Wyrrabalong National Park

We stopped for a walk at Wyrrabalong National Park (South) on our way down to Gosford.  The park is a rather narrow strip along the coast and we walked the coastal track from one tip of the park to the other.  We meandered through eucalypt and banksia forest, past several different kinds of acacia and through coastal heathlands.  We saw a fair bit of wildflowers including some we'd never seen before.

Crackneck Lookout is roughly the halfway point and was a popular place for whale watchers.  We didn't see any whales when we stopped for a snack on our way down, but on the return trip we stopped again and were fortunate enough to see some distant whales off the coast.  Someone with binoculars said it was two adults with a calf, but when they surfaced it was impossible to tell with just the naked eye.

A variety of acacia

Some type of coastal banksia

Looking northwards towards The Entrance

Whale watching at Crackneck Lookout

Saw these wildflowers along the path quite a few times, but they
weren't identified on the 'flora and fauna' visitor's information board.

Eriostemon

We first thought this was a pea flower, but turns out
it is something quite different (see below)

Flowers around Katoomba and The Gully

We arrived in Katoomba too early to check in at the Flying Fox hostel, but it was raining so we hung out there for a little while in the common room.  After a bit the rain stopped, so we took a walk to stretch our legs.  It was cool and damp and felt halfway between Australia and the Smokies and Door County (the latter mostly due to the holiday cottages tucked in among the pines.)

Along the side of the road (we see these purple flowers
everywhere, actually.)

Pink flowers and something that looks a bit like croton
(but probably isn't croton)

Our walk took us to a nearby park and the The Gully, a historical site in Katoomba which was once an Aboriginal settlement until the people there were forcibly removed for the construction of a racetrack in 1957.  It is now a park/nature preserve with informational plaques to read about the history of the area.  It was pretty quiet but for all the insects and the crimson rosellas.  It was a very pleasant place to be.

White flowering trees in the park

The disused racing track

A view of Katoomba

As always, not sure what this plant is but I thought it was amazing

Purple flowers

There is an interesting shrub outside our house with pretty interesting flowers.  I apologize that I can't tell you what it is.. but it's been fun to watch the buds open and the petals turn purple.

21 November

28 November 

04 December 

09 December

12 December

Tamworth in July

This is four months late, but driving south to Tamworth along the New England Highway kind of felt like driving in Idaho in the summer.  Until you arrive in Tamworth, that is...

Anzac Park (Probably not too many of these in Idaho.)

July 5th in Armidale was the middle of winter, but it felt like spring in Tamworth.

I was really surprised to see rainbow lorikeets..

..and even more so to see prickly pear.

A beautiful sunny day

Hardly a cloud in the sky

Warm in the sun but cool in the shade.

Feeding the ducks in Bicentennial Park

Double-barred finch (at Marsupial Park)

It was noticeably milder and warmer than Armidale in Tamworth.  As the day turned into evening it cooled off and felt even more like summertime in the mountains. We climbed the hill to the lookout (the Berlingo did, at least), made a short visit to the botanical garden, and went to the Marsupial Park where we saw kangaroos, wallabies, emus and all sorts of other birds.  The only thing we missed out on was finding the enormous guitar ... Tamworth is the Country Music capital of Australia, so they have Something Big to commemorate that fact.  Oh well--saving something for next time.

The Lookout above Tamworth

Lookout along the New England Highway