Notes: Australia Days 10 and 11 -- April 25 and 26

1. Raining in Canberra in AM when I left.  Wet ANZAC ceremony.  Long drive to Katoomba.  Weather cleared along the way.

 

2. Checked into the Katoomba YHA.  Very large and well organized.

 

3. Blue Mountains have very sharp cliffs all around.  Lots of waterfalls drop straight down from the cliffs into the valley below.  A lot of overlooks along the cliffs give a great view.  There are many walking paths around varying from 15 minutes to several days in length.  Quaint small towns in the area.

 

4. Winds increased in intensity during the night and all day long.  I'd estimate 70mph wind gusts.  I had to be careful walking along the trails that were close to the cliffs.  Came back to the YHA about 1pm and decided the weather was too lousy to do any more sightseeing.  Hopefully better in the morning.

Notes: Australia Days 8 and 9 -- April 23 and 24

1. Traveled from the lush, green coastal area, thru the mountains, to the arid grasslands around Canberra.

 

2. Checked into the Victor Lodge.  Got a double bed with a sink -- toilet and shower down the hall,  real comfy tho and breakfast in the morning.

 

3. Streets of Canberra very confusing and busy.  Laid out in a geometric pattern with lots of circles and grids, and rounds at intersections, and an elongated lake separating the city with several bridges crossing over.  I kept missing the correct turns at the rounds so had to go turn around and try again while looking at my map and trying to keep left.  The Canberra motorists will be glad to see me gone.  They are very friendly though, they kept waving at me whenever they passed me.

 

4. Did a lot of walking around the government buildings and monuments and toured the museum and art gallery.  Some of the buildings were very interesting but others were very drab.  The war memorial was in a very prominent location.  ANZAC Day (Australia New Zealand Army Corp) (similar to our Memorial Day) is tomorrow, so there was lots of preparation going on for that.

 

5. Leaving early in the morning to travel to Katoomba and the Blue Mountain region.  Should be very pretty there and a bit cooler -- hope the rain stays away.

Photos: Australia Days 8 and 9 -- April 23 and 24

Photos: Australia Day 7 -- April 22

Notes: Australia Day 7 -- April 22

1. Quiet day today.  Decided to not do too much travel and just relax around the area.

 

2. Went to Eden, just south of here.  Historic old whaling town.  Had an interesting commercial wharf, so just walked around and enjoyed the sights.  Also several nice overlooks up the hill.  Had fish and chips for lunch to complete the atmosphere.

 

3. At the hostel, there were some interesting flowers and colorful birds.  Wild but tame enough to eat out of your hand (and nip the finger occasionally).

 

4. Need to get rested up and rise early for the trip to Canberra in the morning.

Photos: Australia Day 6 -- April 21

Notes: Australia Day 6 -- April 21

1. Rain finally ended early this morning.  More twisting, turning roads through the mountains and around the coast. Would hate to drive these roads much at nite. Travelled from Batemans Bay down to Merimbula.

 

2. Walked out to the end of Bingie Bingie Point.  Wreck of an old steamship that ran aground in a storm in 1879.  Just some rusted iron tanks left from it.

 

3. Saw my first kangaroos.  They come out in groups at dusk and feed around the parks and golf courses--reminded me of all the deer in Michigan.

 

4. Nice YHA in Merimbula.  Very quiet--got a 4 bed room all to myself.

Photos: Australia Day 5 -- April 20

Notes: Australia Day 5 -- April 20

1. Rained off and on the whole day but did get some outdoor exploring done.

 

2. Got some seashore photos around Kiama, where I had spent the night.

 

3. Went to Jervis Bay and Booderee National Park.  Nice seashore photos around there also.  Could hear lots of birds up in the trees.  Came across some people who were feeding them.  The birds were very colorful and would just sit on the people as they were feeding.  I didn't have any food on me so I was safe.  I did come across a friendly tree dragon who let me pose with him for a photo.

 

4. Several other seaside villages along the way to Batemans Bay where my hostel was located.  Nice hostel situated in a resort trailer park.

Photos: Australia Day 4 -- April 19