A month at the Top end - Darwin

A month at the top end with a family of cats, dog, chookies and fish - August 2017

What a wonderful time we had in Darwin and what a long way it is to get there!

Our house sit was on the north side of Darwin in a lovely townhouse that backed onto a large communal park.  The owners were so lovely, they organised a secure place for us to park the van and we even had an undercover park for our motorbike.

And did we use the motorbike?   I will never forget the evening rides into the city and along the waterfront, with the warm wind in our hair.  The Mindil Sunset markets were visited once a week for dinner and a browse, while we checked out the other Asian markets during the week for our fresh fruit and vegetables. They were fantastic.

We also loved the outdoor cinema down on the waterfront where we saw some beautiful films and had outdoor dining.  It was a treat.

Elmo got on great with dear little Polly, and the two cats thought he was interesting and seemed to know he was old and blind, whereas Elmo couldn't really see them that well and kept his distance, he wasn't threatened by them.  

Meal times turned out to be tricky, luckily the cats fed on the benches so the puppies couldn't pinch any.  The red bantam girls were a treat, easy to look after and they let you know when it was meal time.  I even got so friendly with them, I could pick them up and give them a cuddle and scratch.

The weather was hot and dry and we tended to walk Polly in the early morning or late evening when it was cooler.  There was a new housing estate across the road which gave us endless fascination looking at all the styles and colours, the houses are totally different to houses down south.

After feeding and walking, Louie and I would get our fold up bicycles, load Elmo on the back and ride for miles exploring the area.  The big shopping centre nearby had a great outdoor area where Elmo could sit, so coffee occurred here quite regularly.  

We did one trip to Litchfield National Park early one morning on the motorbike, actually leaving in the dark so we could get there early and come back early.  The waterfall s were beautiful and we managed to have a swim in twin falls.

We loved Darwin and will be going back again winter 2018. 

House sitting on Atherton Tableland 24Jun-7July 2017 and 14Oct-2Nov17

What a gorgeous area the Atherton Tablelands!  We were blessed to be able to stay up in the mountains west of Cairns for the winter.
Our first stay in June turned out to be quite cold and rainy, every day the clouds would climb up from the sea and turn into drizzle at Tinaroo.  We'd get up early to walk the dogs Gus a Kelpie Healer cross and Eric the Beagle, they would be rearing to go and as the mornings were clear and still it was wonderful.  Usually the walks were towards Tinaroo Dam, where there is some fantastic walk paths and tracks.  An additional swim in the dam was so looked forward to.  The afternoon walks (if it wasn't raining to hard) was usually around the neighbourhood, checking out the homes and farmland.
The house was perched on a hill with views west towards a long line of hills in the distance.  The gardens were large and pretty, no fences, however the owners had electrical wiring to keep the dogs in, who new exactly how far they could go before they got a zap.  The dogs were big and bouncy and a lot of fun.  Elmo liked them immediately, but they ignored him most of the time.  They new he was old and tended to be gentle around him, which was lovely.  
We settled in quickly to the routine, and spent most of the time with the dogs due to the weather, we didn't get the motor bike out much at all, and the bicycles were not used at all.
One clear day we left  late morning to ride the motorbike down the Kuranda Range Road to Cairns, had lunch and then came back up the Gillies before the clouds came in.  It was a spectacular ride.  We also got in a trip to the Nerada Tea Plantation for morning tea, and saw the Tree Kangaroos with a baby near the cafe.

They were magnificent.

Bobby has now been with us for 2 weeks

He is such a sweet dog.  Sleeps outside on the balcony in Elmo's bed, while Elmo sleeps under our bed in his other bed.  Bobby is too restless to sleep in side.  This is due to
Dad's influence when he was a puppy - he used to be put to bed in the laundry straight after his dinner, and it seems Bobby wants to go to bed after we feed him here.
Elmo has fallen in love with him and follows him around everywhere like a lost puppy. It is so cute.

I am giving him lots of hugs and cuddles and he seems to remember me when I visited Dad and him at Bribie Island.

I have washed him once a week, because he seems to sweat a lot and get quite smelly quickly.  It is not offensive but hard to get used to when poodles do not smell doggy ever!

You should see the two of them when I come home after walking the RSPCA Orphan dogs - they hang around me and sniff all over, for I walk at least 4-5 dogs a visit.  It must be so interesting for them.

Bobby has one more weeks holiday with us and he will have a new friend to play with - Milly is coming to stay for 4-5 days while their owners head off to WA on holidays and the new house sitters arrive.  I am sure Elmo and Bobby will love her.