December 19, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Zeb and Eider Continue Touring Australia’s Great Ocean Road

Zeb and Eider Duck and the humans loved this view from our hotel, Beacon Point Ocean View Villas near Apollo Bay, Victoria, Australia.

First view of the day

Just before we left, we admired this rainbow.

Morning rainbow

Isn’t that a great sight first thing in the morning? Driving to the Great Ocean Road, Fabian spotted this koala.

Koala. This is not his face

He is sleeping with his back toward us. Walking at the marina at Apollo Bay,

Going on this pier

we admired this clear water.

Really clear water here

We also admired the boats.

Love boats

We loved the waves breaking.

Crashing waves are beautiful

Driving on the Great Ocean Road, the views were beautiful. This was from Cape Patton.

Great coastline from Cape Patton

At the next stop, the humans fed colorful tropical birds. Humans were given a handful of bird seed and this King Parrot knew what to do.

Feeding King Parrot

This Crimson Rosella was also happy to have a snack.

Crimson Rosella also having a snack

The Sulphur Crested Cockatoo were eager to get a share also.

Sulphur Crested Cockatoos want some also

This King Parrot found a new place to sit.

Found a new place to sit while eating

Along The Great Ocean Road, we saw many of these Sulphur Crested Cockatoos. We love them, but not everyone is a fan of these beautiful birds.

Sulphur Crested Cockatoos are plentiful. Considered exotic birds in US and farmers pest here.

They have very strong beaks and cause much damage in a farmer’s field. Along the Great Ocean Road, we stopped at Memorial Arch.

Memorial Arch

The Great Ocean Road was begun in 1918 with 3,000 workers, many returning veterans from World War I, and the project was completed in 1932. The road was built with axes and picks; no explosives were used. This statue commemorates the men that built The Great Ocean Road.

Commemorating men who built The Great Ocean Road

Our last stop of the day was the Anglesea Golf Course where we were greeted y this kangaroo.

Is he saying welcome to our golf course?

Several kangaroos were grazing on the edge of the fairways, but this young kangaroo wasn’t interested in grazing.

Mom is still the best!

Mom is still the favorite. We really enjoyed our tour with Australian Natural Treasures Touring, and the Great Ocean Road is breathtaking. Visit them at http://www.anttouring.com.au Thanks Glenn and Jeremy.

December 18, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Rainforest Walk in Australia’s Great Otway National Park with Zeb and Eider

Temperate Rainforest in Great Otway National Park is visited by Zeb and Eider Duck. We stopped at Maits Rest to experience the 800 meter rainforest walk.

Let’s walk

The trees are tall and the path is clear.

Boardwalk through rainforest

The trunk on this tree is huge!

Huge tree trunk

Great Otway National Park consists of 103,185 hectares and is located 162 km southwest of Melbourne. There is prolific plant growth throughout the dense rain forest.

Dense ferns

The trees and tropical ferns are beautiful and create a peaceful environment.

Boardwalk

Even fallen tree trunks are huge.

Inside the tree trunk

The Mountain Ash (Eucalyptus regnans) grow over 100 meters, making them the tallest flowering plants in the world.

Story of Mountain Ash

The rare carnivorous, Otway Black Snail, is found only in the Otways where it feeds on insects and other snails and worms.

Otway Black Snail

We did not see a real Otway Black Snail, but maybe that was a good thing. We really loved our time in this temperate rainforest.

Otway Temperate Rainforest

Wow! This tree trunk is huge. Fabian can stand inside the tree!

Trunk large enough for Fabian to stand inside

Even the road leading out of Maits Rest was pretty.

Leaving the rainforest

We hope you visit a rainforest. They are fascinating.

December 15, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Channel is Hanging Over the Caribbean

You remember my friend, Channel, the cutest Bear. She went on a Caribbean cruise with her humans. She sent me this photo.

Channel being held over the Caribbean. She is being held from her balcony

I was scared, but Channel said she loved it. Channel knew her mom would protect her and she would not fall. What a great experience Channel. Thanks for sharing this one.

December 14, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Zeb the Duck Admires Christmas Decorations at the Governor’s Mansion

Yesterday, I, Zeb the Duck, visited the Governor’s Residence at the Boettcher Mansion in Denver. This was the last day for the free tours to view their Christmas decorations. This mansion was built in 1904 and became the residence of Colorado’s governors in 1960. The public is allowed on the first floor. The Governor’s family lives on the second floor. There is also a third floor. There are people waiting for the tour.

Entrance to Governor’s Residence at Boettcher Mansion

We are going there to wait also. Inside, much of the furniture is antique and everything is beautiful and great quality. This lamp was purchased in China.

Lamp from China

The tapestry is antique and the table is decorated for Christmas.

Antique tapestry

Wow! This is a great staircase.

Great staircase

And so Christmasy. The first room we view is the drawing room. The decorating theme this year is to represent colors of Colorado. This drawing room is decorated in blue.

Drawing Room

All the ornaments on the tree are shades of blue.

Drawing Room with blue theme

The packages beneath the tree are wrapped in blue, and even the bear playing the piano is blue. This chandelier once was in the White House in Washington D.C.

Beautiful chandelier

It was sold and put in this house. Isn’t it fabulous? At least two first ladies of the United States were interested in having the chandelier back in the White House, but so far Colorado has not been willing to sell it. I, Zeb the Duck, liked this mirror that reflects the staircase.

Mirror reflecting staircase

Again, beautiful Christmas decorations on the table. This perfect room was not originally included in the mansion.

A beautiful addition

It is a great addition. The huge windows looking out to the park like back yard make this perfect for relaxing or entertaining. This is how this addition looks from outside, across the street.

This beautiful room from outside. It is really big

It is huge. And speaking of huge, this mansion has 26,000 square feet of floor space. That is a lot of house to clean. Next we viewed the formal dining room. The theme for this room is majestic.

Color is purple and theme is majesty

Purple is the principal color for Christmas. Over the fireplace is a picture of mountains, representing purple mountains. There is also a picture of Queen Elizabeth, her majesty. The purple lights on the Colorado Marble fireplace are stunning. Each room had a guide, or docent to explain things to us. The dining room was explained by our friend, Connie.

Our friend Connie in the Formal Dining Room

We were so happy to see her, and she did an excellent job of telling us about the formal dining room. Thanks Connie. Our last room was the bar and gift shop.

Tree in Bar and Gift shop

Another beautiful tree. The story behind this ship is rather cute.

Ship in bar and gift shop

The second owner of this home, Mr. Boettcher, collected these ships. He had several, and his wife finally said “no more!” At that time, Mr. Boettcher was building a tavern at Denver’s Brown Palace hotel. He moved all but one of his ships to the tavern, and named his new establishment, Ship Tavern. We think that is a very nice story. He was a clever man, and his wife was also happy. As we left through the side door, we thought this looked like another great place to be in the spring.

I would be here in the spring

We enjoyed our tour of the Governor’s Resident at the Boettcher Mansion. There are various events and tours during the year. We think you would enjoy visiting here also.

December 11, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Naracoorte Caves National Park in Australia with Zeb and Eider Duck

Zeb and Eider Duck and the humans visited a World Heritage Site.

Naracoorte Caves National Park

We entered the Naracoorte Caves.

Going into cave

There are many stalactites and stalagmites.

Inside cave

Stalactites come from the roof and stalagmites come from the floor. They are created from dripping water, entering through openings in the ceiling.

Inside cave

There are many smaller cave areas within the cave system.

Inside cave

A flashlight placed on a thin shelf of the cave causes a glow in the rock.

Flashlight on thin shelf

More recently another part of the cave system was found and it contains great fossils. This is believed to be an ancestor of today’s kangaroo.

Fossil inside cave

Some people believe this was an ancestor of today’s wombat.

Fossil inside cave

In the area of the caves, we saw The Australian Fossil Mammal Site. The Wonambi Fossil Center shows how the caves acted a pitfall traps, dens and roost for more than 500,000 years leading to a vast accumulation of skeletal remains of reptiles, birds and mammals.

Wonambi Fossil Center

So far, about 130 species of animals have been recorded here. Entering the Wonambi Fossil Center, we were greeted by this, now extinct, Tasmanian Tiger.

Tasmanian Tiger–extinct

It is so sad that he is extinct. We love tigers. They are some of our favorite animals at any zoo. We liked this display also.

Extinct

Another great display.

Display in Wonambi Fossil Center

This one is very large. Scientists believe he evolved into much smaller animals today.

So big!

We love going into caves and seeing these fossils. We hope you visit these or any other caves soon. But, beware. Humans like these caves, and so do bats.

We like caves

December 9, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Zeb and Eider Duck Begin Bus Tour from Adelaide to Melbourne, Australia

Zeb and Eider Duck and the humans are going on a multi day bus tour. Our guide and driver, Glenn, picked us up in Adelaide and will drive us through the wine country, along the Great Ocean Road and into Melbourne. Leaving Adelaide, the scenery look like we are leaving Denver and heading to the mountains. But, soon we were in green, hilly, pasture land.

Hilly pasture land east of Adelaide

Passing through small villages we admired old buildings such as this church in Keith.

Old church in Keith, Australia

We traveled the Limestone Coast and saw many vineyards.

Vineyards

In the Padthaway Wine Region, we visited Henry’s Drive Vignerons.

Henry’s Drive Vignerons

As you can see, the humans sampled some wine.

Wine was sampled

All agreed it was very good. This winery was named after the proprietor of a 19th century mail coach service that once ran through this property, Mr. Henry John Hill. Thus, the symbol on the wine labels.

Label for Henry’s Drive

We sampled wine and had lunch here. They grow their own grapes.

Growing grapes at the vineyard

and also raise sheep here.

Raising sheep at the vineyard

Their first vines were planted in 1992. We liked this winery. For more information visit http://www.HenrysDrive.com Further down the coast, we stopped to visit Father Woods Park.

Father Woods Park

The wood carving were made with chain saws. The park honors Mary MacKillop.

Mary MacKillop

Mary is Australia’s first and only saint. She was honored by the Catholic Church for her work with children. We liked these carvings.

Wood carvings made with chainsaws

We are all enjoying this bus tour.

December 7, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Zeb the Duck has a new Christmas Hat

Mom was planning to have dinner with a friend. Our friend specifically ask for me, Zeb the Duck, to come to dinner also. Our friend made me a Christmas hat.

Zeb the Duck with a new Christmas hat

Isn’t this great? I love it. I told mom I wanted to go to the mountains where it is colder to wear my Christmas hat. We went to Estes Park, one of our favorite places. Here I am with Mr. and Mrs. Claus.

Mr and Mrs Claus in Estes Park, Colorado

Christmas decorations and pretty and so much fun to see. I like this toy soldier.

A big toy soldier in Estes Park

I bet he likes me with my new hat. Of course, every trip to Estes Park means we get salt water taffy and fudge. I love to watch the machine pulling taffy.

Watching taffy being pulled

When we left Estes Park this time, we drove through Big Thompson Canyon. The road, US Highway 34 follows the Big Thompson River. There is some ice on the river and some moving water also.

Big Thompson River

We love this canyon.

Big Thompson River

It is so pretty. I am not in this photo, but we thought it was pretty and shows the Rocky Mountains with partial sun.

Beautiful Rocky Moutains.

This is another picture of me, with my new Christmas hat, and a beautiful Colorado canyon.

Big Thompson River

The road crosses the Big Thompson River several times, and people live in this canyon. Some bridges from the road to the houses are like this one.

Bridge to cross river in canyon

Some bridges are higher above the water like this one.

Higher bridge to cross river

Some people raft and kayak on the Big Thompson River in places with the higher bridges. Along the river there are several homes, smaller cabins, and few small lodges.

Homes, cabins and lodges on Big Thompson River in Big Thompson Canyon

Highway US 34 connects the towns of Loveland and Estes Park through Big Thompson Canyon. Many other parts of the highway are also pretty, but this is our favorite part. I am so happy I went to Estes Park and through the Big Thompson Canyon. And thank you, Verna, for my new Christmas hat. My head was nice and warm.

Big Thompson River through the canyon

December 5, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Coober Pedy and Nearby with Zeb and Eider

We walked around this little town and we have never seen so many opal stores.

One of several small opal shops lining the street in Coober Pedy

We went inside some, but the human already have some opals, and Zeb and Eider don’t think any new opals will be coming home with us. We liked this car, the Opal Bug, at the Opal Beetle.

Opal Bug at Opal Beetle Shop

We entered the Umoona Opal Mine and Museum.

Umoona Mine

Into the mine.

Entering the mine

Through the tunnels.

Walking through mine tunnel

A layer of opal still in the rock.

Opal still in rock

This opal is great and they had a wonderful gift shop. But still no opals going home with us. These rock formations are known as The Breakaways.

The Breakaways

Look at this sky. Love the clouds.

The Breakaways

Nearby is the dingo fence, or the dog fence.

We are at the Dingo Fence

This dingo fence is the longest structure in the world. It is even longer than the Great Wall of China. This fence now extends for 5,300 kilometers. At one time it extended 9,600 kilometers.

Longest structure in the world

The fence was built by ranchers to prevent the wild dingos from the north from killing the stock The dingo fence was built in 1946. We then visited the Underground Serbian Orthodox Church of Saint Elijah Parish.

Underground Serbian Orthodox Church

We are entering the tunnel leading to the interior of the church.

Tunnel to underground church

The altar is beautiful.

Altar of underground Serbian Orthodox Church

This is the view from the church balcony.

From church balcony

The church is built into the mountain, like a cave, so they can have these beautiful windows on one side

Dugout allows one side with beautiful windows

We really enjoyed our visit to Coober Pedy. We hope you visit also.

December 4, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Zeb and Eider Visit the Opal Capital of the World: Coober Pedy

Zeb and Eider Duck and the human are now in the opal capital of the world.

Coober Pedy is the Opal Capital of the World

We are in Coober Pedy, South Australia. Coober Pedy is in the southern outback desert. In the heat of summer, temperatures of 50 degrees Celsius have been recorded. For those of us using Fahrenheit temperatures, that is about 124 degrees. The first opal was discovered by Willie Hutchison in 1915, and the town was born.

Coober Pedy celebrates 100 years

95% of the world’s opals come from Australia and Coober Pedy produces more than any other area of Australia.

Beautiful opals

When World War I ended, returning soldiers came to find opals. There was very little wood to build homes and the soldiers had lived in underground fox holes during the war. With no wood and extreme heat, living underground was the best solution. The home were called dugouts, as most were dug out of the side of a hill.

Dugout is dug out of side of mountain or hill

The name of the town came from the aboriginal phrase, Kupa Piti,which means “white fellows in a hole.” Today over half of Coober Pedy’s population lives in dugouts, underground. The underground temperature remains a comfortable 24 degrees Celsius (about 73 degrees F) all year. We stayed at the Desert Cave

Desert Cave Hotel. We stayed in underground part in the back

in an underground room. This is the hotel’s underground hall to our room.

Underground hall to our room

Since we are underground, the emergency exit must be a staircase leading up to the outdoors. Here we are on the emergency exit.

Climb up for emergency exit

Our hotel has a bar and game room that is underground.

Underground Bar in our hotel

We like this place.

First underground bar for Zeb and Eider

Our breakfast restaurant, the Crystal Cafe, is also underground, as is the gift shop and the opal store, Opal World. Our hotel, the Desert Cave, has a tunnel from the reception to the restaurant and shops. We are going down the stairs and into the tunnel.

Down the stairs to our hotel tunnel

In the tunnel we discovered an opal mine and museum. Here is a pretend miner using the mine shaft to enter and exit.

A fake miner using ropes to enter and exit the mine

There is a photographic history of Coober Pedy in the tunnel. We are on some mining machinery in the tunnel.

We are on old mining equipment

We really liked our hotel and we like visiting Coober Pedy. If you visit here, be sure to arrange transportation to your hotel before you arrive. There are no taxis in Coober Pedy. Next time we will show you some of Coober Pedy. We like it here.

December 2, 2015 by coloradotravelingducks

Australia’s Ayers Rock or Uluru and Kata Tjuta with Zeb and Eider Duck

Zeb and Eider and the humans visited Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park.

Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

We arrived in the afternoon and immediately arranged to view Uluru, previously called Ayers Rock, at sunset. The rock seems to change color as the sun begins to set.

Uluru as sun begins to set

This is one of our favorite sunset photos.

Uluru at sunset

The next morning we returned to view the sunrise. The sun is hitting Uluru now, creating light and great shadows.

Sunrise at Uluru

The rock is so large that photographs are difficult. From Uluru, we could see the rising sun reflect on the Kata Tjuta formation.

Sunrise over Kata Tjuta

The entire scene of sunrise and huge rocks is very impressive. Later we drove around Uluru. You can see the rock is not smooth.

Not just a smooth rock

The uneven surface and holes or small caves, make the rock more interesting and mysterious to us. Many humans walk round the rock,and many climb Uluru.

Some tourists climb Uluru

Climbing Uluru can be dangerous and the native aboriginal people ask you not to climb their sacred sites. We sat here close to the ground, but we did not climb Uluru.

We did not climb. Just sat at bottom of rock. Aboriginals request no climbing.

It is very impressive to walk round the area, gazing at the 1,150 feet, or 350 meters of the giant monolith that is above ground.

Uluru. Best appreciated from a distance to see whole thing

Geologists say that Uluru is the summit of a massive underground chunk of sandstone, about 600 million years old. About 10% of the rock is visible. Next we drove 20 miles (32km) west to Kata Tjuta, or the Olgas. Kata Tjuta is a cluster of 36 sandstone and arkose (sedimentary rock formed from granite sands).

Kata Tjuta is cluster of 36 sandstone rocks

The largest, Mount Olga, rises 1,800 feet (549 meters) above the ground.

Mount Olga

Scientists believe Kata Tjuta was part of a giant monolith about 10 times the size of Uluru. Kata Tjuta has fewer visitors than Uluru and there are no facilities or water available. Also, no climbing on the rocks is permitted There are several hikes around the rocks, but visitors must stay on the trails. The winds were pretty strong when we were there. This is the trail to the Olga Gorge.

Trail to Olga Gorge

We are getting closer.

Getting higher

It is quite windy now. People can hike to the gorge, but not climb on the rocks.

Really windy now

We liked Kata Tjuta,

Kata Tjuta

and Uluru.

Uluru

When you visit, we think you will really enjoy the park. We also think you will take hundreds of photos of the rocks. Our humans did.

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Zeb and Eider Continue Touring Australia’s Great Ocean Road

Rainforest Walk in Australia’s Great Otway National Park with Zeb and Eider

Channel is Hanging Over the Caribbean

Zeb the Duck Admires Christmas Decorations at the Governor’s Mansion

Naracoorte Caves National Park in Australia with Zeb and Eider Duck

Zeb and Eider Duck Begin Bus Tour from Adelaide to Melbourne, Australia

Zeb the Duck has a new Christmas Hat

Coober Pedy and Nearby with Zeb and Eider

Zeb and Eider Visit the Opal Capital of the World: Coober Pedy

Australia’s Ayers Rock or Uluru and Kata Tjuta with Zeb and Eider Duck