TRAVELLING DOWN THE SOUTH COAST
CHICKEN SITTING WENTWORTH FALLS IN THE BLUE MOUNTAINS
The chickens we sat for
The Blue Mountains is a plateau at about 2000m. To climb the mountains you go down. Since being developed for tourism in the 19 century stairs have been hewn from the stone with later additions of galvanised stepladders and boardwalks.We walked down 1000m of steps but came up on a steep rail car.
Mass for Peace by Karl Jenkins. I listened to it many times at Jill's.
Paragon Cafe Katoomba 1920/30 decor
We set out on the 'holiday' part of the trip travelling from the Blue Mountains down the south coast.
More Weather at Batemans Bay
CYNE MALLOWS NELLIGEN
Another fire in the evening
Today the temerature rose over 30, the time late afternoon. There is only stillness and silence. I sit and wait. The sky clouds over again,thunder rumbles and wind stirs the trees. They respond languidly after the days heat. The black creek water ruffles, the wind persists,soon the rain patters on the sail above me on the cottage deck. It's drops pierce the creeks smooth blackness and two black cockatoos fly high, their cries not as rasping as the sulphur crests.
Torrential rain battered the forest all night
From the bedroom in Cyne Mallows, 8k off the road
Lunch in Narooma
MYSTERY BAY
Mystery Bay Cottages
A favourite place, Mystery Bay
EDEN
B and B Eden
'Heritage' B and B Eden, Heritage is big business
Grey forest, strange and desolate landscape
Path through grey forest, Greencape
Red rocks, Greencape
Greener forest, Greencape
Daidson Whaling station closed in 1926. I have been reading The Basque History of the World which has a lot about Basque whaling accomplishments in the 15th and 16th cenutries. I find it astonishing that people travelled so far(Newfoundland etc) and that they were able to catch large wales from such small boats. Such is my ignorance. Here I learnt more, especially about the strange collaboration between man and killer wales. The killer whales cornered the great whales and drove them to shore. The men rewarded them with eyes and tongues of the great whales. This industry also, unusually, involved white and indigenous Australians working together too.
FAIRVIEW FARM, APPLETREE COTTAGE, WALAGA LAKE
Fairview Farm
From Apple Tree Cottage
I find I can't 'read'Australian gardens. I am used to English, French, Italian and enjoy visiting them and making my own at home. It is like painting with plants. But Australian gardens ,especially full of 'natives' don't really touch me.
I can't get a sense of their aesthetic. The small garden at this cottage comes close. It has a feel of drawing inspiration from 'back home' and adapts using Australian plants, to an English style of planting. There are lilies,sweet jasmine,lavender,agapanthus,beautiful hibiscus and also fruit trees.
The owners of Fairview farm were 'ten pound poms' but she is scotish and resents this label.
For my Washing series
BACK IN SYDNEY
I had to re scan some photos of Col and Mikes, the friends we stay with in Sydney. I'm using them in My 60's, a film from the days of our hippy commune. Here Josef Koudelka is taking a photo of Col in the yard of the cottage in the Forest of Dean where the commune mostly was....
And here is the photo he took
BACK IN GALSTON
I hardly ever take photos of people so here are some snaps of Saturday morning in Galston
Ulric(left) is rebuilding the deck
Tim (centre) has just finished cutting back a troublesome, virulent
creeper
creeper
Anne (right) is weeding
I am just taking pictures
Ulric is also building a sailing boat with two friends. When he was young he sailed single handed across to Australia from Europe somewhere.He was alone for several months. With my interest in silence this adventure of his impresses me. He is Swiss.
Ulric has an enormous workshop/studio filled with useful machines and a huge collection of STUFF
Possums live in the workshop roof and nest in the insulation
Possums live in the workshop roof and nest in the insulation
Ulric is a sculptor, making large and small works usually based on birds and animals or shells and fossils.
The weather has been brilliant and so have the evening skies.
Today is really sad because the wonderful cattle dog Ruby, who has convinced me I might like a dog, has died. She is one of the two dogs we house sat for.I never thought I would be sad about the death of an animal let alone put a picture on my web site.
