Maleny a place to relax

We had 4 days in Maleny which was lovely such a wonderful part of the world.
The weather turned cooler and I had to get my jeans out again.

While walking to a waterfall this fellow had Tony running like a girl.
An Australian Water Dragon I think.

Look at those claws.

We spent a morning walking through Mary Cairncross Reserve it was an amazing walk. The trees were so large and tall they make Tony who isn't that tall look even smaller.

Lots of Fungi it fascinates me as we don't see it much at home.

A Pademelon hiding in the undergrowth.

more fungi

This is were we stayed and I would recommend it for a relaxing break.
Rosebrook Cottages.

Our view out over the valley

There was a lovely little river near our cottage this is Tony playing Pooh sticks.

A statue near our cottage.

A wonderful end to the day.
Thank you for all your comments I do appreciate them but I am struggling with the replies as the email is set up differently on this computer. It is very laborious opening and relying and I am not sure why I have tried changing the setting but to no avail.
I will deal with them when I get home.

Hervey Bay

I really enjoyed Hervey Bay it was warm and a great place to just walk around.

We drove to Toogoom one day this single tree looked very lonely.

This was Burrum Heads a short drive from Hervey Bay.



This was the view from our apartment window.
I sat and ate my breakfast each morning watching the whale watching boats leave.
This morning it was foggy but still warm.



Hervey Bay has the best water park called Wet Side.
Imagine the fun as this bucket fills and then empties.





Fun for everyone even the teenagers.



While walking out the Urangan Jetty we noticed these little crabs on the sand below.



There were thousands. When you walk on the beach near them they bury themselves.





Urangan Jetty is very long and when the tide is out there is a lot of sand.



Trees I have never seen before with the most amazing roots.



Quaint old pub in Howard.



A walk in the Botanic Park at Hervey Bay was full of excitement for Tony.......... being a pom he is not keen on lizards and crawly things.
He nearly died when this Goana dropped out of the tree and walked away.



a little further along a frill neck soaking up the sun.



he was OK with butterflies that looked like bark.



not keen on insects............................. which I think were mating.



Fungi



really not keen on webs ........... always wondering where the spider was





Hervey Bay has a fruit bat colony



as they stretch their wings then wrap themselves up they do remind me of images in the movie Dracula.

Good on yu Blogger

If you haven't read Chooky's blog which I'm sure you have Blogger have come up with a spam filter........... what a great idea.
Have a look here.
I have just gone back and put some comments from Spandex Lycra in the spam bucket.
Then again perhaps they were not spam just a hint not to wear spandex or Lycra LOL.
The snap is the Hervey Bay Marina.

Whale watching

Yesterday I went whale watching to say it was amazing is an understatement.
They poked their noses out of the water to see us.

They showed us their tails.

The sun glistened off them.

They rolled on their sides.

Catching them breach the surface was hard so lots of photos of splashes.

Lots of fin slapping

Barnacles on noses

and on fins

Blow holes

Nearly caught a breach

There were so many whales they approach the boat and checked us out they played with each other while swimming around the boat. They were so close you could almost touch them. They were so close my long lens could not focus.

We motored out past Fraser Island.

This was the boat I went out on I would recommend them the crew were friendly and informative.

They are truly amazing creature but sadly they are still hunted.
If you ever have the chance to see them I recommend it. If you have the chance to sign a partition against whale hunting please sign it and feel free to add my name.
I am always conscious of humans interfering with the animal kingdom and worry that the boats may affect the whales. The women who was our guide said she has been doing the tours for 12 years and has seen the number of whale in the bay increase.
I do hope the Australian Government does something to stop the Japanese hunting the whales.
They are the most amazing creatures.
If these photos haven't bored you too much there are more on my Flickr page just click on one of the photos and you will be taken there.