Just Back From Echuca

[thewharfonline]

Hey fellow PD's!

I'm just back from another trip up to Echuca!
This time I spent four days...well almost four...up there! I arrived on one, worked two and left halfway through the fourth!

So what did I get up to I hear you say!...well actually as I am writing this before you'll read it I'm having to assume, and technically I'm probably wrong, you just want to read the article and now you're probably begging me to get on with it...

ok....

On the first day we arrived at 10:40am and we didn't think that we'd go on a  cruise, but, the Alexander Arbuthnot was running, so I got my new Video Camera and we hopped on, it was the first time I'd been on an A.A cruise! We went upstream and I got some great footage! I also took a look down at the Hero. They were preparing for the engine to be installed this week. Saftey valves and throttle and a few other tid bits along with bits of piping were being installed. The Hero as such was crawling with people all weekend.

The second day I went off to work in my almost period/dirty work clothes! The A.A was again running as the Pev was undergoing a boiler inspection so I was working in the cramped conditions of the A.A! But it was an excellent day! By the end of it I had learned how to tie a few knots, and operate the A.A's engine! Not to mention I know exactly how it works...and I did that all by myself. Yes I got to make it go back and forwards and I learnt what to do at the end of the day as we wound down the engine and I learned about pumps and...yes very exciting! I also bought a book on steam engineering, which is fantastic!

The next day I was back on the Pev...but not allowed in the engine room because of the risk of part of the boiler blowing up, insurance issues...meh nothing happened although the manhole fizzed! So I continued learning knots and we worked on my incredibly annoying and time wasting log book! meh!

So today I was leaving and went to say goodbye and pick up a DVD I'd left there last time when a steam wagon and two traction engines decide to play around in the street- just my luck! So I hitched a ride on the Fowler and then we got some lunch and we left Merry Olde Echuca! Hopefully though I will return for the Heritage Festival at the start of October!

I'll post some photos soon when I download them off the camera and I might make a short movie to post as well!

[thewharfonline]

Here are the photos I promised! They were taken by my sister, some have too much digital zoom, which makes them blury, please excuse this!
Any questions feel free to ask!

[derekwarner_decoy]

Hi PD's - great :kewl Sean - don't blame sister Jane - I think the very very little amount of BLURINESS is great & your photographs are better than a million words

Our OZ paddlers were and are still certainly unique &

thanks for sharing your snaps with our PD group   -  Derek

[thewharfonline]

Actually they didn't turn out so bad on here, it's when you view them full screen on computers that they are a bit fuzzy! A thousand words...lol sounds like school essays at the moment...maybe I should just submit pictures lol!

Me in the wheel house and on deck not in the red flannel jacket is during my lunchbreak! They cook meals on the old wood stove, but because I'm a fussy eater I pack my own, however we didn't have anything for that day so mum and my sister came down to give me my treats and then hung around for some photos and a cruise!

Me in the flannel jacket waving is on the cruise before they gave me lunch, we're approaching the wharf and the picture was taken from it!

Unfortunately they covered bits of hero engine up pretty quick so I didn't get any photos of that, but you can see paint wise how she's going!

The green thing on the Pev is once again new...and it has side flaps! I really don't like it, she's looking more and more like a tourist boat and the whole point of the Port compared to Murray River Paddlesteamer is that the Port has the authentic look while MRP carries the new, cool, passenger friendly fleet!

I don't know if I posted a low river shot..I think I did...but you might notice a two foot difference in water level since I was last up in Echuca!

So there are some of those thousands of words that accompany the pictures!