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  • Biff
    Speed Bag Wizard

    • Feb 2008
    • 1190

    #16
    Leg 5 - Tasmania

    It was a long flight from Cairns to Launceston, Tasmania on Feb. 24th where we began a four-day bus tour of this wonderful Australian island. Over the course of the four days we traveled to a multitude of sites, learning all about Australia in general and Tasmania in particular. We toured Freycinet National Park, Port Arthur, and Hobart just to name a few of the many places. Each day we would stop at several scenic areas to take some pix, eat lunch, and explore. On the third day we stopped at a wildlife preserve where we could walk up and feed kangaroos, saw more koalas, and other wildlife including the famed Tasmanian devils.

    The tour guide was extremely informative and we learned so much about Tasmania. The downside to the tour was the bus ride. Sometimes it was an hour or more between stops, and the winding roads sometimes gave me agida. But, all things considered, it was well worth it.

    Pic 1 - Our "Chariot" for touring Tassie
    Pic 2 - Trees carved by chainsaw, in honor of Aussies who served in WWW I
    Pix 3 and 4 - Freycinet National Park
    Pic 5 - Old prison building in Port Arthur
    Pic 6 - Tasmanian devil
    Pic 7 - A not-yet-mature wombat
    Pic 8 - Roo and her joey (look at the large "toe nail" on the mother)
    Attached Files
    Last edited by Biff; 03-17-2013, 05:48 PM.

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    • Biff
      Speed Bag Wizard

      • Feb 2008
      • 1190

      #17
      Well, I wanted to finish up our visit to Dean's, so you baggers will have to suffer through a few more posts.

      Leg 6 - Sydney

      We left Tasmania for Sydney on Feb 28th and arrived at the airport where we took the train to the "Rocks" area of Sydney. We walked around Circular Quay and saw the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House. Although the weather during our stay was not too cooperative, we did manage to get around and see all we wanted. We met Dean and Therese for dinner and a pub crawl. We had a funny experience at one of the pubs. There was an Aussie "face licker" who attacked me. But fear not, I licked him back. Never let it be said that a Yank was licked by an Aussie!

      The next day, before we headed back to Deano’s, the four of us drove to Bronte beach and walked along a scenic path to Bondi beach and back, stopping for lunch along the way. Just more examples of the great beaches in Oz.

      As you can see in the pix, the weather was not the best. But a bad day in Australia beats a superb day back home!


      Pic 1 - Sydney Harbour Bridge
      Pic 2 - Sydney Opera House
      Pic 3 - Darling Harbour at night
      Pic 4 - The "Face Licker" in action
      Pic 5 - Bronte Beach
      Pic 6 - Bondi Beach
      Pic 7 - Bondi Pool (many beaches had "rock pools" where people could swim)
      Pic 8 - Dean and Therese on the pathway
      Pic 9 - Limestone erosion along the way
      Pic 10 - Looking toward Bronte on way back
      Attached Files
      Last edited by Biff; 03-30-2013, 04:38 PM.

      Comment

      • Biff
        Speed Bag Wizard

        • Feb 2008
        • 1190

        #18
        Leg 7 - Deano's Part 2

        We ended our Australian stay with a few more days at the Goodwin's. Ted and Yvonne were our hosts one more time as they drove us north along the coastal highway where we stopped at numerous beaches. We ended up at Bald Hill at Stanwell Park, another spectacular view.

        Dean and Therese took us to some more local beaches, from Shell Harbour down to Jervis Bay, where one beach was prettier than the next. They also took us to where kangaroos roam around in people's yards. We were amazed to see them just standing around on people's property!

        Roc Stone, another Down Under bagger, stopped by one afternoon. It was great hanging and banging with him. Therese won tickets to a Black Sorrows concert, so the four of us and three other couples spent a great evening listening to them.

        On our last full day at Dean’s I got up in Dean's micro light for a second time, and talked Mrs. Biff into trying it. She loved it.

        And of course, the trip would not have been complete without a barbie. We got to meet the rest of Dean’s family, all super people just like Dean and Therese. On Sunday, March 10th, we unfortunately had to leave. I can honestly say that this was the first vacation that I was ever on, where I did not want to get back home.

        I had the opportunity to help with Zaza's film, "Art of the Bag." I interviewed Ted, Dean and Tom, as well as shot video of them punching on the ball. I even got Roc Stone to show some of his stuff. I just hope that some of the footage makes it into the film, and that it all doesn't end up on the cutting room floor!

        June and I want to express our sincere thanks and appreciation to Dean and Therese, their families, and Ted and Yvonne, for their generosity and hospitality. We would not have had such a wonderful time had it not been for them. They took us to places that we never would have found on our own. Everyone was just so great to us. Thank you again, to our Aussie friends.

        Pic 1 - One of the many beaches we saw with Ted and Yvonne
        Pic 2 - The four of us at Bald Hill in Stanwell Park
        Pic 3 - View from an overlook on way home with Ted
        Pic 4 - Shell Harbour Beach
        Pic 5 - Summer Cloud Bay
        Pic 6 - Hyams Beach
        Pic 7 - Common road sign
        Pic 8 - Kangaroos in people's front yard. Just unreal.
        EDIT:
        Pic 9 - Therese's Mom, Kathy, and Therese
        Attached Files
        Last edited by Biff; 03-30-2013, 04:43 PM.

        Comment

        • Biff
          Speed Bag Wizard

          • Feb 2008
          • 1190

          #19
          Final pics.....

          Again, we have to thank all the Goodwins for a once-in-a-lifetime trip.

          Pic 1 - Roc getting ready to go
          Pic 2 - Mrs. Biff getting ready to go up in Dean's micro light
          Pic 3 - Dean's sister Meghan, and husband, Guy, at the barbie
          Pic 4 - Dean and his brother, Greg
          Pic 5 - Finally had a meat pie
          Pic 6 - Saying goodbye at the airport
          Attached Files

          Comment

          • Speedbag
            Author of the Speed Bag Bible, founder of speedbagcentral.com

            • Feb 2006
            • 7109

            #20
            Originally posted by Biff View Post
            Leg 4 - Cairns, Port Douglas and the Great Barrier Reef

            On Feb. 18th it was off to Cairns (pronounced Cans, as we soon found out!) for a few days, in the very tropical north of Australia. While there, we rode the train up to Katumba, where we spent a few hours, and then took the sky rail back down the mountain. A great learning experience as well as a perfect way to spend a day. Another day we took a bus to Port Douglas where we boarded a wave runner (4 - 2000 hp jet motors) that took us 1-1/2 hr to the outer banks of the GBR where we snorkeled for several hours. No better place in the world to snorkel than the GBR. My only regret was forgetting to purchase an underwater digital camera. DOH! We did manage to get many pix from inside a semi-submersible vessel, but it just wasn't the same.

            We ate tons of fish and calamari during our stays in both Brisbane and Cairns. There were many varieties of fresh fish that we had never heard of, but everything we tried, we enjoyed. We also ate some crocodile and kangaroo. We were hesitant to eat kangaroo, but it was somewhat like steak. I did notice that Mrs. Biff had a spring in her step the next day! Oh, BTW, the beer in Australia kicks the $hit out of American beer. Their normal beer is anywhere from 4.4 to 6.0, and their light beer is around 3.6! Also, Aussies don't drink Fosters. They hate it. As I was told, they save it for the Yanks.


            Pic 1 - View from hotel in Cairns
            Pic 2 - Double rainbow (as you can see from all the pix, we had some cloudy days)
            Pic 3 - The Esplanade
            Pic 4 - The downtown pool
            Pic 5 - The train going up to Katomba
            Pic 6 - The SkyRail going down
            Pic 7 - View from the SkyRail
            Pic 8 - Area where we snorkeled at the Great Barrier Reef
            Pic 9 - Pontoon platform in the outer reef area


            Unforunately, we did not get any underwater shots, because some dope forgot to buy an underwater camera. (I could kill her! Just kidding, June)
            Where are the breaching white sharks in this picture?
            Speed Bag

            Put a little Rhythm in YOUR workout!
            *attendee: Every SB gathering so far!
            The Quest Continues...
            Hoping for another Gathering...


            sigpic

            The Art of the Bag

            Comment

            • Zaza
              Speed Bag Guru
              • Apr 2011
              • 2000

              #21
              Jealous...and SO thankful that you would even take the time to help with the film on this awesome vacation....Thank you again Biff!

              You're the best!!!
              (and I'll make sure the footage doesn't end up on the cutting room floor)
              Art of the Bag - A Speed Bag Story
              http://www.artofthebag.com

              Comment

              • Biff
                Speed Bag Wizard

                • Feb 2008
                • 1190

                #22
                Originally posted by Speedbag View Post
                Where are the breaching white sharks in this picture?
                Sharks? No one told us about sharks!

                Actually, Australia has a some of the world's deadliest species of animals.

                Below are what are believed to be Australia's top ten dangerous (and lethal) animals:

                1. The Box Jellyfish
                2. Irukandji (A Jellyfish)
                3. Salt Water Crocodile
                4. Blue Ring Octopus
                5. Stone Fish
                6. Red Back Spider
                7. Brown Snake
                8. Tiger Snake
                9. Great White Shark
                10. Funnel Web Spider

                Luckily, we didn't encounter any of them.

                Originally posted by Zaza View Post
                Jealous...and SO thankful that you would even take the time to help with the film on this awesome vacation....Thank you again Biff!

                You're the best!!!
                (and I'll make sure the footage doesn't end up on the cutting room floor)
                My pleasure. Glad I could help in some small way.
                Last edited by Biff; 04-10-2013, 04:36 AM.

                Comment

                • deano
                  Australia's Elbow Wizard

                  • Jun 2009
                  • 224

                  #23
                  Aussie Biff and June

                  It was a pleasure to have these guys stay with us we did heaps together and we loved every minute of it. Hope they can stay longer next time that is for sure. A great friendship all because of the this Forum. Deano and Therese

                  Comment

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