Organ Pipes National Park

Organ Pipes National Park showcases basalt formations that are the result of a volcanic eruption thousands of years ago. (The Friends of OPNP has a really nice website with a description of the key geological features.) The volcano is now extinct and the valley is a haven for small mammals and birds -- there are over 50 species of birds that have been spotted in this small park!
First we hiked down to the eponymous Organ Pipes. The pipes are huge, hexagonal, basalt pillars; they are very dramatic in person. Even the kids were awed by them:

After lunch...

We started walking towards the other formations when Ben saw this guy eating his lunch by the side of the trail...

And then another one up the hill...

And then this tiny one nearby...

They are so much cuter, funnier, and sweeter in person that I could have imagined. They look so soft and fluffy you want to run over and give them a hug. They ignored us and went about their business so we got to stand for a while and watch them forage.

We were all beside ourselves with excitement!

There are more than 50 members of the kangaroo family ( macropods) in Australia - which includes kangaroos, wallabies, wallaroos, pademelons, and many others. This particular one was a Swamp Wallaby (Wallabia bicolor).

After seeing the wallabies it was very hard to refocus on geology when we finally got to the tessellate stairs. The tessellate stairs are the same type of formation as the organ pipes, except you are walking across the tops instead of seeing the whole the length of the column.

Honestly, they look like somone paved the area with hexagonal pavers!

This was a great walk . The birding was amazing, there was lots of wildlife, and the area was rugged and beautiful. The climb down into the valley was nice... the hike back up, in the heat of the day, was a little rough. We all went out for ice creams afterwards to celebrate!

I got him!

Third time's the charm! We were eating a picnic lunch on our hike today when I saw him in the scrub at the edge of the picnic grounds... 12x optical zoom + a LOT of cropping and here he is, ready for his closeup... the Superb Fairy Wren!

Botanical Gardens

Now that we are FINALLY done with house-hunting we went to have some fun. The boys and I packed a picnic lunch and took off to explore the Botanical Gardens while we still live next door to them.

They are beautiful, full of so many exotic plants and trees that we didn't know which way to look.

We finally saw a kookaburra up close. They are a member of the kingfisher family and quite striking in appearance.

We also saw an amazing crested cockatoo but I couldn't get a picture of it. I did get a nice picture of a noisy Bell Mynah. It is pretty but obnoxiously loud. It's call is a dinging, metallic noise that sounds like the sonar ping of a submarine in a movie.

What do you pack for an Australian picnic with kids? A favorite Australian lunch -- mousetraps. What's a mousetrap you ask? A slice of bread, with margarine, vegemite, cheese and toe-mah-toe. Usually grilled but for the picnic served cold. Why it is a mousetrap? You fold the slice of bread in half trapping the mouse (toe-mah-toe) in with the cheese.

After a long walk around the pond we stopped at the tea house and had ice poles (ice cream) before heading home. It was hot, hot HOT today (30 C = 86 F). After 4 hours in the gardens we were feeling pretty tired.

Unfortunately it seems we can't even have a simple outing without some drama. As we were walking home Nik started screaming. I looked over and he had blood GUSHING out of his nose and even coming out of his mouth. He was hysterical, the other people on the sidewalk looked scared, and I frantically rummaged through my bag for something to put on his nose. I was out of tissues... I was desperate. I looked at Ben's favorite t-shirt. I looked around... finally I took off my brand new, favorite running sock and put it on his nose to stop the bleeding. There was blood everywhere. Nik was screaming hysterically. My sock was soaked. A passer-by asked if we needed an ambulance. Eventually I got Nik calmed down, the nose-bleed stopped, and all of us cleaned up a little. Then I carried a bloody Nik home and put him on the couch. With a TALL glass of water.
Have I mentioned that it is very, VERY dry here.