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We haven't heard back from Yarra Glen about social bowls. We left Healesville bright and early this morning and drove here to check it out. There was nobody around. There are two greens. We were excited to see a grass green. But it was all locked up. There's a synthetic out the back. It's the Peter Nelson Memorial Green. It was very windy and there were leaves all over it. Bill the Treasurer arrived after a while and showed us the mats and Jacks. Al, Chris, Wayne, Ash and Beth came. They are playing away today for mid-week Pennants. It's the second-last game of the season and they are third on the ladder so they'll likely make the Finals. Jean was annoyed she seemed to be getting worse with the stick. Then she scored a shot and Mal took it out. Jean gave Mal a serve about taking the enjoyment out of her game so he stopped trying. He' a thoughtful husband really but that made her even crankier! We'd started our rollup before 9am. By 9:30 it was already 28° with a fierce wind so we packed it in. Jean had the last word though suspected not really. Yarra Glen - cranky Jean questionably bests Mal.

This morning we rolled up at Whittlesea, then took the hour-long drive over to Healesville for a very warm rollup. Jean had been chatting with Ian on Messenger. She'd found out social bowls was on Thursday so we decided to come for a Monday rollup. We asked him if we could park our van at the club (gate was locked). He said he'd have to check with Chairperson Rob about that. We were sweltering in our van up the road when he rang back. We met him at the gate. He opened the clubhouse so we could take a peek inside. There's a plaque about when the Mayor opened the new synthetic green ten years ago. After a while Rob arrived to open the gate for us. We parked the van near the old green. We were so grateful to find a cool spot for our van. Ian told us they only use the old grass green once a year for their big Fours tournament. It's full of leaves at the moment. Rob had been out of contact this morning as he was helping his Mum out in her nursing home. Ian told us about her. Her name is Beryl Ayers and she's 97. They named the original clubhouse after her as she had won over 50 competitions in her time - including state championships. She was still a force to be reckoned with at age 92. The most amazing thing about her is that, in the 1950's, she pulled on a guernsey and played footy for Healesville - unheard of for a woman. It would have been a privilege to meet her. There are a couple of old machines around. An aerator and a roller. The new green is a carpet synthetic. Even though it was 32⸰ crazy Mal and Jean rolled up on it. Jean was glad she had her bowling arm because the sweaty bowls would have been very slippery. She did OK despite the heat. In typical Mal style, he didn't complain. He managed good bowls in the heat. The boys told us the big tree over the green is more than 100 years old! They also told us there's a family of platypus in the creek below the green. We thought we'd go back at dusk and see if we could see them. Healesville - so friendly and accommodating in the heat!

We've been hearing about Whittlesea at a number of clubs so we look forward to coming here. Social bowls day is Thursday so we'll miss that. We'll have a Monday rollup. Google Maps showed green areas all around the club. Must be 20 years old because now it's in the middle of suburbia. We parked our van a street away. It's quite a big club. The outdoor area is great. It seems the club is The Whittlesea Eagles. The scoreboards were nice. In memoriam. There are two greens. One is grass. It was closed unfortunately. The other is carpet synthetic. We asked the bar lady inside about bowls. She said "Go outside and look for Jordan!" We found him. He's the greenkeeper. He got nice, new mat and jacks for us. Jean started our rollup. It was only 10:30 and it was already nearly 30°. Her bad luck followed her. She wasn't doing well (in her view). Mal tried next. He did somewhat better. Jean finally did a bowl she was happy with then Mal knocked it up. Later bowler Clint arrived and he and Jordan sat down for smoko. It was hot. We thought that a good idea. Whittlesea - nah, too hot for bowls.

Wallan is the next bowling club on our trip back home via Gippsland. There's no social bowls on a Sunday so we'll stop for a rollup. We were told by a bloke we met at Digger's Rest It's pronounced 'Wollen'. We came and met President Peter. Who said we could park our van here overnight . We also met Carol who Jean's been corresponding with Jean via Messenger. They were playing a mixed three-bowl pairs championship when we arrived. The clubhouse is nice with a high ceiling. The smoking area doubles as an outdoor area. There's a lovely old wishing well. There are two greens. One is a lovely grass green. There's a plaque about the green. The other is a carpet synthetic. We rolled up on that. It's the R Stockdale Green. Jean had a go. She managed one with Mal in the ditch. As usual when Mal bowled He was on it. Jean said "We bowl everyday but I'm sick of my bowls not being near the kitty!" She drove at Mal's shot bowl but missed by a whisker. Peter won the match. We sat down for a drink and a chat afterwards. A quiet rollup and a nice chat at Wallan.

We came to Diggers Rest on our way to Qld via Canberra. It's saturday Pennants day so we hoped we could get a rollup before the matches. We came about 10am and it was all locked up. We went and set up the van and came back after 12 for Pennants. We met club President David. The club is comparatively new having been first founded in 1987. It's a nice little clubhouse. There are some great trophies, including one for Pennant eight counts! We saw they had a lovely spread set up for Pennants. Addam told us he's been following our adventures on Facebook. He gave us a Diggers Rest shirt to remember them by. The weather they put on was absolutely beautiful! It was 12:30 and Pennants was to start at one. We needed to get out quickly. There's just one carpet green. It's the Ernie Nolan Green. It's an unusual surface we haven't seen much. We started our rollup. Jean did ok. Mal had a go. He really liked this carpet. Jean worked it out towards the end. They started the matches. Digger's Rest played Woodend and Lancefield, both of which we've visited. We met Derek who recalled when we played Pennants for Woodend at Gisborne. There was a fellow from Lancefield who also remembered us. Jean mentioned the blokes we'd met from Lancefield. He said "Gordon's over there!" Jean went over to say gidday. Good memories of Woodend, Lancefield and now Digger's Rest!

We're on our way back to Queensland via Canberra . We stopped in at Hoppers Bowls Club for a Friday morning rollup. We stopped for a quick chat about social bowls with the first person we met, Howard. We met Eddie Alphabet (very long name!) who runs all the social bowls and does maintenance for the club. Eddie's just finished painting. He's done the Hoppers Hawks sign. There are two greens. One is grass. We were keen to roll on it (been so long) but it was being rested. We rolled on the other green. It's an old flat carpet. Jean started out. She got kind of close but still wasn't happy. Mal was winning as usual! Mark the Coach and Bowls Coordinator came over to introduce himself. He's seen our posts on Facebook. He works for Bowls Australia. He tells us he's a Bowls tragic. He named his daughter Kelsey after Kelsey Cotteril. Mal was all over it. Jean was just happy she got her grass right! After about eight ends Mal asked "Is that it?" Jean said "No! I haven't done any good bowls yet!" We went up and back and Jean finally nailed it. Eddie had shown Mal the design for their new shirts. Jean told him how Mal always has to buy shirts in Parramatta colours. He and Mark had a confab and said they'd give us each one of their old shirts. We were very happy. Hoppers Crossing - we definitely didn't lose our shirts!

Birregurra is a little town just east of Simpson where we were staying on our way to Geelong. We missed it about three times when we were in the region so kept it in our plans for our way back to Canberra from Lorne. When we arrived we met Chris, Brian and Gary who confirmed for us there's training this arvo. They said we could park our van there so it suits us perfectly. It's a nice little clubhouse. There's just one plastic synthetic green. It's about 18 months old. Chris told us they sold the block of land next door, the old parking area, to cover the cost. And a little verandah area under cover where you can view the action. There was a game of 100-Up going on when we arrived. We loved the little cow plant stand! The boys told us the club's been here since 1958. We're not sure what was erected but it's a nice memorial. Mal stood and chatted with Graham (who won the match) for about half an hour about all things bowls and caravanning. We went into the van for a little rest. Later in the arvo some more people turned up for another 100-Up. Pahulu and Fran rolled up with us. Mal put the kitty in the ditch right on the boundary and Jean drew to it. Mal tried to claim her bowl was out but she checked. It was in! It took us a while to get the line and weight. Jean had a go. She managed a shot. Mal bowled next. Of course he had to out-do Jean! Graham came up and told us his wife Janet is Editor of The Birregurra Mail and would like to do a story about us. She took a nice photo of us and Jean sent her background information about our trip, and the blog. Fran finished and Gary came and joined our rollup. We played a game of 2-4-2 up to ten. Lots of people turned up for practice. They opened the bar and Marshall served our drinks. We only had one good shot in the whole game! Pahulu and Gary were practising for their last two Pennants games so we were happy for them to take us 12 zip. We sat down for a few drinks and watched the practice. Marshall wanted a photo with our cat Jerome. Birregurra - we're so glad we left it to last!

On our long drive back up to Canberra from Victoria, we're stopping for a day in Lorne on the Great Southern Ocean. We decided not to stop in Apollo Bay. Had a rollup and came straight here. When we arrived we met Marilyn who found us a mat. Marilyn was here to set up for a big corporate bowls event. She'd seen Jean's hat so went inside and found her a Lorne badge. Jean was busting for the loo so we just did a couple of ends. We got the grass fine but had trouble with the weight. Mal was impatient and bowled Jean's bowl and took shot. Jean claimed it! Jean tried one of Mal's bowls and got close. Then he bowled hers. She ended up with two. One each! Lorne - I'll race you to the loo!

So we're starting our month-long journey back to Canberra before we head to Queensland. Our first stop is Apollo Bay - on the coast, East of Warrnambool. We are only here for a day but Bernie gave us his number so he could get someone to play with us. Bernie's apparently not involved any more but told us there's a number on the door we can ring when we get there. We parked our van out the front and decided on a quick rollup then off to Lorne so we didn't bother calling. We couldn't get a good shot of the clubhouse from the window. We saw the sign out the front to say "Bowlers wanted". We wondered how they'd go with $10 for a rollup. On an old carpet. There's a nice outdoor area though. And good permanent shades. There's just one old synthetic green. It's the 'Albert W. King Green '. Mal went first. We thought it was quick. It wasn't! Jean went next. We only did a couple of ends. Mal had a go with Jean's stick and nearly took shot! Jean managed a couple of shots in the end. Apollo Bay - we liked the little bit we did!

It's our last day in the Warrnambool region in southern Victoria. We wanted to play a game at Port Fairy. We were told that social day is Tuesday but of course it's the last week of Mid-week Pennants so we think we'll just get a rollup (and perhaps watch a bit of the comp). We met Alan. It turns out all their matches for the last game of the season were away today. Alan was setting up for a Pennants end-of-season party. The clubhouse is like a nice big barn. There are some lovely old photos from the men's club. One of the photos is of their last winning Pennant team. That was 1988. It's a very new building. Very nice with a great outdoor area. The two synthetic greens have only been in since December. They cost half a million dollars. The permanent shades are new as well. While we waited for the bowlers to turn up we rolled up on Green A. It's the Stuart Brown Green. First end we were pretty much on it. The green was slowish. Neil, Ian and Jenny arrived and told Jean nobody had a win today. Jean found it hard to get the line. Last end she finally worked it out. Alas too late. We came in to say gidday to the members. Many had perplexed looks on their faces about who were these strangers at their party. Bob served us at the bar. They offered us some of their food but we didn't want to intrude. It was great to see all the Pennant players come together. Port Fairy - commiserations and congratulations on a finished season.

When we were at Dennington on Wednesday they told us about Warrnambool Lawn Tennis Bowls Club. We didn't have it on our map. Jean added it. We dropped in on Thursday to check it out. THURSDAY We met Monty and Karen at the bar. They told us their social days are Monday and Thursday. We were happy about being able to play on Monday SATURDAY Since it's next door to our caravan park, we dropped in on Saturday to watch them play Pennants against Dennington and Koroit. Some great bowls were put down. The green is new - one year. The club is owned by the Lawn Tennis Club. The bowler's have a separate little clubhouse out the front. There's a good barbecue area that seems well-used. And an outdoor seating area that looks inviting. We met Ian who we saw at Dennington on Wednesday. Ian wanted to see Jean's Bowls Eye. He was intrigued when he saw Jean use it at Dennington. Lots of Lawn Tennis bowlers came over to say gidday. They were happy they would see us again on Monday. MONDAY We came back on Monday as planned for social bowls. Robert and Janette looked after the money. They put the names on a board. There were three games with Fours and Triples. It was Gary, Jean, Cathy and Monty. Against Peter, Janette, Leo, and Graham (from Hervey Bay). Mal played against Graeme, Gerard and Neville. We didn't manage any photos of our good bowls. We didn't do many. Mal's team lost and Jean's won. Second game Jean's team played Don (Flo), Mal and Brian. Jean finally did a photo-worthy bowl (though she had some help). Mal got a good shot until Cathy pushed him out and took it. Garry (Jean)'s team won the game again. We came in after game two for a cuppa. 3rd game Jean played Mick, Shirley, Peter and Sean. Mal played Bob, Peter, Betty and Fini. Jean finally did two good bowls but then Peter stole shot! Mal lost again. As the only one with three wins, Gary's team won the money. Warrnambool Lawn Tennis - a Green day for all!

We came to City Memorial Bowling Club (the big one) on Thursday to find out about Saturday social bowls, we met a bloke who told us it's not on because of Pennants. He told us to turn up for a rollup on Monday Morning . Ewan (board member) Mal and Brian had a chat. They were full of information about the club. We saw that non-members are supposed to pay $10 for a rollup. Given at most clubs one pays $5-$10 for a full game we thought that was outrageous. We wouldn't have minded paying a couple of bucks to help pay for the covers. Unusually the club has four synthetic greens. One oldish looking one out the side. Three others including two under cover. We're told the covers cost $3 million. We bowled on the front green. It's the carpet Jean likes. The seats are nice and donated by members. First bowl down Mal was on it. Next end Jean got two. Jean met Pam and Sandra who are new bowlers and loving it. Sandra asked Jean why she didn't have purple bowls to match her stick and outfit. The head looked tight until we got up there. We only did a few ends. Mal won but Jean had the last laugh. As we were leaving we met Keri, Paul and Jan.. Paul and Jan moved to Warrnambool recently from Melbourne and took up bowls. Warrnambool - nice but not worth $10!