Sugar Wharf

I took this pic coming back into Port Douglas from a sunset cruise the other week. It was a beautiful calm night and the Wharf looked stunning at dusk.

Moon

We had the most beautiful clear night here last night and the start of a new moon, in fact after a little research I discovered that this is the Waxing Crescent Moon, the first phase of a new moon when you can see between 1 - 49% of the moon on the left hand side. I couldn't resist a pic as it was stunning.

Stripy Palm

I just love the detail on the trunk of this palm. I don't know what type of palm it is but I found it on our trip to Cooktown near the cemetery. I will work on trying to identify it, until then it is just to cool not to post!

Cooktown Sunset

We were fortunate enough to stay in the only accommodation that over looks the water in Cooktown. This also meant that every evening we had the best seats in the house for the sunset. It really was spectacular.

Mossman Gorge

Recently I paid a visit to one of my favourite local spots with my family. Unfortunately, what was once a beautiful natural rainforest area which could be accessed by anyone at any time, has now been turned into a money generating, tourist encouraging, over crowded monstrosity.

Much to my disgust the so called "Discovery Centre", does not educate, advise or provide the average Joe with any information about what they are about to see and experience, but does however exhibit some art (which is for sale), hosts a gift shop (with more stuff for sale), has a cafe (ditto) and of course numerous points of "sale" for bus tickets to get you down to the Gorge (as you are no longer able to take yourself!).

It really was quite horrific, even the bus ride was just that. No running commentary about where we were going, no introduction to the ancient rainforest and all it's beautiful secrets. NO...just herded onto the bus, given a ride to the Gorge with a dozen other people who we then had to spend the next 2 kms trying to distance ourself from so that we could actually enjoy the Gorge in all its splendour and in peace.

 But unfortunately that wasn't to be. We even walked past a group of young people who were fiddling with their iPad, incredulous that there was no internet reception!!! What?? No internet? In the oldest rainforest in the world. GOOD LORD! Sigh.

 Even the Boyd's Forest Dragons were conspicuous in their absence.

I was angry for a while. Now I'm just incredibly sad.

That was the last time I will ever be visiting Mossman Gorge.

Frangipani

How beautiful are these flowers? And they smell as good as they look too! The Frangipani is a common sight in Queensland (although native to Central America, Mexico & Brazil) and no more so than in Cooktown. I have never seen so many beautiful a varied Frangipani trees in such a small area, it was quite stunning.

Red Dirt

One of the fantastic red dirt roads we drove on our way back from Cooktown via Battle Camp Road. A true symbol of "Outback" Australia the red dirt is that stunning colour because of the presence of iron oxides.

Annan River

On a recent trip to Cooktown; QLD. We took some time out for an evening fish on the banks of the Annan River. The river and it's surrounds were spectacular and even more beautiful in the light of the "Golden Hour".

Eclipse

Today I was lucky enough to experience my first total eclipse. Unfortunately, there was a lot of cloud cover this morning and we missed viewing the totality, but we did experience the sudden plunge into darkness, the drop in temperature and the eerie silence that followed. It was quite something. Then the clouds suddenly cleared and we had this wonderful view. I felt very privileged to be able to get these shots.

White Top

Yesterday it rained and rained all day...and I didn't get chance to go out and take any photos. But I was rewarded this morning when I went for a walk around the garden and this beautiful specimen had popped up overnight! Cool hey?

Bracket Fungi

One of my favourite subjects! I do love a good bit of fungi and luckily for me the rainforest produces some great variations. This one has some great rich browns and reds in it. Awesome.

Sunlight

We had a beautiful walk in the rainforest yesterday, the sun was peeking through the dense canopy at intervals along the track we took. These leaves shone like beacons amongst the greens of the rest of the trees.

Sundown

I took this pic from the end of our driveway the other night. We get some beautiful sunsets and unusual lighting at dusk. I love the colours!

Misty Rainforest

I love the mist that hangs around over the rainforest on a sultry summer day in the Tropics. This picture captures it beautifully I think, taken over the Kuranda National Park.

Farm Cruiser

I've been travelling past this abandoned FJ Toyota Land cruiser for over 6 months now and finally decided to get myself a pic, as I think it's super cool.

It turns out that it was a good job I did take that photo, as when I came home tonight, it had gone!

Lines in the soil

Last year after the cane cutting I remember saying to my husband ; "There's nothing I like more than a freshly ploughed field". Then I thought; god that sounds incredibly weird! But, this year when the farmers started cutting the cane and re-ploughing the fields again for next years crop, I found myself thinking the same thing again.
That's when I realised. Weird or not, the fact is I like freshly ploughed fields! Here are some pics I took today to illustrate why.

Cane Tracks

Cane tracks running parallel to the road over a local Creek. In places the tracks share the road and the bridges, it definitely pays to look both ways at this time of year!!

Cane Train

Cane

The area where we live is surrounded by miles and miles of sugar cane fields and for most of the year we just watch it grow. But between June and September every year it is harvest time and our region bursts into a hive of activity. Huge cane cutting machines rumbling up and down the fields, cane trains transporting the harvest to the mill for crushing, fields being re-ploughed for next years crop and the lovely smell of raw sugar hanging in the air.

I have taken a series of photos to try a give you a sense of what it feels like to live where we live, I hope you enjoy them.

Outback Skies

One of the beautiful things about camping out under the stars in the middle of nowhere, is the chance to experience some of the most breathtaking sunrises and sunsets. Here is one such experience, taken out near Chillagoe. Stunning isn't it?

Smelter

This smelter was built in Chillagoe at the turn of the century, when it was thought that the town was going to be the centre of the mining boom. That wasn't to be the case and by 1940 it was all but closed. We spent about 5 days in and around this area last year and I loved it. There were some great opportunities for photos and some really stunning landscapes. I really think that Outback is my favourite Aussie landscape.

Eastern Dwarf Tree Frog

This is, without a doubt my favourite frog photo to date. These little frogs are very common in our garden and are incredibly vocal when we have any rain.

Buttress Roots

This pic taken in the Daintree Rainforest shows a tree with buttress roots. These roots essentially spread out to form a better support and also better access to nutrients for the tree when it's in shallow soil. This is often the case in rainforests because all the nutrients available sit near the top of the soil.

Rainforest Plant

I love this photo, taken whilst I was on one of my trips into the Rainforest. I've yet to identify it but I'm working on it and will update the post once I find out.

Green Pasture

This is a photo of the view from my back garden. Apart from reminding me of how lucky I am , I also love this pic because the colours are so vivid.

Coral Coast

When we think of tropical coastlines, we tend to think of white sands, palm trees and still turquoise oceans.  This photo of the Coral Coast was taken during the "Wet Season" in the Tropics and depicts quite a different picture. I love the beach when it's stormy and the tropical coast in the Summer does stormy really well!

Rhaphidophora

This robust creeping plant is found quite frequently in tropical rainforest. This photo was taken in the Daintree in Far North Queensland.

Natures Sap

I spotted this tree sap whilst on a recent trip to the Rainforest. Just thought it looked cool, so had to take a pic!

Red Bodied Swallowtail

These gorgeous butterflies visit our garden often because they are attracted to our Mock Orange hedge.   We see them collecting nectar and also mating on the hedge.

Ulysses Butterfly

One of the things I love about living in the Tropics is seeing flashes of bright blue whipping through the air. The Ulysses butterfly is a symbol of Queensland and I still gasp when I see them flitting past my head. Luckily for us, they are regular visitors to our garden.

Hairy Red Pittosporum

These brightly coloured fruits and seeds are found on the Pittosporum rubiginosum plant, also known as The Hairy Red Pittosporum. Endemic to Australia, this photo was taken in the Daintree Rainforest in Far North Queensland.

Barron River

This majestic looking river runs from the Atherton Tablelands down to meet the Coral Sea, just north of Cairns. The Barron River has some spectacular falls (see later posts), especially in the Wet Season, and is also home to the Saltwater Crocodile which is found in many of the rivers of Far North Queensland. This photo was taken from the Skyrail Cableway.