We decided to take the inland road back to Canberra. This meant driving up a very steep incline over the Great Dividing Range.  Not far from the summit  is  a rest area, where we and a number of others stopped to take a break from drive and take in the spectacular views back over  the valley.

The township of Cooma is situated in the southern highlands of New South Wales on the Snowy Mountains highway. approximatel 120 km south of Canberra.The population numbers around 8000.

Cooma is 800 m (2,600 ft) above sea level.

There is a lot to see in and around Cooma and one of the local attractions is the Cooma Monaro tourist Railway.  The CMR uses CPH Railmotors and provides rides  to Chakola – 19 kms form Cooma plus there are other services that go to the Snowy Junction and Bunyan. 

Also take time to visit the Snowy River Hydro Information Centre to find out all about the Snowy River Scheme.

Then it’s onto Canberra via the Monaro Highway. The trip seems much shorter than the way we went down to Eden and before long we are back home. 

After a quick cup of tea we hop back into the car and head of down to Eden.

We are becoming really brave as we have not booked a hotel for the night, deciding instead to see what we can find when we arrive.We drive to the end of town, down the one main street, and finally decide to check into the Twofold Bay Motor Inn.

It appears to be relatively new and everything is in the room is very clean and tidy and at $110 for the night, it is very reasonably priced. So we unpack the car and head off for a look around the town.

We have dinner at the local club which is situated across the road from the motel. The table is situated in pleasant surroundings overlooking the water and we dined on the local delicacy of fish and chips.

Eden was once a whaling town and legend has it that a group of killer whales named old Tom, Hooky, Humpy and Stranger would herd the baleen whales into Twofold Bay. This group would return each year during the whaling season and they were identified by individual special markings. The killer whales would alert the whalers that there was a whale in the vicinity by thrashing the water with their tails – “flop-tailing” as it is known. Once a whale was harpooned some of the killer whales would roll over its blowhole to stop it breathing while others would swim beneath it to prevent it sounding.

In reward for this service the killer whales would take the tongue and lips as a reward and leave the carcass for the whalers to bring ashore. Whaling from Twofold Bay continued until the last whale was taken in 1928. Old Tom’s body was found in Twofold Bay on 17th September, 1930 and his ORCA skeleton is now on exhibition in the ‘Davidson Gallery’ at the Eden Killer Whale Museum.

Eden no longer participates in whaling however the whaling museum gives a detailed account of the towns previous activities and is well worth a visit.

Whale watching is a fascinating pastime and the whales can be seen off the shore during their twice yearly migration. There are local cruises available for those who wish to venture out and see these magnificent creatures close at hand.

Eden has a thriving fishing industry and the fleet operates out of Snug Cove. There is also a timber industry in Eden and there is a display of logging and milling operations at the visitors centre on the southern side of Twofold bay.

There are plenty of activities in and around Eden, such as bushwalking, swimming, surfing, sailing, squash, tennis, golf and bowls.Mound Imlay gives a fantastic view of the Sapphire Coast to the north, the Victorian border to the south and the plains of the Snowy Monaro region to the west.

Plus there is a great range of accommodation and plenty of shops and eateries.

This weeks Blog of the Week is

‘Flower Girl’s Rural India’

I have a fascination with India and hope to one day visit it. I have some friends who have just returned from Goa and they have been to India a number of times. Their stories are always filled with interesting anecdotes. So when I found this great blog I was more than happy to while away some time reading about Sidhu’s India.

Sindhu’s blog is full of interesting pictures and facts about the customs and traditions of rural India. She includes the mythology behind the festivals.

Her blog finished in 16th position in the Bloggers Choice Awards for 2007.

I particularly enjoyed reading about Diwali – The Festival of Lights but there are many interesting posts and she also has Indian recipes that you might like to try.