What a gorgeous camp spot is Tchum Lake. We really enjoyed our camp there. I cooked up a huge breakfast for everyone of eggs (fried or scrambled), bacon, hash browns & toast. It was a feast. We didn’t get going until after 10. It had been a lovely sleep-in camped at the lake.

At Nullawil we stopped to check out the amazing silo art of the farmer and Jimmy the kelpie. Stunning

When we arrived in Swan Hill we went directly to the Showground to use their dump point however we could not find a water tap anywhere. We asked a couple of fellas and they said the only one was the one at the dump point. Not thanks! I’m not putting that hose anywhere near our tanks. They did think there was a tap in town where the parking for caravans is so we thought we’d give that a try.

The parking for caravans in in the same street as the Tourist Centre and next to the railway station. It is conveniently behind the Main Street and opposite an Aldi. There was a big coach parked already so we lined up next to it and quickly got the hose out to fill our tanks. Job quickly done!

We visited the Tourist Centre, went for a walk along the Riverwalk, Ben and Maddie had a play in the playground, Pa even had a jump on a mini tramp, Riley and I climbed down the huge steps used by the Swan Hill Rowing Club to launch their boats, admired the Big Murray Cod and wandered back to our RV’s.

After a quick sandwich we decided to push on and see if we could make it to Hay then we wouldn’t have so far to go the next day.

We passed through the historic town of Moulamein in the middle of the afternoon and I was surprised to see a sign saying Moulamein is the oldest town in the Riverina. When you think of all the big towns there are in the Riverina today and once there was just Moulamein. The little town is situated on the Edward River and as we crossed the bridge we could see the water level was good.

Traveling along in the sunny afternoon and we really had left any mountains way behind us. The countryside around Moulamein is very flat with lots of salt bush in the huge paddocks on either side of the road.

The Moulamein/Maude Road eventually met up with the Sturt Highway and we turned eastwards towards Hay. The countryside along that stretch is not only flat but also devoid of trees with the occasional huge turkeys nest dam that would supply irrigation to the paddocks below. A lot of cotton is grown around Hay now and, at harvest time, you can see tufts of cotton along the roadside looking a bit like snow.

We arrived at Hay around 5.15pm and drove directly to Sandy Hollow to find a camp spot. Sandy Hollow is a huge free camp provided by the town of Hay for the travelling community. It is situated on a large bend of the Murrumbidgee River and there are toilets, BBQ’s, picnic shelters and usually a sandy beach. However there was not a lot of beach as the water level was very high. There’s a walking/cycling track to town and near the entrance is the town skate park.

We’ve camped at Sandy Point before a few times and we were surprised to see how many were already camped. Must have been at least 50 RV’s of all types. We found a spot where our two rigs could fit and quickly set up camp. For our last dinner on this trip I cooked up chicken schnitzels, mash, mixed veggies and gravy. Judging by the quiet that set in once people had served themselves I’m pretty sure it was enjoyed by all. Maddie did an excellent job being the wiper upper after dinner.

Katie and the kids retired to their van to play card and us old folk headed to bed.

What a wild old night it was! I was sound asleep at midnight when our fridge started beeping. Oh no! Why does it always run out of gas in the middle of the night? That bloody Murphy! So up to go outside to change the gas bottle over. I noticed then that the wind had really picked up and rushed back to our warm bed.

For the next couple of hours the wind really blew. I thought it sounded like waves crashing on a beach. It was blowing so hard the motorhome shook. Ben said the next morning he thought his swag was going to blow away. It must have died down because we all went back to sleep and woke to a beautiful, still, sunny morning.

It was time for our last breakfast on the road then head for home.