The weather was just fantastic today; sunny and mild with a slight breeze.
We hit the bike paths at 8am, early for some, not so early for others. We needed to be on the bikes by this time to complete the Bluewater Trail in time for the others to get back home to have lunch and head off to Finch Hatton Gorge. We braved the traffic for a while before finding the bike path through the city and into the southside to connect with the Trail. It was so nice to be able to ride and not have to worry about traffic. We rode through a very different Botanic Gardens in that it was a linear garden. We ended up at the Mackay Tourist Information Centre and from there the trail went on into the city and out to the harbour area. After a coffee stop, Greg decided to do the city, harbour and ocean front whilst Wendy navigated the way home for the rest of the riders (she had washing and work to do).
Wendy had
bought this 3.2kg washing machine online for the van, not realising it was a
semi-automatic machine. Well, it really is a waste of space, time and effort.
Whilst it washes really well, the spin cycle does anything but. She did two
loads and had to hang half soaked washing on the line - no wonder they did not
dry. All this to try and save some $ on using the machines in the van parks. If
we were allowed to leave the machine in the laundry with a note "free to a
good home" we would! We will persevere and may have to leave it on the
side of the road somewhere! When we get our bigger van, it will come complete
with a washing machine.
After
lunch and a spot of work, we visited friends that used to live in Howard - John
and Marg. They have a very nice house in a salubrious suburb. We had wine and
cheese and biscuits on their back veranda and jolly good chat. We left them to
be home just in time to prepare dinner to have with the others on their return
from the Gorge.
