No trains today

My explorations today took me, among other places, to Glenreagh. Two days ago Colin and I were dumbfounded to see dozens of giant old steam trains and what must have been hundreds of historic train carriages in a paddock north of Dorrigo. Dorrigo is high in the mountains, so getting the trains there must have been nothing short of incredible – especially since I learned that the old timber rail bridges were not strong enough to carry the weight of some of the rolling stock. Rather than be taken to their resting place by railroad they were dismantled and transported on the backs of trucks.
The man who arranged to have all the steam trains taken to Dorrigo – with financial backing from various councils and the government – wanted to have a running rail for the public but his committee were incensed when he refused to consider using steam engines to haul the carriages because of the high cost of maintenance. I really do not know the whole story so rather than get it completely wrong I will jump to the committee leaving Dorrigo with an engine and some carriages and setting up a steam rail museum at Glenreagh – where Colin and I found the silent demise of that venture. In recent years the Department of Safety has put so many demands on the Glenreagh group that would cost thousands and thousands of dollars and yet the group were not permitted to run the rail as a business to enable them to earn the money that was needed to construct bridges and comply with all the many rather pedantic demands made by the Dept of Safety.
So the Glenreagh Mountain Railway committee has disbanded and the rolling stock now lies idle and is rusting away - as are the carriages and engines at Dorrigo. However, unlike the engines and carriages lying silently at Dorrigo, the Glenreagh track is easily accessible by people intent on destruction, and vandalism has escalated the demise of the carriages. It is hard to imagine that in a tiny country town this sort of activity goes on – but boredom and lack of respect for the property belonging to others is universal.
AJ

An old town visited.

Today our explorations took us further south from Coffs Harbour to a small town inland from Nambucca Heads, through beautiful dairy country and into the hills.
I had assumed that Bowraville was a gold mining town from what I had read on the Internet but the various monuments in the town, to the past told otherwise.
Bowra, as it was first known, was a wood logging area for the Cedar-getters. Cedar was once a prized timber and was used for making everything from banana boxes to houses and furniture. Very little cedar is left in any of the areas that were chosen for logging – When logging first began the cedars were massive trees and each one yielded lots of usable timber.
The town centre of Bowraville is a testament to the past, the style of the shops with verandas reaching to the edge of the footpath is typical of the style of building from around the beginning of the 20th century, which was when the Australian towns really started to become more permanent.
Settlement of many town in Australia was begun with the cedar getters, miners or farmers (depending on what brought the people to the district) and their families living in very primitive accommodation such as canvas tents or homes made from kerosene cans, hessian and with tramped earth floors. I have an older friend who’s father was a timber-man and she started her life as an infant in a tent not far from where her father was working. However her life began in the back blocks of Queensland.
The style of the shopping area of Australian towns has not changed much over the years – until fairly recently – so where-ever you travel in this huge continent, you will find a town that reminds you of one you have seen somewhere else! The Australian sun is so fierce that the veranda was a sure way of encouraging the passing customer to stay a while and look in the window!
The old hotel in Bowraville proudly displays its age with 1912 emblazoned on the top façade. The ironwork veranda railing may be original or it may have replaced timber railings, this style of wrought ironwork can be seen on old pubs and terraced houses and mansions all over the country. The expensive terrace homes in Sydney that are adorned with similar iron lacework date back to this same era.
The town may give the appearance of being locked in the past however I was very aware that the town was busy and there were people walking and driving about. I have visited many small country towns and not found one to be quite as “alive” as this one.
AJ

Mutton Bird Island Nature Reserve

Sunday arrived with sunshine and a wonderful mild temperature so it was perfect for a quick visit to Mutton Bird Island. We parked the car at the end of the jetty overlooking the trawler fleet and walked along the man made causeway that has been constructed between the island and the mainland to create a safe harbour. We passed the large and expensive looking yachts and pleasure craft and the fishing charter boats and tourist boats to reach the steep climb on to Mutton Bird Island.

When we saw just how steep the track was we did hesitate - but determination got the better of us and off we went - but slowly! It was encouraging to encounter younger people struggling! That made me feel a lot fitter!

Looking back to take photos was a good excuse to stop for a breather! So I have quite a few pictures.

I also used my son's hard drive camcorder to take some shots so I should be able to make up a little video once I am home.
There is actually not a lot to see on this "island" the mutton birds or "shearwaters" come out at night time, during the day they are snuggled down inside earth burrows. The young birds have hatched by now and will leave in April so they should have lost most of their fluff by now - the parent birds are supposed to return to feed the young in the evening and find their offspring with lots of whistling by parent and young. Since the island is shut to the public in the evening, I don't think anyone except the rangers who do a head count and put rings on the young, ever see the birds! We were only able to see a few of the holes that were near to the concrete track.

There are no trees on the "Island" so really there is little point in making the trip - except that the view back to Coffs Harbour is second to none! It took my breathe away.

We feel so lucky to have been able to visit Mutton Bird Island on a perfect day - and with such beautiful clouds to make the sky look good.

AJ

Along the Waterfall Way

The car was packed with thermos and our lunch ingredients and off we went in search of a waterfall or two. The road that goes through Bellingen and Dorrigo goes right through to Armidale and has been given the appealing name “The Waterfall Way”. Before we turned onto the road to Dorrigo we made a very slight detour to call in to see the Butterfly House just south of Coffs Harbour.
Our visit lasted only half an hour but we loved what we saw and would recommend anyone to take a visit. It is rather expensive but I came away with half a dozen photos of butterflies I would not otherwise have seen – my favourite was the birdwing butterfly which is the largest Australian butterfly. The male butterfly is the spectacular one with lots of green and yellow making it very eye catching – but I hang my head, I could not get a good shot of one! Butterflies are attracted to certain colours – and the top of Colin’s head must have been one of those certain colours! The road to Dorrigo is steep, slow and winding. It is slow because there seem to be road works every ten kilometers with traffic lights on timers. Grrr! We called into the Rainforest display centre and walking out onto the elevated lookout and took advantage of the “photopod”. This is a metal post with a screw with a large plastic wheel to turn the screw, on the top - to attach a camera. Instructions written onto the side of the post advising how to attach the camera, set the timer and take a photo of yourself. So I tried it out! Then we took ourselves to Dangar Falls and Oohed and Aahed at the spectacle! Poor Colin was not too thrilled when I dragged him along the track to see the falls from another vantage point! He was happier when we reached the spot and the sight was worth the effort! He was happy when I said that I did not want to drive all over the mountains in search of more falls but would rather take a few shots of the old and attractive buildings in Dorrigo.
Before doing that we went in search of the steam engines that we knew were spread over an area north of Dorrigo. I will write about that place another time.
We are hoping that the weather will be kind to us this week so that we can see more of the beautiful countryside around Coffs Harbour.
AJ

A holiday at "Coffs"

Colin and I will be staying in Coffs Harbour for seven days. On our arrival to this popular tourist town we just had to call into the most famous place in this region - the Big Banana! We had promised to bring back a souvenir for each of the children so we just had to call in so we could get something!

Colin was my willing subject for a shot of the landmark - All I had to do was tell him where to stand!

We could not leave without sampling a banana - this is the premiere banana growing area in NSW - so we ordered a banana split - and yum! It was good! Large and sweet and delicious and almost too much for any one person to eat on their own - but we had one each and we left ..... nothing!

A visit to the Information centre was our next call. There we met Dave who didn't actually know as much about the region as I did but he was entertaining and he took a real shine to us! I had been on the 'net and made a list of all the places that sounded interesting and although Dave had not been to half of the places at least he was able to show us on the main map where the little towns were that I asked about. He was a lovely fellow! He even suggested a restaurant where we could celebrate our anniversary!

Armed with a few maps and booklets we booked into our accommodation. We had forgotten that there was an hour's time difference so had to put the clocks forward and after putting in the key for the Wireless connection I then made the evening meal. The connection is so poor in our room that I have had to walk 50 metres or more to the games room where I am at the moment. Unfortunately there is no spare power point so I have to run on batteries! But the Internet is FREE so I am very lucky!

A picture taken in the smart lounge room of our two bedroom unit. The place looks as if it has been recently refurbished, it is very attractive and new.

All this post is being written on a tiny little 10 inch laptop and I feel that I can happily take it with me when I go to New Zealand next month and manage. I had a feeling I would need to take my regular laptop (17inch) if this one was not up to the task of uploading pictures and writing in the blog.

I am not sure which direction we shall be going tomorrow, I shall have to look at the booklets and make a decision - Aren't I lucky, I get to choose!

AJ

A birthday in the family

Today is my younger son's birthday. How many years is unimportant but it is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate! We are fortunate this year to have Paul's elder brother, Steven home with us so the entire family was able to go out and have a lunch together while the children were at school and kindergarten.
We enjoyed a long lunch at Jupiters Casino at Broadbeach. Colin and I signed up to become members with Donna's encouragement, it appears that members can have super special prices for meals and it cost nothing to become a member! Gambling is something for others to do! None of us were interested in losing our cash - Donna grumbled that she lost a dollar in the pokies! She was only going to risk that much and it all disappeared in a flash!
After lunch Paul and Donna went back home and after picking up both children they returned with salads and an icecream cake and home made rissoles for tea. I encouraged the children to put on aprons - they did look sweet! and standing on a couple of low stools they helped me get the salads ready in the bowls and then set the table with knives and forks. I dug out a box of birthday candles and they chose the things they wanted to put on Daddy's cake. Kayla chose pink sparkly candles and Chantelle found some little pink babies (!) and some flowers. The flowers are those plastic things that candles without bases sit into and come in all different colours.
Chantelle horrified her parents by eating and enjoying half a raw sausage! Donna told her she would get worms! Perhaps she had been told that would happen when she was small! At the table Chantelle refused to have a cooked sausage! Well I guess it would taste different!
After the main course the stools were out again and the girls clambered up to help decorate the cake. I didn't interfere at all with the arrangement apart from persuading Kayla to keep the candles on one side so Chantelle could put her little babies on the other.
Time for lighting the candles and I suddenly realised that a photo was needed - all those earlier photo opportunities were missed! So I only had time to grab the baby Samsung point and shoot and catch the candle-blowing!
There was enough time after tea for a story - the old favourite "The Gingerbread Man" It was the same book I had read for my boys when they were the age of the girls! Open and close the pages and the characters move. Then time for home.
It has been a good day - and it is good to have a quiet home again!
AJ

Fun on four wheels

ISO 80 f/6.9 1/250 Focal length 80mm

This morning Colin and I visited a caravan and camping show in one of the northern suburbs of the Gold Coast.

As I mentioned in an earlier posting, we have bought an off road camper trailer so that one day (soon I hope!) we will be able to pack up and disappear into the dusty interior - that will have to be when the flood have all retreated! Anyway, it is because of our intentions that we went with eyes open for ideas and methods of making outback camping and putting up the tent easier!

ISO 80 f/6.9 1/250 Focal length 60mm

I am afraid I was attracted to the display put on by the Four Wheel Drive club! Many moons ago Colin and I formed a Four Wheel Drive Club and went on many great excursion with our young family - and because we were a family, the club attracted people with small children as well as adventurous singles and retirees. Anyway, that is beside the point! It was because of that earlier interest that I watched in envy as the vehicles were driven over a specially constructed course to entertain the people who had gone expecting to see caravans and campers!

ISO 80 f/6.3 1/350 Focal length 39mm

Once Colin managed to pull me away from the four wheel drive exhibition - it was in slow motion so not something you would spend too long watching - we peered into camper trailers of every description and size. I had not realised that there were so many different manufactures of camper trailers. In a way they are the same but all have small differences. The way in which the kitchen modules are built into the trailer and the way the gas bottles and fuel cans are attached to the sides are the biggest differences - oh yes, and the price! You can pay so much for a canvas topped camper trailer that any thinking person would save money by buying a super dooper caravan!

Our trailer was cheap compared to every camper on display at this show but my argument is that if you were asked to spend more than that you would be very silly - you can go outback and stay at five star resorts anywhere (yes! in the outback!) and no matter how many nights you spent away you would not spend the sort of money that was being asked for these campers.
We came home happy - we found a kitchen module! Not a box that is like a drawer that pulls out of the trailer and takes up a lot of space, the one we found is a frame with tables on either side, a place for the stove that converts to hold the wash basin and upright supports at the back for the camp light for night cooking! It packs up small - ish and flat. Colin is "stoked"!
AJ

wild times

A cyclone is creeping towards the Queensland Coastline. Our area of South East Queensland is not in danger from the cyclone, it will hit land several hundred kilometres north of us, however the effects of it are already showing down on the beaches. ISO 200 f/14 1/320 Focal length 86mm

On Friday I took my camera out for a spin and even though the rain did fall for a bit, I ignored it - it was time to take more pictures!
I had heard that the sea was messy. A major surf lifesaving championship was being held at Broadbeach and the surf boats were not coping with the seas at all well - several of them had been broken in half and many capsized on the rough water. So I wanted to see for myself how the seas looked. Firstly I drove to Burleigh Heads - a few kilometers south of Broadbeach - and watched as several surfy enthusiasts tried and tried to catch a wave. As you can see from my images, the waves were a bit difficult to "read".

ISO 200 f/14 1/320 Focal length 150mm

Walking further up the headland to where many surfers access the water rather than paddle out from the beach. As you can see from my second image, it is a dangerous practice in rough seas! The water was churning rather than rolling predictably but this young man cleared the rocks in next to no time. I was very impressed! (If I was his mother I would have been terrified at his choice of launching pad!)
From Burleigh I moved to Broadbeach a little further up the coast than the surf titles and took my shot of the waves. They are not really all that huge but you can see that the sea is very unstable. We noticed (Colin was with me) a couple of helicopters and a fixed wing plane zipping up and down and assumed they were filming the competition. However later, when we watched the evening news, we discovered that they were actually searching for a missing lifesaver who, very sadly, was drowned while participating in his race.

ISO 200 f/11 1/500 Focal length 18mm

You can just make out the fixed wing beach patrol plane in my photo. Colin told me when I remarked on its multiple passes, that it was used to patrol the beaches and was cheaper to operate than the helicopters.

ISO200 f/9 1/1250 Focal length 125mm

My final shot was taken at the Spit - just north of Surfers Paradise. The sand-pumping jetty is a favourite haunt for fishermen but you can see now the actual size of the waves - now that there are some fixtures to give scale. After taking this picture I walked back to the car and passed a parked van with a trailer who's driver was just about to unload lots of surfboards from his trailer. The sign was offering to teach people how to surf. A Japanese man with a very large pro camera was busy taking shots of the unloading of the boards so maybe a bunch of young people were going to give him some exciting video to send home!

What a sea in which to learn how to surf!

AJ

Currawong song

I have just uploaded another little video that I made today. A group of Currawongs flew in this morning and set up a choir. I couldn't resist grabbing a camera to make a record of them - I love the sound these large birds can make when they get in the mood!


The Currawong are quite a large bird - double the size of the European crows and magpies I would reckon that from top of the head to the tip of the tail would be 20 inches or 50+ centimetres. They are a meat eater and like nothing better than a mouthful of finch pie. Look at that wicked beak!
Although it is really easy to encourage Currawong to come to be hand fed I do not do this - in fact I chase them away because I prefer to have the nectar and seed eating birds around. I am not encouraging the finches to come in to be fed just so they can be an easy target for Currawong and for Kookaburra.
Most of the time, when a Currawong comes by it has a musical but short call that is repeated. When a group of them fly in it is different. They seem to make an all out effort to sound like a well rehearsed choir! It doesn't happen all that often so when it does I am always enticed to go outside to listen to them. I hope you enjoy the sound that accompanies this short video.
AJ

Rain changes

There has been so much rain lately that the garden is surprising me with the changes that are happening. The huge gum tree is shedding its bark and looks like a tramp in worn out clothes.
Incidentally the black wriggly line down the tree is not a row of caterpillars but a tunnel that was created by termites. It was a complete tunnel from the nest that is just out of sight on the other side of the tree where the first branch comes out from the trunk, and reached all the way to the ground. We pumped spray into the nest and the termites are no longer active. (at the moment - we have to keep a check on them)
Beneath the large ironbark (also a Eucalyptus as is the tree just shown) there is a thick layer of bark chips. These bark chips have not been put there as mulch, they are natural discarded bark from the old and very large tree. The rain has caused bacteria to work on decomposing the chips and it has also germinated several different fungi. Most of the fungi are not really eye catching but this on certainly is! I had never seen one like this before so it makes me wonder where the spores came from!
There is a wood heap next to a path. We now use electricity to warm our home so the wood is just weathering away. I had so much fun with the camera around this pile of timber! There are several different fungi. This one is rather cute. It is only small but quite appealing.
I must move out of the garden and see what is further afield!
AJ

Elly's camel ride

Here is a bit of fun - Elly had her first camel ride on Australia Day and I almost missed it!
With the few seconds of her finishing the ride I have managed to make a 30 second record of the event!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8cKf8PsXs0
I think we should all have chipped in to give Elly another ride - on a camel by herself!
AJ

Video for the Internet

Once again I have been experimenting with video for the Internet. I have installed yet another program on my "bursting at the seams" laptop and have actually managed to create a video that looks quite good when played back even though I converted it to WMF (a windows media file). I almost cringe when I confess to loading Pinnacle Studio 12 on my computer! But whatever works, hey! The program I bought off the net - AVS - kept the video quality and the sound quality but (and it was a big BUT) the pictures froze and then galloped to catch up several times which spoilt the fluidity of the video I had made.
I have removed the video made with AVS and instead I have put my newest upload there. Since you have not seen it anyway (I can tell) you will not remember what the first one was like!



I have made another attempt at putting the video into the blog. Lets see if it works for me today!
Using Pinnacle Studio I imported the video I had made on Premiere Elements and then used the feature offered that converted to wmf full screen size to file. It is possible to upload video that has not been converted but it would have taken over twelve hours. Once converted it only took 35 minutes.
I hope I have not bored you with my enthusiasm for this new technology! The kids have been doing this for ages and think nothing of it - I am a 'newby" and still get excited when I do something new!
Just in case the movie does not appear I had better include the link too!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gb_kySXGfvo
AJ

Water, water everywhere

The elements have been playing games with everyone - the world is shuddering with the excesses of snow, wind or rain. The inland of our dry and barren continent is awash with unusual falls of rain and the water is now making its way down the Darling River and will soon make a difference to the levels in the mightly River Murray. However it will take a couple of months for that water to reach the ocean - the mouth of the River Murray is silted up thanks to reduced flows over our many years of drought.

I have fielded calls from many friends concerned after hearing the news about the quantity of rain that fell on the East Coast. But we haven't had enough to even flood our block of land. We have had less than 50mm for the past three days whereas my son measured 150mm at his home in Ashmore.

One thing we have noticed after the several days of grey skies and rain - the frogs!

The sound of frogs courting is far from musical but is quite entertaining! There are clicks and plops and croaks and rhythmical rattles mixed in with the high pitched buzz from the crickets. Its a good thing we are able to switch off to the sounds or none of us would be able to sleep at night!

I am pinning my hopes on the forcasters being correct about the sun returning on Monday. I love the sun and the bright days!

AJ