Picture this: It is holiday time in the 1980s and a rural family are looking forward to some time away from farm chores.
A telephone call to the Peaceful Bay Caravan Park secured them a camp site but there followed a rather unusual request: Would it be possible for them to bring their milking cow?
Unfortunately no one could be coerced into doing the milking job whilst the family had their well-earned break.
The proprietor was rather taken aback (probably the first time he had to deal with such a request). On the assurance that the beast was extremely quiet and would have no objections to being tethered, the park proprietor gave his permission; no doubt thinking “well, why not?”
The family duly arrived and settled in, amidst great interest from other campers, and the cow was soon tethered and grazing happily.
The presence of this bovine was actually a huge asset as it turned out because the owner kept the Peaceful Bay shop supplied with beautiful fresh milk which was, of course, much enjoyed by many of the family’s fellow campers.
At the time I was the Walpole correspondent for ABC Radio regional news and what a great story I was able to send in! It caused immense interest and actually went “viral”; not on Faceback or Twitter at that time of course, but on the airwaves. It even made the news in the eastern states I was told. Some members of the ABC staff in Albany remember the story well.
Life is made more interesting with unusual happenings such as this one!
This article first appeared in the December 17, 2014 edition of the Walpole Weekly. Molly Smith is a regular contributor to the Weekly with her “Looking Back with Molly” column.
