Animals, cliffs, and waterfalls

Who can ever climb around too many cliffs? If we were better photographers we would capture the thrilling sensation of standing on the high edge, looking down on the crisp white against vibrant blue of the ocean.

Further visual rewards on this same hike around Noosa Head include trees such as this.

Some might say it's cheating to feature animals we see in a zoo . . . and we would be among them. Hmmm. We go because it's Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin's family's place: The Australia Zoo in Beerwah, near Brisbane. The animals there are either rescued creatures who cannot survive in the wild or there's an effort to rebuild their diminished wild numbers. The thrust of the zoo, which permits touching of certain animals as well as offering shows of their behavior, is also to expose and educate the public. They believe that humanity is more likely to prevent habitat loss if people appreciate and care about the animals. They're doing an excellent job.

Here's the flightless cassowary we watched for so diligently in Queensland's tropical rain forests. He's a relative of the emu. A handsome bloke with a fetching sort of helmet, he's actually quite dangerous. The inside toenail on each foot can rip a person open from stem to stern. Maintain a respectful distance.

We've seen wild echidnas and koalas, but still, who can resist these marsupials? A little-known factoid: the echidna and the platypus are the only mammals who lay eggs! And they're both marsupials. And they each look like something out of a surreal dream.

As for the koala, he is NOT a bear. His diet is eucalyptus tree leaves which are nutritionally not far above paper, so he conserves energy by sleeping on high tree branches for 18 to 20 hours per day.

The endangered giant tortoises are actually from the Galapagos Islands. Back in the 1700s and 1800s ships at sea routinely captured large numbers of these huge creatures, who can go for weeks without eating, to carry them alive on board as a fresh meat source. Even when their numbers were clearly diminishing drastically, the attitude was to grab them while they could, before they were all gone!

Charles Darwin took one as a specimen in 1835 and named him Harry. Later she was more appropriately renamed Harriet. Visitors could meet Harriet here until her death just two years ago at about 200 years of age.

Australia is a mecca for snakes, many of them seriously venomous. Also plenty of pythons. Don't these guys look relaxed?

A few days later near misty New England Nat'l Park, we finally encounter feral camels. They're sharing space with a mob of kangaroos. If you look closely and use your imagination you can see them, too.

Inland from the east coast, precipitous mountains and gigantic rocks jut upwards in eye-catching, gravity-defying shapes. Late spring and early summer rains create lush green landscapes. Waterfalls are gushing enthusiastically. Art always likes me to walk first on a trail so I catch the spider webs in the face.

On a final note, exemplifying how Art imitates Nature, here is The Rock Roadhouse. Who needs to go to Uluru in the Outback when you can come here to shop, eat, and buy fuel in an east coast faux Uluru?

We send each of you the warmest of holiday wishes from balmy Oz. As for us, we'll spend Christmas with our crazy Aussie friends Barry and Jeanette, south of Sydney in New South Wales. Stay tuned for the outcome of their promised Live Wombat Patrol!