Glorious Indian Summer

We’ve just come through a glorious southern hemisphere Indian summer—unexpected warmth in April that fooled even the trees. Leaves had begun to brown, evenings were cooling, and then the sun returned for a dazzling encore. For three golden weeks, an Indian summer unfurled across our days, echoing the gentle deception I remember from my northern youth.

We spent it all in the paradise of Macquarie Harbour—anchored in quiet bays beneath gorgeous mountains, surrounded by button grass plains. No roads. No crowds. Just us—and a visiting pod of dolphins, who greeted us daily with somersaults and waving flippers. Imagine—if only we spoke their language!

Jude turned 80 while we were in paradise—finally catching up with me. Not to worry, I’ll pull ahead again soon enough. And while we haven’t crossed an ocean in a while, it’s not for lack of ambition. We’ve been busy—writing our latest book.

Creating African Honeymoon has been a real treat. And a challenge. It’s surreal, writing about an adventure that happened 57 years ago! But what a journey it was—and still is. Reliving those precious moments is like sitting down with old friends: Each memory sparks another, and soon we’re astonished by how much we dared—and how much we survived.

We married at 24 and set down through Africa in a derelict VW van we’d rescued from a paddock—completely unaware that over thirty new nations had only recently thrown off colonial rule. Borders were fragile. Governments young. Tensions simmered beneath the surface. But we were young and hopeful. What could possibly go wrong?

Our book African Honeymoon is the first in a trilogy that continues with Around the World and ends with Two’s a Crew.

Here’s a taste from the first draft:

AFRICA

The Oldest Occupied Continent

First labelled the Dark Continent when little was known of its vast interior, Africa is in fact the cradle of humanity. Millions of years before maps gave names to its mysteries, the earliest humans shared Earth’s most spectacular land with the greatest array of wild beasts.

1969 – our third day crossing the open Serengeti Plains in our van
(Kopjes—pronounced “copies”—are ancient rock formations rising from the plains. Some are over 550 million years old.)

Not having seen lions on our first drive around the kopje, I got out to stretch my legs. Judith joined me, and together we explored the main rock, where great slabs had fractured to lay atop its side. Close up, more cracks appeared—and from one, a blue-headed lizard darted out. It froze, turned its head to study us, then bobbed up and down as if saying hello. When it scurried off, we followed—until it disappeared beneath an overhang.

That’s when we saw him. A male lion, looking down on us.

Yes, we got frightened—very frightened. But we figured these animals have plenty to eat, and don’t attack for the pleasure of killing. Only man does that.  So we bowed our heads and greeted him. 

Maybe we imagined it—but the king of beasts seemed to acknowledge us. He shook his massive mane and yawned, revealing terrifying rows of teeth—as if to say, I’m feeling lazy. But don’t forget, I could take your head off with one bite.”

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Against the odds, we made it to South Africa. A year of dust, mud, breakdowns, and border crossings—yet we got through. Shaken by apartheid, we soon bought a ticket to Australia—and found the perfect place to live.

And just in case you’re wondering why we love it so much—here are our latest photos to prove it.

 

Wishing you safe journeys and fond memories,
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