Day 35: Junee

There’s something to be said for sleeping in the car.  Clean up in the mornings goes a lot quicker when you’re not so comfortable.  When we sleep in the car, we’re on the road by about 8 every morning.  When we stay at a Caravan Park, we’re pushing to get out by 10—which is check out time.  This morning was no different. 

We headed into town and were almost immediately distracted by the RAAF—Royal Australian Air Force—base that was just right next door to the Caravan Park.  Even though we’d just piled into cars, we let the kids pile right back out and play around the great airplanes they had displayed.  All the kids were having a ball!

When we finally did make it into town we were on a mission to try and find π² a duster, just like his Papi’s.  We were probably in a different shop than the one π bought his in 20 years ago, but we found them at Aussie Disposals!  Sadly, he didn’t earn enough money for a Driz-a-bone brand coat, so we looked at the other brand there—still a good coat, just not the same one his Dad has.  Alas, it wasn’t meant to be.  They didn’t have the right size for him so he “settled” for a Kangaroo-leather Bharma hat.  We met a great guy, David, at the shops and he gave us some great advice about our trip.  I can’t get over how nice everyone is up this way!

We had so much fun at the shops that we didn’t get out of Wagga Wagga until around 1:00.  The kids loved being able to cross the street diagonally!  The stop lights have 3 cycles, the North/South traffic, the East/West traffic then the pedestrian traffic.  It was super fun and we ended up crossing the street a lot more than we needed to just to cross like that!

When we got to Junee, π was too excited to eat so we started our quest to find the Harbrows.  We rooked up to a little second hand shop and asked the older lady at the counter if she knew them.  Of course she did!  This is a little town like Beaver, UT where everyone knows everyone.  As a matter of fact, this lady lives right down the street from them.   She looked up the number for us and we gave Joy a call.

 Wary at first but warming when she understood who I was, she invited us over.  It was so neat getting to meet a person who I’ve heard stories of for the last 20 years.  Neater still was how sweet and accommodating she was.  She let the kids play with the toys in her yard while we visited for a bit.  She was so lovely, it’s no wonder π’s remembered his time with her family so fondly for all these years.

On our way out of town we thought we’d stop at the train museum really quickly and just take a look.  I don’t know if I should say that was a good idea or a bad idea!  Three and a half hours later we had three new friends, Janet and Paul and their grandson Riley and the kids know all about how a steam engine works and they had the best time exploring all the trains in the museum.

 Paul was so patient and kind with the kids—they still hadn’t eaten lunch and they were so excited about getting to climb in and actually explore the old trains that they were a bit wild.  As they ran in and out and up and down each engine, Paul taught π, π² and I all about each one, when it was built, what it was used for etc. 

The most fascinating one for me was the crane train.  The US sent 5 of these to Oz in the 1940’s to aid in the war effort.  Oz wasn’t able to repair their trains fast enough to get supplies to the troops so the US sent these to help.  After the war, Australia didn’t have the money to pay for all of them.  They kept 2 and sent 3 of them back.  According to Paul, the US really didn’t want them back so half way home they “accidentally” got dropped into the ocean.  One of the two remaining cranes was dismantled and sold off for parts so this is the only one left in existence.  It’s rated at 50 (500?) tons yet there are photos of it lifting a 75 (750?) ton engine.  I am still riveted by the idea of watching that! 

This has been such a fun, productive day!  We’ve thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and only Mama is having a hard time reconciling the time with our schedule.  If we make it to tour Sydney, we make it.  If not, we don’t.  It’s as simple as that.  For now, we’re eating hot dogs in the rain at the park in Junee before we head out towards Katoomba.

Interesting how things work out, isn’t it?  Had we kept to the plan today, we would have headed to Katoombra via the highway—just like google maps is telling us to.  We would have missed seeing Austin because he was transferred to the tiny town of Cowra—which is 2 hours off the highway.  But we met Paul who told us the best way to Katoombra from Junee is through the inland road which goes right through Cowra.  We’re just two hours from where Austin is serving!  We’ll pack up dinner here in a minute and head that way and see where the rest of the day/night’s adventures lead us! 

Day 27: Cole Clark Guitars and Driz-a-Bone

Needing some one on one time, we took the bigs out for a day of exploration.  Papa told us to check out Cole Clark Guitars and Uncle Lyle told us about Maton Guitars so we thought we'd make a day of it.

Maton only does tours on the second Thursday and they don't make any exceptions.  Cole Clark, on the other hand, were incredibly accommodating.  They scheduled us at our earliest convenience, they rescheduled when we had a conflict come up--they were fantastic!

When we got there, Lloyd Spiegel was there to give us a tour.  (Lloyd, it was supposed to be Roy--got the names mixed!)  As he told us the history of Cole Clark Guitars we quickly realized that this guy was someone special.  He's toured just about everywhere with just about every famous blues singer there is.  The one that stood out for me was BB King.  So here's this famous guitarist giving us a tour of this incredible guitar shop.  It was unbelievable!

So they build a pick up bar into the face of the guitar to pick up the sound that the face of the guitar makes.

They've redone the way the supports have been done for thousands of years to accommodate the pick ups and to improve the sound of a 'plugged in' guitar.  Notice how the neck isn't just glued on to the top of the body but runs clear into the shoulders of the guitar.  This gives the guitar a more 'together' sound.  It was really neat!

We got to see every stage of production.  These guitars are unique because of the way the pick ups are built in to the guitar from the very beginning stages.  I love it when modern technology is able to preserve traditional beauty while meeting the needs of modern society!  These pick ups retain the incredible sound of the acoustic guitar but lets you plug in to an amp and have the volume needed to be heard by a big group.

This is the machine that does all the pre-fab cutting.  It's HUGE. Also they have to have a CAD engineer who can program the machines--I never realized there was a job that would require wood working skills, artistic talent and computer programming!  This would be the coolest job!  Lloyd told us of the genius they have that keeps their shops running.  One time one of the machines broke down so he made a CAD program for the other machine to cut the part needed to fix the other machine until the new part could be shipped from somewhere in Europe or somewhere.  Too cool! 

You can't see the pick up that's placed under the bridge to pick up the sounds there.  Then there's a microphone in the neck (I think? Lloyd?)  So there's 3 different pick ups that help the sound be as acoustic as possible when the instrument is plugged in.  So fascinating!

This is the part of the factory that burned down--the timber dryer!  It's all rebuilt now and slowly coming back online!

This is the guy actually placing the abalone inlay in place!

Their guitars are made out of Tasmanian Blackwood, Queensland Maple and several other totally Australian timbers.

 Lloyd did a much better job of explaining it then I did, and you can check them out on coleclarkguitars.com or on FaceBook or, if you're in town, call and book a tour.  Their shop burned down in September of 2013 yet they're bouncing back stronger than ever--it was really great to see the progress they've made since their catastrophe.  The only part of the guitar not made with authentic Aussie bits are the strings! Totally unique in all the world.

Our 30-40 minute tour lasted well over 2 and a half hours and when we realized what time it was we were shocked that the time had gone by so quickly!  We enjoyed ourselves immensely and now we all can't wait to save up for a Cole Clark guitar!

 Lloyd was a wonderful host who taught us so much today and inspired us to one day own a Cole Clark Guitar.  We can't thank him enough for this memorable experience!  And for the new goal we have of becoming owners of a Cole Clark Angel guitar!  (Sorry about the pic Sean!  Should have had him take another one!)

After that we made our way to the Driz-a-Bone factory to get π a new riding coat.  We ended up with a 3/4 length one because they had it in green and it just looked so cool!  I love that he was able to get another Driz-a-bone!  (Shh don't tell é but I think he's getting his old one for his birthday when we get home!! I don't know which one I'm more excited about!!)

The five of us stopped for a pizza and just really enjoyed some 'small family' time then made our way back to Cathy's during rush hour traffic.  I could tell we've been here for awhile when I didn't panic as I turned into bumper to bumper traffic 3 km before the freeway.  I made my way without breaking a sweat all the way back to Pakenham!  So proud of myself!!  I don't know what I'd do without the GPS though! haha

Another incredible day.  It's no wonder we're so exhausted at the end of each and every night.  Tomorrow we're off to the Healsville Sanctuary!

PS  Did you see what I learned to do today?!  I can now add links to my blog posts!  I know I know, I'm a savant!