Fire

It’s a hot day with a blustery southerly blowing and the last thing you want to smell is smoke. Around 3:30pm we get our first whiff of smoke. Shortly after we hear sirens from the approaching fire trucks and sure enough out of our Eastern window we see plumes of thick black smoke rising into the sky.

A short while later a scene reminiscent of the early morning raid in Apocalypse Now is re-enacted,  with helicopters flying in from all directions heading for the fire.

The last helicopter to arrive is the Sky Crane, by far the most effective water bomber out of all the helicopters at the fire. 

Two for the price of one

Sugar Glider

Squirrel Glider

Sydney has had some extreme weather lately, it was snowing on Friday and today it is 34 degrees.  After dinner we decided to take advantage of the heat and see if there is any night time activity in the nearby bush.

We started at a well known spot for owlets, nothing. Did a big circle of the bush around the ovals, nothing. Rosco is enjoying the night time sniff and wee but that’s about it for fun.

We decide on one final search and go down one of Stephen’s mountain bike tracks. As usual Stephen is out in front and Rosco and I are bringing up the rear guard. In some scraggily casurina’s Stephen spots a bit of movement. Yeah. He cautiously approaches and discovers a Sugar Glider descending down a tree. A snap and a flash and the glider is recorded for posterity. Moving on down the track and then back again we discover another glider enjoying the sap from the tree. This time it is a Squirrel Glider with a gorgeous yellow edged belly.  

Both are a joy to watch, a successful night out. Next time we will try and find the nest.

A trip to the zoo

One of my favourite trips is to go to the zoo. We have been to lots of zoo’s but nothing beats going on the ferry and seeing all the animals surrounded by Sydney Harbour.

There is always something new at Taronga, this time it was the Tasmanian Devil enclosure. 

Night time exploring

Tonight we braved the cold and went out in search of a Masked Owl. We knew the spot where we had identified the owl before, at the end of Lysaght Road, Wedderburn near the old archery fields.

Alas there where no owls tonight, instead we heard some noises on the ground keeping pace ahead of us off the side of the fire trail. We followed along for about 100 metres and then we lost it. After a little while Stephen spotted three glowing eyes with his torch. What is it? On closer inspection it was a Koala and its joey in the crook of a tree. We think it had made its escape upwards from us. 

Update: This is the southern most recorded breeding koala (Campbelltown records). 

A day in the snow

Fun times ahead

Is this Australia?

It's snowing

Markers in the snow

No road surface, thats how deep the snow is

Virgin roads

He looks cold

Letter boxes

Rosco makes snowballs with his feet

Snow girl

Icy water

Snow dog

Too cold for ducks

Rosco chasing the car, 'Don't leave me behind'

Back to civilisation

Rumours abound that snow fell across the mountains last night. So off we go in search of adventure. Heading up from Goulburn to Taralga we first hit snow at about 850m elevation, this is looking positive. The snow gets thicker and thicker, the road is covered and by the time we hit 900 metres it is a winter wonderland. No one is around and we have the forest to ourselves. A wonderful day exploring.

Hop on a ferry

Our visit today is an amazing blend of 19^th century industry and art installations. We are at the 18th Biennale of Sydney at Cockatoo Island. Waiting in the line for the ferry there are many adults with lattes in their hands exulting the virtues of art to toddlers. An ambitious endeavour.

The island is in the middle of Sydney Harbour and has been used as convict site, dockyards and boys prison. The most dominant features are the dockyards that have built and serviced boats since 1850. We wandered around and discovered massive industrial cranes, huge factories and secret tunnels. All the industrial buildings makes this place a worthwhile day trip.

However amongst all this are broken tea cups spilling out of a shipping container, wind chimes in a cement bunker, steam spurting out from a rock wall and lots more. All installation art making great use of the island.

Exit through the gift shop

Bye for now!

Jeff and Mary arrive to take us to the airport. How is that for special treatment. We pass the cricket ground and lots of other buildings that all look so familiar now compared with the day arrived. It was only 3 weeks ago and seems to have gone very quickly.

With a few tears and a bit of trepidation I leave my London family and make for the terminal. I check in and continue the theme of the trip and wander through the shops to settle down in the BA lounge.

It’s been an amazing trip but now looking forward to seeing Stephen and Rosco.

Boarding soon, bye for now.