To the woods!

When we first arrived in Ballina township we called into the Information Office – most large towns have such a place, it is where travellers can get information about the town and district and even learn where to stay, where to eat and any special events that might be happening during the time of their stay. The helpful young lady who rushed to our assistance gave us quite a lot of help and insisted that we should visit Victoria Park. Apparantly, before the timbermen, who were chasing the red cedar, had destroyed most of the natural rainforest, a tiny parcel of 8 hectares had been secured from devastation as a reminder of what the country once was. Both Colin and I are nature lovers so this was definitely on our “to visit” list. Actually, it was not just the timbermen who destroyed the natural bush, the government did too – they sold much of the tree covered land where the cedar had been taken, for people to farm - on condition that they cleared it of bush.

We had Victoria Park to ourselves. A timber boardwalk has been created to take you through the small patch of rainforest without touching the ground.

The reserve is actually larger than the 8 hectares of rainforest, and regeneration in the area surrounding that remnant of forest will increase its size in time. Large rainforest trees often have what is known as “buttress roots” They are very shallow penetrating which means that in ultra strong winds the massive trees will topple over and cause a domino effect with their fall, forcing over other trees.

At last I managed to get a photograph of myself! I had to set the camera up and work out how to get into the shot and persuaded Colin to press the button. For some reason we had to have three tries before he actually managed to press the button firmly enough for the shot to be taken! No, I was not inside the rainforest where we were asked to stay on the boardwalk, this tree was on the very edge beside the carpark! The rest of the rainforest is behind it.

Another place that our helpful Information Ofice girl told us about was Summerland House. Actually my tour guide son had told us about it only a week earlier and recommended that we try to visit. Anyway, we did visit. This is a farm that is worked by handicapped people and is obviously a very productive and successful farm. Avocados, macadamia nuts and hydrophonic tomatoes are the main crops grown and a tractor tour of the farm was a real eye opener to the success of the place.

As well as the farm there are shops where gifts can be bought, farm grown groceries can be bought and a nursery where plants can be bought.

I would have loved to have bought a few of the plants that were here – they looked so strong and were not expensive either. Maybe we could call in again on the way home. Its four days before we pack up to leave this caravan park (which is deserted now the weekend is over!)

The evening light was beautiful when I looked out of the window of our cabin back at the caravan park so we hastily jumped into the car to get to where we could see the sun setting over the water. It was dazzling bright and not good for photography so I waited until the sun dropped out of sight. The clouds were beautiful so I contented myself with a shot of them. Driving back to the camp again the tiny clouds overhead and in the East were reds and yellows. It makes you feel good to see the beauty that nature can provide!

We intend to head South tomorrow. Fingers crossed that the weather stays as good as this!

AJ

Crossing Borders

Cases were packed and rooms checked to see that nothing was left behind and our happy band of coach travellers left the city of Katherine to head West to where the sun sets. Our base for the next three nights will be Kununurra which is in the Kimberley Region.

Our first morning stop was Victoria River, just a service station where we could take a short break and grab a cold drink. I found it so beautiful that I declared that I wanted to come back – and other voices in the group agreed with me. The scenery is just stunning.

This shot was taken of our coach parked at the service station.

Boab trees are found up here and try as I might I could not get a decent shot of one as we were whizzing along the highway so it was with some relief that I found a rather puny one when we were parked! I must try and take a shot of a decent sized one!

When we reached the border between the Northern Territory and Western Australia we pulled up so that we could all take a photo of the sign!

Firie, our driver, told us that he expected his passengers to push the bus over the border 'cos it was a tradition. He was only teasing! Only a few metres from the Border sign was an inspection bay were we had to pull over and declare any fresh fruit, vegetables, nuts and honey.

The best part of the day (every bit of the day was the best part!!) Was what followed. After driving over the dam wall of the Argyle Dam we descended to the banks of the Ord River.

The coach pulled up right at the edge of the bank and our high speed motor boat transport pulled in alongside.

Sometimes we flew like the wind and at other times crept silently on the current but ever second of our four hour trip was exciting. We learned all about the uses and control of the waters from the Argyle Dam, we spotted fresh water crocs, unusual birds that tiptoed on tiny water weeds, a large Jabiru (black and white stork) and the most glorious scenery I have ever seen before.

I complained to one of the other passengers as we were leaving the cruise that my camera was twice as heavy after taking so many photographs! The trip ended after sunset so we drifted along as the sky changed colour and magic happened on the rippling water.

Absolutely exhausted from our wonderful experience we were a quiet bunch of people as we were shuttled to our very posh hotel. A hot shower revived us and we all managed to enjoy a fabulous feast in the large restaurant. We are so lucky – we are staying in the Pinctada Kimberley Grande, what a super place for a coach tour! We feel like royalty!

AJ

Sunrise to sunset - From Home to Darwin

How exciting! This is day one of my trip to Darwin and the Kimberleys. A trip that has been a “dream”of mine for such a long time. The cameras (three of them) are primed and ready for action. Colin has been left at home to “keep the home fires burning” - he is not as keen about exploring as I am! However he did ferry us (son Steven and me) to the train station at sunrise.

The one and half hour train trip was quite uneventful, it was quite amusing to see how the travellers were seated so close to each other and yet managed to remain isolated from each other by either studying their smart phones or by staring blankly! Steven and I chatted to each other and stood out from the others because of it!

Once in the airport we checked in and I bought a very welcome cup of coffee. I was so ready for it!

Little Daffy bear posed for a few photographs along the way and was getting a bit weary by the time we sat in the transit lounge waiting for our plane to be called. It is tiring being so popular.

At last we were on our way. It was clear enough to take a shot out of the window as we left Brisbane – but we did not fly over the city so my photo is of the suburbs near the airport.

When we were approaching Darwin over the Gulf of Carpentaria we crossed over a few little islands, I couldn't resist taking another aerial shot because one of the islands was reminiscent of a manta ray, the row of little clouds formed the “tail”.

Once in the airport and the phones turned on I rang Colin to tell him we had arrived and Steven rang Lydia to tell her! At least we have our priorities right even if we both have left our partners at home!

We waited out the front of the airport for a friend (Susie) to collect us and I shot of yet another picture of the totems by the kerb.

I had heard so much about the Mindel Markets and this evening I eventually managed to see them. 

The sound of a didgeridoo player and drummer filled the air and we were drawn to the sound. A large crowd had surrounded them but I still managed to take a little video of them. What a wonderful sound. The “didge”player was using four different didgeridoos at the same time, each had a different tone. On the top of the sand dune behind the players were two little boys silhouetted against the evening sky, dancing to the rhythm. They were fun to watch. They were so unaware of being seen. Of course we had to go onto the beach to watch the sunset. 

It seems that all the tourists in Darwin had gathered on the beach to do just that! They made a wonderful shot too!

To draw my ramblings to a close, here is one of my sunset pictures. It was worth lugging the camera along!

AJ

On the rails

This is our second day of train travel and today we have traversed some amazing country. We did enjoy our stay at Chillagoe, country people are so welcoming – maybe because we were originally country people ourselves, I don’t know, but we have found people we would chose as friends in every stop we have made on this trip!

The train trip is in quite long stretches and the Savannah country is very similar for much of the distance except for the occasional creek crossing or river bed. I have my camera set on a high shutter speed to enable me to capture the beauty within the river beds with little or (hopefully!) no blur to indicate that the picture was taken while on the move! Each of the creeks is different – some are dry and either rocky or else quite sandy or a few have remnants of water still in narrow bands within the wide river bed. The trees that grow in these river beds or along the sides are much healthier than their cousins on the open plains and there are a few different varieties that stand out.

For many miles we see no animals and we forget that we are traveling through huge cattle stations, then we find patches where the cattle are close to the train tracks. The cattle up here are all Brahman, floppy eared creatures with a pendulous dewlap.

They are a tough breed of cattle that are tick resistant, the traditional European breeds of cattle are completely unsuitable for either the ticks that suck the creatures blood and inject a poison or the extremes of temperature in this part of Australia. At one place where the track traveled between a high cutting and a steep drop-away, the cattle were all over the tracks and our train had to creep quite slowly to avoid hitting any - the noise and movement of the train did encourage them to get out of our way. The front seats of the first carriage were jammed with people with cameras set on “video” mode. The people in the second carriage could see nothing of the entertainment going on at the front of the train!

Another fun thing that happened today was the promise of a stop at a siding where the locals would be waiting at Bullock Creek Café with tea coffee and cakes and a souvenir mug that we could purchase. When we arrived at the Bullock Creek siding there was nothing to be seen except for old timber cattle yards and a tiny tin shed with the name “Bullock Creek” written on the top. “We shall have to make a phone call and hurry them up” said our driver over the PA and marched down to the back of the train. Within minutes the two drivers had put up a beach umbrella and set up tables on which were cakes and cups of tea and coffee. Sure enough the mugs were for sale! We shall make good use of ours!

If it were not for this tourist train chugging through this hungry country and stopping at the places it does the life would be drained from these tiny communities. Once a week the train and its load of tourist passengers pass through and then back again. Places like Einasleigh with its handful of houses and one large hotel would fade away if it were not for the Savannahlander.

I love the sign work on the front of the pub – a play on words!

This evening as we made our way to where we were to have our meal in Forsayth I realized that the sun was setting and so far I had not taken any pictures of an outback sunset. Leaving my exhausted husband to wait I trotted off to take my picture without road signs or power poles! It was a beautiful evening sky, not the most dramatic I have ever seen but beautiful all the same and the temperature was perfect. The heat of the day had dissipated and the flies had stopped being overly friendly. (where there are cattle there are flies) It was quiet and there was no wind at all.

I should have taken a photo of our meal – try as I could I could not eat more than half of it! I had forgotten that country people serve country sized meals! Colin even managed to have a dessert afterwards! I think I am letting the side down! And that was after I had piled my unwanted potatoes onto his plate too!

It’s another early start tomorrow. so I should end here. No internet or phone connections available in this part of the world so I will have to try to post this tomorrow night.

AJ

On the road again

The little red Corolla was working hard today. A reasonably early start from Taree took us through some beautiful green and healthy countryside - which we didn't allow time to stop and photograph - because we were "on a mission"! The evening before we had been aiming to reach Karuah and the oyster sheds so that Colleen could get a few dozen rock oysters. Unfortunately it was after six when we got there and of course, nothing was open! Great disappointment. However we did a little exploring and noticed the setting sun making a beautiful display over the estuary. I couldn't help myself, the car was stopped and I took several pictures. Here is one of them.

We reached our motel in Taree soon after eight - it was just as well I had run earlier in the day to warn the proprietor that we would be late and our approximate arrival time. We were only ten minutes later than my estimate!
We were surprised to find that we had exactly the same motel room that we had stayed in on our trip down to Canberra.
Next morning the sun was rising behind the paddock of cattle through the trees behind the motel. I had glanced through the small window behind the kitchenette and noticed the mist on the ground and the glow of the sun on its way. I grabbed the camera and dashed around the end of the building and down across the lawn to the stand of tall trees and rattled off half a dozen shots as the light changed.

I tried all kinds of different things - with the trees and with a few and will only a couple. It would have been good if one of the cows had come close to the fence that was just behind the trees - but apart from looking up to see who was looking at them not one of them moved any closer!
This shot is half way through the stand of trees. A little later and the sun was up and the pattern of shadows across the grass made yet another great shot!
We drove into a coastal town called Nambucca and found Colleen her oysters. They are freshly "shucked" (what a horrible word!) this morning and put in brine in bottles - so she has eight dozen of them to enjoy! We put them in the car refrigerator to keep them cool.
Just as we were about to turn off the highway onto the Linkway at Mudgeeraba the phone rang and it was Colin! I was able to ask him to get Colleen's car up to the road so that we could transfer her case from my car to hers. A cup of tea and a chat and she was on her way to Brisbane in her own vehicle.
It has been a great week and I appreciated her company on the long drive down and back again.
AJ

Sign of things to come

For over three weeks now I have had to rely on using a pre-paid Internet connection which has meant very modest use of the 'net. Its just a hiccup regarding the removal of "codes" by one ISP so that the new one can then switch on my new connection. - but patience has run thin and here I am back with my blog page!!
The main reason is because this evening there was the most glorious sky and I just wanted to share it!

 The first of the two shots was taken looking due west to where the sun had disappeared while the second picture is looking north directly out from our back veranda. The whole sky was coloured - but it didn't last more than a few minutes. It was "wow! Look at that! Where is the camera!" good fun!
The weekend is upon us and the weather men are predicting a wet day tomorrow - usually a bright sky like this means that it is going to be a good day - so we shall see who is right!
To see the photos larger, click on them and then hit the "back" arrow to return to this page.
AJ

Woomera Sunsets

I have spent quite some time sorting though my photos and converting them from RAW to jpegs and adjusting the lighting on a few of them. Not one has needed any colour adjustment which is pleasing. I am still “raving” about my super Nikon D90! So far it hasn't let me down.

You may remember that I showed only one of the sunset shots that I took at Woomera. That night there were no obstructions to spoil a magnificent sky.

I actually took twelve shots and every one of those is a “keeper” but I am showing you a small selection to show how the sky changed during the 15 minutes I was taking photographs.

f/5  1/1600 ISO 500  32mm

The very first shot is from just outside the fence of the caravan park and you can see the road and the power lines that I had to walk past to get my unobstructed view of the majesty of the evening.

f/18  1/640  ISO 500  55mm

f/7.1  1/640   ISO 500   33mm 

f/5.3  1/400  ISo 500  48mm

f/5.6  1/400 ISO 500  55mm

AJ

Cooler nights and colourful skies

Winter has returned with its cool fingers - the days are glorious, warm and pleasant but by late afternoon the mercury drops and once again the heaters and fires are activated to keep the chill away.

With the contrast of temperatures the clouds have been eye catching - and when that happens the setting sun paints them with reds and gold. This evening was one of those "ooh" moments!

F/4.0 1/60 Sec ISO 160

Looking almost north the sky between our palm trees shows the colour of fire. The clouds are not large but numerous enough to give plenty for the fading sunlight to bounce off.

Looking west to where the sun disappeared (a little bit north of west) the sky is absolutely stunning. Strong reds tonight. Does that mean it is going to be a good day tomorrow? It is always a good day tomorrow!

f /5.6 1.40sec ISO 160

I wonder what will attract my eye tomorrow - you will have to wait and see!

AJ

Sunset at last!

I have been hoping that the sky would behave one evening so that I could try my new camera out on a colourful sky. (Nikon D90) Well tonight was my night! Admittedly there was colour but it only covered a fairly small area of the huge expanse of sky that I can see from my back veranda so I did have to use the tele end of my 18-55mm lens.

The camera was put into full manual mode - I did not want the camera to compensate for the darkness. The aperture was set on f/8 and left on f/8 and the shutter speed was varied according to the results I got. (After each shot I get a couple of second's preview of the image).

Composition is always important to me so I had to carefully choose which trees to include and where to position them and still get the sky colours I was after.

The first shot I am sharing was taken in the area of sky where the sun actually goes down - because it is winter time and I live in Australia, that area is in the North West. (In the summer time the sun goes down in the West).

f/8 1/25sec ISO 200 55mm

The next two photos were taken looking North at the colours reflected on the sky over the horizon. This always happens a little after the brightness in the west and is worth waiting for. The colour is softer but beautiful.

f/8 1/10 ISO 200 22mm

I just had to include the palm tree to show this sky as a tropical sky!

f/8 1/20 ISO 200 55mm

The shutter speed was varied to compensate for the darkening sky - I like to keep the darks "dark", this way the colours are richer. I have not "enhanced" the colours, I know this is easy to do but today was not necessary!

AJ