Get Outa Town!

 Lisa and Mark headed off for their usual Labour Day weekend away.  This time in Deniliquin for a bit of water sport with Julia and Simon.

Moving Closer

 Adam has been looking for a work location closer to home for some time.  In a lucky find, he secured a location in Bayswater that should reduce travel time by a couple of hours per day.

Baptist "Youth" Fellowship Reunion

 The last time we all met up as a formal youth group was over 50 years ago.  Some years ago we decided to call a reunion and since them we have met up again each year in February.  On this occasion the barbeque was at Ashburton Baptist where it all started.

It was a great meet up once again.  As we are in touch with each other through social media, we get a chance to fill in the details at these gatherings. There is no effort required to keep the conversation flowing!

Birthday Bash

 Brett and Cathy hosted a family dinner to celebrate the recent birthdays of Mitchell and Claire.  As usual, the evening featured wonderful food and some delicious old red wine.

Dinner was the usual noisy affair

and the family rendition of the Birthday Aria could only be described as magnificent!

It was another great family occasion.

Barn Transformation

 The barn at Donvale is being transformed from a tin shed to an insulated club house.  As the insulation goes in and Mark installs the plaster, the place is almost unrecognisable.

Lachlan - The iPad Master

 Lachlan has always enjoyed drawing and the iPad allows him to draw and share the results.  His drawings get better all the time.  This is his Clone Commando.

Patrick Gets His Ls

 Patrick took the plunge and took the test for his L Plates after an extended Covid related delay.  He is now on the road.

Louie took time to have a full groom to be ready for his first ride.

Visiting Marysville

We decided to take a couple of days in a Marysville B&B to celebrate Claire's birthday and her approaching middle age.  We had a small suite overlooking the town that was ideal.

The town itself sits on the Steavenson River that gives the place a wonderful ambiance.

There are a number of good eateries around the town.  We had one of our meals in the pub overlooking the park and river.

There is an evident local pride in the town and the locals have undertaken a number of projects to maintain morale and build economic confidence.  One of these was a free concert that was put on by locals for locals in the central park.  People brought their chairs, dogs and dinner and enjoyed the music an a balmy Thursday evening.  These concerts had been running all summer.

Around Marysville

 It is great to be able to visit Marysville once again without the sad reminders everywhere of the destruction of the town on 7th Feb 2009.  While there are reminders in the area, the recovery is well underway.  From Keppels Lookout, the area is green again.

The water supply is nearly full,

and there is green surrounding the river.

Although there are stark reminders of the destruction of the forest,

there are still places to see stands of the huge mountain ash, Eucalyptus regnans.

Steavenson Falls

 You cannot visit Marysville without visiting the Steavenson Falls on the Steavenson River (that runs through the town).  The little valley through which the river runs was completely burned out in the massive firestorm some years ago.  It was wonderful to see the new growth and the development of the area.

It has taken a while but a small hydro electric plant runs using the water from the falls and this is used to power lights on the walking paths and the Falls themselves in the evenings.