Bright to Sale

I wasn’t really planning to add another Part to this story, but there were enough interesting things on our trip back to Sale to make it worth another one – and it was a lot less stressful than the initial trip.

I had been checking the weather forecast for our return trip every day since we arrived in Bright and it seemed we were in for sunny skies most of the way, including through Mount Hotham which had caused us several types of panic on the way there with heavy snow falls.

We left Bright at around 9.45 am and stopped in Mount Hotham an hour later, after negotiating what seemed like a 1000 turns in the road.

Along the way we stopped at a viewpoint which gave spectacular views across the valley and to the mountains beyond

Some way down the road we stopped briefly to have a look at some trees – Oh No, we don’t need more trees, we thought – and more Eucalyptus at that. Well, yes but these particular trees were special – and just to confuse us we found they were called Alpine Ash. We had to admit they were handsome trees.

Although there were still remnants of snow around in Mt Hotham and even some hardy types tobogganing down one of the snow-covered hills adjoining the town, the bright, sunny (yet very chilly) weather was in complete contrast to when we had passed through a few days earlier.

We pulled off the road to enjoy our tea and a muffin – and the sight of four vintage MG Sports cars from the early Fifties

Chatting to one of the owners he explained they were a group of enthusiasts who had all modified their old MG’s with uprated engines, suspension and wheels – which would explain why they went roaring past us on a couple of the last bends before Mt Hotham, after I pulled over to the left verge to let them through.

I could see them going slightly sideways through some of the bends thereafter, despite – or perhaps because of – the wettish surface of the tar. In any case I just love old cars and walked around these beauties having a good look and taking in that throaty roar when they started up.

It was a day for car club outings, as at our next brief stop in Omeo we came across a group of 6 or 7 lovely Citroen 2CV’s in the parking area.

And they’re off! But not very quickly……

Leaving Omeo I spotted a pair of White-faced Herons in a roadside field and pulled off for a quick photo – I only just caught them as they took off almost straight away (and the sun was on the wrong side, hence the shadows)

Another bird caught my eye some way further down the road, perched on a high branch so I couldn’t resist stopping for another quick shot

Apart from that the trip was uneventful but tiring as the continuous curves and ups and downs require utmost concentration.

For some reason the small towns we passed through after Omeo don’t have any restaurants or even coffee shops, so we had to wait to reach Bairnesdale where we had a late lunch of Hungry Jacks burgers, before tackling the last stretch to Sale.

We arrived back in Sale pleased that we had seen a bit more of Victoria, in particular the “Alpine” region and looking forward to our last two weeks in Australia