Swamps ain't swamps

In fact some swamps are amazingly beautiful places.

A group of us spent the weekend at Dunns Swamp, and what a fine swamp it is! It's a few kilometres east of Rylestone, a couple of hundred kilometres drive north west of Sydney, and it's on the western extremity of the Wollemi National Park.


Don't tell anyone, but Dunns Swamp has just about the finest, best appointed, clean and scenic camping area known to God or the National Parks service. There are dozens of very large areas for tents. There are lots of clean toilets with generous toilet paper supplies even. There's swimming to be done in the artificially widened Cudgegong River. There's firewood provided, with fireplaces and picnic tables galore. And there are great little easy walks to follow through the 'pagoda' rock formations. All for just $6 per person per night.

We were able to use Dunns Swamp as a base from which to do some bigger exploratory bushwalks too. We did some big pagoda scrambling expeditions, and we conquered the previously unconquered (by us) Mt Touwouwan and Sheridan Hill. And in the evenings, when not dodging lightning bolts and torrential downpours, we enjoyed our campfire, our camp food (in my case the usual dried cardboard gourmet Frankenbushwalker food), plus appropriate warming beverages!

 

 

Deceptive and Noble - a tale of two canyons

 

A group of us went exploring recently in a pocket of the Wollemi National Park, up the Glow Worm Tunnel Road, just before the Glow Worm Tunnel end. We checked out two amazing dry canyons: Deception Canyon and Nobles Canyon.

What a terrific, scenic, contorted wonderland!

Parramasala - and Parra gets moving!

This weekend was the Parramasala Festival weekend in Parramatta. It's the annual 'spicy celebration of cultures' - primarily Indian cultures, that is. And it's colourful, tasty, and loud!

Most of the events are in Prince Alfred Park and Harris Park. I checked out Prince Alfred Park on Saturday afternoon, and watched a Rajasthani folk group, a fashion show featuring Western Sydney designers, and a terrific troupe of Bollywood dancers, from the Natraj Dance Studio.

Oh dear, the dancers have come down into the audience, and they're wanting us all to join in!


Yours truly doesn't have a dancing bone in his body, but most of the crowd find theirs, and don't they get into it just!

The Goods Line

In New York they've got the High Line - a disused piece of elevated railway track that's now a very popular linear park. Well in Sydney we've now got the Goods Line. It's a similar concept. It's not as long or as elevated, but it's a nice little creation all the same.

It too follows an old freight line - through Ultimo, and it connects the pedestrian tunnel along the southern end of Central Station with Darling Harbour and the Powerhouse Museum. It extends the current walkway which passes the ABC building and UTS.

There are historic references and information boards, there are flower gardens, and lots of whimsical little touches like the solid iron chairs and table tennis tables.


I also found it the perfect spot to take in the full majesty of the Frank Gehry designed 'crumpled paper bag' building of the UTS Business School, the Dr Chau Chak Wing Building.

Ode to the fire trail

In this case one of the fire trails of the Berowra Valley National Park, near Arthurs Circle in Mt Colah.

In the pecking order of bushwalking routes, the humble fire trail has a somewhat lowly status. But at this time of year especially, it can offer a very pleasant and rewarding experience.

Attractive wildflowers, happy songbirds, scribbly gums, beautiful Sydney red gums, and quite dramatic vistas across the Berowra Valley.

 

I'm sure the trails around there have existed for a long time, but I only just discovered them, courtesy of the new map that just got printed. The National Park was only gazetted a couple of years ago, hence the map. Incidentally, they don't sell maps at many of the outdoor/bushwalking type shops anymore. Everyone relies on their GPS or their phone apps. I had to go to the specialist map shop in Parramatta.

Fiesta! (and Sydney sizzles)

It was the Darling Harbour Latin American Fiesta at the weekend, and the place was full of  party music and South American dancers - fabulous creatures with scanty costumes and heavenly bodies!



No wonder the buildings were melting in the sun!

On the trail of North West Rail (Part 2)

Your fearless correspondent continued his tour of inspection the other day of progress on the North West Rail link.

Here's where the marching column of  viaduct piers has got to so far, their progress guarded by a (friendly) security guard.

The Sydney Metro (otherwise known as the North West Rail Link) will burst out of its tunnels at Bella Vista, and become a 'skytrain',  running on a viaduct for the last few kilometres. The support piers are being churned out in front of our eyes, and there's a big gantry crane thing that puts the box girders in place on the piers.




I went out as far as Rouse Hill Town Centre, which will be served by the train one day. The Town Centre is an award-winning indoor-outdoor sort of shopping & community centre, which does have a fairly good feel to it.



 As good a place as any for my morning coffee.