Day 46 - Sunday 12 February - On to Adelaide

DAY 46

SUNDAY

12 February 2017 – Melbourne 84 v Wildcats 96 – Yippeee! Into the finals for the 31^st year in a row

Clare Valley – Adelaide

The cool has arrived and there was a little rain spattering at our van overnight. Paul didn’t sleep well as a family party of 50 people dragged on to 2am, I of course was oblivious to it all.

It was a slower start to the day, but we were in no hurry. Once jammed into gear we had our morning routine complete and we were on the move once again, heading towards Adelaide.

I read the caravan park books to help make a decision on where to head and then we followed the directions for an hour and a half until we pulled into a quiet suburban park in Windsor Gardens, just 7km from central Adelaide.

Letting the owner know we needed some internal repairs on our water pump in the shower, he gave us a card of a guy who will come to us to fix it, you beauty! We unhitched the car and manoeuvred our van into its spot between large gum trees. The park is situated on the River Torrens, though at this end it is more a creek than a river. The park is full of what I would say are full time residents, which makes the place quiet. There is however very little to this park, no rec room, TV or internet, unless you want to pay $12 a day! Guess you pay for what you get.

Once we were settled in and had lunch, Paul rang Chris, the caravan fixer and organised for him to come out tomorrow. I found a pub close by with a sports bar for watching the cats match, we got in the car and made our way there. Confirming they were playing Fox, we opted to wander the neighbourhood to pass the hour before the start.  It is much like Osborne Park at home with light industrial near the homes. We went through Bunnings and a few other places, noting a caravan service centre, just in case Chris can’t fix our problem.

By 2.15pm we were back at the Windsor Hotel and settled in ready for the all important match against Melbourne, the final game of the this very tight regular season, that would see us or New Zealand make the finals with Adelaide and Cairns. The enormity of the game showed on the Cats players who were tense and nervous to begin, but they found their stride in the second half and pulled away from Melbourne to win in the end by 2 points after being up by 11 late in the game. You little beauty. The players’ relief was obvious with fist pumps and hugs all round. They will be glad to not be the first playing group to break our record of 30 straight finals appearances.

With happy smiles we made our way back to the van and opted to take the 5km return walk along the Torrens River. We spoke to some regulars before we left who let us know that there are often koalas in the trees lining the river. With that knowledge I spent most of the walk craning my neck keeping a lookout, but unfortunately saw none.  The walk was very pleasant though and just what we needed.

When we returned I sorted dinner while Paul read his book. After we had eaten he suggested a drive to the beach. I am so loving daylight saving, which gives us light until 9pm. Using my phone we looked up where Adelaide 36ers play and headed to the Titanium Security Arena first. We think we will go and see them play Illawarra on Thursday.

Once we had found the court we headed on to Grange Beach. I couldn’t decide if it was Cottesloe, Scarborough or Mullaoo like, either way it was a great little spot to take a seaside walk out to the Grange Jetty and watch the sun go down as I took photos with the other half a dozen photographers.

It was pretty cool down here and as Paul didn’t have his jumper we didn’t stay for long, deciding to head back to the van about a 20 min drive. When we were back it was dark. I sat and worked on the photos that I hadn’t done yesterday and by 10.30pm it was time to call it a night.