Termite Mounds

4,225 km (2,625 miles) from home here in Launceston, Tasmania, is Litchfield NP in the Northern Territory of Australia. A long way from home for sure, it took many days to travel there a few years ago.

Magnetic and Cathedral Termite Mounds near Litchfield National Park in the Northern Territory.  The mounds are up to 2 meters tall and can live up to a hundred years. 

Magnetic termites build them.  

Each mound has a single Queen who lays all the eggs alongside a massive workforce of blind, soft-skinned worker termite and defensive soldier termites that protect the nest using sticky secretions.

Natural predators are ants, if they get inside where the termites are and not stopped, they will kill the termites. 

The Wedge shape mounds have a thin edge of the blade-like mounds that point directly north and south, while the broad flat sides face east and west.  They are built this way by the termites to keep their home cool.

Their name, Magnetic Termite comes from the uncanny, compass-like orientation of their massive mounds.

Magnetic Termite act as grazing herbivores, feeding on surface vegetation, leaves, and dry grass in the tropical savannas of Northern Australia.

On the way to Tenterfield, NSW

Some of the towns names the ancestor brought out and named small settlements back in the day and a couple we drove through.  They are Boliva, Bonny Doon, Dundee, Stonehenge, Ben Lomond all within the Tenterfield area.

For those that remember the singer Peter Allen born 1944, died 1992 was born in Tenterfield and wrote the song Tenterfield Traveller as a tribute to his grandfather, George Woolnoough, who worked as a saddler in the country town of Tenterfield in New South Wales.  

Peter was married to Liza Minnelli in 1967 (Judy Garland's daughter) divorced 1974. Peter never married again.  Gregory Connell and Peter met in 1973 and Gregory died in 1984, Peter never had another partner.

Nice view of the landscape and a typical farm gate below.

This road used to be the highway years ago.  We pulled off the highway and drove up this old road to take a look.  Below a rest area along the way.

The area around Tenterfield, NSW has the red marks around it.

Renmark, SA Sunset.

Renmark sunset in South Australia.  I recently did a post with a sunset in Renmark SA and this is another one totally different.  It never ceases to amaze me how clouds make such a dramatic difference especially in this case.  These set of photos were taken in a different year but all the same evening.

You can refresh your memory what the sunset looked like [ here ] in the other post.

Orange to Bathurst NSW

On the way from Orange to Bathurst in New South Wales these photos show us the scenery in this rural area.  Cobwebs were on the trees, thousands of cobwebs, this is just one.  Then there was the frost, then fog.  A most interesting drive as it was not a long one, about 45 to 50 minutes.

Orange NSW is not that far from Bathurst where the red flag is on the map. The photo above is Bathurst's main street and it was still foggy but then Bathurst is about 650 meters above sea level (2,130 feet) and yes it does snow there.  Also Bathurst is where car racing is held.  Touring Car Racing as well as GT Endurance car racing is held on Mount Panorama, Bathurst.

St. Joseph's Catholic Church, Orange, New South Wales.

St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Orange, New South Wales (NSW) foundation stone was laid on April 4, 1869, and the original nave opened in 1871.  The Church was extensively extended in 1899. 

The Church is on a hill, the street called Hill Street, most Catholic Churches were built on a hill in Australia if a hill was available. In many cities towns the land is very flat.  When coming into a town or city especially inland Australia you always can see the Catholic Church because it's on a hill.  When we first started travelling Australia in the year 2000 all the doors of the Churches were open and as the years went by they closed unless in use.  Sad really.

The above photo of the Church is from the archives in Orange so therefore it's old.

Orange, New South Wales

 Update Sunday 5, September - I can comment it seems, it's good to have that feature back!

Update:  I can't leave a comment on my blog or your blogs.  Blogger doesn't permit it.

I've tried the 'fix' according to the instructions but that doesn't work.  So another glitch!

I am visiting and reading your blogs and will keep trying to comment. It appears that I'm not the only one with this glitch. 

Thank you for commenting. 

Orange the name of the town we stayed in in Central New South Wales in the high country so it's colder there in the winter for sure.  We stayed there a few years back in the caravan in a caravan park and one morning we woke up to 'frost' like I've never seen before.  Oh, it was cold because we were not used that type of weather.   The show grounds were behind us, and a few men brought their dogs there training them.

Orange is about 3.1/2 hours drive from Sydney.  Population is about 42,000 people.  We have only been there once. Oranges do not grow in Orange. 

The city was named after Prince William of Orange.  Major Thomas Mitchell (1792-1855) was Surveyor-General (1828-1855) overseeing official maps and infrastructure.  He was a Scottish born Soldier and explorer.  Major Thomas Mitchell named Orange, New South Wales, in honour of Prince William of Orange.  Mitchell chose the name in 1846 as a personal tribute to the Prince, with whom he had served and fought during the Peninsular War in Spain.

 Agriculture and mining happens there. 

Kangaroo Paw, Western Australia

 The plant Kangaroo Paw is a native plant that you find growing in the Australian Bush in Western Australia.  The flower reflects a kangaroo paw hence it's name. A collection of colours of Kangaroo Paws [ here ] plus photos of the plant close up.  The colours are more intense in cooler climates.

These photos were taken by me not far from Ravensthorpe in Western Australia several years ago. I'm really enjoying looking at my past travels of Australia in our caravan and finding photos to share. 

The Kangaroo Paws like to grow in sandy soil slightly acidic so the air can get to the roots.

Salt bush growing in a similar area and the Indigenous Australians used saltbush as a versatile food, natural seasoning, and traditional medicine.  They roasted and ground the seeds to mix into damper (bush bread), used the salty leaves to wrap and flavour meats, and applied crushed leaves as a poultice to soothe burns, wounds, and skin sores.

Many farm animals, native wildlife, and insects eat saltbush which serves as a tough, salty food source in dry area - including sheep.

From Launceston to Ravensthorpe is 3,550 km, 44 hours and 9 minutes (2,205 miles)

Two maps as it gives better idea of the distance. You can see the marks on the map.

A Special Day it was

 Update, I've added a video that has just become available - it's below!

Yesterday, Sunday 23 August 2026 the new ferry called The Spirit of Tasmania 1V arrived to it's home port in Devonport, Tasmania about 1 hours drive from home, Launceston, Tasmania.   It is now berthed in the Mersey River, Devonport for a trial run to see if all fitted!  The ferry sails between Devonport and Geelong in Victoria across Bass Strait some 459 kms (285 miles).

The river isn't that wide it's about 200 to 300 meters (656 to 984 feet) from one side to the other.

Our Great nephew A in his early 30's (his parents I mentioned in the post before last) was the Pilot of the Pilot boat that guided the ferry into the river and berth.  He is the Harbour Pilot and he had been a Captain of a ship previously for a few years before taking on his current position.  

Some photos I borrowed from the Internet, the remainder his Grandmother sent me (my husband's sister) of Sunday's morning happenings in Devonport.   

A, with Pilot written on his clothes in the Pilot boat.

Amazing how the ferry fits into it's mooring backing into it, and of course it has to turn around to do this.

The Spirit of Tasmania 1V and there is another called The Spirit of Tasmania V, this latter one will arrive later, as the ships cross in the night one of course going to Geelong in Victoria and the other coming to Devonport, Tasmania.  

The ferry is built to carry up to 1,400 passengers and 500 vehicles per crossing across Bass Strait.  The ships were built in Rauma, Finland. 

A, in the Bridge of the ferry as he had to climb up the ladder of the ferry to enter.

The video of the arrival in Devonport on Sunday.  The video just became available.  If you wish to view it and see how it turns around, that happens about 6.34.  Beautiful sunrise to welcome The Spirit of Tasmania lV.  The birds are having their say, you can hear them.