‘Over the hill’ at Sixty

It’s amazing what lengths some thrill-seeking retirees will go to, to liven up their day. Case in point is the Brownes (Us), who, on that recent Wednesday with the unbelievable 11th January, 2012 forecast of 120kph winds, 14 degrees top temp. and snow on the Alps, decided to drive up to the elevated Koonya Beach car park at Sorrento to check out the wild ocean scene below and perhaps take some reference photos for Col’s watercolour painting.

We drove up close to the post and wire fence and sat watching the unbelievably wild seas far below us, wound the window down, and the winds nearly blew us out of the car. The most dramatic day weather-wise that we have ever seen down there in over 40 years.

We were fascinated by the wild scene below us and Col reached over into the back seat to grab his camera. No way could he get a good shot from inside the car, with the rain pelting down and the windscreen wipers working over-time. So he tried to push against the wind and force his driver’s door open with difficulty. Little did he realize that the automatic gears were still in drive and, as he tried to clamber out of the car, he accidently put his foot on the accelerator and the car leapt forward like it had been stung, hit one of the pine guard rail posts and took out twenty metres of post and wire fence as the car lurched forward and then over the edge, crashing down the steep slope through the ti-tree undergrowth, heading for the cliff top and the water, with us screaming in the front seat. We left a swathe of devastation of smashed trees and bushes behind us as the car plummeted down the slope. Col and I clung on to our seats feeling absolutely powerless to do anything about our predicament, and wondering where we were going to end up and whether we were going to die.

Fortunately, after about 100 metres of a bumpy nightmare ride, the car came to rest wedged up against a larger tree with the motor still running. Perhaps Col had at last found the brake. We looked at each other and wondered whether we’d been shot or poisoned. Neither of us had been hurt, just incredibly shaken.

Other spectators who’d seen us go over the edge came clambering down the slope to help us. We had trouble getting out of the car with the bushes jamming us in, but finally we forced one door open a wedge and squeezed out, clambering shakily up the steep slope to the top with others helping us climb over the broken tree trunks and barriers in our path.

One particular bloke was wonderful. He invited us to shelter in his four wheel drive because the wind was still blowing a gale and the rain pelting down, while he called RACV, got them to order a tow-truck and contacted our insurance company on his mobile. After an hour or so, the tow truck arrived and the operator slid down the slope gripping the hook on the end of a very long steel cable, which he attached under the back of our car and slowly proceeded to winch it up the slope and finally get it up onto the tray and drive it away. End of story. So the Brownes were a bit shaken and were without a car for six weeks but we were still alive and kicking and happy to give the thrill-seeking a miss for a couple of days.

image: snappy2006