Blogs from South Australia, Australia, Oceania - page 218

To end the trip Bruce and I have put together our Holiday Awards. So here goes: Best Coffee - Eucla Road House, runner - up Boab Book Shop Kununurra Weirdest meal we cooked - Nachos mince with Mashed Potato (what you do when you run out of Nacho chips). Best Meal we cooked - Garlic butter Crabs in Derby Best Meal Out - Battered Oysters at Black Pearl in Broome, Caesar Salad with Salt and Pepper Squid in Kununurra (for Bruce). For Amanda - Seafood platter at Whalers Restaurant in Exmouth. Best Shower - (there were not many so we had to choose carefully) Eighty Mile Beach Best Camp Ground - Manning Gorge won hands down Favourite Walk - Mitchell Falls Worst Walk - Mini Palms walk in the Bungle Bungles. Worst Road - Mitchell Pateau ... read more

Introduction The hikers went to visit Scott Conservation Park this Sunday and had a very pleasant (albeit slightly muddy) 3 hour walk. We did a section of a large walk published in the walking guide 'Push the Bush' rather than some of our earlier visits to Scott. While our earlier blogs about Scott were in full-blown spring - see url=http://www.travelblog.org/Australasia/Australia/South-Australia/Adelaide/Scott-Creek-Conservation-Park/blog-19301.htmlScott walk and url=http://www.travelblog.org/Australasia/Australia/South-Australia/Adelaide/Scott-Creek-Conservation-Park/blog-23457.htmlSilver mine - this walk was a winter one - although you couldn't but help notice the first lot of flowers peeking through. It was an interesting trail that took in a few new areas for us - a creek walk, and making our way down a hand made road - as well as some familiar areas.... read more

Introduction One of the key missions of our Quorn adventure was to get some tadpoles (well at least that was Cian and Natalie had in mind). This took us to the very beautiful Warren Gorge, about 20 minutes north of Quorn on the Arden Vale road. This is a camping area with scattered long-drop toilets and little else other than serenity, a flowing creek with tadpoles and a rocks in which to hide yellow-footed rock wallabies (Mum and Dad - you must put this on your to-do list). We didn't do much of a walk, just climbed up one of the rises to get some exercise, mostly choosing to focus on getting the taddies. Dan says... Hello readers, Beautiful, absolutely beautiful. The first thing we did was tadpoling. Some thought that there were no tadpoles, Dad ... read more

We made another trip to Hale with weekend. If you would like to know how to get there - I have included a route map. It was delightful to see water flowing in the creek and waterfall again after the last time we visited when it was bone dry. You might remember our previous blog about Hale: - but this was when it was bright and sunny - today's snaps are from a cool windy day that threatened (but didn't) shower. In other words, pretty good for walking. I took along Peter's golf umbrella in case it did rain - and it made a pretty good walking stick, so I might make 'taking an umbrella along' a bit of a habit. The only problem with this walk is that it is short - only 2 hours ... read more

Sorry it's been so long. Had a great dinner at Taj Mahal restaurant in budapest as farewell to Andrew and Monika, friends Gabor and Kriszti collected me next day and took me walking in the hills above Budapest, leafy and green with limestone rocks and great views of the city and surrounds. Next day they drove me to- Vienna! where we toured the summer palace of the Hapsburgs, huge and opulent, too many rooms to dust! Friends I have stood in the room where Mozart gave his first concert aged 6 to the queen, and viewed the latest new toilet from England, used by no less than emperor Franz Josef himself ( although he was not enthroned at the time.) We picnicked in the formal gardens which were superb of course. We walked through Vienna Downtown ... read more