In mid-winter, we craved something warm and hearty – like chicken pie.
It’s quite easy to make up – just white sauce with sauteed chicken and your choice of vegetables – but it was just the thing on a cold winter’s evening.
Monthly Archives: July 2012
Winter at Oatley Park – Part 6
We’ll end the series with a little more flora. Perfect banksias.
And imperfect ones.
And a sign that spring will soon arrive.
Winter at Oatley Park – Part 5
There were no fisher-people on the jetty.
In fact, there was hardly a soul in the whole bay that afternoon. Just the two of us and our dog.
Winter at Oatley Park – Part 4
Interesting things were growing in the rocky, sandy soil.
There were plenty of wattle about. This variety seemed to thrive in full shade.
And so were these white heath flowers, which I hadn’t really noticed before.
But interestingly, there were these mosses that lived in the crevices of the sandstone.
Winter at Oatley Park – Part 3
Winter in Sydney, ironically to those in colder climates, is a season for flowers. These delicate purple grevilleas, native to the area, are blooming.
And so are these heath bells, that only grow in sandy soil, mainly in full shade.
I tried unsuccessfully to grow these at home, but they thrive here in their native environment.
Winter at Oatley Park – Part 2
The water and the trees were calm that afternoon. Only the animals were active. Apart from the noisy parrots, we also saw a rock wallaby hop away.
Winter at Oatley Park – Part 1
It has been awhile since we visited Oatley Park. Our last visit was made in autumn. This time we return in the depths of winter. Of course, this is a Sydney winter, so there will be lots of points of interest along the way.
Let’s start!
Late Autumn Knitting Ventures
Just catching up on the posting my finished objects from the end of Autumn.
First off the rank is this simple top for autumn/spring, or whenever one does not need long sleeves on a jumper. I used this pattern, which was very clear and simple – good for someone who would like to know how to knit in the round.
The jumper had some great use on our outback trip, when we were camping out for 9 days and the night temperatures were quite nippy.
I made use of the leftover yarn and knitted another cowl for my friend Fran. Unfortunately even though her birthday was mid June, she didn’t get it until yesterday when the winter’s almost over!
Dripstone
The country around Dripstone is pretty typical of Central NSW – pasture land with gently rolling hills and patches of bush. Dripstone, as far as I could tell, was just a cluster of small acre properties on a karst (cave country) hill. Hence the name, I suppose.
The grass was long from the summer rains.
It looked enchanting in the late autumn afternoon light, even if it was really hard to walk through for a short, city slicker like me.
I couldn’t help myself, I was trigger happy.
And as I took these shots, the afternoon XPT cruised by in the valley below, back to Sydney. Back home.
Well, that’s the end of our adventure in Central NSW. But don’t despair, I have plenty of places and things to show you yet.
Devonian Sea Life – Part 2
Later in the day we travelled 15 minutes away to Dripstone, to look for more fossils, this time to take home.
We had to look a bit harder among the tall grass for them, but we did find a few things in the end. Like little stromatolites (they are small here, the little circular things).
Corals in different shapes than those at Wellington Caves.
And another block rich in crinoid stems.
There were also caves in the area, although the entrances are so small that no one was willing to climb in.
Static and Silence 