Last run to the hills..

My caravan surrounded by debris from the storm. Notice part of the verandah roof has blown onto the caravan roof.

While returning from a late season dash to Jindabyne in late Sept after an unseasonally late snowfall to shoot an article on bungee cords, my somewhat faithful car decided to shit itself in Cooma. Fortunately I was able to bum a ride back home to Sydney while my car underwent repairs.

A week later and it dumps snow again this time three days after all of the country's resorts have shut down for the season. The mechanic rings me to inform me that my car is ready to be picked up at a bargain basement price of $900 and will be ready on the Thursday. Sweet, I figure I'll catch a train to Canberra and a bus to Cooma, spend a night in Jindabyne at my humble caravan abode, shoot a rail with Darragh Walsh on the friday and make it back to Sydney by the weekend.

Strangely enough the train from Sydney to Canberra is booked out so I opt for a Greyhound bus instead. The Greyhound is scheduled to get into Canberra at 4:50pm at the Jolimont Centre which is a 15min cab ride to Canberra Railway Centre where a 5:15pm bus is departing for Cooma. The timing is pretty tight but Im assured there is a cab rank out the front of Jolimont so it's very doable. I enjoy a challenge so confidently embark on the journey.

My trusty piece of shit Greyhound bus driver announces we will be soon arriving at the Jolimont Centre, the time is already 5:20pm, were 30 mins late and I'm totally screwed. After spending a week of relying on public transport at home I'm at wits end with trains and fucking buses, no wonder they're rightly termed the Loser Crusier.

I weigh up my options, I can either:
1 Hire a car and hope I can leave it in Cooma - doable if I can spare an extra $100
2 Get a cab to Cooma from Canberra - a 100km drive that would cost me prob $150
3 Ring Darragh to drive from Jindabyne to pick me up in Canberra - he tells me to hitch
4 Stick my thumb out and try and hitch a ride to Cooma - I decide to give this option a try

Given by the time I reach a suitable hitching spot its now 6pm. The sun is starting its descent and chilly Canberra sure feels like mid July not mid Spring. Theoretically all of the passing traffic would be people who commute to Canberra daily from Cooma for work, so I think my chances of getting a ride are pretty good.

Five cars pass me by without even batting an eyelid. The sixth car locks up and grinds to a halt. I eye the hotted up Ford Falcon complete with its letterbox attachment on the bonnet, and figure what the hell. I open the passenger door instantly spotting the Iron Maiden cds on the seat and ask the driver if he's going to Cooma. It seems it's my lucky day, so I throw my camera pack in the backseat and settle in for the journey.

"Iron Maiden fan huh?" I ask the driver.
"Yup sure am" he beams, "I actually play guitar in an Iron Maiden Tribute band" he replies
"So are you Adrian Smith, Dave Murray or Janick Gers?" I enquire
His face lights up. "I see your well versed in Maiden logic, I play Dave's leads" he informs me.

For the next hour my new found friend Bob and I discuss everything possible about the world of heavy metal. From our favourite Maiden songs to how today's bands just don't have that 80's magic, what Metallica would sound like today had they not fired Dave Mustaine and the importance the impact of crossover bands like Anthrax and DRI have on today's leading thrash bands like Municipal Waste. Bob tells me how his grind band Dozer once played to 300 kids in Cooma and how he once returned from Canberra to play a show to 600 kids in his last band Smug Goat. I feel blessed to have met Cooma's Yngwie Malmsteen. The hour passes like seconds and in no time I'm reunited with my ride which is now equipped with a new head gasket.

I pull into my humble caravan abode at 8 Mile also known as the Jindabyne Caravan Park. It's seems the recent storm that hit town came complete with devastating winds as my verandah roof has been blown clean off it's posts and lodged itself on the roof of the caravan.

The next day I meet up with Darragh Walsh and we shoot a long flat rail to hefty drop up at Perisher. The weather continues to put on a show as in a 4 hour period we are graced with snow, sleet, rain, sago, sun, fog and mist. Darragh gets the job done with the aid of the bungee cord and some hired muscle from James Gamble and Sam Jenkins and by 4pm Im successfully back on the road to Sydney after an eventful past two days..

Darragh Walsh and the set up..