Chairlift at Mt Hotham

Top of Mt Hotham

Cruiser at Mt Hotham (Notice mudflap missing)

Bright Yellow Line Markings

Avenue in Bright

Day 32 - Left Lakes Entrance about 8 am.  It is a beautiful day.  Today we are heading to Wangaratta which is north of us and north east of Melbourne.  We are trying to work our way back closer to Melbourne so when the van is ready we don't have far to go. We were able to by pass Bairnsdale and head to Bruthen and then onto the Great Alpine Road north to Omeo.  TheTambo River runs right beside the road so we decided to turn off at Barksheds Creek as there was a bridge going over the river. It was the sort of river you would expect Trout to be swimming in. We drove down a bit of a gravel road to the bridge and crossed over.  It was just lovely.  Pa turned around on the other side and I got out and took photos.  We headed back to the road and had a bit of trouble when we got over the bridge as the track was washed out.  Anyway we got out but ended up ripping a mudflap off.  So we only have 1 mudflap at the moment.  We kept climbing and passed through Ensay North and had Moko at Swift Creek at the friendly wood fired bakery.  Broke our diet and had coffee with a couple of matchsticks (iced flaky pastry filled with cream and jam).  With our tummies full we kept going and about 10klms from Omeo we were overtaken by a ute with chipboard on the roof bars.  As we had a strong headwind the chipboard was nearly doubled over on the roof.  Next thing it broke and headed our way. Thankfully Pa was watching and hit the brakes and the board missed us.  Thank god for ABS brakes. Kept climbing and about 20kms from Dinner Plains the road markings and guideposts changed from white to bright yellow (so you can see them in the snow)  Stopped at Dinner Plate for a look. It is obviously a resort.  All the houses look the same and all are built from weatherboard and are the same colour..  Still climbing to Mt Hotham Resort.  I'm sure this is the top of the world.  This is where all the chair lifts are and all the shops to get your snow gear.  The views were spectacular.  We are approx. 1900m above sea level.  It is windy and cold, approx. 17oC.  Amazingly there were lots of dead trees and dead tree tops everywhere which gave the area quite an eerie look.  After going down a really windy and I mean windy road we got to Harrietville.  Had lunch there and Pa checked the brakes as they were really smelly.  Front ones were 260 degrees and back were 180 degrees.  That is soooo hot.  Harrietville was a lovely town with an avenue of trees running right through the town.  On to Bright that has a Brewery right in town and also has a beautiful avenue of trees down the main street.  There is lots of accommodation in this area.  Guess it is an overflow area for the ski fields.  Would be cheaper than up on the slopes.  This area is so beautiful.  There are lots of Chestnuts and Berries for sale here and lots of wineries.  Went through Porepunkah.  They grow lots of hops here, maybe to supply the brewery in Bright.  We also noticed a lot of cyclists and bike tracks beside the road.  Think they take the sport very seriously around here.  Went on through Ovens and Myrtleford where there are herds of Black Angus (Alpine Angus) in the paddocks. On to Wangaratta and got accommodation in a cabin in one of the caravan parks.  Walked into town for some wine and milk (not drinking together) and came back to enjoy happy hour on the deck.  Got a call from Johnny from Vanguard to let us know the van will be ready late tomorrow afternoon so we will finally have our home back.  Till tomorrow.........