Coral Coast
This is my 35th book to be published and my fourth on Australia. It complements the others, namely Koalas and Kangaroos, Walkabout, and Train to the Top End.
Coral Coast is an adventure
around the south west corner of Australia encompassing Perth, the
capital of Western Australia. From Perth the trip continues up the coast known
as the Coral Coast.
There are caves, national parks and Aboriginal cultural sites to
visit and endless amounts of flora and fauna to view. There is a pause at Exmouth
on the North West Cape, which as the name implies is the north west corner of
Australia.
Then there are visits to Port Headland, the world’s largest iron
ore exporting port handling more than 567 million tons and an exploration of
the pearling industry in Broome.
There are gold and diamond mines to visit before joining the Stuart
Highway in the Northern Territory to reach Darwin, the largest and most
northern city in Australia in the centre of the northern coast.
Koalas and Kangaroos.
This is an adventure up the east coast of Australia. It starts at
South Point, the southernmost point of the Australian mainland near Melbourne. The
journey continues by train via Canberra to Sydney. There is so much to see such
as the Sydney Opera House, Sydney Bridge, Manly Beach and plenty of other cultural
sights. There is a side trip inland to the Blue Mountains.
Going north by road, the first stop outside Sydney is at Walkabout
Park and close encounters with koalas and kangaroos. Newcastle is home to the
world’s largest coal export terminal.
There is an Aboriginal cultural experience, relaxing on the beach
in Byron Bay with its iconic lighthouse and trips out to dive on the Great
Barrier Reef. A trip inland explores the Atherton Tablelands with its many
waterfalls.
North of Cairns is the Daintree National Park, the world’s oldest
rainforest. Finally, a 4X4 trip to Cape York at the very top of Australia.
Walk About
This is a journey along the southern coast of Australia, starting in
Tasmania. There is beautiful scenery, views of mountains, wildlife such as
wombats and Tasmanian Devils and the search for the elusive platypus. There is plenty
of culture regarding the Aboriginals as traditional custodians of the land, and
history of the early European settlement, by both free settlers and the
transportation of convicts, with interesting anecdotes of convict stories.
Back on the mainland of Australia, the Great Ocean Road connects
Melbourne with Adelaide with sights such as The Twelve Apostles, murals on
silos and the wildlife including cute koalas on Kangaroo Island.
After a tour of Adelaide and several famous wineries in the
Adelaide Hills, the centre of South Australia’s wine region, there is the
crossing of treeless Nullarbor Plain with the longest straight section of
railway track in the world at 478 kilometres to reach Perth in the far west of
Australia.
Train to the Top End
The Indian Pacific and The
Ghan are two of the iconic train journeys across the Australian continent. Their
routes follow the historic expansion of the economy from the discovery of gold,
silver, and copper deposits throughout the continent which makes it one of the
top three gold producers in the world.
The story
crosses the continent from east to west from Sydney to Perth and south to north
from Adelaide to Darwin, through the Red Desert in the centre of the continent.
Both journeys have fascinating stops en route before reaching the Top End and
more adventures.
