# G'day guys...



## Wildcat (Sep 16, 2008)

I'm back from my holiday up in Queensland where the family and I had a blast. Anyway we went up there to buy a new car which we then drove the the roughly 2400km back to Adelaide. On the way we stopped off in Sydney and Temora in country NSW to check out the awesome warbirds in the museum there. I took heaps of pics so I'll be sure to post some of the more interesting ones here.
All in all it's good to be home and I look forward to catching up with you guys again. cheers.


----------



## seesul (Sep 16, 2008)

Welcome back m8!
Hope you have enjoyed your holidays and are satisfied with a new car!
Looking 4ward for your pics!


----------



## Heinz (Sep 16, 2008)

Hey Andy welcome back mate. Good to see you back safe and sound.

A Holden was bought I hope? 

Temora is great, did you catch a flying day?

2400km is a fair whack on the dusty roads of Aus, look foward to the pictures mate.

Cheers.


----------



## Screaming Eagle (Sep 16, 2008)

Welcome back mate! Where abouts in Queensland did you go to? and please tell me you didn't buy a holden!


----------



## Wurger (Sep 16, 2008)

Welcome back Wildie.Some nice pics will be appreciated. 2400km back trip must have been interesting.


----------



## 109ROAMING (Sep 16, 2008)

Hey welcome back! I've been told the best way to see aussi is to simply get a car and drive

Look forward to the pics!


----------



## Gnomey (Sep 16, 2008)

Welcome back Wildcat. Was up in Queensland and down in Sydney myself two months ago, got to agree that the best way to see Oz is one the road - just takes a really long time 8) Looking forward to the pictures.


----------



## Thorlifter (Sep 16, 2008)

Welcome back Wildcat. I'm looking forward to the pics also. Glad to hear you had a good time...........and let's see the new car!!!!!


----------



## Wayne Little (Sep 16, 2008)

Welcome back mate, wondering where you had gotten to!

Look forward to some pics mate!


----------



## Lucky13 (Sep 16, 2008)

Welcome back mate!


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 16, 2008)

Thanks for the welcome guys! SE and Heinz we brought a nice Suburu Impreza which is an absolute joy to drive in, but don't worry Alex there's still a Commodore in the driveway! 

First pics are from Lamington national park. Here you get to hand feed the birds and walk through the beautiful rainforest on boardwalks and through the tree tops on a suspension bridge type thingy. This area is also famous fro the aircrash and subsequent rescue attempt in the late 30's.


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 16, 2008)

Heading into the rainforest...


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 16, 2008)

On through the tree top walk ...


----------



## Thorlifter (Sep 16, 2008)

That is TOO COOL! I bet it was a fantastic trip.

Oh, and nice car too!


----------



## Gnomey (Sep 16, 2008)

Lovely stuff Wildcat!


----------



## ccheese (Sep 16, 2008)

Welcome back, Andy. They got any croc-a-gators in that wilderness ?
Nice car. One of you diggers have got to tell me about a Holden. What
in blazes is it ?? Sounds like a fun trip, and I'm enjoyin' the pic's.

Charles


----------



## Njaco (Sep 16, 2008)

Great stuff and glad to have ya back.

Gotta adjust the color on that pic of the pigeons. They're too red!


----------



## Lucky13 (Sep 16, 2008)

Hmmmmm......horisontally growing trees...and how do people stay on THAT boardwalk? Great pics mate, looks like it was a great trip!


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 17, 2008)

ccheese said:


> Welcome back, Andy. They got any croc-a-gators in that wilderness ?


No crocs in these parts Charles, just deadly snakes!


ccheese said:


> Nice car. One of you diggers have got to tell me about a Holden. What
> in blazes is it ?? Sounds like a fun trip, and I'm enjoyin' the pic's.


see here for Holdens - Holden Australia - Latest offers and information on new and used Holden cars





Lucky13 said:


> Hmmmmm......horisontally growing trees


Man we can't take you anywhere can we! 



Njaco said:


> Great stuff and glad to have ya back.
> 
> Gotta adjust the color on that pic of the pigeons. They're too red!


Thanks mate. Some more bird pics for ya. This is breakfast time at my Grandmothers house.


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 17, 2008)

Which was the same morning Mum and Dad's house was "buzzed" by this thing!


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 17, 2008)

Anyway after spending two weeks with the olds, we drove the 900 odd km's South to Sydney.
Here we are about to cross the Sydney harbour Bridge. You'll notice I conveniently got tired of driving at this stage and let the missus brave the Sydney traffic!


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 17, 2008)

After being lost in the city for about an hour (yes GPS and all  ) we finally made it to our hotel. Not a flash joint, but the room was pretty cheap and it had pretty good views of the Harbour and Naval yard.


----------



## seesul (Sep 17, 2008)

Wildcat said:


> Thanks mate. Some more bird pics for ya. This is breakfast time at my Grandmothers house.



Wow, it seems like in paradise on the other side of the globe...


----------



## Screaming Eagle (Sep 17, 2008)

wow, very cool andy, looks like you had a great time!



Gnomey said:


> Welcome back Wildcat. Was up in Queensland and down in Sydney myself two months ago, got to agree that the best way to see Oz is one the road - just takes a really long time 8) Looking forward to the pictures.



Which city/s did you visit whilst you were in Queensland gnomey?


----------



## Heinz (Sep 17, 2008)

fantastic shots mate!  bird life is great to watch, wonderful creatures. 
Rosellas and lorikeets always flocking around my back yard when it gets warmer.

Nice car, can't break those things 

Cheers


----------



## 109ROAMING (Sep 17, 2008)

Wow! Wildcat Aussi's nicer than I thought

Have to pop over there sometime


----------



## Gnomey (Sep 17, 2008)

Good stuff Wildcat. Not surprised you got lost in the centre of Sydney with all the one way streets - thankfully I was on foot so it wasn't too bad.



Screaming Eagle said:


> Which city/s did you visit whilst you were in Queensland gnomey?



Was just up in Cairns for a week to see my brother. Would of gone to Brisbane but met up with my Parents at Cairns instead (coming from Sydney).


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 17, 2008)

Cheers guys. We were only in Sydney for a couple of days so "our" first stop was the magnificent Queen Victoria Building which contains one awesome hobby shop! However the building itself is worth checking out in its own right.


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 17, 2008)

Some shots of the beautiful clocks found hanging from the ceiling.


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 17, 2008)

Afterwards we caught the monorail over to the National Maritime Museum.


----------



## ccheese (Sep 17, 2008)

Great pic's, Wildcat. Sure would like to visit Oz one of these days. I see
your Navy still has LST's !!! I see one in one of your pic's with the bow
doors open. Hope you all had a great time....

Charles


----------



## Heinz (Sep 17, 2008)

Great shots Andy!

Charles if you did you'd be more than welcome at mine.


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 17, 2008)

ccheese said:


> Great pic's, Wildcat. Sure would like to visit Oz one of these days. I see
> your Navy still has LST's !!! I see one in one of your pic's with the bow
> doors open. Hope you all had a great time....
> 
> Charles



Hi Charles, that LSH is HMAS Tobruk - the sole one in the fleet. Aft of it is HMAS Newcastle followed by HMAS Ballarat.


----------



## Gnomey (Sep 17, 2008)

Good stuff Wildcat! You manage to make it to the Maritime Museum?


----------



## Njaco (Sep 17, 2008)

Great stuff! love to go shopping at that Victoria Building.


----------



## Heinz (Sep 18, 2008)

Great stuff mate


----------



## Screaming Eagle (Sep 18, 2008)

very cool mate!


----------



## Wayne Little (Sep 18, 2008)

fantastic shots Andy!


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 18, 2008)

Cheers guys. Here is a monument to the Merchant Navy located outside of the Maritime Museum.


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 18, 2008)

Here we are taking a squizz around the decommissioned HMAS Vampire.


----------



## Gnomey (Sep 18, 2008)

Nice Wildcat, did you also see the memorial to HMAS Sydney located on the other side of the harbour from Circular Quay?


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 18, 2008)

..


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 18, 2008)

Gnomey said:


> Nice Wildcat, did you also see the memorial to HMAS Sydney located on the other side of the harbour from Circular Quay?



Bugger I missed that. Cheers for the pic mate. After we had a look around the Vampire we went onboard HMAS Onslow which is a decommissioned Oberon class submarine.


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 18, 2008)

..


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 18, 2008)

Also at the museum is the attack class patrol boat HMAS Advance, though you weren't allowed on it.


----------



## Gnomey (Sep 18, 2008)

Good stuff Wildcat - you also get a look around the replica HMS Endeavour?

Certainly I enjoyed going around the Museum - Vampire and Onslow where good - but both very cramped and not somewhere I would want to of served. Certainly if you visit Sydney I would recommend a visit to it. Was the Toy Boat exhibition still going on inside - mainly French toy boats from the last 125 years or so - Joyeux Bateau or something like that I think it was entitled.

Here are my Sydney photos  Sydney, NSW - a set on Flickr


----------



## Heinz (Sep 19, 2008)

Great shots mate


----------



## Wayne Little (Sep 19, 2008)

Rippa pics Andy!


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 20, 2008)

Gnomey said:


> Good stuff Wildcat - you also get a look around the replica HMS Endeavour?
> 
> Certainly I enjoyed going around the Museum - Vampire and Onslow where good - but both very cramped and not somewhere I would want to of served. Certainly if you visit Sydney I would recommend a visit to it. Was the Toy Boat exhibition still going on inside - mainly French toy boats from the last 125 years or so - Joyeux Bateau or something like that I think it was entitled.
> 
> Here are my Sydney photos  Sydney, NSW - a set on Flickr



Nah we didn't do the Endeavor as we were a bit pressed for time and I was being a tight wad that day!  
BTW you took some great pics mate 

Here are some more pics of some iteams inside the museum. Note the beer can boat!


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 20, 2008)

Once we had had a good look around the Maritime museum we headed next door to the Sydney Aqaurium, which I must say was most impressive. 
Apologies for the pics, but it was very hard to take decent shots inside this place.


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 20, 2008)

..


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 20, 2008)

This shot would have been great had it come out more clear.


----------



## v2 (Sep 20, 2008)

Excellent shots mate!


----------



## Graeme (Sep 20, 2008)

Wildcat said:


> the Sydney Aqaurium, which I must say was most impressive.



And from memory, impressive but very expensive!

Nice shots Andy!

Did your kids sucker you into the digital photo booth?...


----------



## Wayne Little (Sep 20, 2008)

Cool shots Andy!


----------



## Screaming Eagle (Sep 21, 2008)

very cool mate!


----------



## lesofprimus (Sep 21, 2008)

Great stuff, frickin great.. Im really enjoying these pics.... Someday Ill make it Down Under...

Question tho... With all the spots u went to, Im kinda surprised u werent able to hook up with any of our members here who bounce around down there as well.... Have a beer or whatnot and punch each other in the arm..


----------



## Njaco (Sep 21, 2008)

Theres enough of them you could probably trip over them every 5 seconds! 

Anybody notice the date that bell was presented to the museum?

Coll Stuff!


----------



## Heinz (Sep 21, 2008)

Great shots Andy


----------



## Gnomey (Sep 21, 2008)

Good stuff Andy!


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 22, 2008)

Graeme said:


> And from memory, impressive but very expensive!
> 
> Nice shots Andy!
> 
> Did your kids sucker you into the digital photo booth?...



Yep expensive alright. Not as bad as movie world though, seeing the ticket prices was what gave me the biggest fright for the day! As for the photo's we gave it a miss, our son wasn't too interested.



lesofprimus said:


> Question tho... With all the spots u went to, Im kinda surprised u werent able to hook up with any of our members here who bounce around down there as well.... Have a beer or whatnot and punch each other in the arm..


Dan one of these days I'll get my arse organised a bit better and maybe plan something like that! Until then any of you bloke are welcome around my place!

Next set of shots are taken from one of the ferries we caught to Circuler Quay. The only reason we went on it was for the great views of the city and its famous landmarks. Besides it was a great day for a boat ride!


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 22, 2008)

Round the bend comes the impressive site of one of the Worlds most famous bridges.


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 22, 2008)

And for a different view, some shots from underneath.


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 22, 2008)

Once past the bridge you are treated to a nice view of the Opera house before arriving at Circular Quay.


----------



## Graeme (Sep 22, 2008)

Hi Andy.

Backtracking slightly, just wanted to say thanks for the "Spirit of Australia" images you posted earlier. I didn't know that it ended up in the Maritime Museum...






I remember seeing Warby's Jet-Boat soon after the world record run. It was a big event and put Tumut/Blowering Dam in the world spotlight. From memory the jet engine was supplied from a RAAF Neptune. There was also a story afterwards that his return run "could" have been even faster if some "hooligans" hadn't upset the dam swell with their outboard motorboats. 
Due to the drought, Blowering dam is now only at 30% capacity.

Site Index
Introduction


----------



## Wayne Little (Sep 22, 2008)

Pics are great Andy, thanks mate!


----------



## Gnomey (Sep 22, 2008)

Good stuff Andy, got to love the views of the bridge and the opera house you get from the ferries


----------



## muller (Sep 25, 2008)

Great pics! I particularly like this one of my favourite building in the world. 8) 






Thanks for sharing!


----------



## Wildcat (Sep 25, 2008)

Graeme said:


> I remember seeing Warby's Jet-Boat soon after the world record run. It was a big event and put Tumut/Blowering Dam in the world spotlight. From memory the jet engine was supplied from a RAAF Neptune. There was also a story afterwards that his return run "could" have been even faster if some "hooligans" hadn't upset the dam swell with their outboard motorboats.
> Due to the drought, Blowering dam is now only at 30% capacity.



Well that explains why there is a RAAF squadron badge painted on the boat, I was wondering why that was there.



muller said:


> hanks for sharing!


Your welcome mate, here's some more pics I took. enjoy.


----------



## Heinz (Sep 25, 2008)

Great shots Andy 

Thanks!


----------



## muller (Sep 26, 2008)

Cheers Andy, it's one cool looking building! I used to work with an bloke from Sydney, he told me the local nickname for it is 'Nuns in a Scrum'


----------



## Wayne Little (Sep 26, 2008)

Cool Andy!


----------



## Gnomey (Sep 26, 2008)

Good shots Andy.


----------



## Screaming Eagle (Sep 28, 2008)

very cool!


----------

