Swamp Wallaby in the Cranbourne Botanic Gardens
No Comments »21st February, 2008; Category: Animals, Botanic Gardens, Holidays, Parks and Gardens, Victoria
Sign in the Cranbourne Botanic Gardens, Victoria
Our holiday in Victoria
September 2007
On our walk in the Cranbourne Botanic Gardens south east of Melbourne we were delighted to get good views of a Swamp Wallaby. It seemed a little shy about coming out into the open which made getting a good photo hard. I also found it a little distracting trying to get this photo; there were so many birds around me also vying for my attention and the focus of my camera.
Swamp Wallaby in Cranbourne Botanic Gardens, Victoria
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Cranbourne Botanic Gardens
Sign in the Cranbourne Botanic gardens Victoria
Our holiday in Victoria
September 2007
One of the main places we had planned to visit on our recent holiday in NSW and Victoria was the Cranbourne Botanic Gardens. These gardens are about a hour by freeway south east of Melbourne. When I say an “hour” I realise that this is a rather rubbery figure. Melbourne’s freeway system leaves a little to e desired as we found out later in the day. The South Eastern Freeway quickly becomes a parking lot during peak traffic times.
Sign in the Cranbourne Botanic gardens Victoria
During our short stay in these gardens we went for an hour long walk in the bush section of the gardens. We didn’t have time to visit the newer planted and landscaped section. On the road in and on our walk we saw some interesting signs warning of the wildlife in the area.
Click on the photo to enlarge the image.
A call from afar
It is not every day that I get a phone call from as far away as Buenos Aires in Argentina. In fact, I know nobody living in that part of the world. It is a place I would love to visit some day. I’ve been fascinated by many aspects of South America for many years.
Now I can vicariously enjoy a visit there through the eyes (and camera lens) of my son and daughter-in-law who are on a six week holiday to Chile and Argentina. Lucky them. It was my son who called us this morning.
To read about their holiday there (and in other parts of the world) go to his blog, The Rhyme of Sim‘.
A visit to a friend
Orchids in a friend's garden, Cranbourne
Our holiday in Victoria
September 2007
We’ve only known Doug and his wife for several years. We met through our common interest in Australian native plants. We had first met them when they came to the Adelaide plant sale which we attend. Doug has planted much of his garden with native plants, especially Correas. Both of us really love correas too. We were planning to visit the Cranbourne Botanic Gardens which are a mere five minute drive from Doug’s home, so we just had to visit him.
We knew that he grew plenty of Australian native plants. What we didn’t know was that his wife was growing orchids. Several of them are featured in the photos on this page.
Orchids in a friend's garden, Cranbourne
A short stay in Traralgon, Victoria
Our cabin in Traralgon, Victoria
Our holiday in Victoria
September 2007
Yesterday I wrote about our long – and cold – journey from Canberra. Our destination was fuzzy – we planned to get as close to Melbourne as possible. As the sun was setting we pulled into a caravan park in Traralgon, several hours east of Melbourne. The photo above shows the cabin we stayed in for the night. It was one of the best we had encountered on our holiday, certainly far superior to the one we had in Queanbeyan near Canberra (see “A poor choice of accommodation“).
It was very interesting travelling along the south coast of eastern Victoria. This was a first for both of us as we had never gone far east from Melbourne on previous holidays. We travelled past many interesting places, including a number of National Parks well worth investigating. Another trip dedicated to this part of Victoria alone would be very worthwhile. I would avoid the high trourist season of summer. The fact that there happens to be more than a dozen caravan parks plus numerous motels, hotels and B & Bs in Lakes Entrance is a sure indication that this is a popular summer destination.
Another spot I’d love to visit is Wilson’s Promontory National Park which is quite beautiful I believe. We saw the signs but had to drive on. The same applies to Phillip Island where there is bridge access for cars. We will see it one day – sooner rather than later I hope.