I thought it was about time I contributed something to this blog so here is a lovely jolly little tune for you to listen to. We have been listening to it on nearly all the tours we have been taking as the guides seem to think it's funny! (The video is pretty good too...)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNEeq5qGh8I
Before we left the UK we both read Bill Bryson's book 'Down Under' which is really funny on all the deadly creatures that can get you in the sea or on land so when we arrived and the first thing that my aunt said when we arrived at her house was, 'There is a huge carpet snake somewhere in the garden...' (carpet snakes are a python and can get very big) you can understand that we were a bit concerned. Then when we took our sailing trip around the Whitsundays we had to wear stinger suits so the jellyfish wouldn't get us. While on the west coast it was the great whites we had to look out for, although it was Bondi Beach on the east side that had to be evacuated because the lifeguards spotted a shark swiiming around.
There are Australians apparently, who have never seen a snake, even though there are supposed to be 7 or 8 in every square kilometre. Nick's cousins in Perth have been in Oz for nearly 60 years and they have never seen one. I have only been here for three months and it turns out that I am a bit of a snake magnet or a parselmouth for the Harry Potter fans. I have had 9 snake encounters and after yesterday when I finally got the photographic evidence Nick has started to think he ought to not go out walking with me.
So here they are and the last two have pictures!
1. Walking down a very well populated and properley made up track from the top of the Byron Bay lighthouse to the beachto meet Sam and Simon - I saw a brown snake curled around one of the posts in the side of the path. Simon said it was probably a whip snake(not bad) but Sam said even brown snakes (bad) have to start small.
2. At Airlie Beach Motel there was a snake curled up on a table between two of the rooms in the evening of the first night we were there. The receptionist said it was probably a tree snake (not bad).
3. On our first tour up the west coast we spotted a long black snake on the road which reared up as the truck passed it. Nick didn't see this one, but the guide did. He didn't know what kind of one it was.
4. At Monkey Mia while watching the ranger standing in the water talking about dolphins and getting ready to let us, the public go in to the water to feed the dolphins fish, a sea snake (very bad) stuck its head and most of its body out of the water...even the ranger was concerned.
5. At Karijini we had been warned that there might well be snakes out, especially at night so that was a worry if we needed to pop to the loo across the track from our tent. I went the wrong way back to our tent and saw a small snake (unknown) across the path which I took a wide detour to avoid (remember 'Leave It Alone' from our talk at the Currumbin Animal Sanctuary at the start of our trip). But got back to the tent to tell everyone in a bit of a flap.
6. As we drove out of Karijini I saw a wedge tailed eagle swoop down into the bush and then watched as it flew off with a big black snake (unknown) in its claws. Too quick to take a picture but actually spectacular.
7. On the Nullarbor trip you can imagine the idea of sleeping in swags was a bit of a worry with my previous experience, but it was the guide who spotted another big snake, a taipan (very bad) crossing the road and going into the long grass. He promptly jumped out of the truck with his camera to wander around in that same grass to try to get pics. Needless to say I stayed on board.
8. Which brings us to yesterday. Dennis said that he had never seen a snake around his place so not to worry....well... We went for a walk to see some of the millionaire houses and Dennis spotted a snake on the track we had just walked on. We think this big snake was a tiger snake (very bad because not only poisonous but aggressive as well) because it had the stripes on it. We stood well back and let it do its thing (Leave It Alone). But here is the picture of it:
9. So thinking that surely has to be it for snake encounters, we set off on a longer walk to the end of the peninnsula to see the forts and the sea. We passed a sign saying beware uneven ground and another warning about the possibility of snakes. Nick tripped as he walked up a ramps so we all had a bit of a laugh about not reading the signsand I said, 'Ho Ho, we might well see a snake now...' and blow me down but two minutes later Dennis was standing withhis hands in the air saying I nearly stepped on a snake. I thought this was just teasing but there it was slipping into the grass. And another picture to prove it:
.JPG)
We are about to set off on another adventurous day out on the Peninnsula and I am just hoping that I have had all the encounters with snakes now. I think three a month is enough for anyone. And one day I'll tell you the tale of the Killer Golden Retrievers they have here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNEeq5qGh8I
Before we left the UK we both read Bill Bryson's book 'Down Under' which is really funny on all the deadly creatures that can get you in the sea or on land so when we arrived and the first thing that my aunt said when we arrived at her house was, 'There is a huge carpet snake somewhere in the garden...' (carpet snakes are a python and can get very big) you can understand that we were a bit concerned. Then when we took our sailing trip around the Whitsundays we had to wear stinger suits so the jellyfish wouldn't get us. While on the west coast it was the great whites we had to look out for, although it was Bondi Beach on the east side that had to be evacuated because the lifeguards spotted a shark swiiming around.
There are Australians apparently, who have never seen a snake, even though there are supposed to be 7 or 8 in every square kilometre. Nick's cousins in Perth have been in Oz for nearly 60 years and they have never seen one. I have only been here for three months and it turns out that I am a bit of a snake magnet or a parselmouth for the Harry Potter fans. I have had 9 snake encounters and after yesterday when I finally got the photographic evidence Nick has started to think he ought to not go out walking with me.
So here they are and the last two have pictures!
1. Walking down a very well populated and properley made up track from the top of the Byron Bay lighthouse to the beachto meet Sam and Simon - I saw a brown snake curled around one of the posts in the side of the path. Simon said it was probably a whip snake(not bad) but Sam said even brown snakes (bad) have to start small.
2. At Airlie Beach Motel there was a snake curled up on a table between two of the rooms in the evening of the first night we were there. The receptionist said it was probably a tree snake (not bad).
3. On our first tour up the west coast we spotted a long black snake on the road which reared up as the truck passed it. Nick didn't see this one, but the guide did. He didn't know what kind of one it was.
4. At Monkey Mia while watching the ranger standing in the water talking about dolphins and getting ready to let us, the public go in to the water to feed the dolphins fish, a sea snake (very bad) stuck its head and most of its body out of the water...even the ranger was concerned.
5. At Karijini we had been warned that there might well be snakes out, especially at night so that was a worry if we needed to pop to the loo across the track from our tent. I went the wrong way back to our tent and saw a small snake (unknown) across the path which I took a wide detour to avoid (remember 'Leave It Alone' from our talk at the Currumbin Animal Sanctuary at the start of our trip). But got back to the tent to tell everyone in a bit of a flap.
6. As we drove out of Karijini I saw a wedge tailed eagle swoop down into the bush and then watched as it flew off with a big black snake (unknown) in its claws. Too quick to take a picture but actually spectacular.
7. On the Nullarbor trip you can imagine the idea of sleeping in swags was a bit of a worry with my previous experience, but it was the guide who spotted another big snake, a taipan (very bad) crossing the road and going into the long grass. He promptly jumped out of the truck with his camera to wander around in that same grass to try to get pics. Needless to say I stayed on board.
8. Which brings us to yesterday. Dennis said that he had never seen a snake around his place so not to worry....well... We went for a walk to see some of the millionaire houses and Dennis spotted a snake on the track we had just walked on. We think this big snake was a tiger snake (very bad because not only poisonous but aggressive as well) because it had the stripes on it. We stood well back and let it do its thing (Leave It Alone). But here is the picture of it:
9. So thinking that surely has to be it for snake encounters, we set off on a longer walk to the end of the peninnsula to see the forts and the sea. We passed a sign saying beware uneven ground and another warning about the possibility of snakes. Nick tripped as he walked up a ramps so we all had a bit of a laugh about not reading the signsand I said, 'Ho Ho, we might well see a snake now...' and blow me down but two minutes later Dennis was standing withhis hands in the air saying I nearly stepped on a snake. I thought this was just teasing but there it was slipping into the grass. And another picture to prove it:
.JPG)
We are about to set off on another adventurous day out on the Peninnsula and I am just hoping that I have had all the encounters with snakes now. I think three a month is enough for anyone. And one day I'll tell you the tale of the Killer Golden Retrievers they have here.
