Paperbarks

I love the trees in Australia. Of course, the eucalypts are my favorite and are by far the most diverse and most ubiquitous. But paperbarks are high on the list of other trees I fancy. I love the willowy leaves and the soft, pale, tattered bark that peels off in thin layers. Of course, I [...]

Australia’s White Ants (Termites)

Pretty much everywhere you go in the semi-arid regions of Australia, the landscape is dotted by termite mounds. In the north of Queensland, I had seen gnarled, gray termite mounds that were three to five feet high standing amidst fields of golden grasses. As I had neared Darwin, I saw three- to five-foot-high termite mounds [...]

Check Out My Other Blog

I had originally thought that this blog would be all I’d need—that I’d share other travels and interests here. However, this is pretty clearly a travel blog, with most of it’s focus on Australia, so I decided to start another blog for my equally serious food interests. That blog is The World’s Fare.
The original idea [...]

Twin Falls

As you might imagine, a towering plateau such as the Arnhem Plateau has more than a few waterfalls. The afternoon of the day we visited Jim Jim, we put on our swimsuits and hiking boots and headed for Twin Falls.
Twin Falls was a delight. Getting in was an adventure, but it was worth the [...]

Jim Jim Falls

They say that what you don’t know won’t hurt you. Hmm. Maybe it should be rephrased as what you don’t know won’t scare you—at least not until you find out later. Our guide chose not to share the following information with us, which I found on the Australia Government Department of the Environment site long [...]

Arnhem Land

Leaving Cooinda and Yellow Water behind, we began the long, rough drive deeper into the wilderness. The great, craggy walls of the Arnhem Plateau rose in the distance, looking like the lost world from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s tale.
If “Arnhem” doesn’t sound like an Aboriginal name, that’s because it’s not. The top end of Australia [...]

Photo Friend

One of life’s great joys is discovering people who share your love of something that is important to you. I love nature and beauty, and that particular interest has led to a friendship with Carol Freeman, an outstanding nature photographer who shares my love of beauty. Sure, there are differences in our approaches—I’m more international [...]