christmas

Dear Family and Friends

Christmas Day and Boxing Day have been a wash out for us. It has rained very heavily since before Christmas Eve. Water was laying everywhere here and on Christmas day the rain was so heavy we decided not to go into Atherton for church as it is a round trip of nearly 100klms and there are a lot of little creeks and rivers that have been turned into raging torents. Good job we didn't as we probably wouldn't have got through and if we had got through we wouldn't have got home again. Radio reports were saying the road between Ravenshoe and Atherton were blocked by both water over the road and mudslides. Boxing Day was no better so again we did not go to Church. It was very strange not attending a service at all over Chistmas. We have continued having heavy rain here but clearly nothing like what they are getting further south. We couldn't have got to Cairns even if it was urgent as the roads were blocked off by water in a number of places. The further south you go the worse it gets.

We have been thinking of Sharon and Ricky, our friends from Willow Gemfields, thinking they would be flooded in but when we rang there was no answer and we realised they had plans to go to Brisbane for Christmas so they won't be able to get home for a while as the floods are quite severe around Emerald and Sapphire.

We are snug and cosy in the van but it is a different story when we step outside as there is a puddle of water right outside our door that you cannot step over so our feet get a bit wet, especially after it has just rained. Robin and Pauline have a large pond which has been empty for quite some time, it is a good two or three feet deep, and it is now full to overflowing. A good indicator of how much rain we have had.

We ventured into Atherton today and on the way in you could clearly see where the water has been. We were amazed how high the water got in places and the force of it laid flat trees and long grasses right along where the once little creeks flowed beside the road. Our decision not to go in for church was a wise one.

This is only the beginning of the wet season so there will be more to come.

We had a nice day together on Christmas Day but we did miss the kids and the grandkids, and thanks to Skype we got to see everyone and wish each other a merry Christmas. I hope we never have another one where we are separated from all our family, it's no fun.

That's my news for the moment.

So once again love to all and God Bless.

Ken and Lyn

TOBY

Dear Family and Friends.

We have had a hard week as Toby had to be put down last Friday. The vet had diagnosed Toby with a slipped disc in his back. He was in extreme pain and there was nothing they could do for him but dose him up with pain killers. No one knows just when it actually happened. He was well enough on the Wednesday as he had a bath up in the dog wash which he loves. so whether it happened when he jumped in or out of the car or whether it happened when he was in the dog wash when he had to turn around we'll never know but he was unable to toilet himself and he wouldn't eat so there was really no other option. We feel for Craig and Michelle and the girls as they are just as upset as we are. They gave him a great home for this last twelve months of his life and they loved him just as much as we did. We have lots of good memories and we have put some of our photos of him in the blog.

That's our sad news and now onto our holiday activities.

Robin and Pauline's daughter, Sharon, their granddaughter Analeese (phonetic spelling) and grandson Cody visited this week for a few days. As usual we had our meals outside on the Veranda and enjoyed the awakening of the night time animals. On the veranda their is an insect zapper which attracts whatever mossies and insects are around. And it does it's job really well. Each evening their would be a couple of green tree frogs sitting under it eating whatever fell to the ground. They are quite big, about the size of the palm of your hand and Pauline picked one up. Conversation lead onto the fact that it is possible to put a frog to sleep, something I didn't know you could do. Sharon moistened her hands placed the frog in one hand and covered the frog with her other hand. She then twisted her hand back and forth for a few times. Then she opened her hand and the frog lay in her hand apparently asleep. I lent over to look at it and it suddenly came to life and jumped across the table toward me. Yes your right, I got such a fright that I jumped and squealed. Evidently the longer you twist it in your hand the deeper the sleep.

Robin and Pauline have gone now and we are on our own at their place. They headed off to Townsville to begin with and then on to Nambour where they await the birth of another grandchild. We have had such a lovely time with them, they have made us feel so welcome. We may not see them again on this trip as we may have left here by the by time they come home.

Weather reports indicate that QLD have had heavy rains with roads cut off and flooding over a large area of the state. Up until last night here at Ravenshoe we have had very little rain compared to elsewhere. We have had many thunderstorms but no rain, though on our journey's in and out of Atherton we often run into heavy patches of rain. When it has rained it is the heavy tropical rain which passes over fairly quickly and then is gone for the rest of the day. Last night it began to rain about 9pm and has been raining ever since. It is not the torrential rain of the tropics but this seems to be set in for the day. We expect there to be a lot of rain whilst we are here as it comes with the territory and the season. Pauline was saying that last year they had 45 days straight with rain. Hope they don't repeat it this year.

The other day we took a drive out to see Tully Falls. It was a lovely drive except most of it was on dirt road but it was worth it. It was too steep of a slope for us to get to the main falls but we were able to go part of the way to an area where their were small falls where the water gushed over the rocks. it was lovely and serene as we were the only people around.

That's about it for now

Love to all and we hope you have a safe and happy Christmas as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Saviour.

with lots of love

Ken and Lyn

toys

Dear Family and Friends

A big hello to everyone.

First up we are still sorting toys ready for Christmas. Atherton don't have to prepare the hampers for Christmas, that is organised by others and paid for by the Mayor's Christmas Appeal.

On the other hand Atherton do the toys covering a huge area, anything above the mountain range comes here. That includes Mareeba, Walkamin, Kuranda, Atherton, Herberton, Miscellaneous ones and I think Innot Springs and Mt Garnet are in this area also.

We have toys donated by the public including what were given from the the Bikie run, We also recieve toys from Cairns and to fill the gaps with difficult ages toys and other gifts are purchased for the teenagers. Its a mammoth task but an enjoyable one and the range of toys is amazing.

Lots of little stocking fillers and a lots of stuffed toys, enough that we pretty much put them in all the Christmas bags. It's a happy time for every one but also a very tiring time as you are on the go all day.

In and around the Atherton area there has been a large Chinese influence over the years. China town actually existed as a town before Atherton was first explored in 1875. The chinese moved from the Palmer River goldfields to this area and are known as the pioneers of farming and agriculture. The soil here is either a rich dark colour or a deep brown colour depending where you are on the tablelands. It is said that as the population of Chinatown grew, small shops appeared and cooks, herbalists, doctors and merchants settled in the town and by 1909 the population was around 1200.

The Hou Wang Temple was built in 1903. It is the last surviving example of a timber and tin temple left in Australia made even more rare by the fact that many such temples in China were also destroyed during the cultural revolution. It's original furnishings remain in tact and include carvings, painted metal wall panels and furnishings import . Id from China in the late 19th and early 20th century. It's rareity not just in Australia but in the world bring tourists from all over the world here. China town was short lived as it was all but abandoned by 1920's, the temple being the only surviving building. It was used as a Temple till 1970's when its owners the Fong On family donated it to the National Trust of Qld in 1980 to ensure its conservation for future generations. It's just another great tourist attraction that brings people to this area.

Atherton and surrounding area through to Mareeba tell the story of the impact that the second world war had in this area. Prior to being sent overseas the army used this area as training grounds for their soldiers. The hunidity and dense jungles found closer to the coast acclimatised our soldiers for the tropical jungles they would fight in to keep our country safe. The bombing of Pearl Harbour impacted on Atherton with many people fleeing the coastal locations thought to be unsafe. Hospitals were set up to take the injured, many of whom didn't make it. There is a war cemetery at Atherton which bears rows of identical white headstones as a silent tribute to those who died for their country. There is also another war cemetery, an old army igloo, an airport with planes used in the war and a navel museaum all in and around Walkamin.

Well that's our history lesson for the day. What's next? Another great day on the tablelands. Thre is always something to see and do.

That's it for now

Love to one and all.

Ken and Lyn

innisfail

Dear Family and Friends

I'm a bit lazy with my blogs. Another week gone by and another week closer to Christmas.

We led the service on Sunday and all went well with good feedback. Our theme was the incarnation of Christ.

Peter and Erica asked us to join them on Monday and go to Innisfail with them. Friends of theirs, Joe and Dawn, purchased an Apple Mac computer and they were having trouble getting it hooked up to bigpond. Peter and Erica tried and tried to set it up but they also failed. Joe and Dawn are going to get someone professional in to fix the problem as the same thing happeneed to Erica and Peter as was happening to Joe and Dawn. They would get to a certain point and could get it to go no further. Half a dozen phone calls were made to bigpond but still it couldn't be fixed.

Regardless of computer problems we all had a lovely day together. We had our lunch at a local Brothers Club before setting off later in the afternoon to come home. Storm clouds filled the horizon but we didn't hit rain till we were almost home. Robin said that they had had well over a hundred mls in just over an hour here at Ravenshoe so it was pretty heavy. We are surprisingly dry here considering what Sth QLD, NSW and VIC are getting.

Thursday we drove to Innot Springs where you can sit or lay in the creek where the warm comes up from the river bed. It is just off the road but next time we will take our bathers, towel and a shovel. Robin tells us you pick a spot (it can be quite hot in places) then dig a hole and sit down in it and let the water wash over you. We continued on down the road to Mt Garnet and had a little wander around there before coming home.

Robin has had quite a nasty accident. Robin decided to put new blades on the mower. He accidently dropped the blade whilst trying to screw the new blade on and has cut through his nails and down to the nail bed on two of his fingers. A third nail is bruised and sore but not actually cut through like the others. They thought they might have to take his nails off but the doctor decided to leave them and see if they will repair themselves. As you can imagine they are quite sore though Robin weathers through it without saying too much about the pain. Unfortunately that means that the maintanence on the plane is put on the backburner for a few days. You can't work with your fingers all bandaged up.

Then on Friday Pauline was taking a neighbour down to Cairns to see an eye specialist so she asked if I would like to go along for the ride. So naturally I said yes. We had a really lovely day. The day was hot and relatively steamy but nowhere near as bad as I was expecting. After Heather (Pauline's neighbour) saw the specialist we then had lunch and went to do a little Christmas shopping. Again no rain untill we were between Athertan and Ravenshoe where we drove through a very heavy shower to clear weather for the rest of the trip home.

We went to one garage sale in Ravenshoe this morning and Ken picked up a car fridge for $12 which cost the owner $140 so he is pleased with his purchase.

You may remember me telling you about the possums and the Kookaburras coming in to be fed each evening, here are just some of the photoes we have taken.

That's it for today. Hope every one is well.

with love Ken and Lyn

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Toy run

Dear Family and Friends

The toy run I mentioned in my last blog took place on Saturday morning. We arrived at a little Park in Tolga at 10am and by that time some of the church people had everything set up and ready to go so it wasn't long before we were soon put to work. Ken and Robin were on the BBQ. Four hundred sausages were waiting to be cooked so that kept them occupied. I was on the gravy, others set up the serving area and the coffee and tea from a trailer.

Last year they had around 250 people turn up. They were hoping for similar numbers this year but only 150 turned up. A truck was taken out to Lake Tinnaroo where the toy run was to commence. A group of Bikies were waiting for them and from there they set off on a route that took them through a number of small places, including the main towns also like Mareeba and Atherton. At each stopping place more joined in.

It was quite a site to see the truck lead them through the gate and into the park. The back of the truck was opened and the bikies brought the toys up and they went into the truck. Their was also three or four vintage cars that I spotted that had come along for the ride. There was storms predicted and some rain and they believed that was the reason for the drop in numbers.

Once the toys were safely stowed in the truck it was time to feed everyone and that took some time but it all went very smoothly and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. The toys were taken back to the church and sorted out ready for distribution. Not all of them were new so the second hand toys were put aside and will be used at some later time.

We enjoyed church on Sunday and as the C.O.'s will be away we have been asked to do the service next week. We regret leaving the printer behind and we wish we had brought a commentary with us.

We had plans to go to Innisfail this week but had to postpone it as one of the people going with us wasn't able to come so we will probably do it next week all being well.

Robin is an avid pilot and has one of his own small aircraft here. He has been working on it since we arrived. Today the motor has gone back in it and he and Ken wheeled it out of the shed, tied it to a tree and started up the engine. Robin spent 7 years in New Guinea and did a lot of flying over there. He is also a helicopter pilot as well so he spent a lot of hours in the air.

Did I say that we voted ?. The voting papers only arrived on Friday and I was getting a bit worried that they would not get here in time. Our votes had to be in the mail by closing of trade that day so I was very releaved that they came when they did so we filled them out straight away and put them back in the mail.

I also got another letter to say I was called up again for jury service but soon got my name taken off the list when I said we were in far north QLD. I want to know why Ken's name never gets picked.

That's about it from me for the moment

Love to one and all

Ken and Lyn

Ravenshoe

Dear Family and Friends

the previous photos are of

1. One of the many views we see as drive around
2. The statue at Kuranda depicting the two tools, the pick and shovel used to carve out the scenic railway.
3. One of the amazing tropical flowers we see.
4. Billy, everyone's pet at Walkamin.
5. View of the Atherton Tablelands from Halloran's Hill.
6. One of the waterfalls we have seen (I forget which one)
7. Tiddles. Peter and Erica's amazing wonder dog.
8. Tiddles delivering the mail to Peter.


We are now settled in with Robin and Pauline. We have our van parked beside their little
A frame studio and we are using the bathroom in it but still sleeping in our van. Robin and Pauline have made us feel very welcome. We have almost been here a week now and I'm wondering where the days have gone. Last Sunday following church Robin, Pauline, Ken and I joined Peter and Erica to have lunch with them at their place. It was a lovely afternoon sharing life experiences with each other.

Robin and Pauline live on three acres and it is landscaped with natural Australian trees and shrubs and is an amazing natural habitat for birdlife and some animal life as well. Each morning Pauline puts out bread, and seed for the lovely brightly coloured rosellas and there can be anywhere between twenty or thirty birds feeding at any one time. There are also Kookaburras that come in to be fed mince by hand and possums as well.

Except for a couple of nights we have eaten our meal each evening on the back verandah. They have a large verandah covering two sides of the house and it is a lovely and peaceful place to eat our meal. Inevitably a couple of visitors come to have their meal also. They are a couple of possums that come down just as the sun gives way to the moon to eat bread that Pauline puts out for them. Thr other night one reached right over and sniffed Robins hair. They scurry around in the trees for a while and then disappear or we go inside and leave them playing.

Living here has reminded us how nice it was to live on our farm and we do miss that quietness and solitude that you get in the country but never in the city.

Yesterday, Thursday, Peter, Robin and Ken got up very earlier (as did Erica, Pauline and I) to have a guy's day out. They went to Townsville so that Peter could have a test drive on a Spyder Motorbike. Peter is probably going to buy one and so they all decided to go with him to have a test drive. The Spyder is a new three wheel bike that has two wheels at the front and only one at the back. The luxoury model, which is the one they rode, has a an armchair at the back which means Erica can ride it too when they get it.

While Robin, Peter and Ken were away Pauline and I (Erica had made arrangements to go out with a friend of hers) went into Atherton to begin sorting out toys ready for Christmas. There is a toy run that happens on Saturday and I think we will be there for that also. We unpacked about 12 large packing boxes yesterday and separated the boys into one room and the girls into another.

Have you ever seen a pineapple growing? Well I haven't untill just recently. Pauline and Robin have one growing here. They take five years to grow and the bush they are attached to is only the size of a shrub.

Our love to one and all

Ken and Lyn

billy

Dear Family and Friends.

Well, I have Ken back after his quick visit to Vic. He went to get the car registered and they were pedantic and he had to physically go and do it. He got a Tiger flight for $82 each way and he got to see each of the kids except Justin. While he was away I amused myself by reading and sewing and playing with Billy. I don't think I have told you about Billy yet. Billy is a young red cattle dog (I think) and she loves to play fetch. Billy belongs to Lucy who is the owner of the park so Billy wanders around the place like she owns it (well, she does , kind of).

She is funny to watch as she does the rounds, going from one van to the next visiting everyone. She will play fetch with anyone and she picks and chooses who she plays with. She comes with a bottle top, a stick of wood, a tennis ball or a large ball, pretty much anything you can throw or kick, the smaller items she rests on her tongue and even when she pants she keeps it on the front of her tongue until she drops it at your feet when she wants you to kick it again. She plays for a while and then moves on. She likes food too and if you feed her she will lay down and stay for a while. When she gets a bit overweight she has to go on a diet and at the moment she is wearing a sign that says "don't feed me, Mum says" and we are told in the peak season when this place is packed out they stensil a sign along her body which says "Nil by mouth"

Talking of clever dogs I must tell you about Tiddles. Tiddles belongs to Peter and Erica Fuller whom we met at church. She is a poodle cross but I can't remember what they said she is crossed with. She is white and has long hair and is similar in size to a Shitzue and she is learning to become a dog carer. Peter and Erica have a very steep driveway Peter has taught her how to collect the mail. When they hear the postie in the next street they know she is on her way around the corner. Peter opens the door near where he sits and Tiddles runs down to the letter box and waits. The postie puts the mail in her mouth and she runs back to Peter and delivers the mail to him. If they have been out then Erica gets the mail from the box and gives it to Tiddles who in turn gives it to Peter.

Like all dogs there are toys in the house that she plays with. The amazing thing with tiddles is that she knows each toy by name and she can distinguish between each toy by name. She knows which one is Turtle (her favorite) which one is Giraffe and which one is Zebra, which one is Big Elly and which one is Little Elly and so on. She will rummage around in the box till she finds where it is and if it's not there she will look for it. If she still can't find it they will tell her which room it is in and she will go straight to that room and get it. So she knows each room in the house by it's name. Clever. Peter will say give me a kiss and she will jump up give him a kiss them jump down again. When there is food around she will sit on her hind legs and stand the way a Meercat stands.

To become a dog carer there are certain things she has to be able to do for Peter on command such as pick up something dropped on the ground, get something he needs, get the mail etc. I have never seen a dog find toys and do what Tiddles can do. Peter and Erica have done an amazing job in training her. What dog can pick up a toy on command let alone determine which one is the big or small elephant.

On Tuesday we went for a drive. We headed toward Cairns and just before getting to Cairns we took a left hand turn and headed up the coast line toward Pt. Douglas and Mossman. Along the way we detoured off the main road to take a look at Trinity Beach. It turned out to be a really beautiful area. The coastal views were amazing and the blue of the water is hard to describe, I guess it could be called a teal blue or aqua in colour. It was stunning.We continued up toward Pt Douglas stopping a couple of times to enjoy the view and take some pictures.

We had been told there wasn't much at Pt Douglas as it was a stepping stone for people to go to some of the islands so I wasn't expecting too much. And I was surprised by its beauty , its size and it's shopping precinct. Yes it was resort after resort after resort, but their gardens and entrances were worth looking at. Qld has plants and flowers that I have never seen, not even in a magazine. Their colours are striking and the flowers are awesome.

It was heading toward lunch time so we decided to go the 20ks to Mossman and have lunch there. Mosman which we had been told was nice didn't rate that good for us. Less than average would be how I would describe it. It was quite dilpadated with many homes in quite a bad state of disrepair. The town looked to me like it would be more at home in outback NSW rather than here in far north Qld. We looked around for somewhere to eat and when we got out of the car there was a really unusual smell which was very unpleasant and we couln't place where it came from other than at a timber yard that was near the restaurant we were planning to have lunch at but the smell put us off.

That being the case we decided to hold off lunch till we got to Mount Molloy which was on the journey back home. Mount Molloy had a pub so we decided the pub was as good a place as any for lunch but wouldn't you know we got there about five past two and the kitchen was closed. With nowhere else to go we decided a Mrs Mac's pie was as good as anything, even with the temperature at a pleasant 31 degrees. After lunch it was back to Mareeba and home to Walkamin. All in all it was a lovely day with some amazing views along the way.

This week there are a number of long term residents of the park who are leaving. We've been here four weeks but others leaving have been here for six months or more. So Lucy decided to have a BBQ to say farewell to all those leaving. She put on a spread of steak, sausages, mashed potatoes, gravy, buns and dessert. Park patrons added to this with nibbles, garlic bread and salads and more dessert.. All up there was probably about 40 plus there. No cost, Lucy paid for the lot. It was a really good evening and would have cost her a pretty penny. We are told that in the winter months this place is bulging at the seams. Lucy has council approval for another toilet block and additional powered sites. Ken was told this morning that the park is up for sale appros 1.2 million so if you like the idea of running a caravan park , this would be a beauty.

On Friday we are leaving here and going out to Robin and Pauline's place It means we move down the map a little and inland a bit. It is much cooler than Cairns and doesn't have the humidity that you get closer to the coastline. We are starting to get some of the storms that come during the wet season. The mornings are hot (always in the low thirties) and humid. After lunch the storm clouds come over and for the past five days we have had very heavy rain that only lasts for a little while before clearing up. We were on our way home from Atherton when we drove into rain and visibility was very poor. Two other times I can remeber rain being that heavy were once we were on the Nullabour and the other was On Leanne's 13th birthday when we drove from Washington through Philladelphia and up to New York and it rained for the whole trip and we could hardly see anything along the way.

It's quite a long blog today. Hope you find it interesting

All our love and God bless. Ken and Lyn.

Lake Tinnaroo

Dear Family and Friends

A little bit of local history. Atherton was explored by J.V.Mulligan in 1875 but it was John Atherton who who settled near the town which now bears his name. Originally a pioneering pastoralist, John Atherton was the first to find tin deposits in Northern Queensland. Local legend has it that Tinnaroo creek received its name from Atherton who shouted "Tin, Hurroo" when he first made his discovery.

Our stay at Lake Tinnaroo was pleasant but not long enough. We only had one full day to explore the local area. Sadly the weather wasn't hot enough to enjoy the delights of the pool or the lake.

On the Tuesday morning (Melbourne Cup Day) we enjoyed a morning tea of pikelets with jam and cream put on by the staff at the caravan park. We then set off to see the lake. We followed a sign posted tourist drive thinking it would bring us back to the van park in plenty of time to see the Melbourne Cup which started at 2 pm here rather than 3 pm in Melbourne due to daylight saving time difference. As it turns out the drive took us right around the back of the lake, and it is a huge lake and supplies the entire area with its water supply. A large part of the road turned out to be dirt and not recommended for caravans. We had just a few spots of rain along the way but it was only enough to make the car dirty. We also found a couple of lovely green grassed camping areas. Ken stopped to chat to one chap and he said to come during the week as on weekends there are heaps of people that come out just for the weekend.

Just a couple of klms down the road we were back onto tarred road which eventually brought us to a town called Yungaburra where we stopped to watch the horse race at a local pub and we just made it by about four minutes to spare. From Yungaburra we then travelled through Atherton, back to Tolga where we turned to go to Kairi and then back to the lake. Another night in the park and then it was time to pack up and come home.

Ken is flying back to Melbourne as he wants to get the cruiser registered in Victoria. It is much cheaper there than it is QLD so he's got a super cheap flight with Tiger from Cairns to Melbourne leaving Wed night and coming back on Sat night. So here's hoping there are no hiccups with the travel plans. All up it is cheaper to do the rego this way than it is to put 12 months on it up here.

Ken's going to take the laptop with him so as a result I won't blog again till he returns home.

So love to one and all

Ken and Lyn.

Lake Tinnaroo

Dear Family and Friends

After a very busy few days Saturday was the opposite and we made it a very slow relaxing day.

At church on Sunday there were a group of New Guinea ladies who are in Far North Queensland for about 4 weeks visiting churches in the local area. They led the service, shared testimonies and sang in their own unique style. It was a great service and we will remember it for a long time. Following the service we shared a lunch with them which turned out to be a lovely day all round. It's amazing how you run into people that connect up at a specific time in life. A friend of Ken's from his youth (many years ago) just happened to be the driver taking these ladies wherever they needed to go during their time in Australia. Anne grew up in Toongabbie (as did Ken) and had lived in New Guinea for many years, she met her husband and started her family there and now lives in Cairns. I have met her only once before so that means Ken hasn't seen her for over 40 years, so they had some catching up to to do.

Monday began with another restful start to the day but by midday we had packed up a few clothes and some food and set off for two nights at Lake Tinnaroo. If you remember three weeks ago on our first Sunday here we stopped on the way home from church and went to the "Taste of the Tablelands" as did others from our Walkamin Caravan Park. As you entered you were given a voucher to fill out and place in a very large box. We didn't give anymore thought to it but it turned out that people near us at the park at Walkamin won two nights at a unit at Lake Tinnaroo.

When they were contacted to say that they had won this prise they were about to leave to go down to Rocky and they could not delay their departure. So they trasferred the prize into our name and gave it to us and that is the reason we are here staying in this unit. Lake Tinnaroo is enormous and is the water supply for a large area in the local vicinity including the many farms and market gardens in the area. When you drive around you can see large channels filled with water from lake Tinnaroo and it is from these channels that farmers get their water.

The park here puts on a Pancake morning tea on Tuesday and Thursdays so that will be our first stop this morning before going for a look around the local area.

More to follow

That's all for now

Love Ken and Lyn

Skyrail and Scenic Railway.

Dear Family and Friends

Wednesday.

It is now Saturday. We set off on Wednesday for our day touring on the Kuranda Scenic Railway and the Skyrail. As planned we met up with people we had become friends with at Mt Surprise and here at Walkamin. Bob and Ngiari left Walkamin to go up to Mossman and Pt Douglas for a couple of days. Steve and Sonja headed off down to Cairns a day later while Ken and I stayed put here at Walkamin. We set Wednesday as our day to regroup and do the day sightseeing.

We met at 9.30am at Freshwater Station which is just outside Cairns where we caught the Scenic Railway train. The train itself is one of days long ago meticulously restored to her original state with highly polished wood and a deep browny red upholstery. You could easily close your eyes and imagine that you were in another time and another era. The rail line runs through dense forest winding its way up to the Kuranda township. The scenery is breathtaking as you go through the Barron Gorge and wind your way upwards. Along the way you can see the Barron Falls dropping some 280 metres down the escarpents to the Barron River that you can occasionally glimpse far below and right at the bottom you can see the Barron Gorge Hydro electricity power station. If I remember rightly they said that there were untold number of injuries building the rail line but only 23 deaths. The line was commenced in 1885/6 and completed in 1891 and was built in three sections. The Navvies working on the line had to provide their own tools which consisted of a pick and a shovel whilst the company supplied the dynamite. The train goes through 15 tunnels, the longest and last one being 490 metres. During its construction the tunnel collapsed and 7 lives were lost, there are also 93 curves where you can get a great picture of the train sweeping around the corners.

They tell us that the journey up the mountain very soon became a sight seeing destination and Kuranda has made it's reputation as the sightseeing Mecca of the Far north Queensland for over 100 years.

The only disappointing part of the journey was that Ngiare didn't enjoy the train trip. She openly said she hated heights but was convinced or coerced by Bob to go. At times there was little between the train and the drop down into the Gorge. I began to wonder how she was going to get down the mountain because we had booked to take the skyrail back to Feshwater but my worries were unfounded as she thoroughly enjoyed the ride down on the skyrail. She was very proud of herself and made sure she had photoes to prove she did it.

Once arriving in Kuranda there was a courtesy bus waiting to take you up the hill to the top end of town. It was very steep so I think we all heaved a sigh of relief when we saw the bus. On the way the driver pointed out places of interest to visit and left us all to wander down the hillside at our own leisure and back to the Skyrail buy our depature time of 3.30. We separated and went our own ways to work our way through the different shops and markets. It was quite a warm day, around 30 - 33 degrees, and I'm really glad it was no hotter or it would not have been as nice a day.

Our shopping over we met up again at one of the hotel beer gardens and had a lovely cold lemon squash before the remainder of our walk down the hill and back to the Skyrail.

Ken and I got on one skycar and the others piled in together on another one and what a ride that was. You go up really high and glide over the Barron Gorge and rainforest that stretches for miles / kms It includes over 1200 flowering rainforest plants, 800 of which are classified as rainforest trees. There are also orchids, ginger plants, strangler figs, palms, stag horns and elkhorns and any number of climbing plants. the tree trunks are so long as they vie for the sunshine. It's an amazing sight and when you look at the density of the forest you get an even greater sense of the enormity and the hazards of building the railway and more recently the skyrail. Not long before the jouneys end you leave the rainforest and there is a steep decent as you drop down to the journey's end. The view here once again is spectacular and it is a little like coming into land in a light aircraft. There are the same sensations that you experience but a much clearer panorama of the landscape below. You can see the farming paddocks dotted below, some reddy brown. some green and some yellow. You can see Cairns and the smaller seaside townships like Trinity Beach, Clifton Beach and Palm Cove. Then still further on you see Trinity Bay and Cairns' section of the Great Barrier Reef. There are no words that describe the differing tones of blue water and blue sky all wrapped up together as one.

We did not go the Butterfly Sanctuary, The Koala Gardens or The Birdworld. There just wasn't time and we can go back at some time to enjoy these places as it looks like we will be here till the end of the wet season.

We arrived home exhausted but elated at all that we had seen and done, It most definitely sits as one of the best experiences we have had so far.

You may want to read this blog in stages as there is so much we have fitted into these past few days.

Thursday

We had planned for a quiet day but we got an early morning phone call from some people we had met at church with an invitation to join them and go out to the home of another couple also from church for lunch. Robin and Pauline lived about 10 klms the other side of Ravenshoe (QLD's Highest town but still very much part of the Atherton Tablelands). On our first Sunday at Church I had chatted with Pauline and Robin while Ken was chatting with Peter and Erica and when I told Robin and Pauline where we were staying they had said that we were welcome to bring the van out to their place where there was planty of room to park it. I thanked them for the invitation and had agreed to visit them after they returned from Cairns where Robin was having treatment for cancer. We drove to Peter and Erica's place at Herberton, which is just the other side of Atherton and then bundled into their car to travel the half hour or so to get to Robin and Pauline's place.

We had a BBQ for lunch and enjoyed a very pleasant day getting to know each other. Robin and Pauline had spent a number of years in New Guinea and also in Victoria. We knew one of their children by name and as the afternoon progressed we found quite a number of other people that we both knew. We arrived home late in the afternoon excited about the idea of staying at their 3 acre farmlet. They have a little two storied cottage near the main house where we would park the van which has a toilet, shower, bedroom, and sitting room that we can use if we choose too. We've got a couple of places we want to go to here before we backtrack a little to Ravenshoe. So probably we'll make the move in the next week or two. They tell us they are away for Feb, March and April so it seems possible that we may well house sit for them during this time.

Friday.

Another amazing day. This time we set off with Peter and Erica who took us on a sight seeing drive of the local Atherton area. You could describe Atherton as a mountain top experience with dramatic landscapes and gently rolling hillsides. It clearly has a high rainfall as the rolling hillsides and vast farming plateaus are very green and the cows have the thickest long green grass that I have seen in a longtime. Lots of cows, both dairy and beef, but no sheep at all at least not that we have seen so far.

All the places we visited we will at some time go back to them. A quick overview of where we went. This is not in the order we visited them and I will describe them more next time we visit each one. We drove to Dinner Falls and the water filled Crater. We also went to Hallorins Hill and the Curtain Fig which is going to be hard to describe. We stopped at a lookout that spans the width and bredth of the tablelands including the seven sisters which are a group of mountains located close together, we stopped to spot the platypuss playing in the water but were unlucky because it wasn't the right time of the day. We had a picnic lunch at Lake Eachem and drove around Lake Tinaroo estate (Very much like Newlands arm near Bairnsdale). Then to conclude the day we went back to Peter and Ericas place and had tea with them before returning home exhausted after another busy but wonderful day.

I'll finish off now even though there is much more I can say about our day sightseeing but I will keep it for another day and another blog.

Love to all

Ken and Lyn.

More tomorrow

Dear Family and Friends

I've been a bit remiss of late and have not blogged for a while. This is just a quick update as I'm about to go to bed. We are still at Walkamin. The weather is consistently around 30 degrees each day. We still have had no rain even though weather reports say it is raining all around Cairns.

Tomorrow is a big day. We are going on the scenic railway and the skyrail with some friends we have met Steve and Sonja, and, Bob and Ngaire. We are told it is a must see.More to follow tomorrow.

Love to all Ken and Lyn.

Walkamin

Dear Family and Friends

We are now camped in a caravan park at Walkamin. Its a small town pretty much in the middle of Atherton and Mareeba. The park caters for grey nomads and although it's is now past the busy season there are about 25 - 30 vans here. They have a sign up at the entrance saying "no tents" and there are no children here also. There is a huge shed here that allows large groups of people to gather. In the shed they have a huge open fire (which we had going last night as it cooled down a bit) with a variety of single chairs and lounge chairs surrounding it. There are the normal things that you find in a camp kitchen, plus they have the largest array of books, puzzles and games that I have seen in any van park (probably because people come here for a week and stay three months). The chap behind us came for a month and stayed for 4 years. He got a job picking avocados and is now a surperviser.

The night before we left Mt Surprise a couple we met who live in northern Queensland told us about this park and recommended it for a long term stay. Our intention had been to go to a freeby at a War Memorial Park just a few klms down the road where they allow you to camp for 72 hours only. Our neighbours at Mt Surprise (Steve and Sonja, Bob and Nyari) also intended on coming to this spot so we knew we would meet up them again. Because we didn't stay there (and it was a great spot) we went back late on Sunday afternoon to see them and tell them where we were. They've now joined us here at Walkamin and like us they are thinking of making this a long term stay. If you book for a week it costs just $105 so that also makes it a great spot and they have the cleanest toilet and shower blocks we have yet seen on this journey.

There is just so much to see and do around here. Cairns is about an hour away, the Atherton Tablelands are here to explore, there are forests, gorges, waterfalls, dams and lakes. There is also the Kuranda Scenic Railway as well as The Sky Rail. There is a butterfly sanctuary, a bird park, Koala and other aussie wildlife sanctuary and the Hartley Crocodile farm is up this way too as is Paronella Park.

We are thinking that we might drive up to Cooktown (without the van) and stay in a cabin for a couple of days so that we can have a look around there.

This last weekend we noticed that the Rotary Club were hosting a venture called "The Taste of the Tablelands" So on the way home from church on Sunday we found a parking spot not too far from the entrance and decided to take a look. All stalls and produce were local (44 in total) and there was a range of stalls ranging from goats milk soap to doggy treats to Indian, Thai or Greek food sensations to nuts, wine, dried fruit, jams, honey and much, much more. This is its second year and well worth going to. Parking was horendous as it usually is with events like this. We think this was probably the main fundraiser for the local Rotary Club and it looked to be a huge success.

That's about it for now so I shall say goodbye untill next time.

Love to all and God Bless.

Ken and Lyn

Mt Surprise

Dear Family and Friends

From Charters Towers we drove just 40klms down the road to a free camp spot called Fletcher Creek. A beautiful babbling brook with crystal clear water runs through here and by the look of the surrounding area and the big bridge it floods here after heavy rain. We were on the high side but there were about five or six caravans parked on the lower side. So far we have dodged the heavy rains that seem to have hit QLD but somewhere we are going to run into it.

We set of early yesterday morning as we knew we had a fairly long drive ahead of us.We reached Mt Surprise late in the afternoon. We travelled up the Gregory development road and have now begun to pass the road trains, some of which have four trailers behind them. They are a bit scary when they pass you. Often the road way is just one lane and so you have to get off the road. They don't slow down and they don't move over. There are call points along the road where you identify where you are and so you get a little warning that they are ahead.

We stopped off Undara where there are the world reknown lave flows are. Two of the tours had ceased as it is now considered to be 'off peak season' and the easiest tour had some 300 steps plus a walk of unknown length. It is unaccesable by car so they take you in a bus so far and then you walk the rest. (the chap serving us couldn't tell us how far the walk would be) so we decided against it and continued on to Mt Surprise. The landscape here is very rocky and unusual in that the rocks are these huge basalt like boulders and many of them are boulders but many are small but all are dark. It must have been one heck of an eruption to spew out the size of some of the rocks.

Mt Surprise has just 60 people living here and for today we are just going to make it an overnight stop.

So with that I shall write again soon

Love to all. Lyn and Ken

Moving on

Deat family and friends







As planned we left Willows Gemfield on Friday morning setting off about 7.30am with the intention of returning next year for the annual Gem Fest which occurs each August.

We had such a good time there and made so welcome by all.





We headed north via the Gregory Developmental Road and what a long boring journey that stretched into as we travelled through Capella and Clermont. From Claremont through to Charters Towers, some 400 klms, there was one lonely old service station at Belyando Crossing which obviously had the monopoly on fuel and food, a little bit like the Nullabour when you pay an arm and a leg for anything. Thankfully we had enough of eveything till we reached Charters Towers.





The Bathurst Races were on this past weekend which meant that Ken was glued to the TV for the weekend. We did some shopping and some cleaning and today we will do some sight seeing.



Charters Towers is a very, very old place by Australian standards with a population of 30,000 people in it's hey day. the population is now only 7,000. It boasts the first pub outside Brisbane and it's own stock exchange from days gone by.







The architecture of many pubs and buidings is amazing.

Willows

Dear Family and Friends

Our stay in the Gemfields region is nearly over. There is a rich spirit of friendship out here as most people are miles and miles from family and so friendships are very important for everyone. Some of the locals have begun a Recreation Club. With funding from State Government they have been able to oufit a large shed where people can come just for a cuppa and a chat, Some come for a beer and a smoke, others come to play pool, and others to play the Wii. And on weekends like the one just passed with the footy finals people come just to watch it with others who enjoy the game. Each weekend the club is opened from 3.00 till about 7.00. they are licensed to sell alcohol between certain hours and every Sunday night they have a meal of some kind available. Last Sunday night it was fish and chips night, and for $5 you got two pieces of fish plus a heap of chips. They have an outdoors area with shade sails up so depending on the day it can be either indoor or outdoor or both.

The tourist season is now ending and so by late November they will close it down till march next year. They say even then it is too hot even for the locals and some townsfolk migrate south for to cooler climates. Last year they had 10 consecutive days with temps over 45 degrees. the weather since we have arrived has been 30 and above almost every day, quite a few of then around the 35 degree mark.

On Sunday Sharon took us for a drive around Sapphire, Rubyvale and Anakie, all of which are part of the Gemfields. During tourist season there is always markets at Sapphire on a Saturday where you can buy raw stones or peices of ready made jewelry. In the next few weeks even this market slows down as the tourists are all gone and the locals know who to take their stones to to get a fair and honest price for them if they want to sell them, or make them into jewelry.

After looking around this area Sharon took us to "Pat's Place" to have morning tea. Pat's Place is a coffee shop plus a jewelers where you can purchase local stones already made into jewelry. Sapphires aren't just blue but can be found in all colours and hues. Green, yellow, purple and some which are multi coloured are called party coloured and a highly sought after.

While we had our drinks at Pat's we found the rosellas and lorikeets were very friendly and they would come very close to you knowing that food was available. So tame that they came to our plates and licked the caramel that was left on the plates. They even stuck their heads into our coffee mugs to see if there was anything left in them.

We have had no luck with the famous red claw that Ken was hoping for. The local water holes have been unsuccessful and that might have to do with the unusual weather they have had here. Only yesterday someone said that the water is still a bit too cold which means they have burrowed down into the mud. When Fairbairn Dam was nearly empty everyone was taking them in big numbers and so the council decided they had better see how many were left incase they were depleting the numbers of them and when they checked they found out that there was so many of them that they burrowed down to about 20meters under the mud. When you catch them you have to soak them for a couple of days in clean water so they flush out their whole systems otherwise they are not nice to eat.

Sharon and Ricki took us down to their dig site and showed us where they are working. They have their own hand machine which helps them separate the dust particles from the actual rock. After they have done that then they have to wash the stones in what is called a Willoby (no idea how it is spelt but it is pronounced as Will O Bee) If they are washed properly in the sieve then the heavyier stones (Ie the sapphires) settle in ther middle of the sieve. The sieve is then tuned out onto a cloth and you begin to look from the middle to the out side. A pair of tweezers is used to pick up the gems. At first is hard to see them but you soon learn to recognise them.

Yesterday (Wed) we went to Rubyvale to Willies Wash and here you buy two buckets of stones for $25 and he has all the equipment you need to find stones. A few of us went and we spent a couple of hours there. We found quite a few small stones with a possible 2 that we might be big enough to be faceted. This is a tourist spot, though, on this occasion it was only us there. As Sharon and Ricki said you will always find small stuff but never likely to get anthing big as it is "Salted" which means that when they get the buckets ready prior to your arrival they throw in the odd stone here and there, just enough to keep people's enthusiasm up. They know this because in one of the buckets a Garnet was found and Garnets are not found locally. All in all we had a good time. From there we headed back to Anakie and had lunch at the local pub.

Yesterday Sharon took me to the home of Robyn a local lady who paints. Sharon and Ricki have one of her paintings in their home and so she took me to see some of the others that she has painted. She mostly does landscapes and portraits and she is good at both.

The other place we went to visit was Geoff and Madds. Geoff is an encyclopedia on Arachnids. He said he has been facinated by spiders and insects since he was a small kid. He studies them and breeds them, he sells some (there is a growing market for people who buy them as pets, though he limits who he sells them too) and he keeps some, some for many years.

He also has scorpions, one of which he showed us under a special light and it comes up all green in colour. And they are not little. Some of them were almost the size of his hand. He fed some while we were there. We asked him what happens if he is bitten as many are the deadly funnel webb spiders and he said he has had so many bites over the years that he has built up an immunity to many of them. Some, he said might give him a bad headache for a few days. Some make him weak and sick for a few days and then he gets better. He has some though that would make even him sick and there is one he has that if he gets bitten it is so venomous that it will kill him within 7 minutes of being bitten. His collection of spiders include species of spiders that have never been seen or named before.

Today we went specking which is when you just walk around looking for stones on top of the ground.We had no luck except for one which Sharon found. Specking is usually done after it has rained as the dirt is washed away and the stones lay on top of the ground. "If it shines pick it up" was the advice given. Specking is best done on a sunny day as you use the sun to spot the stones. Many of the stones I have seen are just like a dark rock with silver striations on it. To tell the difference between a rock and a sapphire a) you feel its weight, sappires are noticeably heavier than a rock of equal size, b) rocks are solid and cannot be seen through where as colour can be seen when you hold a sapphire up to the sun and c) Sapphires are hard They have a hardness of 9 on the Moh's scale beaten only by diamond which is a 10.

To finish off our stay here at Willows Sharon and Ricki are having a BBQ here tonight to farwell Barry, Ken and myself as we are both leaving here tomorrow

Barry is heading south and we are going to continue north with the intention of reaching the Atherton Tablelands.

So for now God Bless and all our love

Ken and Lyn

Cactus Flowers, only last one full day

Photo 2 The old house needs a little TLC

Photo 3 This bridge was completly covered by water in 2008 floods

Photo 4 Ricki, Barry and Sharon