The Rains Came

It was only yesterday morning I noticed that the Campaspe River was just a trickle and the land in the area being parched after weeks of hot summer weather with temperatures reaching 40C plus. This morning the rains came. Hopefully there will be enough to start the river flowing again and add some green to the area.

The rain over Victoria after a heat wave over the last two weeks.

In contrast to the rains, only yesterday I did a short early morning ride (the day's temperature was mid 30s) to beat the heat. I saw the sun rise around 6.30 am through the trees and and in the far distant horizon were the rises of Hanging Rock and Mt Macedon.

To the very left is the rocky outcrop of Hanging Rock and rising to the right  is Mt Macedon.

It was only a few days ago, a friend sent me some very early photos of the town where our block of land is. Trentham's early attraction was their falls, supposedly the highest in all of Victoria. We took a visit to the falls last Friday and like the Campaspe River, it was just a trickle. The creek that runs at the back of our property is Trent Creek and runs into the Coliban River which in turn is the source of the waterfall you see below. It is a major source of water that supplies many of the surrounding towns as it runs to the dams of  the Upper Coliban, Lauriston, and Mamsbury and then meets up with the Campaspe River at Lake Eppalock.
I knew nothing of this little river that begins its 89 km journey starting virtually on our doorstep near Trentham.

Trentham Falls, most probably taken in the early 1900s

The Coliban River that flows through Victoria's Central Highlands - again probably from the  early 1900s.

Being a Tourist in our new Home

Sunday we took a drive to discover some of the outer regions of Kyneton. As you drive north and west of Kyneton you find yourself on the other side of the Great Divide, a mountain range where the temperature is cooler and the land greener. The locals tell us that this side of the range, the winters have been dry and with temperatures this summer in the high 30s, the land is parched. Yet there is a harsh beauty that invites the camera to come into play. Handy to have my iPhone with me.

As we drove by this area, we must have seen at least 100 kangaroos bounding through the paddocks with their young. A rear treat for us recently displaced city folk.

We passed a sign that said Granite Hills and they weren't fibbing. Over a length of about 500 metres, there were these rocky outcrops of granite rising from the earth.

Escape to the Country

Yes - I know - its a corny title. We've watched all those series and have friends in France that have done just that. Kyneton for the next 10 months is our rural France, its what we experienced and loved in our now six trips to that lovely country. It taught us much and gave us courage to make a move from the city. I'm sure we will say, "why didn't we do this earlier".

Well that's the end of "Melbourne our home by the Bay" Blog - It's time for a title change.

OUR COUNTRY LIFE

Just a simple old bluestone building in one of the main streets of Kyneton ( there are 3 main streets) It has a history that will be missed by driving thru in a car.

Our new house will take all of this year before it will be ready to move in. We have our first meeting with the company at our block next Friday. There's some clearing of the land, soil tests and then permits to be considered. Once all that is finalised, the building may take another 6 months.

Kyneton will have plenty to keep us interested with markets, festivals and just discovering our new surroundings. Sue did go to the local markets yesterday and chatted with many of the local producers. One of them, a baker, has a business in Trentham where we are building. The people we meet from Trentham seem enthusiastically proud of their village of 1400 people.

Touches of Georgian architecture that litters Tasmania can also be found here. Kyneton was established a very few years prior to the great Victorian Gold Rush of the early 1850s.

Maybe we should explain the locations - Kyneton is about an hours drive to the Melbourne CBD. Our old home in Mentone is about 45 minutes from the Melbourne CBD. Work from Mentone was around 1 hour on a good day - 90 minutes on a bad day. Kyneton is 45 minutes from work and I encounter only one set of traffic lights. The freeway from Kyneton to my office is between 80 and 110 kph from the off ramp, I have less than 1 km to the office - How good is that?

I suspect that I will find many Ghost Signs as I discover Kyneton

Today Kyneton has 5 hotels that I have discovered (so far) but I suspect in its past history it had many more. This building was once the Queens Head Hotel. Was that Antoinette it was named after? 

We'll tell you more about our country life as time goes by, the towns and little rural villages, the shops, and the foodie delights of the Central Highlands. Join us on this new exciting time on our Blog.

I'm Over This - NOW!!!!!

I mention that we went to Kyneton with the work van full of belongings and then went to one of the local Pubs there. Well I filled the van once again and am off to the new abode - twice in three days. I think I will enjoy another beer with my friend who is helping me tomorrow.

I can't believe how much this van has taken to our new home for the next 12 months. Three trips so far and still I think we need to do another. NO! We leave the rest to the professionals for the rest.

Its going to be a very busy week with friends arriving from Paris on Tuesday. Next Thursday the removalists arrive to take all the big stuff - white goods, lounge, family, bedroom, and dining furniture.
With the help of our wonderful friends, the cupboards are now bare, and pristine clean. Hopefully the new owners can now just move in and enjoy the home that has given us the wonderful memories of the last 33 years. This whole exercise has confirmed to us that we are blessed with a great circle of friends - OR, are they happy to see us leave - OR are they looking for a counrty house for weekend visits (anytime).

Next Saturday I will ride with my friend from Paris to meet my cycling buddies and to enjoy Melbourne, our home on the bay.

Which reminds me - our blog will need to change its name - any suggestions????
Tree Change Transition. The Country Life. Rural Rants. Hmm! Maybe not.

We found a great Pub

This week we will have done 3 trips to our new what will be our home for the next 12 months at Kyneton. After driving the company van with a load of belongings in weather around the low 30's, we needed a beer. I found this pub with a beer that Sue enjoys a few weeks back - it's appropriately called Bicycle Beer.

I think that the Royal George may become our local while in Kyneton. I discovered after a bit of a chat, that the owners actually live in our future village of Trentham. We both enjoyed a serve each of Calamari with a couple of pots of Bicycle Beer in the very relaxing ambiance of this pub.

Sunday, we take another trip, hopefully our last in the company van with another load of belongings. Late next week the removalists take all the big stuff and then we are out of here. After 33 years, will we be sad to leave. I think Sue may be but I'm looking forward to a new life (Sue is as well but is sad with all the memories of this house).

Keep tuned - many new tales to come.