The aqueduct

Carrying drinking water through open channels has a long history and the Romans of course had some great aqueducts, with their use of bridges being particularly notable.   Growing up, I was aware of the existence of some aqueducts forming part Melbourne's water supply system.     I now read that there was the O'Shannassy aqueduct in the Yarra Valley which is no longer used (see here and here).    

There was also the Maroondah Aqueduct, which I read was built in 1886–1881 to supply  water to the Preston Reservoir.  This, too, has been closed in a number of places and there's a walking/biking trail along part of it. There's also a disused section of this aqueduct that intersects the Yarra Glen to Christmas Hills Road.

Although in this era of steel pipes, we tend to think of this technology as a bit "yesterday", in fact there are still sections of the Maroondah Aqueduct in use today.   There's a reference here to over 30 kms of it still being in use (but my limited googling hasn't confirmed this distance).

Why am I saying this?  It's because, immediately behind Balgownie Estate (where we stayed recently), just a little further up the hill, a section of aqueduct is alive and well!    It's fenced off, and there are emphatic "do not enter" signs, but it most definitely is still is use.

Here's a link showing the location of the section of the aqueduct where it passes behind Balgownie Estate (the big while blobs are the accommodation blocks).

Yarra Valley

After early morning fog, the day was sunny and mild - not bad at all considering that, officially, it's still winter.   After a slow start (and a quick check of the US Open on TV!), we headed to Yarrawood for a great platter, with a view over the vineyards and down the valley.   Then a wander around Healesville (including checking out the second hand books) followed by coffee at Giant Steps/Innocent Bystander.

Platter

It may not sound a lot, but after all, part of the idea was to "recharge our batteries", and, taken at a leisurely pace, it was enough to fill the day.  We then headed for a freshen up and  to the Yarra Glen Grand Hotel for great pub meal for dinner.

View down the Yarra Valley

Giant Steps/Innocent Bystander, Healesville

Balgownie Estate

It's nearly spring, and unexpectedly we found we had a bit of a gap in our diary, so impulsively we booked a couple of nights in the Yarra Valley at Balgownie Estate. On the way here, after pausing at a nursery, it was a minor challenge to find a winery lunch mid-week in the winter [Edit - yes the information is there, it's just a matter of having it to hand when needed!], but we ended up at Rochford where the meal was pleasant enough, although in hindsight perhaps a little more substantial than we really needed!

Driveway at Balgownie by night

I was vaguely aware of the existence of Balgownie Estate but it's larger than I realised. We opted for a “garden terrace” room which gave us all we needed (spacious, nice bathroom, good heating, internet included, “garden view” but no spa) at a somewhat more modest price than the rooms with a spa and "valley view".   Rae's Restaurant at the resort is no doubt a fine restaurant, but after our lunch, its fixed price dinner menu was somewhat wasted on us.

View at dusk from "garden terrace" room

Same view, next morning - lots of fog!

Coffee, cakes and rain....

It was raining in Ballarat when we awoke, and it continued to rain for the entire trip home, via Creswick, Daylesford, Trentham and Woodend.     Bit as soon as we reached the outskirts of the city, the rain cleared - and we were told that it had hardly rained at all in Melbourne.

Creswick main street

At Creswick, unlikely though it may seem, there's a French-style patisserie (Le Péché Gourmand), so we stopped there for coffee and caramelised  pear slice.   After a quick drive-by of the Hepburn Springs to make sure they were still there, lunch at Daylesford was at the Food Gallery.  This gets mixed reviews, but we liked our meals (including gnocchi)..  However we were there on a relatively quiet and wet winter weekday, so they weren't under a lot of pressure.

Hepburn Springs - little has changed

We drove through Trentham, with coffee in mind, but none was obvious.   Since we had already stocked up on bread at Creswick so we passed on buying more at the Red Beard, but paused for more coffee and a chocolate slice (acceptable but not great) at Woodend before heading off on the last leg home.

Old railway wagons at Trentham - suffering in the weather

Images of Scottish Australia

The main reason for our stay in Ballarat was to visit the the Art Gallery of Ballarat's display For Auld Lang Syne:  Images of Scottish Australia, from First Fleet to Federation.

The exhibition comprises an extensive collection of materials, ranging from paintings, books, charts and photos to artifacts, bagpipes and even goblets.  It commemorates the contributions of Scots to the discovery and early exploration of Australia through to their contributions in areas such as industry and the artistic world.    Even Mary MacKillop had a Scottish heritage!

There isn't very much about the role of golf, but I didn't regard that as much of a loss.   However, it did have David Syme and Simon Fraser looking at each other, notwithstanding their reputed fall-out over protectionism.

At the entrance to the display is an explanation of the new Ballarat tartan!    This features prominently on the publicity.    It has only recently been officially recognised, but apparently new tartans can still be accredited.   The colours in it are grey for the basalt Ballarat is built on, blue and white for the Eureka flag and yellow for the gold mined in Ballarat.   Overall, it's a bit drab, but perhaps this is rather appropriate for this part of the world.

Ballarat

We're in Ballarat again, primarily to visit the Scottish heritage exhibition at the gallery.  More about that later.   In the meantime, Ballarat in winter hasn't changed much since we used to do it in the May school schooldays.   I guess these days the accommodation is better heated (no complaints there), but outside it's cold, showery and bleak! 

Streetscape

We used to ride the trams out to the Gardens, but the trams ceased running regular services in the 70s although there are some preserved ones out near the botanical gardens.   And although there are a few places around to eat at, Ballarat doesn't have a strong presence in the Good Food Guide.   However, we had dinner at The Lane Restaurant, and were very satisfied.   It's a bit tricky to find, because you have to go through the Lane Cafe in Lydiard Street North, but it was certainly worth looking for.

Railway station (but only buses, no trains, when we visited)

The Cudgewa Line

B lent me A Railway to Cudgewa by Nick Anchen.

This certainly brought back memories:  in my younger days, I travelled twice on this line, once on a goods train and once on an ARHS excursion.    I may even have some photos from that time, but I've yet to locate them.   Although these trips were good fun at the time, we took so much for granted then, and only in hindsight do we appreciate what we experienced.

As every Victorian railway enthusiast knows, Shelley was the highest station on the Victorian railway network (2562 ft).

Back to the book:  various chapters deal with the history of the line (including the relocation of the town of Tallangatta between 1952 and 1956), stories about the enginemen, the various trains that operated on the line, mishaps, the Snowy Mountains scheme traffic, the life of the bridge gangers and the eventual closure of the line.   There are many photographs, which really do contribute greatly to the book.

Lunch at (or near?) Hanging Rock

Although it was wet, the great company made up for it when we had lunch a little while ago at M and R's place close to Hanging Rock.

Our view as we ate lunch!

Afterwards, we went past nearby Hanging Rock winery and did some sampling and took the opportunity to replenish the cellar.

That's the hen house

Hanging Rock winery

Enginemen of the Victorian Railways

B lent me Enginemen of the Victorian Railways, in two volumes, by Nick Anchen.  These are collections of reminiscences by engine drivers and firemen, focussing on their experiences on steam locomotives and also (in the second volume) on rail motors, but there are some stories from the diesel era, too.   Numerous excellent photos (many in colour) are included.

For me, it was fascinating reading, especially being able to relate to many of the railway lines mentioned. It's clear from the acknowledgements that although the author has presumably collated the material, he has drawn on interviews conducted by others, at least some of which have been broadcast on Eastern FM.

Obviously, working on steam locomotives was often not romantic in the slightest, although it's said that many of the locos had personalities of their own.    The shifts were sometimes long and at awkward times, the conditions for overnight rest breaks were poor and at least for the fireman, the work often involved a lot of physical effort.    On the other hand, there are several stories about the "highs" of the job, such as driving the S class on the Spirit of Progress and the single H class loco, Heavy Harry.


Other themes that come out are the distinction between the enginemen (who, in the Victorian Railways, came under the Rolling Stock Branch) and other employees, in different branches.   The career structure for an engineman typically started in the workshops, progressing as a cleaner and hostler in the loco depot before becoming a fireman and finally driver.  In the 1930s, promotion was often slow.   Guards and station staff were in Traffic Branch. It emerges at a couple of points that often there was no love lost between these branches,  or between them and the Ways and Works Branch (including gangers and the like).

But even on the footplate there were sometimes issues between the men.   Although the driver and fireman often worked as an effective team, mention is made of at least one "old school" driver who produced a piece of chalk and drew a line down the centre of the cab, informing the young fireman that he was to stay on his own side.    Another driver had a habit of drinking a bit too much before arriving at work, until all the firemen refused to work with him.   Other depots were renowned for their friendliness.

R765 at Guildford on an excursion train to Avoca, 4 Nov 1964

There are lots of stories which give an insight into life on the railways in the days of steam.   Many are about things going wrong and people getting up to mischief, such as the guard who hopped off the train to collect mushrooms and then couldn't get back on it.   I guess these are the aspects that are remembered and make the best stories!

Beechworth and Milawa

Beechworth is a pleasant town with a gold-mining history and modern day tourist industry, capitalising on its reputation for good food as well as on its history.   

There's lots of accommodation available and although we considered staying at a B&B, we finally decided on a motel close to the centre.    For the record, we were pleased with our choice:   although any motel is just a motel, the room was a just little larger than your average motel room (with a "cathedral" ceiling which added to the feeling of relative spaciousness) and the outlook was on to the leafy elms in the side street.   There was a coffee machine (the type that uses pods) in the room (a bit wasted on us, but a nice note!) and our car windscreen was cleaned.  Importantly, the air-conditioning was effective!

Post Office - still in use

On the first night we ate quite well at one of the hotels, but the second night presented challenges  In fact, we counted four restaurants (all in Good Food Guide, one having two hats) and a micro brewery (also in Good Food Guide) that we might have considered, but one was on a break of several weeks.  

Two of the others and the micro brewery weren't scheduled to open on Wednesdays, and the one remaining restaurant decided to have an unscheduled the night off!   Of the four pubs in town, we ruled two out on the basis that we weren't a local, and of the others, we'd eaten at what we now know was the best pub in town, so we ended up with an adequate but not brilliant dinner at the remaining pub.

Moral of the story:   if you're coming to Beechworth for fine dining, a bit of planning may be required!
 

Lunch at Brown Bros

We went to Brown Bros at Milawa during the day, and had a very satisfactory casual lunch, followed by coffee at one of the other Milawa "fine food" establishments.

Beechworth historical precinct

Elm lined streets in Beechworth

Lunch at Somers

We were invited to have lunch by C and P at their house at Somers.   Although the day started off as cloudy, by mid-afternoon the sunshine was great.   We enjoyed lunch in good company on the deck with a nice view out over Western Port.

Late in the afternoon we went for a walk on the beach.  The beach here is quiet but it's attractive in its own way.

Beach Houses

I was interested in Bernard Salt's column in The Weekend Australian that referred to the ownership costs of a beach house.   He concludes that for most people the beach house idea doesn't make financial sense.   I, too, suspect that the numbers only stack up if your parents made the original investment!  But, like Bernard, each January, I reflect on the high cost of renting during the holiday season and look at all the "For Sale" boards, and then the idea of buying hibernates for the next 11 months.

Someone once suggested to me that the way to buy a house at a coastal resort was to walk around and decide which house you would like, then knock on the door and ask the price.   This is on the basis that, even if they're not advertised, a lot of the houses in at least some coastal towns are for sale at the right price.

At Lorne, there did appear to be a more-than-usual number of properties with "For Sale" signs this year.   I also heard that the holiday letting market is a little quieter.

Just the same, there's some building activity occurring around town,   I'm not sure if building a house is any more "economically rational" than buying an existing house, but perhaps the achievement of ending up with just what you think you want compensates for what seems to me to be the stresses of the building process.

Walking in the Otways

C and I set out to walk to Phantom Falls – which I've never been to before and which I now know are certainly worth a visit. The track starts at the Allenvale car park, skirting “Allenvale” itself, which is a farm with orchards and horses, then joins an access track which seems to follow the water pipeline. The track runs parallel to the St George River, but is further up the side of the hill, so you get some good views looking down on the river. The falls are on the St George River, downstream from the Allen Resevoir. There was quite a lot of water coming over them, no doubt due to the good spring rains this year.

Having reached the falls, we saw that it was only 0.8 km to the “Cora Lynn carpark”, so off we set, down a track that first followed the St George River then crossed over to the Cora Lynn Creek a little upstream of its junction with the St George's River. The “car park” is not publicly accessible by vehicle (only on foot) so the name is a bit odd! Here there was a gate belonging to Barwon Water, blocking vehicles from proceeding further along the track to the Allen Reservoir. However, there was no restriction on walkers, so we set off up the steep slope, across the ridge back into the St George valley and reached the Allen Reservoir (seemingly the source of Lorne's water). We pondered following the track further, as the map indicated that it completed a circuit back to the falls, but decided instead to retrace our steps (probably a more pleasant route).

The forest is in great condition this year, after good spring rains, and the tracks, too, are good and clearly marked, with evidence of maintenance having been undertaken.

Some additional photos:

From the path as you walk past Allenvale

Looking down on St George River

Phantom Falls

Allen Reservoir

The Bridge (2)

I bought the January issue of the local newsletter after I posting my initial comments about the disappearance of Lorne's iconic Swing Bridge. This contained some more information about the bridge's demise.

It seems that the bridge was closed (we are told, for safety reasons) last March. The planning process was then said to be “in motion”, but at least one resident claims to have heard nothing. Then in the space of 5 hours, supposedly without any notice at all, the bridge was demolished in November. As the letter writer says, “No farewell to a piece of Lorne history, no consultation yet again with the people who use and love it – just gone”.

Hardest hit, it seems, was the previous operator of the cafe on the bank of the river. No-one could get to him over the winter months, and he departed. Some have seen it as unfair that a new operator arrived just before Christmas.

Bunga Haven

I have been occupying some of my time while at the beach reading Bunga Haven on Lake Bunga – an East Gippsland Idyll. This is a local history by a friend who is a foundation member of the co-operative that now owns the house, Krystyna Thomas.

“Bunga Haven” is a house 5 km east of Lakes Entrance that has been used as a residence and a guest house at different times since 1885, and is now owned by a small co-operative.

While I am not familiar with the area described in the book, I was greatly impressed by the amount of work that obviously went into it (as indeed is the case with most histories of this type). As well as telling us the history of the actual house, and its owners and occupiers over the years, we learn about matters such as

the geological history of the area and aspects of the indigenous occupation. Of course there are numerous anecdotes and photographs, and it's all weaved together  most readably.    Naturally it will be most meaningful for those who are associated with Bunga Haven, but even though I am an "outsider", I enjoyed it too.

The Brewery

We had lunch at the Forrest Brewery. It's a genuinely micro brewery, and we liked the range of distinctive beers that were available. We can talk about the “range” of beers, because there's an option to purchase a tasting platter which gives you a sample of each of the 7 that were on offer. The food was good, too, and the service was friendly and efficient.

Forrest is a small town on the northern slopes of the Otways. These days, it's on the inland route to Apollo Bay. It was once a timber town at the end of the branch rail line that ran from Birregurra on the main line, through Dean's Marsh. It seems to be re-inventing itself, as a centre for mountain bike riding and other activities, including platypus watching at nearby Lake Elizabeth. We read about the latter but didn't have time to investigate.

Wet day on GOR

The forecast was for rain, and rain it did! We went off to the Wye Rover pub for lunch. Although the traffic around Lorne was very congested, once we got out of town, it was a breeze.

We sat inside at the pub (well, the deck was impossible because of the rain), and had a great seafood stew and minute steak burger. We got a table by the window and looked out on the rain!

Cockatoos

From the Lorne Independent: “..we implore all homeowners to screw a piece of heavy hardwood to the inside of your household garbage bin now! Otherwise our very smart cockatoos will flick back the lid, no matter how many bricks you put on top of it, and distribute your rubbish everywhere......”.

The Bridge!

We're at Lorne, and I'm glad to say that not much has changed. A few of the shops and restaurants have changed, but no matter. The main thing is that the iconic “swing bridge” has gone. I always thought it was a suspension bridge, but I suppose “swing” describes the action that occurred whenever a few people were on it.

I read a notice in the estate agent's window explaining that it had had to be closed for safety reasons. But it was a shock when I saw that it had been totally demolished! I heard that this occurred as long ago as February.

I bought a copy of the local newsheet, and now understand that progress is be made in replacing the bridge. In fact, it was stated that part of the delay was because the Heritage Advisor required some design modifications “to ensure the new Bridge is an exact replica [of] the old one...”. Well, well! Some delay was also caused by the fact that there was a single objector following the public display of the plans (who subsequently purported to withdraw his objection)!

It's apparent that there's been a lot going on, but in the far-away city, I have been oblivious to it all.

The Aquatic Club

The Lorne Aquatic Club has for what seems forever enjoyed a prime location close to the pier. It's always conveyed the impression, at least to me, as being a pseudo-private retreat.  And it's never been apparent to me what the the members of the club actually do, apart from socialising and enjoying their view!

However, this year, a “Save our Club” banner has appeared on its walls. And there's now a sign at the entrance, which includes the words “Visitors Welcome”. And I spotted a courtesy bus (apparently owned by the local council). I have no idea of what might be going on here, but the thought crossed my mind that it's interesting to observe that a challenge sometimes promotes change!