Around Australia 2007: Days 4 & 5

Saturday 24th and Sunday 25th March 24-25/3/07

BUNYA MT

This campsite in the Bunya Mountains is pretty good (except for the fact that there are no showers.)  We went on this really quite interesting walk.  It came out into a beautiful lookout.  We walked past plenty of grassland that quickly turned into a lush rainforest. 

Evan Harry + I rode our scooters down the slope over and over again.  It was fun.  We also caught up on some school work. 

On the next day we drove to Paradise Parking and walked all the way to Dandaba.  Evan, Mum + I were going to go to a lookout when we saw some feathers from a dead bird and two metres further along the track there was a bog fat snake, so we didn't go to the lookout.  At Dandabar we had lunch at a cafe and resturant and we also fed the King Parrots.  Then we walked back with bribes from Mum to get us there. 

An note at the bottom says:

We fed the King Parrots and they made claw marks where they had sat to eat the bird seed. 

To the side, Mum, who has her own version of events posted on her blog, has written a note aswell:

great diary writing, Sarah.  It is very descriptive and interesting to read.  Remember the fun you had riding your scooters at Bunya Mtn + the yummy Bunya nuts that we ate. 

Around Australia 2007: Day 3

Day 3 Friday 23rd March 23/3/07

Yesterday we just packed up, pretty much rode out scooters around the paved picnic area and left.  It was hot in the car.  Very Hot actually.

We passed so many fields of, well I'm not sure what, I think it was lavender anf stuff for smelly shampoos and all that.  I couldn't possibly tell you how many we passed.  After we had crossed the border- which was five minutes for where we stayed- it was very desolate.  We stopped at a small town called Aratula for a lunch of pies.  Then we moved on.  Going throug boring countryside. 

Luckily mum put on an interesting story called Toad Heaven. We stopped at Toowoomba and went to Coles to buy food and supplies.  Then we took off again.  When we were near the end on Toad Heaven, we stopped at a service station somewhere really north west of Toowoomba- i think.  I got out of the car to look for water and missed the best bit of Toad Heaven.  Then because the story had finished; mum put on another one called Toad Rage wich actually went before Toad Heaven!

The campsite was pretty normal and there is nothing to say except: NO SHOWERS!

Ford NP

*sigh* the trials and tribulation of an ten year old... You think I might have thought to mention something interesting and unique to our trip like... visiting the loop in the railway (it even had tourist information signs).  But at least the sympathetic stories towards Cane Toads softened me up for when we finally found them [my sympathy was non existent by Lawn Hill and Edith Falls where they were everywhere!]

Around Australia 2007: Day 2

Day 2 Thursday 22nd March 22/3/07

Dear Diary,
How peaceful it is here! It is lovely except for the fact that almost everything is now dirty.  After two days without washing I hope the next place we stop at has showers!  I am particularly worried about my feet. 

Today we went on a beautiful walk through an old cedar forest.  There was a big cedar with a diameter of 133cm and a height of 48m.  We also did a walk of 200m which came out to a lookout on pinnacle point.  From there I could see Mt Warning, the plug of what used to be a giant volcano.  There was a big bowl made by mountains and you culd really imagine the mountain range once being a volcano.

Later on when we were back at the campsite and had lunch Evan and dad went on another walk to a waterfall called Evan's Falls.  I stayed back and did schoolwork.  Before it got dark I read a little of the French book that mum showed me, deciphering it with the mini dictionary.  I have learnt quite a bit of French now!!

The Borders NP

Of course!  The ancient volcano crater that encircles Mount Warning is still etched in my mind.  Though I must say any French I'd learned must have been negated by my German lessons in year 8...  J'taime?

Around Australia 2007: Day 1

Rambling On: 2007 Travel diary: Day 1:  

"Pre-trip I have found some of our diary entries from our 2007 Australian trip.  I have already posted two letters here and here that ..."

The mother, Emma Hazell, decided she would blog some of my thoughts on our 2007 trip around Australia.  She got this first one out but I quickly snatched my travel diary back from her desk.  With her new found blogging phase I was a little suspicous that she was using MY writing and posting it on the internet.  So now its my job to post it. 

"Day 1 Wednesday 21st March 21/3/07

Dear Diary

Day 1 and we're off. FINALLY. It took us ages and ages to pack and get everything ready. Mum had to vacuum all the rooms then mop the hard floors as well.  It was 1:15 by the time we were on the road and then we went and got lunch at KFC. It was well into the afternoon before we got to Casino.

I finished 2 pages in my maths book on the way here and I watched most of EMMA on our portable DVD player.

I helped to put up the tent and set up camp.

Next to us is a couple from Texas. You can tell they are from America because of their accents. They are very nice and talk to us. They said goodbye when they left this morning.

Last night I had a good sleep except that I didn't get to read so it was hard to get to sleep. There was a dark stinky pit toilet.

We had bacon and eggs for breakfast, but I didn't eat much because I don't eat much at breakfast.

I hope this will be fun

The Borders N.P. NSW"

I laughed reading this, hopefully I've grown better at writing since 2007. :P