An Outback Trip Gone Awry!!

Well I have had an interesting weekend. Got a call from my daughter her son and his mates had problems with a trip in the outback and needed help.  Eventually after sifting through my daughter slightly hysterical and theatrical account I found out what was happening. I love my daughter to bits but I she is so unlike me and organisation is not her strong suit and neither does it appear to be my grandsons or his mates.

Problems:

Car broken down not enough money to repair.

Not enough gear for the camping trip – basically the tent not big enough!! Really! So they had stayed in a BB and now short of money. This is only the second day of a 2 week trip.

So needed to get some money to them quickly and none of the idiots had a credit card with them.Can you believe not one of the four lads had taken a credit card –  it was to prevent them going over their budget they said. I am going to have a long overdue talk with my grandson on sensible management when he gets back.

 

This could be you!!

 

 

 

My suggestions:

• Leave them to sort it out for themselves ( she rejected this idea)
• Talk to parents of other lads to raise the money. Could only contact 2 as the others were away on a trip.
• Take out a loan ( which he and his mates will have to pay the installments to pay her back)

After chatting to the parents she could contact they decided a loan was a quick and easy solution and one of the parents was a relative to the other two and said she was sure they would agree to cover the amounts if the boys couldn’t. I suggested she go to a company I have used before, Ferratum for an online cash loans as I know this is one of their products. Then to send it to the lads via Western Union.

Given the above I thought it might be useful to highlight some general tips to consider before an Outback trip:

• Have you vehicle checked over by reliable mechanic.
• Carry spares
• Take at least one credit card or prepaid card for emergency back up.
• Insure the trip – even if self organised or especially because it is!
• Check all your equipment – especially if said equipments has been an a mates garage for a couple of years unused!!!
• Do have a chat with someone with experiences before you set off to potentially dangerous areas.
• If going with a group ensure someone not going has a list of contact numbers.
• Take a First Aid kit – no matter how tough you think you are a cut get infected quickly and can become a problem.

Found an excellent blog with some good insight into planning an outback trip, go take a look. I think I will put a post together for next time with some suggestions for what equipment should be taken on a outback camping trip, a ‘To Do List” I thought – do you think it would be useful, and anyones experiences and feedback would be great?

 

 

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8 Interesting facts about Desert Death Adder

The desert adder is a native snake of Australia. Believe it or not it is venomous but very shy. There are some very lesser known facts about this endangered snake species.

• Cobra Family – Desert adders only look like adders but are from the Cobra family. The change is due to convergent evolution.
• Mobile fangs – The fangs of this snake are mobile. It is located on a bone that can come forward. This results in bites at right angles which inject more venom.
• Live in Arid regions – The snake prefers dry or semidry are as a habitat. It can be found in deserts and rocky terrain.
• Ambush Hunters – Desert death adders hunt by luring and ambush.They bury in sand or bush displaying its tail as a worm. The prey when it gets near is attacked. Much like a predator, huh!
• Cannibals – These snakes generally prefer lizards and frogs, but can become cannibals eating their own young ones.
• Give birth to Young ones – Yes folks unlike snakes the Death adders will give birth to young ones. The young are self-dependent and the mother just wriggle away.
• Die of poisoning – They are one of the most poisonous snakes. But they can sometimes die of poisoning when it eats a small toad cane toad. The frog has venom fatal for the snake.
• Docile – These snakes are very docile and rarely attack humans . they rather slip away. Unlike popular beliefs of attacks by Desert death adders.

The Outback Brings its own Unique Travel Rewards about

With world populations encroaching more and more on our beautiful nature, I find the Australian outback holds more and more magic for me. These wild, endless landscapes simply lure one to a quiet , simple way of life that is become more attractive in the 21st century. Outback Australia surely offers an unforgettable experience, whether you opt for a getaway on a sheep station or a 4WD camping safari. I’ve been enthralled attending sheep and wool shows and watching lean and mean sheep shearers competing with each other to get the best out of their gear and get as many sheep sheared as possible.

The amazing Australian outback stretches across several states and you’ll find some pretty diverse habitats in it. In southern central Queensland, the Carnarvon Gorge is a steep sandstone chasm within the Carnarvon National Park. The Gorge is about 30km long and 600 metres deep at the mouth. You can understand why this would be such a visited feature.

Don’t get me wrong…the Australian Outback isn’t all about big, diverse landscapes however, beautiful and stark though this is. Some of the quaint Australian outback times are full of amazing treasures. Old-time activities such as sitting in country pubs, watching camel races, eating mutton and lamb cooked on an open fire, gleaning ancient information on the rich mining history are all dished up with warm country Aussie hospitality.

I’ve collected this information from personal experience and am looking forward to adding exciting information and images about my travels in the awesome outback but also other parts of this amazing continent known as the land down under.

Koala the reclusive Species

Until very recently I did not know Koalas are not bears. They look very much like the teddy bears. So, we invariably categorise them as bears. There are many other facts about koalas which are not known. It is a very shy animal.

Koala

 

• Koalas are marsupials – They are not bears, and are born immature just like kangaroos. They are carried in pouch just like kangaroos before they become fully developed.
• Sleepy Creatures – Koalas sleep for 18 hour in a day. Just like the Panda the diet that take is low on nutrition and they sleep to conserve energy.
• Different sizes – Koalas in South have thick coats and larger as compared to their northern counterparts. This is due to natural adaptation.
• Living in one place – Koalas love their home the tree they live in. They will only go to other places for mating only. After the courtship they are always back in their home trees. Homesickness of the koalas.
• Tiny when born – Koalas are only 2 centimeters when born. They are underdeveloped, cannot see, is hairless and even do not have hearing ability.
• Food – The Koala lives on fibre. It can only digest 25% of ingested fibre. They have a special organ called cecum to digest fibre. They have to eat large amount of leaves to survive.
• Do not drink water – In normal circumstances the koalas never drink water. Only in extreme cases will they drink water.
• One of their kind – Koalas have only one living relative the wombats. And they are burrowing animals only similarity being their pouches.
• Natural habitat – The koalas natural habitat is being destroyed for houses. Soon we may find them only in protected areas or zoos.

Australia’s 4 Greatest Attractions

There are many things about Australia which attracts the tourists. The nice beaches, water ways, flora and fauna, Vineyards or the Great Barrier Reef are some of the attractions.

Australian Waters Ways

The Sydney harbor with its azure water is one of the many attractions. The scenery is often like wallpaper. Rose Bay looks thrilling when you are on a plane. You can never miss the color of water.

Flora and Fauna

The country has a unique blend of flora and fauna. Since it is an island most of the plants and animals are unique and endemic. The only thing missing is a large carnivore. Dingoes are the largest carnivores. Different colors of parrots and cockatoos really are a visual delight. Then you have Koalas (Teddy Bears), kangaroos and the emu which are famous. Even the sea fauna is unique. There are around 140 species of Marsupials alone.

Australian Vineyards

Renowned for its award-winning wines, Australia is a heaven for wine lovers. Walking through a vineyard is a life changing experience.

The wineries here produce high quality white, red and sparkling wines. The Hunter Valley Vineyard is home to oldest surviving grapevines.

The Great Barrier Reef

One of the most unique ecosystems is the Great Barrier Reef. With close to 100,000 species it is the largest local collection of flora and fauna.

You can go snorkeling and see the wide range of colors here. So, come to Australia and enjoy the Wild Life here.

Many things you do not know about Kangaroos

When I first saw the Kangaroo it looked cute.Before I started my stint with wild life I thought that Kangaroos are only of one kind. But later came to know many unknown facts about them.

I would like to share some of the really interesting unknown facts about Kangaroos:

• The hind legs move together. They can use the hind legs separately only while swimming.
• Kangaroos do not have sweat glands. They use their saliva to cool down.
• They do not have breeding season. They are like us they can breed anytime.
• There are 60 different species of Kangaroos. Kangaroos of 60 different kinds.
• The famous pouch on the female kangaroos’ belly is actually a second womb.
• Baby kangaroos are born only after 35 days of gestation.
• Kangaroos are found outside Australia. Some species are native to Papua New Guinea.
• Kangaroos have stomach which is chambered just like cows.
• Kangaroos outnumber humans in Australia.
• Kangaroos are very social and live in groups. A group is known as “mob”.
• Female Kangaroo can determine the gender of their offspring before birth.
• They are only eaten by us humans and dingoes.
• They stand up to six feet tall, and are tallest Marsupials.
• Kangaroos are very good swimmers.
• While running they can notch up speed of 60 km/hr.
• The biggest weighs 90 kg and the smallest 500 gm.