Australia by Red Nomad OZ
Mounts Lidgbird and Gower, Lord Howe Island

Favourite Place #6 – Lord Howe Island, New South Wales

OK, I admit it. I’m shallow. For a favourite place to make it onto my favourite places list, it’s got to be able to deliver experiences I can’t have anywhere else. In Australia, if not the world! And a selection of good bakeries doesn’t hurt either … Stepping onto the 1km airstrip bisecting Lord Howe Island and into a Bali[…]

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Weird Stuff #5 – Mareeba, Queensland

The spectacular Gouldian finches* caged for the breeding program at the Mareeba Wetlands Visitor Centre are great, but there’s WAAAAAY more birds to be seen out and about around the lagoon or on one of the walks in the 5000 acre reserve. So, bins** in hand, we took the Pandanus walk, its varied habitats promising – and delivering – a cross-section of[…]

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OZ Top Spot #7 – Bowra Sanctuary, South Western Queensland

With 200+ bird species over several diverse habitats in its 14000 hectares, Bowra Sanctuary puts out for all all elements of a truly excellent outback experience – spectacular scenery; wonderful wildlife – in this case birds; and eccentric characters – in this case human! But while these elements make it a perfect outback hideaway, Bowra is only 16km from South-western[…]

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Weird Stuff #3 – Quorn, South Australia

Desperately seeking sewage ponds (as one does!), we whizzed down a dirt road behind Quorn, in South Australia’s mid-North, only just keeping ahead of the clouds of dust we were generating. And the squalor of the sewage pond? Does that quantify Quorn’s quintessence?? Of course not! Our quest will be no surprise to quantities of inquisitive birdwatchers who regularly add[…]

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Off the Tourist Trail #4 Pentland, Queensland

We needed warmth NOW. We’d left the cold south a few weeks ago, but hadn’t yet hit the tropics. You KNOW you’re not warm enough when even the thermal pools feel cold … The solution? Head further north – and QUICKLY! Our map (no, I DON’T mean ‘GPS’) showed a road heading north from Blackall, up through historic Barcaldine to Torrens[…]

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Sunset over the Richmond River, 10 Budget Travel Tips

7 Days in … Ballina, NSW

Thank goddess for Byron Bay! The Byron tourist magnet sucks a conglomerate of backpackers, yuppies, new age-ists, surfers, whale watchers and regular local and overseas tourists into its vortex, leaving the fabulous, diverse and bakery-filled Ballina region relatively uncrowded. This is good. This 7 day teaser is only an introduction – complete with ‘bakery alerts’ – as a week isn’t[…]

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OZ Top Spot #3 Gundabooka NP, Bourke, New South Wales

Two wrongs don’t make a right – but maybe three do? If the Bourke visitor information centre staff had been less busy; AND our tour of Bourke more comprehensive; AND our allocated campsite spacious and attractive, we’d have spent more time in Bourke itself! That would have been a tragedy because we wouldn’t have got to see Gundabooka National Park! On[…]

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Don’t Miss This!! Daintree River Dawn Cruise, Far North Queensland

The third-hardest part of a Daintree River dawn cruise is selecting one. The second-hardest part is rising well before dawn to get there. But the hardest part of all is getting off the boat when it ends over 2 hours later! Yes, it really is that good!  Although now you’re thinking the pictures look a bit dull, right?  Well …[…]

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Entrance to Innes National Park, Yorke Peninsula, South Australia

Favourite Place #5 – Innes National Park, Yorke Peninsula, SA

It’s a mystery to me why Innes National Park (INP) isn’t on any Top 10 Australian National Parks lists. At the south-western tip of Yorke Peninsula’s ‘toe’ (you’ll see what I mean on the map) its wild and remote beauty is unique. BUT … perhaps the unparalleled coastal scenery, historic buildings, walking trails, shipwreck sites, deserted beaches, fishing, lighthouses, wildlife[…]

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OZ Top Spot #2 Frankland Islands, Cairns, Far North Queensland

We marked our 2009 return to Cairns after 10 years by finding a patch of ‘absolute virgin territory’ – no mean feat given the many attractions we’d seen on several previous visits. BUT … a tour to the sensational Frankland Islands – arguably the most misspelled place name in these parts – was a superb reminder of why we keep coming back to Far[…]

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