Category Archives: Travels

What the sea dragged in

Posted on Monday, 12 November 2012 by

“Dangerous surf” warnings usually signal a good time to beach-comb. You never know what is going to turn up. This time, it was jellyfish in the wrong place at the wrong time, and unable to avoid being smashed up or … Continue reading →

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Art and kelp forests and pyrosomes, oh my

Posted on Wednesday, 31 October 2012 by

I’ve often wondered what it would be like to dive in a kelp forest – one of those with really long fronds in Tasmania or Monterey Bay, USA, for instance. I imagine they are pretty strong and entangling, as I’ve … Continue reading →

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Murwillumbah’s marvellous wildlife mural

Posted on Monday, 29 October 2012 by

On Sunday we stumbled by chance on a fantastic mural in Murwillumbah. It’s called the “Treasures of the Tweed Mural Project”. Artist David Adams is coordinating a group of unemployed volunteers to paint images of endangered flora and fauna of … Continue reading →

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Stone and history

Posted on Wednesday, 19 September 2012 by

Cockatoo Island is made of sandstone – the same beautiful sandstone from which many old Sydney buildings are fashioned, quarried mostly from Pyrmont in the early days. Convicts hewed the stone to make barracks and residences for their overseers, and … Continue reading →

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A fascination with ruins

Posted on Tuesday, 18 September 2012 by

Or should that be “a fascination of ruins”? A much better collective noun than the usual “mass of ruins”. Cockatoo Island, in Sydney Harbour, is a remarkable place. It is the largest of several islands in Sydney Harbour and according … Continue reading →

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Sleeping underwater

Posted on Tuesday, 7 August 2012 by

On the weekend, perfect subtropical winter weather induced us to go to Woody Head for a snorkel – sparkling waters, fairly calm, water temperature greater than air temperature. Off the rock platform, there’s a spot that is sheltered by a … Continue reading →

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The screams in the forest

Posted on Friday, 27 July 2012 by

Last time I wrote about the silence in the forest on Lord Howe. But at night in the bird-breeding season, it’s a very different story. Mutton birds (flesh-footed shearwaters, Ardenna carneipes) in their thousands (17.5 thousand breeding pairs in 2005 … Continue reading →

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The silence in the forest

Posted on Friday, 20 July 2012 by

Walking along the tracks of Lord Howe Island’s palm forests was a strange experience. All I could hear was the wind through the palm leaves, the sea and the occasional rustle. At home when I hear rustling, it’ll be a … Continue reading →

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Abbey Medieval Festival 2012 (part 4)

Posted on Tuesday, 17 July 2012 by

Part 1 is here, part 2 is here and part 3 is here. Woman’s best friend – her coyote …

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Abbey Medieval Festival 2012 (part 3)

Posted on Sunday, 15 July 2012 by

Part 1 is here. Part 2 is here. Not having a “medieval” or “historical” costume wasn’t a problem. It was interesting seeing the many “fantasy” costumes. This fine wolf had a companion wearing a T-shirt saying “In Dog We Trust”. … Continue reading →

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