Merry Christmas

M E R R Y     C H R I S T M A S

Merry Christmas to all our family, freinds, neighbours and fellow travellers around the world.

Great Ocean Road, Australia

The Great Ocean Road runs along the coastline of southern Australia between Melbourne and Adelaide. We rented a car and spent a liesurely week driving 1200 kms stopping at almost every beach, lighthouse, lookout and beach town along the way.

Wave constructed of Havaianas flip flops in a Melbourne surf shop.

'Schoolies' on a red lips bench - spilt strawberry gelatto added to the scene.

Torquay Beach - home to Rip Curl and Quicksilver world surfing brands.

Auzzies heading out for the surf .....

..... wipeout !

Bells Beach - home to the annual Rip Curl Pro world surfing championships.

Split Point Lighthouse juts out into the Bass Straight between South Australia and Tasmania.

Sulphur-crested Cockatoo.

Crimson Lorikeet parrot.

Koala bear sleeping in a gum tree.

Australian surfers start young.

Castle Cove.

12 Apostles - 70 meters high - created by relentless waves eroding the base of the limestone cliff.

Port Campbell - population 400 - a natural white sand bay.

Indigo blue seas along the rugged coastline of South Australia.

Wind farms capture clean renewable energy from mother nature.

Cape Bridgewater - 4 km arc of white sand beach and turquoise blue water.

Beachport Jetty built in 1878 - extends out over a kilometer into the water.

Ensete ventricosum [Abyssinian banana] at the Adelaide Botanical Gardens.

Victoria amazonica [Amazon Waterlily] over a meter in diameter .....

..... the intricate structure on the obverse of the waterlily.

Glenelg Beach - a suburb of Adelaide at the west end of our coastal drive.

East Coast Australia

Sunrise across the Coral Sea.

Palm fringed golden sands of Trinity Beach where we relaxed for 2 weeks.

Kewarra Beach - the next bay north.

Cycling along the sand from Trinity Beach - north up to Palm Cove and back.

Sea turtle coming up for air in the warm tropical waters.

Kookaburra singing in an old tree.

4 Mile Beach viewed from Flagstaff Hill Lookout.

Boys in school uniforms - fishing from Palm Cove Jetty.

Box jellyfish are reported as one of the deadliest creatures in the world - they exist off north eastern Australia in spring and summer.

Great Barrier Reef - 80 kms offshore by high speed catamaran - a plethora of colorful corals and tropical fish only a few meters below the surface.

Tomo - our diving freind from Japan - with a mighty big grouper. [photo courtesy of Tusa Dive]

The sun crosses the horizon to mark another day.

Queensland, Australia

Mangos fall free from the trees - collected and eaten fresh at breakfast - last count was 18.

Lake Eacham - crystal clear, cool, crocodile free water.

Ellinjaa Falls .....

..... Zillie Falls .....

..... and Millaa Millaa Falls - part of the 'waterfall circuit' in the Atherton Tablelands.

500 year old Curtain Fig Tree is ginormous with thousands of roots draping down to the ground.

Butress roots support vast trees in the Daintree Forest - Wet Tropics World Heritage Site.

Lush undergrowth along the Daintree River.

Light penetrates a delicate fern.

Pink protea in full bloom.

Mossman Gorge where we swam in the cool, refreshing waters.

Daintree River - tranquil on the surface - crocodile infested below.

A wee bit of shade next to the flood level marker.

Kangaroo signs along the Captain Cook Highway .....

..... ah - there's one .....

..... later seen on the menu.