The Vagabond Hiker

Hiking, trekking, and climbing the world

The Road to Alice

The road trip my brother and I made from Eden, New South Wales to Alice Springs in the Northern Territories covered more than 3,600 km (2,200 miles) and took seven days.  With this much time to drive into and appreciate the Outback, we were able to stop and enjoy some of the most interesting sights on the way, including kayaking the Kings Billabong along the Murray River in northern Victoria, going on a sunrise hike to Wilpena Pound in Flinders National Park in South Australia, seeing Uluru (Ayers Rock) and the Kata Tjuta rock formations in the rain, and hiking the iconic Kings Canyon National Park rim walk (also in the rain!) in the Northern Territories.  The photos below highlight some of these adventures.

Clifford and a rotted tree creating an interesting sculpture at the Kings Billabong, off of the Murray River in northern Victoria
Pelicans on the Kings Billabong. Billabongs are isolated ponds left behind after a river changes course.  This one was engineered into a reservoir in the late 1800’s to irrigate the fields in the nearby arid lands.
Wilpena Pound in the early morning light, Flinders Ranges National Park, South Australia. Pounds, a term I had not previously heard, are relatively flat areas surrounded by mountains.
The Vagabond Hiker at Arkaroo Rock, Flinders National Park.  Still recovering from a several day bout of gout.
A Mallee Ringneck Parrot at Pound Gap in Flinders
An atmospheric Kata Tjuta overlook panorama, Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park.  Kata Tjuta means ‘many heads’ in the local Aboriginal language.
Late season seed pods at Kata Tjuta
A misty landscape at Kata Tjuta’s Valley of the Winds
A rare cascade at Kata Tjuta. Unlike the sandstone of Uluru, the rock formations at Kata Tjuta are conglomerate.
Uluru (fka Ayers Rock), the 2nd largest monolith in the world
The Kitchen Cave, Uluru. The site is sacred to the local Aboriginals who do not want visitors to climb The Rock.  Due to rains, it was officially closed anyway the day we were there.
Rarely seen Uluru cascades.  The rainiest weather I have experienced in two months in Australia was in the desert in the Northern Territories.
The Uluru base track at the point we turned back. Although it was flooded out, the trail had not yet been closed.
Uluru Aboriginal rock art
A gushing Uluru waterfall
A geologist enjoying the rock strata at Kings Canyon National Park
A Ring Tailed Dragon showing his camouflage along the path at Kings Canyon creek
Kings Canyon from the trail up to the rim
Kings Canyon rock textures and vista from along the Watarrka Rim Walk
Perhaps a Mains Frog at Kings Canyon brought out by the rain
The Garden of Eden, Kings Canyon, featuring relict cycads.  Note the rain drops on the pool.
A temporary pool on Kings Canyon South rim.  It rained almost continuously for more than two hours while we were hiking along the rim.
Not quail, these are Spinifex Pigeons at Kings Canyon
Panorama of Kings Canyon South Wall vista
A gorgeous Kings Canyon Holly Grevillea

Next week my travels will take me to Vancouver Island in Canada.  I will do one more short post from my latest hiking photos of the Alice Springs area, possibly later this week during a 2,700 km road trip odyssey back to Sydney.  Meanwhile,

Happy trails,

The Vagabond Hiker

Sydney to Eden, New South Wales

The charms of Sydney were utterly lost on me.  A delayed flight, a long wait in the rain for the shuttle bus, an (unsuccessful) attempt to charge me 250% of the agreed price for the car rental, massive rush-hour traffic jams, even more heavy rain as we crawled out of the metropolis, all combined to reinforce my prior decision to avoid the number one tourist destination in Oz.

Fortunately, things looked up almost immediately.  A visit to The National Botanical Gardens in Canberra provided a more fitting introduction to mainland Australia.  The several photos below give a good representation of what my brother and I saw; although most of the flowers were not in bloom since it was Austral autumn, the green oasis set amid the park-like city of Canberra deserved more time than we could spare from our itinerary.

A late-blooming Aster at the National Botanical Garden in Canberra
A Bottle Tree at the NationalA Grivellea blooming at the National Botanic Garden
A Grivellea blooming at the National Botanic Garden
The same Grivellea up close with a pollinating bee
Crimson Rosella at the National Botanical Garden

Leaving Canberra after a tasty and filling Lebanese lunch, we continued South and West to Jindabyne, which provided a convenient base for the ascent of Mount Kosciuszko.  The “climb” was in fact nothing more than an overly-long, though scenic, walk up a dirt track to the summit.  With an early start from Charlotte Pass, we avoided most of the crowds that start from the top of the ski lift from Thredbo later in the morning, an even less-deserving manner to claim the high point in Australia.  Indeed, a far more interesting summit was the nearby Mount Townsend, accessed from a use trail off the Main Ranges Track, faint at times, to the second highest point in Australia, at 2,209 meters, a mere 19 meters lower than its far more famous neighbor.  The Vagabond Hiker managed to miss the use trail altogether and consequently ended up bushwhacking up a nearby mountain completely unnecessary to accomplishing the objective.  Whereas several hundred or more ascend Kossie daily, only five of us summitted Mt. Townsend that day.  Fortunately, a couple was on the summit when I arrived, so I was spared the indignity of having to take a selfie (my brother skipped this optional extension).

Mt. Koscuizsko vista and track
The Vagabond Hiker on Mt. Townsend summit, Mt. Kosciuzsko National Park.  Kossie is the round blob over my shoulder.

Most of our time in New South Wales was spent on the far south coast, also known as the Sapphire Coast.  My brother and I based our day trips from an AirBnB cottage in the small coastal town of Eden, set on the picturesque Twofold Bay and boasting (at least according to its tourist literature) the third deepest natural harbor in the southern hemisphere.  Coastal hikes in Eden and in Ben Boyd National Park directly to the south, a visit to a local wild animal park and nature reserve, and a cardio hike up nearby Mt. Imlay provided highlights for our week in Eden.

A coastal view near the tower, Ben Boyd National Park
The Pinnacles, Ben Boyd National Park
The Vagabond Hiker above the churning surf near The Pinnacles, Ben Boyd National Park
An Agile Wallaby at Potoroo Palace, a not-for-profit wildlife park just up the coast from Eden
Grey-headed Flying Fox at Panboola Reserve, Merimbula, New South Wales (photo courtesy of Clifford).  We saw thousands of these threatened bats at the Reserve.

My next post will be “The Road to Alice,” featuring highlights from a 7-day drive up to Alice Springs in the Red Center of Australia.  Stay tuned!

The Vagabond Hiker

The Rest of Tassie

It hardly seems possible, but I’ve been exploring Tasmania for nearly six weeks.  After my previous blog post from the South of the island, my perambulations have focused on the North and East as well as the Central Highlands, along with one short excursion towards the West Coast.  While most of the photos assembled here were taken on walks and hikes, alone or with my brother, I would be remiss in not including some of the local critters we saw at The Platypus House and Wings Wildlife Park.  The only time I’ve seen a greater variety of mammals was darting in front of my car at night.

My next post will likely be in a couple of weeks from Eden, along the southern coast of New South Wales.  Not sure whether the Garden is in bloom this time of year.

In the meantime, enjoy The Rest of Tassie,

The Vagabond Hiker

Dawn from the deck of my beach house, Greens Beach, Tasmania
Burgess Cove, Rocky Cape National Park.  Rocky Cape is along the Bass Strait, separating Tasmania from mainland Australia.
Morning view at Tamar Island Wetlands Reserve.  The Tamar flows north from the city of Launceston to Greens Beach and Low Head, where it empties into the Bass Strait. The Wetlands Reserve is only a few minutes from Launie.
Black swan, Tamar Island Wetlands Reserve
The Vagabond Hiker posing at Tamar Island Wetlands Reserve
Pademelon at Tamar Island Wetlands Reserve.  She is about the size of a watermelon.
Dove Lake and Cradle Mountain in the Central Highlands, near the start of the famous Overland Track.
Ballroom Forest along Dove Lake
A view East to Dove Lake from the Face Track
Barn Bluff from the summit of Cradle Mountain.  Cradle Mountain is a popular excursion off of the Overland Track and the 5th highest summit on Tassie (Barn Bluff is the 4th highest).
Moss on a tree stump, Franklin River Nature Trail. This short nature trail was technically our only excursion to the West Coast rain forest.
Tasmanian Arboretum view. While the arboretum is not yet ready for prime time, the landscape is simply stunning.
Baby Wombat Roxy at Wings Wildlife Park. Her mother was unfortunately killed by a car. A visit to Wings (http://wingswildlifepark.com.au/) is highly recommended.
The Koala at Wings Wildlife Park. She eats only about 7 of the 70 eucalyptus leaf species in Tasmania, and rarely the same one twice in one day.
Clifford scratching an alpha male Forester Kangaroo.  The Forester is the only ‘roo found in Tasmania.
Two Devils growling, Wings Wildlife Park. They were waiting for their mid-day Wallaby leg snack.
Lake St Clair and reflected clouds with Mt Ida. This lake is the southern terminus of the Overland Track.
Tree ferns (Dicksonia antarctica) along Lake St Clair
A shelf fungus along Lake St Clair after a rain
Leatherwood flower and leaves along Lake St Clair.  The Leatherwood tree, endemic to Tasmania, provides a very distinctive honey.
The Vagabond Hiker along the Overland Track at Lake St Clair
Hut near Legges Tor summit cone, Ben Lomond National Park.  At 1573 meters, Legges Tor is the 2nd highest peak on Tasmania.  Mount Ossa, the highest, requires a multi-day trek to summit.
Cushion plants on the Ben Lomond plateau
Cruickshanks lookout view, Leven Canyon Reserve
Notley Fern Gorge track.  This riparian rain forest remnant was only a half hour from Greens Beach.
A Fiddlehead at Notley Fern Gorge
Kayaks, Coles Bay, Freycinet Peninsula.  My brother and I went on a 3 hour guided trip with Freycinet Adventures, one of only two kayak guiding companies I found in Tassie.  (Due to highly changeable weather, no one seems to simply rent out kayaks).
World famous Wineglass Bay, Freycinet National Park on the drier East coast of Tasmania.
Sailboats on Wineglass Bay, Freycinet Peninsula
A Grass Tree in Freycinet National Park
A Grass Tree in Freycinet National Park. A fungus is rotting the roots of many shrubs and grasses in the region.
Wallaby feeding near Hazards Bay, Freycinet National Park
A female Platypus in the Platypus House (http://www.platypushouse.com.au/). The Platypus is one of only three species of monotremes (egg-laying mammals) in the world.  The two other monotremes are short and long-beaked echidnas.  (There are 3 subspecies of the latter.)
Meander Falls, one of the highest falls in Tasmania.  That orange dot is The Vagabond Hiker.  (This photo is NOT a selfie).
A zoom view of The Vagabond Hiker at Meander Falls, also courtesy of Clifford.

 

 

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