SARSFIELD NR BAIRNSDALE
JULY
10
WOKE
up. Fell out of bed. The terrain out of Bairnsdale on the Dargo Road was a
different road experience to yesterday. There were more sheep instead of
cattle. We stopped sometimes to marvel at baby lambs dragging on their mother's teats. We
also stopped to morbidly assess last night’s carnage- wombat and kangaroo on
the side of the road. The fields, too, had changed, farming-wise. Instead of
dairy farming, winter crops instead, and fields of what looked like wheat. Are
wheat crops compatible in winter?
We
found ourselves in Glenaladale at a horse riding camp called ‘Coonawarra.’ We
were too late for a planned two hour ride. Instead the instructor rode off with
experienced riders who were on time, and we were left to parade the girls
around ourselves on a dirt track in circles a bit like a rugged version of the
mounting yard at Flemington racecourse. Lolly was a passive agreeable horse who
was more than happy to make about a hundred strolls in wide circles, one
lightly built child at a time.
About
twenty minutes away was the Mitchell River National Park, situated right on the
Mitchell River. A skinny track led us to The Bluff- a lovely lookout over the
glistening river and rugged granite cliffs. The gravel path undulated gently
and in our minds took us far away. I sang ‘And The Tide Rushes In’ at the top
of my voice.
Photos
of landmarks that reminded us of yesteryear on the way back. Old service
stations now closed and derelict; ancient farm buildings with an old wooden
wagon. Then suddenly we were driving along the busy Bairnsdale Streets. Antique
shops, the expansive Salvation Army store. The impressive St Mary’s Catholic
Church. Simply just crossing the road alone threw me back to wandering the
quiet country streets of Wangaratta when I first left home. I knew nobody and
was initially quite lonely. Still, the memory gave me a romantic association
and somehow I felt free, a feeling naturally that I don’t associate with
streets like Sydney Road back home.
The
exterior of the Grand Terminus Hotel behind Main Street has probably changed
since the days after it was first built in 1885. The lovely nostalgic photos
inside suggest this but there is a strong resemblance just the same. As we
began driving home after dinner, we saw other charming old buildings to explore
for another day- the courthouse and the library for example. After this, thick
night fell very quickly.
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