Weekend at Glen Aplin
Photos credits to Denise and Peter
The weekend for four grew over time to be a weekend for nine. Through conversation over a couple of months the crew multiplied from Peter, G, Denise and Richard to also include Mark, Sonia, Sue, Trevor and Henry the travelling dog.
Memory can be a wonderful thing. It can bring to light past glories, adventures and places in vivid colour, sound and atmosphere. So it was that Peter decided the best way to head to Stanthorpe from the Sunshine Coast would be via Kilcoy, Esk and Gatton, followed by a scoot up through Heifer Creek, as it was surely less daunting than the Esk Range on Richard and Denise’s first outing in their new Sunland van.
We planned to meet at the Landsborough storage facility about 7am. True to form we all arrived a bit after 6.30 and set about hooking up our respective vans. Job done on the Zone, Peter and G headed over to help out our good friends.
With Richard at the helm, the car was positioned perfectly first time for an easy drop of the van onto the tow ball. One hit of the electronic jack was all that was required. Electronic dictates there needs to be electricity. There was none. The jack was as dead as a door nail.
With barley a flinch Richard set about accessing the manual winder to go old school with the job at hand. If only we could find it. Sunland security was outstanding. Hide the winder so no one can steal your van!
Not to be outdone, Peter ‘I know vans’ headed to the rear with Denise to check out the batteries. Voltmeter readings proved there was naught in the batteries. The entire system was as flat as a tac. We would not be using the electronic devices anytime soon.
In what was to be the theme of the weekend, Richard, ‘I’m buggered if I’m going to let this set me back’, remembered there was an old style jockey wheel stored under the firewood. A quick clamp on, wind down, and we were away, headed to Sunland for an on-the-fly electrical fix.
Kicking the Sunalnd people out of bed, we quickly learnt from the young guy that there was a trip switch on the rear battery panel, that if turned on, would suddenly bring the entire system back to life. Fixed in a jiffy. As if often the case a wise old owl pops up at an opportune moment. And so it was.
Looking like he may have been run over by more than the odd van, the old bloke randomly questioned Richard as to whether he knew the hot water heater drew 10 amps of current even when not turned on. Acknowledging he did not, old wise guy left Richard with newfound intellect surrounding where to turn the hot water heater off and indeed where and how to turn it back on. We were set.
Kilcoy came and went, but not Esk. A stop was necessary to grab a coffee and a bacon and egg delicious. And it was. We met Gatton before turning left to the stunning Heifer Creek.
Memory can be a bastard!! It can taint past glories, adventures and places in vivid colour, sound and atmosphere to such an extent they don’t remotely resemble reality. Peter had such a memory, for Heifer Creek was every nightmare a new caravan owner dreads. It was tight, narrow, tighter, narrower and just plain awful. And that was before the wide load met Richard and Denise on a hairpin corner. If nothing else, experience quickly came this day. We were sure we could hear utterances of profanity above the rumble of their Toyota V8.
Warwick was Warwick, being slightly greener than last time we were there. Applethorpe was still the coolest place in the state, and Stanthorpe was by-passed for our destination of Glen Aplin, a few ks further south.
We were met by a tight track leading down to a pristine camp site next to a beautiful lake complete with overly friendly ducks. Denise whisked the new van through a maze of trees with the skill of a seasoned, Jackie Howe singleted, pluggers wearing, truckie. Masterful to say the least!
Trever, Sue, Henry the travelling dog, Sonia and Mark were already in residence, set up enjoying a stunning vista. We unpacked and so began a diary of ‘let’s try again’ moments that will be the topic of conversation for yeast to come.
Peter set the scene by not chocking the inside wheel on the van when taking if off the car resulting in his beloved Zone heading for a swim, but thankfully not quite. The dumb act was almost doing it twice! Feeling out of the action, Richard took centre stage when he remember to turn the hot water back on but endured a cold shower because he forgot hot water needs gas to make it hot.
Ultimately we settled down to a stunning fire courtesy of Mark, amazing sunset and great company for a wonderfully relaxing evening.
The new day saw us trickling into Stanthorpe at comfortable o’clock for a walk and breakfast at the old rail station. Although the food was not bad at all, one hopes the management of the trains days past was better than that of the orders in the present. Potluck does not do it justice!!
None of this could eventuate however, until Richard’s car started. Which it didn’t. ARB had done half a job of installing the Anderson plug connecting the van for battery charging. Forgetting the cut out switch meant the car battery had been feeding the van all night and was now flat. A quick mess around led us to connect solar panels to the car battery hoping a few hours of sun would bring them back to life.
At just after lunch we headed to forgottonitsname (maybe Tobins) winery for an education, some tasting and some buying. Peter and Henry guarded the entrance as neither drank grape juice, favouring a sit on a bench and a nap over the evil contained in a bottle.
In the late afternoon we choofed off to dinner at the Balancing Heart winery. Met by a beautiful German Shepherd dog, we were welcome from the first moments. The staff were outstanding, the ambiance ridiculously good, and the company, that now included some additional friends from the area, exceptional. The crew ate pizza and drank grape juice aplenty.
Sunday was always a get up late and head off day. We got up early and were about to set off when Richard’s car rolled over and played dead again. RACQ was on the job in no time. We were away to Stanthorpe for a scrumptious breakfast at the unnamed café after our good-bye hugs and dog pats.
Heading home was relatively uneventful. We dropped into Denise’s parents for a quick hello and van display before heading off to get lost. A quick double back had us trickling down the Toowoomba Range headed towards Esk but not before another navigational error by Peter. We have always loved the back blocks of Gatton!
The trip home demonstrated just what a few hours of experience can bring. Richard and Denise’s travelling unit was being driven with a new confidence and authority. It appeared Peter’s rotten memory had worked a treat providing at least three year’s towing experience in but a few short days.
Reflection revealed this weekend was a damned good one. Great location, great food, great people, yet one day short. Next year will be four days at least.