The Hunter Valley

Yesterday I had the pleasure of driving Caroline and 3 other ladies around the Hunter Valley. Something I was praised for more then once by the people working at the wineries. And now I know why. (Just kidding) It is a world renowned wine region with over a hundred wineries (?). And that is exactly the reason why I was driving as I never learned to get an appreciation for wine.

It is a beautiful part of New South Wales only 2 hrs outside of Sydney. We managed to visit about six vineyards and have a 1 hour picnic on one of the vineyards grounds where the ladies sampled 2 bottles of sparkling wine and we sampled the region's local cheeses on crackers before heading back to Sydney. It was a surprisingly scenic drive and although I wasn't drinking (when I drive I am a teetotaller) I had a great time. The highlight of the day for me was when I was able to rescue this huge Blue Tongue lizard on the driveway of one of the wineries.

Mr Grumpy

It was the first one I had seen in the wild and at first I thought it resembled a big Death Adder because of its markings and shape which is a small head plump body thin tail. Obviously the legs were a dead give away that it wasn't a snake.

This is the Death Adder I 'petted' in the midst of Kakadu NP as it didn't need rescuing.
Something I still get smacked over the head for by Caroline and my best mate Matt who was there and horrified at the time when I did it.

It wasn't a snake but that didn't spoil the fun, it was the first Blue Tongue Caroline and I had seen in the wild (I can't speak for the others) and because it was in the middle of the driveway, I had a great excuse for a hands on experience. It flicked its blue tongue at me first and tried to bite me but because I wasn't holding it firmly it soon relaxed although it still remained puffed up.
The drive home was uneventful apart from some games in the car. Luckily for me all of them didn't involve either me or any singing.

So leaves me to say if you like wine the Hunter Valley is a must see. If you don't like wine the Hunter Valley is still a very nice place to visit and it is only a 2 hours drive away North of Sydney.