Sydney: Observatory Hill and the Botanical Gardens

Last weekend's weather was great, so I took advantage of it. After the previous day's long walk from Bondi Beach to Maroubra Beach, I decided to do something a wee bit less taxing. The sun was out and I decided I'd just go downtown, buy the Lonely Planet guidebook for Australia and sit in the Botanical Gardens reading it with my camera nearby in case I happened to come across some neat wildlife (the flying foxes are starting to come out again, so I'm determined to get some photos of them!).

What happened instead is that I bought my book, but once I got down to Circular Quay decided to head up into The Rocks to find a little licorice stand that sells all flavors of licorice and wander. With my licorice in hand, I ended up walking under the Sydney Harbour Bridge to the quieter side of The Rocks. Here, the neighborhoods are quaint and you can imagine what it was like as Australia's first European settlement.

One of the things I never really realized was that part of Captain James Cook's voyage to the Southern Lands was to observe the transit of Venus across the sun - the transit is kind of like an eclipse where Venus passes directly between Earth and the sun. Measuring it's transit allowed scientists in the 1700s to better determine just how far away from the sun Earth is. Come to think of it, what a terrifying world the people of that time must have lived in, generally not knowing if the Earth was moving closer to the sun each year, or what. So in 1784 Captain Cook arrived in Tahiti to measure just that and on that voyage, Australia was settled. The special thing about the transits of Venus is that they occur twice, separated by eight years, and then do not reoccur for another 100 years. So when the time is right, careful measurements must be made or risk waiting a century before trying again.

Once Sydney was settled, one of the first tasks was to construct the Sydney Observatory. Now, I always just thought that observatories were for looking at stars and planets and into space, but I didn't realize how much importance they had for everyday commerce. For example, it would have been impossible for merchants, sailors, and governmental institutions to keep the correct time without the observatory. Every day at 1:00pm, a time ball on the spire on top of the observatory was raised and it began a slow descent over the course of the day - much in the same way, but much less glitzy, the ball drops in Times Square marking the start of a new year in New York City. The time ball was operated at the observatory because measurements of time were based off of the movement of stars and were taken by the astronomers at the observatory.

Back side of the Observatory with the Time Ball seen on the top tower

Another neat feature outside the observatory is the Flagstaff which was a means of communication between the city observatory and the signal station at the south head of the harbor. Different flags indicated the different names of ships entering the harbor, where the ships were coming from, and what was their cargo. Other signal stations around the harbor also sent messages to ships on the water and those leaving the harbor of weather conditions and other information.

Flagstaff and Signal Keeper's Quarters

Inside the observatory is like stepping back in time, yet also into the future. Numerous nautical instruments are on display, log books, telescopes, models of the solar system, and information panels about the advancement of observatory technologies today. It is all free and a fascinating place to wander around. Another one of the really interesting things I learned there is that while at sea, it is easy to determine one's position North or South; however, it is much more difficult to determine your longitudinal position - East or West. This was especially tricky for the first explorers who set out to map the Australian coastline; however, it was completed successfully and some of the material from that expedition is on display at the Observatory.

Thoroughly impressed by the quiet piece of greenery on the west side of the Rocks, I made my way back down to the city and over to the Botanical Gardens. I still had maybe an hour of daylight and thought it would be a nice time to take some photos of the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge (I really won't ever tire of doing that!). After getting some good shots, I thought at least, I started to head back home through the Gardens and was lucky enough to catch some of the birds who live in the Gardens including a kookaburra (which I personally really enjoyed), cockatoos eating nuts, an ibis, and some dusky moorhens.

Kookaburra

Sydney: Coastal Walk between Bondi and Maroubra Beach

Walking Date: 15 September 2012

Two weekends ago, I started off a little project when I walked from the south head of Sydney Harbour to Bondi Beach. Last weekend I continued that project by starting at Bondi Beach and following the coastal route down to Maroubra Beach. Originally, I was just going to go to Coogee Beach, along the way, but since I'd done that bit of the walk last year when I was here, so I decided to continue past Coogee and end up down in Maroubra.

The walk is beautiful any time of year, but it's best done with sun and a bit of warmth. I had the sun last week, which helped, but it was a bit breezy and though I brought jeans with me, I never put them on. Bondi Beach was great. Not as crowded as the week before, but there were still plenty of surfers, and the Icebergs Swim Club's tidal pool had a few swimmers braving the waves to get a few laps in. With nice weather in Sydney comes weddings and along the coast is no exception. Right off the bat, I passed a small wedding right up on top of the rocks, and being a windy day there were plenty of people flying kites as well.

Bondi Beach

I didn't get too far but was hungry already. Luckily, the next cove south of Bondi Beach is a little inlet called Tamarama Beach were I stopped for a chocolate shake and chicken burger at the little Tamarama Beach Cafe and watched a surfer catch a few waves, which is just mind boggling because there are rocks everywhere along the beach and when I say that Tamarama Beach is just a little inlet, I mean it is narrow. How that surfer survived, I'm not sure! If I were to try my hand at surfing, I would definitely go somewhere like Bondi or Bronte Beaches where the water is just wider. In fact, at Bronte Beach, the next beach along my walk, the first Surf Life Saving Club in Australia was established train and build up a force of people poised to help surfers and swimmers at risk out in the cold waters of the Pacific.

Tamarama Surf Life Saving Club

Just past Bronte Beach is one of the most beautiful cemeteries I've ever seen. The Waverley Cemetery is perched right on top of the sandstone cliffs and extends right to their edge. Recently, a modern boardwalk was built between the cemetery and the ocean, which also protects native hanging swamps along the cliffs which are home to a few species of frogs which you can hear chirping in the water-soaked pools.

Continuing along the path is Burrows Park, where you can watch lawn bowling or rugby (or Australian football...I'm not sure what type of field I was looking at, actually) and can stroll right out to the flat sandstone and watch the waves crash below your feet. Then the path leads you around the extremely narrow Clovelly Cove which is built up with concrete on either side of the inlet and since rocks off the coast extend across the mouth of the cove, it's actually fairly protected from heavy ocean waves and many people were swimming laps in the inlet. Following Clovelly is a wider cove where concrete pillars have been sunk under water and connected with chains so divers, and snorkelers on clear days, can follow an underwater path and see some of the coastal wildlife.

Just before Coogee Beach is a very nice sculpture dedicated in memory to the Australian lives lost in the 2002 terrorist bombings in Bali. The three rings represent Family, Friends, and Community and are all intertwined. Next to the memorial is another one of the many seaside baths, protected by man-made or natural barriers from the pounding ocean waves. But then you're in Coogee, a wide, sandy, less-crowded but nonetheless stunning surfing beach.

Bali Memorial

I thought about stopping and finishing the walk to Maroubra Beach another day, but I still had a few hours of daylight left and decided to go for it. The walk continues through parks and along another long boardwalk built over native wetlands where I stopped for a few moments to take some photos of a heron who was feeding in the shallow pools.

Not long thereafter the coastal walk dumps you out in a suburb and I almost lost the trail, but a nice local gave me directions which led me down a very narrow and steep stairway between very nice houses. The local told me that I should have no problem walking along the rocks since it wasn't too windy, so I put my trust in him and carried on. For the next stretch of the walk, I had to make my own way over the rocks right along the coast where the waves, saltwater, and animals have created stunning weathering patterns in the rock.

Weathering patterns on the coastal rocks

After one more walk through a park on one of the coastal headlands, my path turned me toward Maroubra Beach right at sunset and I stumbled over the rocks, through a small crowd of fishermen, and out onto the beach which was wide, wind-swept, and empty! There isn't much to the little beach front part of Maroubra itself, but I did congratulate myself with a schooner of beer at the Maroubra Hotel and caught a bus home.

Australia: Terrigal and Killcare

Travel date: 01 September 2012

I wanted to do just a quick post before I forget about these photos. But last weekend I took the train up to Gosford to visit one of my friends who is leaving for a research stint in Antarctica in the next few weeks. Gosford is not really near Sydney and it takes about an hour and twenty minutes on the train, but it is a beautiful train ride that veers off from the highlands above the flooded estuaries of the Hawkesbury River, rumbles through a few tunnels, and then snakes along the shoreline right on the waters edge through the Brisbane Waters National Park. It was too sunny of a day and the trains windows were dirty, so I didn't get any photos of the journey, but it is amazingly stunning and you're pinched between steep, forested hills and expanses of water that kind of just tuck in and out of the hillsides.

I was picked up at the airport by my friend in her car and we drove out to Terrigal which is right on the Pacific and still maintains some of it's quaint small-town charm, though it's marred by some fancy hotels and resort traffic. At first we just drove through, and kept driving through Bouddi National Park to the tiny tiny town of Killcare. This area reminded me a lot of Michigan and the numerous small towns nestled in the dunes of Lake Michigan with roads going up and down hills and winding around lakes or inlets, eventually opening up to beautiful views of sparkling blue waters.

Not sure what kind of bird this is. But they are also all over the place, looking for table scraps!

Rosellas are a bit more demonic looking than their plumage makes them seem. They are rude scavengers who aren't afraid to bite you if you have food in your fingers!

Killcare is a snoozy little town. I mean, not much goes on there, and it pretty much consists of a few little cafes (our food from l'Anxaneta was delicious and filling and I thought we definitely got what we paid for!). L'Anxaneta is a cute, brightly colored cafe across the one-lane road from the quiet Hardy's Bay and it's filled with Picasso-inspired paintings. My friend and I chatted over burgers while watching the waitresses shoo away the rosellas who are not afraid of people and want to eat your food!

Afterward, we drove back through the National Park and back to Terrigal where we got out of the car to walk around a little bit - took a stroll down by the beach (it's one of those long, wind-swept beaches surrounded by promontories, except the ones here are not covered in houses like the ones in Sydney!) and onto some rocks and then headed back to Gosford. It was a great day for a little bit of a day trip. I'm beginning to like this idea of so many rural and quiet places so close and within reach of the big Sydney city!

Terrigal Beach is much less crowded than any of the city beaches I've been to and so much bigger, too!!

The waterfront at Terrigal Beach is just more relaxed and quiet - only small fishing and recreational boats and not the armada of sailboats packed away in Sydney Harbour!

Sydney Coastal Walk 1: Sydney Harbour National Park to Bondi Beach

Yesterday was one of those days that I just decided I needed something to do. I've been going to the gym lately, and my arms were very very sore, so I decided that I need to do something active that wasn't in a weight-room. It was sunny and I decided to go for a walk. So I put on my U of M football t-shirt (it was Saturday, afterall!), strapped my shoes on, and headed down to the ferry docks at Circular Quay. Circular Quay is the main port in Sydney and all of the various ferries that go out to Manly, the Toronga Zoo, and all the other Sydney suburbs on the water.

I decided that since Sydney is famous for it's coastline, I should spend some time along it. So I took the small catamaran ferry out to Watsons Bay, a small suburb right near the tip of the South Head of Sydney Harbour. From there, I walked north into one of the portions of Sydney Harbour National Park. This little piece of protected land is right at the tip of the South Head and is home to high sandstone cliffs and a few beaches on the harbour side. The South Head has been a military base since 1788 and oddly enough, was built up initially to protect Sydney from the threat of invading navies which wavered back and forth between France and America, depending on who Great Britain felt more threatened by at the time! The point was fortified in the early 1800s with cannons and battlements yet missed the arrival of six American ships in 1839. The point's battlements were built up even more during the two World Wars...but again missed the arrival of three Japanese submarines into the harbour. Since WWII, the very tip of the South Head has been put under protection of the National Park Service.

Cannon battlement at Sydney Harbour National Park

One of the Park's main features is a fairly stubby lighthouse called the Hornby Light. It was built in response to the wrecking of the Dunbar, which ran aground in 1857, killing all but one passenger who eventually became the station master of the Hornby Light. The lighthouse wasn't completed in time, however, and another ship, the Catherine Adamson, met its fate near the harbour mouth, also in 1857.

The Hornby Light Station

Protected in the park are still the light keeper's quarters, though you can't go in, and one of the big cannons positioned at the head. It's a nice little place to wander and enjoy the day. You'll see people laying out on the grass, or nudes swimming in the harbour, or firsherman down on the rocky shoreline at low tide. Nice little slice of peace in a big city!

I left the National Park and started walking south toward Bondi Beach, along the way passing through Gap Park which was originally Aboriginal land until Australian settlers pushed them out. By 1909 a tramline from the city was extended to Gap Park so Sydney-siders could enjoy a day trip out to the coastal cliffs. The tram is unfortunately dismantled now, but surely it would be a great little ride!

Further along the coast, I walked through a number of other parks and reserves, all with the path near the edge of the cliffs, but separated by a fence with frequent postings urging potential jumpers to consider their options. But the parks are nice with tons of people walking their dogs, biking with their kids, and just enjoying being outside. While the path is well defined for much of the walk, there are a number of sections where I had to walk inland, along a road, without very good views. But the weather was nice and I didn't mind looking at the beautiful houses and gardens along the road. Next was the Diamond Bay Reserve to Dover Heights Reserve portion of the walk where I saw a few guys fishing from cliffs at least 70 feet up from the ocean below. I'm not sure how much they catch each day, but I did see him pull in a little silvery-blue fish that couldn't have been bigger than his hand!

I had to veer inland for a few blocks and walked through the Dudley Page Reserve which provides spectacular views of the Sydney skyline and the harbour, sparkling blue, glinting sunlight off the little waves. There were tons of sailboats of every size out yesterday, enjoying the breezy warmth of the harbour. But onwards I went, back out to the cliffs edge at the Rodney Reserve. It's now nothing but a rugby pitch, but in the 1950s and '60s it was home to one of the world's most premiere radio telescopes, and it was here that astronomers built a 25-meter wide dish shaped depression on top of the cliffs and much of what we know today about space and radio waves was learned here.

Continuing south to Bondi, there aren't really any other parks you can walk through. But it's confusing if you ever try because there is still a lot of green space. It's a big golf course, but there is a sign outside that says Wilsons Park which made me think I could just go in and have a wander. Well, I did wander over to a big stack that looks like a monument of sorts, but I'm pretty sure its origin is fairly industrial. I didn't see many other people wandering around and after almost getting hit by a golf ball, I left pretty quickly.

I followed the road around one more jog and then ran into some backpackers heading down to the famous Bondi Beach. The beach is beautiful. It's a wide, wind-swept inlet off the ocean with large breaking waves perfect for catching a wave. It's a hot-spot for tourists, backpackers, and students and everyone seemed to be enjoying the relaxing lifestyle. I took my shoes off for a bit and walked through the water to the Bondi Pavilion and sat watching surfers for a while before heading up to the shops to get a late lunch which consisted of a massive helping of delicious fish and chips from the Bondi Surf Seafoods shop along the main drag. The sun was setting so I had one last wee walk along the beach to take some more photos of the surfers, but soon caught a bus back to the city and headed home.

It was a nice day in the sun and fresh air - one that I hope to have more of here in this beautiful corner of Earth!