My first few days in Australia were a time of reunions. Firstly,
I met up again with Tamara a friend who coincidentally lives in an area of
Sydney with the same name as the part of London in which I live. The following day
I managed to track down a university friend of mine, Sophie. Then just a few
days later in Melbourne, I met up with Nick, whom I had not seen since we did a tour together
in Vietnam years ago. Sydney's most famous landmarks are the Opera house and the
bridge. They are nice, though to be honest I think that more fuss is made of
them than they necessarily warrant.
The Great Ocean Road between Melbourne and Adelaide has some
lovely scenery. To call it the Great Ocean Road is a bit of a misnomer though.
It is a pleasant road with a great bit in the middle. The Twelve Apostles and
London Bridge are some of the famously attractive coastal formations.
Kangaroo Island was named after the Kangaroos there. The type of
Kangaroo on Kangaroo Island, is the Kangaroo Island Kangaroo, which is too many Kangaroos in one
sentence.
Seals are another funky furry resident of Kangaroo Island and
when I was there, there were lots of cute young pups.
The main reason I went though was to see Koalas. They are often
quite difficult to see, though on Kangaroo Island they are present in near
epidemic proportions. I saw several and almost tripped over a couple of Tamar
Wallabies resting in the shade (photo 1). One of the Koalas was a cute
youngster, just a few months old (photos 5-7).
The Remarkable Rocks are certainly nice and some of them appear
to have taken the form of a petrified falcon (photo 2). Not that it looks scared.
Much of the drive across the Eyre highway to Western Australia
is referred to as the Nullarbor, though in reality it is only a small part that
is the real Nullarbor plain. The rest is a slowly changing landscape of
Eucalypts and bushes in a an arid environment. The Great Australian Bight,
provided respite from the road as well as affording lovely views along the
cliffs that span an incredible eight hundred kilometres and are about eighty
metres high for most of that distance.
Norseman, is the barely significant town at the end of the road.
If it were anywhere else, it wouldn't have been worth stopping, as it was, we
had drive thousands of kilometres, so it made a place to at least stretch our
legs and look around for a bit. Strangely Norseman was founded by a horse,
but in Australia that sort of thing happens. The most picturesque thing in what
is really a tin-pot town, are the corrugated camels (photos 1&2). So, after
a bit of shopping and a look around off we went to Kalgoorlie, in the heart of
the Western Australian Goldfields (photos 3&4). The Salt Flat between the
two towns made a nice place to stop the night and watch the sunrise the
following morning (photos 5&6).
In the southwest of Australia, near Esperance, Cape Le Grand
National Park has some stunningly beautiful beaches and it gave me the
opportunity to properly exercise my four wheel drive amongst the pearl white
sand dunes.
On the beaches there, there are wallabies that are not too shy,
no doubt because of the amount of human traffic coming through.
The Karri Trees (or red tingles) are some of the largest tress
on the planet, some have a girth of sixteen metres (bigger than any sumo
wrestler) and are up to around sixty metres tall. The walkway is at forty metres
and the canopy is till a long way up. Some of these huge trees are being eaten
away by termites, which makes standing room for a number of people inside them
(which was convenient to hide from the rain).
The Pinnacles is an area with peculiar stone formations north of
Perth on Australia's West Coast. Looking across them, they seem a bit like
termite mounds, though some seem to be more sculpted. One I thought looks a bit
like a strange alien monkey-god in his throne. Might sound like madness, but
look at the picture and tell me I'm wrong (photo 5).
Monkey Mia has famously friendly dolphins that come in to the
shallows to scrounge a bit of food.
Further up the West Coast, Shell Beach is what it says, a beach
of shells. It doesn't seem too odd until you are on it and it exfoliates the
feet well. The shells deeper down, with all the pressure and time, make a
strange, light weight interesting brick.
Stromatolites have got to be one of peoples favourite things.
They may be very little, not really move, not really do very much visibly at
all. Yet, these things that were reckoned to be extinct five hundred million
years ago are the reason we are all here now. These inhaled the noxious gases
that made up the earth's atmosphere and exhaled oxygen. Over hundreds of
millions of years, they made this planet capable of supporting life as we know
it.
In many parts of Australia, the Termite mounds are often large
and are interesting to see in an otherwise repetitive landscape.
Karijini National Park is home to some truly dramatic chasms,
picturesque pools and gorgeous gorges.
Broome is famous for its sunsets the one I witnessed there was
certainly spectacular and most bizarrely was the fact that just after the sun
dipped over the horizon, the sky got brighter for a few minutes, then darkened
again.
Near Derby are the Boab trees, bulbous oddly ugly, yet
simultaneously attractive. The most famous of these is the Aboriginal Prison
Tree that is claimed to have been used to imprison aboriginal slaves.
The Bungle Bungles or Purnululu National Park is an area of
outstanding natural beauty. The rock formations are uniquely lovely and
evocative at times of either beehives or molten lava. The Echidna Chasm within the park is very nice and I managed to
spot this little frog in the dark. Knowing Australia, I was probably lucky to
escape with my life before the thing poisoned me, stabbed me or did something
else equally grizzly, because everything in Australia can kill you somehow.
The domes are what the Bungle Bungles are most famous for. In
amongst them is a natural amphitheatre carved into a cliff face (photo 9).
Kakadu National Park is Australia's largest and is home to
various distinct natural environments, a range of wildlife and also many areas
of aboriginal cultural significance.
The rock formations in parts are very special.
The river is not a safe place for a swim, being home to a very
large number of estuarine (saltwater) crocodiles, of which I only saw one,
though not close enough to get a decent picture. Again, the rocks are
interestingly formed and one bit looks like Robocop's head.
The swamp area is home to a diverse range of flowers, birdlife,
spiders and insects.
From the air, Kakadu is very flat, bordered on one side by the
Arnhemland plateau. I took to the air to see the Jim Jim (photo 4) and Twin
Falls (photo 5), that were still unreachable by road.
Ubirr is a fascinating site as it has numerous interesting rock
paintings, many of which are thousands of years old. It is also a very popular
location for sunset viewing. The majority of the people though were watching the
sun set over the plains, the interesting bit was to the side where the rocks
were changing colour as the hues of the sky varied.
Edith falls (photo 1) is a great spot for a swim in picturesque
setting, as are the various pools of the Litchfield National Park (photo 2).
The Devil's Marbles are a nice brief stop-off on the long road
between Katherine and Alice Springs. The rocks are particularly picturesque at
sunrise.
Uluru, known for some time as Ayer's Rock is a very special
place. It is a holy site to the aboriginal people of the area and there are
numerous sacred sites around the rock. It is claimed to be the world's largest
monolith, though how that is defined I don't know and it seems a little
spurious. There is something special about the place that even a cynic can find
almost inspiring. More than this are the interesting formations, rock paintings
and so forth.
Uluru is famous for its changing colours, the rock does seem to
radiate its own personality, all the pictures below were taken on the same day
and most within the space of a couple of hours around sunset. The sunrise near
the rock was undramatic when I was there, though from afar, it looked very
special (photo 10).
Whilst the rock was changing colours in front the sunset behind
looked almost as though the sky was on fire.
My first view of Kata Tjuta (also known as the Olgas) was during
the sunrise near Uluru, where they could be seen in the distance (photo 1). The
formations at Kata Tjuta are larger and more varied than Uluru, one of them
seems a bit like a cartoon submarine (photo 5).
Mount McConnell is near Uluru and apparently sometimes confused
for The Rock.
The Breakaways are some nice looking rocks near Coober Pedy. The
sunrise there was pleasant if not dramatic.
Coober Pedy is a bit of a strange place. The town has been built
on the opal mining industry and as a result, there are holes everywhere, so one
really has to watch ones step.
The Coober Pedy churches are underground, tunnelled into the
rock. Some of them are quite plain, others like the Serbian church are quite
splendidly carved, though unassuming on the surface (photos 3-7).
The museum in Coober Pedy is a former mine / home. The homes in
many parts of town are still underground and there are underground hotels too.
I was reliably informed that Port Douglas is one of the better
jumping off points for viewing the Great Barrier Reef. Better than the tacky
sprawl of Cairns, just down the coast. Whilst there I got to do some nice dives
and also chill out on an island, as well as meeting up with Shantel a friend of
mine who is a marine biologist there. The Daintree rainforest is reckoned to be
the world's oldest and is just up the road (photo 4)
The town of 1770 is the only one I know that has a number for a
name. When I got there, it coincided with the founding festivities, which
included dancing from various groups, including aboriginals (photos 1&2) and
a re-enactment of James Cook landing on the beach May 23rd 1770 (photos 3-5). It
began quite orderly but in no time the throng of onlookers were crowding Cookie
and his comrades (photo 5).
Fraser Island is the largest sand island in the world. Much of
it is covered in rainforest and apparently there is enough fresh water under it
to fill Sydney harbour four times over. Seventy-five mile beach along one side
is a highway, with the associated regulations, more than this, it is not seventy-five miles long at
all (photos 1 & 2). On the island are a number of picturesque lakes, the most
attractive is Lake McKenzie (photos 3-5). Lake Wabby has a nice sand bank
alongside it (photos 6-8) and Lake Allom is home to a number of long-necked
turtles (photo 9). Along the highway / eastern beach, there are several picturesque
spots. The Maheno, a wreck, lapped by the surf (photos 10-12) and the pinnacles,
with its coloured sand (photos 13 & 14) are particularly photogenic.
Apparently the jellyfish washed up along the shore are not dangerous (photo 15),
though if that is true it would probably be the only animal that wasn't.
Nimbin is a hangover from the sixties and the hippy generation.
Many of the shops have psychedelic signage (photo 1) and there is a hemp museum,
hemp bar and weed is freely available. There were constantly people asking me
whether I wanted to buy some weed from them. Amusingly the majority of this
business takes place in the parade between the courthouse and the police
station. The map of the locality is very pretty, though entirely useless (photo
2). In the estate agents window I looked at the description of several
properties. There was generally a reference to a good yield or good crop from
the garden. I have a suspicion that it was not referring to a vegetable garden.
Canberra is the capital of Australia, stuck part way between the
two major cities, Sydney and Melbourne. It is a planned city. Designed to be a
showpiece in the same vein as Brasilia, Washington D.C. or Islamabad. The
parliament building is peculiar in so far as that it sits on and in a hill. The
architect decided that the hill on which it sits would also look good sitting on
it, so the roof is turfed (photos 1 & 2). The senate chamber takes its red
colour from the House of Lords in London (photo 3). The lower house is green,
like the House of Commons, though in both cases the shades are supposed to
reflect native Australian colours and native materials were used in
abundance.
The Aboriginal community has an embassy in front of the old
parliament building, petitioning for a greater voice in Australian affairs. The
people there seemed to be taking it easy when I saw them though.
The Australian War Memorial is a memorial museum (photos 1 &
3). There are statues of Australian leaders and soldiers, the favourite probably
being that of Simpson and his donkey. A man who famously would rescue the
wounded during the Gallipoli campaign (photo 2). The War Memorial is at the end
of Anzac parade, which is lined with memorials to the various expeditions
Australia has been involved in and the branches that make up Australia's armed
forces (photo 4).
Roadtrains are part of driving around outback Australia. These
are up to fifty-six metres long in some places, hauling anything from cattle to
cars across the country. Sometimes a roadtrain heading in the other direction
would suck so much air as it shot past, the car would veer and the doors felt
like they were about to be pulled off. Overtaking them can be tricky, especially
when taking a photo at the same time.
There are numerous big things around Australia. The Big Croc
(photo 1), Big Gala (photo 2), Big Merino (photo 3), Big Prawn (photo 4) , Big
Pineapple (photo 5) all pale in fame next to the Big Banana of Coff's Harbour
(photo 6). All of these obscenely outsized reproductions of local produce or
fauna. The only contradiction being the whale, which was actually much smaller
than life size (photo 7).
The Ettamogah pub near Nambour is the most photographed pub in
Australia. Based on a series of cartoons, supposedly representing Australian
life. I did not find them the slightest bit funny.
This Open-Air Cathedral is the only one I am aware of. I first
thought it just to be a novelty, but on visiting the place, I did find there to
be a sense of serenity and peace to the place, artfully constructed with minimal
materials.
In one area, the eucalypts trunks are unable to stand up to the
fierce winds, though they seem to have little problem growing pushed on their
side.
There are also just random things one sees driving around, like
the bottle tree (photo 1), tyre tree (photo 2) or just a pointless traffic light
(photo 3). The roadhouses which provide succour on the long roads can also be a
bit of an event in themselves. One in Balladonia houses a reasonable museum
(with parts of the Skylab satellite which crashed nearby as part of its
display), in the middle of nowhere and another at Wycliffe Well claims to be the
UFO centre of Australia and is appropriately painted with aliens etc. (photos
4&5).
Just by driving around Australia, one can see some of its
endemic fauna, blue tongues (photos 1&2), dingoes (photos 3&4), monitor
lizards (photo 5), snakes (photo ), galas (photo 7), mohawked pigeons (photo 8),
flying foxes (photo 9), spiders and insects (photos 10-12). The majority of
Australian mammals though are nocturnal, which makes getting pictures of
wallabies and kangaroos more difficult to spot and photograph. They are
also notoriously shy and flighty (photo 14).
Looking at roadkill, is the easiest way to see many wild
animals. It is also a constant them of driving around outback Australia.
Cars would also often get trashed on the roads and then left
there. The first photo was from a quite recent event, when a cow and a car
collided to dramatic effect. Other cars get buried on impact and some just seem
to be left to die slowly.
Signs are one of the distractions on what can be a rather
monotonous bit of road. I have an idea to have books published along the side of
the road in outback Australia, if they are interesting enough, they should
educate the people and keep them awake too. Some people make their own signs,
like the cattle rancher who has obviously lost some of his cows to traffic
(photo 8).
My trusty four wheel drive took me twenty four thousand
kilometres around Australia. Through different environments, past bushfires,
through sand, scrub, rocks and river, it did me proud.
The roads in outback Australia are invariably long with little
traffic. That made it all the stranger when we came across a Zebra crossing in
the middle of nowhere. It is actually the end of an emergency runway for the
Royal Flying Doctor Service, where the road has additional markings and is a bit
wider and totally straight, in order to accept their aircraft (photo 1).
Incredibly, this is the same creek, facing one way from a bridge
over a creek and then the other. The aridity starts almost immediately
I don't know what this was supposed to be a picture of, but I
kind of like the way it turned out anyway. |
