Author: Rob

Gale force winds.

Tumultuous weather morning. Quite cool, raindrops then the place emptied. No idea if it was overly howling during the night as I slept well until 4AM, but it certainly hit as the sun rose.

Decided to get to town and back for a spot so I wasn’t exposed to falling trees. Narooma was insane. Wind flattened my side mirrors and seriously moved the van.

Shower in town, time in the library in an actual, proper room. Lovely. Then food and back here now.

Apparently it’ll drop a bit later, early evening. We’ll see. It’s full on, now.

No falling branches, please.

UPDATE 4PM

Might be too early to call it, but for the moment the winds have ceased being fierce.

The place is getting a few in now, both sides of my spot filled with motorhomes. Hopefully they’ll be quiet; I always am.

Spoke with a Victorian guy who also had trouble standing up in the winds in Narooma. Like me, couldn’t keep his balance.

Breezy now, is all, and nowhere near as noisy.

The view outside through a dirty window. All others curtained from overnighters. Lots of motorhomes. Last evening in dangerous winds a Tasmanian motorhome couple lit a fire, angsting me out with ideas of mass exodus, bottlenecked while fire rages, or smoke caught in the van. The smoke blew the other way, however – all over and perhaps into the caravan neighbour on their other side. Clueless.

I’m not used to bad neighbours on the road. Had them when stuck renting. But out here the pleasures can be destroyed in a second. It’s a lucky unlucky dip.

Quite cold this morning. Just what I want. And the motorhome neighbours didn’t start a morning fire. Bonus.

UPDATE 9.50AM

And so they’re gone. One caravan remains.

Left in the bush alone in silence but for the stirring of birds and the whispering of my thoughts.

10.05AM

So goes the caravan.

3.50PM

Good shower in situ, and quite a long day painting. Not the wind forecast, so the works didn’t blow away. Apart from a few cars in and out had the place all to myself.

Shared lunch with a young currawong who had a sweet plaintive weal, a satin bower bird and briefly one of his harem.

Found water for showers and probably drinking, and the proper walking track to the lake which goes by a splendid lakey stream. Was hard to pick through the bush at first,vthen it went full blast fabulous.

No one else here, as I write.

Alarmingly windy in Narooma. Noisy, battered about the body, van shaken.

Those are white horses on the usually calm inlet – going seawards because it’s a westerly. Hot, dry and dangerous in these parts.

I was concerned about staying in the Bodalla Forest rest area, but there are no other real choices away from trees. Have to risk it, though I checked the branches before I left. Just had to return to the same spot, which I did.

Today I found a GP in Narooma who is taking new patients. Hopefully it works out, and he operates – why I want a new one – with enthusiasm, energy, interest, inquisitiveness, and has a nice open vibe and demeanour.

Also checked out the Narooma aquatic centre which is, contrastingly with Batemans Bay, terrific. Fabulous hot showers, too, and pleasant staff. Impressive achievement.

A lake. Very nice walk through bush that isn’t forest, and there it is. Just the best feeling to be completely alone in the landscape.

Back this second boiling the kettle for an afternoon coffee; before the walk, painting (in pretty fierce wind).

Terrific today too not to drive. Only happens in Canberra. I don’t like having to drive every day, elsewhere. Didn’t have to drive, either, for the daily shower. Hooked it up and heated it right here, no concerns for anyone at all: no one could see.