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Monday, March 18, 2024
La doctora Isa vino a Calgary en pleno invierno para congelarse a sus dedos (written by Carla)
Friday, March 15, 2024
Squirrel returns to the Lucky Country......35 years later.
***Warning: Australia is a big country and therefore deserves the longest blog in the history of this 20 year old family blogspot. Read at your own peril.
....and so it was off to Bright, in the Victorian Alps, where Studley and Libby 'retired' to 3 years ago. A super mini Canmore/Banff? ......In the mountains, full of outdoor, active minded people, higher housing prices and ..... full of non-native trees that turn different colours in the fall. Unlike most of Oz and it's 800 varieties of eucalypt which are constantly shedding.
Victoria's 7 Peaks Ride is an at-your-own pace cycling challenge, which runs from October to April each year. Take in Victoria's top Alpine Resorts on a road cycle adventure. Reach the top of Mt Baw Baw, Mount Buffalo, Mt Buller, Dinner Plain, Falls Creek, Mt Hotham and Lake Mountain.
Did all of them except Lake Mountain which is closer to Melbourne.
The steepest with a 30% section! No traffic as with most mountain roads, so I just weaved back and forth, as the gearing isn't very low on this bike.
Plain dinner? as in boring? tasteless? flat?
The most spectacular ride? Or Hotham?
Cruising with Steve, Lib and Jackie
Dingos stole my.....
Thick, lush Ozzie bush....and the pervasent scent of eucalypt.
The mighty Mt. Bogong in the background....which Jeanette led us up, just before I left.
Squirrel shines brightly in Bright
Bright in the hidden middle valley with Mt. Bogong is the far distance. From Mt. Buffalo lookout.
....and I did see 2 lyrebirds!The world's greatest mimic.
seaside slough
....nor did I see a Koala
One can never get enuf of climbing mt buffalo
the beach and a cruiser go hand in hand...
....leaving Bright....better than leaving Las Vegas
smirk Studley smirk
Jeanette demonstrating her faith in the lack of traffic on mtn roads.
Lib to the resuce! ... with the trusty Toyota Ute. After Squirrel bonked in the heat and then proceeded to loosen the axel of his bike (on purpose?) to get a ride back.😜 I had checked the bike over the day before and it amazed me how this new thru-axel can come loose and fall out so fast! as opposed to a quick release. Studley with his other mtn bike, a Jamis.
One can drink the water most anywhere up in the mtns as they do a great job of keeping/protecting the native vegetation up high in order to protect the all important watersheds.
Great name for a motel! Twas a comfy night in Omeo.
Another day, another happy cyclist.
....and another...
Smoko is the term for break time/snack time in Ozzie lingo.
Apparently this vehicle has been parked on the side of the highway for quite some time. Not sure why it doesn't get towed. Maybe it will with the recent addition of this sign.
Theme number 4.
Studley and the weekly running group he leads. Although it appears to be Datsun who's doing the leading. He just can't get enuf running!
Jackie keeping fit.
...as well as Rod, a newbie to running at age 71!
Bright Park Run. Studley serves as race director everyother week along with Lib helping out too. I served as photographer for one of the runs and tail walker for another.
Not sure that many know that I 'taught' Studley how to run. It's true! I couldn't keep up to him on his first real run....along the beach in Brighton/Melbourne. My excuse....I had just eaten a big dirty donut. He's like Maria tho....he has the running gene and went on to complete some coaching training.
Theme 5. Fresh fruit.
Unfortunately blackberries are classified as an invasive species and they really are a problem. When they get established they seem to choke out vast swaths of natural bush. They are a bit thornier to pick from what I'm used to.
Apple orchards!
This operation donates a weekly box of apples to the Bright Park Run.
Stud and Squirrel mash local grapes for Leonie's soon to be wine.
Mt. Raspberries
Theme 6......the trees! This beaut is along the Brisbane River.
Brisbane botanical gardens
Mighty red gum tree near Omeo. The gum trees are endless and it's hard to imagine places like the Andes without them...or California. The majority of eucalyptus species come from Australia, while a few other species are native to Philippines and Malaysia. It is little wonder that the people, not only in California, but also in China, India, Portugal, Spain, South Africa and South America began to plant the tree by the thousands (Penfold and Willis 1969). Eucalyptus were introduced into California as an ornamental by clipper ship Captain Robert H. Waterman in 1853. Can you spell invasive?😆
Remains of snow gums, years after a bush fire.
Mtn ash I think
A colourful snow gum
Antartic beech tree. In Queensland. Cool huh?
Theme 7.....el cafe de Colombia?....no...de Australia.
The ozzies know how to do coffee and have been trying to teach the French who apparently can't make a decent cuppa. They don't load them up with sweet flavours like starbucks. Rich, robust, flat white (with almond milk) will keep ya wired most of the day! Or was it the sugar in the never ending parade of deserts?
Haven't heard of the Australian Cartel?
A local coffee house in Bright
To die for. Affogato. A shot of espresso poured over vanilla ice cream😉 Vegan? ....that was well in the rearview mirror by now.
Or just grab a bottle at the shop.
That was different. They do a lot of cordials.
Theme 8 Surfs up. I had the time, but not sure why I didn't feel motivated to give it a go.
.....maybe because of the sharks? or recovering my energy from all the riding around Bright more likely.
We stayed a few blocks back from the beach at the timeshare resort that Jackie and Steve got a good deal on, as Steve works for the same company. Thanks Steve and Jackie! $100 for a 1.5 hour flight north. Thanx again Stud!
Body surfing was good enuf for us. Studley demonstrates how its done. How was picking sand out of your chest hairs afterwards? Studley loves Queensland😂
Lib handles the waves with more finesse.
Waiting for the big ones..
From virtual fencing to shark alerts. I think they have thought of everything in this country.
Or just dag around on the beach....
giant jelly
giant clouds
giant shells
Lib and Stud sharing a moment
Theme 9 I think....flowers, morphing into insects, birds and animals. Flora and Fauna.
Billy buttons?
Colourful little guy!
What the??? An old childhood trick of Studley's to get revenge on those pesky horseflies. By sticking piece of grass up its ass and watching it fly (pardon the pun) away.
The silliest things that make me laugh so hard. Have I no empathy? The video didn't quite capture it. So you've been spared dear reader.
funky colored centipede
Squirrel art. Taken in the Tweed art gallery. Yes it was on the outside of the window.
I hear that some of them bite and sting. They didn't bother me.
Wombat toilet.
Fun fact. Apparently wombats are the only known animal to produce a square turd. No shit. It is believed that wombats place their cube-shaped poop in tactical areas to communicate with one another
Wombats do.
It's a thing around the country they tell me. School kids raising money by selling fertilizer.
...but you can feed me anytime. I'll even go non vegan for as long as required.
ooops...forgot to edit the cup out.
Commonly know as bin chickens/chooks or dumpster divers. They seem to wander around everywhere.
Yup...it's a kite
....the sign says so.
...and the not as glamorous gulls....but I love 'em
"It's an Osprey" said the local to Studley, as he mistakenly called it an eagle.
Can't remember the name. The bird that keeps laying its eggs in the same spot, even when humans have built over it's territory.
Lorakeet....hard to get a good photo as they just fly off into the bush.
Cockatoo I think. Super noisy birds.
And the ubiquitous Kokaburra. They are everywhere and you hear their 'laughter' many times a day. Usually a group of 4-5-6 starts up, building into a crescendo. For me, they are the number 1 symbol of Oz. 35 years ago, the first morning I woke up in Oz, was to the sound of what I thought were monkeys!
 |
| Jackie and Stud in the tropics...well not quite, technically that's a bit further north still. |
Here is what they sound like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXA0-YAoo9Q
One can never have too many Kokaburras!
Classic....on top the Australian flag....photo credit Studley. Good work mate.
Galah
another galah. The bird life is simply amazing. I notice in the Colombian/Ecuadorian Amazon as it gets more 'developed' the bird life moves elsewhere. Here they seem to co-exist very well with humans. Except the dreaded magpie and its swooping, which can draw blood. Fortunately February is not swooping season.
...and then there are the humans who think they are birdlike. Bright seems to be a paraglider haven with it's summer thermals.
apparently this was a competition....
....hence the great numbers. Does the paraglider act like a parachute should one happen to colide with another paraglider?
Rainbow trout. Amazing how we would bike over a bridge and more often than not, you could look down and see trout in the clear waters below....
.....In sandy bottomed, fern shaded streams like this...
Wasn't the time of the year to see the humpbacks....
That's quite the choice. Hmmm. What will I fish for today?
....or just rock up to the Stunned Mullet in Caba for a fish feed.
Flying bats! flying foxes/fruit bats....but in the daytime??? didn't know that was a thing.
Another type of Mighty Iguana
....a water dragon....
....because the sign says so.
....and a sleeping python along the trail.
...cause the sign says so
....and no photo journal of Oz would be complete with out a few sheep. Or is it NZ where sheep outnumber people?
...and I would be remise not to include a few roos.
Look at the claws on this sucker! Wouldn't wanna box with him/her.
Theme 9? I lost track. Mtn views!
The Mighty Mt. Bogong, high above the little town of Bright, hidden in the folds of the valley ridges. photo taken from Mt. Buffalo.
....endless sea of ridges....
Mt. Feathertop. Saved that hike for next time :) Looks like a great ridge walk.
The gravel back road to Dargo, over the high plains and down to the coast. The Ute made short work of that.
The road along the ridge comes up from Bright/Harrietville up and over Mt. Hotham. In the background is Mt. Buffalo, which we road up to the RHS and and up and along to the LHS and then hiked to the the high point; the Horn.
Steve, Jackie, Lib and Stud overlooking the hinterlands of the Gold Coast up in Queensland.
The area we are overlooking is an ancient volcano/caldera!
...and what's more cool is flying over it from Brisbane on the way to Bright, not knowing that we'd be visiting that exact area 3 weeks later.
The humans seem to prefer the beach. We prefer the mtns.
Gold Coast central. Never braved the traffic to go there (although I drove thru 35 years ago coming back from Cairns to Melbourne on my motorcycle...I think they called it surfer's paradise back then. Don't remember any towers)
...and from the airplane leaving Brisbane....not much of a height difference b/t the two photos.
Unfortunately, our planned hike up Mt. Warning wasn't to be. Closed for 4-5-6? years due to it being a sacred indigenous site, although the local paper was stating that a re-opening was imminent.
....as seen from a bike ride along the coast.
Getting closer....
...and again centre left....from the plane. We drove to the base and did a very short consolation walk.
Morning fog below mt Buffalo
ready to ride up |Buffalo
Morning light on Buffalo
Theme 10.....clouds....we love clouds. High on Mt. Bogong
Bogong high plains
clouds or a chem trail conspiracy?
cirrus on Buffalo
after a morning shower in Mt. Beauty
high on Mt. Bogong.....speaking of which........
.....did you know? The Australian Alps, or Snowy Mountains as they are also known, receive more snow than Switzerland.
Time to bag a peak.
Jeanette has been up and down this peak from all angles and all times of the year. She should write a book :) Did I mention she is only 69?
Jeanette leads the way into the mist....no Gorillas here
...and past the unusual flora.
Big assed cairn! biggest I've ever seen on my 400 or so peaks. Didn't I say it was a big country.
The Datsun, Libby, Studley Endorphin Adventures, Blue Zone home. Well the left half of it. Solar AC, Solar hot water. 1 level. Town park out the front window. Wooly's (Woolworth's the grocery store) and a bike shop 2 blocks away in downtown. How good is that. And an espresso machine that always seemed to be humming away😋
Did I mention that Datsun has his own personal creek, right in front of the house?
A 45 minute drive will get you up to some great hiking on Mt. Buffalo
A trip down to the coast due take care of a death in the family. Little town called Moe. Studley doesn't like Moe. A town that mines and burns coal for electricity for Melbourne mostly. The open pit mine caught fire a few years ago and they couldn't put it out for a few years. Squirrel likes Moe, as he didn't really see the mine. Downtown had a good fish shop, coffee shop, Wooly's and Spanish restraunt. Great motel with big trees and a.....
.....pool.
catchy
Most ozzies don't pull punches.
Great to catch up with a former collegue from the British School in Benghazi Libya. Leigh-Ann stayed for 8 years! even thru the war! One tough bird! She lives at the base of Mt. Buller about 3 hours from Melbourne and from Bright. Unfortunately, as happens quite often in this country, a gum tree fell on her house....with her in it. About 3 years ago. She's ok but the house wasn't. At age 75, she's been trying to rebuild for 3 years and is almost finished! Great to see you again Miss LA!
Squirrel, Ingrid and Studley model their stylish sun hats.
The jersey's say it all. Silk road and the Andes trail. Kazakhstan to Turkey. Quito to Cusco. Jeanette has done lots of other tours and Leonie just wrote a book about her trip from Guate to Ushuia 2 years ago. https://leoniekatekar.com/
Jackie should write a book too....about her paddling adventures. I tried her racing kayak and managed not to tip over, as it rides like a hairtrigger.
😊😊😊
Good work mate....but I think they got all the gold out years ago.
Restored historic court house in Omeo.
'Downtown' Omeo.
Cabarita resort....
....or chill in the waterfall of the glow worm caves
coffee cartel headquarters?
Didn't have any shrimp to chuck on the barbie/barby. These seem to be everywhere. More of a hotplate than a BBQ
Adios amigos....hasta la proxima! Seeing Squirrel off at the train station in the Gold Coast for a 1.5 hour ride to Brisbane to catch my flight back home.
Brizzy at night
City mtns
city mansions
Cruising on the Brisbane river.
??? as in....dash across the street quickly so you don't get run over?
AC pilot taking pictures. First time in Brisbane? Broke his review mirror? Reporting a missing wing?
Not to worry....made it back 15 hours to Vancouver and another short hop back into a cold, snowy Calgary winter.
Carla models her new beach hat and new friend mr. wombat....
.....while Ramon proceeded to chow down on a bag of Kanga jerky.
From green back to white......
So.....how good was Australia? So good that I put in another request for a one month leave of absence for February 2025! Even tho the odds are slim....
Can't be waiting another 35 years tho.....
Outstanding hospitality! I feel like I'm now an honorary member of the Stud and Lib circle of community in Bright.
New friends (including canines), great food (thanx Lib!), great coffee, great scenery (did he really say boring?), great rides and the same old best mate....Studley!
New friends (including canines), great food (thanx Lib!), great coffee, great scenery (did he really say boring?), great rides and the same old best mate....Studley!
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