There and Back

Sunday 21st October We're off to Jenolan Caves today with Gra and Jane They are one of the finest and largest cave systems in the world. Because there are so many caves we had to choose which to go in. We went in the Orient caves and then we went in a self guided one through the Devils Coach House. Outside the cave, the Devil's Coach House is a cavernous natural archway in the mountainside, named after the ghostly vision reported by a camper, Luke White, who claimed he had seen the devil himself charge through aboard a horse-drawn coach. The roof of the arch is 57m at its highest point. Some of the amazing Stalactites and stalagmites we have ever seen. Although the first two caves were very different they were both amazing in their own right. It is incredible to imagine how explorers managed to find their way through the caves with only a candle for light, a rope and hobnail boots. It was very early on that the importance of these caves was recognized and sanc...

Wednesday 17th October Off today heading for Richmond, passing over the River Lidell near Muswellbrook. This provides a source of power for the surrounding area. There is vast mining of coal and sand in the area. Where on earth is Muswellbrook?: Well, it is a town in the Upper Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia, about 243 km north of Sydney and 127 km north-west of Newcastle. Geologically, Muswellbrook is situated in the northern parts of the Sydney basin, bordering the New England region. Ever onward and over the very old Bulga bridge and eventually a stop at the halfway house. I'd forgotten about the road houses as this is the first one we have been to on this visit. They are much more a thing on the western side where there are such great distances between places.  We are then dropped down in to the lower Hunter valley and some of the serious wine regions of the area. There is also a lot of fruit and veggies grown around here.  The scenery on the w...

We left Yamba passing this confusing section of road I have entitled `what speed?` What speed? We then drove to Iluka which is on the other side of the Clarence river. So not too far to drive. Pitched our van at Palmers Island campsite for the day. We planned to walk the Iluka nature reserve trail which has world heritage status. The forest was full of bird song and calls, and we saw several different birds but weren't able to identify them all. The Australian Magpie is black and white, but the plumage pattern varies across its range. Its nape, upper tail and shoulder are white in males, grey in females. Across most of Australia, the remainder of the body is black. In the south-east, centre, extreme south-west and Tasmania, the back and rump are entirely white. The eye of adult birds is chestnut brown. Eastern Rosellas are medium-sized colourful parrots with distinctive white cheek patches. It has a red head, neck and breast, with yellowish to...