Day - 64. Heathmont (2)

Up early and straight to the car repair shop to see what they can do to find Mr Rat.

On walking in I started by saying that "you are going to be sorry that you ever met me".  

He said, I have plenty of experience so tell me how I can help.

Upon leaving he said " You were right, I wished I had never met you"

So he took the car and said he would try to catch the rat before stripping it of all the seats and carpets.

I will be waiting for a phone call to say they have caught the vermin, hopefully.

I have re-registered that car and now off to buy the new one.

To be continued ......

Day - 63. Heathmont (1)

No luck with the traps overnight in Albury.  Maybe the animal is too large to fit through the entry into the trap!  

We travelled on the Hume Highway, arriving at Heathmont about 1.30 pm.  The last hour it rained quite heavily and the road was very wet.  Temp only 11 degrees - welcome back to Victoria!!  There was no appearance of the animal during the journey, although we know it is still aboard.  

The vehicle will need to be taken to a car repair shop, where it will be stripped completely inside until the rodent is located.  This is likely to be very expensive, although our insurance company will cover all but the $650 excess.  Brian will take the vehicle to Ringwood tomorrow morning.  Again, fingers crossed!!

Day - 62. Albury

Our hopes that the traps might work were dashed when we checked the car this morning.  Perhaps this is a particularly smart rodent!!

We then called our insurance company for assistance, and they gave us the name of a vehicle repair place which then removed the contents and the seats.  A strong blast of air was blown through the inside of the car, but no luck in locating the animal.  So we travelled to Albury with the unwelcome passenger still aboard.  The only good news about this debacle is that our insurance company will cover the cost of dismantling the interior of the car, locating the animal, repairing any damage, and putting it all back together again.

At 8.00 am we welcomed a man to successfully repair the chip in the windscreen.  One good result for the day!!

The freeways to Albury were very good and the traffic flowed well.  The scenery was particularly attractive, with rolling emerald farmland and healthy looking sheep and cattle.  

There was no contact from our "passenger" during the journey.

This is a new type of trap purchased at Bunnings this morning.  There are two of these in the car overnight baited with peanut butter.  The idea is that the vermin enter the trap to eat the bait but cannot escape.

The second trap.  Fingers crossed!!!

Day - 61. Shellharbour

All three of us left Nelson Bay early this morning - Brian, Judy, and Mr (or Mrs) mouse/rat.  Traps set overnight did not catch a rodent, even though two of them had been tripped.  

Whilst travelling on the freeway, said VERY LARGE mouse (almost certainly a rat) jumped onto Judy's right arm near her shoulder.  We were travelling on an 8 lane motorway at 110km / hour and the car drove itself as arms and legs were flailing around trying to stomp on the pest.  Judy shrieked loudly, which caused the animal to skitter down Brian's seat to the space under his legs from where it disappeared.  Perhaps the additional traps which we purchased from Bunnings this morning will help to catch the monster overnight.

As if the animal was not enough angst, also on the freeway something hit the windscreen very hard and made a medium sized chip.  We need to have this repaired as soon as possible before it "runs", in which case the windscreen would need replacing.  Will try tomorrow morning.

Today has not been a good "holiday day"!

We have 10 mouse traps set to go in the car - surely we will be successful tonight!  We would be really, really grateful if our little friend would come out from under the seat and eat some cheese.

Walked to the beach today at Shellharbour and found nothing but rocks and seagulls !!

Major sporting activities here include the demolition of as many beers as possible in the shortest amount of time.

Dozens of cafes and coffee shops in the Main Street at Shell Harbour.

Day - 60. Nelson Bay (3)

No photos today.  We have been housebound in our unit because of a damned mouse/rat.  A lady reported to reception that she had seen a large rat moving along the dashboard in our car.

So Brian went to Bunnings to purchase 6 traps - 4 x rats and 2 x mice, which have been baited with cheese and placed on the floor of the vehicle.  This evening two traps have been tripped but no catch.  This means there is a rodent in the vehicle with which we must travel tomorrow morning, unless there is a successful trap overnight.  Not a pleasant thought with three more days of travel to come!!

Brian rang Toyota to discuss the situation and received some very unpleasant news.  He was told that this was a serious problem and that a mouse could do an incredible amount of damage to wiring, upholstery, and all of the interior and dashboard.  The Toyota advice included a statement that recently an owner needed to pay about $2,000 to have all of the damage repaired!!!

Tomorrow's blog may reveal more !!!

So it looks like tomorrow we will be heading south along the highway with a rodent hitching a ride in the truck!!  Judy will tuck her tights inside her socks just in case a mouse tries to run up her leg.

Day - 59. Nelson Bay (2)

Our first stop today was the Barramundi Farm which is about 15km away.  This farm produces 1,000 kilos of live and freshly chilled fish per week.  This commercial operation is extremely efficient, and supplies restaurants around Australia (plate-sized fish are put in a plastic tank full of salt water and transported to restaurants throughout NSW).   Their food pellets are imported from Chile, and the fingerlings come from South Australia at 3 for $1.00. and are transported by plane to Newcastle Airport in plastic bags inside polystyrene boxes.   Fish must be moved into salt water for flavour development before going to market.  The primary concern to protect flavour is to ensure that a fish does not become stressed.

We then drove to the world-renowned sand dunes, followed by a trip up to the Gan Gan lookout for an amazing 180 degree view for many km.

The restaurant at the Barramundi Farm.

The tanks holding barramundi in one of the production sheds.

When pellets are thrown into the water, the fish tank erupts in a frenzy.

The hydroponic vegetable garden which is watered with filtered water from the fish tanks.  Our salad at lunch was almost exclusively comprised of greens from this garden. 

This is the sandscape at Stockton Bight.  It is 32km of the longest moving sand dunes in the Southern Hemisphere. They reach heights of over 30 metres with slopes of up to 60 degrees.  One can explore the area by 4 x 4, quad bike, sand board, horse or camel.  Fishing and surfing are also popular, as are organised tours.

This view is from the Gan Gan lookout at Nelson Bay.  The point on the left is Yacaaba Headland, and on the right is Tomaree Head.  The view looks over the town and over Shoal Bay.

The attractive pool at the Landmark Resort where we are staying.  Today was a sunny 24 degrees, but a bit cool for swimming!!

Day - 58. Nelson Bay (1)

Grudgingly we left our great apartment at Port Macquarie this morning.  It is an overcast day (although still warm), which made leaving not as bad as it would have been if it was warm and sunny like yesterday.

The pleasant drive to Nelson Bay took three hours through bush land and paddocks occupied by healthy fat cows.

Nelson Bay is a protected seaside town which is located on Port Stevens.  There are several excellent beaches in the area, and many walking trails through the national park.

We drove around the town and the area to familiarise ourselves with the roads and facilities.  Our unit in  Landmark Resort has one bedroom, and basic kitchen facilities for cooking including a dishwasher.

A watchful eye looking over the boats in the Nelson Bay marina.

Police and Search and Rescue boats in the marina.

More craft in the marina.

This beautiful and very long beach is at Shoal Bay which is only 3 km from the centre of Nelson Bay township.

Seafood cafe/restaurant right on the shore.

Looking from Shoal Bay beach across to the entrance to Port Stevens.