Road Trip!

Thursday, 25 October – Lakes Entrance

We traced the track of our previous Phillip Island trip two years ago heading south through the Monaro region and down the eastern cost of Victoria, this time breaking the journey with a night at Lakes Entrance.

First up – coffee!  The Belz Cafe in Nimmitabel doing a roaring trade across the road from the long time established Bakery.  I’ve had coffee at the Bakery in the past 😦  No wonder the Belz is so busy.  A cafe is only as good as it’s coffee and service!

And so was the Bacon and Egg Roll 🙂

Already there were sightings of bikers on their way south.  It’s like an annual migratory stream of bikes heading south.  The further south we went, the more bikes.

A brief stop at Orbost for a cuppa – I had way too much energy!

Lakes Entrance

Staying at the Esplanada Spa and Resort – the largest hotel complex in Lakes Entrance.  It was comfy.  After sitting in a car all day, I was ready for a long walk before dinner.  Jeff, not so much, but he rallied and we headed along the Esplanade taking in the sights of boats and across the bridge to see the beach.

We found a french restaurant for dinner!!  It was a warm up for France next year and we certainly weren’t disappointed.  Good french cooking.

Froggy’s Bistro, Lakes Entrance

• Veal Blanquette with Trumpet Mushroom Sauce
• Poisson de Jure (Rockling) with Provencale Sauce
• Peach Melba – OK, not so French but it sounded good.

Friday, 25 October – Inveloch

A fairly early start, heading to Leongatha, stopping for our morning coffee at Bairnsdale.  Chose the Paper Chase Cafe but were a little disappointed.  Atmosphere great, coffee not so great.

A family day with a visit to Grant and Cynthia’s home in Leongatha for lunch.  This was the first time I had met them and it was a great chance for Jeff to catch up with his older brother.  Cynthia is currently undergoing cancer treatment so no lavish lunch.  Grant kept apologising as he, just like Jeff, is the cook of the house and proud of it.  That didn’t stop up from enjoying a fun lunch of pizza with a glass of red, sitting around the table like old friends.

It was only another 20 minutes on to Inveloch, our accommodation for the next three nights.  A warm and cosy one bedroom townhouse, walking distance to all the important things in town – the pubs, supermarket and cafes.

Inveloch Beach

The tradition (set by Jeff and his good friend Ralph over many years) was Friday night dinner at the Inlet Hotel.  A crowded place on a MotoGP weekend and the food is very good.

• Battered Flathead and Chips for Jeff
• Veggie Stack for me

Saturday, 27 October – Philip Island

A cold day for Day 1 of the MotoGP.  We arrived at 10.00am and set off to the left of the course.  An overcast day with only a small shower in the afternoon.  Food wise we had a Dahl & Rice from the Indian tent around lunch time (it was OK) but the Greek spicy lamb from the other side of the track in the afternoon was delicious.

An easy get away from the track at the end of the day made for a relaxing dinner.  Jeff had brought one of his very hearty Beef Cheek dishes, accompanied with boiled potato and asparagus which we enjoyed back at the townhouse with a glass of red.

Sunday, 28 October – Phillip Island

A very early start to get to the gate before opening at 8.00am.  We managed to secure a fantastic position track side right on the fence and set ourselves up for the day in a spot where we had a panoramic view of the track plus could see the ocean.  The sun was out but it was still cold during the morning.

Coffee and jam donuts for morning tea – hey, it’s the MotoGP!

An aerial display at lunch time by the Airforce PC-21s.   A bit of a weak show (disappointing).

We shared a Kaisar Spicy Sausage for lunch – it was really good, with lots of chilli (I love chilli).

The afternoon warmed up enough to take off our coats!  And sunblock was needed after burnt faces from the wind on Saturday.

A great main race.

Two and a half hours to leave the carpark and get off Phillip Island at the end of a long day was a little hard to take.  We made it back to Inveloch after 8.00pm and managed to beg some pizzas from the Pizza Shop as they were closing.

Two tired people.

Jeff & Catherine xx