No bird song this morning but there is a bit of color in the sunrise out our window. It is misting rain off and on but we head out to explore. We wander through The Rocks up Argyle Street and the Argyle steps to the harbor bridge approach. The sky brightens a little as we walk the length of the bridge to make for nice, slightly grey, view of the city and harbor. Typically, we could have returned to street level through one of the pylons where they tell the story of the bridge construction but not today. We take the long way down with a leisurely stroll around the Quay and back to the opera house plaza. We scope out dining options as we go and select the Burger and Rib place on George for a late lunch. Kent is the adventurous one today. He orders the Aussie burger that comes dressed with beetroot, pineapple, pickle, BBQ sauce and an egg. I try a bite, that is a lot of flavors all at once! I go for the simpler butcher burger, lettuce, pickle, and pink sauce (catchup and mayo the k

Lunch view

ind fellow behind the counter tells me). With a generous order of fries, we have more than we need. Takeaway of course. We find a bench on the waterfront that rivals any dine-in seating we might have found.
We crash a few to let our lunch digest then off again for one more evening “on the town”. It is fun to see how business are dealing with the takeaway only rule for alcohol sales. At the burger joint I could have purchased a cider to takeaway as long as I took it home without opening it (no drinking on the street) or if I drank it there while I waited for them to fix our order as long as I drank it standing (no seating at any restaurants). I opted to skip the cider. One tavern installed a Dutch door where customers can walk up and order drinks for takeaway. Generally, folks appear to be switching to drink at home. All the bottle shops are open.
We take in another lovely sunset and watch the city transition into night mode as lights twinkle on along streets, the high-rise buildings, bridge and opera house plaza. We have our hotel rooftop patio all to ourselves. If I had to choose just one, I would opt for a clear star-lit sky but this is pretty nice too. So long Australia. We head out tomorrow morning.

We are up and out early. We have a 9:30 wildlife tour on the Daintree River. It is our one last chance to see the endangered Cassowary here in the NP.  I have my eyes peeled. The road is curly and slow going so it makes it a little easier. We make a turn and there he is, a daddy Cassowary about 5 feet tall and two little ones. They ae intently foraging along the roadside. Dad eyes us a bit but they are pretty intent on eating so we get a nice long look before they wander off into the thick vegetation. Hooray! We move on, catch the ferry back across the Daintree then make it just intime for our boat ride. The focus is crocodiles but turns out their presence is intertwined with the presence of a huge colony of bats. Trees are hanging heavy with hundreds of bats and inevitably limbs break and clusters of bats crash into the river or along the shore. Crocs rush in for an easy meal. We come across “bumpy” who is lying in wait for that very event. A huge amethystine python is curled up in high branches his body swollen with bats he has come upon. This daytime roost along the river apparently moves up and down the shore every month or so. Food chains are weird. We come upon a mangrove heron (looks like our green heron) and a Tawny Frogmouth (like our nightjars). The frogmouth is so still on the nest that she looks just like a branch. Thanks, Bruce, for a fun informative ride.
One more stop, Mossman gorge. It is a pretty good stop but really a mini taste of the rainforest more appropriate for those who don’t head all the way to Daintree. We enjoy it though and see a huge golden orb weaver and another Ulysses butterfly.
We move on to the Atherton tablelands to check out wine, coffee growers, cheeses and chocolates, waterfalls and some more unique Australian wildlife if we are lucky – and a little less rain. Tomorrow maybe, we have been rained on off and on this entire drive.
Home tonight is the Mareeba Rodeo Grounds – I asked at the visitor center where the best place is to see kangaroos – we haven’t seen many yet. Her answer, the rodeo grounds so here we are and there are lots of kangaroos here and on the golf course next door! Hopefully they won’t be a nuisance by morning.
We stopped and bought a closed container to attempt to keep the mice out of all the tasty treats. Here is hoping.

Taiaroa Head near Dunedin NZ is one of just two nesting sites and the only one on mainland for the Northern Royal Albatross. This colony includes sixty some pair, half of which nest any given year. Five nests are visible from the viewing blind. We get a peek at one of the chicks. Non-breeding teenagers are enjoying the strong winds as they soar around us to within 30 feet (we are behind tinted glass). They are magnificent with their stark white/black coloring and 9 foot wingspan. This bird spends 80% of its life at sea. It is remarkable to see them so close. We spot a number of other birds new to us. Check in later for identification, maybe.
Portabella Road out to the center hugs the bays then climbs steeply to the headlands. Great views for the rider, a bit white knuckle for the driver who is still concentrating more than usual just to stay on the correct side of the road!

Night three our home is the Dunedin Holiday Park; a collection of theme decorated mini cabins and patches of soft green grass for tenters and we non-powered campervan folks. It is rainy but the trusty back hatch provides plenty of shelter for fixing supper. We have a cozy quiet night.