A New Beginning ..Goodbye to the OLD (written entries will remain BUT no pics !)
WordPress is getting too expensive for me to put pics on SO I have deleted ALL previous pics on this site to give me more room and be able to continue adding more pics on upcoming stories and the ability to add more pics now I have completely deleted my 1000,s of previous pics I hope future entries will be to your satisfaction,I know they will be to me and Annie …..
Just started our trip July 2010
Fraser Island very near our Home
We are very lucky to travel a short ferry ride across this beautiful Bay we have come to live next to and have actually visited a couple of times and we are considering taking the 4 wheel drive over for a much better look see !!
Fraser Island is located just off the coast from Queensland’s HERVEY BAY. World Heritage list Fraser Island is the largest sand island in the world and one of the only places in the world where rainforest grows in sand. Over 120 kilometres long and over 25 kilometres across at its widest point, Fraser Island is a unique natural environment that has developed over 800,000 years. Named ‘K’gari’ (meaning paradise) Fraser Island was home to the Butchulla people who lived on the island for over 5,00 Fraser Island is also home to numerous pristine freshwater lakes such as Lake McKenzie, Lake Wabby, Lake Birrabeen and Lake Allom, crystal clear creeks featuring famous Eli Creek, and Champagne Pools; spectacular swimming rock pools. Fraser Island also boasts a wealth of other natural attractions such as stunning wetlands, heath decorated with wildflowers and 1000 year old rainforest trees all thriving from nothing more than sand Located on the eastern side of the Island is Seventy Five Mile Beach, a stunning natural highway where you will discover Fraser Island’s own shipwreck, “The Maheno” and cliffs of amazing coloured sand formations. Fraser Island is home to 350 species of birds, wallabies, possums, echidnas and Australia’s purest dingoes and its warm waters attract dugong, dolphins and turtles. The magnificent humpback whales, with their young, pass on the western side of the island between May and November.
There are numerous ways you can experience this magnificent Island. You can join one of the many Fraser Island Tours that depart Hervey Bay, Rainbow Beach or Kingfisher Bay Resort each day. Join one of the adventurous Fraser Island Tag A-Long Tours. Hire a 4WD or take your own across on a Fraser Island Ferry and discover off-road 4WDing at its best. Take a scenic flight over Fraser Island and land on Seventy Five Mile Beach. Cruise across the Great Sandy Straits on a Fraser Island Ferry and hike part or all of Fraser Island’s Great Walk.
Fraser Island Accommodation is also many and varied. From Eco Friendly resorts such as Kingfisher Bay Resort, to accommodation ideal for a perfect family fishing getaway at Eurong Beach Resort, to self contained cabins and beach houses scattered along the eastern beach. For those that really want to get back to nature a Fraser Island Camping holiday is the ideal choice for you. Stay in one of the many National Parks camp grounds or at a designated camping spot along the eastern beach. Don’t forget you will need a vehicle or camping Permit to camp or self drive on Fraser Island.
Definitely a MUST visit Island if you are in this area
SPIDERS !!! of AUSTRALIA
Having lived in Australia for over 30 years I am amazed at the vast variety of spiders living in this great country.I was inspired to write a blog on Arachnids by a friend of mines daughter in Blackpool Lancashire UK by the name of Jacqui ( hope I spelt that right) having being born and bred in England I grew up like most big masculine men and sadly that is to say “I was terrified of Spiders !!” If I saw a common Daddy Long Legs in the bath I would stand outside the room until some very brave woman would get rid it for me !! ( Same goes for mice etc) Strange how suck small creatures can affect the human species ( how did we ever survive “The Beginning?” ) and of course the good ole British spider is NOT venomous. Here in Australia lots of species are down right dangerous and can kill !! (and I have encountered most of these) Living with these creatures around me has cured me of my Arachnophobia and I am no longer afraid of the little beasties in as much IF I spot one inside the house a jar and stiff piece of paper will see me (or Ann) trap the unsuspecting culprit and take it OUTSIDE.In Western Australia where I lived RedBacks are very common and those I will kill if in the house ( dangerous to children ) The next paragraphs are taken from Wikipedia and explain Redbacks a lot better than I ever could
Mainly nocturnal, the female redback lives in an untidy web in a warm sheltered location, commonly near or inside human residences. It preys on insects, spiders and small vertebrates that become ensnared in its web. It kills its prey by injecting a complex venom through its two fangs when it bites, before wrapping them in silk and sucking out the liquefied insides. Male spiders and spiderlings often live on the periphery of the female spiders’ web and steal leftovers. Other species of spider and parasitoid wasps prey on this species. The redback is one of few arachnids which usually displays sexual cannibalism while mating. The sperm is then stored in the spermathecae, organs of the female reproductive tract, and can be used up to two years later to fertilise several clutches of eggs. Each clutch averages 250 eggs and is housed in a round white silken egg sac. The redback spider has a widespread distribution in Australia, and inadvertent introductions have led to established colonies in New Zealand, Japan, and in greenhouses in Belgium.
The redback is one of the few spider species that can be seriously harmful to humans, and its preferred habitat has led it to being responsible for the large majority of serious spider bites in Australia. Predominantly neurotoxic to vertebrates, the venom gives rise to the syndrome of latrodectism in humans; this starts with pain around the bite site, which typically becomes severe and progresses up the bitten limb and persists for over 24 hours. Sweating in localised patches of skin occasionally occurs and is highly indicative of latrodectism. Generalised symptoms of nausea, vomiting, headache, and agitation may also occur and indicate severe poisoning. An antivenom has been available since 1956, and there have been no deaths directly due to redback bites since its introduction.
As I have said there are 100,s of different species,some non poisonous,some extremely poisonous BUT leave them alone OR trap them as explained earlier and let them outside In any part of Western Austria for instance if out door furniture is left it is more than likely Redbacks will be found UNDERNEATH the furniture and are very distinguishable by their very untidy spider webs,At all times all it takes is vigilance and to help us along every 6 months I “bomb” my house regardless of whether unwanted creatures are around ( cockroaches perish too !!) Below are some of the Spiders found in Australia and? if you don,t try and seek them,you would probably never see them !!
BTW ? FRIENDS ARE MORE THAN WELCOME TO COME AND STAY WITH US IN A VERY SAFE ENVIRONMENT
Ssssssnakes of Hervey Bay (Fraser Coast)
Being raised and living in England for more years than I care for Snakes were never in my thoughts (probably because I never actually saw one !) Apparently Snakes in the UK are pretty harmless..BUT.. here in Australia there are plenty and some are VERY venomous ! Whilst travelling around the great country we have encountered a few snakes ( at a good distance I might add !! ) There are lots of Snakes,different species found in different states and weather conditions
All snakes shown are NOT venomous.Some are Extremely venomous and should at all times be avoided and contact the local council and make them aware
Taken from Wikepedia >>>
Snakes are elongated, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales. Many species of snakes have skulls with several more joints than their lizard ancestors, enabling them to swallow prey much larger than their heads with their highly mobile jaws. To accommodate their narrow bodies, snakes’ paired organs (such as kidneys) appear one in front of the other instead of side by side, and most have only one functional lung. Some species retain a pelvic girdle with a pair of vestigial claws on either side of the cloaca.
Living snakes are found on every continent except Antarctica, in the Pacific and Indian Oceans, and on most smaller land masses — exceptions include some large islands, such as Ireland and New Zealand, and many small islands of the Atlantic and central Pacific.More than 20 families are currently recognized, comprising about 500 genera and about 3,400 species. They range in size from the tiny, 10 cm-long thread snake to the Reticulated Python of up to 8.7 meters (29 ft) in length.The fossil species Titanoboa cerrejonensis was 15 meters (49 ft) long. Snakes are thought to have evolved from either burrowing or aquatic lizards during the mid-Cretaceous period, and the earliest known fossils date to around 112 Maago. The diversity of modern snakes appeared during the Paleocene period (c 66 to 56 Ma ago). The oldest preserved descriptions of snakes can be found in the Brooklyn Papyrus.Most species are nonvenomous and those that have venom use it primarily to kill and subdue prey rather than for self-defense. Some possess venom potent enough to cause painful injury or death to humans. Nonvenomous snakes either swallow prey alive or kill by constriction.
Watch me play Didgeridoo
Geoffs Life After Work ! 