From Wet Misery at Kurth Kiln to Glorious Mount Samaria

After two nights and days sheltering from the rain in the sodden forests of Kurth Kiln we decided to make a run for it. Having got an internet connection in the small, attractive (well it would have been if the sun was shining) village of Gembrook, I got a weather forecast. A band of wet and stormy weather stretched from Darwin right down through Australia to Victoria – which was getting the worst of it and of course where we were camped. This band of weather was moving eastwards, we wouldn’t be able to outrun it so we decided to sneak in behind it as it moved towards the coast. We packed up in the wet and fled towards dry weather not unhappy to leave our Kurth Kiln campsite behind us (see first photo)

Kurth Kiln however had an interesting history – the Kiln in question was named after Professor Kurth who, in the early 1940’s during wartime petrol rationing, developed a process that could make cars run on charcoal (I jest not) A large charcoal burner, weighing up to 200kg, was attached to the back of a car (see photo) When charcoal was burned it produced carbon monoxide which, when cooled, filtered then mixed with air would explode thus running the internal combustion engine. The car was started on petrol then switched to charcoal. Kurth Kiln was the site where trees from the surrounding forests were converted to charcoal for this process – the kiln has been restored and there are some rusting examples of the charcoal burning engines. Around 58,000 cars were converted in this way. One problem was knowing when to re-fuel i.e. when to tip some more charcoal into the burner. The only way to do this was to open the top of the burner and have a look, a dangerous task as, with the addition of more air, there was frequently a small explosion. It was apparently said that you could always spot the driver of one of these converted vehicles as they usually had no eyebrows or other facial hair!

Heading northwards we stopped at Healesville for brunch then aimed for the small village of Eildon in the Eildon National park. The park itself was beautiful with high mountain tracks through forests with magnificent views over the mountains and Lake Eildon – but we decided not to stay. Leaving Eildon we headed further north on the Maroondah Highway passing the Strathbogie Ranges (where Ned Kelly and his Gang were known to hide out) then stopping briefly at Bonnie Doon for a quick reality check – it really was called Bonnie Doon! And, being on the northern shores of Lake Eildon, there were even a few Banks and Braes.

By this time the miracle had occurred – the rain had stopped and the sun had emerged.

Arriving at Mount Samaria State Park near the small town of Mansfield we set about looking for somewhere to camp. Following a dirt road for a few kilometres then crossing a swollen creek, we found a likely looking track disappearing into the forest. However, after a few k, we decided the area was none too attractive and the track was starting to disappear so a U-turn was required. Bad move, or at least a bad place to do a U-y, I hadn’t noticed the big hole! There we were again with the front of the car on its axles down a hole with the rear pointing to the heavens - thank goodness for four wheel drive. Locking the hubs and engaging low ratio I eventually managed to ease us out of the hole – throughout all this Sandra kept on knitting without even dropping a stitch!

Backtracking – literally – we found an open, grassy glade at the edge of the forest beside a creek. With the sun still shining the place was idyllic and Sandra, upon whom the travelling and bad weather was taking its toll, decided this was the place to stop for a few days. So we set up a full camp including her studio tent (which doubles as a formal dining room in the evenings) and, three days later, we are still here. Sandra has been finishing off her craft stuff to sell at the Christmas markets in Sydney including two new product lines – wire bracelets and wire butterflies.

PS There have been no comments on the blog for several weeks. This of course could be that no one has bothered to get in touch - or it could be I need to do something to the software. Could someone out there please drop a comment to test the system. Thanks.