Australia by Red Nomad OZ
Sunrise at Lake Lascelles

Why Hopetoun Victoria is a TOP Aussie Town!

I don’t know why it is that travellers are routinely described as ‘weary’. If I’m describing myself, I just say I’m a traveller – not a weary one. But when travel publications refer to havens for the weary traveller; and weary traveller’s resting places; and recharging the weary travellers batteries and the like, you start to believe the hype. So after[…]

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Mt Abrupt from Dunkeld Arboretum

Climb Mount Abrupt! Grampians, Victoria

It took an awfully LOOOOOONG time to climb Mount Abrupt. It took a long time to even get there. Over 20 years of regular trips to the Grampians National Park and its amazing natural attractions had passed by before we fully explored its wilder, more remote southern end. We’d always found plenty to do from Halls Gap, in the Central[…]

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On the Lake Surprise circuit track, Mt Eccles National Park, Victoria

8 Random Adventures on the Kanawinka Geotrail!

My first adventures on the Kanawinka Geotrail pre-date Pilchard by quite a few years. They also pre-date both owning a camera AND knowing that the Kanawinka Geotrail even existed!! Now I know the Geotrail connects 60+ significant sites across South-Eastern South Australia and South-Western Victoria.  It forms Australia’s first UNESCO Global Geopark – one of the largest regions of volcanic[…]

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Tinsel Lilies, Grampians

5 Grampians Wildflower HOT Spots!

In spring, the distinctive landscapes of Victoria’s Grampians National Park – where vista after staggering vista stretches out in an almost endless 360° scenic panorama – become an irritating distraction from its main attraction! Because springtime is double the fun in the Grampians when every magnificent view comes with a bonus extra – a unique display of wildflowers especially formulated[…]

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Lake Cullulleraine Sunset, Victoria, Australia

Lake Cullulleraine and the Singing Camera! via Mildura, Victoria

OK, so I’d been reading a photography magazine as we approached Lake Cullulleraine at the end of a long day on the road, and I was itching to try a few things out. So what if my camera was ‘only’ a point & click, and not one of the fancy-schmancy-hi-tech must-have gadget-laden-gizmos the mag condescended about. Besides, I was in[…]

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Late Afternoon from the Bushman's Rest Caravan Park at Lake Cullulleraine, Victoria

Lake Cullulleraine: So COOL it’s HOT!

I’m not sure why it’s never occurred to us to stop at Lake Cullulleraine, 58 km west of northern Mildura and deep in the heart of the Victorian Mallee. Until now. Only 3½ hours from Adelaide, Cullulleraine (as it is shown on more modern maps) is a perfect example of why it’s SO worth exploring places not so far from[…]

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The Pinnacle Lookout with Lake Bellfield below, Grampians National Park, Victoria

Walk the Pinnacle – Grampians National Park

WARNING: Do NOT attempt the Pinnacle walk if you don’t like A) heights; B) snakes; C) wildflowers; or D) looking uncool! Whether or not D) applies depends to a certain degree on physical fitness levels – and possibly hiking fashion sense! Although tragically that’s not a factor if you’re like me.  That red face, heaving chest and death-rattle puffing after[…]

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Mt Buffalo, Victoria

Afloat in the Sky – The Land Locked Island of Mt Buffalo

Approach south eastern Victoria’s magical Bright region Victoria from any direction, spot Mt Buffalo’s impossibly scenic bulk dominating the skyline and you’ll swear you’re not in Australia! It’s difficult to believe the soaring granite cliffs and outcrops leading to the extensive plateau more than 1200 metres above sea level were once much higher. Right at the end of the Aussie[…]

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The Big Malleefowl overlooking the Patchewollock Railway Station, Victoria

Only in OZ #22 – The Big Malleefowl, Patchewollock, Victoria

The insatiable curiosity that leads me off the main road to explore an interesting sounding place or rumoured oddity isn’t always rewarded. But in the tiny town of Patchewollock, deep in the Victorian Mallee and just off the Hopetoun/Walpeup road, I hit paydirt. Big time! Unmarked on any tourist literature (that I’d seen) Patchewollock hosts one of the most bizarre[…]

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View from Mt Wycheproof Summit, Victoria

World Mountaineering Exclusive! Mt Wycheproof, Victoria

It’s getting increasingly difficult to do something that no one else – or at least very few – have done. Even the ‘I’ve-climbed-Mt-Everest’ club is not the insider clique it once was … But conquering Mt Wycheproof, deep in the heart of Victorian Mallee country should cement my mountain climbing credentials once and for all. Because I’ve now done what[…]

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