A Trentham Scene

Up until 1974, there was a train that ran from Daylesford to Woodend.

In the days of wood logging and farming there was a need for the railway.

In latter years, the area became prolific with potato farming and the railway took produce to Melbourne.

The stations from Daylesford include Musk, Bullarto, Lyonville and then Trentham before travelling on to Fernhill and Carlesrhue. A tourist train still runs from Daylesford to Bullarto.

From there a walking track takes the same route as the old railway to Trentham.

Although signs of the track from Trentham to Carlesrhue can still be seen, particularly an old trestle bridge, it is not walkable as the farms along the way lease the land.

TILING

Now the Arbour is completed, we've moved on to TILING the Alfresco area. Its about 27 squ metres under roof so it will take some time. I started yesterday but need to complete before our son's 30th birthday party here in Trentham.

We selected a 30 x 60 cm not skid tile that has a mixture of the two grey shades on the exterior walls of the house. We think they blend well!

60x30 cm tiles with a 3mm gap to grout later.

Decided to lay in a brick formation.

Off to buy some more tile adhesive - messy work.

The Arbour - Stage two

There's a Saga to the Arbour.

Firstly Sue decided on this dark charcoal colour but then was influenced to change her mind to a mid grey that matched the mid grey on the house rendering. As I was drawing to the end, painting the mid grey, she decided her first choice was the better.

So....back to the paint shop.

I have now repainted the arbour in the original "Caviar Black" and I have to agree that it now bounces as a real feature in the back yard. Either side of the arbour we will install strands of wire cord to train fruit trees in the espalier method. Climbing up the Arbour will be white roses.

However my next job is to start tiling the Alfresco over January. This has to be done before our son's 30th birthday party here in Trentham.

Looking out thru the arbour is crown land that we mow and plant trees. It should eventually make an enticing  entrance to the parkland from our block.

I'll use the arbour posts asa base to attach wire strands to train the fruit trees in the espalier  method.

In the next few days, I'll plant the climbing roses for Sue.

Building the Abour

We decided to add a feature about to the rear of the property. We already purchased the climbing roses that will hopefully add that final touch. We always had in mind to build an arbour and with the possibility of an impending wedding on the property at Trentham, it may just be the perfect structure to exchange vows under......If not - it will still add some further interest to our home.

The hard part was digging the holes and poring the concrete for the posts.

2 days later after the metal footings were set hard in the concrete base, the posts went with the struts that supported them.
This shows the outlook to the back of the property.

Followed by the view back to the house.

I've now started painting the arbour however there is a small glitch.

It seems that Sue may have changed her mind on the colour choice.

Watch this space!!!!!

Trentham Sports

I'm still learning much about the history of our small village of Trentham. You learn much much talking to the long term locals but also from the internet. I've been trawling TROVE which are the Australian Newspaper archive. Trentham had a somewhat sporting history, much of which has disappeared with time.

Trentham had a racecourse where horse racing was conducted but this ceased sometime in the mid-1900s. Being a cycling enthusiast, I discovered that Trentham had its own bike track with an annual sporting event with bike racing, running events and wood chopping competition.

I found this newspaper clipping of a sports meeting that was held at the Trentham Falls sports arena of which I can not find any signs of its existence. The town these days has football, cricket and netball facilities and currently these are undergoing improvements.

Difficult to determine whether this scene is before or after the falls but it does look  to be before with the falls in the distance. After the falls, the Coliban river runs within a deep narrow valley.

The Coliban river below the falls.

More Garden Improvements

It's interesting to look back over past photos and see the improvements on the house since we moved in almost one year ago. We've almost forgotten that we lived in the big city of Melbourne.

This is our latest creation - a conversation pit. We'll install a metal dished fire pit in the middle of the log seats.
I planted native kangaroo paw with lots of bulbs which now have passed their best. 

This is in the front of the block with our hedge giving us privacy from the road.
Either side of the bench are potted olive trees. We've grown alyssum within the cracks of the terracotta pavers.
These have gone gangbusters with spring and now summer. 

Before winter we started a fernery and then winter and the frosts came. We thought we might lose most of the plants.
As you can see from the two photos below, the fernery has come on very strongly.

We had a concrete slab laid and installed a temporary colorbond shed to store our garden tools, etc.
Note the rubble in front of the shed. This was a future project.

Looking from the shed (see part of the slab RH bottom) we planted two veggie gardens.

Its been a very satisfying time establishing both the inside and outside of our new home in Trentham. We've warmed to the locals, made friends with the local business owners and slotted in very nicely thank you.

PROJECTS

Our Trentham house is not far from our first anniversary since we moved in just prior to Christmas last year. Since then we have laid top soil, planted grass seed, built a shed and established several gardens. Over that time we've had several loads go gravel delivered to form paths and driveways.

Add to that a trip to Belgium, Amsterdam and France which included Sue's accident while overseas with 12 weeks of recovery after our return and I would have to say we've done OK in one year.

18 months ago we started the build and moved in on December 23, 2016.

We have two projects that should bring us to the pointy end of work load. The drawing below is the arbour we have commissioned to be built prior to Christmas. Sue hopes to grow climbing roses over the trellis giving a nice soft feel. (watch this space)

The other project is the tiling of the L-shaped al fresco and front outside entrance. Once we finish these two projects, I might just relax for awhile and smell the roses.

We decided to increase the sizes by an additional 200mm in HxLxW.

In the foreground are two oak trees with a bird bath between them. This is where  we will place the arbour.  Either side of the arbour, we are thinking of planting espalier, possibly either grapes or fruit trees. 

The other project mentioned, tiling the Alfresco, starts in two weeks (or after Christmas). We have purchased the tiles which are 300 x 600 and have a non-slip surface. The colours match the house perfectly with variations grey tones. I'll lay them in a brick pattern.

The following photos are just a bit of a recap of the last twelve months.

Looking out from the al fresco not long after we moved in. The block was littered with building debris and mounds of uneven earth. Now its a smooth bowling green of plush grass.

We've planted a herb garden

Then there's the start of a cottage garden.

We are now at the stage of maintaining the property with weeding and keeping the garden tidy - with adding to the plants already established.

We are Back

Life has been a bit stressful in recent months with many things on hold. Some of you may know that Sue took a tumble while in France about 12 weeks ago. It's only recently that she is rediscovering herself after fracturing two vertebra - still some time to go yet but we are past the bad stuff.

So get get the ball rolling once again, lets just post some local pics.

During the late 1800s this hotel was many in Trentham and district. Today we have 2 hotels in town and another about 5 kms out to East Trentham. The one pictured is now an antique and vintage shop.

The COSMO

I've mentioned the COSMO in past posts. These photos are prior to it having an internal fire and possibly in the 70s judging by the cars. Today the COSMO is a thriving hub of the community.

We often eat here and enjoy catching up with fellow locals.

Life is a Blur

Where does it all go and where is it coming from. Is it planned or does it all happen around you?
I really don't know but possibly we should just embrace it. Sure we can change things but if you think to hard, it may not just be the best thing that can happen.

People do ask us, "How did we choose Trentham - we didn't, it chose us".

We drove by many times as we were thinking of where we would retire. Sure, Melbourne is a nice place to be but no longer for us. We needed to make the most of our investments for the life ahead.
A place that gave us an opportunity to integrate to the local community but not too far from our city life.

We bought a plot of land in Trentham - Then we did the panic thing. We had to finish our house pimping for sale. It all worked out and we love being here.

So, we bought the block. 2nd day on the market and put in a bid. Holy %$#@ is was ours.
Now to finish off the house for auction over the next 2 months.

Then we sold our house of 30 years. It all worked well. Www could not be happier.

Spring has Sprung

Must be time to change our masthead photo soon.

No more snow and the gardens start to bloom.

Life goes in circles as does nature. We moved to Trentham in mid-summer, 10 months ago and since then our life has experienced many events. Trentham had two snowfalls this winter plus a small flurry or two.

Friends in Melbourne ask why move to the Cool Country Climate of Trentham. I tell them that the area is cold but the village is warm. Tonight at the local pub, we met up with many locals which would not happen in the city. We could not be happier.

Its been a tough year emotionally though. My father's passing away this year, Sue having a serious fall while in France and only today our lovely burmese cat, Gem was put to sleep. 

It is very emotional but my father lived to be 96 and Gem - well she had 20 amazing years in our family. 

Sue is now slowly improving and I'm sure that the spring weather which brings the rebirth of the garden and new wildlife will help her get over her sadness and injuries.

Reno Opportunity

I was looking for a renovators opportunity in Trentham.

What's your thoughts on this one?

More Snow at Trentham

It was just a light dusting however its still exciting in Victoria. Sure we get snow on the mountains but we are only at 720m above sea level.

The snow doesn't hang around when the sun eventually peeks through the clouds but its nice to see when it does fall.