Leaving On A Jet Plane !

Croc Park, Zoo, Mossman Gorge, The Tablelands moving house etc.

We've been our usual busy selves recently.

Taken a trip to Hartley's Croc Park/Farm where you get to go on a boat and they dangle the old chicken head on a stick off the side of the boat until the croc jumps out of the water to eat it. Pretty spectacular stuff ! Then a talk with a guy standing next to a pool as a croc tries to bite him. The noise is what you remember most. What noise you ask?

The hollow noise of bone on bone as the croc's jaws snap shut with whatever it is 2200 sq. lbs of thrust or whatever. It's a unique sound that has to be heard live to be appreciated. Followed by much looking at each other and agreement that it's gotta hurt if you get gripped by one !

Pics:

http://cadmonkeyphotographic.smugmug.com/Family

(Hartley's Croc Farm album)

We've also been to the Zoo (1 year ticket covers the Crocs, the Zoo and the Koala Park) which was OK, the highlight by far was having our picnic lunhc in the bird house. There were no signs not to eat in there and there wasn't really anywhere like a picnic area or large area of grass to sit so we went in there.

At first the Rainbow Lorikeets carried on eating their seed/fruit etc. on their birdtables but eventually curiosity/cheekiness got the better of them and they began to land on our heads, arms, etc. and started trying to pinch bits of our ham rolls, progressing from trying to bite bits of them while they were in our hands to actually trying to get it out of our mouths, ears, noses etc. A very funny experience for us all ! and by far the highlight of the day.

More macro pics that I've got round to:

http://cadmonkeyphotographic.smugmug.com/gallery/2797899#149296609

The caterpillars are wierd. They stand up like that all the time so you can see a bush full of them, all standing up like that ! and as for the Northern Beauty Spider (that wierd shaped thing with a white stripe on it's back, spikes to either side, and yellow blotches underneath, well ,wow! and you'd think something like that would be rare but no, there's loads of 'em in the botanical gardens.

As you can also see, Dave the Fly insisted on coming to Oz with us and demanded to have his pic taken !