’re ever in this area it’s definitely worth a visit.

Thanks Peter Ball

17/02/2021

What else do you do when Victoria goes into a snap ‘lockdown’? You find the closest town on the border and hang out there for 5 days!

We have spent the past five days at an amazing caravan park Moama Waters

Kids loved the slides, pools, pump track, jumping pillow and the parents loved the tennis court where our evening hit became a nightly event! 🎾

It was actually really nice to have a break without too much travelling but we are looking forward to seeing family again in Melbourne!

12/02/2021

What a strange turn of events!! In these crazy times... after just 5 days in Victoria we are now back just across the border in NSW at Moama on the Murray River. After only a night visiting Michael’s mum, brother and family in the Yarra Valley we were heart broken to have to leave but we are all hopeful that we will be back Thursday after this ‘snap lockdown’ 😣 The kids were disappointed to leave their cousins....

Let’s hope things settle quickly and we all get back to life as human beings where we can visit family without breaking the laws! 😔 It certainly feels like our human rights are at question here?!

09/02/2021

Watching the mountain bikers flying down the hill.... 👌🚵

09/02/2021

Fun day at Thredbo! Took the Kosciusko Express Chairlift to the top for a short hike to the Mt Kosciusko lookout... (didn’t push the kids to the summit this time! 😉).

It certainly was a strange feeling being on a chairlift without skis or snowboards, although going down on the chair lift was even more foreign to us! We scored a beautiful clear day though and were lucky to not have any wind like the day before when the lift was shut because of the alpine winds!

We ended each day with a quick, chilly dip in Thredbo River just to make sure we were still alive! 🥶

06/02/2021

From the Blue Mountains we headed to the ACT and spent 5 days in the capital city getting to know what it felt like to live in a very orderly and organised city! 😉😂

Canberra was a busy few days of home schooling at the attractions and learning lots about history, science and politics! Think the kids are sorted now... 🥸📚

We spent one night at Abercrombie on the way to Thredbo where we are a camped by Thredbo River at a National Park Camp ground , Thredbo Diggings which is an amazing free camp near mountain bike trails and hiking! Tomorrow we are heading up to Mt Kosciusko. Even though it’s summer here the temps are freezing!!

30/01/2021

After a wet and cold few days in Katoomba we managed to score some good weather to get out and enjoy a good hike through these amazing mountains!

We did the Grand Canyon Hike which was about 8 kms round trip and the kids did awesome! With a bit of rain to keep us cool, lots of waterfalls and flowing streams, meandering along the sides of cliffs, to walking along the valley floor this hike had it all. 👌 It really was magical... especially seeing the kids loving it as much as we did. 💫

If you’re ever in the Blue Mountains make sure this hike is on the list. 🏔🧡

28/01/2021

Cooped up in the wet and rainy Blue mountains - this is what can happen...caravan party!

25/01/2021

Wowsers time flys when you’re travelling! It’s been a busy 10 days since we last posted.

From Bellingen we went to catch up with an old army friend of Mick’s in Port Mac... they live on the North shore which is a beautiful part of the city that you need to catch the ferry to making it secluded and much quieter.

From there we squatted 😉 on a spare block of land next to friends place in Wallabi Point near Old Bar. We loved exploring this little part of the world where we went bike riding, yabbie hunting and fishing... There are so many beautiful coastal towns along this stretch. 🌊

We are now at Bushland Camping and Caravan Park near Cellito Beach 🏖 It’s a great campground between the ocean and the lakes... we are catching up with my old friend Sarah from my Yeppoon days which has been so great!

We’ve really loved connecting with old friends during this trip... something special about revisiting friends even years on. 💕

Tomorrow we are on our way to the Blue Mountains 🏔 for some hiking which Hannah loves. 😉🙊

15/01/2021

Wooli 👌👌 such a great little seaside/river town... there aren’t many places along the east coast like this anymore. A quaint little fishing village which has the ocean on one side and a great river for fishing, kayaking and SUPing on the other.
It was nice to settle into a place for 6 days without having to pack up and the kids even got to meet some friends.

We are now in Bellingen near Coffs Harbour and going to explore Dangar Falls tomorrow and the local markets! It’s a beautiful old town along the Bellingen River... we are staying at the Showgrounds which is prefect! Close to the river for a swim and close to town for a coffee! 🏆🏆

09/01/2021

After three nights camping at the Keenan’s campground 😉, we headed to Black Rock’s campground in Bundjalung National Park where we spent a few wet and windy nights camped by the ocean. Great chance to catch up on books and board games... 😁

While we were made very welcome in Ballina at the Keenan’s campground we checked out the busy Byron Bay! Wow how this place changed over the years... ? we took the kids to the light house and grabbed a kebab for old times sakes and ate it at the main beach which has started eroding away. 😲

We are now just outside Yamba at the Maclean Showgrounds on the Clarence River for a night before heading to Wooli... where we are calling home for 5 nights!