Warrnambool

 30 January - 4 February 2025

After a successful birding session at Heywood, we followed our friends Tony and Julia to their home in Warrnambool. They had invited us to stay and said we could stay as long as we liked. We thought maybe a couple of nights, but little did we know we would be there for longer.

We parked the car and trailer in their yard and enjoyed a lovely meal and relaxing evening. They planned a birding photography trip for the next day to take Mick to some of their favourite places.

The next morning, after breakfast, Mick went to move the car and trailer to a more convenient location in the yard and it wouldn't start. It was clear there was something wrong, and we were confident it wasn't the battery, but we tried a jump start anyway. Nothing, no sign that it was even trying to start. A call to RACV, and they were there fairly quickly. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to get it started but was certain it was an electrical fault, so a tow to the auto electrician was arranged. Being a Friday, we had to wait until Monday for any news so we made the most of the weekend.

Not a great way to start the day -
but lucky it happened in a friends' yard

There were fires in various parts of Victoria so we weren't too worried about having a few days in one spot. Fires in Little Desert National Park had destroyed Little Desert Nature Lodge, one of our favourite places to stay, and fires in Otways National Park could mean we wouldn't be able to stay there. Smoke from the fires in Grampians National Park created some really interesting morning and evening skies as the smoke clouds moved towards the coast.

Mick went out birding with Tony and Julia late on Friday afternoon and we all went out on Saturday morning with another of their friends to a spot near an abolone farm near Port Fairy. Another expedition was arranged for Sunday morning to Peterborough, which included a stop at Timboon for coffee. despite the anxiety about the car, we had a fabulous weekend.

Smoky from fires in the Grampians

On Monday morning we went with Tony and Julia for breakfast at a local cafe which overlooked the bay. A walk on the beach was followed by a great meal, and then we received noticed from the auto electrician that the car was fixed - a new starter motor - and Tony drove us to Koroit to collect it. 

Because it was a very hot day, we decided to stay one more night which would allow Mick and Tony to have another trip to Peterborough for one last birding session together in the morning. It didn't pan out as good as the Sunday morning, but it was worth a try anyway.

Finally packed, we said our goodbyes and headed off to Portland - in the opposite direction to where we really should have been going. We were extremely grateful to Tony and Julia for their hospitality and hope to be able to repay it when they visit North Queensland.