7 February 2000
Had a nice day yesterday (Sunday). The picnic area we went to is beautiful, set in a pine forest with a spring fed, crystal clear pool for swimming. It is very well maintained, with spacious grounds and plenty of tables and chairs and barbecues. We had barbecued sausages on rolls for "brunch" and then went on to a local pottery. Here they had some very nice stuff in both pottery and timber. The chap who owns and runs it is apparently quite well-known locally and elsewhere and items for sale were of very high standard both in terms of quality and originality.
Today (Monday) Trish had to go to work for a meeting so we dropped her at the Uni about 10:00 a.m. and then continued on into Rockhampton to look around. The weather was not too good, with solid overcast and heavy showers accompanying almost continuous drizzle. We picked Trish up just after midday and went to a crocodile farm which is on the road out to a place called Emu Park. Fortunately by this time the rain had stopped and there were some sunny periods. We went on a conducted tour of the farm to see the crocodiles and watch them being fed. The commentary was absorbing and it was interesting to learn that there are crocs nearby in the Fitzroy River (which runs through Rockhampton) but that as long as they don't turn rogue and make nuisances of themselves they are left alone. Apparently the biggest croc captured in Australia (I'm not sure now whether it was around here or not) was 8 metres long - what a monster! After the tour finished we all watched a short video and then had the opportunity to hold and be photographed with a baby croc around a metre long. I thought Lorraine was very brave when her turn came, and Trish christened her "Crocodile Mumdee". The croc didn't feel at all like I thought it would; it just felt cool to the touch and was hard on its back, but soft yet firm on its underside.
After leaving the crocodile farm we continued on out to Emu Park and had some lunch at the "Singing Ship". This is a monument to Captain Cook situated on the top of a headland. It is in the shape of a white stylized concrete sailing ship and incorporates an acoustic element of a set of pipes that the wind (and there was plenty there yesterday) causes to whistle softly - just as you would blow a whistle.
From there we made our way back to Yeppoon via the coast road and went for a drive to the wetlands out near Rydge's Resort. Unfortunately due to prolonged drought conditions these were almost dry and there were hardly any birds to be seen, although we did see a small (a couple of feet) brown snake as it scurried across the road in front of the car.
As we will be leaving here tomorrow, we took Trish and Jenny out to dinner at the local Irish pub (yes, they are here too) as a thank you for their hospitality and we all had a very nice meal.
Tomorrow afternoon we plan to go down to Bundaberg (well-known for its rum, among other things), after spending the morning visiting the Rockhampton Art Gallery, the Botanical Gardens and Zoo and some of the local churches and cathedrals.