One morning, while walking down the winding bush path, Harriet and Mickey saw something strange in the bush. It was painted blue and it had four red wheels.

"What do you think it is?" asked Mickey.

"It looks like a small car," said Harriet.

Just then, their human friends came walking along and saw the small car.

Harriet and Mickey heard them say that it belonged to some people who had been at the beach for a holiday and had left it behind.

Their human friends said that they had better look after it until the people who owned it came back to get it. They also said it was called a 'beach buggy.'

"Wow", said Mickey, "A beach buggy. What does that mean Harriet?"

"It means when no-one is looking, we can go driving up and down the beach in it," said Harriet excitedly.

"No-one is looking now Harriet," said Mickey.

He was right; their human friends had walked on ahead to Charlie's Creek, leaving the two adventurers still on the path.

"Let's see if we can make this buggy go," said Harriet.

She climbed into the buggy and sat in the seat. The buggy had pedals, and her feet just reached them.

"Come on Mickey," Harriet called out. "Get in, and we'll go for a drive. This will be fun."

Mickey got into the buggy and sat next to Harriet.

"My feet don't reach the pedals Harriet. You'll have to pedal twice as hard. Ha ha," laughed Mickey. "Let's go!"

Harriet started to push the pedals, it was hard at first, but as the buggy began to move, it became easier.

Harriet steered the buggy out to the beach and turned towards the 'big creek'. The tide was out so there was plenty of sand for Harriet and Mickey to drive on.

"Yaaahoooooo!" cried Harriet and Mickey together. "Isn't this fun?"

All of a sudden Harriet stopped pedalling and the buggy stopped.

"Why are you stopping?" said Mickey.

"I have a great idea," said Harriet.

She started pedalling again and turned the buggy around and went back up the winding bush path.

"Where are we going Harriet?" said Mickey.

"Back to our house to get the picnic basket. We are going to have a PICNIC!!"

"Oh, Harriet, what a wonderful idea! Can we invite all our new friends and our old ones too?" said Mickey.

Harriet and Mickey got the picnic basket and put it on the back of the buggy and set off again, down the winding bush path and out onto the beach.

They had only gone a little way when they saw Peggy.

"Come on Peggy," yelled Harriet, "jump on the back, we're going to the 'big creek' for a picnic!!!"

"Ooooooo, that sounds like fun," said Peggy, "who else is coming?"

"We are inviting all our friends," said Mickey, "and we have enough food and drink for everyone!"

"I'll fly on ahead and tell them all," said Peggy.

Harriet and Mickey arrived at the 'big creek' and stopped the buggy on a small, flat patch of sand. They took the picnic basket from the back of the buggy and opened it. There was a big colourful, blanket and they spread it out on the sand.

Peggy arrived and helped the two adventurers take the food out of the basket and spread it out on the blanket.

"Did you find all our friends and let them know about the picnic Peggy?" asked Harriet.

"Of course I did," said Peggy, "and look, here comes Trevor!"

"G'day Trevor," said Harriet and Mickey together.

"G'day everyone," said Trevor, "what a good idea, to have a picnic at my favourite place."

"Look!" cried Mickey. "The kangaroo family is here! And here comes Basil! What a good time we are going to have. I am so happy today Harriet."

"Here comes Joanna the Jabiru," said Peggy, "and look over there, it's Hilda the Hippopotamus and Gregory with his train!"

What a wonderful day they had. All Harriet and Mickey's friends sharing the sandwiches and the orange juice around the picnic blanket and talking about the adventures they had shared on the beach and laughing about the things that had happened.

The crab that bit Harriet was at the water's edge and so were the stingrays. Basil, the bearded dragon lizard, told everyone about the time he bit Mickey and everyone laughed so hard they had tears running down their faces.

Suddenly Harriet heard a funny sound.

"What is that?" she said.

"I can't hear anything," said Peggy.

"Listen," said Harriet. "I think it's Pierré!!!"

"IT IS!" said Mickey.

Pierré the French pilot was flying over them, waving and calling out "Hello, hello!"

They all had a wonderful day and soon Harriet and Mickey heard their human friends calling them.

"We have to go now," said Harriet. "I have had the best day. Thank you everyone for coming."

"Yes," said Mickey. "We are lucky to have such good friends."

Harriet and Mickey put the blanket, the empty bottle and the cups back into the basket and put the basket onto the buggy.

Peggy jumped up onto the basket and the buggy headed back towards Harriet's and Mickey's house.

Just before they reached the winding bush path, Peggy jumped off and said, "See you both tomorrow!"

"Of course you will," said Harriet. "There more things to see and learn about and more adventures to have."

"Harriet," said Mickey, "for the first time, I am not in a hurry for my breakfast. Wasn't that a great picnic?"

"It sure was," said Harriet, and they both left the buggy near the winding bush path where they had found it and walked home.