We've lined up a great adventure for Wednesday June 5 -- a 24-seater bus tour of the Werribee Sewerage Works and the wetlands birdlife, a talk by staff, and lunch at the nearby Commercial Hotel. Depart Dock Library 9am, back by 3.15pm. Cost is $36 per head for the bus, $18 pp for tour, plus whatever you want to spend on lunch ($20-30). Guests welcome, first come first served. Payment of $54 pp for bus and tour needed with acceptance, please direct debit to the club account detailed in your emailed invitation.
Seven Bearbrass walkers spent an educational morning strolling through the contoured pathways and gardens of the heritage-listed Boroondara General Cemetery.
Led by Richard B. on March 15, the party found such remarkable features as the memorial to Age publisher David Syme (1908) with its Egyptian motifs on the temple.
Then there was Dr John Springthorpe's affecting temple to his wife Annie, who died in childbirth of their fourth child in 1897 (who survived). The memorial - with serpent-head gargoyles at each corner, was built over the four years to 1901. The statue of an angel was by the famed sculptor Bertram Mackennal. This site's architecture, with its ruby-glass roof, is said to be the most noteworthy grave in Australia. Strangely, we could find no mention there of Annie's name, though we found she was born on the 26th day of January 1867, married on January 26, 1887 and buried on January 26, 1897.
We also came across the grave of the colourful bookmaker John Wren (1851–1953), whose career was fictionalised by Frank Hardy's Power Without Glory, and a president of the Collingwood Football Club.
We were intrigued by the memorial to Dr Thomas Serrell (1849-91), featuring on top a lifelike statue of his faithful greyhound named Malvern.
While a sad place (and still in use), the cemetery is beautiful parkland decked with weeping elms and cypresses, and Canary Island pines. Most of us cheered up with coffee and cake at the old Post Office café nearby.
The challenge was to check out and identify six red varieties from the same winery label - the bottles modestly clad in white non-see-through wrappers.
While there were some successes, involving noses, tongues and palates, most choices were a matter of random good luck. To ensure no perfect scores, Mike included his mystery wine (Number 4) which was Grenache-Shiraz-Mourvedre, to universal bafflement.
The mystery wine brand was Taylors, and wines ranged from Tasmanian pinot noir to Clare Valley cab-sav, priced at $25-40.
Bearbrass celebrated Christmas with a cruise from Docklands to Port Melbourne and beyond aboard the MV Calypso Lady. The theme was Gilligan's Island, a TV series from the 1960s and we costumed up big-time, especially member Bill in a fetching sailor-boy outfit. Others sported naval caps and accoutrements. Many of our ladies took their characters to heart and there were more "Ginger" redheads with plaits than you could shake a shashlik at. It was a perfect day with views of a host of cargo vessels and container depots, along with a giant cruise liner at Station Pier. The boat crew provided a lavish lunch with so much fruit that many members returned home carting bags of cherries and watermelons. We enjoyed a trivia quiz on board and regressed to pass the parcel and other scenes of our childhoods. Congrats to all who took the initiative to organise a watery voyage and so much fun on board.
Mechanics wheeled out a battery starter to his beautiful Mustang with its shark-tooth nose. The 12-cylinder Packard Merlin engine burst into life with its 1200HP roaring and a puff of blue smoke. Jason sat for a while with canopy open, ensuring engine pressures and temperature were OK. Then he swung the iconic fighter around onto the strip – blowing away a few hats from the prop-wash. The engine blared and the prop howled as the tips neared the sound barrier, then his Mustang was into the air and climbing for its first pass across our small party’s sightline.
He followed with a loop putting 4G stress on his body – as if it weighed more than 300kg. Several more passes and rolls, then a waggle of wings as he waved us ‘goodbye’. Watch him go here!
The oldest plane there was a replica 1913 Bristol Boxkite aircraft that was actually flown 100 years later at Point Cook with former Air Force Test Pilot Air Vice Marshal Mark Skidmore (retired) at the controls. “Considering it’s mainly wood wire and cloth, Mark was a brave airman,” said Norm. We attach a video of the flight below, in case you don’t believe Norm.
912 Collins Street
Docklands, VIC 3008
Australia