Tour Down Under 2010
Start of Tour Down Under 2010 Clare South Australia
I am currently visiting my daughter in Clare in the mid north of South Australia. This rural town has been abuzz for a few days in preparation for the start of this year’s Tour Down Under cycling race. The first stage started less than an hour ago in the main street of the town.
We positioned ourselves in front of the primary school about two minutes into the race. I figured that this would be a good place to get an uninterrupted view of the riders.
Somewhere in the peleton shown in the photos on this post is the legendary Lance Armstrong, seven times winner of the Tour de France.
Click on the images to enlarge the photos.
More photos will follow in the coming days.
Start of Tour Down Under 2010 Clare South Australia
Start of Tour Down Under 2010 Clare South Australia
Puffins
This morning we travelled to Adelaide International Airport to pick up our daughter. She had just been for a two and a half week stay in Ireland. On her way home she proudly announced that she had seen some Puffins while there.
Ouch.
I would love to add any of the Puffin species to my life list. It was a shame I didn’t go with her on this trip because she had a great time. I just didn’t like the extra baggage she took with her – sixteen teenagers from the school where she teaches here in South Australia.
This trip was organised by my daughter as a school exchange with a high school in county Clare, Ireland, which is most appropriate because she teaches at Clare High School in the mid-north of South Australia.
Travelling South Australia
The truth is that many people do not really travel much for relaxation in their own region or state. In that we are no different. We tend to head interstate for our major holidays. I suppose most people are the same. With the advent of dearer petrol prices, the trend is for people to take holidays closer to home. The cost of travel has become a real issue for many.
Last weekend was a long weekend in South Australia with a holiday on the Monday for the running of Adelaide Cup. This is “the race that stops a suburb”, said one wit in the letters to the editor section of “The Advertiser”, our state-wide daily newspaper. He was referring sarcastically to the world famous Melbourne Cup, a horse race that literally does stop a nation. On that one day of the year, a horse race is THE most important thing happening. Just shows what terrible gamblers we are here in Australia. I shouldn’t say “we”; I’ve never had a bet on a horse race in my life. Sure, I’ve occasionally been a part of an office sweep, but gambling no. Mugs game I reckon. The only ones to win are the bookies and the horses.
Because it was a long weekend our daughter took the opportunity to fly to Sydney to visit her brother and sister in law. She also spent a day with English friends who have recently moved to live there. That left the problem of Nancy, her pet dog. We’ve looked after this lovely pooch on many occasions. Dog sitting we call it. Looking after the “grand-dog” is another expression used often (as we don’t yet have any grand children).
So we travelled to Clare in the mid-north of South Australia for the weekend. It’s just over a two hour drive. There are several different routes to take. Most take you through the beautiful Barossa Valley, arguably Australia’s premier wine growing region. The Clare Valley itself has a growing reputation for producing fine wines.
It was a relaxing weekend. We watched a few movies – our daughter has an excellent collection of DVDs – and I did a lot of reading and writing. It’s quiet staying at her house; no one knows we are there so the phone doesn’t ring often. Only three times in the five days we were there; one was our son and another was our daughter.
Note to self: we must have more short breaks like that.
Links:
- A short break in Clare – from my Birding Blog.
- Birding while Travelling – also from my Birding Blog.
Visits to the Clare Valley
No Comments »19th January, 2007; Category: Clare Valley
Late last year we had three trips to stay with our daughter in Clare in the mid north of South Australia. Clare is in the Clare Valley, one of Australia’s premier wine producing areas. Our daughter is a teacher in the local high school.
In late November we spent a few days helping her to prepare her house for the painters to paint the whole of the inside of the house. It was like moving house without going anywhere. Many things were packed away in boxes and moved into the garage. After the painters had finished the carpet layers moved in to replace all the carpets.
Several weeks later we returned for a few days and did everything in reverse, bringing everything back into the house. All of this moving, packing and unpacking was hard work, made worse by some very hot weather.
Then drove up to Clare again for the Christmas break. Normally our daughter comes home for Christmas, but this time she wanted us to come stay with her. As part of our celebrations we travelled a little further north to Jamestown. We had a lovely Christmas lunch with my wife’s niece, sister and brother in law. It was a relaxing family get together.
Clare Valley South Australia
No Comments »14th May, 2006; Category: Animals, Art Galleries, Birds, Clare Valley, Picnics, Plants, South Australia
Morning Walk
We spent a very relaxing morning at home. About an hour before lunch we went for a walk. First we visited some ponds near my daughter’s home. Here I observed a flock of some 30 Australian Shovelers, one of the duck species. I hadn’t seen this species in 23 years; the last time was in the very same spot as this morning. We then walked along the banks of the beautiful Lake Inchquin, part of the Clare Golf Club. A delight here was the sighting of about a dozen Bill-Billed Ducks, another hard to see species. They seem to be resident here. We also saw about four Black Fronted Dotterels. This is a beautiful wading bird and a delight to see anywhere.
Model Trains
Next to the lake is a park where the local Model Engineers Club has set up nearly two kilometres of train track. They run their model trains twice a month and provide rides, for a small fee, for those who come along to watch. We stood talking to the members for about half an hour before walking home for lunch.
After lunch we drove to the nearby town of Blyth about twenty minutes away. We went to visit the Medika Gallery run by wildlife artist Ian Roberts. We’ve known Ian for quite a few years yet we’ve been negligent in never having visited the gallery. I love his work. He has an amazing gift of capturing the character of Australian birds in their natural habitats. When I’m rich and famous I plan to buy some of his paintings. He greeted us warmly, and after a few minutes discussion he invited us to visit his nearby bush block.
Windmill Cottage
The Windmill Cottage is in the nearby hills about halfway between Clare and Blyth. Ian is also interested in growing and planting Australian native species. He has a five acre arboretum just down the hill from the cottage, one of the many Bed and Breakfast accommodation places in the Clare Valley. We drove to the lookout he has on the property. Here he has set up a picnic table under one of the large old eucalypt trees. The view out over the Balaklava plains is simply stunning in the late afternoon autumn sunlight. The patchwork of fields, some green with the first growth for the new season, some still brown with the last of the drying grass from last year while others a chocolate brown after having been worked up by the farmers in recent days. The recent rain has been promising of a good cropping season to come.
Wonderful picnic spot
We had brought along a thermos for an afternoon cuppa plus a treat from the local bakery. Few picnic areas could rival our spot this afternoon. I managed some lovely photos in the late afternoon light, often the best time for such shots. As we left we stopped for a few minutes to have a look through the arboretum Ian had planted.
Kangaroos
We surprised a grazing family of three Western Grey Kangaroos. Ian had installed a rabbit proof fence to give the plants a fair go in getting going, this fence was no barrier to these determined animals. They actually seemed to be quite at home and were not at all upset by our presence. Perhaps they are residents.