Adventuring in Eastern Outback Australia

Travelling in out of the way places can sometimes lead to danger.

            Jason and his dad Ian did quite of bit of exploring in out of the way places in  Eastern outback Australia.  Their experiences were many and varied but some involved a bit of danger.

            After their two weeks at Fowler’s gap tackling kangaroos, they set off to see as much of Eastern Australia as possible.  They hired a car in Broken Hill and headed south toward Adelaide.   They caught a few nights in several little towns along the way, but they also camped at two of the National Parks.

            At Hattah-Kulkyne NP in Victoria not far from the Murray River they camped in open bush and saw plenty of Emu.

Figure 1: Hattah-Kulkyne NP Open Bush

            They went on to Wyperfeld NP also in  Victoria with similar habitat.

Figure 2: Camping at Wyperfeld NP

            Jason said, “ I sure like getting up in the morning and seeing the kangaroos and Emus so close to our tent.”

Figure 3: Emu

            Ian replied, “I glad you chose Australia for your 16th birthday trip.”

From there they set off to Adelaide to catch a plane to the center of the outback at Alice Springs in the Northern Territories (location of a US military installation for tracking satellites). After a restful night at a local hotel, they rented a car and headed South to the fabled Ayers Rock (Uluru), a 5-hour drive.

Figure 4: Ayers Rock (Uluru)

            You can’t be a true Australian unless you have climbed to the top of Uluru.  They started first thing in the morning.  The 1.6-kilometer climb took them about 2 hours.  They were sweating torrents.  After resting for a while they headed back down.

            Ian panicked, “ Jason.  Come hold on to me.  This is so steep, and my cataracts are acting up.  I can’t see right, and I am getting dizzy.  I know I have a chain to hold on to, but I am still afraid I will fall.”

            Jason grabbed him with one arm and grabbed the chain with the other, “It’s OK Dad.  I’ve got you.  We just need to go slow.”

Figure 5: Climbing chains on Ayers Rock

            Down the daunting slope they progressed, very slowly.  They got safely to the bottom.  Their first encounter with danger.  They found out later that people did die on this slope, but mostly on the way up due to heart attacks.  But there were occasional falls on the way down.

            They went back to the camping area (there is no lodging here because it is an aboriginal sacred location).  They packed up their gear and headed back to Alice Springs for another night in a motel.

            In the morning, they took a short flight to Darwin on the Northern coast of the Northern territories.  They had time to look around locally before settling into a motel. 

            Jason, “ I want to see the saltwater crocodiles that are supposed to be here.”  So, they went looking.  It didn’t take long.  They kept their distance, so no danger here.  But they saw one of the locals walking a small dog without a leash.  The dog headed toward the croc yapping.  The owner had to rush to the rescue.  It was close.  They learned that pets often made diner for crocs around Darwin.

Figure 6: Saltwater Crocodile near Darwin

            The next morning, they headed to Kakadu NP, the other famous aboriginal sacred region where many aboriginals still live the traditional life.   It was only about an hour and a half drive. On the drive, they encountered an aboriginal hitch-hiking, so they stopped and picked him up.  He got in the back seat and was not very communicative. 

Jason introduced himself, Hi, I am Jason. What's your name?"

"Coolie.", he said.

Then Jason really opened up and asked him, “Do you like Witchetty Grubs?  I ate I whole bunch of them recently.  I thought they were pretty good.”

            He answered, “Yes, I eat them regularly.  But what I really like is Goanna.”

            Jason, “Goanna is monitor lizard.  It is really tasty.”

            The conversation ended as we approached the park.

            Jason researched the critter when we got home.

Figure 7: Goanna-Aboriginal Delicacy

Just before  we entered the park he asked to be dropped off.  We complied and entered the park.

Figure 8;: Kakadu entrance

            They spent a lovely day there with lovely sights like the waterfalls coming down off the Arnhem plateau.

Figure 9: Waterfall in Kakadu NP

They also saw aboriginal rock paintings dating back as much as 20 thousand years.

` Figure 10: Aboriginal Rock Art

            After an exhilarating day at the park, they headed back to Darwin for a good night’s rest before getting on another airplane in the morning. 

When they entered the motel lobby, the attendant asked, “ How was your day?”

Jason said, “We had a wonderful day at Kakadu.  We also were able to do a good deed and give an aboriginal hitch-hiker a ride to the park.”

The desk attendant blanched and said, “You should never pick up hitch-hikers out here you idiots.  That is just asking for trouble.  Car-jackings are a regular occurrence.  You are very lucky.”

Whether this was true or not, or just white man’s prejudice, they would never know.  But they were feeling relieved at escaping danger number the second time on the trip.

The next morning, they boarded a plane headed to Cairnes in Queensland.

When they landed, Jason said, “ I can’t wait to go the Great Barrier Reef.  That’s the one thing I really, really wanted to do on this trip, after tackling kangaroos of course.”

Ian responded, “ Well, you have to wait until tomorrow.  We will have to go book an excursion and then find a hotel and get something to eat.  Can you wait?”

Before they knew it, the next day had arrived, and they went to the Marlin Marina to get on the tour boat.

Figure 11: Great Barrier Reef tour boat.

            It took about an hour to get to the first snorkeling spot.  Jason was first in line to get fitted with snorkeling gear, listen to the safety briefing, and was into the water as soon as it was permitted.  Ian was not too far behind.  The sights were spectacular.

Figure 12: Underwater Sights-Great Barrier Reef

            They spent five hours out on the reef.  They had slathered on plenty of sunblock before they went, but all the time in the water seemed to weaken it.  Ian came down with a bit of a sunburn.  Jason was darker skinned so had no problem.  When thy got back to the dock they were exhausted.  Fortunately, no sharks were seen that day, so it was not danger number 3.

            The next morning, Ian announced, “ I want to go find a Cassowary today.  Their main home is in New Guinea, but they also occur in this northerly part of Queensland.”

            Jason asked, “ Where do we have to go to do that?”

            Ian answered, “ We need to drive south to Mission Beach.  It is about an hour and a half.  Then inland a little way to a sanctuary.”

            They headed to Mission Beach and when they  arrived there they went directly to a walking track at Lacey Creek day use area just off the highway.

Figure 13: Mission Beach walking trails-Lacey Creek

            There were roadside signs making you aware of their presence as they are an endangered species in Queensland.

Figure 14: Watch for Cassowaries Sign

            They parked the car and started on the trail.  Almost immediately they came upon some baby Cassowaries with the mother right behind them.

Figure 15: Cassowary with Chicks

            The mother started toward them  to protect her chicks . They immediately retreated to the car because they knew that an angry Cassowary can literally kill you.  Cassowaries  have a fearsome claw that can deliver a fatal kick.

Figure 16: Cassowary Claw

            Ian said, “ My heart is pounding.  That is the third bit of danger that we encountered.  I don’t think I can take anymore.”

            Nathan replied, “Dad. That wasn’t really close.  I didn’t know you were such a pussy.”

            Ian, “ Well. I have had enough.  I am glad this trip is essentially over.  We have a flight tomorrow back to Sydney.  From there we head Home.”

            Jason, “ Thanks for doing this for us.  It has been wonderful”

            They returned home safe and sound with many stories to tell.

            Because it is unlikely that you are very familiar with Australian geography, a makeshift map is provided with the major locations noted.

Figure 17: Makeshift Map ; Major locations

Horses to the Rescue

When you go adventuring, you never know what’s going to happen next.

            I joined a birding group that was birding Eastern Brazil in 1998.  Because of business constraints, I could not join at the beginning of the tour, but rather caught up with them about halfway through.  The tour was organized by the now defunct, but legendary Ornifolks organization led by  Mathew Flannery from St. Louis.

            Mathew had hired an Englishman by the name of Gerald Kay to guide the tour. Gerald was an expert on Eastern Brazil birds and where to find them.

            I arrived in the afternoon at the airport in Belo Horizonte (a city of 6.3 million) and waited to be picked up. 

Figure 1: Belo Horizonte Airport

The others were supposed to arrive in a van being driven from Serra de Canastra, a well-known birding spot.

It wasn’t long before I heard Mathew’s booming voice.  “Hey Ian, we are over here.  Bring your gear and get in the van.”

            I put my gear in the back and hopped in.  The 12-passenger van had every seat filled.  There was a total of 12 of us, the 2 Ornifolks organizers, the leader, and 9 participants.  

Mathew said, “ Hey folks, this is Ian.  He is an Ornifolks regular.  He has been with us in Ecuador, Peru, and Colombia.  He loves to bird.  You folks can introduce yourself to him when it makes sense.  He knows all of your names from the pre-trip registration.”

            I said simply, “ Glad to meet you folks. More later. I have heard a lot about many of you and have birded with a few of you before.”

            Mathew jumped in and said, “ Ian, this is Eduardo, our driver.  He has been with us since he picked us up at the Rio de Janeiro airport.  As you know, we have already been birding for 22 days.  Gerald has shown us a huge number of birds including many, many endemics. “

            “Hip, hip, hooray.”, came from the others in the bus.

            Mathew again said, “ We will be staying at the Hotel Esplanade here in Belo.  It is quite comfortable.  Off we go.”

Figure 2; Hotel Esplanade-Belo Horizonte

            Eduardo drove us to the hotel.  As we disembarked, he said, ” I have to take the van to the garage.  It needs a bit of maintenance.”

            As we got off the van I said, “Hello Don.  Looks like we are room-mates again.”

            Don to me, “How have you been since that very rough time in Colombia?”

            Me, “Smooth sailing since then.  I am tired. I am heading for bed early right away.”

            In the morning, I organized myself.  I have always been sun-sensitive, so I wore clothing that covered as much skin as possible.  Long-sleeve shirt. Long pants, neck kerchief, gloves, and broad-brimmed hat.  Insects were also an issue, so I had sprayed my pants with permethrin before coming and had plenty of both spray and cream insect repellent.  Because I also have some potentially serious health issues, I always carried my personal first aid kit.  It consisted of  Band-aids, gauze, adhesive tape, tums, aspirin, doxycycline, diarrhea meds, EpiPen for allergic reactions, Ventolin for asthma attacks, Flexeril for back cramps, and more.  Of course, I also had my binoculars and bird book.  I did not carry a scope or tape recorder.  I counted on the leaders to provide these.  I carried all the loose items in a fanny pack.

            Don and I headed for breakfast.

When everyone was assembled, Eduardo announced, “Sorry folks but the van will not be ready right away.   I am afraid we will get a late start to Januaria.

            Gerald spoke up, “Yes, we are driving to Januaria today. It is about 365 miles from here but will take at least 8 hours. We just have to cool our heels until Eduardo is ready.”

            I chatted a bit with Ken, “Do you still live in DC?”

            Ken, “ Yes. You still in Sterling?”

            Me, “ Yes.  We should share a meal sometime.  I really enjoyed my time with you in Ecuador.”

            Ken, “ Indeed.  It’s too bad you had to miss the first half of the trip.  Gerald really knows his stuff.  And the sites like Itatiaia and others close to Rio and Sao Paulo are really excellent.”

            Me, “ Yes, I just couldn’t get away from work.”

            Gerald interrupted, “ Hey folks.  Gather your gear and get your box lunch from the front desk.  Eduardo should be here soon.”

            Eduardo arrived, we jumped in the van, and were off to Januaria.  Conversation was mostly about the birds to be seen around Januaria.  We arrived about 7:00, too late to bird.  We ate and settled down for the night.

            Up early, we gathered for breakfast and were briefed by Gerald about the next two days birding around Januaria.  That is just what we did for the next two days.  Absolutely terrific birding.

            On the third day, at breakfast, Gerald laid out the planned itinerary for the day.

            He said, “ We have another long day in the car.  We are headed to Ibotirama about 350 miles and close to 8 hours again.  We can probably get a little birding in if we don’t dawdle on the way.”

            Eduardo added, “Unfortunately quite a bit of the road is under construction, so we probably won’t make very good time.  However, I do know a back road alternative should  it get too bad.”

            Off we went. Trouble right away.  Going was impossibly slow.

Figure 3: Construction on the way to Ibotirama

            Ever resourceful, Eduardo said, “Not far up the road there is a turnoff that will put us on a dirt road that will take us around all this.  That’s what I am going to do. Right, Gerald?”

            Gerald, “Sure, you know best.”

            For the next four or five hours the going was great.  Good birding, no traffic, and making good time.

            Then we came to a small stream that had to be crossed. Ouch.

Figure 4: Our van stuck in the stream

            Gerald, “ Everybody out. Let’s see if we can push it.”

            The water was up to our waists as we got out. We tried to push the van with no avail. Not only was the van stuck, but the engine had died completely.

            This was the days before cell-phones. 

Eduardo hollered to us from the other side of the stream, ”Take it easy folks.  I am going to go for help.  There is a village not too far from here.”  With that he took off running down the road in the direction we had been headed.

He was back in about an hour with several villagers and a team of two horses.

Figure 5: Horses to the Rescue

            The villagers got into the water, hooked up the team to the van, and soon had it pulled out of the stream.  Eduardo got in the van and tried to start it.  No luck.  It wouldn’t turn over at all.

Eduardo spoke to the villagers, “Can you tow us back to town?  Can you put us up for the night while I try and make further arrangements using your telephone?”

They agreed.  We jumped into the van and the horses towed the van and us to the village.  It was very basic.

Figure 6: We stayed in a village like this

            One of the villagers guided us to a group of huts.  There we got into some dry  clothes  and slept on the floor.

            By the morning, Eduardo had worked some miracles.  He had hired taxis to get us to the next city of Carinhanha and a nice hotel.   He had also been able to hire a new van and send the water-logged van back to Rio for repair.  The rest of the trip was clear sailing.

            Thank you Eduardo.

            I am pretty sure you have no idea about where in Brazil any of this takes place.  The next figure is a makeshift map to give you some idea.

Figure 7: Brazil Makeshift Map

You Think you Have it Tough

Insight into life’s truths come when you least expect it.

            I am very privileged.  I have had the time and resources to travel around the world to look for birds, what the cognoscenti call birding.

            On this occasion I joined a small group of birding friends on a trip to Northeast India.  We had hired a local bird guide by the name of Peter Lobo.  Peter was from Bhutan but resided in Goa.  He was an expert on the birds of Northeast India.

            We moved around quite a bit, visiting a number of Indian states, including Nagaland, Meghalaya, and Assam.  Our last state would take us into the Himalayas in the state of Arunachal Pradesh.

Figure 1: Arunachal Pradesh in Red

 This is the state on the border with China and in fact was the location of the conflict between India and China in 1962. After China invaded, they pulled back to pre-conflict positions but still maintain a claim to the territory.

            There is a strong police/military presence in Arunachal Pradesh.  You must have a permit to enter.  Peter was very effective in getting our permits.  We were stopped at an entry gate at the border to the state.  We spent quite a long time there.  They checked and rechecked our passports. They rifled through our gear.  They kept chatting with Peter.  There were at least 20 uniformed personnel at that gate.  It seemed like forever until they finally let us pass.

Figure 2: Entry gate to Arunachal Pradesh

            We headed up into the Himalayas on a relatively new highway.  It was headed to Mandala pass at about 10,000 feet and on to the Chinese border.  We were told that the Indian army assumed that if the Chinese were to invade again, it would use this highway for all its logistics support.  In 1962, this highway did not exist.  They used the only way in at that time, a dirt road from the heights downward.  We were told we would take that dirt road when we headed downhill again so as to not retrace the same birding locations.

            The road was an armed military encampment with clusters of troops at various locations along the way.  Because of the road, however, there was plenty of  local population and economic activity.

            We traveled up the mountain on a hairy, twisty road.

Figure 3; Mountain road-Arunachal Pradesh

            We headed to the Bompu tent camp in Eagle’s Nest Wildlife Sanctuary.  It was located at about 6500 feet and gave us access to all the higher altitude birding spots including Mandala pass.

Figure 4: Bompu Tent Camp-Eagle's Nest

            The birding was excellent, and our guide Peter was very knowledgeable about the sites to be checked out.  Most of these were very close to the highway.

            But one day he decided to take us off the beaten track and head up a dirt road toward some small villages.   What we saw blew our minds.  Here is a picture of what we saw.

Figure 5; Road workers in Arunachal Pradesh

            The road was being upgraded using local workers.  In the foreground on your left you will see a worker beside a gravel pile.  Toward the back on the left side of the road is a pile of boulders.

            The workers at the gravel pile walked back to the boulders, picked up a watermelon sized boulder and walked back to the gravel pile.  They then picked up a hammer and began beating on the boulder.   They were making gravel by hand.

            Peter asked around for us.  He was told that these workers who were making gravel by hand were very, very happy to have a job.

            You think you have it tough.