From the Warrambungles I started my journey south to Victoria stopping off at Dubbo to visit my gorgeous cracker of a cousin Jacinta to laugh away a few days. Love that chick!!

Excitement set in crossing the Murrumbidgee River and seeing signposts to Gundagai and Wagga Wagga, knowing that my next big river was going to be the Murray. Checked in to Albury for the night, then headed across the border for the Howqua River region, Alpine Country: the High Country, just bloody beautiful country.

Not sure I was that prepared for the long winding dirt track with blind corners every 100 metres, escarpments, mountains, glorious vistas and grassy flats along riverbanks that led me to 7 Mile Flats camp. This country is so beautiful!!!

I did arrive at the site and there was a huge horse trekking mob set up all wearing their akubras, drizabone’s and boots. Where was Clancy?? Tom Burlinson and Sigrid Thornton…. Total Man from Snowy River setting.

Set up camp and lucked out big time with our own personal swimming hole flanked with the tallest trees, grasses and wildflowers. Seriously was expecting Tom Burlinson to cross the escarpment on a wild stallion!

I went on a wood collecting mission as it was raining a bit so the nights were absolutely freezing and pulled every conceivable warm thing out of my ute to snuggle up in.

Imo arrived the next day with all the fancy fare…she is the total rock star!!! We ate like queens for days!! And the X-mas decorations were so natural as they kept flying in and out, all reds and greens with dashes of blue; Parrots, Black cockatoos, Willy Wag Tails and Rosellas. Just so gorgeous!!

Obligatory Choccy Soldiers for breakfast… well it was nearly lunch time ..

The next 6 days were perfect; excellent weather, drawing, reading, painting, eating, swimming, beauty treatments, laughing, drinking and stoking fires. Birdsong, rustling peppermint trees, babbling waters and whip birds was the only soundtrack and exquisite beauty at its best our only vista.

We took a million photos and I have culled them maximum … it was a brilliant “off the grid” Xmas!!!!

Enticing the Christmas decorations to hang around

hello… prawns and pinot gris for lunch… riverside!

Domestics… collecting water from the river.