We had an excellent afternoon of wildlife viewing along the Koala Trail yesterday. More photos and video to come! -S 🇦🇺
Street art in Canberra -S 🇦🇺
Tonight’s campsite views. -S 🇦🇺
We stopped to stretch our legs on the East Gippsland Rail Trail and to check out O’Grady’s Bridge, one of the old wooden rail trellises. This one dates to 1916, and the line was closed in 1987. -S 🇦🇺
Genoa Creek Falls, Croajingalong National Park
-S 🇦🇺
Carrington and Fitzroy Falls
Making our way inland towards Canberra, we stopped at two sets of short walks to magnificent falls. -S 🇦🇺 Carrington Falls, Budderoo National Park Fitzroy Falls, Morton National Park
Royal National Park and Grand Pacific Drive
After returning to the Blue Mountains for the morning, we finally made our way back towards Sydney for the “start” of our drive towards Melbourne, where we’re returning the campervan in a little over a week. Royal National Park Our first stop was Royal National Park, just south of Sydney. There wasn’t specific we wanted to see or do there, except to pay homage to its very existence. You see, its claim to fame is being the second national park in the world, just a few years behind the incomparable Yellowstone.
Rock pools
In places where swimming might be a bit dangerous, many communities in Australia have built rock pools. These are public swimming pools built into shoreline rock adjacent to the ocean (and often naturally refilled with seawater during high tide) that offer residents a safer—and quite scenic—swimming experience. -S 🇦🇺
Blue Mountains National Park
The Blue Mountains west of Sydney are renowned, and they didn’t disappoint! Here are some shots from our time there. -S 🇦🇺 A quintessential view of the Blues—a waterfall cascades off a rocky escapement towards the thick forest below, punctuating what is an expansive vista. A rare selfie Scroll down to see what this waterfall looked like about 30 seconds later… I’m not sure what it was about these trail blocks, but I really enjoyed taking photos of them.
Other Sydney Sites
Here are some other sites around Sydney we happened upon while we wandered. -J 🇦🇺 First and foremost, the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge. (Don’t worry, there are more photos of the Opera House below!) We ran across this ornate iron canopy that only said “Keep The Pavement Dry.” Apparently this is an old drinking fountain with an admonition against “sloppy drinking.” It was 1 of 8 installed in Sydney during the mid-1800s.
Hyde Park Barracks in Sydney
The full day we had in Sydney was rainy, so we visited a few museums. One was the Hyde Park Barracks (a UNESCO World Heritage Site), which was an interesting overview on Australia as a convict colony. In the 18th and 19th centuries, Britain transported many of its convicts to Australia and they became the labor force that eventually built modern Sydney and Australia. The Barracks opened in 1819 as a dormitory to house male convicts, especially those who had just arrived.
Look at the size of those feet! An Australian Purple Swamphen. -J 🇦🇺
We finally found a great brewery! We had already enjoyed a pour of Mountain Culture Brewing in Sydney, later grabbing some cans from the liquor store for our campervan. But yesterday we found the actual source! The sign does not lie. We may have even snagged a few additional cans as well. -S 🇦🇺
Wollumai Lookout, Blue Mountains National Park
We’ve secured our campervan, grabbed some supplies, and made it to our first campsite in Blue Mountains National Park near Sydney.
It’s best to grab a site with power the first night to fully charge up the house battery, and we opted for one with a private bathroom/shower. We’re here for 2 nights.
We explored Sydney today—day 80 of our trip. These last 3 weeks seem like its own little vacation. Tomorrow we pick up our campervan to explore a bit more of the country, heading towards Melbourne for 11 days. And then it’s on to French Polynesia for a week. Somehow, we still have 7 flights left!
Snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef
Despite the terrible weather we had the entire time we were in Airlie Beach and the Whitsunday Islands, we did make it out to the Great Barrier Reef for a snorkel. (So yes, Scott finally used his snorkeling mask he has hauled all over the world!) Although the weather made for cloudy and dark water, we still saw many amazing fish and different corals. Looking forward to coming back to the Whitsundays to see the beautiful beaches and seeing more amazing marine life.
Visiting the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary near Brisbane
We had a long layover in Brisbane, so we booked a tour that included a river cruise from the central city to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary—apparently, the first (since 1927!) and still leading sanctuary for these endangered animals. The cruise featured prerecorded interpretative commentary, which was more interesting than we had expected. While you’re not passing important attractions on the ride, you do learn about the river and city. Most of the scenery, at least after you get out of the central city, are the backyard docks of residences—some historic, some elegant, but most nice but ordinary.
Ancient City of Polonnaruwa - UNESCO World Heritage Site #3 on our Day Tour of North-Central Sri Lanka
The third and final UNESCO Heritage site we visited on our day trip to North-Central Sri Lanka was to the ancient city of Polonnaruwa, the second kingdom in, and capital of, Sri Lanka after the destruction of Anuradhapura in 993. Trade and agriculture were key here, leading to the building of an intricate irrigation system that still used today to supply the water necessary for the paddy cultivation in the eastern part of the country.
A few shots from Gardens by the Bay in Singapore -S🇸🇬
