Big Trip 2026(1) Day 2 - What Plans?

 Previous readers to my blog will be aware that I put a lot of effort into planning for these road trips.  Time to leave, estimated time for food breaks, suggested place to eat, who’s driving and when and ETA for the final destination for the night are all some of the things on my daily itineraries.  It started as a necessary part of our family travels as the more nervous of our group would be assured I knew what was going on.  More recently it was to assure Lesley that I wasn’t attempting the impossible on my trips. Besides, planning a trip is part of fun!

Somewhere along the way, sometimes in the second week, I’ll end up referring to these daily itineraries as nothing more than mere suggestions, and just play it by ear.

We sort of did that today.

The itinerary showed us leaving Echuca at 9:30am. I suggested to Nick the previous night that we leave at 9:00am and grab some breakfast in Echuca. We ended up leaving Echuca at 9:15am and ate breakfast in another town.

I’m starting to cop some heat for my pie reviews. Something about pies not being healthy, and making poor life choices for a body that should be looking after itself.

Yes, pies are not the healthiest choices that I could make.

Breakfast consisted of a pie at Brereton’s Bakery in Nathalia (review below).

Nathalia doesn’t seem to have much on offer, though it did like showing off its favourite son, Richmond superstar of the seventies (and coach for two years), Francis Bourke.  Mind you, the town of Yea still tries to get mileage out of it being the birthplace of Olympic equestrian champion, Bill Roycroft (though I note that Wikipedia actually has his place of birth as Melbourne not Yea, and that he grew up in Flowerdale.)

The next stop was Tocumwal, however before that I had to visit one of Australia’s lesser known big things the Big Strawberry in Koonoomoo.

Maybe not that big

 There was a sign there leading to the town of Mywee. (Ho Ho! I should have taken a photo.)

We had a short break in Tocumwal where we admired the mighty Murray, and were annoyed by the dozens of corellas (I think), screeching up the place.

Lunch was going to be in Yarrawonga, but we decided to push forward to Corowa and have lunch there.

After lunch we found our accommodation for the night (Corowa Bindaree Holiday Park has great two bedroom units).

Before we had a break for the afternoon I decided we should visit somewhere to buy presents for those of the family still at home.  Corowa Distillery was that place. 

Fun fact 1: It also makes chocolate. The same family owns both this chocolate factory as well as the one in Junee.

Fun fact 2: You cannot sample all the whiskies on offer and expect to drive away sober. Pick carefully  (No, I did not sample all the whiskies. I behaved myself.)

Fun fact 3: Nick sampled a whisky as well. I wasn't expecting that. 

Tea tonight was at the Australian Hotel. I loved the Art Décor feel however it had seen better days. Apart from stick tables the interior was well kept. 

 I also had one of the better porterhouse steaks cooked (medium rare) at a pub.

Food Review

Nick didn't rate this sausage roll highly. “It was OK, just nothing special about it” 6/10

I tried to amend yesterday’s error by having a steak and mushroom pie.

I am personally not a fan of square pies, however the filling for this pie was pretty good.  Nothing flash, but an honest, tasty pie. 7/10

Today's Album - Hoodoo Gurus Kinky 

Kms Travelled Today 235

Kms Travelled Total 490 

Big Trip 2026(1) Day 1 - Getting Into The Swing Of It

 Welcome to my 2026 big trip (Part 1).

For those of you not caught up with my 2025 shenanigans (or for me rereading this in 2035, forgetting what happened 10 years ago) I had open heart surgery back in April 2025.  This was to replace my enlarged (and invreasingly dodgy) aortic arch with a synthetic one.  Recovery was a bugger and any significant road trips in 2025 were ruled out.

2026 originally looked promising with a big trip in March, however ongoing health concerns caused a bit of a loss of confidence in traveling far and wide.  I reconsidered doing one big trip for this year, and instead will break the trip up into two halves – half now and hopefully half at the tail end of 2026.

“What was the full trip going to be?” I hear you all ask.

The plan was to drive along the coast lines and borders of Victoria – heading down along the Great Ocean Road to Nelson in the west, then up through to the Northern point near Mildura, then following the Murray down to the Alps, crossing those mountains till we hit Mallacoota in the far east, and finally following the coast line until we get back home.

The new plan is to head straight up to Echuca, on the Murray, turn right and complete the second half of that trip.

This time around, I wasn’t going to be traveling alone. I had Nick to share the driving, as well as navigate and ensure that I don’t do anything stupid (maybe that's a mutual thing).

Here he is.

That's Nick, helping pack the car

 This first day was a fairly short drive covering a lot of roads that I had driven before.  The plan was to reach our cabin in Echuca at the earliest time possible, and then explore the tourist precinct.

First stop was morning tea, in Seymour.

Those who read my blog for the previous trip in November 2024 will remember I undertook a pie review everyday (well, most days).  I will be continuing with that challenge this time. Nick has agreed to undertake a similar challenge, with sausage rolls.  Details of our reviews will be at the end of each blog.

After buying the aforementioned food we drove to the Vietnam Veterans Commemorative Walk in Seymour.  This was an extensive outside tribute to those who fought in The Vietnam War, with every Australian participant named on a series of panels.  It sort of makes sense that a memorial like this is located here, given that the Puckapunyal Army base is located nearby.

 Brief stop at Murchison to meet the locals.

Murchison local

 Lunch stop was at Kyabram. Neither of us were particularly hungry so we had a snack and took the opportunity to stretch our legs before heading the last 40km to Echuca.

Accommodation is at the Four Seasons Caravan Park. We have a spacious 2 bedroom cabin for a cost under $100.

Tea tonight was at the Star Hotel in Echuca. I’ve eaten here a few times before and have never been disappointed.

Fish & Chips. Chicken Parma

Turning now to sport, it was good to see the Kangas win their first game of the season.  After many years of disappointments is it too soon to start hoping for something better?

Food Review

The first review today comes from Gaffney’s Pie Kitchen in Seymour. You have to appreciate the confidence from a shop that has expanded to two, with the second one in Heathcote.  I’m not sure which location was the first one.

Nick’s review of the sausage roll was that it tasted very similar to the (excellent) sausage rolls made by the original Flying Tarts (our local bakery in Pheasant Creek). Score 8/10

 I started my pie quest with an unusual creation – The Chicken Parma pie.

This was a very ambitious pie that almost worked well.  Large chunks of chicken breast with a special “parma” sauce, with some melted cheese on top.  I think there may have been some bacon according to the website, but wasn’t featuring in my pie.

Conceptually I think it ticked all the boxes necessary for a parma experience. It just didn’t rate highly for me. Maybe I wanted a more tradional pie, and that’s my fault for choosing something different. Score 6/10

 Today's Album - Midnight Oil 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1

Nick has allowed me to play 1 album per day. Normally we drive listening to audio books and podcasts.

Kms Travelled Today 255 

Big Trip 2024 - Day 21 (Final Day)

 The very warm temperatures overnight unfortunately meant a poor night's sleep.

I needed a kick start, which I got, overlooking the great 'Bidgee River.

That's Murrumbidgee River, for you non-locals

And on to the final stretch.

The landscape from Willcannia to the Murray River is an almost unending expanse of flat land. Which is why the land around the Cobb Highway is also known as The Long Paddock.

This started off as a stock route in the 1800's. It's now been transformed into a tourism route, with stories told on panels at stops dotted throughout the route, together with a number of sculptures.

I did stop off on most of these, I really did. But it was very hot, and I didn't linger too long at any of the panels. Also no photos of this. Sorry.

I was still on the lookout for water tower/silo art. The town of Mathoura did not disappoint, and for the first time ever, I saw one of these works of art in the middle of its creation.

The artist in question is called Dulk, from Spain.

The lunch time spot was over the border in Echuca. Here I managed to deal with two of my projects on this trip, a pie review (see below) and a visit to a distillery.

 

As always, it would have been rude to not try some.

From Echuca it's about a 2 1/2 hour drive home, one that I had taken many times before.

Not too much to say about this final leg, except for the Silo/Water Tower art in Rochester,

and in Colbinabbin. This was particularly impressive as it was spread out over 5 separate structures.

I'm home now, and starting to reflect on the last three weeks.

I had three major destinations that I was keen to explore - Kangaroo Island, Port Lincoln and Broken Hill. I can confirm that a) I loved these towns and b) I did not spend nearly enough time in any of them. They will all be worth a revisit, though maybe not on the same trip.

I was keen to visit distilleries along the way, and I think this had been achieved with distilleries in :

• Kangaroo Island
• Port Lincoln (West Coast)
• Gumeracha (Applewood)
• Broken Hill
• Echuca

I explored artwork in the country, which included:

• Art Galleries
• Murals
• Silo and Water Tower Art
• Sculptures

I saw a large chunk of the coast line of South Australia, as far as Ceduna.

I was fascinated by the changing landscapes, from coastline to hills to red desert to bush to plains.

I (re)learnt my limits.

And as an added bonus I caught up with some friends in Wallaroo.

My souvenirs included 1/2 a car of gin, dozens of photos, this journal, some fridge magnets, a couple of tshirts and some wonderful memories.

Now, where to for the 2025 Big trip?

PIE REVIEW

The final review is from a bakery that is situated in Echuca, as well as 7 other locations in Victoria. It's the Beechworth Bakery.

The pie today was the Beechworth Steak Pie - $6.50 (I think)

Now after the major disappointments over the previous couple of days I was looking forward to finishing these reviews with a high class pie.

The verdict?

Unfortunately is was a bit meh.

I don't think the crust was all that tasty and that detracted from the overall pie taste. The filling itself was OK, but not fantastic.

I was a bit disappointed in the end. I think I expected more.

So, what does the leader board look like at the end of all this?

6. The Egg and Bacon Pie at the Port Augusta French Hot Bread

This breakfast pie was well seasoned, well cooked and was very tasty.

5. The Sausage Roll from Ardrossan Bakery

Yes it's not a pie. Get over it. A juicy, meaty sausage wrapped by a tasty, flaky pastry.

4. The Standard Pie from Elliston Bakery

This was anything but a standard pie. A small bakery in a small town on the Eyre Peninsula has no business creating pies that are this good. And yet it does.

3. The Brisket and Jalapeno Pie from Macs Oven Foods in Broken Hill.

The very right combination of meat and heat. 

2. Tomato Steak and Bacon Pie form Meningie Bakery

The inclusion of tomato and bacon on the pie would have been an absolute winner, except for the pie that actually won.

1. and Winner The Slow Cooked Beef Pie with Mushrooms

The biggest pie eaten on holiday and with the tastiest filling and the tastiest crust. A very clear winner.

Podcast of the day: i enjoyed yesterday without a podcast and extended it out by another day. There is only so much talking you can handle whilst driving.

Total km travelled : 5,706

Good night