So, my reward*: an evening spent soaking my aching muscles at Peninsula Hot Springs.

I'd been handed the leaflet by a fellow female traveller, who insisted I'd love it and should treat myself one evening. She wasn't wrong. The mood set by bathing at dusk was rather calming, and romantic**. Dotted throughout a floodlit gully were an assortment of bathing pools, of varying temperatures; you meander your way up until you reach the hill top pool -- from which you can watch the sun go down over the rolling farmland below. What a wonderful way to recover from all that walking.

And, what's even better, was we'd 'earned' the price of one ticket by camping for free tonight! We'd stumbled upon a small and slightly hidden car park on the waterfront, which didn't have a 'no camping' sign -- and they are far and few between!

We've only found one other such gem: nine reserved spaces, for self-contained campervans, in the harbour-side car park of Port Albert***. We didn't have the advantage there of being able to shower at the Hot Spring before going to bed, so cleaning involved sponging ourselves down in the disabled toilet...which clearly had a 'no bathing' sign on the door. Te he. But again, we were rewarded for our trials: our free nights sleep paid for our fish and chip dinner. Yum.

*For walking up lots of hills, if you haven't read my last blog. Shame on you ;)

**Not to mention the off-peak prices (midweek evenings) being a great deal. Or at least achievable for us money conscious travellers.

***An original settlers port, home to 12 historic buildings with interpretive signage, including: a wonderful looking cafe that was only open Wednesday to Sunday, and even more upsettingly, an ice cream parlour that only opened on the weekend.