from the restaurant!
Chapter 8
A picnic had been planned for the following day. Dan had taken a few days off work to spend time with Victoria and Katie before they flew back out to Georgia at the end of the week. Nick and Julie were joining them for the picnic as they headed up the steep winding road to the top of the Springbrook Mountains. Some of the most breathtaking country lay here sleepily nestled in the rugged hinterland of the Gold Coast.
As they climbed higher and higher through the bushy terrain full of tall, majestic gum trees, the valley below appeared to be swallowed up in a mist of low-lying clouds sweeping across the wilderness. A waterfall appeared out of nowhere, cascading over reddish boulders into a lake below.
“This is where we stop for a swim before we head up further to have our picnic at the top of the range,” said Natasha, as they pulled into the car park near the Twin Falls. “There are three rock pools at the bottom of this waterfall, and the water is as crisp as ice.”
“Well, that sounds refreshing on such a hot day, Tash,” Victoria said, longing to dip her toes in the water holes below. “But, I’ve noticed it’s much cooler up here in the mountains than down further. And I really love the smell of those gum trees.”
“Yes, that would be the perfume from the eucalyptus gums. Koalas just love eating those leaves. We might even see some on the way if we look up high into the trees.”
“Oh, I hope so,” squealed Katie. “I’ve brought my camera.”
As they trekked along the bush track to the rock pools, Katie became the avid photographer, snapping up photos of the scenery, the waterfall, and even arranging the group into pairs and singles to take a shot of their adventures to paste into her photo album when the photos were printed.
“Look, we’re at the rock pools,” Katie said, taking more shots. “And up there I see a koala.”
The water was refreshingly cool as they splashed around enjoying the icy bits that swirled around from time to time. An hour passed before they dragged themselves away from the delights of the rock pool. They headed once more up the steep mountain road, which became more narrow and winding. Treacherous cliffs fell to one side. They stopped to pull into a lookout from which they could see the entire Gold Coast spread out before them.
“This is magic,” said Julie, turning to Nick. “Thank you for bringing me up here, Nick. This is exactly what I need right now.”
It suddenly dawned on Victoria that Julie was raw with pain over the break-up of her relationship with her fiancé. She quietly slid up and put her hand into Julies, squeezing it gently. “It is beautiful, isn’t it? I wish I could stay in this moment forever.”
“I think we all do,” said Nick, putting his arm around his emotionally fragile sister. “You’ll be alright, Jules. Trust me everything gets better with time.”
“Yes,” said Victoria, giving Julie a much needed hug. “Things will get better.”
Finally they arrived at the picnic grounds high up on the peak of the ridge. From here there were many walking trails and an abundance of local wildlife, especially birds. It was just after noon when the sun is at its hottest that they sat down in the shade of an ancient tree to share the picnic spread before them.
Natasha and Victoria had prepared it all, and it was more like a banquet or a feast than a simple picnic. There were three cold roast chickens, a platter of leg ham, a platter of salami and various cheeses, a green salad with plenty of tomatoes and thinly sliced red onions, bowls of both green and black olives, a jar of preserved artichoke hearts, sun-dried tomatoes, French bread sticks and loads of cold bottles of spring water in the basket.
“Wow, it will take us the rest of the day to get through this,” said Nick, feasting his eyes on the culinary delights.
“You forget,” laughed Natasha, “we have hungry children and we brought all of
Jean-Marie Blas de Robles