MY WORLD ~ 23 Carnarvon Gorge

Most photos may be enlarged, I hope you do.



After driving a few hundred kilometers out of
Yeppoon, see previous MY WORLD post, we started
out on the last 21km of rough gravel road to the gorge.
After a few km, there was a slight hitch...did I mention
the gravel was rough?.., while the Prof attended to a
few minor adjustments, I, being helpful, photographed
the scenery.




A view to the mountains that contain the 16,000ha
gorge area which is part of the much larger Nat.Pk.



We treated ourselves to a comfortable night in a
de luxe safari tent wit Q-sized bed and bathroom.
We felt the extravagance was warranted since we
had just passed our 50th wedding anniversary.
Early next morning we were greeted by this kangaroo
and her many friends as, armed with a large water
bottle and two apples, we headed on a daywalk
exploring up the gorge.



These are the largest Cycads we have encountered
anywhere. They must be hundreds of years old to
have attained this size.
Cycads are in a class of their own, being neither fern
not palm.



The seeds are a beautiful bright red and the whole
seed head looks much like a pineapple.

There had recently been raging floods down the river
and the track had only just reopened after major

repairs to the many crossings and destroyed rock

scaling aids 20' above the normal river height.

Because of the extra water, the Acacias were in bloom

also this pretty blue Solanum

The Heron took advantage of one of the stepping stone
crossings to look for his lunch

while pretty pink grasses swayed on the riverbank.
We hiked over eight crossings at roughly 1km
spacings which exhausted my energy, so Hobbit
fashion, I dabbled my hot feet in the water while
the Prof went on to the Moss Gardens.

There are many points of interest to hike to if you

are young and/or fit..unfortunately I am neither.

We saw a number of hopeful Herons of different

colourings on our return journey

I hardly think these fingerlings were what they

were hoping for.

This little Hibiscus like flower eased my tired spirits
as I looked up to the possibilities of scaling the cliffs

further up the gorge.

The next night we froze in a canvas cabin
without amenities, in the camp groud, but

somehow it was more pleasant to be among
other nature lovers rather than purely luxury
seekers.

If you are still interested, tune in to the next exciting
episode, without shredded tyres, next week.

For more glimpses into other places click on the Logo
at right and travel the world from your armchair.

My thanks to Klaus and the MY WORLD team for
keeping us on our toes and blogging.

MY WORLD ~ 20 Last 800 Miles to the Queensland Coast

*
This is a longer post than I intended, but I did
want to get you finally to our destination since
there still is the long, and interesting treck back
by a different route.
*
We rested our weary bones in a delightful town
called Banana. You may think nothing of that since
Queensland is famous for Pineapples and Bananas!
Completely up the pole! Here we were in dry cattle
country not a lush tropical fruit growing area at all.
So why was the town called Banaba? Perfectly simple
and logical explanation... its called after a famous BULL!!!
*

*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Next point of interest was Mount Morgan with
its historical old mines.
*

*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Some of the old mine buildings close up
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
On the hill on some weeds in front of a church
was this Butterfly beating his wings so fast it was
impossible to get a clearer picture
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Some typical Queensland tropical architecture
with airy verandahs and lots of lattice work to
promote ventilation and shade
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Please don't think I have lost my mind for posting
four pictures of this grassy slope, I do have a reason,
this first one is so soft and a lovely pale green, the
slope was quite steep
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
this second, taken from a slightly different angle
looks so pale it could be dusted with snow
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
this one combines the green in the shade and the
bleached effect in direct sunlight.
Just think what those tussocks of grass would be worth
bought in 6" pots from a nursery!!!
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
This last one is a history lesson. The ferns you see
here, please do enlarge it, are Cycads, remnants
from the age of the Dynosaurs, again, worth a mint
from any nursery.
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*

*
*
*
and so we reach the coastal wetland near Yeppoon
with Black Swans lumbering to get airborne.
*
Next week, should you come along, there will be
birds and more for you in store.
*
To Klaus and the whole team my thanks for this meme.
*
Click on the Logo to see the rest of the world!
*