A quick swim after breakfast before the day got too hot and before Lachlan and Justine came to collect boys and shuffle cars for Janice and Rauri.
Janice returned to Berry to take delivery of chooks from a friend on Camberwarra Mountain before they evacuated. The day got hotter but at least here we only got up to 37C. The coastal breezes kept it more comfortable than further inland.
Lots of indoor games. We packed our important bags and had them lined up ready to throw in the car if we had to evacuate in a hurry. We even abstained from alcohol today for fear that at any time we might have to drive out.
Late in the afternoon we went for a dip in the river and the girls did lots of practice standing and balancing on their surf boards.
The clouds were quite stunning by the time we got back home and Geoff was able to get a video of the fire-generated storm and lightning strike. Just click on the image below and be patient.
Time for dinner and bed but just as we were getting into bed Geoff got an alert saying there was a fire just 3 km south of us. As the forecast southerly change had hit this put us on edge.
Although the fire was extinguished quickly it was a bit disconcerting so Geoff slept on the lounge with the door open and we all slept downstairs where we were cooler and able to confer if anything happened.
Not much sound sleep though we did all snatch naps here and there.
Sunday 5 January 2020
We woke late to a cool morning and feeling a little seedy from our disturbed night. We could not face a swim and instead went to the cafe for breakfast then a long walk around the headland on the rock platform. My car by this stage was absolutely filthy with ash and dust.
We were astounded by the amount of ash and burnt and dead gum leaves on the strand line. In places it was almost 30cm deep.
The ash felt so light and dry. It was quite extraordinary.
At noon I picked up Elaine at Gerringong Station. We went up to do some shopping and grab some lunch then returned home to Gerroa for a quiet afternoon, a bit of a walk and for Ivy and Geoff to go on an adventure up river on his paddle board.
We felt relaxed enough about fires to open our last bottle of French Champagne for this trip.
After slowing down with some jig saw we all headed to bed quite early as we were still tired from the previous night.
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