swell surfers
There was also some local surfing talent out last week, making the most of the swell off Dee Why point .What better way to spend a Saturday morning 🙂
Super swell
There was some amazing waves last week , so here’s a few beautiful green waves to kick off my posts again. It has been a while since Ive been here , so welcome back 🙂
extreme weather
This morning’s news was pretty disturbing with 2 severe tropical cyclones tracking over Northern Australia . This is a  unique day in history where there are 2 extreme weather fronts hitting at the same time.
Cyclone Lam over NT -Category  4 and Cyclone Marcia- Category 5 over north QLD.
Category 4: Typical wind gusts over open flat land of 225 — 279kmh, capable of causing roofing loss and structural damage, dangerous airborne debris, caravans destroyed and blown away.
Category 5: Typical wind gusts of more than 280kmh, capable of causing extremely dangerous widespread destruction.
My thoughts are with all the people in these areas this morning.. a very frightening experience for all involved.
for more info check out  the news :http://www.news.com.au/technology/environment/wild-weather-hits-queensland-and-northern-territory-as-cyclone-marcia-and-cyclone-lam-attack/story-e6frflp0-1227224925218
checkout the images from the NASA radar this morning:
https://www.facebook.com/NASAHurricane?fref=nf
Shoalhaven Gorge – kayaking
These are few images from the weekend on an overnight kayaking trip up the Shoalhaven river through the beautiful Shoalhaven Gorge in Morton National Park, NSW.
The trip starts at Tallowa Dam near Kangaroo Valley and the paddle is through calm waters starting at the dam wall up into the gorge. It is 15km one way paddle to Fossickers flat & then a return 15km paddle on the next day.
All camping gear fits into kayaks to camp at the end along the river banks . It is a very enjoyable relatively easy calm water paddle. The view is amazing where you are  surrounded by high cliffs and dense great rainforest for most of the paddle .
This is a great weekend out for enjoying the river , wildlife and nature 🙂
Silhouette surfers
This morning had the most lovely sunrise with perfect reflections in the lagoon and surfers posing in front of the large ball of the rising sun.
It was just the perfect setup for a few more silhouette shots which are my favourite  🙂
Looming Storm clouds
Yesterday there was the most amazing heavy clouds I have seen in a while. They were dark and looming on one side , and the sun was bright & rising on the other. Such a contrast!
Pelicans flying over with an eerie glowing heavy cloud backdrop was an added bonus 🙂
Rust II
A few more rusty old huts in the mountains . Love the colours & textures 🙂
Mountain Biking- Dead horse gap to Cascade Hut
Day two of the weekend was another ride in the Snowy Mountains from Dead horse Gap to Cascade Hut , ( & then onto Tin mine Hut if you are feeling particularly fit & adventurous.)
We only went to Cascade Hut along the Cascade Trail…which looks remarkably short on the map 🙂
Starting near Dead Horse Gap on the Alpine Way, you will follow the wide Cascade Trail past Bobs Ridge to Cascade Hut in the Pilot Wilderness Area. You follow the Thredbo River for a while before heading over Bobs Ridge, enjoying the distant views into Victoria. The walk /ride then explores a few wooded forests before crossing Cascade Creek and then finding Cascade Hut.
It was about 19.6km rtn ride with some very steep hills on the way up & down to the hut back to Dead horse Gap & another 4km back on the road to Thredbo village.
It is great Alpine countryside with beautiful views along the way. Another great day out with plenty of exercise & even a few action shots going through the river  on the way back 🙂
Mountain Biking in Thredbo-Thredbo Valley Trail
A couple of weeks ago for the Australia day long weekend , I went with a few mates to Thredbo in the NSW Snowy mountains for a great weekend mountain biking in the alpine region.
It was a great weekend …with loads of hills , snakes & laughs  🙂  We somehow almost ran over at least 4 black snakes & a blue tongue lizard who were also enjoying the river track  !
This ride was along the river on the Thredbo Valley track from Thredbo Village to Crackenback return . Around 45km rtn with a lap of Crackenback village .( Valley Trail  5 on the attached map link past Thredbo Diggings camping area)
It was an Intermediate ride with plenty of undulations and  several bridge  crossings , all with lovely views along the River. A great day out, including a well deserved coffee at the Crackenback cafe at lunch . It was a good ride even with the track winding gradually up on the way back to Thredbo village … which was definitely felt on the way back 🙂
Trail map link :Â http://www.thredbo.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/140811-2-MTB-trail-map.pdf
Rust
Whilst walking in Barrington Tops National Park there are a few great old rusty huts along the way. I just love the shadows & rust of the corrugated iron and textures in the rusted steel. The details are interesting and play of light on rust and curves inspires some interesting rustic images .
Moon Phases
Aurora watch
geo-photographic 