Driving to Wodonga and back

[Ralph1Malph]

Hi all,
I'll be setting out on an adventure really early this Thursday morning 24 Jan.
Driving to Wodonga to attend a reunion and then returning.:D

Anyhoo, just letting everyone know that I'll be on the road, feel free to wave and if I get in trouble, respond to my emergency 'help' post!:eek2:.

I have done the trip many times before but not for a few years now so I guess the road conditions will be different to what I remember.:o

My intended route and timings are:

Leave NW Bris 0500 along the Cunningham Hwy to Warwick and Goondiwindi, then Newell Hwy through Moree (stopping for a quick cup of tea/lunch at a friends house) to Dubbo.

Plan is to O'nite in Dubbo if I have a slow run or trouble or Parkes/Forbes if all goes well and I get that far.

Friday morn is on to Wodonga via Wagga and Albury. I often shave a few km off the trip by turning off the Newell and using the Olypic Hwy through Grenfell and Young (bypassing West Wyalong) rejoining near Junee.

Home will be the reverse leaving Wodonga on Sunday 27 Jan.

I am just posting in case I run into trouble, I'd be grateful to anyone living near the route that could assist if it goes pear shaped:(. I'll ring my wife who'll post an SOS here! Of course all will go well but gotta plan for worst case.

Cheers
Ralph

[Chucaro]

Relax, you driving a LR so you will never run into trouble :D
Have a safe and enjoyable trip :)

[Blknight.aus]

you know you can do that trip and spend less than 1/10th of it on black top...

have a good run at it.

[Ralph1Malph]

you know you can do that trip and spend less than 1/10th of it on black top...

have a good run at it.

Yup.
I'd love to avoid the black top but this trip comes second to the event at the end and time is tight unfortunately.:( Gotta be there by 1600 Fri and back at work by 1000 Tues 29.

Be interested in a little bit of fun road/track on the way back though!

Ralph

[Blknight.aus]

IIR theres a short section that pulls about 50K out of the trip and was capable of being done near highway speed so shouldnt slow you down, If I still have my GPS log/map run of it I'll post it over.

[alien]

The things people do for their mates:)

Might be worth a last minute check of the NSW Fire service web site.
The Newel looks like it is now open after the fire near Coonabarabran.

Above all, have fun and stay safe.

[weeds]

what re-union is it?

we had our 25 year re-union for the 43rd fitters 2 weekend ago

[ecn226]

I heard on the grape vine that the 38th class was having one on Australia Day

[Ralph1Malph]

what re-union is it?

we had our 25 year re-union for the 43rd fitters 2 weekend ago


I heard on the grape vine that the 38th class was having one on Australia Day

Yup right on both counts.:p

38th Class Reunion, this Australia Day.:banana:

Drinks Fri evening, Memorial service and dedication Sat morning, tour of trade wings and museum Sat arvo (I'll prob not do that bit) and dinner on Sat evening.:twobeers:
Looking forward to catching up with heaps of dudes. About the same or more folk than came to the 20th.:arms::eek:

The organiser reckons about 75-80 38th intake attending, including spouses/partners is close to 100. Not bad for an intake of approx 300, 30 years on!:D:thumbsup:

Cheers Big Ears.

Ralph

[weeds]

Yup right on both counts.:p

38th Class Reunion, this Australia Day.:banana:

Drinks Fri evening, Memorial service and dedication Sat morning, tour of trade wings and museum Sat arvo (I'll prob not do that bit) and dinner on Sat evening.:twobeers:
Looking forward to catching up with heaps of dudes. About the same or more folk than came to the 20th.:arms::eek:

The organiser reckons about 75-80 38th intake attending, including spouses/partners is close to 100. Not bad for an intake of approx 300, 30 years on!:D:thumbsup:

Cheers Big Ears.

Ralph


good stuff...you will have a hoot

[BigJon]

I did Brisbane to Dubbo a few weeks ago on my way back to SA. Went through Toowoomba and Goondiwindi. It made for a full day traveling, particularly with a 14 month old baby and a 7 month pregnant woman as passengers...:eek:

[JDNSW]

Yup.
I'd love to avoid the black top but this trip comes second to the event at the end and time is tight unfortunately.:( Gotta be there by 1600 Fri and back at work by 1000 Tues 29.

Be interested in a little bit of fun road/track on the way back though!

Ralph

If interested you can drop in here for a cuppa on the way back - be about 50km track, add a total of less than 50km to the trip. Let me know and I will pm directions.

John

[Ralph1Malph]

If interested you can drop in here for a cuppa on the way back - be about 50km track, add a total of less than 50km to the trip. Let me know and I will pm directions.

John

That would be great.
Do you mind tho if I decide at the last minute?

A lot of variables, how I feel on the Sunday:eek:, road trouble, time keeping etc.
Feel free to PM details and phone and I'll do the courtesy of calling whether I can or can't.

Cheers Ralph

[Ralph1Malph]

Finally Back!
Trip down to Wodonga was largely uneventful until Moree.:eek: Went to open the bonnet to check fluids and top up washers and it would not open!:mad:

I had just replaced the screen the day before departing and we (the windscreen guy and I) musn't have lined it up quite right. Opened ok at home (alhough a little stiff). The road vibration must have thrown it all so slightly off even more. Managed to access the spigot end of the cable from underneath so now the cables stretched. Gotta fix that over the weekend.

Reunion was a blast! Guys I haven't seen in 25 years! We had all changed but all looked the same!
Best bit was the surprise by one of the organisers who, unbeknownst to us, had gone to the trouble of resurrecting an old VHS player and trawled through many dozens of his ailing fathers home video collection to find his fathers video of our 1984 graduation parade.:D He then stripped to disk and presented us all with a copy!:thumbsup: Official guests included the Governor General and Defence Minister.:angel:
The quality is not perfect (as one would expect) and there's only a fleeting closeup of myself, but my teenage sons refuse to believe that the image is of me! You were never that thin and fit dad! :mad: and you don't go on parade and march!:twisted:

The trip home all but uneventful:(. Hoping to beat the rising flood waters I cruised into Goondiwindi about 5am Mon morn. Too late, Cunningham Hwy to Warwick closed, as was the Leichart/Gore hwy to Millmerran.

No worries, I'll take the Bruxner Hwy from Boggabilla to Texas, across to Stanthorpe, then Warwick or Mt Lindsay Hwy. Had to turn around about 75km along the Bruxner due to a breached dam wall taking out a section of road pavement and leaving a great divot!

Ok, back to Boggabilla, back to Moree and across to Warialda, Inverell and Glen Innes via the Gwydir Hwy in the hope of cruising the New England home. It could have been simple! [tonguewink]:no2:. Road closure hotlines and locals at GI Maccas informed me that the New England to Tenterfield was closed and would be for ages! Dammit, getting frustrated now. Oh well, I decided to continue along the Gwydir to Grafton, onto Hwy One and home! Well bugger me dead if the Gwydir was closed at the top of the Gibralter Ranges with a nasty tree and land slip. Back to GI!:(

Locals again informed me that the NE was indeed closed to traffic, but if I was quick, I should be ok in the Disco. They were right! A 4-500mm deep stretch was skillfully negotiated and I was on my way to Tenterfield.:D

Decision timehttps://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/01/56.jpg. Knowing that Warwick and the Cunningham were closed, I had to either go through Stanthorpe up the dodgy Mt Lindsay Rd to Woodenbong and over the Mt Lindsay Hwy to Rathdowney (also closed but oh, so close to Brissy! ) or, alternatively, strike out to Casino and hope to find clean passage to Woodburn and Hwy One as the Bruxner east of Lismore was also closed! Last minute checking of the road closure hotline and more local knowledge confirmed that Bruxner also now closed before Casino. So I set out to Stanthorpe and the Mt Lindsey Rd.:(

Finally made Rathdowney at about 1630 after a 740 odd km detour from Goondiwindi 10 hrs previously.:Thump:

I didn't really know what to do at Rathdowney other than wait as the water was receding quite fast and I anticipated being able to make Beaudesert Mon evening. I was frustrated, tired, cranky, needing to ablute and feeling quite travel weary. Then it happened, my faith in the Force was restored as over the hill appeared four LR chariots laden with GCLRO clubbers on their way back from Levuka 4WD park!:clap2::banana: https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/01/57.jpg
After faffing around waiting for the first section of water to recede we made it to Tamrookum and were finally bested by the bridge at Laravale! https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/01/58.jpgSome skillful negotiating by other GCLRO clubbers and the Principal of the Tamrookum school opened her heart and school hall for us to bunk down overnight. I set out a bit earlier than the others, looking forward to a quick trip to Beauy, Jimboomba and home. All roads in and out of Jimboomba were now closed, far more than were known by me/us at the time. [bawl] Ok, chin up! Back to Beauy and across to Tamborine, Beenleigh and the Pacific Hwy. Bugger, Tamborine-Beenleigh Rd closed! Backtrack to Mundoolan and detour via Canungra to Oxenford.
Finally on the Pacific Hwy and on the way home. https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/01/59.jpghttps://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/01/60.jpg
A 1500km 20h blacktop journey turned into 50 hrs and about 2200km!

Got home about 1030, quick shower and off to work.https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/01/61.jpg

The disco did real well. She has some creaks, groans and front end wear but otherwise she did well. Averaged over three and one half tanks of fuel
economy was 10.3 L/100. Best being 10.1 and worst 10.6. Chuffed with that.

Cheers and signing off,

Ralph