For Cee’s challenge this week, I’ve got some filtered shots of recent visits.
B&W challenge – beginning with the letter B or W
Author: kzmcb
A traveler, writer, retired teacher, mother and wife.
Hibiscus
Pull up a seat in Braidwood, NSW.
For Xingfumama’s pull-up-a-seat challenge
My Monday walk, too late all round
I live on the plains in Adelaide, South Australia, and very nearby is a hill from which a view of my suburb is obscured, due to the profusion of native trees. After reading Jo’s Monday walk, last week, and seeing the attention to flowers. I decided to go for a walk and really pay attention to my area’s flora.
Eucalypts tower overhead and Red Ironbarks line the footpath.
Now, I’m pretty sure the date palm isn’t native to Australia and, as the many trees in the area bring plenty of birdlife, it is widely considered a weed in my suburb, sprouting up around our yards wherever the birds have discharged them. Some people leave them to grow to maturity, though, and have the pleasure of lorikeets in fruiting season.
Melaleuca, or bottle brush, is very common and this time, I thought I’d look at it from a different angle.
classic view
Acacias fill the air with the sweet smell of their blossoms.
As I enter a small park, I see that someone is thinking of the birds.
That same someone was thinking of the upcoming public holiday and has trailed their hose from their house, under the fence and onto the centre of the park, where they are cultivating a green pitch (for cricket).
I think the next is melaleuca lanceolata, a compact shrub with prolific blooms, buzzing with bee activity.
Lining the path, native fuchsia, or correa. But I can’t tell you which one this is.
I had walked less than a kilometer, but reached the shops, so there ended my observations, but I am grateful for the prompt to look closer and the time to do it.
Now, I get Jo’s post the day after, so my walk was a Tuesday and then I have dilly dallied around and was going to post it on Debbie’s Six Word Saturday challenge. Alas, it is Monday…already!
Something is missing
When I spied this hanging geranium today, I wondered how two of the flowers making up the head were a different color.
Lack of anthocyanins, perhaps? They are (according to http://www.gardeningknowhow.com) responsible for the colours blue, red, pink and purple in flowers.
Well, waddayaknow. It clearly doesn’t bother whatever is eating one of them!
For more flowers, see Cee’s FOTD.
Gerberas
Mossman Gorge
The road to Mossman Gorge from the BIG4 Glangarry caravan park is very good and it took about 20 minutes. We arrived at the visitor center and had to perform some COVID-19 tasks before heading in to the souvenir and information centre, procuring some souvenirs after hard decisions. Many of the items are designed or made by local first nations people and the money raised is ethically distributed.
We took the shuttle into the Gorge, happy to support the Indigenous enterprise of running the Centre and maintain the National Park. They run every 15 minutes and cost $10.50 pp.
The gorge is in the Daintree Rainforest, which is 120 million years old. Unbelievable. So beautiful, and even though its another rainforest, its quite different from those of the Atherton tablelands. This is the third time we have been to the Gorge, and each of the other times we went in the water at the swimming hole. However, today there was a warning and the water was churned and dark, running swiftly over rocks. We also had a close call with wildlife, as a wild boar was ferreting close to the path and we rushed past, hoping it wouldn’t pursue us.
There are two walks you can do and we did the longer, 2.4km one, that had small offshoots to it and were there a total of 3.5 hours, including the coffee we had at the end, once the shuttle had returned us.
This is unmissable, with beauty and wonder at every turn.
Take a hat, water and sunscreen. Maybe your camera, too. Only leave footprints!
Frangipani
To brighten anyone’s day, and for Cee’s FOTD
Port Douglas
There is something about the stretch of water ribboning your drive that is uplifting. We had taken this road a number of times before, but with development it had altered. The day was overcast, and a soft rain would set in from time to time, as ahead a tall mountain was topped with clouds and the water to our right reflected the dull hue of the sky. Somehow it maintained a degree of turquoise, which lessened the threat of the waves rolling right in, to the edge of the road. At some stages, as far as we could see, the water was at our side, round tight bends and narrow, rocky ways.
At last our speed increased and the road straightened, revealing sugar cane on either side and greater rainforest vegetation. We were early, so headed in to Port Douglas and were thrilled to find the same casual ambience, the mix of one-off and practical shops and, there must be a heaven – the markets.
the main street 
the market 
the port
So many wonderful wares that are made by the seller and fresh fruit, balms and one proprietor assuring a customer that his black garlic product would cure her hearing loss. We bought wisely for the most part, then headed to a bruncheon spot and walked the town, with its heritage buildings, sought-after wedding venues and foliage bright enough to doubt it was real.
Big4 Glengarry Park is a 10 minute drive from Port Douglas and beautifully maintained. The sites are large and there were plenty of amenities, except working washing machines, but everyone seemed to manage this. The water activities on offer were perfect for the weather and despite the park being almost full, we didn’t ever feel crowded. This branch of parks are really suited to families and we like that atmosphere.
one of the camp kitchens 
large sites with plenty of shade
Once again, stone curlews wailed in the evening, through the night and in the early morning. A nearby camper was visited each day by a family of 3 and they said they had seen the offspring from birth until this, 4 weeks later.
Exploring the town, we walked Four Mile Beach and felt as if we walked the entirety, up and back. Oddly enough, after a refreshing dip, we saw a lookout up the side of the headland and decided to not only do that, but continue what was, in fact, O’Halloran Hill walk and continue along the coast until we reached the park near where the markets were on Saturday.
Excellent views from this walk, back down the beach,
out across the ocean and then to the bay.
The whole place is pretty accessible on foot and on the last trip I walked past the old train station and inlet, only to leanr later that crocs often venture on the road, too. I’m not sure if it’s true, but enough visitors to the region have been gobbled up, for me to have a healthy caution.
We found a funky lunch bar and had vegan icecream at the icecreamery (3 choices!!!!).
Visit here before it loses it’s charm and beauty. So many things are close by if the town isn’t enough for you. We overheard our neighbours saying they come here every year since retiring 11 years ago and always find something new to see. You might, too.
Safe travels. Carry water, your hat and sunscreen and wear your bathers/togs/swimsuit everywhere.
Pull up a seat – in Semaphore
It IS one of my favorite destinations, with plenty of places to park the proverbial.
And today, Tullulah Bright’s emporium caught my eye with these bright chair covers.
They’re set for Xingfumama’s pull-up-a-seat challenge.
