The rainbow never sets

slipped on the wet rock and fell into the water, getting wet all over. I can still hear the laughter of our boys today!

These were some of our experiences which were told and re-told and formed a treasure of common memories. This gave quality to our time together, and looking back on our summer holidays, our children feel that they have been the highlights of their growing-up period.

Our nephew Ian Chandler from England was with us on some of those holidays, and we always enjoyed his company. It meant that we all had a little less space on the ground, but nobody minded.

In 1977, after Gerda's wedding with Fawzy Mansour from Cairo, Mutter came with her to visit us at camp in Laurieton. She said that she would have preferred to camp with us, but of course there was not enough room, so they stayed at a motel instead.

Mark had been invited by one of his friends to a camping ground near Milton called Lake Conjola. He came back most enthusiastic about this place and urged us to go there for our next holidays. It had a lake open to the sea, and an open beach. It seemed ideal. However, it was so popular, that we couldn't get a booking for the first two weeks of our holidays. We decided to go first to the mountains and then booked Lake Conjola Camping Ground for the last two weeks in January.

We left early in January 1978 to camp by lake Eucumbene, quite a change from the sea-side. It was very cold and windy there. We toured a cave, went on top of Mt.Kosciuszko and on the last day we were driven away by a sudden storm. Everyone had to hold on to the tent poles, otherwise the wind would have blown the tent away. We decided then that we didn't like it in the mountains.

After spending a night at a motel, we went to the coast to Lake Conjola, which was fabulous, just how we imagined it to be. Rather squashed in between other tents, but one got used to it. Facilities were nearby, quite adequate, and the lake was great. The only problem was that before our fortnight was over it started raining and the wind blew the tidal water back into the lake and it began to rise. The tent between us and the lake was already under water, when we decided to pack up and leave for home. Before we left, though, we were able to book the same site for next year for all of the four weeks holidays.

From then on we went to Lake Conjola each year until and including 1986. We weathered quite a few storms in the tent, but the camping ground was sheltered from the southerlies by a big grown-over sand dune. George would often help tightening the ropes at night when it blew up, but James didn't like the wind. He would put his pillow over his head. Only once did we have to take our mattress/sleeping bags up, because of floods, but it was only for a few hours. For the last three years we had the site right next to the lake which was marvellous. We would often sit in our chairs, turn the kerosene lamp off and watch the moon light glistening over the lake. In the evening we could see kangaroos grazing on the other

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