Hunter Valley

     Time is flying by and we'll be back in NC in a matter of weeks.  One of us is completely thrilled about this, one of us is a bit confused and two of us are completely conflicted.  We're excited to see friends and family but not ready for the adventure to end yet.  Moving tasks are starting to accumulate but we're pressing on with the bucket list for now.

     We spent the weekend in the Hunter Valley, or The Hunter, as the Aussies say.  It's a beautiful area known for its wine production about 2 hours north of Sydney.  We kept putting this trip off, waiting for good weather, and we finally got it just right!  As much as we enjoyed eating and drinking our way through the weekend, I suspect it would be a much different experience sans kids.  Next time.  Bugger.

 This was a huge 'roo!  He was lying down and from a distance, we thought it was an alpaca at first.  Need a better photo with something to give a sense of scale.  Just look at the thickness of his tail! 

This gives a better idea of his size.

We saw loads of Galah cockatoos.  I'm guessing the red eyes indicate gender?

We kept hoping to see a wombat in the wild, but no luck.  

    We took a different route home to see a new part of the New South Wales coast.

This is a view looking south at Lion Island and Pittwater.  

Super moon, Aussie style.

      

Tobruk Sheep Station

    Last weekend we tore ourselves away from the coast for a few hours to visit a working sheep station about an hour north of Sydney.  Tobruk offers a 3-4 hour program in which you get to learn a bit about life on a sheep station, watch sheep dogs muster sheep, try shearing a sheep, throw boomerangs and crack a stockman's whip.  There was a group of Korean tourists there as well, but due to the language barrier and their brief visit, we virtually had the place to ourselves.  We were a bit skeptical on the drive up, wondering if it would be worth it, but we all thoroughly enjoyed our time there and learned a lot.

 Gorgeous property at the edge of the Blue Mountains

 Tom Turkey had a bit of an "anger management issue" and we were warned to keep our distance.

 Morning tea consisted of billy tea and damper (yeast-free bread cooked over coals).

We were all charmed by this Border Collie/Jack Russell mix.  Tilly amused us all herding chickens relentlessly. 

 We're told this dog was a domesticated dingo.  He was a very skilled herder, especially talented at rounding up the sheep.

 This dog, Yap, was also very energetic and had a special skill of her own!  Yap is very valuable because of her ability to push sheep forward, not just round them up.  

 Sam got to help separate the sheep as Yap drove them through the chute.

 Mia assists in shearing a merino sheep.  They get sheared once a year, usually before summer.

 I'm not the only one who can crack the whip!

Uluru and Kata Tjuta

     We debated this trip for over a year.  Should we go?  Is it worth it?  In the end, we decided that we wanted to see Uluru (Ayers Rock) and Kata Tjuta (The Olgas).  We've spent almost all of our time within a hundred kilometers of the coast, as do most Australians, but we were eager to see the outback too.  It is vast.  It is red.  It is really, really empty.

    We flew into Yulara, the small town that exists to support the tourists that come to the Red Centre.  We had left behind a very wet, ugly week in Sydney and loved the dry, hot desert air.  Our visit was short, just 2 nights, but it was plenty of time for us to experience the desert sights.

    Our first evening we went to a dinner outside at a sight with a beautiful view of Uluru and The Olgas.  We laughed as a boy from Mia's class boarded the bus with his mum.  Small country, sort of.  Our yummy meal included kangaroo and crocodile.  Mia thought the croc tasted like a mix between tuna and chicken.  As much as we enjoyed watching the desert sunset, the night sky was absolutely stunning!!!  It was worth it go to the desert just to see the stars.  It was a clear night with no moon (below the horizon for most of the night); the Milky Way was visible as were zillions of stars. We're still talking about it.  The kids loved getting to see Saturn and its rings in a telescope.

Just before sunset.

    The alarm went off at 5 AM the next day and we made our way to see sunrise over Uluru.  Despite the early hour, this was one of the highlights of our trip.  Uluru is mesmerizing and majestic.  

I couldn't get the Midnight Oil song "Beds are Burning " out of my head the whole time we were there.  "The bloodwoods and the desert oaks..."

 Kata Tjuta (The Olgas) in the distance.

Uluru is composed of a type of red sandstone.

    After sunrise we made our way over to Kata Tjuta, also known as The Olgas.   A word about the Aboriginal names.  The Aboriginal peoples have never had any form of written language.  The words have been phonetically transcribed by European settlers.   Why the white fellas decided to add silent consonants to these words is beyond me?!  I have been trying to find an answer but need to do more research.  So, Tjuta is pronounced Juta, ignore the "t."  Go figure.

    Kata Tjuta is a series of 36 rocky domes about 25km from Uluru.  They are thought to be formed from the same geologic event about 600 million years ago.
   

 Uluru as seen from Kata Tjuta.

 Up close with one of the domes while hiking.

Alternate view of Kata Tjuta.

 Hiking the canyon between 2 of the domes.

Flies, flies, and more flies.  We got some good experience with the "Aussie salute" (i.e. brushing the flies away from your face). Thankfully these weren't biting flies, just a bit irritating.

 Large goannas cross the road frequently.  We didn't see any of them.

     We did see wild camels though!  Camels were imported to Australia in the 19th century to help settle the desert areas.  When they were no longer needed, they were often released into the outback.  They are well-suited to outback life and there are now an estimated 1 million feral camels in Australia!  It's the largest camel population in the world.  

    Great quick trip!  A few more photos - 

Uluru from the plane.  Because they have had lots more rain than normal in the outback, there is more color than usual.

Now on to the rest of our Australian bucket list...