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Top pub and top motel in Yackandandah
We aimed for Yackandandah tonight, as it's one of our favourite places to stop. One of our favourite motels is here too: Motel Views, so named because ... well, you can figure that out. On the way, we crossed the border back into Victoria, and back to the potholes. There's a new twist, though. Many of the filled-in ones still have the painted warning circles around them, which were helpful when there was a hole inside. Now we steer around potholes that are no longer there, and the circles around the ones that are still there play the boy who cried wolf. For dinner, we drove straight to the top pub, the Star Hotel Yackandandah. Not to be confused with its fierce rival, the bottom pub (the Yackandandah Hotel). To our surprise, it was a quiet night, and we were one of just two couples eating. We had some laughs with the staff, as they explained that many in this holiday town had gone away on holidays. One of the deciding factors was the fast charger just out the back, though it's…
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Banana fritter and a Tesla test drive
We’ve passed The Big Banana many times, but this was the first time I’ve stopped there. It’s grown over the years to include a toboggan ride, water slides, ice skating, laser tag and a lot more. But we’re far too sophisticated for all that 😉. All I could think about in the drive up was getting a banana split, which changed to a banana fritter and banana smoothie when we reached the important decision at the counter of Bananas Cafe. In the car park, I noticed a Tesla Model 3 and Y with a QR code on the side, and a label “Self-Serve Test Drive”. It seems that you can just walk up to it, scan the bar code, and take the EV for a test drive. Clever idea, since I guess many people see the EVs parked at the superchargers and wonder what it would be like to drive one. Years ago, I think we first saw EVs charging at the chargers behind Olivers in Gundagai and wondered the same. A couple of years later we took a Tesla for a test drive, and were so impressed that we ordered one on the spot.
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Just plug in, because you never know.
Nearing the end of today’s driving, we pulled off the highway to visit the town of Urunga. A walk along the waterfront to the iconic boardwalk. We have walked it before, but not today. Bellies beckoned, so I grabbed some “emergency shoes” from the frunk so we could get into the local pub for dinner. We did our usual trick of ordering one meal to share, and were glad we did when we saw the size of it. And, of course, the pub cat found Francis.
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Norah Head Lighthouse
Heading off from Norah Head, our accommodation for the past three nights. Beautiful flat in a home, complete with an electric Weber BBQ like ours at home. Lunch yesterday with Mum at the Cessnock Leagues Club, after doing a conga line at the front steps. Nice place, but the Keno (?) announcements are too noisy for conversations. Brekky at Norah Head Beach Haus, followed by a photo with the lighthouse. Car packed with a portable cot for our new grandbaby, at our next stop in Thornton, near Newcastle. We noticed that the Hexham bypass is finished – looking good.
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Northern Central Coast
Hopping between Tuggerah, Budgewoi and our accommodation in Norah Head. Great to see Amber and her new (used) Tesla Model Y.
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Bright to Holbrook, with FSD interventions
We don’t really plan our day’s trip ahead. We hopped in the car this morning in Bright, entered our destination for tomorrow as Budgewoi, and let the car decide the route. It decided that we’d stop at Holbrook and (I think) Goulburn, to charge along the way. The route seemed picturesque on the map, so we followed along. The views did not disappoint, but no photos of the scenery this time through, sorry. Parked the car at Holbrook. Our windscreen shade got its first use this warming season. I have the car set to keep the car at below 35°C so the snacks don’t perish. And the fridge in the sub-trunk keeps the cold food chilled. Lunch a block away at The Ten Mile Cafe.
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Bright idea for a road trip
And we’re off again. Heading north to see family strewn from NSW Central Coast to Byron Bay. Driving straight up the Hume Highway is easy, but a bit boring, so we took the back roads along the Black Spur to Alexandra, with packed lunch (thank you Krissy) by the creek, then followed another spur through Tolmie, with a photo op next to a random Tardis.
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Mid day drive to nearby Selby.
Watching Puffing Billy cross the Selby Trestle Bridge, showering Francis in steam (harmless) as she sat on the hill, waving to excited tourists. Brunch earlier at Selby General Store & Café. Basic menu offerings, including the best egg and bacon roll we’ve eaten. We were welcomed by the hosts, cute dogs, turtles and fish who were as keen to watch us and we were to watch them.
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A month of cooking on induction
We have cooked on gas and on electric elements for years. This is our first month with a Westinghouse full induction cooktop in place of the gas. We had trialled induction on a small scale first. We bought a portable hotplate last year (also Westinghouse), as a spare in our kitchen — on the bench at home, and in the back of the car on road trips. Induction still gets confused with the electric cooking most people remember, a metal hotplate or a coil glowing red, sometimes under glass. Induction works differently — it makes the pan itself the heating element, so nearly all the energy goes into the pan rather than into the kitchen, and the glass beside the pan stays cool enough to rest a hand on. Here is what a month of it has been like. What stands out is how fast and how responsive it is. It comes on instantly, goes off instantly, and changes power the moment you ask. It boils faster than the gas did. CHOICE's testing has induction boiling a litre of water in about half the time gas…
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Installing our induction stove
The crew arrived at seven. By lunchtime the gas was capped, the old Smeg was gone, and 40 amps of new circuit ran from the switchboard to the kitchen.
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Oven bought in March, arrived in July
The docket said “ETA 3 weeks”. It took 106 days, six phone calls, and an oven posted back to the warehouse because nobody read the email saying hold it.
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Day trip to Torquay and Queenscliff
We left our home in Emerald, crossing the mist-ical Puffing Billy Railway for a two hour drive to an appointment in Torquay. What to do after a long drive with a few hours to kill? Let’s take a drive, along the coast, from Torquay to Queenscliff, stopping at a few lookouts along the way. Oh, and a few stops for lunch (The Salty Dog Cafe Torquay), coffee, coffee and dinner (Pholklore).
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Between the sun and moon, on Gippsland Lakes
The shortest path between two points is usually mundane. So, we tapped a random lookout on the way home, and asked the navigation to add it to our trip. The self driving car took us all the way there, and back to our accommodation, except for a couple of abrupt interventions by me to avoid potholes.
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Everybody loves Raymond Island
With the promise of seeing koalas, we headed over to Raymond Island, in the Gippsland Lakes. We opted to leave our Tesla on the mainland, in Paynesville, and caught the ferry across as pedestrians. The ferry runs every twenty minutes, free for pedestrians, $15 for cars. On the other side, we hired a four person bike for $50, for one hour. It turned out that we created more emissions pedalling the bike around than we would have if we’d taken the car. I blame strained digestive systems fuelled by the coffee and cake from the cafe van. The koalas were sleepy and elusive, but we managed to find a few.
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Metung, Winter Festival
Soup, souvlaki, juggler, chainsaw (electric and fueled) wood carving and a fun collection of outlets for locals and visitors. Happy end to another lazy day.
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Up Swifts Creek, along the Great Alpine Road
Beautiful sunny winter’s day in East Gippsland. Perfect for a half day trip from Metung, along the Great Alpine Road. We only drove as far as Swifts Creek, this time, having previously traveled all the way to Bright and beyond. Swifts Creek is a charmingly quiet small town, where I attempted to blend in with a couple of the locals (see photo). The Great Alpine Gallery’s Winter Festival Exhibition was somewhat oversold, but interesting nonetheless. Bakery for lunch, coffee, a thermos of tea, and packed snacks. Then back south, taking any chance along the way for a detour and a photo.
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Right on the tip of Metung
Lazy morning, followed by a lazy drive around Metung, and down to the tip of the peninsula. Beautiful bayside town. Plenty of boats and accommodation along the foreshore. Lunch at Aroma Metung, where I demonstrated my precision road trip meal dissection skills, giving Krissy exactly one quarter of my burger.
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Packing our chef and barista, for the road trip
Off on another road trip. This time to Metung, Gippsland Lakes, about 300 km away from home. We picked up our passengers, Tim and Krissy, at Alkira, in Emerald, and made use of the large luggage space of our Model Y. Bringing along our own chef and barista is a little indulgent, I agree. But their professional standards apparently necessitated them packing their own cooking and caffeinating equipment. One onlooker came over to assist with our “engine trouble” because I had the frunk open to pack more in. Archie, our cat, supervised the morning packing. We grabbed what has become our ritual road trip brekky, at Over the Road cafe in Emerald.
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Adding a second battery — Tesla finally makes it possible
When Lightning Energy installed our Powerwall 2 back in December 2023 it was great. Paired with our 12 kW Enphase/Jinko solar system and 10 kW inverter, it's been handling our fully electrified home in Emerald pretty well — five reverse-cycle ACs, heat pump hot water, EV charging, and grid outages lasting up to nine days. But as we've added more loads, I've been thinking about expanding battery storage. There was a problem, though. The Powerwall 2 is no longer CEC-approved for new installations in Australia. Tesla stopped taking orders for it in late 2024/early 2025, and as of January 2026 it's no longer on the Clean Energy Council approved list. So you can't add a second one. And until very recently, the Powerwall 3 — Tesla's current model — was completely incompatible with the Powerwall 2. They couldn't talk to each other. That meant anyone with a Powerwall 2 who wanted more storage faced a painful choice: rip out the existing battery and start fresh with new hardware. For me, that…
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ICE vehicles also benefit from charging points
I’ve come across a few ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles that could benefit from charging points. Bear with me here. This ambulance, parked outside a nursing home, was running the engine, with no-one in it, I presume to keep the air con running, on what was a pretty hot day. Perhaps they were keeping the vehicle cool for a patient they were collecting. Fair enough. But, of course this leaks fumes (and noise) into the car park and reception, which isn’t great for health. I noticed that it has a power socket at the rear of the vehicle. I’m wondering if they could plug that into an electrical supply, if there was one at the parking spot (but wasn’t one handy here). This rental van I’m guessing has refrigeration, parked outside a butchers in Emerald. They made use of the external power socket, creatively plugging in from the shop. No noise or fumes. I wonder if it would be handy to have more accessible power points for these ICE vehicles? Or better yet, have electric vans that can…
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A surprise picnic by the Yarra River
Surprise picnic. Making use of all the hidey-holes in the Tesla. Let’s pull over here next to the Yarra River. Would you like a cold drink? I just happen have a powered fridge in the sub trunk of the car. We can sit on the camp chairs from the frunk (front trunk, since there’s no engine). How about a cheese platter and some cherries to go with it? Ok “platter” is a bit of an overstatement, but work with me here. The car also has kitchen utensils and a dining table. We might as well just stay here for lunch now.
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Fast charging at the Bairnsdale Superchargers
It's conveniently located close to shops, near the centre of town, but it's right next to the entry of a very busy car park. There are only three charging spots. I watched another Tesla try a few times to reverse into a charger from a park opposite. Fortunately, other waiting drivers kept their holiday cheer. I tapped on the window and asked if they'd like me to park the car for them. She explained that it was her husband's car, who had apparently gone to the shops. She seemed very relieved to hand over control to someone familiar with the car. I parked it and plugged it in. After that and a cuppa, the car was charged up enough to take me all the way home. I had to do a slight three point turn to exit the car park when I was done. Did I mentioned it's a slightly awkward spot?
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A Vegemite sandwich stop in Orbost
Brief stop in Orbost to make a Vegemite sandwich, a cup of tea and to use the amenities. Pop the tailgate, pull out the dining table, open the fridge. Easy.
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Breakfast and a free shower in Tubbut
Breakfast, from the kitchen drawer and fridge in my Tesla. I drove a few kilometers from my overnight riverside camping spot, back to the community hall in Tubbut. A free shower in the provided facilities was a welcome way to wake up. The rain eased shortly after I arrived. I boiled water using my induction stove, for a hot thermos of tea. Beautiful, relaxed start to the day.
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Creekside car camping in the Snowy Mountains
Car camping in my Tesla, beside a creek, off the beaten track in the Snowy Mountains. It took me a while to find the site. Earlier, in my search, I pulled off onto two tracks that ended up in someone’s property. At least it gave some local kids an excuse to run outside to see what the UFO sound was I did a three point just outside their gate. I waved and grinned. A cup of tea and a snack from my Teraglide drawer, sitting in my camp chair, watching the bush life. Until the bush life started eating me (just a few bugs), signaling time for bed. I again wished I had remembered to pack a collapsible stool, to help climb into the back of the car. Followed by the commando crawl to get on top of the Snuuzu mattress and Teraglide platform. This is the highest sleeping option, which gives lots of storage space and a very comfortable bed. The only down side is requiring more effort getting in and out. Once I’m in, it’s great with plenty of room to move. Please forgive the “Tesla Tripping – after…
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I wish my Model Y had V2L
I wish my Tesla Model Y had a power point, where I could plug in my induction stove to make breakfast 😞. What I need is “V2L”, which stands for “vehicle to load”. Unfortunately, my Tesla Model Y RWD does not have it. This omission almost made us switch to BYD, Kia, Xpeng or one of the many other EV car brands that provide V2L. Tesla’s CyberTruck, new Model YL, and Model Y Performance all reportedly now provide V2L. The Cybertruck has built in power points. The other two require an adapter plugged into the charge port. I can only hope that in the near future Tesla offers some retrofit option for my car. In the mean time, I just have to find a power point, in order to cook. If I had booked a powered site at this location, that would work fine. This morning, I just used the camp kitchen. My car’s massive (by camping standards) 60kWh battery provided air conditioning all night, and has run my camp fridge non stop, via the 16V outlet. It powers other mod cons, such as the lights, wireless…
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Breakfast routine, Tesla-style
Good morning! Time for breakfast, after a great night’s sleep in the Tesla. “Siri, open Tesla boot”. The tailgate opens to reveal a beautiful day, beyond my bare feet. Breakfast mode: 1. Pull out the Teraglide drawer and table. 2. Flip open the Teraglide rear lid. It’s assisted by gas struts, so it’s easy to lift and stays up, even with bedding on top of it. 3. Open the fridge in the subtrunk to get brekky supplies. This morning, that’s eggs, butter and milk. 4. Use the kitchen drawer bits to crack and whisk the eggs, add milk, soak some bread, ready to make French toast. 5. Stroll over to the camp kitchen. Fry the toast and boil some water for my thermos. Return to the Tesla. Enjoy my French toast, with a cuppa tea, overlooking the Snowy River. Nice.
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Sleeping in the Tesla — does it fit?
Sleeping in the Tesla, on a Snuuzu mattress, on a Teraglide platform. The obvious question: can I fit? Short answer: plenty of room to sleep, rollover, look at the sky, out the window, or my phone. I never banged into the glass or support arch. But, getting in is a bit tight. I had to shuffle through, like a recruit in a commando course. I also forgot to pack a collapsible stool, to step onto, high enough at the back to crawl in. The Snuuzu mattress is super comfortable. It has a few layers of foam, supported by an inflatable layer. With the back seats down, the Tesla floor slopes down towards the back, with a kink where the seats hinge. This makes sleeping uncomfortable, and slides the occupants slowly down to the boot. One way to rectify this is to add a slightly elevated floor, that is truly horizontal. That’s where the Teraglide platform comes in. Teraglide also has a basic model, without the drawer, that isn’t as high as ours. And there are car mattresses that aren’t as thick as…
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A tea break on the Great North Road
Along the Great North Road to Wollombi, driving Mum home to Cessnock. Stopping for a cup of tea and a snack. Instant kitchen and dining, using the Teraglide.
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Great chargers, sad site, at Coolac
Time for a break and a cup of tea. The navigation says that the next EV charger is at Coolac, just north of Gundagai, so we stopped there. Wow. It’s a pretty bad. The chargers are great, simple and fast. But the site is woeful. The hotel is closed or being renovated. The toilets are port-a-loos, but are disgusting . I don’t know how much of that is due to infrequent maintenance versus just being the busiest time of year. There is a service station nearby with some food and hopefully better toilets, but it’s a ten minute walk away in the heat, and not an option for Mum’s walker. Some people were sheltering from the sun under the three tall trees begging the toilets. Not a great spot. Tesla/government really needs to ensure better location for EV chargers. We enjoyed a cup of tea from our thermoses, and some Christmas snacks (thank you Krissy). Some way further up the highway, we pulled over into Bookham, for a conveniently located toilet and a bit of a stretch in some broken shade. In…
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Sharing a lamington at the Narooma chargers
There are two ways to tell a story: 1. Embellished: The mayor of Eurobodalla Council came out to welcome us as we rolled into Narooma. 2. Reality: We pulled into the Tesla superchargers in Narooma, to grab a brief charge, and so I could finish my half of the lamington with a cup of tea. Another Tesla Model Y Juniper pulled up next to us. The driver jumped out, said he recognised our profile as “Tesla Tripping”. He introduced himself as “Matt, the Mayor”. Mathew Hatcher - Mayor Eurobodalla Shire We had a good chat about how the council has been introducing EVs into their fleet. They’re trying to figure out if the previous ICE metrics such as 100,000km before replacement, are still relevant with EVs that are lasting much longer. Nice guy. Great welcome to the area.
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Last overnight stop, in Sea Lake
Part way through one of the Silo Art trails, yesterday, the sun was setting, so we booked a room at the next town, at the Sea Lake Motel. This is our final overnight stop before driving the remaining 450km to home, today. Last night, almost everything in this small town was closed. The motel stocks refrigerated meals in a vending machine, for people like us stopping in at the last minute. Great idea. We chose a curry, microwaved it in our room, but then realised that the used by date on the two packets was months ago, even though the used by date on the outer packet was fine. We decided not to risk it, and happily made a picnic tea out of our car travel food. We informed the host, just so they knew. It’s the fault of the food company, not the host.
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Arriving early at Ayers Rock Campground
We arrived a day ahead of schedule at Ayers Rock Campground. We had booked a powered site, starting from tomorrow, but none were available tonight. The staff offered us the unpowered overflow campground area. Our original plan was to charge the car at our powered site, while also running the air conditioning and accessories. Without a powered site tonight, we had to charge up the car a bit first, so we could just run it off the giant battery. We used the auto inflate button on our Snuuzu mattress, added pillows and doona. We moved the baggage to the front seats, so the bed wasn’t obstructed. While car camping in Coober Pedy a few days ago, we discovered that even with our portable wheel ramps the car’s bed floor still leans backwards too much. So, we backed the car up a small hill as well. We used our fold up spade to fill in a couple of holes from previous campers. We set the Tesla to “camp mode”, so we could sleep in the back of the car at 20°, while it was 3° outside, overnight.…
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A waterfront picnic in Port Pirie
Arrived in Port Pirie, on our way north to Uluru. Most lunch outlets were closing, so we had a “picnic lunch” from our car fridge and food bag, by the waterfront. The giant silos backdropped the inlet with the wharf, bridge and black swans. The southern Flinders ranges in the distance might be the last mountains we see for a while. We stayed at the Comfort Inn. Basic continental breakfast included, at the on site Serenity Restaurant. Simple hot options also available.
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Driving an ICE car again, after years of EVs
Imagine driving an ICE (internal combustion engine) car for the first time, coming from EVs. April 5: We drove in a couple of ICE cars around town (Airlie Beach and Cannonvale) for a few days. It reminded me of a couple of years ago, hopping back in our Mazda CX-5, after owning an EV. Here are my observations: 1. You can’t charge it up while parked at home, or at a shopping center. You have to go to a special “fuel station” to recharge the car. You can’t just leave the car to recharge – you have to stay with it, holding the recharge nozzle. 2. It smells. And the fumes are carcinogenic. The fumes come from the nozzle, but also out of the back of the car while driving. 3. When the car has enough charge (fuel), you put the nozzle back in the pump. But then you have to walk into the service station to pay at the counter. It’s not automatic at the pump, or it’s too complicated for most people to bother that way. 4. There’s a possibility of fire. The fuel is highly flammable. And the car…
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A foodie treasure hunt in the Macedon Ranges
Off to The Macedon Ranges today, for a Mystery Adventures Picnic. It’s basically a foodie treasure hunt. Great Christmas gift, thank you Helen 😋. First stop at 3 Little Pigs Gisborne cafe, for coffee. Then, on through Watt's Fresh Woodend, Kyneton to Malmsbury, stopping along the way for a food platter, chocolates, bits, drinks and bread. Picnic at Malmsbury Botanic Gardens, with a walk to the Malmsbury Railway Viaduct.
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The final stretch of a 4000 km road trip
The final stretch of this 4000km road trip, to get home. We stayed last night in Gobbagombalin (near Wagga Wagga) with our grandson (oh, and his parents 😉). Just a couple of bakery stops, in Holbrook and Yea. The first cafe in Holbrook was closed, so we looked through the window like lost puppies. While parked, we kept the car in Camp Mode, with the air con on, to keep our camp fridge going and our food cool. No exhaust or additional heat.
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How did Marvin go while we were in Europe?
Movember: How did Marvin the Mower go, maintaining our lawn while we were away in Europe for two months? I’d like to say that he effortlessly mowed our 1500m2 lawn. But the reality wasn’t quite perfect. On the plus side: from the other side of the world, I could use the Mammotion app to mow any zones of our lawn. I could have scheduled it, but didn’t. I occasionally watched from my iPhone, through the mower’s camera, to check the grass length and also general security. It did a great job of the areas that it mowed. On the negatives: Marvin got stuck many times on the half buried round log next to the charging station. Wheels would go either side of the log, leaving Marvin floundering like a turtle, unable to touch the ground with the wheels. After returning, we “fixed” the problem by using an upturned table, and later just a block of wood. Similarly, he got stuck a few times on a raised edge (pictured). There seems to be some recent software glitch, where the mower leaves an…
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A random afternoon-tea stop, with a waterfall
First stop (on the return northbound trip) in France. Time for a break and afternoon tea, so we just looked in our general direction on the navigation map for something random worth the stop. Waterfall and cafe – perfect! This cafe’s decorations showed that Halloween is surprisingly big in random places across Europe. Crepes with sugar frosting. Mum: I think your crepes are better 😋. We spotted another EV parked there too – a Porsche Taycan, which costs about three to four times our Tesla.
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Leaving Italy via a maze of toll booths
Leaving Italy. So many toll booths, with different systems. Some give you a ticket to insert at the other end, then pay. Some require payment up front with a tap on. Some don’t do tap on, so you have to use a physical card. Different booths for different payments. We reversed out of a few. Not a fan. After that, we turned on “Avoid Toll Roads” in the navigation. The most expensive toll of the whole trip was leaving Italy through a long tunnel to France. This toll booth was actually staffed. When he said “€55”, I asked “Is that just for this road?” Yes it was. The cafe had very little. We settled for a croissant and cuppa. We passed on the pokies. French/Italian alps along the way. Beautiful scenery.
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A coastal stretch in Lerici
We headed north from Lucca, stopping on the coast at the little town of Lerici, for a cuppa and a stretch. The toilet at the cafe was just a seat over a hole in the floor, so we looked elsewhere. The public toilet required coins, but after coins failed, a local told just that you can just open the door. BYO toilet paper.
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A breakfast disappointment in Amnéville
A brief journey through the north east of France. We stayed last night in Hotel Marso, in Amnéville. We paid to have brekky buffet there, but it was disappointing. We made some cuppas from our thermos at the Tesla before leaving. Along the way, for lunch we popped into the small French town of Lure. The cappuccino came with cream, which turned out to be “heaven” (quoting Francis). The staff’s English was only slightly better than my French (which is about six words). So, we relied on Google Translate to pick from the menu. But even then, when I thought I was ordering the five veg pizza, I ended up with something with meat. Still delicious. Lovely staff.
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Out of power… in our accommodation
It finally happened. We ran out of power. No electricity available… in our accommodation. Oh, did you think I meant we couldn’t charge our car? No, it’s fine. Our accommodation – a cabin park in the town of Knokke, Belgium – provided an EV destination charger. 100m up the road was an Esso fuel station that includes fast chargers and on the big price sign out the front lists the electricity cost per kWh along side the petrol and diesel costs per litre. And slightly up from that, the BMW dealer has an EV charger out the front. So many options. I spotted an electric van in one of the suburban streets. What I meant was, our cabin had no power. We couldn’t boil a kettle, but we managed to use the last drops from our thermos to make a cuppa. We couldn’t heat food. We survived, and mostly laughed it off. The manager arrived some time later and was very helpful and apologetic. She gave us a free breakfast hamper to compensate. We had a bunch of other minor hurdles that added to the comedic…
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Lunch at La Place, watching wind turbines
Stopped for lunch at La Place. Tasty fresh food and smoothies. Cruising along the highways we see many wind turbines, and some coal power stations. Each wind turbine takes a very small piece of land, and can be surrounded by cows, picnic areas etc. The coal plants sit in a bit of an industrial waste land. Coal pits poor toxic dust into the air, and burning it creates more. It’s great to see the transition away from the polluting fossil fuels.
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Earning $200 from the grid in a day
Today we earned over $200 for supplying electricity to the grid! We’re in Emerald, Victoria. We chose Amber Electric as our energy retailer, since they pass on the wholesale electricity price, which can change every few minutes. You have to be a bit of an energy nerd (like me), but you can make money from supplying power to the grid during peak demand, and even get paid to use power during high supply. Knowing the price is high makes you acutely aware of consumption, preferring to instead be paid to export. Boil water for a cup of tea, or get paid 20c? Okay, not quite that extreme. 😉 A cold morning and evening (high energy demand), combined with not enough cheap renewables in the grid, means it’s powered mostly by fossil fuel (gas and coal). The wholesale electricity price spikes, which pays a small fortune to anyone who can supply some power, including power companies, and householders who have a battery 🔋💰. If you’re an energy nerd and want to try Amber’s wholesale electricity…
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Dog Mode, for Clare the visitor
Dog Mode engaged. We’re minding our sister Helen’s dog, Clare, for a few days. Our cat, Archie initially hissed a few times at the interloper, but seems to have now accepted (or at least tolerated) her. We took this fine old doggie out for a drive to Loch. We limited the G forces of acceleration and cornering so as not to plaster her on the back seat. We had a delicious lunch with friends at the Loch & Key cafe, while Clare slept in the car, in air conditioned Dog Mode comfort. We checked on her a few times using the in-cabin Sentry Mode camera. Then out for a long walk around the town of Loch.
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Hillside Walk at Gembrook Park
Tall gums, many wombat holes, dense bush opening up along the hillside and picnic areas.
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A 10 km loop to Cockatoo and back
Time for some exercise. We walked along the East Dandenong Ranges Trail, which passes through Emerald Lake Park, just down the road from our home. We walked to Cockatoo, about a 10km round trip. Lots to see along the way, including Puffing Billy Railway, tall fern trees and eucalypts, bridges, numerous fairy doors and even a couple of dinosaurs. The staff at Brunch on McBride in Cockatoo kindly made us a cuppa and sandwich, ten minutes before closing. We debated whether to catch a bus back home, but it seems you need a Myki card, and can’t just tap on with a phone credit card (like we could in NSW). The walk back was beautiful, but the few hills were testing.
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Sad news at Cann River: Squire's Cafe is gone
Stopped for cuppa, cake and a break at Cann River. Sad to see that Squire’s Cafe burnt down in the past few weeks. Cann River Bakery was very busy. When we returned to the car, a retired couple were looking at the Chargefox charger (next to the Tesla Supercharger we were using). They were wondering how the whole EV thing worked. I explained that we just plug into the Tesla Supercharger and walk away. Or with the other brands, we plug in, then tap a card or a button in an app, and walk away. They asked a lot of questions. They’re thinking about getting an EV for running around town. I explained that they can just plug the car into any power point at home, and charge from their home solar panels. Onward west through Gippsland. Stopped in Bairnsdale for a quick lunch and rest stop. Then finally to home in Emerald, Victoria.
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Returning Mum to Cessnock
After brief meetups with some family on the NSW Central Coast, we returned Mum home to Cessnock. After a cuppa and a couple of odd jobs we said goodbye. The three of us had a blast on our EV road trip from Cessnock NSW to Emerald Victoria and back again. Finally, we drove east to Newcastle, to stay at 291 on King. It’s a bit fancy but welcoming. I walked down the road to grab takeaway dinner from Bella Italia.
Formerly: Tesla Tripping
Come along on our EV road trips around Australia and Europe, and follow as we progressively electrify our home in Emerald, Victoria.
Join us on the road. We set off in late 2022 and drove eastern Australia in our Tesla Model 3 — Sydney, Dubbo, Armidale, Brisbane, Cape Tribulation, then down through Queensland and back. We've since upgraded to a Model Y.
We've kept exploring — Uluru, the Snowy Mountains and Gippsland, and a longer run through Europe in 2024. There's plenty more on the map, so come along for the next leg.
At home in Emerald, in Victoria's Dandenong Ranges, we're progressively electrifying everything: rooftop solar, a home battery, a hot water heat pump, air conditioned heating and cooling, and EV charging straight from the sun. We're going fully electric, off the gas.
Got questions, or insights of your own? We'd love to hear them — please drop a comment on any post.