This is our second visit to Portland. Last time we visited Cape Nelson South wind farm and Cape Nelson Lighthouse and went for Cape Bridgewater Seal Walk to look for seals.
This time our goal was to walk around Cape Bridgewater, past Blowholes, The Springs and the Petrified Forest.
On our way from Warrnambool to Portland we went to Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve. Tower Hill formed around 30,000 years ago in a violent volcanic eruption. The initial eruption created the outer rim of the volcano, and subsequent smaller eruptions formed the internal hills that can be seen today. The inside of the crater, and the island-hills are now a wildlife reserve and there are substantial populations of native birds and wildlife. It's easy to see koalas, kangaroos, emus and much more there.
As you remember, we've already visited Warrnambool: last time we went to Allansford Cheese Factory and Hopkins Falls. In August 2013 we went to Warrnambool again to watch whales! Each year, roughly between late May and early October, Southern Right Whales return to their nursery at Logan's Beach near Warrnambool to give birth and raise their calves. Just offshore, in clear view, the giant, gentle mothers and their giant children loll about and play, enjoying the shelter of Lady Bay. The Logans Beach Whale Viewing Platforms is just to the east of the city, overlooking the whales favourite playground. It's open at all hours and is free.
Last time (Oct 2012) we were late to see cherry blossom trees in National Rhododendron Gardens. This time (Aug 2013) it was too early :)
Bendigo was the place of one of the world's most exciting gold rushes, with more gold found here between 1850 and 1900 than anywhere else in the world. Elaborate buildings and monuments from the golden past line the main streets, offering an ever-present reminder of the riches from the goldfields. It is a major regional city in the state of Victoria, and it is the fourth largest inland city in Australia.
Main tourist attractions include Golden Dragon Museum, golden mine tours, 'Talking' Tram, Bendigo Pottery, heritage walks with beautiful views of Alexandra Fountain, Sacred Heart Cathedral, Bendigo Town Hall and Bendigo Visitor Centre.
"All the Rivers Run" is one of the first Australian television miniseries that we watched. It is based on the Australian historical novel by Nancy Cato and was filmed in and around Echuca. As we were watching the film, we were thinking that it will be a good idea to visit the town one day. Well, the only thing that stopped us was that Echuka is located within 3.5h of drive from our home, as that means that we have to stay for a night somewhere there. One day we've got a good reason to go to the north part of Victoria, so we packed our stuff and went to Puckapunyal first, and them to Echuca.
We spent almost a day there, exploring this small town. Further below I am going to tell you what we've discovered.
My husband and my son like everything army-related: from uniform to computer games (e.g."Word of Tanks"). If we travel and there is a war museum somewhere around, then I have to figure out what I (Katrina) is going to do within an couple of hours, as I know that both of them will go to the museum. I am a girl and I do not know a lot about war/planes/ships/guns/etc., but I love them, so sometimes I visit such places. So, one day we googled a place around Melbourne where we could show a real tank to our son. We found Puckapunyal Tank Museum (or RAAC Memorial and Army Tank Museum), which has more than 70 Armoured Fighting Vehicles on display in Hopkins Barracks, the home of Australian Armour at Puckapunyal, Victoria. Covering an area of over 4000 square metres the museum is one of the largest armour museums in the Southern hemisphere.
How could we miss that? We packed up and went there.
We went for a short walk down St Kilda Rd from Punt Rd to the Royal Botanical Gardens. St Kilda Road is the city's tree-lined main artery and gateway to lush parks and well-known landmarks. It is also my favourite street in Melbourne, with its trams, trees and buildings.
We spent a great family day out in Noojee, fishing, walking and enjoying good company. Noojee, a town named after the Aboriginal word for contentment or place to rest, is a small town near Mount Baw Baw snowfields. We went to The Alpine Trout and Fish Farm, Trestle Bridge Rail Trail, and Toorongo Falls.
On our way back home to Melbourne we visited Red Rock Volcanic Complex near Colac. The Red Rock Volcanic Complex was the site of many violent volcanic eruptions which resulted in the craters and lakes found in the area. The craters are known as maars and were formed by explosive interaction between molten rock, known as magma, and groundwater. Some of the maars which are visible from Red Rock filled with water, forming lakes such as Lake Purdiguluc, Lake Werowrap and Lake Coragulac.
