Yarrangobilly Caves and Thermal Pool. Kosciuszko

We were unlucky in that all the guided tours were booked out for the caves but we did get tickets for the self guided tour of South Glory Cave. The Thermal Pool was a long very steep walk down and a very slow walk back up. Wish we had taken swimmers as the dip would have been very welcome.

Snowy River Scheme, Kosciusko National Park

I have seen news clips and read books on the Snowy River Scheme but I was totally unprepared for the gigantic size of the the thing. It is truly awe inspiring.

We visited Tumut No. 3 station, Lake Talbingo and Cabramurra the highest town in Australia. In the village of Talbingo we looked at a model of the hydro scheme, I will go back and take photos, I forgot at the time I was too busy running around saying, "look at this" over and over.

Touring Kosciuszko National Park. Adelong Falls Gold workings

We are being real tourists and going to see as many sights as possible.

The old gold mines have still enough detail to male them seem real. Pictures of the place in the snow make it seem like real hard work, which it was, but I have a romantic idea of gold mining in the " old times" that has just bitten the dust.

Christmas Day 2012

We had friends today to share the festivities. In Tumut caravan park, NSW.

We had breakfast, the band played and Father Christmas came to visit.

We walked the Wetlands walk and realised by the flood markers had we been here earlier in the year we would have been flooded up to the roof of the tent. Makes you think.

Wonderful day, brilliant friends.

Week 54

Travelling all week towards our Christmas destination which is Tumut.

Stopped at Parkes to view the Radio Telescope, another major learning curve, fascinating photos and a realisation that the planets out there are for real, not science fiction and they have time lines just like the earth, I want to learn more.

Stopped in Yass for the remainder of the week, and travelled to Canberra to see the sites.

The Botanical Gardens were a bit of disappointment, we have seen better elsewhere, although the indigenous planting a were very good.

The War Memorial made me cry, so many lives. The irony is that the visitors were from the countries we tried so hard to kill and we are all friends now. A waste.

The Old Parliament House although built as a temporary structure lasted from 1927 until 1988 when the new one came Ito play. Both striking.

Warrumbungle National Park and Siding Spring Observatory

Warrumbungle is quite spectacular, well worth the detour, stayed 3 nights.

Paid a visit to the observatory, such wonderful photographs of space, the telescope looked pretty impressive too. Think I might learn a little more when I get home, it's fascinating.

Walked in the park as well, we looked at the Breadknife and High Tops walk, ( 14k) then opted for the shorter Goulds Circuit, ( 6k). They forgot to say that a lot of that was straight up, so we are expecting a nice stroll and in the end we were rock hopping. 34c. Back in base now, 2 litres of water each and a couple of aspirins we will be fine.

Also met a lovely chap on the road.

Armidale

What a lovely town this is. Very solid, Victorian and prosperous.

Trev and I had a bug so weren't feeling the best, so a slow meander around town did us the world of good.

Can't put names to photos the iPad screws it up when I publish.

They are.

The Post office
The Land registry office all veranda's
The University lots of brick
A shopping mall, stained glass
A cottage been in the same family since 1880 with Trev

Dorrigo and Cathedral Rocks NP.

We have gone from the sublime to the ridiculous, 40c in Toowoomba, 22c in Dorrigo. Nothing like a change.

Great for walking, so did 2 of the falls near Dorrigo, on our way to Cathedral Rocks National Park.
Dangar Falls in Dorrigo and Ebor Falls on the way to the National Park. Ebor falls is the two story one.

In the park we walked the walk and climbed the rocks to the top, well nearly the top, I gave up at the chain that you had to use to haul yourself up the rock face, I don't think my knees would have taken too kindly to that. Fantastic walk through some lovely forestand great wildlife

Week 52. Toowoomba

Spent 4 days in Toowoomba, such a lot to see. The history and the buildings. The Christmas lights. The Myers Centre, more about that later.

We walked the walks, very well laid out and the brochures very easy to follow, the heat made sure we only walked before 8 in the morning and after 5 in the evening, but we did them all.

I am afraid that because of an update to my IPad what ever I put in the list to describe the photos when it is puplished the photos move around so the list is superfluous, as you guessed from a post or two ago.

So a general description.

Photos of the Carnival of Christmas lights.
Buildings in Toowoomba
Spring Bluff railway station devastated in the floods of 2011, they even laid on a train

Cresswell lake. Near Toowoomba

The heat is getting quite unbearable so decided a few days by some water might be good. Get some cooling breezes.

All OK until the weekend when the place filled up.

The photo of Bambi was quite sad, he just popped up in the afternoon, very young and his back legs not too good. We consulted the Ranger and she thought maybe the paralysis tick might have got him. He had disappeared by the morning so Mum must have come back and got him.

The other photos are off some of the rest of the wildlife at the lake.