Considering that I'm on six and half months leave, you would think my days are packed as illustrated in this cartoon.
However, three months in although I might not have achieved all I wanted on the yoga front, I have manage to subdue the travel bug with a couple of trips.
In July, Mum and I escaped the bitter Sydney winter and flew to Townsville for a week. It was our first visit to Townsville and a chance to catch up with my Aunt, and my cousin and her husband.
The weather was slightly overcast and cool with top temperatures ranging from 21-26°Celsius, unusual for that time of the year but still warm enough for we Sydneysiders to be wearing T-shirts. The day that we had lunch with my aunt and cousins we actually had to wear cardigans and jackets! The day before we left was a typical Townsville Winter day, hot and humid, just like a Summer's day in Sydney.
The Strand
Mum and I stayed in an apartment in the suburb of North Ward. We were within walking distance of the Rock Pool at the Strand and the beach at Rowes Bay.
The Rock Pool The Rock Pool is a man-made concrete pool that is filled with sea water at high tide. The water is filtered and stinger resistant nets are used to ensure a safe environment for swimming. We arrived on a Thursday when the pool was closed for maintenace so all we saw was a concrete shell, perfect for skateboarding, which some kids were doing. Three hours are required to completely drain the pool and a similar time is required to re-fill it. I finally fit in a swim on that second-to-last day.
Looking across to Magnetic Island from the Strand The Rock Pool is located at the northern end of the 2.2km foreshore area known as the Strand. We spent some time walking different sections of the Strand and had breakfast and lunch at a couple of the cafes. From the Strand you can look across the Coral Sea and see Magnetic Island.
Castle Hill
Castle Hill from Strand Park Castle Hill is a monolith, rising above Townsville and providing panoramic views of the city and coastline. The first day we ascended it was misty and cold at the peak even though it was warm and sunny below.
Misty view at the top of Castle Hill So I settled for photos of misty shapes hoping that, with a bit of luck, I could produce some ‘arty’ shots.
Castle Hill was visible from many points in the city and, being close to where we were staying, it was a quick drive to the top when the weather cleared. I used an auto-stitching application on my phone to create the following panoramas:
- Townsville CBD and southern suburbs, with Cape Cleveland (to the left) and Mt Stuart in the background
- Northern suburbs looking towards Cape Pallendra, Rowes Bay and Magnetic Island. In the background is the Palm Island group.
Paluma Range National Park
The Paluma Range National Park is part of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area. We headed to Paluma village about 70km north of Townsville. On the way we stopped at Little Crystal Creek Falls.
Little Crystal Creek Falls The single arch bridge over Little Crystal Creek was built during the Depression under the Unemployment Relief Scheme.
Little Crystal Creek bridge As we drove higher into the ranges it became wetter and mistier so the views from lookouts were obscured. We arrived in Paluma Village looking for cafes and craft stores but everything was shut! Guess Monday is slow for the tourist trade.
Sculpture called 'Where do the children play?' However, just outside the closed pottery shed, a sculpture caught my eye: beautiful flowers made from discarded McDonalds playground components.
Magnetic Island
My father and aunt strongly recommended a visit to Magnetic Island, about a 20 minute ferry trip from Townsville.
Mum beachcombing at Horseshoe Bay Mum and I spent most of the day at Horseshoe Bay (on the far side of the island) where we wandered along the beach collecting coral and shells, and stopped off for lunch.
After Horseshoe Bay we headed for Picnic Bay with its views of Townsville and then back to Nelly Bay for a coffee and the ferry back to Townsville.
Shells, coral and seaweed We spent a couple of afternoons beachcombing at Rowes Bay near Soroptimist Park. Lots of shells were washed up along the tide lines. There were also pieces of coral, something we do not see much on New South Wales beaches (at least not the ones we've visited).
Coral on beach at Horseshoe Bay Most of the pieces of coral we found at Rowes Bay were small. However, we found large pieces washed up at Horseshoe Bay.
Other sights
Ibises in the mangroves At night I heard what I thought were ducks quacking nearby. I discovered it was ibises in the mangroves.
One evening, just on dusk, I was sitting on an embankment looking over the mangroves, talking to Tony on the phone. A trio of ibises landed and started to forage in the shallows. As I watched more ibises circled overhead, landed, and then started to pick their way along the waters' edge softly quacking. A very peaceful moment.
Rock wallabies on Ross River Dam Ross River Dam is the major water supply for the area and a haven for wildlife: pelicans, comorants and rock wallabies. We wouldn't have known about the rock wallabies if it wasn't for a couple of off-the-leash dogs having the time of their lives running up and down the dam walls chasing the wallabies.
Mount Stuart is another lookout providing views over Townsville and the Ross River dam. My stitching app produced this wonderful panorama of the coastline from Cape Pallendra on the left, Rowes Bay, the mouth of the Ross River emptying into Cleveland Bay on the right. Castle Hill rises in the centre of the photo with Magnetic Island behind.
Panorama of Townsville and coastline 
Living coral and seahorses The closest we got to seeing the Great Barrier Reef was the Reef HQ Aquarium. The tanks recreate different parts of the reef. I had a hard time photographing the seahorses, tethered by their tails to the reef, as they gently rocked back and forth with the currents. Every now and then a seahorse would uncurl its tail and drift away. This is the only photo that turned out and they are barely visible in the shadows in the background.
Lion fish and Crown of Thorns Starfish And one of the clearest photos was of the extremely venemous lion fish and the crown-of-thorns starfish, which preys on living coral and is responsible for much damage on the Great Barrier Reef.
The most effective way to date for controlling the crown-of-thorns starfish is for divers to inject a dry acid solution into the starfish. Very labour-intensive and time consuming!
Home!
Brother and nephews with our bags Back home to cold, dark nights and Winter rain. We were met at the airport by Brother and nephews. Can you believe there was a fuss over pulling the bags?
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