Snowfields, bush, lakes etc.
On these pages I detail just a few places of scenery in our beautiful country - AUSTRALIA.
This area is south of the capital of Queensland, Brisbane, in what we call south-east Queensland.
On the right we see some of the beach and buildings at Surfers Paradise.
Wonderful peaceful beaches away from the "bustling crowds".
In its simplicity, this fall of water resembles a bridal veil, as if held to the rock face by a clasp of ferns that allows it to tumble gently to the small pool below. Behind the falls, moisture-loving mosses and other plants cling to the damp wall. They are screened in a film of mist yet their greens are just visible to the naked eye.
Running from Marree to Birdsville, the Bridsville Track is one of the most infamous routes of the inland of our continent, with rolling sand dunes, seas of gibbers, claypans, and a few isolated homesteads along its 485 kilometres.
Usually this area receives an annual rainfall of 4 inches or 101 millimetres, but sometimes there are seasons when such large amounts of rain drench the area that it is swamped with water for days, sometimes weeks.
When the land recovers and the hot sun shines, once again, the desert, is transformed into a paradise of wildflowers
The city of Adelaide was laid out to the plans of South Australia's 1st Surveyor-General, Colonel William Light.
Beyond the parklands the city spreads through old-world inner suburbs, along thecoast and into the Hills to be the continents 4th largest city. The shore line of the city is strung with 30 kms of suburbs, one of which , is Glenelg, which is where South Australia began.
Through this gap, which is the gateway to Alice Springs, in the centre of our continent, passes a river, road, railway, and telegraph line. After heavy rain it is not unusual for the Todd River to demand all the space.
Our tropical north covers wonderful country, in a region of dramatic contrasts, where lonely sunburnt plains met rugged mountains gouged deeply by raging and swollen rivers, and where vast tracts of rough scrub and impenetrable forests give way to a confusion of mud flats laced by watercourses seeking the sea, and where swamps end in tangled mires of mangroves.
Much of this wildly beautiful land is inaccesible, and despite mining activities, is still very much "last frontier" country.
Roadworks continue to open up areas. There are 2 seasons - the Wet and the Dry.
The Dry is 8 months with little or no rain at all, and the Wet arrives with a vengenance and the still bush is shattered by violent storms. Not long after it is transformed into a world of vivid greens and the mantle of lush vegetation sparkles in freshness.
Through scattered outcrops of rocks and large boulders, this track leads to Nourlangie Rock, which can be seen beyond the trees on the left. Rising to265 metres (857 feet) in rugged splendour an forming part of the western escarpment of Arnhem Land, this Rock is best known for the fine Aboriginal art galleries that are on rock walls and ceilings of caves in the area.
The strange boab (or baobab) trees with their swollen trunks and ungainly limbs are a distinct feature of the Kimberley region (north west of Western Australia) and range over the sandy plains and low stony rises for about 160 kilometres inland.
The young slender boabs have more dignity than the old ones, whose boles become gnarled and distorted with age, expanding to large proportions.
The species can reach many centuries in age. The trunk acts as a storage reservoir for food and water, and the tree only bears leaves during the wet.. The large nut-like fruit has dry pulp insdie which tastes rather like cream of tartar and is said to
A sandy track running south from Cervantes leads to Nambung National Park and the Pinnacles. the origin of these toombstone-like structures has been the subject of much debate between geologists.
These bizarre limestone fingers poke out of the sandy floor and stud a large area and vary from small, delicate finger-like stalks to giants 6 metres tall and 2 metres thick.
Perth, being the capital city of Western Australia.
Situated on the lower slopes of Mount Field, 83 klms north-west of capital Hobart, this lovely waterfall is at its best in spring when the river is swollen from seasonal rains and melting snows. The walk to the falls is about 10 minutes away from a car park and a good walking path takes you there. lovely ferns, lichens, old trees and cool and damp shade. beautiful.
Tasmania is the heart shaped island, lying 240 klms off the south-eastern corner of the continent and has the most overwhelming scenery, and distances between beauty spots are negligible.
This island is associated with much of our early history. Some featured in my history pages.
Lying 241 klms east of Melbourne, the capital, and the tail end of the Great Dividing Range, the Grampians is one of the countrys richests floral regions, harbouring over 800 different plants, which are about 1/3 of the State's whole indigenous flora.
The Alps of Victoria and New South Wales have a dozen ski-resorts dotted over their snowfields. Mt Kosciusko was opened up for ski-ing in the 1960's when the hydro-electric scheme was being worked on.
Miners on the goldfields in 1860 strapped fence palings known as "butter pats" to their feet for the practical purpose of everyday mobility and
The views from the top are incredible - like being on top of the world.
Subtropical rainforests with wonderful tall trees and lots of shrubbed and grassy areas.
SYDNEY in New South Wales, is Australia's oldest and largest city and beautifully set on a wonderful Harbour.
This is where it all began - the first settlement.
(see History and Buildings for more pictures)
