On the morning of the second day, we were up early and drove toward Cradle Mountain. Mike and Chris dropped off Mom and I at the unsealed road that leads to Lemonthyme Lodge, and they took off for a full day of car swapping--we needed to get our rental car to Lake St. Claire, at the end of the overland, so we'd have transport when we were through. Mom and I walked up the unsealed Road to Lemonthyme Lodge, our accomodation for Christmas, and then hiked the "difficult" trail to Champagne falls (pictured here, from within an elevated cave). Again, this had nothing on the Overland, as we were soon to realise.
The walk was lovely, and we saw an unabashed echidna along the way...
	The boys returned around 8 o'clock that night and we enjoyed a lovely dinner at Lemonthyme. The following day we lazed around, hiked a bit, and enjoyed a HUGE Christmas feast at the lodge. Here is a photo of Mom and Chris and me in front of the Christmas tree ( a giant sassafras from the surrounding forest).
Later that day, Mike and I lounged around our beautiful self-contained tree-house-like cabin, equipped with spa bath (smile). We spent most of the time on the deck overlooking the forest. A blue fairy wren (pictured here) and his mate continuously visited our deck looking for scraps of food, no doubt. Mom and Chris joined us later for afternoon drinks and snacks.
	The air got progressively cooler, resulting in my mismatch of clothes...Mike couldn't let my impressive sense of fashion go unnoticed, so he had Chris sneak a photo. Here you can also see our private deck--pretty nice, ay? If you ever go to Cradle Mountain, we suggest Lemonthyme over Cradle Mountain Lodge for more privacy and romantic atmosphere...Although Cradle Mountain Lodge is located on the edge of the National Park, it is geared toward families and groups and is far less intimate and classy.

Click on the frog to move immediately forward to photos of the Overland Trek.