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A Goulburn night at Bakehouse Motel
Sunday evening: First overnight stop, on this trip, at the Bakehouse Motel Goulburn. Breakfast the next morning at the adjoining Trappers Bakery Goulburn, and continued the drive past the Cullerin Range Wind Farm.
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Setting off, again, for Yarra Junction
Sunday afternoon: Started driving from the NSW Central Coast towards Yarra Junction in Victoria, to look at a another house, on Tuesday. As you do 😉. Tonight we will stay somewhere around Goulburn.
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House-hunting at Murray's Beach and Caves Beach
We continued our search for a new home, this time looking again in Murray’s Beach. Then we popped down for a walk beside the Swansea Bridge, and then as cuppa and cake on Caves Beach. 24°C – much warmer than -2°C in Cooma a couple of weeks ago and 15°C near Melbourne a week before that.
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Family time on the Central Coast
While on the NSW Central Coast, we managed to catch up with our kids, and grandchild. One is living and working in Hamilton Island, so Fran flew up there for a few days. Love you all 🥰
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A charging spot near Sydney Airport
I drove to Sydney Airport to pick up Francis, coming back from Hamilton Island. Found a convenient charging spot in a nearby suburb, to park while waiting for her plane to land.
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Killcare Beach Kiosk, and the Bouddi Coastal Walk
Lunch at Killcare Beach Kiosk followed by a walk along the Bouddi Coastal Walk.
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Margaret's villa, and an EV-community legend
We arrived on the NSW Central Coast on Tuesday night, July 18. A very generous friend, Margaret, offered us her villa while we’re staying here for a couple of weeks ☺️. Margaret is a bit of a legend in the EV community. She bought a Kona EV several years back and made the occasional road trip when there was less infrastructure than is now available for us. Other residents in Tarragal Glen Retirement Village started to take notice. One day they told her "did you see that Hugh Sykes up the road has bought a Tesla?" She thought she'd best go and meet the new EV owner on the block. They soon fell in love and got married! They now do a few speaking circuits to tell others the benefits of driving an EV. You can see their story here: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-07-20/electric-vehicle-romance-leads-to-myth-busting-talks-to-seniors/101233122
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Toes in the water at Terrigal Beach
Finally got to dip my toes in the ocean again, at Terrigal Beach. Then a walk along the boardwalk to Terrigal Haven for brunch at The Cove Cafe.
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Pie in the Sky, by Tesla this time
Last stop before reaching the Central Coast, at Pie in the Sky. This used to be a favourite stop of ours when out for a ride on the motorbike. Great to take a spin in the Tesla along the familiar curves of the old Pacific Highway.
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Doughnuts at the Berry Showgrounds
On the final leg of our trip, from Milton to the Central Coast today. We stopped at the Berry Doughnut Van, then took the doughnuts to the Berry Showgrounds, to have a stretch and find a loo. I did spot in the Tesla’s sentry camera that Francis had already started on the doughnuts before I got back to the car! 😉. Doughnut cam!
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Italian dinner in Ulladulla, overnight in Milton
We're staying overnight in a unit in Milton. Dinner in Ulladulla at Tony’s Italian Restaurant https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100090048066600&mibextid=LQQJ4d
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Pooh Bear Corner, in Monga National Park
We headed east from Braidwood towards the coast, when Pooh Bear Corner. Monga National Park caught our eye. Someone has set up a bunch of Winnie The Pooh characters in a cave by the road. Cute. A bit further down the road, we spotted a couple of fallen logs (one pictured) with more toys on them. Weird but cute.
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Out of Cooma's fog, east to Milton
We left the freezing foggy morning in Cooma, climbing above the clouds (well, the fog) into the sunshine. We decided to head for Milton, on the east coast, near Ulladulla. We entered it into the Tesla navigation and proceeded along the “fastest route”. But the maps don’t seem to tell you what kind of road to expect along a particular route. Initially, I laughed at the sign we passed that read something like “No petrol for 160km”. Then we passed by some grading work on a dirt road stretch, where I thought the driver waved, but later thought maybe he was pointing to say “go back”. The navigation showed 97km along this road before the next required turn off. The dirt roads probably went for 60km of the trip. We only passed a handful of vehicles. As it turned out, the road was pretty good, dirt and all. We’ve been on much worse. The issue is just not knowing, along the way, if the road will deteriorate, so you should turn around. We arrived in Braidwood at the end of it. Time for lunch.…
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A visit to Snowy Hydro Discovery Centre
Monday morning: We visited the Snowy Hydro Discovery Centre. Very interesting wide screen video presentation, models, and other exhibits. Amazing how we can generate electricity from rainfall and melting snow.
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Ice on the car, in Cooma
Cold start to the day in Cooma. Ice on the car. From the app, we preheated the car before the morning coffee run. The cold reduced the tyre pressures from 42 to 38 psi, until the car got moving.
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Hiring snow chains for the Alpine Way
Venturing from Corryong to Khancoban, we decided to keep going east, through the Snowy Mountains along the Alpine Way, past Thredbo to Jindabyne. The road has signs that require all two wheel drive cars to carry snow chains. So we hired some from Khancoban, which could be returned in Jindabyne (“one way hire”). In the end, we never actually had to fit them, since all the roads were cleared. We stopped a few times along the way, including a rest stop next to the origin of the Murray River (pictured). I left the cap/cup from my thermos on one of the garden border markers near the toilet block, so I wouldn’t drop it as we clambered down to the river. But I forgot about it as we walked back to the car and drove off 🤦♂️. If you happen to be driving past Mount Kosciusko, please keep an eye out for it 😉. We returned the snow chains on the other side of Mount Kosciusko at in Jindabyne. The service stations were packed with people queuing for petrol, I guess on the last day of the school…
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Lunch at The Black Sheep, Corryong
We stopped in Corryong, heading towards Mount Kosciusko. We shared lunch at The Black Sheep, with a couple of black sheep watching.
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Lake Hume drive: Yackandandah to Corryong
Driving from Yackandandah, along Lake Hume, through Tangambalanga, Tallangatta and Shelley, Victoria, just south of the border, towards Corryong.
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A second night at Motel Views Yackandandah
We stayed Saturday night at the Motel Views Yackandandah. I think this is the only place where we’ve stayed twice, in our road tripping. Lovely spot and host (Jackie). For dinner, we ate Thai from Grace’s Place Café. Great food but ordering is a challenge. Maps and TripAdvisor show a website link that doesn’t exist. There’s no online ordering. Phone goes to voicemail. I was lucky enough to have them reply to a text message. Cash only payment. Brekky at Beechworth Bakery. Choice of pies, toasties and wraps. We strolled through the town, checked out the markets, ferrets and patted numerous dogs.
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Made it to Bright
Absolutely stunning town by the Ovens River. Picturesque walks abound, caffeine options aplenty and it was cold enough for Tom to wear shoes! Love to come back in the summer and watch people tackle the rapids of the river. We enjoyed a scrumptious American style burger (so named because of the orange coloured plastic cheese therein) and crunchy curly fries. We have taken to going halves for lunch, partly to cut costs and also …….. we’re getting too fat!!!!
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Through alpine fog, Eskdale to Bright
Driving from Eskdale to Bright, in country Victoria, through the morning fog. Such greenery. Hard to believe there were devastating bush fires in the region just a few years ago. Alpine forests cover mountain after mountain. Great to see them replanted and harvested side by side. I didn’t realise that cows could read, let alone obey signs. That is impressive!
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An Eskdale Airbnb, further than we thought
Friday afternoon: We looked on Airbnb for somewhere to stay near Bright. Our search showed a homestead in a farm “nearby”. So, we booked it. Rookie mistake: it was in Eskdale, about an hour and a half drive from Bright. Our second mistake was thinking we had booked two nights when in fact we had only booked one – an error we didn’t realise until the next morning when we received a goodbye message from our host, as we were driving to Bright for the day, with all of our stuff still back in the accommodation. A U-turn, quick pack up, and an hour more driving, and we were back on track. I say “quick”, but we also couldn’t get the key to work in the door, so I had to climb in a window. Charming stay, in a valley, with long valley views, cows over the fence and green as far as the eye can see. Our hosts left us a cheese platter, bread, cupcakes which made for a lovely night in.
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Fruit, chocolate, and a Myrtleford Supercharger
Quick stop in Myrtleford for some fruit and dinner supplies (ok, maybe also chocolate). We needed to stop for a few minutes to get better organised and to stretch my legs, so we drove a bit further up the road to the Tesla supercharger in the town of Ovens.
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Lunch at The Mountain View Hotel, Whitfield
Lunch stop at The Mountain View Hotel in Whitfield. Great food and service. Unexpectedly beautiful spot.
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We're going to Bonnie Doon
We finally dropped by Bonnie Doon, to see why the Kerrigan family in The Castle loved it so much. It has a caravan park, three old churches, a couple of eateries and absolute river frontage!
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Marmalades in Yea, plus a Tesla steam scare
Stopping at Marmalades in Yea for a cuppa and passionfruit sponge cake. When we pulled into the car park, it looked like one of the cars had an overheated radiator, with steam coming out from under the hood. But we soon realised it was a Tesla (no radiator), and the steam was from some noodles they were prepping from the frunk (front trunk).
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A 9-minute coffee detour, after the airport
After an early start dropping off Erin at the airport, we started heading north. Francis had survived for over an hour without a coffee, so she asked her iPhone Maps for the closest good coffee place. Only 9 minutes away! Unfortunately, as we hurtled along the highway, by the time we processed all that, we must have passed the turnoff, so then maps was telling us to go back south along the highway for 15 minutes. We got there in the end, to That Coffee Shop, in Coburg North. Very entertaining coffee signs on the toilet wall. After coffee and breakfast, we headed north east, towards Yea, passing through some lush green countryside along Strath Creek.
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West or east? Planning the next road trip
Time for another road trip! Should we head west (towards Broken Hill or maybe Adelaide) or east (through Bright and maybe Jindabyne)? We need to end up on the NSW Central Coast by Tuesday 18th July. Leaving Melbourne this Friday morning (probably). We also need to find accommodation in the Central Coast for a week or two from July 18th. So, if you know anyone who needs house sitting or similar, please let us know ☺️
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Transporting a bike, and an electric wheel
Random job to transport a bicycle, plus extra electric wheel, for a friend. It fit no problem, with the back seat down. We plan to one day buy a couple of e-bikes. I suspect we will investigate a rear rack for the car, rather than stuff them in the back. Our Model 3 is sleek and quick, but doesn’t have as much boot room as say the Tesla Model Y.
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Indiana Jones at the Lunar Drive-In
Date night at the Lunar Drive-In in Dandenong, Melbourne, to see the new Indiana Jones movie 🎥 . Great fun! Bit of a queue to get food (it comes in all the yellows: burger 🍔, chips 🍟, jam filled donuts etc), but well managed by the friendly door staff. Quite a chilly night 🥶. Most people in puffer jackets or thick pyjamas and dressing gowns. Several brought their furry friends 🐶, and were happy to have a pat. This is reportedly the largest outdoor cinema in Australia. Sadly, it is closing in a week from now due to high land taxes 😢. We typed the FM radio frequency into the Tesla screen and enjoyed the movie playing through a great sound system. I added another profile to the Tesla for “Drive-in cinema”, with the seats in the reclining position, climate set to “camp mode”, the air con at a comfortable 21°C. Very thankful to have an EV, so we can keep the air con on, without having to run an engine. Everyone else, in appropriately named ICE cars, had their puffer jackets and beanies on,…
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Woodend and Kyneton house-hunting
Today we drove out through the towns of Woodend and Kyneton, Victoria. Beautiful towns, even on a cold windy day. We’re still looking for a possible new home. We looked at one house at Kyneton Bushland Resort. Another house had 14kW of solar panels, a Tesla Powerwall house battery and a Tesla EV charger. Lunch at Home Grown on Piper was delicious. We bumped into the owners of a blue Tesla Model Y with the licence plate BEM3UP (“beam me up”) at one of the houses and at the Kyneton charger. Of course we discussed Star Trek 🖖. Also had a brief chat with Tony, on a ride on his electric Harley Davison LiveWire, with his other biker mates.
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An Autopilot run to Mornington
Any excuse for a drive. We picked up some friends from Melbourne Airport and drove them down to Mornington. We did it mostly on Autopilot, so I can’t really claim that I drove. On the way back, we checked out the view, through the rain, at Olivers Hill Lookout, near Frankston.
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A walk and a house-look in Warburton
Today we journeyed out to Warburton Victoria, partly to look for a possible place to live, but also to check out the area. Lovely town, with a river and walking trails running in parallel with the main street. Beautiful walks, vegetation and bridges.
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When the iPhone says you need a walk
When your iPhone starts telling you that you’ve burnt less kilojoules than previous weeks, it’s time to get out for a walk. The iPhone is so judgy! We drove out to Lillydale Lake and walked the loop. Beautiful walk on a sunny day. Lunch at the Round Bird cafe. Delicious hearty veg soup and toasted sandwich.
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Hands-off at Bayswater North Carwash
We haven’t cleaned the car since re-entering Victoria (again) many weeks ago. So, we used the drive-through Bayswater North Carwash, put the Tesla in “Car Wash Mode” and sat back while the robots did the work 🤖.
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A lyrebird mural coming to life in Ferntree Gully
I stumbled across this beautiful lyrebird mural in Ferntree Gully, Victoria. It started as a chalk outline (not pictured) which I guessed was an octopus, much to the dismay of the very talented artist Juzpop. I checked in each morning to marvel at the progress. Juz paints murals as a full time gig. I’ll be looking out for her other works. We’ve been trying out the local takeaway coffee shops. There are quite a few options, including Larder and Thyme and Station Street Coffee Co.
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Off to Castlemaine, early
Up early this morning for a road trip to check out Castlemaine, Victoria.
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Free EV charging during a HOYTS movie
We went to the movies tonight at HOYTS Australia in Forest Hill, Melbourne. There happened to be an EV charger in the car park, so, why not charge up, for free, while we watch the movie ☺️. The second allocated spot, where I parked, is oddly crammed in between a pillar and wall. It’s BYO cable, which I had. I just had to cross over the first car’s cable, plug in, press start, and walk away. Easy so far, right! When we returned after the movie, I forgot about the crossover, and spent two minutes trying to unplug the wrong cable. It wasn’t until I was on the Chargefox support phone line that Francis pointed out my mistake 🤦♂️. Then I thought I’d redeem my tech wizardry, by using Summon from the Tesla app to move the car forward, so I could open the doors for my passengers. But I stopped it when the driver’s door was right next to the pillar and then couldn’t get it moving again. I had to squeeze through the gap, and drive the car forward manually, like a Neanderthal. Now, my tech cred…
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Two odd EV-charging spots in Knoxfield
Driving along a random suburban road near a park in Knoxfield, Melbourne, I saw charging spots in this car park. Two tesla chargers and a general EV charger, with clearly painted EV parking on the ground. However, upon closer inspection, the chargers are just cardboard facsimiles. What is going on? The sign is branded with “SJ Display Group. Innovative retail display solutions”. Weird.
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JOLT charging at Ferntree Gully Station
I charged up again using the JOLT Charge at Ferntree Gully Station, while doing some work on my laptop. While there, a Nissan Leaf pulled up next to me. The driver, Tony, told me that he wanted to try out the Jolt charging for the first time. He bought his Nissan Leaf two years ago as a “grey” import for $18,000. It’s a 2014 model. It has a 24kWh battery but now only gets about 100km on a full charge. He also said that it doesn’t have great thermal management of the battery, so regular fast charging can be problematic. For comparison, our bottom range Tesla Model 3 has a 60kWh battery and gets 360 to 440km on a full charge. The technology has certainly come a long way since the original Nissan Leaf cars, but they paved the way.
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The Hatter and the Hare, in Bayswater
Beautiful food. Amazing cakes. Terrible parking. I asked if they had any black forest cake. They said they’re planning on adding it to the next three month cycle, which starts in a month. The chef is still perfecting it. I offered to beta test, but they didn’t ask for my details. Looking forward to it. The parking there is terrible. Small shared car park with other businesses. One of the “cafe” marked spots was blocked with a bollard and crate by another business.
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A long line at Proserpina Bakehouse
Popped in to Proserpina Bakehouse in the Dandenong Ranges to grab some lunch. Beautiful place and food. Long line because it’s so popular.
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Helping Tim and Krissy move into storage
We helped our friends (and generous hosts) Tim and Krissy, move some of their belongings into storage. Our Tesla Model 3 is a sleek sedan. It doesn’t have as much storage space as say the larger Model Y or X. But it still fits a fair amount of stuff, in the boot/trunk, sub-trunk, frunk (front trunk, since there’s no engine) and the back seat.
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Spotting an 'OIL 404' Tesla at Eastland
We did some shopping and grabbed some lunch at Eastland Shopping Centre, east of Melbourne. In the car park, we noticed one of the other Teslas, in the valet parking area, with the license plate “OIL 404” (which means: oil not found)😆. You might be able to see it in the photo.
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Jolt charging — improved app at Ferntree Gully
Charging using JOLT Charge at Ferntree Gully Station. JOLT Charge has updated their app! I noticed some big improvements, including: 1. Seems to be a proper native iOS app. Previously seemed to be some hybrid white labeled thing with odd UI. 2. I can choose a charging cable at my location. No need to scan a QR code any more (which failed for me previously). 3. Clearer UI showing progression of dollars and energy.
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A late lunch in Euroa
We stopped at Euroa for a late lunch, on our way to Melbourne. Beautiful park across the road from the Tesla superchargers, and some food outlets up the road.
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Breakfast at The Coffee Pedaler, Gundagai
Breakfast this morning at The Coffee Pedaler in Gundagai, before the final leg of our drive to Melbourne.
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Flash Jacks Boutique Hotel, Gundagai
On our way from the NSW Central Coast to Melbourne. Thanks for the recommendation Hugh Sykes and Margaret McDonald. I think it’s a converted convent.
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First time at the Campbelltown Superchargers
We left the Central Coast this morning, dropped off one of our kids at Sydney airport, and kept driving south towards Melbourne. We stopped for our first time at the Tesla superchargers in Campbelltown (next to Campbeltown Catholic Club). There are several fast food outlets across the road, but we opted for the nearby Arts Center Cafe.
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Favourite Terrigal Beach moments
May 2, 5, 9: While on the Central Coast, we visited Terrigal Beach a few times, for a walk along the beach, the lagoon, the esplanade and boardwalk. Indian from Grand Pavillion Terrigal and dumplings from SeaBay Restaurant are our favourites.
Formerly: Tesla Tripping
Come along on our EV road trips around Australia and Europe, and follow as we progressively electrify our home in Emerald, Victoria.
Join us on the road. We set off in late 2022 and drove eastern Australia in our Tesla Model 3 — Sydney, Dubbo, Armidale, Brisbane, Cape Tribulation, then down through Queensland and back. We've since upgraded to a Model Y.
We've kept exploring — Uluru, the Snowy Mountains and Gippsland, and a longer run through Europe in 2024. There's plenty more on the map, so come along for the next leg.
At home in Emerald, in Victoria's Dandenong Ranges, we're progressively electrifying everything: rooftop solar, a home battery, a hot water heat pump, air conditioned heating and cooling, and EV charging straight from the sun. We're going fully electric, off the gas.
Got questions, or insights of your own? We'd love to hear them — please drop a comment on any post.