Three days away

Just had three days away up at "The Camp" - atrocious weather first two days - wet, windy freezing cold and spent most of those two days indoors nice and warm.

Rhonda had bought seven square metres of soft grey coloured carpet tiles, 500 x 500mm each and she laid those through the kitchen and forward bunk area of the caravan directly on top of the original lino. She did a great job, keeping as many whole tiles as possible and cutting as few as possible to get around all the 'nooks and crannies' you could imagine on the galley, dinette and bunk floor areas. Kept the 'grain' true and it looks and feels really great - nice and warm under foot and has lessened the floor noise from that area a tremendous amount.

I was going to replace the old gas stove-top and gas oven unit - its just worn out - with a brand new unit.That's where things went wrong! When we broke the seals on the carton and unpacked it we could see straight away it was the wrong type. Our old one is a self-contained, 'free-standing' unit whereas the new unit we were delivered was one for a 'built-in' design. In addition, I had told the supplier that our caravan (part of "The Camp" unit) was an 'on-site' park unit and hard wired into the 240 volt electricity supply (for electric ignition, oven fan and oven light) and that we would require 240 volt power for the new one. The new unit had no power plug connected to it and was a 12 volt input unit for the electrics (as you find in most 'on-road' caravans).

So, tomorrow, I have to contact the supplier and arrange the return of this unit and either get a replacement unit (if they can find one), or, a refund!

I really should have taken the time and stopped and opened the carton before taking/accepting it from the supplier!

Anyway, the third day saw a dramatic change in the weather and it was fine and sunny with just a light air movement - absolutely perfect for this time of year - but, of course that was our last day, wasn't it!!!

Coming home we saw an echidna crossing the road - this is a photo of one I took years ago in Canberra and you can see Black Mountain Tower in the background and just make out the water fountain on Lake Burley Griffin to the left of picture as it arches over some trees and across the water from Regatta Point.

Those spiny quills are quite rigid and sharp and if you should accidentally run over one of these protected species with a car tyre you will certainly kill it but also, at the same time, suffer the fate of the "Echidna's Revenge" - their quills will pierce your tyre in many spots and render it irreparable.

Needless to say our echidna made it safely across the road.