History, wine tasting, fossil cave, drop bears and bunyips
Wednesday 26 August
 |
| Marsupial lion - Thylacoleo carnifex - the original drop bear? Read on! |
My first visit today is Petticoat Lane in Penola. Petticoat Lane is an area of historic cottages. I am amused by the historical washing on the line including a pair of divided pantaloons.
Then I look at Sharamn's Cottage, The original Cottage of just two rooms being the first cottage built in Penola. The sign out the front saying that they raised their 15 children here had me shaking my head but as I proceeded through I found a second cottage that was added as the family grew and that's four more rooms.
 |
| Sharamn's Cottage |
The herb garden, , is still productive and really looked after with some produce being available in the garden shed for purchase.
 |
| A few daffodils in flower |
There is also a heritage rose garden which must look lovely when the roses are in bloom and there are a few daffodils in flower.
 |
| In the heritage rose garden |
I look at McAdams slab hut, beautifully located under a magnificent gum tree, but it doesn't look terribly comfortable with its gaps between the wooden slabs and not very spacious given the implication being. That's 11. Children were raised. However, probably an improvement on what he had in Ireland where illness had rendered him unemployed and homeless.
 |
| McAdams slab hut |
I also visit the Mary McKillip Centre, she having started her life's work here, and I am most interested in the displays about Father Julian Woods, a most amazingly gifted man: priest, teacher, author, artist and scientist. Truly a man of many talents.
 |
And I did learn that. Mary McKillop had been excommunicated when she failed to submit to the demands about making changes to the way the order was run, changes that were being demanded by members of the clergy. How dare she be so disobedient !
 |
I was amused by a few quotes from Father Woods including from his travels though the 22,000 square miles which his ecclisiastical duties covered:
his providing of 'refreshment for the fleas of about 12 shepherds' huts'
 |
| A prolific author |
Father Woods' work covered geology, palaentology, botany and zoology. For a man of his era he did a remarkable job of reconciling the emerging scientific theories of the day with his theological beliefs.
It was an amazing observer and collector and the information associated with sea urchin says he dived to 13 m to collect that.
He travelled after serving as a priest, including observing the aftermath of the eruption of Krakatoa.
I continue onwards and as I'm driving through the Coonawarra a wine testing is pretty well compulsory, but which vineyard? Looking at the list online I see one called Patrick so with thoughts of Jonathon's middle name and his godfather, my very good friend, I head there for a tasting. I quite like the bubbles so buy a bottle to share with Nina when I get back to Melbourne and a bottle to share with Patrick down the track. I also tased their best shiraz and decide it's rather nice and splurge on a bottle of that to share with Jonathon.
Continuing on my way. I come across a little roadside drama that delays me. Delay factors are factored into my itinerary for today. A B-double fuel tanker has come slightly to grief. One of the tankers is at an interesting angle and clearly there has been quite a spill. A number of fire engines, police cars and other vehicles are on site directing traffic and spreading clean up stuff.
I get to the Naracorte Caves Visitor Centre and I'm told that I'm the only one booked on the cave tour this afternoon at 2:15 and they can't do it only with one but with fingers crossed somebody else will turn up for it. I hope so, because I have come here specifically to see the Victoria fossil cave.
After I have eaten my sandwich, I returned to the fossil Centre and they tell me there have been some other bookings for the tour. So I'm very pleased.
I look around the centre and visit the diorama which is incredibly well done.
 |
| Palorcheste azael - herbivore |
 |
| Lots of fresias and oxalis but I found no orchids |
 |
| Some of the lovely limestone formations |
 |
| More of the lovely limestone formations - But these have been broken by cave guides in the '60s who would sing and play xylophone on them with a hammer! |
The tour of the Victoria fossil cave is just rather amazing. They are of course the normal limestone cave formations which are quite pretty, but the highlights is the fossil beds at the end. Over 200 species of fossil, both megafauna and current species have been found in the cave which is a bit mind-blowing.
The first people to discover the fossils had the foresight not to remove them, thus enabling much more effective study of them subsequently and that has resulted in World heritage listing for the cave.
There were a couple of reconstructed skeletons including one of the marsupial lion and we were told this remarkable animal had dislocatable eye sockets so the force of its bite, which is enough to put that of a Tassie devil to shame, did not force its eyeballs out of the sockets. This animal also had the most incredible claws and it was a good climber so it would drop out of the trees onto its prey and given that it's era overlapped with the presence of the aboriginals, it did occasionally eat one. Subsequent stories of this told by Aboriginals to European setters is thought to be the origin of the drop bear urban myth.
So I did of course have to ask about the bunyip. That was based on the large swamp dweller Zygomatusaurus which, according to Aboriginal stories, did manage to chomp the occasional head of somebody while it was grazing. Again, this story subsequently related to Europeans is thought to be the origin of the bunyips stories.
I proceed on to my camp for the night which is Namituk Lake caravan park. It's about an hour and a half drive but easy driving and as anticipated I arrived about 5:30 and had time to set up camp before the sun goes down.
The drive takes me into Canola growing country and there are some fields that are already in flower and that looks very attractive. And of course the wide roadside verges with their gum trees and other natives are also rather lovely
I am the only person in the campsite and I locate myself beside a picnic table very close to the "camp kitchen" which is a barbecue and a metal bench with a sink for which there is cold water. But there is a hot plate, a kettle, a microwave and a fridge. So I shall pop one in my freezer blocks in overnight to make sure that's sufficiently cold for tomorrow and make use of the microwave and the kettle. The camp kitchen is actually a public area and it backs onto public toilets which are sufficiently clean and I shall use but the campsite toilets are across the bridge a couple of hundred meters away and that's where the hot water and showers are located.
I am camped "Lakeside" To me, the lake looks more of a wetland or swamp area and there seems to be the odd mosquito. Anyway, it seems very peaceful and I anticipate a good night's sleep after I have dined.
I revised my thoughts about using the microwave after opening the door and decided it was in need of a good half hour with boiling water and a high-powered cleaner.
The night is still there is not a breath of wind but the air is very cool.
.
Comments
Post a Comment