Given our experience roadtripping around Australia, I can only assume that the word “kangaroo” is an ancient aboriginal term for roadkill. -S 🇦🇺
How do you deal with a sinkhole (or two) in the middle of your town? Well, you make them into garden parks! -S 🇦🇺
The Great Ocean Road
We started our first of two days driving the scenic Great Ocean Road, often regarded as one of the world’s best coastal highways, and one of the most remarkable war memorials, too. A largely community-driven project, it served numerous purposes: a memorial to the fallen (Australia experienced the highest casualty rate of any nation in the Great War), an employment project for returning soldiers who needed work, and a way to connect isolated coastal communities and opening up the coast for tourism and development.
The branches/needles on this tree appear to grow….upward?! -J 🇦🇺
Parliament House, Canberra
Australia’s Parliament House is located in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The unique building, opened in 1988, has two large curved walls, separating the building into four quadrants with grass covering parts of the roof. Interestingly, instead of towering above the ground like most capital buildings, this one seems to emerge from the ground…its intended design. -J 🇦🇺
Love this sundial mural in the tiny town of Foster -S 🇦🇺
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