Port Douglas to the Gold Coast

Hello everyone.  Here is the next edition of the Martin tour of Oz and NZ. Great Barrier Reef is extensive, over 2500 km of coral reef extending up the east coast of Australia.  We ventured out from Port Douglas on the Calypso - Mal and Cindy know it.  Great day of cruising and snorkelling.  We had 3 dives and saw lots of marine life.  Fascinating stuff.

We found Nemo

                                                         Some signs here crack us up!

Maori Wrasse.  Absolutely no resemblance!

Our reef boat.  Very professional crew and the bar was open - on the way home.

Huia, Yvonne and Charles at Charles' Golf Club on the Gold Coast. 

                                     
                                                           We loved snorkelling the reef.

                                   
             

Yvonne: Paddle board  champ of Currumbin

Fraser Island........the largest island of total sand 75 miles of white sand...as far as your eye can see

Lots more to come.  Technical difficulties not all resolved yet.  We'll get there.

WEEK ONE

Early morning wake up call on the Atherton tablelands.  Up early to catch 5:30 flight before winds got up

Koala village on Magnetic Island was a great opportunity to handle many of the local animals. Turtle.

Willie wombat.  Close relative of the koala.

Iguana or some type of lizard.  I thought it was a baby croc.

Couldn't resist a selfie with Bruce (name given to Julia's stuffed toy)

Two koalas, one real both cuddly.

Yvonne and Bruce.

Back to ballooning.  Fill'er up please mate.

Hey, where's our balloon gone?

Curtain fig tree.  Those are its roots.  Centuries ago it strangled its host, the original parasite!

1000ft above Mareeba looking down on crops of apples, mangoes, bananas, figs and a chicken farm

Sanctuary and breeding lab for many species of butterfly, including iridescent blue Ulysees

Friendly green parrot.  Guard you rings and baubles or they'll disappear.