Pakenham to Macrae (via Rosedale)
Distance Travelled - 425.6 km
Woke up at about 5 am to the sound of rain and was very thankful to be inside. Didn't really get back to sleep properly but tossed and turned and had little dozes until 7 am when I got out of bed. Had a shower and got ready, ate breakfast and packed away before almost pulling the car apart looking for the thumb drive. Could not find it so packed away and drove off to Maccas to post the blog, and search the net for a number for the Rosedale Neighbourhood House where I thought I had left the drive.
They open at 9 am so rang at 5 to and only got the day care that runs out of the centre. The girl on the phone was very helpful and went and checked the computer but replied that nothing was there. I thanked her and said I would ring back later when someone might be in the office.
Fifteen minutes later I rang back only to get the same girl, no one had come to the office yet. She went into the office but could not see anything resembling the thumb drive so she said she would write down my number and as soon as someone came in to the office she would get them to call me. As she picked up the post it notes to write my number on she found the drive under the notes. I thanked her and said I would be there in a while to pick it up.
The 130 km drive took just over an hour and a half with 6 different sets of roadworks to drive through so it was nearly 11 am when I got there. The lady in the office was very chatty so it was 11.30 am before I got away. Typing in the address for my next stop into the GPS showed me I was going to drive basically right passed where I stayed last night and hten travel about another 70 km to the lighthouse.
Set off with a little teeth grinding at the wasted tome and fuel in getting the drive but that will teach me to leave things behind. Drove out to the lighthouse, grabbing some lunch on the way and got there about 2.30 pm. Was disappointed to find that the lighthouse is located on privately leased land and there is a fee for going to look at it. I took some photos from out on the rocks but the sun was in exactly the wrong position so in the end went back and talked to the lady at the kiosk who does the tours etc. I told her I was not interested in looking in the museum or inside the lighthouse or in a tour and all that I really wanted to do was take a few photos of the lighthouse. I explained my trip etc and she said the best she could do was to charge me $10 to go in instead of the usual $14 for entry to the grounds and museum or $17.50 for that plus the lighthouse tour. I begrudgingly agreed and went through. There would be no sneaking in later, it is fenced off with looked turnstiles and gates to go through to enter the reserve.
Spent 15 or 20 minutes wandering around looking at the lighthouse and taking some photos before leaving to try and get to the Eastern Lighthouse at Macrae and maybe into Melbourne to see (Uncle) Lindsay and Heather. Plugged the address into the GPS and went somewhere close, but completely different. it took me to the ferry terminal that travels from there to Queenscliffe. I entered some less specific info into the GPS and off I went again, this time to the right place.
By this time it was getting dark and looking rather stormy. I rang Lindsay and organised to meet with them tomorrow and then hunted for somewhere here to stay. I did not much feel like driving into Melbourne in the dark and with potentially stormy weather. Options here were very limited so decided to sleep in the car at a local rest area near the beach. Ate tea and decided to write the blog and sort photos while it is raining a bit. If it clears at all I might go for a wander and see if the light is operational at night, I don't think it is though. After that it will be reading and music until the sleep fairy comes to take me to slumberland. Tomorrow I head into Melbourne to meet Lindsay and Heather for lunch and then make plans from there.
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