Trip Summary - Three months in Australia

Trip Summary - Three months in Australia

What a great trip! It was easy to fill a week in Sydney and enjoyed the ferry rides around the harbor. We were amazed by the animal and scenery of Tasmania. We drove the dirt roads on Kangaroo Island and spotted Koalas there. The Grampians Mountains were dramatic and the Snowy Mountains lived up to their name. The Blue Mountains offered lush vegetation on steep cliff side trails. We bounced along the sand roads of Frazier Island and sailed around the Whitsunday Islands. The coral reefs were the best I have ever seen. We found many interesting stops in the Cairnes Highlands. Cape Tribulation was very tropical and we walked through one of the oldest rainforest on earth. We enjoyed a 4 WD trip up to Cooktown. We flew to Darwin for a trip to Kakadu National Park. After a flight to Alice Springs, we explored Ayres Rock, and other sights in the area. We flew home from here.

Commentary

Traveling in Australia is considerably more expensive than traveling in the US. For example we paid $1.80 to $2.40 for a liter of diesel. But the cost of the trip was the only down side. You get to learn a new language, Aussie slang; learn how to drive on the left; learn how to shift with your left hand (It’s a lefty paradise). It’s an easy and friendly country to explore. Crime is very low, the climate is predictable and the wildlife is just so darn interesting.

In three months we managed to see the best of central and eastern Australia. We could have easily filled 6 months covering the same area. We traveled by rental camper van, but most foreigners are under 30 and travel with just a backpack. Certainly this is a great adventure for the young at heart. Very few Americans travel to Australia and even fewer get beyond the big cities, Ayres Rock and the Great Barrier Reef. It’s worth the effort to see it all! We will return to see what we missed.

I hope you have the time to read the weekly updates which will give you a better understanding of Australia and our travels.

Don

Australia Week 1 Sydney

Our trip started from San Jose CA. We visited our friends the Rosenblatts and we got a good night's sleep there prior to our 14 hour flight. We dropped our RV off at a storage building and we were on our way. The flight was not as bad as expected, due to our being well hydrated and possibly due to the fact that we used 'travel sox'. We were fed well, each seat had its own entertainment center and the flight was at night.We arrived the next moring and checked into our hotel in Darling Harbor, taking a short nap before heading out to see the sights.During our week in Sydney we went to all the usual tourist spots - Sydney Aquarium, the Rocks, Sydney Tower, Sydney Opera House tour, Taronga Zoo, North Head and Manly Beach. We also attended a concert at the Opera House - the performance combined classical and Aboriginal music. The Maritime Museum and Bondi Beach completed the week.Sydney was beautiful, friendly and expensive! Well maybe it's not as bad as London, but our weak dollar doesn't go very far. The best (and only) deal we got was a week of travel on ferries, buses or trains for $43 - much better than buying the Sydney Pass that they sell to tourists.

Week 2 Tasmania

After Sydney we flew to Hobart, Tasmania. Here we picked up a class C RV for 9 days of exploring. Our first and favorite spot was Mt. Field NP. The plants and animals were so different and unique. We took our flashlight and went out at night and saw pademelons, brushtail possums and glow worms. We did a day hike and a boat cruise at Lake St Clair - Cradle Mt NP. We stayed too late and had to drive to our campground in twilight - we were afraid a 'roo was going to jump out in front of the RV. We crossed over to the other side of the park, did some hiking and went on an Animals After Dark tour. Since most of the Australian animals are nocturnal, this was the best way to see them. We did see a platypus (not at night, though!), many wombats, wallabies and pademelons. Unfortunately no devils were out - I guess they had more sense than to be out on a very rainy night.We headed back to the east coast of Tasmania to see Freycinet NP, one of the most scenic parks you'll ever see. We went down to Port Arthur where repeat offenders were held. They used the convicts to build boats, cut lumber and stone and to make shoes. They stopped shipping convicts to Australia in the mid 1800's, when a gold rush started here. You always hear that England shipped its convicts to Australia, but for 150 years, up to 1775, they sent 80,000 convicts to America (this is more than they sent to any other country).Since we were unlikely to see a Tasmanian devil in the wild (they are shy of people as well as being nocturnal), we visited the Tasmanian Devil Conservation Park. The devil is extinct everywhere except Tasmania and he is in danger there because a cancer is being spread by oral contact between devils. The Park is breeding animals that don't have the disease in hopes of saving the population. Devils have a well deserved reputation for being fierce. When they find food, usually dead or wounded animals, they eat the entire body - leaving nothing behind! They can shatter a bone 3" in diameter! Only big sharks have more crushing power in their jaws.Tasmania is a very special place. It should be on everyone's list of places to experience. We will return someday to see all the places, flora and fauna that we missed this trip.

Week 3 South Coast and Kangaroo Island

Week 3 South Coast and Kangaroo Island

After 9 days on Tasmania, we flew to Melbourne and picked up a diesel van camper. We headed down to the Great Ocean Road, on the south coast. We saw the "12 Apostles" which are rock formations just off the coast. Due to erosion of the sandstone there are currently only 11 left. The following night we were having wine in the RV watching a mob of kangaroo jumping in the field in front of us.We took the ferry to Kangaroo Island and stopped at Seal Bay. Here we took a Ranger lead walk on a beach with 150 Australian Sea Lions. The adult see lions would spend 3 days in the ocean diving and eating. They would then return to the beach and sleep/rest for 3 days. Our campground was a great place to see Koalas in the wild. We found 7 in the nearby trees.We planned on spending several days hiking in Flinders Chase NP, but last December, there were numerous wildfires across the island and much of the park was burnt. As a result, many park trails and campgrounds were closed. Access to most of the island is by dirt road. We found travel by RV difficult and very dusty in these areas. Before we left the island we went to see the Fairy Penguins which nest on the rocky shores.

Week 4 South Australia

Week 4 South Australia

Returning to the Mainland, we headed for Victor Harbor, a very pretty beach resort. South of Adelaide we stayed at Belair NP and took a hike to two waterfalls. The waterfalls were dry but we did see 11 Koalas in the trees. In Adelaide, we avoided their veteran's day (ANZAC) parade and toured the Botanical Gardens. After a quick drive around the park filled city, we headed to the Grampions NP. We were given a wet welcome, but that was OK because we wanted to see the waterfalls. The park is known for its rugged mountains and great views. At our campground, the 'roos had the run of the place.The more we travel around Australia , the more we realize what we are missing. We have already skipped some of the places we wanted to explore. Since it is Fall here, it gets dark before 6 PM so this limits how much you can cram into each day. I guess you could say we left plenty to see when we return.

Week 5 SE Australia

Week 5 SE Australia

The highlight of this week was our visit to the Snowy Mountains. True to their name, we were hiking in snow on the trails near the summit. We even saw the Snowy Mountain brumbies (wild horses). In fact, one day a stallion blocked our trail and we wisely detoured around him. These mountains are home to Australia’s largest hydro electric project. Water from the east side of the mountain is collected in large reservoirs, piped through the mountains to a series of power stations on the west side and then discharged for irrigation and consumption. While Australia is in the 7th year of drought, this area is the most deficient, with some reservoirs down to 20 % of capacity.

After driving east from Adelaide, we turned north and started up the populous east coast. We toured Canberra, their capital city. Its layout is very similar to Washington DC. It even has its own territory and the museums are free. Clean, uncrowded, low crime rate; maybe it's not like DC after all.

Week 6 - Blue Mts. to Dorrigo NP

Week 6 - Blue Mts. to Dorrigo NP

The highlight of this week was our time in the Blue Mountains. Located just west of Sydney, the park is dramatic and beautiful. The park sits on a tabletop with steep cliffs bordering a lush valley. This results in numerous waterfalls, rare in Australia, surrounded by semi-tropical vegetation. We felt a little like Indiana Jones as we quickly descended on the world’s steepest railroad down to a rainforest hike. Oddly enough, a major highway bisects the park. Several towns are well placed to capitalize on the popularity of the park.

Just to bring us back to earth, we had vehicle problems with our rental camper van. We headed into Sydney to switch vehicles and then continued north to the coastal resort towns of Port Stephens, Port Macquarie, and Nambucca Head.

We headed back to the mountains to explore Dorrigo NP. Here we did a Skywalk on a platform above the rainforest. There were some beautiful hikes there. Before we left we decided to do one more hike. Near the start of the hike, Pat tripped and sprained her right ankle. After getting her back to the RV, I did the hike solo. While climbing out on some slippery rocks to see a waterfall, I slipped and landed hard on my right side. I finished the hike and we left the park before anything else bad could happen.

Week 7 Brisbane to Sunshine Coast

Week 7 Brisbane to Sunshine Coast

We headed up to Brisbane and stopped at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary. Here Pat was allowed to hold a Koala and get postcards of the event. We saw dozens of Koalas here and learned you don’t call them bears. In Brisbane, we visited two museums, but the best part was riding a ferry up and down the river during a rain storm. At our campground we met a guy from Lake Tahoe, who has been traveling in his Born Free Motorhome for 7 years and has taken it to 6 continents and 40+ countries. We felt like we haven’t been anywhere yet.

Everyone knows Steve Irwin as the Crocodile Hunter, but he also developed and owned the Australia Zoo. It is a different kind of zoo, with a strong conservation and habitat protection message. It was not unusual to see employees taking zoo animals for a walk around the grounds. There were areas where you could pet kangaroos and other animals (crocodiles excluded).

Noosa Head is an upscale resort town on the Sunshine Coast. We heard it was a good place to see wild Koala. We hiked along the Head and had great views, saw a few sea turtles, but no Koalas.

Week 8- Fraser Island to Airlie Beach

Week 8- Fraser Island to Airlie Beach

The highlight of the week was taking a 4 WD excursion to Frasier Island, the largest sand island in the world. We took a ferry out to the island and were greeted by a dingo patrolling the beach. We boarded a large all terrain vehicle and took off at break neck speed down the narrow sand roads, narrowly missing the large trees hugging the track. We crossed the island and stopped at a shipwreck on the far shore. On the way back the driver slammed on the breaks to miss a 3 meter carpet python, sunning in the track.

After this adventure, we headed up to a few coastal towns before going inland to Eungella NP. It was supposed to be a good location for spotting platypus. Since platypus usually only come out between dusk and dawn, it’s difficult to find them before it gets too dark to see. We were unsuccessful this night.

Next we headed to Airlie beach, gateway to the Whitsunday Islands. We arrived on a Friday and signed up for a 3 night sail starting on Monday. The great weather we had been experiencing so far this trip quickly came to an end. It poured buckets on Saturday as we hiked in the area. We were glad we were not on the boat that day. We explored the area around Bowen and got ready for our snorkeling/sailing trip.

Week 9 – Whitsunday Islands to Cairns Highlands

Week 9 – Whitsunday Islands to Cairns Highlands

The highlight of this week was our 3 night sail through the Whitsunday Islands. This is a group of 74 islands, within the boundary of the Great Barrier Reef. We were on a 3 masted Mediterranean Style Schooner, 135 feet long and 200 tons. With only 10 other passengers and a crew of 5, we snorkeled and cruised between fine meals. The coral here was the best I have ever seen. Although we had to wear stinger suits, to protect us from the deadly box jellyfish, we did not wear fins in order to protect the coral from damage. While snorkeling we saw a Wobbegone shark, a green turtle and a sting ray. From the boat we watched a dolphin chase fish, more green turtles and 3 dugongs. This was only the third dugong (related to a manatee) sighting that the boat captain has had in 15 years.
After the boat trip, we went to Magnetic Island. We heard there were koalas there, so we went to find some. We did find three, but the biggest surprise was finding a mother with a joey. This was something we had not seen before even in the zoos or koala sanctuaries!
Heading inland we toured Paronella Park, a Moorish Castle built by hand by Jose Paronella in 1930 as a gift to his fiancée. Since then the castle has been destroyed by floods and fire but the current owners are working hard to restore it. It is a fascinating story of what one man can do. From there we saw several waterfalls on our way up to Cape Tribulation.